So...whats for dinner?

M0mmyof3

When it comes to banana bread, I only used my paternal grandmother's recipe. Her banan bread was the best!!!!!

MinusTwo

Dinner at 1pm. Poached salmon with dill. I opened a white wine to poach, and it happened to be a lovely Gewurztraminer from Mendacino County - so of course I had a large glass w/my meal. I cooked up some of the "Ancient Grains" package I got at Costco. A blend of Rice, Bulgar, Barley, Wheat Berries, Red Rice, Oats & Quinoa. Really good dry mix with no sodium if you don't add it. I simmered in chicken bouillon & added garlic, chopped onion & butter as recommended on the package. Excellent. I meant to serve a veg, but with the timing of the salmon & the grains I forgot. Guess I'll have my veg tomorrow.

susan_02143

Went to Costco this morning to stock up on Chobani yogurt for this week's AirBNB guests. Grabbed one of those 2-chicken packs, and I may regret this. One half of the single bird has a breast size of about FFFF while the other one is an A. So, obviously caged in too small an area. I mean the whole organic and antibiotic free business is fine, but so is normal development! We have spatchcocked the sucker, and then decided to divide totally. We will baste tonight's side with Inner Beauty Sauce and the other one for later in the week will get some Worcestershire Sauce. Both sides are being dry-brined.

I also got a big bag of sweet potatoes [potassium is not coming back up properly.] Tonight I will roast some after a sous vide bath. Tomorrow, I will make a Thai Massaman curry with chicken and sweet potatoes.

Tomorrow we have Olivia for 13 hours! Wish me luck. I will be totally exhausted by 7:30 when they pick her up.

Susan

MinusTwo

Thirteen hours with a toddler? Oh my goodness Susan. I will be sending helpful vibes. We will certainly understand if you don't post tomorrow.

M0mmyof3

Pre-seasoned pork tenderloin, steamed veggie mix and mashed potatoes

ChiSandy

I’m impressed, Susan—I’m such a klutz with poultry shears that whenever I try, my chicken ends up spatchcocked-up.

Brunch at the Signature Room started with the buffet: E. coast oysters (looked like Wellfleets), shrimp, snow crab legs, lox, shu mai, kale caesar and grilled broccoli salads. Entree (both of us opted for it) was pan-seared steelhead trout over grilled asparagus and farro with a tomato-saffron coulis. For the dessert buffet, I had melon, berries, pineapple, and petit fours: pecan tartlet, fudge brownie (I took half), and a little square of triple-chocolate-mousse cake. They were out of creme brulee by then, and I didn’t feel like lemon tartlet, cheesecake, raspberry-crumble bars or make-your-own sundaes.

Dinner was 6 hrs. later (we were too stuffed till then). Bob went to Flaco’s Tacos and brought home vegetarian chilaquiles verdes. Pretty good.

M0mmyof3

leftovers from Saturday with a salad

MinusTwo

Sandy - wow. I can't imagine eating again for a week.

It's rainy & grey out today. Even though it will be at least 80 degrees, I'm thinking I'll turn on the oven and make Laurie's Mexican Chicken.

auntienance

Good luck today Susan!

susan_02143

We did it. She was wonderful until about 4PM and then, as all children do, the melt-down began. Her Mom actually came at 7PM since the child she was working with also lost their energy. I then made my curry, though I did discover that my recipe is missing. Where did it go? I have no idea. However, all the prep had been done, so I moved forward using an online recipe that seemed "close" along with my intuition. Anyhow, the results were not bad at all. There is enough leftover for dinner tomorrow. Cycle 3, infusion 2 tomorrow morning.

Yea. This was pretty good.

Tonight's guests have arrived. Well, two of the three arrived. I made them a Apres Flight Snack given their 16 hr day and late arrival. Some cheese, fruit , and then almond-orange cakes. It just seemed like the right thing to do. Mom was particularly happy about the cakes.

*susan*

bedo

In Boston many days lately with Charlie, 17 days old. Learned about the new Starbucks "order first on cell phone then walk in to pick up", which is very helpful. Will be "working" this week at a wilderness camp for 3 days so won't be able to help with new grandson for those days this week. Microwaved frozen fish sandwiches (2) with no bread, but ketchup, for breakfast this morning, had to get out the door.

eric95us

That looks amazing, Susan.

From Thursday to today I was doing job 3--the government one. It was a day of flying, a day of loading trucks, 1-1/2 days of driving in a small convoy, 1/2 a day unloading stuff and a day flying home. We were hauling a portable hospital to a training event.

ChiSandy

Susan, you’re making me want to go to Boston just to stay at your B&B!

M0mmyof3

Have to make a nice dinner tonight for hubby's birthday

MinusTwo

Several delays but I'm making Laurie's Mexican Chicken tonight and taking 1/2 to the husband of myu friend who died in March. Breakfast was some of the leftover "Ancient Grains". I was so good warmed up that I didn't even put butter on top - and I RARELY eat anything without butter added. I'm one of the die hards who never switched to margerine and continue to eat some bread with my butter.

susan_02143

So, there is some concern on my medical team's part. Potassium is not rebounding as much as they would like, sodium has tanked, and I lost too much weight for their comfort this week. Yesterday was a bit of a nightmare. Blood draw was contaminated. Taxol wasn't delivered in a timely fashion. What should have been a three hour trip turned into over 6!!! It was suggested that I eat potato chips with onion dip for the calories, potassium AND sodium. No medical person has ever suggested potato chips to me!

Margarine is HORRIBLE for you. Butter is not. Eat butter and enjoy every delicious mouthful.

Tonight we are having a lentil salad [potassium central], sweet potato latkes [potassium central], and the leftover grilled chicken. For a really good dose of sodium, maybe Chinese food on Thursday and I can order the salt and pepper squid!

MinusTwo

Susan - sorry about your horrible infusion day and the disappointing test results, but i got a real chuckle out of the advice to eat potato chips. Who would have ever believe that! What about popcorn with lots of REAL butter & salt? Pretzels through out the day? My MO put me on potassium pills when mine kept going down during chemo. MD Anderson recommended Nestle's BeneProtein for my friend Pat's husband who kept losing weight during cancer treatments. It's the only one I've tried that you can easily mix with anything and there truly is no taste & no grainy feeling. I added to Carnation Instant Breakfast & milkshakes when I was losing too much weight. He added to applesauce, cereal, etc. There's not much sodium or potassium but I expect every little bit might help.

susan_02143

Minus, Thank you for that information. I am going to avoid these types of things, at least for now. Instead, I will concentrate on calorie dense foods that give me those two things in good doses. If milkshakes didn't make my stomach hurt, I would be all over them! Boston offers some amazing ice cream. There are at least 6 small shops that make their own ice cream in house with a fat content that would make you blush!

Anonymous

Hi Susan - Salt and pepper squid sounds yummy! Instead of potato chips, I would eat toasted nori. During Taxol, I ate dulse, pho, and homemade jello. Seaweed is packed with nutrients, and gelatin is said to heal the gut. I was able to have homemade milkshakes to keep weight up, but they probably weren't as good as those you can get in Boston.

M0mmyof3

Hubby's birthday dinner was boneless pork chops, salad and stuffing.

susan_02143

Serenity, thank you for the ideas.... nori has almost no potassium or sodium and is low calorie so it doesn't hit my "needs" mark. The dulse might be interesting. It has both the potassium and sodium. Just have to locate it. Jello doesn't appeal even a little bit. My gut is fundamentally fine, so I am not too worried. To be honest, if I am going to eat gelatin, I would prefer that it is in the form of chicken stock, which I am making tomorrow.

Dinner tonight was frantic and stressful. For some reason the ciabatta was ready to shape at the same moment as the lentils needed care. It didn't go well for me! I always forget how hard the Wednesday after always is. I am fine. I am fine. I am fine. I am WAY not fine. Anyhow, dinner was the leftover chicken, lentils and sweet potato latkes. Here is my optimistic plate. I only ate one of the latkes, half the lentils, and one chicken chunk.

No pictures of the bread. I just HAD to sit down!

Happy birthday to FatherOf2!

ChiSandy

Dinner was leftover choucroute garnie from last night (sauerkraut sauteed with a chopped slice of bacon, juniper berries, and caraway seeds, topped by a kosher beef kielbasa, bison hot dog and chicken bratwurst). But those sweet potato latkes? Susan, you’re making me rush to the freezer to cook one (with a little applesauce on the side, perhaps).

susan_02143

We just had a bit of Maldon salt on our latkes. I have not taught Mr. SMT that latkes get sour cream. Knowledge can be a destructive force.

*susan*

ChiSandy

I was out of sour cream—applesauce had to do. One sweet potato, one spinach latke. Nominally vegetable. Deluding myself that counts as a serving.

eric95us

Dinner tonight was an apple while I fixed the garage door. Sharon had eaten already, so I ate the apple and worked on the garage door. A spring had slipped loose, which overloaded the garage door opener and caused a part in it to burn out. I reset the spring and replaced the blown component in the opener and all is well again. The garage service companies don't replace components inside the opener..they replace the opener. The part was $16 and it took me about 30 minutes to do all the work...5 minutes for the component and 25 minutes fiddling with the spring to get things right.

Sharon's last school day with students was yesterday. Today was cleanup, tomorrow is graduation and I think she has to work a few hours on Friday. Then she is done for the summer. This year seemed to wear her out, so I'm very glad she's done for the summer.

When I was a little kid, my mom used to have to hide the "lite salt" (where some of the sodium chloride is replaced with potassium chloride) from me so I wouldn't eat it by the teaspoon. I still like it, but I'm old enough to know better.

That plate looks awesome Susan. If my brother wasn't "comped" by his hotel employer when he's in Boston, I'd tell him about your place.

Anonymous

Susan - We buy dulse from the health food store. I prefer it a little toasted, but never believe anyone who says it tastes like bacon.

ChiSandy

KCl? Blecccchh! When my dad was 50 (and I 14) he had a heart attack and he was forbidden to add sodium to anything. So he bought “light salt” (I think the brand was Co-Salt) that was potassium chloride. I tasted it and wanted to hurl. I vowed if I ever had to restrict sodium I’d use anything other than fake salt: citrus juices, herbs, spices, etc. Dad also had to eat fat-free, so my mom packed away her beloved battered stainless and aluminum omelette pans and bought some Teflon-coated ones. (Remember, this was 1965, so nonstick was still in its technological infancy). One Saturday morning I smelled something awful—like someone had farted in a spice barrel and set it on fire. I walked into the kitchen and found my dad at the stove, dry-“frying” an egg (one of the 4 per week he was permitted) in a nonstick pan; I was horrified to see he had lined up an array of nearly every savory herb and spice tin on the countertop, and was merrily sprinkling them all atop his egg: paprika, garlic, oregano, cumin, white pepper, sage, etc. It was then and there I vowed I would take a “less is more” approach to seasoning (and when in doubt, taste each one before using it).

MinusTwo

I like salt almost as much as butter. For example, when I salt fries, I spend some time wetting my finger and picking up all the salt on the plate after the fries are gone. Luckily my BP has always been low.

Susan - I think it's amazing that you even try to cook the day after/the day after. Maybe that should be a day for take out. Or something like lasagna directly from your freezer w/no other sides.

M0mmyof3

Thinking of taking some ground beef out and making burgers and either pairing it with fries or onion rings. I cut back on a lot of fat by baking my fries or onion rings instead of frying them.

MinusTwo

Finally - a day I have time to make a trek to the grocery store. Rotisserie chicken is on the horizon since i have a $1.50 off coupon. It's good for my budget & my waistline that I have to make a concerted plan to buy even everyday groceries. But it means I buy more fresh fruit & veggies than I can eat before they spoil.