So...whats for dinner?

Nancy, I'm glad you're enjoying your time in TX.  Your meals sound great.  We had a beautiful day here in south LA today, sunny and warm, low 70's.  I'm on the lookout for a local restaurant where I can have Pho, which seems to be very popular.  I've had it once, home-made by a cousin's son, and it was delicious.

The weather forecast is on the tv and there's the possibility of thunderstorms tonight and tomorrow with large hail, damaging winds, and isolated tornadoes.  A lot to look forward to.

Bobo, how can chicken and dumplings be vegetarian?   Glad your desserts were a big hit.

Michelle, I also enjoyed the pictures of Hawaii and noticed how pretty you looked in one photo. 

Laurie, the stuffed shells sound good.  What's the stuffing?  Do you put red sauce over them?  Your kids are lucky to grow up in a home with a mom who's a good cook and prepares a wide variety of foods.

Eric, thanks to you, my iron skillet has been put to use again.  For years it was relegated to cornbread cooker about 4 times a year!  I have an iron Dutch oven but it's covered by ceramic.  We use it a lot for soups and stews.

Susan, your "only manage" is most folks' delight! You amaze me with every post!



So Carrie, would your DD ever succumb to a local guy who's a good dancer , or has she been bitten by the big apple bug? Sounds like you both had a great time....nice!



Those with weak stomachs please skip this paragraph...not about dinner!

Dealt with mundane plumbing issues here today while it rained, then snowed like crazy (but the water on the roads kept the snow from piling very high, so we eventually got to the store fine).

I had been concerned that using aquaphor during radiation (a lot of it!) might affect my shower drain. Well, it seemed fine for several months, but now that my hair is thinning pretty regularly, the combo of the aquaphor and hair has clogged my shower drain....first time ever, and we've lived here over thirty years.

We tried to clear it a few months ago with a bit of success, but not really too lasting. I have to admit, I am OCD enuf that I hate plumbers coming into my bathroom (thru our bedroom!) with their very used equipment to clear the drain ( to say nothing of the cost!) I also do not want to use that poison stuff. So a friend mentioned that her husband clears theirs with their wet/dry vac. That was an effort. Our wet/dry vac was in the garage and pretty yucky...so first I cleaned that....then DH bought it a new filter. I thought we were good to go. It seemed to suck up whatever a bit....but then it only got so far, and I noticed the water going down even slower. Oh dear....we'd made a worse mess with the clog more tight and water now draining at a snails pace. We then tried the snake we bought a few months ago for this problem and got no where. Finally, I agreed to use a plunger.....(used....that was hard for me!)But DH plunged away, and low and behold, my drain declogged!! Victory! It was so great to take a shower without water creeping up my legs! Yay! DH is now my plumbing hero! And now I know what to do if this ever happens again. A bit gross to share, but I was just SOOO happy about this!



So we went to the food store after all of this excitement , and I thought that we should get something special for our Oscars' Dinner (LOL). So we bought two pieces of tenderloin which were amazing! I seared them (Eric:) in a caste iron skillet, then roasted them for 12 minutes in a 400 degree oven. WOW! Were they good! We had carrots tarragon; brussels sprouts; and cucumber, red pepper, onion salad, along with some bought french bread. I have never cooked meat like that before, and will now be doing it more often.

Clearly all of your hard work on that caste iron, Eric, will be worth it !



So back to the Oscars....

Hello everyone! It has taken me a bit to catch up. Was hoping to hear from Debbie, thinking of you. Welcome to the new people. Welcome home Michelle. I hope gemzar does the trick for you. Glad you enjoyed the trip! Your pictures are great. I think they are probably as close as I will ever get to Hawaii.



News for me, last night at ten, I became a great aunt! Welcome auto the world Keira Elizabeth. She is the first baby in our family since my DD who is 15. Can't wait to see her.



The meals sound great. I need to try the searing and baking as well. My mouth is watering. We had chicken fajitas tonight. They were quick and pretty tasty. DH picked up some Ben and Jerry's cinnamon something or other ice cream for dessert. OMG, it was so good. It's a good thing the box is fairly small.



Sorry there was no Downton Abbey talk. I am so hooked now. Finished season two and the first two episodes of season 3. Poor Edith, jilted at the alter:(. I just love all these characters. I am sure by next Sunday, I will be through season 3, not sure hat I will do then. I do not want this to end. Loved Shirley MacClaine as the American grandmother. And I guess it's the Irish in me, but I am partial to Branson too, but really love them all.



Laurie, I can understand your concern about your dad. It sounds a little off. I hope things will work out for the best.

Laurie, I love that you were starving!!

Got my hunk of steak, finally, last night. Sirloins on the grill baked potatoand glazed carrots.

Lacey, It would be easier if she could find a guy in NYC, but she is finding it impossible. She dated a guy for 8 years and it finally fell apart (thank goodness, since we have fought this relationship from the get go) She is very career oriented and works hard, and cant seem to find someone with the same goals.

I would say "HI Kay"  but she wont read this till next Sunday...haha

Tonight will be just baked chicken and probably some rice...or something.

Well, Seamus was here briefly to do the spackling and will return tomorrow AM for the sanding and caulking.....then the next day, the painting. Am really glad he is doing this rather than us...even tho I'm never thrilled to have three days in a row of workboots dragging snow and slop into the house. Oh well. Have taken to throwing beach towels on the floors. Since no covering is on the window now, I can watch the little boys next door making a snowman....our heavy wet snow is perfect for this today.



Nance, here is the info I used for making those tenderloins last evening.



http://www.101cookingfortwo.com/2012/03/pan-seared-oven-roasted-filet-mignon.html#.USuTSxG9KSN



As I mentioned, I did roast them for less time in the oven, and used my meat

thermometer to be sure the inside of the meat was only 145 degrees before taking them out.



This weekend I came across some tasty looking recipes for lamb shanks, so picked up two while at the store yesterday. Now that Seamus is gone, I'll get back into the kitchen and make one of those recipes. The Italian restaurant up the street, Sweet Basil (not to be confused with the Thai restaurants of the same name) makes the best lamb shank with vegetables and polenta, which motovates me to try one of the new recipes I saw online. Can do it in the crockpot, too! Will report later....

Thanks for the link Lacey, I'm certainly willing to try again.

Rain, rain, rain.  We had thunderstorms most of last night and about 3 in. in our rain gauge this morning.  This afternoon it started raining again.  But once this system moves out, we're supposed to have dry weather through next weekend.  MAYBE by Fri. it will be dry enough for me to play golf, the sport I used to enjoy.

Dinner tonight is stuffed green peppers.  Stuffing is diced onion, green onion, yellow and red bell pepper, garlic, s & p, ground turkey, cooked brown rice, canned diced tomato, grated 2 per cent Mexican cheese blend.  Parmesan and fine bread crumb combination sprinkled on top. 

Side will be left-over roasted sweet potatoes.  Cabbage slaw salad.

Lamb shanks and polenta are a great combination. 

Those cheese-stuffed shells sound delicious but I do better limiting myself to small portions with foods that require more chewing!  Laurie, do you use some of your mother's recipes?

Hugs to Debbie and healing vibes to Michelle.

Bedo, I love vegan shepherd's pie!  I love a good mushroom gravy.  I put turnips in the mashed potatoes.

Susan, next time you have spaetzle can I have some?

Thinking of you for your long day tomorrow.  x

deb, just think of your Dutch oven as the original crock pot with the advantage of being able to sear the food in the pot.

Laurie, love that photo! It is too bad that you (like many other folks) don't prefer that lamb taste. Our lamb shank dinner was a wonderful winter meal. Here's the recipe I used....a very forgiving one for a first time lamb shank cooker! I could have used a nice caste iron dutch oven for this. Envying you, Deb....nice pot! Enjoy it!



http://www.recipe.com/lamb-shanks-with-french-green-lentil-and-sweet-potato-ragout/



Thought of you Carole when I saw the national weather report today. Hope things dry out enough for you to get back to golfing.



We expect more snow....a storm lasting over the next few days. Unfortunately this is the week in which I have several early morning doc appts...mostly mine, but am also taking DS2 to his lasix (sp?) procedure early Thursday. Hope the forecast changes!



Susan, hope someone makes you a lovely meal tomorrow evening.



Carrie, so many of our friends report the same problem for their daughters...not just in NYC...also in Boston. It seems that there might be more high achieving girls than guys, in that age group? Our single son can't seem to get serious with anyone since his breakup with his long term girlfriend a few years ago. He says he's "addicted to his social life" for the time being....also really busy in a demanding job. So we have learned to keep our mouths shut about our wish that he'd settle down soon.



Getting late......

Those kids are the definition of adorable! *susan*

Laurie - they are just too cute, and they did a fabulous job with the snowman!

I have that dutch oven but I don't use it very often because it's so darn heavy even when it's empty!  Maybe I need to have Rick execute a recipe under my tutelage...lol  I think I made beef stew in it once.

I'm hoping the snow holds off until later tomorrow, I have chemo in the morning and it would be nice if the roads were clear. 

(((Hugs))) to Debbie - hope you're back with us soon!