So...whats for dinner?

apple

luvrving.. you take care of yourself.. hope your skin shapes up soon.

Food does not last at my house - 2 teenage boy athletes and a sorkin 6'4" husband.. even the girl child's appetite is picking up as she grows.  she eats more than me now.  the big question is ALWAYS  what to cook for dinner.

Mandalala (love the name).. pork and icecream.. sounds like my son#2.  it's hard cooking for those with dietary needs.  I do like one pot dinners w/ a salad on the side.

Goodnite Deborye

Mandalala

Debbie, Laurie, bedo, apple – I don't usually cook for all of us – I wouldn't be able to do that! Sometimes I cook together with my son and sometimes with my friend, and sometimes each one cook our own meals. There is often a queue in the kitchen. Yes, I like one pot dinners too! Soups and casseroles and so on.

Laurie08

How does everyone make their beef stew?  I am going to make one tomorrow and decided not to buy the Mccormicks seasoning packet and try to branch out.  I have some ideas- like making it sort of like the Belgian chicken dish, bat leaves, beer, thyme....but would love to hear how you ladies do yours.  Mine will go in a slow cooker if that matters....

Tonight is steamers for an appetizer with baked haddock, scallops, rice and green beans.  My son insisted on the steamers....I managed to avoid the fish counter long enough I suppose....

Laurie08

lol- I should read before I post-not after-

I will not use BAT leaves but perhaps BAY leaves....doh!

debbie6122

Laurie- Hope its just a 24 hour bug and you are better today! Yum on the steamers!

Carrie- I hope your headache is better! The pub crawl sounds like fun, not sure i could do to many pubs in a day but sounds like a worthwhile cause. LOL!

Michelle- How are you doing today? Im thinking you only have 3 more left after today? Getting close to a celebration and happy dance!

Seaside- Pecan rice sounds really good, mind shaing your recipe?

I have been packing and running errands the last couple of days, my DH keeps telling me i dont need half the stuff i pack but i just keep putting more in anyway LOL!  2 weeks is a long time in hawaii i want to make sure i have everything i need. 

Made the salsa chicken the other night and will be eating left overs tonight and hopfully tomorrow so i wont have to cook anything else before we leave saturday. I love it with sour cream and avacado slices on top. Yummm!

debbie6122

LOL@Laurie!

I brown my mea in flour season with s&p and paprika, take it out and like to brown my carrots and celery, onions and garlic for a few minutes then put a tablespoon or so of tomatoe paste, add meat back in, then add, my potatoes, 2 cans of whole peeled tomatoes, beef or chx stock, red wine, 2 packages of beef stew sesoniong, 1 (bat leaf) ha! s&p garlic powder i like to let my cook most of the day, then about an hour before serving i add can of green beans and peas. Sometimes i add bacon and brown it with the onions, garlic, etc.

deborye

Here is your bat leaf. LOL

debbie6122

LOL too funny deb!

duckyb1

M;ine is easy..........I usuall[y brown the meat, in a little bit of good oil.........toss in some onions, and let that cook until I have a nice brown saucyness on the bottom of the pan..........I then add water to cover the meat, and then add carrots, and celery............I add the potatoes last, so they don't overcook...........depending on who is eating it, I add a package of frozen peas.......................or a bag of mixed vegetables is also good.

All my kids (when they were living home) didn't care for the veggies, maybe they would tolerate the peas, but that was it............I liked the bag of mixed....................you just thicken it with a little flour, and its done.............................one pot, very easy, and my family loved it................well maybe they liked it.

you can also use a tiny bit of tomato sauce if you like........some people do that also........I never used anything from a package...........I didn't know there was such a thing.............

another way I have seen it done  is to brown the meat, and then add an envelope of Lipton onion soup mix...............never did it though.

This is good stew weather in Pa. right now.......

Tomorrow I'm making Wedding Soup.................I bought my escarole the other day.........and will start it early in the morning...............it is a lot to do if you make it right.

split chicken breast, onion, celery, carrots like you were making chicken soup................you have to take out your chicken, and peel it off the bone, and return to the pot..................then you add a small amount of cooked rice, and make "tiny meatballs", add them, and cook the escarole, and finally add that...........................it is delicious, but it does take time...............my two daughters are coming over with their families............oh and of course you can't forget to sprinkle a little locatelli cheese on top before you eat it..................;yum.

Hauntie

Deb - Shepard's pie - one of my favorites - YUM.

Ducky - escarole soup is another favorite. My mother always made it, as a first course, for our big family New Year's Day dinner. The relatives would come New Year's Eve and stay all night.Men playing poker in the dining room, women in the kitchen - kids running wild upstairs. I've made it a couple of times. My mother always used a fowl. She wouldn't put any rice or macaroni in it - that was a separate pot for people who didn't like escarole. She did put little pieces of pepperoni in it, which gave it a little kick.

I actually cooked. I had turkey stock in the freezer and made a stoop - Rachel Ray lingo for a thick soup - added turkey, beans, noodles, carrots, peas and corn.

LuvRVing

I'm home from treatment #25...tada!  No more full ones, just 5 boosts to the scar area and I am done, finished, complete!  

We made pork chops with orange and thyme, brown rice and waldorf salad for dinner.  DH made the salad and he's doing the cleanup.  I posted the recipe for the pork chops a couple days ago.  They were very tasty and juicy.

Deb - LOL!  Only you could find a bat leaf!

Laurie - I make my stew pretty much like everyone else...salt, pepper, bay leaf, thyme, garlic, onion, celery, carrots and potatoes.  Sometimes I throw in a bottle of beer instead of water or stock while braising the beef. 

Kay_G

WooHoo! Congrats Michelle, let the healing begin!



Hauntie, although you don't cook much, you sound like a fantastic cook. You too Ducky! I can't help you Laurie, I am not a beef stew person.



DH and I had leftover veggie chili with a salad and a heavy whole wheat bread. My DD and her friend had a bunch of leftover appetizers from our Christmas party: pigs in blankets, soft pretzel bites, tortilla chips, baby carrots, and strawberries and hummus, mustard, cheese, and chocolate to dip them in. Everyone was happy.

SeasideMemories

Deborye.... Lol on the bat leaf.... too funny!



Debbie,



Here is the recipe that I used... I liked it but my kids declared that they don't like chewy rice... Sigh...





Pecan Rice



1 1/2 tablespoons butter, divided

2/3 cup red onion, chopped

1/3 cup pecans, chopped

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced

1/4 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups cooked brown rice

Melt half the butter in skillet over medium heat. Sauté all ingredients except the rice, until onions are tender. Add cooked rice and remaining butter, and stir frequently until rice is heated through.



4 servings



Hurray Michelle!!! I think you've rounded the bend and it should be all smooth sailing from here!! Cheering you on to the finish line in the toughest race you'll ever run!

SeasideMemories

Ducky... Love that Italian Wedding Soup but it is a true labor of love!! Definitely hitting 'soup weather' here in the NE (as though I need an excuse...)



Hauntie... I do enjoy the flavor of escarole... I make a pretty mean Greens and Beans recipe for someone who is only an honorary Italian as declared by my best friend who taught me everything I know about Italian cuisine... lol

apple

Laurie.. as to the stew

i buy a couple soup bones and slow cook them with a chuck roast.

all day

about 90 minutes before dinner, take the meat and bones out of the pot, skim the fat.  Add potatoes, onions, celery, carrots, mushrooms, maybe some tomatoes if you like them.. trim the meat of fat and the bones of meat. chop it a bit.. it should fall apart. . thicken it up a bit with flour and water, beef gravy mix, beef base is great for flavor instead of salt.. add some pepper and thyme if you have it.. it's hard to mess up.  cook it slow and long basically.

Kay_G

LOL on the honorary Italian Seaside. My family is Irish, but I have one aunt who married an Italian. Her son (my cousin) said I make Irish spaghetti. But then when he actually tasted my meatballs and hot sausage, he took it back. I felt like an honorary Italian.

Hauntie

Seaside - greens and beans - known in my family as minestra (big soup) - another favorite. I've never made it, but my irish sister-in-law makes it just like my mama - and she doesn't even like it.

Michelle - so glad you're in the home stretch.  Let the end of rads countdown begin - 5,4,3...

SeasideMemories

Kay,



My friend is from a huge, close-knit, Italian family who went by the slogan, "When you're here, you're family" long before The Olive Garden made it popular...



I will say, they were a tough bunch to please... always with a hmmmm, good but not quite right... let me fix it..... When you finally make something that meets approval, you know you have hit it out of the park!! High praise indeed from your cousin on your meatballs and sausage....



Interesting aside... My friend's Mom was Irish and married into the family but, she could make all of the dishes like no other!!

debbie6122

Thanks Seaside for the recipe!

duckyb1

Seaside................I made greens and beans the other day.............oh my God I could eat that till the cows come home............actually I am not italian.......my husband was, and all the italian things I know how to cook I learned from his mother...........she was a fantastic cook......................I have only 1 daughter who likes the greens and beans..............the others stick their noses up................that's ok, more for me...............hahhaha.................love to cook................

SeasideMemories

Debbie,



You're welcome.... Enjoy your trip to Hawaii!! Wish I was going, too! Hope to hear all about it when you return!

MinusTwo

Seaside, Ducky, Hauntie - Sorry to be ignorant but what's greens & beans?  I like both so will someone send a recipe?  Thanks

Debbie - have a WONDERFUL trip to Hawaii.

Momine

Ducky (and others) how do you make greens and beans?

LuvRVing

I had never heard of greens and beans so I looked it up and here is a recipe I found:

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/italian/recipe-italian-greens-and-beans-105173

My DH will eat anything that involves hot Italian sausage, so I might just have to make this.  It will be interesting to see the variations from all of you.  Like marinara, I'm guessing there are family recipes that will be slightly different.  I could see making it with canned cannelini beans for something quick.  I hope I didn't offend any of my "Italian family"!!!

Aloha, Debbie!!!

Momine

Thanks Luv. I hadn't thought of adding sausage, must be good. Inspired by the idea, I made some curried chickpeas with spinach for my lunch. My health food store started carrying canned beans and chickpeas recently, which is very nifty. It makes these kind of dishes quick and easy.

Greeks make a similar dish from blackeyed peas and bitter, wild greens, but without meat. In Greek-Orthodoxy there are many fasting days, and our fasting excludes meat, eggs and dairy. As a result the Greek kitchen has a lot of veggie food. 

carberry

We also had pork chops and brown rice last night. Put the chops in the slow cooker with onion soup mix and when done added a can of mushroom soup to make it a gravy.  I will eat anything with gravy....my mom used to say "dont give Carrie any mashed potatos, just a bowl of gravy"  I love beef stew but my Dh does not...so I dont make it.

Debbie have a blast on your Hawaii trip!

Tonight we are having a girls night out...seeing friends from my old job.  We will snack at the bar.

SeasideMemories

The recipe Michelle posted is almost identical to how I make the beans and greens except I don't add tomato but, I may next time because it sounds good! I use 3 cans cannelini beans, drained and I par-boil the sausage links (I use sweet italian but, I bet it would be good with hot for those that like it spicy) for 20 minutes or so and then slice them and add them to the pot when I add the beans and the broth. I don't use any set amount of broth... Just enough to get a good soupiness to it. Aside from those differences, the recipe is pretty much the same...



It is a very versatile dish... My kids will generally eat it over pasta with a sprinkle of parmesan or romano... I like without the pasta and a little more broth added so it is a soup... That and a nice hunk of crusty bread.... mmmmm!



Well, since I am now drooling, I guess I know what we're having one night this weekend....

duckyb1

Now mine is different..............no meat at all................italians would use this as a "no meat Friday Dish"..........remember those day.

Here is what I would do...........This depends on how much your making .....'you can adjust it..

2/3 head of escarole (depending on how large they are(   wash really well.

2/3 cans of Cannellini beans (Progresso is good, cause their thick)

6 cloves garlic

1 small onion or shallot

Olive Oil....about 1/4 cup

Put oil in pot, sautee garlic/onion till translucent

Add cleaned and washed escarole (cut to size)

let cook, stir, be careful not to burn.

Add water to just cover the escarole

Add beans including liquid.

Salt, Pepper (pepper flakes if you like spice)....I don't

Simmer, simmer, simmer, the longer it cooks the better it is........even better the next day

Serve with crusty italian bread.................

Not putting in meat or sausage, makes it a very low calorie meal........and honestly it really doesn't need it................Hope you like it..............................

you can also adjust the garlic................you like garlic load it up.....you don't cut back

Momine

Thanks Ducky, that is much like the Greek version.

duckyb1

It is so good........and so good for you.........the dark greens, and the beans.............nutritional overkill.........haha.............I love it........could eat it everyday, but I'm a "soup type" person anyway.............