So...whats for dinner?

SpecialK

Minus - here is a basic blue cheese, I have seen the milk ingredient be milk, half and half or buttermilk - I feel like they are relatively interchangeable. Some mix in some of the cheese when combining the main ingredients, then fold in the remainder so you have chunks in the dressing.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-ki...

eric95us

DD gave me the biggest smile I've seen in a very long time! She cleaned the steering wheel (I guess it got dirty) and drove it around the block, then over to Dutch Brother's Coffee to show it off. Dutch Brother's Coffee is the hangout for kids from her school. The crash site was a few hundred yards from the coffee place, so a lot of people from her school saw the car being loaded onto the tow truck. She said a lot of kids were surprised that the car was back on the road. It looked bad, but really wasn't.

Dinner (southern definition) is a whole chicken roasted in the oven. Rub with salt and pepper, let sit awhile, smear olive oil on it, put in the oven at 375F for about 10 minutes, then pour grape juice on it every 20 minutes. At the 40 minute mark, flip the chicken over and pour more grape juice on the newly upturned side and cook until done. The oven stays at 375F the whole time. The skin looks almost burnt but is just the caramelized grape sugar. It's good.. I had a bunch of grapes that only had another day or two before they would go bad, so I just ran the grapes in the blender and strained the juice through a sieve. The chicken was 4 pounds and it was under 2 hours roasting time.

MinusTwo

Thanks Special. I'm trying to reproduce my mom's Roquefort recipe. I am not an inventive cook but I can follow a recipe. Her very old & damaged recipe card reads something like: 3T cheese mashed in milk, 3 heaping T mayo, 1 cup sour cream - add minced onion, dill, Worchesterchire, tarragon & salt. I think she also added a dash of Tobasco, since that's what she did w/her Blue Cheese oil & vinegar dressing. Just about an even switch from the one you sent between mayo & sour cream. Needless to say I will have to drastically cut the measurements since I'd never use all that in 3 days.

carolehalston

Enjoyed the car remembrances.  When I drove to the campus of the college where I enrolled after high school, about 45 min. from my house at that time (pre interstate), I used the family vehicle, an older Ford, I think about a 1952.  It ran hot, probably a leaky radiator.  I had to stop a couple of times each way and dip water out of the ditch beside the  two-lane paved highway and pour the water into the radiator.  I had only a vague idea where the campus was, but found it and walked around until I found the right building with a line of students. 

That blue cheese dressing sounds good. 

Nance, I'll post the name of the IN farm again.  I just have to look at one of the packages in the freezer.  I have a pkg of kabobs and pkg of ground lamb left. 

 

Redheaded1

Susan wht are nigella seeds and what do you do with them.  I've enjoyed your trip so much!

Tonight I tried lamb again.  Grilled two kabobs I got at Hy-Vee--one was peppercorn seasoned and the other one was Mid Eastern seasoned--- I liked the peppercorn one better.  Fixed saffron rice (Vigo Brand) to go with it and opened a cab wine.  Very good dinner, so the lamb taste is growing......

When I had bluefish, it was served with a ginger cream sauce......no clue how they made it, it was at a small restaurant on Cape May called Louisa's. 

bedo

Great car story Eric. My first was a 79 Datsun. I kept it forever.

Tonight I was treated to cocktails and sushi by a very nice "young" man. One year younger than I haha.

I hope that everyone is enjoying the Memorial Day weekend. Tomorrow I will be helping a friend who recently had surgery and just returned from the hospital.

Lacey12

Memory lane fun for sure!

I never touched a steering wheel in college...no cars on our campus for residential students in those days. Then I bought my first car with my graduation money...a '67 Mustang which my father strong armed me to buy since he Did not think I would be safe in aBeetle which I dearly wanted. That Mustang was not Ford's finest effort at mechanics and it spent a lot of time at the Service Center. It was eventually stolen near my Cambridge apt., was involved in a police chase, and was totalled by the thief who ironically and tragically crashed head on into a man in a Beetle, disabling him. Mid-winter and carless, ( and needing one for my job), I borrowed money to get the least expensive reliable car I could afford....a Toyota Corolla, named Timothy. He was with me, then us, for many, many years. Loved that little green car.

Temps here warmed up nicely on this beautiful sunny day.

Tonight DH grilled chicken breasts I'd marinated. We had baked potatoes, grilled veggies and a salad with romaine, lots of ad-ins and balsamic dressing.

Carole, your curry sounded delish!

carolehalston

Lacey, what a car history for your Mustang!  I had a dark brown Corolla with a white stripe that I drove for years, sold to an aunt for her son, then it was passed on to another relative.  That little car was like an Energizer battery.  Just kept on going.  It was stick shift and no a/c to get more gas mileage.  DH was skeptical of automatic transmissions back in those days.  Of course no electric windows.

And driverless cars are about to make their appearance. 

No clue about dinner tonight.  Maybe a dinner salad would be good. 

Happy Memorial Day. 

susan_02143

So, my riff on a Indian spinach dish was a huge success! I found a recipe in one of my Indian cookbooks for spinach and tomatoes. Then I just modified it to suit the ingredients I had in the house. Started with a bit of sunflower oil, got it to the shimmer stage and threw in some mustard seeds. When those had all popped [love that magic trick!], then I added thinly slice onions and garlic. when they were soft I added the dry spices [ginger [used all the fresh for the chicken], cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric, and paprika as a sub for cayenne pepper..] After they smelled good, in went the diced tomatoes, stirring to coat with the spices and finally the spinach, again with the toss. A bit of water, and let it simmer for about 7 minutes. Damn, it was fast and delicious!

The fragrant rice was also delicious, but I will not substitute this often for our plain basmati.

I keep forgetting to find my favorite blue cheese dressing recipe, but I doubt it is what you remember from your Mom. Oh oh!~!! The Cook's Illustrated one probably is. Do you still need this Minus?

Nothing special planned here for the holiday. The tomato plants are in. Next up are the herbs and peppers. And then we wait.

*susan*

MinusTwo

Susan - yes I'm still mulling over Roquefort/Blue Cheese recipes so please do send if you have time.

Lacey12

Susan, I enjoyed your travels, and now am enjoying your productive reconnection with your kitchen! That Indian spinach sounded like so much fun to make.....or is it just your joy at being back in full culinary swing?

Carole, my "Timothy" was the same "stripped down" version as your Corolla, and we sold it to an eager buyer after 13 years of reliable service. I had to quickly learn to use floor shift before buying "Timothy" so I could drive it off the lot! My only prior experience with standard shift was with my mother's old Buick with a stick on the column. It was a bear to shift....and drive, especially in hilly areas! So I had been happy to avoid standard shift cars. Then I learned how easy the small imported cars with floor shift were to drive, which was a lifesaver for me during that car crisis. Oh, those were the days......

I am feeling like a zombie today, and think it could be related to sleeping with an open window during my high allergy season. Tonight we'll try using a fan instead if it's warm.

Have a good Memorial Day everyone....

auntienance

Friends over today to watch baseball and barbecue. In addition to some finger foods during the game, dinner will be bbq'd ribs, Rao's Famous Lemon Chicken done on the grill instead of the broiler, a pasta salad with spring vegetables and baked beans. My friend is bringing a cherry pie and I've made ice cream to go with it.

Susan -- that spinach dish does sound delicious.

It's a beautiful 80 degree day here. Hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day however you spend it.

eric95us

Sharon has huge allergy issues. They were very much worse before the allergy shots and the "roto rooter" nasal surgery. When she was pregnant and not allowed to take much in the way of allergy pills, I dusted daily, got a HEPA rated vacuum cleaner and used it daily, ran 5 of those Honeywell HEPA filters in a 1100 square foot house and changed the air conditioner air filter on a weekly basis. It helped a lot. Before I started that, I'd come home from work and she'd be in tears over the frustration of being unable to easily breathe.

Today has been a huge paper shredding and cleaning day. We shredded all the medical bills from 3 years ago..glad that "crap" is now three years ago.....

Later I'm going to my mom's house and if she wants, I'll take Lieutenant Staiger, USNR (Staiger is her maiden name) to the veterans' cemetery to visit Major Lawson, USMC.

This evening I'm going to kick Sharon out of the house while I dust the books, bookcases and behind the bookcases. There is enough dust on the books that they no longer look to be different heights.

Susan, is the jet lag going away? I hate that feeling...tired enough to sleep through next week but can't get to sleep....

SpecialK

eric - sweet of you to take your mom, the Lt., to the cemetery to visit the Major.  That is what this day is about. 

I am prepping the house, fridge, freezer, etc. for surgery on Wed. morning - first of the day - probably have to be there at 5 am.  Eeesh!  I have a new PS so am hopeful that this is the beginning of the end for reconstruction.  At least two more surgeries, but they will not be until end of this year and probably half way through 2016.

susan_02143

Special, your surgery saga is never ending. Since I will probably be very self-absorbed this week, please let me send you my best thoughts now. I really, really hope that this PS has the answers, and does a great job.

*susan*

carolehalston

I second Susan's "best thoughts" for your surgery, SpecialK. 

Your meal sounds so good, Nance, that I would even suffer through a baseball game on tv to be your guest!  I don't dislike the sport but you have to be a fan to maintain interest through inning after inning when nothing eventful happens.  Spoken by someone who watches golf on tv, for heaven's sake!  Talk about boring for the non-golfer.

DH expressed a yen for pasta for dinner so we'll have Smithfield's spaghetti with tomato sauce with Italian sausage.  I have a jar of Rao's marinara and will probably use it instead of making the sauce.  Yesterday I was given some home-grown cucumbers so we will have a romaine salad with cucumbers.  I like home-grown cucumbers almost as much as home-grown tomatoes. 

MinusTwo

Special - Boy time goes moves quickly. I wouldn't have believed it's your surgery week already. However I'm sure the same time has been dragging for you. Is it outpatient or will you stay over? Hope you like the new PS and everything goes well. We'll be in your pockets.

susan_02143

Blue Cheese Dressing (makes 3/4 cup, enough for 10 cups of greens)

1. 2 1/2 oz blue cheese, crumbled, about 1/2 cup
2. 3 tablespoons buttermilk
3. 3 tablespoons sour cream
4. 2 tablespoons mayonnaise
5. 2 teaspoons white wine vinegar
6. 1/4 teaspoon sugar
7. 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder

NOTE: be generous with the salt and pepper so the greens are tasty

Place all the items except the cheese into a jar. Cover and shake vigorously. Add cheese and shake again. Will keep for up to a week.

Here is a great equivalency chart that makes reducing recipes much easier!

*susan*

p.s. I think I generally add a few chives as well, cause I love chives in any creamy dressing.

SpecialK

Thanks all!  I am not really nervous - other than the newness of the relationship with the PS.  This surgery will be in the hospital I used to work in, so they are all former co-workers and familiar faces.

minus - outpatient - of all the surgery I have had only the BMX was inpatient, and that was required by my insurance company - my BS does them outpatient.

MinusTwo

Susan: Thanks for the recipe and the comprehensive conversion chart.

Still cooking things out of the freezer so I grilled a rib eye steak and a NY Strip w/bone in. I ate all around the fat on the one and the bone on the other. I have all of the "middles" saved for tomorrow.

bedo

Taking care of my friend. Thanks to whoever suggested the apron. Carol? She thought I was a genius when I bought groceries and picked one up for her at "Super Wal-Mart' today and brought them home to her. Thanks She is still using a walker after knee replacement

eric95us

Special...in your pocket, along with everyone else....

eric95us

Mom and dad.

MinusTwo

Eric - thanks for sharing that sweet picture. It's what this "holiday" is all about.

luvmygoats

Just thinking of going to bed and cannot remember what anyone said earlier but had to ask this -

Minus - I hope you're safe there. Reading about the tremendous flooding going on in Houston right now. Prayers my friend.

And for Carole I hope you stay safe tomorrow as it seems to be headed your way.

Just a general prayer for anyone affected by this nasty storm.

MinusTwo

Luv - I was worrying about you too. I just turned my computer back on after an 1-1/2 hours of tremendous thunder & lightening storms that seemed to be right on top of my house. I checked the rain gauge at 11:30 after about 2 hours of storm and it showed 5 inches & overflowing so I have no idea how many inches we really got in that short time. It's still raining steadily but not the total fire hose water we had for a couple of hours. No flooding in my house though parts of the yard are ankle deep, but it appears I have lost a huge, major trunk limb of my old pecan tree. I can't tell if the wind sheared it off at the trunk or if it was lightening. Luckily it fell on the front lawn not the house. It's over 40 ft long & 8-10" in diameter so I'll need to find someone w/a chain saw tomorrow. I'm way too wound up to sleep & thunder's still grumbling so I guess I'll try to read.

Lacey12

Also hoping for everyone's safety given the awful weather Texas folks have been enduring.

And squeezing into your pocket, with the rest, Special. Hope the new PS is a good match for your needs. Our DS1's best friend/colleague is a wonderful PS who does lots of reconstructive surgeries. I've been with him and one of the BSs with whom he works closely, at social events connected to DS1 and DDIL, and given their intelligence and warmth, I imagine what good care their patients must receive. It also doesn't hurt that the PS is one of the most strikingly handsome docs I have ever laid my eyes on.

We didn't have much lunch food here today, so I agreed to head out with DH to do a few errands and grab a quick lunch. Well, we ended up having a late lunch at an Irish style pub in town....split a BLT and a portobello mushroom sandwich that both came with fries (chips) and an onion soup. Several hours later, after a neighborhood walk, we were still not hungry for dinner. By 7:30, we decided to get some ice cream....and that was dinner! I think we should do that more often.

Nance, great Memorial Day offerings....

Carole, I totally "get" your inability to enjoy baseball games on TV. The "slowness" factor can be sleep inducing. I like baseball and grew up a huge fan, but can hardly stand the transition from basketball season to those nine inning games. By July, I'm fine with the slow pace. But right now DH and I are often quick to choose the NBA playoff games over the Red Sox these days. And when he watches golf, I can barely stay awake. Now that DGF also plays, I am outnumbered with happy golf tournament viewers. I missed out on that gene....

Eric, I admire your devotion to helping your mom get to the cemetary today......and helping Sharon manage her allergies. It is such a constant battle. Not being able to breathe well is pretty scary!

Susan, thanks for sharing that cool chart!!

Lacey12

Oh dear, Minus....we cross posted. I hope things clear up so you can relax and get some sleep. Sending Hugs yoyr way.....

susan_02143

Minus,

Oh my! This all sounds so scary! Hope the sun comes up and you don't find too much damage.

*susan*

auntienance

Minus, happy to hear that you and Luv are ok. A bit worried about you both. My niece lives in Missouri City, thinking about her too. We often get dangerous storms at night which are scary. I hope you have no more damage.

Eric, sweet picture.

SK, best of luck on your surgery. Hope all goes well and this surgeon makes everything right.

Carole, the only sport I watch (or care for) is Cardinal baseball. I don't watch any other teams and have no interest in the world series unless the Cardinals are in it. Fortunately, they usually are at least in the running. MLB had made some changes this year that are supposed to speed up the game, such as requiring the pitcher to pitch within a certain number of seconds and not allowing the batter to leave the box and wander around as so many do. I haven't noticed much enforcement so it still can be a pretty slow game. Not as slow as golf though lol!

Susan, love that chart!

We have lots of leftover chicken (by plan) so it will star in tonight's dinner. That's as far as I know except for the two pieces of cherry pie my friend left for dessert. It's nice to have friends!