So...whats for dinner?

ChiSandy

We don't dine indoors at restaurants "night after night:" in fact, we did almost entirely patio or takeout/delivery until we got vaccinated. When we do dine at restaurants (indoors or out) we wear our masks except when actively eating & drinking. Before we got fully-vaccinated, we very rarely dined indoors--in fact, not until this past Feb., and only in nearly-empty restaurants. We've walked out of suburban restaurants when we felt they were too crowded or lax in their standards. We chose ONLY restaurants (indoors & outdoors) that practiced social distancing and limited capacity. It's only recently--and only in the suburbs--that we've been noticing both restaurants & diners being increasingly lax. Cook County's health commissioner is threatening to crack down and limit capacity as strictly as the city does--and she may advise shutting down indoor dining. In the meantime, we are doing what the city of Chicago (which is one of the COVID-strictest jurisdictions in America) says is safe, especially for the fully-vaccinated, fully-compliant. The moment the Mayor or city Health Commissioner says "stay home," we'll stay home.

Chicago is NOT like FL or TX--we are NOT "wide-open," we have a mask mandate (not just advisory), and most people over 40 are being compliant. (I call out the ones I see who aren't, unafraid to incur the wrath of selfish libertarians). For the record, we're not yet ready to attend a sporting event or concert, indoor movie or worship service, or travel (though the CDC said as of yesterday we can freely do the latter so long as we mask & distance). Until I got fully-vaccinated and the weather got better, I had all my groceries delivered. And I didn't use public restrooms either (not even at restaurants).

We do go to Cellars once a week--to keep it in business, at limited capacity with strict mitigations. It "hibernated" from Thanksgiving through early March (and for much of Nov., it operated only for takeout or delivery). Its owners have been pillars & charitable benefactors of the community ever since they opened 15 years ago--and they've become friends over the years. There are very few other places we trust.

I'm not being profligate or suicidal, regardless of whatever anyone here thinks. (Bear in mind that unless I cooked something really good for the two of us, I generally stopped posting on this thread except to mention exceptional meals we had away from our house--or ordered out, so it appears I'm much more of a social butterfly than I really am). You have to understand that Bob has been working--and seeing patients--day after day throughout all this. He has had to take risks in his profession every day, while for most of this I stayed home. I'm not about to get sanctimonious and refuse to carefully go out with him when he wants to. If a place is safe enough for him (and he's far more careful than his suburban medical colleagues), it's safe enough for me...until the city says it's not.

carolehalston

Wearing the mask below the nose is very popular here, especially with younger people.

I don't have a problem with eating in restaurants now that we are vaccinated but we seem to prefer eating at home. We have restaurant options but nothing compared to what Sandy enjoys in her Chicago area. Sandy, after reading today's posts, I can understand why you are feeling somewhat under attack for eating out often, as you said on the Oldies thread this morning.

Last night's dinner was baby back ribs, finished on the grill with dh's kind of barbecue sauce, thick and sweet. Sides were Bush's baked beans with the addition of bacon and a small amount of brown sugar (again to dh's taste) and some home-made coleslaw.

DH chose the ribs when given three options that included the catfish fillets that I did buy on my supermarket shopping trip.

auntienance

Please don’t stop posting here Sandy. Not only do I enjoy hearing about your culinary adventures but I’m so impressed with your ability to remember all the details to post them lol. Our meals seem to get more and more boring as does my motivation to prepare them. No wonder it’s so easy to forget what I had for dinner.

illimae

Tonight is a classic cheeseburger but one side is grilled and the other pan fried since the grill flamed up too much and I noticed a couple rusted out holes in the bottom. Now, it’s done for but it has served me well.

MinusTwo

Chisandy- I certainly wasn't intending to attack you. I agree - Chicago isn't Texas or Florida. As Nance said, your adventures are fun to follow.

Moonflwr912

I hope everyone cekebratingvEaster is having a good one. And if you're celebrating or getting ready for Passover, the same.

I thought I'd just posted on here, and its almost 6 weeks ago! Sorry everyone. Things are going well, here but busy. Had only the daughter's family we sit for here for dinner. Until my DH s brother called, they weren't thinking, and wanted to go out for lunch. Of course anything open is full. So they called to see if we knew anywhere. Well, of course we said join us! Whats 2 more people, LOL! Luckily my DD2 was, of course, running late so I hadn't even put the rolls in to bake. We sat down at 2. (Was supposed to be 1, but littles dont cooperate well. ) LOL. And, if course, first we had to hunt fir the eggs. Our local GS troop, offered 35 filled eggs for $25.00 as a fundraiser.They would even hide them outside for you if you wanted. We hid our own, because we only put half of them out. The other grand will come next week, we'll hide them then. I thought it was a great idea, there were many different things in the eggs, if you fill them yourself, you dont get as much variety. Ill do it again if they do it next year.

Ham, mashed potato, yams, fresh green beans, and corn, with the obligatory cresent rolls. Dessert was turtle chocolate pie, and strawberry and cream over angelfood cake. I had to look the other way as everyone at the table took both and mixed them together. Saying "Hey, chocolate covered strawberries! LOL. Not me. LOL

Much love to all.

eric95us

Today was more "homework". DD came home today to sign some tax paperwork so the tax accountant could submit the tax stuff. She's getting a refund. She went back soon after to have Easter lunch with her boyfriend.

Sharon and I went to a pizza place and we were "it" for customers. I think they make it comfortable for the folks in front of the pizza oven and the rest of the place is like the South Pole. It was 97F degrees outside...we ate outside where it was more comfortable.

Chi, she started 750mg Acetaminophen-600mg Ibuprofen q6h (what we had in the house) and it is doing a good job for her. She can take the "oxy" for 1-1/2, maybe 2, days before she starts getting nauseated. Then it becomes a situation where she can't sleep because of nausea or can't sleep because of the ache. So, this alternative is very welcome. :-)

carolehalston

I pulled the air fryer out of its cabinet home last night and air fried chicken drumsticks for dinner. I marinated them in buttermilk made with vinegar and milk. The flour seasoning had corn starch recommended for crunchiness. I will have to work on the coating. The final result was ok but definitely not Popeye's and not the wonderful broasted chicken in MN.

Side was mashed potato salad like my mother made and not chilled.

Moon, good to have you check in. Gone are those days when your dh worked and was away from home and you spent a lot of time with yourself for company.

ChiSandy

Monica, thanks for the Passover good wishes. It was over at sundown last night--but somehow, I can't seem to stop eating "the bread of affliction" (matzo), now that I've found 100% whole wheat (even round "shmura") and bran versions. Post-Passover sale prices are nice & low. (Dunno if the same will hold true for post-Easter-candy prices: Bob seems obsessed with finding dark-chocolate eggs, especially cream-filled).

Here's an ecumenical holiday "Smore:" take leftover scraps of Easter & Passover chocolates (especially bunnies), stale (gotta be stale) Peeps, put them between slices of matzo, and nuke till it melts. (No, I haven't tried it--no Peeps in the house. But I do have keto "marshmallows" and sugar-free chocolate).

Glad the IB/APAP combo is working for Sharon, Eric. I hate taking opioids--not only the constipation (and with Tylenol #3--which has codeine & not a synthetic opioid--nausea) but the "dopey" feeling. I am a control freak--even though I love good wine with food, I stop before I get tipsy because I can't stand feeling the slightest bit loopy. (At a multi-wine tasting dinner, as a guide for the waiter, I place a finger horizontally along the outside bottom of the glass' "bowl" and stop the pour before the wine goes up past my finger--if you can visualize that. Drives dining companions crazy--they can't understand why I wouldn't want to get my money's worth of wine). I first learned about a variation of that OTC pain med combo over on the Bonesmart.org boards ("brithael" here on BCO was an online "knee sister" whom I met in R/L when she came to see one of my dulcimer sets at the 2014 Fox Valley Folk Festival. The site admin--a highly-opinionated British ortho surgical RN--calls it the "Bonesmart Cocktail," to help wean off opioids (she's skeptical about a need to even wean off them, but I told you she's opinionated) and replace them entirely for maintenance outpatient pain control. (She is even dismissive about PT--which she calls "physio"--insisting that she did fine with time, rest, ice, elevation, & Norco).

Carole, I'm not a fan of the standalone air-fryer I used to have (now on permanent loan to my Basement Museum of Obsolete Small Appliances & Coffee Devices)--but I love the airfry setting on my Breville Smart Oven. Used it Sat. night on some cacio e pepe arancini I picked up at Whole Foods. WF's arancini were delicious, until they began to cool off--at which time they left behind that disgusting "waxy" mouthfeel (like chewing generic Crayolas) characteristic of White Castle's fries & onion rings. Bleccchh. Dinner Sat. was--besides those arancini--aggregate leftovers, supplemented with a salad, plus wings Bob picked up en route home from work. (The latter--with more salad--will be my dinner tonight).

Easter dinner was at L.Woods Lodge & Tap, a reasonable facsimile of a Northwoods (WI/U.P. of MI) "supper club." As part of the Lettuce Entertain You chain, even though it was in Lincolnwood, outside Chi. city limits it strictly followed Chicago mitigation rules. It even removed the tent from its patio, and because it was warm-ish that far inland from the lake, didn't even turn on its gas heaters. But there was no outdoor table available (it blocked off every other table, even outside). They removed half the freestanding tables from their indoor rooms, and placed tall plexiglass barriers between the booths. The customers were very good about re-masking whenever interacting with staffers, and I felt very safe. Started with a shrimp cocktail & kale salad (with puffed wild rice, which I'd guess was made in a hot-air popper). We each had the huge "king cut" of prime rib (only a couple bucks more than the "queen cut," and providing more leftovers), with sides of creamed spinach and for Bob, au gratin potatoes. I brought home half my prime rib (about 10 oz. remaining, which we'll share tomorrow night), but Bob practically inhaled his entire slab of beef. We still brought home half the sides. No dessert. (When I got home, I had a square of a Vosges "Mo's Dark Bacon Bar:" 72% cocoa, very little sugar).

I'm not going to apologize for occasionally dining out, indoors, because a) we're fully vaccinated; b) the city & county say it's safe if mitigations are followed; and b) we can afford it. It's not our demographic that's driving the current IL & Chi. case increase--it's the millennials and especially Gen-Z. The county released test positivity figures this week, by age group: Gen-Z, 6%; millennials, 5.4%; 40s, 4.8%; 50s, 4%; 60s, 3%; 70s. 2.9%; and 80+s, 2%. They did not differentiate by vaccination status, but considering that 57% of IL seniors (>65) are fully-vaccinated and 70% have had at least one shot, the 60-through 80+, the positivity rate among all IL seniors is likely far, far lower. And as to the 5% statistical chance of still contracting it, masking & distancing makes me feel much more secure. Of course, if stricter mitigations go into effect, we'll follow those. (The city has somewhat relaxed outdoor limits in order to reduce the likelihood of indoor crowding). And my harrowing experience at a friend's memorial jam last week has me going nowhere near taverns & standalone bars, which are causing the spike among the young'uns. (Drunk people generally don't wear masks or distance).

By the time our 50th anniv. rolls around in late June, if mitigations are still in effect and the weather isn't conducive to an outdoor celebration, we'll hold it indoors at our place: by then, every one of our guests will be fully-vaccinated.

illimae

Sandy, I know you’re staying low carb, so if you’re interested, my husband found Carbquick at Walmart. It’s like bisquick and almost zero carbs. So far it turns out a bit like a dry biscuit but will a little experimenting we may get it just right for pizza dough and bread.

Dinner tonight was random. I had some late afternoon manchego and triskets, do I just snacked on the available pork ribs, no sides were made. Sugar free pistachio pudding later.

ChiSandy

I found a keto brownie mix as well as a "biscuit/pizza crust" mix, both at Whole Foods. Now that Passover has "passed over," I might bake up a batch.

eric95us

I used to make sourdough bread to take to the Saturday music jam and I'd time it so it would come out of the oven a few minutes before we left for their house (or they would arrive at our house). The other couple is trying the keto diet and warm bread smell would be "cruel", so I'm not baking it for them.

I'm still making it for ourselves.

We ate "fish" tacos at 1:30pm and neither of us are hungry for dinner. So, it'll be a "dinnerless" evening.

carolehalston

I cooked the catfish fillets last night in a hot oven, first wetting them with Egg Beater and coating them with fish fry breading. Then spaying with oil. The last stage of making them really crispy before pulling them out of the oven was turning on the broiler. My best effort at oven fried fish. The side was steamed broccoli with a bit of butter and squeezed lemon. DH made his tartar sauce.

Tonight we're going to a nearby restaurant called Orlando's for boiled crawfish. Crawfish are in season. The lucky families had crawfish boils on Easter Sunday.

Sandy, the stand alone air fryer works well when I use it. My preference for cooking is the stovetop and the oven. In MN during the summers, the outdoor grill comes in for a lot of use, keeping the heat outside. I have never developed a liking for the slow cooker and seldom use the multi-cooker even though it works very well. I made the mistake of buying the 8 qt. cooker instead of the 6 qt.

auntienance

Not much enthusiasm for our dinner options but I have all the ingredients for pasta primavera so that's what it will be. Last night was a chef's salad utilizing some of the leftover Easter ham as well as bits of cheeses and the ugly eggs. On a happy note, we moved the freezer from the storage unit to the house. I plan to make chicken stock within the week. Happy day

illimae

Tonight is a flatbread using some rosemary and olive oil focaccia bread brushed with garlic oil oil and topped with spinach, Mozzarella, red onion and chopped garlic with a side of my big salad.

MinusTwo

That flatbread looks great. Putting some more on my grocery list.

carolehalston

The dinner out to eat some boiled crawfish was a bummer as far as the purpose. We entered Orlando's and saw a sign, Out of Boiled Crawfish. So we stayed anyway and had a typical fried seafood dinner that was quite good. DH had a treat. Onion rings that were described on the menu as fresh made. He liked them and ate the whole half order with remoulade sauce.

Now the big question. What's for dinner tonight? All my choices seem repetitious. I may get the chili mac out of the freezer.

SpecialK

Hey all - have been somewhat AWOL, due to too much cooking and not enough time to post combined with quite an intense reaction to my second Pfizer vaccine last Thursday. Typical arm discomfort but definitely flu-like symptoms - or what I imagine to be the flu as I have never had it or a flu shot - and I was down for the count for about 48 solid hours. If it means my immune system is working overtime I am totally for it!

I just read the path report of my arm with the possible shingles. Can't rule shingles out but it appears to be as an allergic drug reaction - I go tomorrow to the derm so I am hoping he has additional info. He warned that they may have some trouble identifying for sure since I had taken anti-viral meds before the biopsy. Unfortunately, I also have a dirty margin on the four inch incision that still has stitches so I think they will either excise further tomorrow or schedule that - not sure. I have had stitches in my back for four weeks now and I am over it!

DD and her new beau came for dinner on both Sat and Easter - Sat was ribeyes on the grill with a salad of butter lettuce, red pear, pecans, goat cheese and balsamic vinaigrette, a new recipe of smashed Brussels sprouts which everyone liked and I will repeat, garlic and parmesan egg noodles, strawberry pie, and hot artichoke heart dip with Triscuits as an app. Sunday for Easter we had maple glazed spiral ham, au gratin potatoes, deviled eggs, roasted asparagus, whiskey glazed carrots, and a lemon coconut cake. Dinners since have been leftovers of all of that but I am finally out of those - except ham and cake - so I need to cook tonight. I also need to stop eating cake.

carolehalston

SpecialK, you are the only person in my acquaintance who had a reaction to the 2nd vaccine shot. Sorry about the bad margins. As usual, your meals sound sumptuous.

ChiSandy

Both Bob & I had typical reactions to our second shots (Pfizer & Moderna, respectively). Bob's, the next day was a bit worse--100.5F fever, mild nausea, myalgias & arthralgias. But 2 Tylenol knocked that out w/in a couple of hours and he was totally fine the next morning. Mine kicked in the morning after: not-quite-fever (99.5), intermittent chills (it was cold in the house), headache & slight myalgias. Waited till bedtime, took the Tylenol and was fine the next morning.

Special, hope all you had was an allergy--and that re-excision cleans up the margins. In your pocket for that.

Illimae, that salad looks wonderful. Can't do flatbreads or grain-based pizzas (especially now that I too often give in to bedtime carb-cravings). Last night, I'd planned to reheat the prime rib from Sun. night, but Bob brought home a huge 12-bone rack of St. Louis ribs from Costco. I had two, he had six (!). Gonna split the leftovers tonight with the prime rib. For veg., a Caprese and (if it stops raining) grill spring onions and the remaining asparagus.

Speaking of Caprese, my hydroponic basil plant (grown from seed) is lush and getting rootbound, but I'm not sure how to re-pot it without giving it transplant shock (which happened to my HK's plant). Will call the nursery that sold me the kit and ask for their advice. Maybe they have a larger hydroponic planter & growth medium.

SpecialK

I ate at someone else’s house for the first time in over a year today - my neighbor two doors down - at a big table with four vaccinated neighbors for a birthday for one. I brought a salad duo - one half Greek orzo, the other a green salad with roasted corn and asparagus, green onion, and hazelnuts. A row of shrimp is in the middle so they could be added to either salad if desired.

It was nice to spend a little time together again!

carole - thanks! Wish I could share a meal with you! My BIL and my son both also had pretty intense reactions to their second Moderna, DH only had a sore arm from his second Pfizer. I am feeling back to normal now but am very curious to see what my derm says about the skin reaction path results. That originally happened at the one week point after my first injection, I am curious if it will flare after this one. Will prob happen the day after I see the doc - that is usually how I roll...

chisandy - thanks for being in my pocket! I am wondering if I was allergic to a vaccine ingredient, or something else altogether that was coincidentally timed. Who knows. After I get some clarification from the derm tomorrow I will likely report to the VAERS reporting tool if he thinks it is warranted.

illimae

Thanks Sandy, I love my big salad and usually insist on making it myself if salad is suggested.

Special, that food looks great! I want some too.

Tonight is baked cod, with a boxed rice pilaf and sautéed asparagus.

MinusTwo

Nance - I simmered the rest of the "less than great" Lobster Ravioli (w/no lobster pieces) with leftover Raos sauce. Dinner was yummy, but probably just because of the Raos.

Special - hope the derm appointment is good news - or at least controllable.

Demo starts tomorrow. Guest bedroom ceiling first since it's the worst, then most of the kitchen ceiling comes down too. I've run out of places to move stuff.

Not sure when I'll have to dismantale my desk top computer (I have no laptop or tablet) so I'll read when I can.

ChiSandy

I was told to report any reaction--not just a severe or unusual one--to the VAERS database. (Still dawdling about it). The reason is that it is a database being built for future reference & research. I reported my first Shingrix reaction (that huge spreading bright red itchy patch), when the database was in its infancy.

Special, congrats on having enough vaccinated friends you can finally visit. My BFFs got their second Pfizer shots yesterday and our son got his today. Another friend becomes gets his second Moderna this Fri. and thus becomes fully-vaccinated on 4/23 (my concert's "air" date). So the next night after that when both Bob & Gordy are not working, I will finally be able to have my entire social circle over--even indoors and unmasked.

Our 50th anniversary is 6/27, and we were hoping to be able to throw a party at Cellars (where Bob had his 70th birthday party in 2019 but I of course couldn't have my own this past January). But the county is talking about shutting down indoor restaurant dining again, now that all those idiot Gen-Z & millennials with more money than brains are causing cases to rise again. (Note: there is a difference between responsible--especially vaccinated--adults carefully dining masked & distanced and obeying mitigation rules, vs. selfish drunk kids crowding around maskless in bars--not to mention all those clandestine dance parties. So they're bored & fatigued? Well, tough s--t: so are we, but we aren't spiking the ball on the 10-yard line. They're the ones keeping life from ever getting back to normal).

Dinner was leftovers: reheated Sunday's prime rib & sides (au gratin potatoes & creamed spinach), and yesterday's leftover ribs foil-wrapped on the cool side of the grill; on the hot side, directly-grilled spring onions & balsamic-marinated asparagus, supplemented with heirloom tomato & basil salad (not a true Caprese, as with the beef & ribs there was plenty of protein without throwing cheese into the mix). My 16-oz. "king cut" of prime rib fed three: I ate a third of it Sun. night and we split the other 2/3 tonight.

carolehalston

The chili mac was good the second time around, having been frozen in the interval. I added some grated bagged cheese. DH made a salad. It's good to know a pasta casserole can be frozen.

I worked in the yard for several hours yesterday and was tired afterwards so an easy meal was welcome.

We may have hamburgers again tonight. I have two of the bakery buns in the freezer. And sweet potatoes for oven fries.

auntienance

Special, best of luck with your derm appointment. Four weeks is a long time for stitches. Hope you can get that resolved. When I had carpal tunnel surgery, before I had the stitches removed, the skin had grown around them. That was fun getting those stitches out.

About half of my friends and family had a reaction to some degree to the second shot - all of them Moderna. We had Pfizer and had none. Missouri is experiencing the same rise in cases among that age group for the same reasons. However, unlike Illinois, Missouri’s response is “Let’s open up more stuff!” There has never been a mask mandate. Our illustrious governor (and I use the term loosely) said “If you want to wear a dang mask wear a dang mask!” Thankfully there are merchants who require them and most people are compliant.

It’s a cool day today, after a string of summer like hot days. I have a hambone and buttermilk so it sounds like ham and beans with cornbread for dinner. Unfortunately that requires a trip to the store for navy beans. It’s always something.

eric95us

In line for the J&J shot and the computer system quit working. So everyone is having to wait until it gets working again. Sigh.....

Reader425

Last night was mini meatloves with leftover Easter coleslaw and scalloped potatoes. Tonight was baked salmon I seasoned along with a baked potato and mixed veggies. I didn't sleep well and had a zooming afternoon, so easy was key.

Special our Easter dinner was nearly identical. Hurray for deviled eggs! Hope your derm procedure goes well.

Carole chili mac sounds good. Needs to come back on my rotation.

carolehalston

I was influenced by Nance's post and ended up cooking half a lb. of navy beans with a link of andouille sausage. Served over brown rice with a large tossed salad.

SpecialK

auntie - to clarify, it was the first incision with stitches for two weeks, then on the day those were removed a second cancer was excised a couple inches to the left of the first one, and new stitches in that one for two weeks. Those were removed yesterday - but were difficult to remove, as were the couple of stitches in the arm biopsy area. I either spit stitches or won't give them up - apparently when it comes to stitches I am a a person of extremes, lol! I ended up with a large suture granuloma at the site of my tumor, it was big enough that it was displacing my implant and showed up on a PET scan. I have no new stitches as of yet - yay! The fix for the dirty margin is a MOHS just in that small area - also yay! So these incisions look like a big number eleven on my shoulder. My DS has a 9/11 tattoo in the middle of his back with the Pentagon around the date and a red/white/blue fire helmet, DD suggested I have a nine carved next to my eleven so I could match him. She's a card, that one.

No dinner last night, DH attended a reception at the commander's house for a congressional delegation from across the country. I did make him a little ham sandwich when he got home - long work day for him, he left the house at 6am, returned at 9pm. I found the cutest red potatoes on my last grocery shop, they are smaller than a grape! I made potato salad out of them with a sour cream/mayo dressing with salt pepper and dill. I want to try them again and roast them - I found that they seem to be more dense and really held their shape after boiling - I halved them. I usually use petite red potatoes and cut them up in sort of bite sized pieces for faster cooking. This leaves some of them in the cut shape but others crumble a bit, which is a texture I like in combination for potato salad.

eric - success?

chisandy - yes, it was fortunate that everyone was vaccinated, right? It was nice to feel "normal" for a few minutes! I bet you are looking forward to having your group together. I haven't seen my son in 18 months, and my Cali based BFF 15 months. My DS is vaccinated and we may travel to see him later this summer, but my BFF has postponed two trips here already. She has received her first Moderna and gets the second in about two weeks. Funny story - she signed up on some waiting lists for vaccination spots available from no-shows because she just turned 62 and her age group was still not eligible. She had just stepped out of the shower and got a phone call - can you be here in 5 mins? She said yes, threw on some random outfit and ran out the door to get there before closing! I am still not ready for indoor dining - for the reasons you mention above. And...Florida... I have seen some older adults also acting the fool though - yesterday at the derm there was a lady reading her phone in the waiting area with her mask dangling from one ear - what? When I was getting my second vaccine some guy removed his mask so he could cough in his hand - I thought sir, you are confused as to the purpose of the mask...sheesh!

minus - you and your home repair/reno are in my thoughts!