So...whats for dinner?

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...

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.

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. 

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!

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*

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....

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....

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*

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.

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.

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

Mom and dad.

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.

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!!

Minus,

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

*susan*