So...whats for dinner?

illimae

Damn Dodgers, I do believe I am inspired to have steak and scallops this week 😀

DodgersGirl

MinusTwo and Illimae— it was a treat, for sure. This week is my wedding anniversary so daughter suggested the dinner as an early celebration. I think she was spot on. Steaks were tender and a perfect medium to medium rare. Scallops were excellent with the garlic, lemon, butter sauce. Fresh corn is always a summer treat!!

auntienance

Frogmore stew tonight using fresh corn picked just this morning. Yum.

carolehalston

Minus, I return to MN tomorrow. The two weeks passed fast. Yesterday I took a container of homemade chicken and dumplings for my mother and myself for lunch. She loves chicken and dumplings and enjoyed this treat. When I made dumplings for Mother's Day dinner, I made extra dough and froze it. So all I had to do was boil some chicken.

My dinner llast night was a slice of bread spread with mayo and topped with grated cheese and toasted. Also two delicious Bunny chocolate ice cream sandwich bars.

You do much better with your solitary eating than I have done this two weeks, Minus.

MinusTwo

Carole - Have a safe trip.

It took me a LONG time to even begin to figure out how to cook for one. Now I separate most of my efforts into 3 portions as soon as they're done, two are frozen and one provides two meals. Or one goes to a neighbor who is home bound if it's one of the few things she'll eat. Even worse although I do sort of plan meals ahead and grocery shop once a week, it's so frustrating to buy 2 bananas, 2 peaches, 2 avocados, etc. and still have a problem with them going bad before I eat them. If I'm in a salad mood, I have to stay in that same mood for several days in a row or waste the lettuce. Even (horrors) the pre-bagged salad that I usually buy now. My closest decent grocery store is way too far to drive out every day for fresh food.

The biggest problem is balanced meals. When I try to prepare those, it's too much food at one sitting. So I'll eat meat one day & salad the next & pasta the next.

Last night's irresponsible supper was Jarlsberg cheese cut into match sticks and five Snapper's - mini pretzel's with carmel, dark chocolate and sea salt - served with a glass of Apothic "DARK" wine.

Today will be a container of the Bombay Curry Chicken I made last month & pulled out of the freezer.

eric95us

Im in Atlanta,, so it's hotel food for me.

MinusTwo

Eric - are you deployed? Or ongoing training? Or just for fun?

The leftover Bombay Chicken was good again, but now I can't help but noticing the color. The neighbor I shared with last month said she had to close her eyes so she didn't think of baby poop.

The first of the Olathe Corn has just appeared. Just small shipment so far, but still, I will eat that until I'm sick for the next couple of weeks.

eric95us

"Just' training.

illimae

Tonight was Ribeye with grilled squash/zucchini and seared scallops to celebrate a good brain MRI.

auntienance

Good news illimae!

Butter chicken with brown rice, naan and sliced tomatoes from the garden.

I'm craving chicken and dumplings Carole.

SpecialK

illimae - yay!

DH and DD are still out of town so I wasn’t planning any dinner, got a text from my neighbor while I was out running errands that she needed warm bodies in the seats at a wine pairing dinner she was hosting at her workplace - um, yes, count me in! Zoomed over and tasted a variety of Italian wines with pasta, cheeses, stuffed olives, herbed ricotta crostini, shrimp, meatballs, and tiramisu - it was great! Met some other lovely people and had a really nice time

MinusTwo

Illimae - GREAT news about the MRI. A fantastic reason to celebrate.

Went to my indie bookstore today to buy a copy of "Lost Restaurants of Houston". I was hoping it would have lots of fun memories - and yes it did. I couldn't put it down this afternoon. Also shared some recipes from restaurants that closed some time ago. Copies will be my Christmas gift to my Sis-in-law and my BFF.

Going to a wine class & tasting at Total Wine tomorrow evening with a friend. Wines from Down Under will be highlighted. She wants to eat at Beck's Prime before we go.

illimae

Thanks Minus!

Tonight I made BLT’s (BL for me because I don’t like tomatoes) and they were great! I don’t think of it often but end up really enjoying it whenever I do make them.

ChiSandy

Yum...and congrats, Ilona!

Wed. night I was sitting down to coffee & a whoopie pie when Bob called. He was unable to valet-park at a restaurant where his side-employer's dinner was held (cars triple-parked, he was hemmed in at the curb with no valet in sight, cop threatened to ticket him--since the other cars were empty with flashers on and he was still in his car. Cop pushed one of the blocked cars--got in, put it in neutral, hopped out and nudged it with the cruiser's bumper--and ordered Bob to move along). One block east, Bob saw the spot in front of the valet podium at RPM Italian was open, with the valet there. So he parked and called me--I Ubered it down.

We started with carciofi fritti (Roman fried artichokes) & aioli; then spaghetti cacio e pepe; Bob had swordfish and I had halibut, and we shared broccolini. Dessert was house churned-to-order pistachio gelato with Italian wild strawberries. Our server looked at my cast-brace and asked about my injuries; I mentioned what a bummer it was because I'm a musician. She then asked if I was familiar with the local improv scene. I mentioned my son is artistic director of Big Shoulders Comedy, formerly pH Comedy Theater. She said "I loved pH--what's his name?" I answered "Gordy An..." and she said "no way--you're Gordy's mom?" Turns out they'd been teammates at i.o., and she's the pianist for their musical improv team. Not just that--a few years ago, she and the team were at my house to watch the finale of Breaking Bad!

Tonight was fridge/freezer-foraging (the last 3 Buffalo wings, Wed. night's leftover broccolini, and Tues. night's leftover elotes & mac & cheese).

carolehalston

Great news, Illimae! And a delicious-looking celebratory dinner.

SpecialK, I wish I would get an invitation like that! Sounds like a wonderful opportunity at just the right time.

I am back in northern MN, wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. The high didn't rise out of the 60's yesterday and it's cool again today. I will soon go to the gym for much-needed exercise. Once again I disappointed myself during my two weeks in Louisiana by not taking advantage of our Anytime Fitness membership, although there's a gym no more than a mile from my house. I just don't like it as well as the smaller, cleaner gym here, where you have to change into exercise shoes.

Dinner last night was chili made from scratch. I cooked a lb. of light kidney beans and a lb. of pinto beans and used half of the huge pot of cooked beans. The meat was lean ground beef. The chili was/is very tasty and the side was a salad with lots of goodies.

My patio tomato bush is bearing small tomatoes that have that home-grown flavor.

MinusTwo

No one's cooking?? Miss you all.

SpecialK

minus - I cooked last night! Ribeyes with sautéed mushrooms (thought of you!), oven roasted small quartered Yukon Gold potatoes that had been tossed with olive oil/garlic/seasoned salt/pepper, and steamed broccoli with lemon pepper and Parmesan cheese.

Thinking of boneless pork chops tonight with a wedge salad and maybe a carrot salad.

MinusTwo

Special - oh so that's where the vibes came from that hit me in the evening. Obviously your thoughts reached me even if I couldn't smell the rib eyes. Sounds delicious. Maybe I'll pull a steak out of the freezer for tomorrow.

Are your DD and DH back home? Cooking for one is such a challenge. Or I should say - cooking for one "creatively" is a challenge. My dinner last night was 2 ears of corn on the cob w/butter & salt.

SpecialK

minus - lol! DH came home late on Thursday, DD doesn't return until Sunday evening after breaking down their booth and putting it on the pallet to be shipped to the next show. DH got to sit in the bombardier seat of the B29 at the airshow, his late father's seat - he was ecstatic and had himself a moment - they let NOBODY into that part of the plane. DD greased it with those old-timer B29 guys last year because I texted her photos of my FIL in the plane from WWII - they remembered her and when she introduced her daddy to them, and added in that he was a B52 guy....kismet!

You and I would be great eating partners - I have never been a 3 square meals a day person - I am a random grazer with an eclectic bent! When I cooked for my mom/dad and MIL/FIL toward the end of their lives when they needed help I made big pans of stuff, cooked it and then portioned into single servings and froze it - I think you mentioned doing the same. It was most expedient, and the last time I did this was when DH and his sibs were taking turns with my MIL - that way they could share something or each have something different. I went to the big box store and got the single serve containers and made probably 50 freezable single-ish portions of assorted stuff that was protein heavy to try to sustain my MIL. When I am alone I often do a salad with leftover chicken or steak added on top, but also enjoy just fruit or veggies, and POPCORN!

auntienance

If left to my own devices, I would be a grazer. But DH is a meat and potatoes kind of guy, (but sometimes I'll just have the potatoes lol.) So tonight is a flat iron steak on the grill and the last couple of fresh ears of corn that are now a couple of days old. Tomorrow we pick up the grand-dog for a week whine the kids are in San Diego. I'll make a calzone dough in the morning for our dinner which will also include a plump steamed artichoke for me.

ChiSandy

Had a BLT for brunch yesterday, but the green heirloom tomato, though ripening, still was very acidic. So for dinner, I sliced and dredged it in Italian bread crumbs and air-fried it (brushed a little olive oil atop it). Veggie & starch in one dish. Pan-seared Chilean salmon to go with it. Brunch today was a 3-egg (don't judge) omelet with spinach, 'shrooms & Swiss, plus a mini-croissant. (WF used to sell 6 "minis" in a bag, but they were the size of what passes for a regular-sized "cornetto" in Italy--our "full-size" croissants would be way too big there). But now WF sells a dozen true "minis:" the size you find at European hotel breakfast buffets.

Think I'll make the other half of that ribeye tonight, with a Caprese & Brussels sprouts.

DodgersGirl

we had BLTs for lunch, too, with heirloom tomatoes from the garden.

Tonight, we are having chili and corn bread, again. Everyone liked it so much last week, dd is making it again tonight.

DH bought me a big air fryer as an anniversary gift. Tomorrow I plan to break it in with roasted Brussels Sprouts (love Brussels Sprouts)

illimae

I’m loving all the BLT’s here!

I made Shrimp Scampi with Quinoa, Spinach and a Sam Adams Summer Ale.

eric95us

The Atlanta training didn't have the "most best" eating, especially for dinner and typically lunch was "convention fast food"--chicken things, hamburgers, pizza.

The training was for my government job and it was 3 very busy days. The meetings/training went from 7:30am to 7pm each day with 1-1/2 hours for lunch/impromptu meetings/seeing folks we work with but rarely see.

The walk between the convention center and my hotel was completely inside, but still around 3/4 mile (1-1/4km) and after the long day, the walk felt good. However, by the time I got back to the hotel, waited for an elevator, got to my room changed from my uniform, got back downstairs and to a restaurant, it was 8pm and not much was open.

So, it was mostly CNN food court food and ordering food in the hotel bar. The last night, when all I had to do was make it to the airport shuttle the next morning, I ordered a "Goin' Coastal IPA" with my burger. The hamburger was OK and the ale was excellent. I'm disappointed that the ale isn't available out here.

I did run a couple of nights in the Olympic Park, but I was kind of embarrassed getting, dripping wet, into a crowded elevator. I asked about using the stairs (I was on the 12th floor) but I was told I wouldn't be able to get out of the stairwell..so I had to use the elevator.

eric95us

Illimae, I guess we posted at the same time.....I see you talked about ale's as well! :-) I love a good ale, but it's completly out of the question when I'm in uniform and since even bad perceptions are to be avoided, I wait until all the training and meetings are over (and I'm out of uniform) before I'll have one.

illimae

I get it about perceptions and gov jobs, I am heavily involved in contracting for the state and cannot accept so much as a free promotional key chain as it might appear to influence me, lol.

And, while I do enjoy a sweet red wine, Ale definitely has its place. Bass, Sierra Nevada, Blue Moon and the occasional Strawberry are my go to’s but I like to find new favs when I have a chance.

ChiSandy

Dinner plans changed: made myself a small tuna salad sandwich, and a piece first of celery and then red onion hit me on the swollen sore spot on my palatal ridge behind the slightly-loose incisor. Yee-OWCH! Referred pain to all the teeth on that side of my mouth, as well as my ear and sinus. Plan B: rice pudding (keeping the rice on the other side of my mouth) and either quinoa salad (no big chunks of anything), corned beef hash (no peppers or onions this time), nukable palak paneer, or pate. Funny how the sensitivity isn't to cold, heat or sweet, so those toothache drops or some cloves probably would be useless. Been alternating between salt water, dilute peroxide, and Listerine Sensitivity rinses (the latter I can do only twice a day). And I feel a canker sore threatening to emerge too. Monday morning can't come fast enough--hope it's something my dentist can treat quickly and then schedule a root canal later in the week. (Terrified of extraction--not just because it's a front upper incisor, but out of fear of ONJ thanks to Prolia). I keep daydreaming of big fat syringes of novocaine... wishfully.

carolehalston

Last night's dinner was one of my favorites. Grilled Ribeye, baked potato, and tossed salad. The potatoes, medium white potatoes, spent a little time in the microwave before being foil wrapped and finished on the grill.

On Saturday night we had warmed-up home-made chili and a couple of ears of corn, gift of a weekender who had bought a dozen ears. The corn was under-developed but sweet.

Tonight will be Dave's Pizza in Bemidji. I plan to attend a WW meeting there. Afterwards we'll have dinner in Bemidji.

ChiSandy

DDS says it's an abscess deep in the root of my front upper incisor--was able to drain a little of the palate sore. He thinks the root might have a cavity or more likely a surface irregularity that trapped plaque the floss couldn't reach. The root isn't fractured (if it were, I'd be seeing stars and swearing a blue streak), nor is the tooth; and per X-rays, there is no decay in the visible part of the tooth. So I see the periodontist on Wed.--hoping he can fill the cavity or smooth the root to save the tooth and avoid an extraction (which would trigger ONJ). At least it's not oral cancer. Meanwhile, keep on doing what I've been doing: 1000mg. Tylenol + 800mg. ibuprofen every 6 hrs., warm salt water rinses several times a day, Sensodyne toothpaste & Listerine Sensitive rinse 2X day; with the addition of clindamycin and Peridex rinse after breakfast & at bedtime.

carolehalston

Goodness, Sandy, you've had more than your share of health challenges lately. Sympathetic vibes.

My WW weigh in was not cause for celebration, but DH and I ate at Dave's Pizza afterwards. We shared a medium extra thin crust pizza with Italian sausage, mushrooms, black olives, banana peppers and extra cheese. Pizza is a treat and I enjoyed the food indulgence with a cold glass of Coor's Light.

Not sure about dinner tonight but I will be mindful this week of reversing the weight trend from upward to downward while still enjoying the food I eat. Today I'll be playing 18 holes of golf.