So...whats for dinner?

carolehalston

We were in New Mexico one year when the hatch chilis were being roasted in supermarket parking lots. We bought some and used them when cooking chili. I froze some little packages. I remember picking out the blackened skins of the peppers. I'm sure they would be appreciated in south Louisiana.

Last night's dinner was boiled new potatoes, grilled pork steak that was purchased from the young farmer at the farmers market, and a chopped salad with iceberg lettuce, tomato, cucumber, avocado, Kalamata olives and mayo dressing.

Tonight I plan to cook (finally) green beans from neighbor Mary's little garden. Not sure about the rest of the meal, maybe fish from the freezer.

Lacey12

Last night’s dinner was broiled cod for DH and broiled scallops for me with the typical sides offered by the fish place on the lake from which we ordered them....cole slaw, french fries, and a corn muffin. The scallops were delicious. Fortunately, the fries looked unappealing, so I passed on them. Of course, I erased my virtue by downing some chocolate walnut fudge after dinner.

For the first time this year we ate dinner on our screened porch, which is our favorite place...quiet, save for natures sounds, and on a slope of our land that gives the feeling that we’re in a tree house. The elevation gives us closer views to the hummingbirds that provide dinner company. We love eating there, but-since we’ve arrived here, the evenings have been very cool, so we’ve opted to eat indoors...the consequence of “starting one’s summer” on August 1st in the hills of NH! Today it is more humid which provides more of a summer feel, eventho the temp is still in the 70s.

auntienance

I've never had a hatch chili scone but I feel certain I would love them. Wish I could find such a thing here.

Tonight was a steak salad with blue cheese, avocado (mine), a yellow and heirloom tomato, cucumber, red onion and boiled egg.

Reader425

Lacey12 and AuntieNance your dinners both sounded delicious. I started a chicken and wild rice dish in the slow cooker but something was wrong with the timing called for and/or the recipe itself. So we pulled out a mish mash of leftovers and called it supper! Tomorrow is another day.

I love the description of your porch Lacey12. My favorite place.

Beaverntx

With triple digit temps and humidity trying to join them, tonight was a salad supper. Spring greens with the last of the rotisserie chicken, feta cheese, blueberries and watermelon dressed with lemon infused grapeseed oil and blueberry balsamic vinegar and a parmesan bagel.

Lacey, the porch dinner sounds wonderful but it is way too hot and muggy here just now!

carolehalston

Last night's dinner was the fresh green beans with some yellow beans mixed in, cooked with cubed new potatoes. Also a grilled hamburger that was dry even though pink in the middle. The burgers were pre-formed and I should have mushed them up and mixed in some wet bread and seasonings and re-formed them to be more "loose."

Tonight may be fish out of the freezer. Haven't had breakfast yet!

It's grass mowing day and the weather is very nice. In the 50's this morning and should warm up to 70's. Perfect for any activity.

Lacey, your porch dining seems delightful.

carolehalston

Oh, dear. My last post caused silence on our thread! LOL.

Last night's dinner was another "Blah." I tried to pan sear two walleye fillets, each cut into two pieces. The pan wasn't hot enough for sear and just cooked the fillets. (Gas stove in camper doesn't burn hot.) They were still good but didn't look as appetizing as "seared." Dh had made his usual tartar sauce. Side was cauliflower mash that wasn't as fluffy as it needed to be because I don't have a food processor here, just an immersion blender. I apologized for the less than great dinner and dh said it was good, loyal soul.

Later we had chocolate moose tracks ice cream for dessert.

Off to the gym this morning and then out to breakfast at West Forty.

MinusTwo

Carol - not you, just too hot to write and a crazy week. While you're enjoying sweat shirt nights, the thermometer here in the shade was 102 yesterday. Heat index 106 - 113. It didn't drop below 100 until 6pm. I know because I waited until 6pm to walk & hand deliver 35 newsletters to neighbors. At 9am it's already 90.

I had my Prolia shot Wednesday. Thursday was 'plan ahead' meeting with the GI doc so I could schedule my colonoscopy. Today it's the eye doc - and sorely needed. My eyes have obviously degraded quite a bit since my last check in 2016. I'm trying to get all the docs for the year finished by October. I've ignored them all for more than a year - a necessity after so many damn doc visits during active BC - so I'm having to hustle. Next week is my first appointment with my new PCP - a young woman in practice with a well established group. The majority of the docs are women & aren't accepting new patients, but I figure if they are all so highly recommended by my other docs, they wouldn't hire someone who doesn't meet their standards. Fingers crossed.

Yesterday was a portabello mushroom, chicken tagliatelle dish from Costco. Pour into provided dish & microwave for 8 minutes. The sauce was delicious. The noodles a bit too 'meaty' to allow for binge eating. Of course it's supposed to serve (7), but I made a dent. Today will be more fresh Olathe corn.

Lacey12

Carole, I admire your persistence with dinner prep with less than a full kitchen! And it is nice to have an appreciative fellow diner, even when we aren’t happy with a particular meal outcome. Yay, loyal soul DH!

Minus, you are a good neighbor to deliver flyers in that heat. Your neighborhood assoc is lucky to have you as such a “get things accomplished” member!

Yesterday, DH and I both went to the grocery store with a long list after over a week of being here. So now I need to get cracking preparing food for our weekend guests, my good friend and her husband. Making my new favorite very veggie filled orichietti pasta salad to have as a side for tomorrow night’s marinated grilled chicken dinner. We’ll also have a big garden salad and crusty bread. Trying to keep it simple so we have time to visit rather than my being tied up in the kitchen...since I am not a good chat and prep person! For dessert, I will make some brownies today to have on hand, but our main dessert will be the 70’s throwback of strawberries dipped in sour cream and brown sugar...reminiscent of the many community dinners we shared in our Cambridge apts with our young professional friends......soooo long ago!

My back spasms have improved a lot, so cooking for guests shouldn’t be a problem. I was worried earlier in the week. Aging bodies can be tricky! Minus, I so appreciate how you want to get those doc appts out of the way. Going through treatment and related issues afterwards really creates an unwanted frequent flyer effect, and I find it’s a breath of fresh air to avoid medical offices for a bit. I hope your new PCP is great!

Tonight, DH and I are having our rare grilled red meat treat...filet mignon, which I happened to find at a good price at the local market. Will have local corn, salad, and sautéed zucchini with onions as sides.

I’m excited that instead of snoozing to another Red Sox game tonight, we get to watch some basketball! The USA team hopefuls are playing an exhibition game, and several of my Celtics’ favorite players are trying out, so I can’t wait to see a basketball game!

Magari

I've been making old favorites lately. Jacques Pepin's Maman's Cheese Souffle (which is easy and good leftover) and pasta Amatriciana.

https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/aspen-2003-mamans-cheese-souffle

Bought lamb shoulder and plan to use some for grilled cumin skewers and the rest for a braise this weekend.

MinusTwo

Magari - LOVE that the souffle can be set aside for some hours or even overnight before baking. That's amazing. Thanks for sharing

Lacey - I'd like to have the recipe (or blueprint) for your new fav 'ear' salad once your weekend is over. Glad your back is somewhat better. Did you say your DH has an appointment for later this fall for surgery?

Well - stronger glasses won't do the trick. Seems a cataract has taken off and grown enormous in only 2-1/2 years in my left eye. I can't tell you how excited I am to be considering cataract surgery after my colonoscopy.

SpecialK

I have been uninspired about cooking - too hot, or rainy and hot. We have been eating a lot of main dish salad as a result, and tonight we both went to the gym late, so dinner for me was cherries and honeydew melon. If any of you see King of the West honeydew in your store - and you like honeydew - get it immediately! It is delicious, but fair warning, it will ruin any other honeydew for you - it is that good!

eric - so sorry about your kitty, I’m sure you are missing her.

I want to hang out on the porch! We should all go - road trip!

minus - sorry about the cataract - haven’t a number of threadmates here had the surgery? My neighbor two doors down just did - she breezed through.

Everyone’s food sounds so yum

ChiSandy

Magari, I'm drooling over those recipes--too carb-y for me (especially since my next wine-pairing "cheat" dinner is coming up Wed.--St. Supery from Napa Valley). Been ages since I've had a souffle of any kind!

Lacey, have you tried topical CBD for your back spasms? It helps me immensely (in combo with Bio-Freeze and IcyHot Lidocaine roll-on). Walgreen's, CVS, and even WholeFoods now carry it (creams, balms, sprays and even a transdermal patcn). If none of those stores are where you are, you can get it online with expedited shipping.

Carole, I would rather use my immersion blender than my Cuisinart--but the latter is clean & on the counter and the latter is gathering dust and hard to clean without the danger of nicking my fingers. The advantage of the "stick" is that there's much less food wastage

Thurs. night was a couple of small grass-fed beef burgers grilled with WF goat cheddar (1 sl. covered both burgers), a small burrata Caprese with homegrown tomato over leftover salad greens, and a slice of grilled Vidalia onion.

Last night, grilled Copper River sockeye salmon, with a quick-&-dirty veggie side: nuke-reheated griled asparagus, baby bok choy, and a slice of roast eggplant from WF's salad bar. Tonight, if I can get some more sea scallops on sale at WF, I will pan-sear them and make some basmati rice for Bob and cauliflower rice or "zoodles" with pesto for me. Will go crisper-diving for green veggies (broccolini or asparagus, maybe). If they're sold out of sea scallops, it'll be surf & turf, with a ribeye I have defrosting.

Speaking of ribeye, got my first "Butcher Box" shipment yesterday. They sell grass-fed-and-finished beef, ethically-raised heritage pork (not overly lean) and bacon, naturally-raised chicken and wild salmon. They ship it frozen. I didn't buy the chicken, because the packages are just too big for my freezer and with only two of us (one, most nights, because Bob keeps such late hours that he eats dinners at the hospital or a restaurant nearby). If I want a chicken thigh &/or drumstick, I'll buy just one at WF. With Butcher Box, you set the interval, the default of which is monthly--I chose bimonthly so the stuff doesn't pile up faster than I can cook it. They choose the stuff for you or if you "build your own," you're limited to 6 items per box ($150, free overnight shipping); but some meats are multiples (e.g., two 3-lb. packs of chicken parts, ribeyes, bacon or sirloin caps) so anything over that is an extra-price add-on. I chose 2 sirloin caps (aka "culotte" steaks), 2 ribeyes, 1 lb. of bulk non-cured pork sausage meat (just sage, salt & pepper--I can add my own fennel for pizza or Bolognese sauce) and 1 10-oz. pack of bacon. I got a free pack of bacon as a first-order bonus, and added-on 1-1/2 lbs. of salmon filets (pre-portioned) as an extra. Next order will include heritage pork chops instead of the sirloin caps.

ChiSandy

Pan-seared the scallops and made a saffron beurre blanc. Cascadian Farms riced cauliflower with diced peppers was what sopped up the sauce. Grilled asparagus and tossed them with salt, EVOO and balsamic vinegar. Berries (strawberries, raspberries and some of the last of my home-grown black raspberries) and creme fraiche for dessert.

MinusTwo

Brunch was a fresh peach & a fresh apricot. Supper was left over portobello mushroom/chicken tagliatelle served along with two delightful, delicious ears of fresh Olathe corn.

I'm going to visit my nephew & niece tomorrow to pass along children's books & records to their 3 year old daughter. Rumor is we'll eat at Katz Deli, but nothing is ever cast in stone with millennials.

eric95us

I read a saying that made me chuckle....."Socks that go missing in the dryer come back as extra Tupperware lids".

Yesterday I went searching for Prickly Pear fruit. After my mom died and we sold her house, I had to switch back to the old "out in the desert" place to harvest the "pears"....well between last year and this year, the cactus patch has been replaced with a parking lot.

auntienance

Lacey, I know you like ratatouille , so I thought this might interest you

https://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/ratatouille-tart

Taking the path of least resistance tonight with baked spaghetti and meatballs. I'm enjoying reading about others' more interesting fare.

Funny and true about the socks/lids Eric. Several years ago I got tired of DH asking, "which lid goes on this?" so I switched to two sizes of plastic takeout containers that all take the same lids. They're cheap, they stack and they freeze well. I think I now have twice as many lids as containers. Go figure.

Cheese souffle and amatriciana, two of my faves!

M0mmyof3

Making thick cut pork chops tonight

MinusTwo

Nice to see you Mommy - hope all is well with you.

Beaverntx

Tonight was gluten free spaghetti with parmesan Alfredo sauce, peas and chicken. Quick and easy.

MinusTwo

Dinner with the millennials was at Local Foods. Mostly organic & lots of vegetarian items. I had a delicious HUGE Asian salad w/chicken, edemame, green beens, cashew nuts, and a ton of different greens & cabbages. Niece had Shrimp Tacos w/sides of potato salad & baked beans. Nephew had a quinoa burger w/sides of kale & tabouli. The three year old was served selections from all of our plates. She loved the 'peanut' dressing that came with my salad so I used mostly the oil & soy dressing.

I took a batch of my son's old books & it was so fun to sit and read to her for awhile.

carolehalston

Dinner at Vallarta (spelling?), a Mexican restaurant in Park Rapids following couples golf yesterday. DH and I each ordered the large Gold margarita, with a top shelf tequila and Grand Marnier (sp?). It was huge. I sipped slowly because I wanted it to last and ended up being too full to finish it. My meal was a taco salad which was OK. I've had better. The chips and salsa were good. I was hungry and ate too many chips waiting for the meal to be served.

Paying the bill was interesting. Our waiter didn't pair the couples with their orders. There was a long line at the cash register. This little local eatery isn't accustomed to serving a group of 20.

It's raining gently. Nice sound on the roof of the camper. It's so good not to have any plans for today.

Magari

We grilled spicy cumin lamb skewers and corn o Sat evening, with the leftover risotto on the side.

Yesterday I used the remaining lamb shoulder to make a stew in the Instant Pot, adding homemade chicken stock and white beans, and fresh spinach and lemon juice at the very end.

eric95us

Yesterday was a cereal night. We picked 5 pounds of prickly pears from cacti and the stove was busy simmering the pears. Today we're filtering the juice with coffee filters.

M0mmyof3

Tonight was ham and cheese omelettes and hash browns

Beaverntx

Tonight was leftovers at our house.

Eric, our friend who used to share prickly pear cactus jelly with us unfortunately is in poor health now. But your description brought back some very pleasant memories of good times with her. Thanks, and enjoy your prickly pear product!

ChiSandy

Brunch yesterday was a classic French omelette with herbs, gruyère and chêvre.

For dinner, I marinated a chicken leg & thigh in chimichurri sauce and grilled them with the last remaining slice of Vidalia onion, baking a small Japanese yam in foil. (I had half of it as my daily carb--will have the other half tonight despite having made avocado toast on low-carb bread for brunch, because the yam is so small). I thought I was buying a garnet yam, and almost threw it out after slicing it in half and seeing the flesh was white--but I looked it up online and learned it's a form of sweet potato, which is occasionally OK on my diet. Beforehand, I had a couple slices of red and heirloom yellow tomatoes from my garden that were beginning to yield softly to my touch, along with basil I picked and half of the remaining small ball of burrata with aged balsamico and basil-flavored EVOO. Ate alone, as Bob was working very late, covering for a colleague who had to take off for a Muslim holiday (which coincidentally fell on Tisha B'Av, a Jewish fast day mourning the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem).

Tonight I will make a bone-in grass-fed ribeye in cast iron indoors (we're between rainstorms right now so outdoor grilling would be iffy). Will reheat the other half of the yam, and either saute broccolini or roast some Brussels sprouts. I could have some Pinot Noir, but I don't feel like having alcohol tonight or tomorrow. (Have one of those winemaker--St. Supery--pairing dinners coming up Wed.).

My weight loss is proceeding very, slowly. Last week I plateaued, this week I lost 3/4 lb. I know most of it is from lack of exercise (do as I say, not as I do) though I was not instructed I needed to exercise. (My primary care doc would disapprove of my bariatric RN's advice, or lack thereof). But I wonder if it's also because I'm not eating enough protein at lunch & dinner. I'm sorry, but there's no way I can knock back a 6-8-oz. burger, steak, fish or half a chicken at a meal (twice daily--not including breakfast, which I rarely eat because I'm not an early riser) and have room for any veggies. Maybe I'm sabotaging my metabolism, but somehow I don't think eating a 3-4-oz. portion would put my body into "famine mode." And I can't do 8-10 glasses of water a day unless it was poured down a feeding funnel like a gavaged foie gras goose! I'm down almost 13 lbs. since starting the diet, and almost 28 since my MO ordered me to make an appointment with the bariatric clinic.

Reader425

Hi all, we had friends over last night who enjoy German food. So hubby grilled authentic brats and other sausages and we had various mustards available. For sides I made thin cucumber and onion vinegar salad, sour cream potato salad, red cabbage and brown sugar bake and an apple walnut cake. Not exactly health food but a good time was had by all. Our friends brought a delicious Riesling to accompany things.

Tonight instead of making dinner "we made reservations " as they say!

Also Sandy congrats on the weight loss so far! I've lost about 14 lbs. Aside from the above I'm basically tracking calories with a fitness tracker. And I walk ( (slowly).

ChiSandy

I love German food (my paternal grandma, born in Poland but moved to Vienna as a teen before marrying & moving here, made a mean sauerbraten & rotkohl). Unfortunately, my fave German dish is schnitzel (no matter what meat is inside the breading) and skillet fried potatoes. The potato latkes I grew up with (and still eat on Hanukkah & during Passover) are similar to kartoffelkuchen (minus the flour & lard, of course). But the good news is that I can still have wursts & sauerkraut (and red cabbage sans sugar). Might make another choucroute garnie (there's some Alsatian in my lineage) one of these days---maybe the bacon, caraway seeds and riesling (or "cremant" sparkling wine) can mask the lack of sugar.

Tonight I changed my mind about the Japanese sweet potato and had half a beet instead: on my diet sheet, beets are a "limited vegetable" and sweet potatoes an "occasional healthy carb." Bob hates beets, so I was able to enjoy mine while dining alone. Went with roasted Brussels sprouts and sauteed mushrooms (cremini and shiitake) with shallots, butter and just enough dry Marsala to deglaze the skillet. The steak was over 1 lb. raw, so I cut off and froze the boneless half of it and pan-seared the bone-in part. The bone absorbs some of the heat, as well as adds flavor.

carolehalston

Sandy, congratulations on your weight loss.

Magari, your lamb stew sounds delicious. Here in northern MN, people don't eat lamb. Or at least those who buy their meat in supermarkets. Not even a package of ground lamb.

Dinner last night was my version of linguini pie. Layers of leftover linguini sauced with Rao and turkey Italian sausage (homemade) sprinkled with grated cheese and microwaved. Side was composed salad of tomato, cucumber (bought from farmer), avocado, Kalamata olives, and sweet onion for dh. A much more satisfying dinner than the previous night's Mexican.