So...whats for dinner?

The kitchen has smelled wonderful all day. The oven is working overtime. Later this afternoon I'll let the two pots of stock cool and put them in the outside refrigerator to chill so that I can skim the fat off.

Dinner will be a pork chop cabbage oven dish. I looked up some recipes but didn't find anything I liked. I'll brown the pork chops and put them on the bottom of a baking dish. Sliced onions on top of the chops. Then potatoes, carrots and sliced cabbage on top. Chicken broth poured over the contents. Pats of butter on top. Seal tightly and bake for an hour and a half. Serve with dark grain mustard.

Nancy, I’m well aware of vaccum brewers--but being a klutz with two cats I’m nervous about all that glass. (My voice teacher used one to brew a pot and it was divine). We very rarely make coffee by the pot any more--the Keurig is quicker for my “I want it now” guys, and I like the control (and discipline) of making one cup at a time manually or as espresso.

Nothing terribly exciting here for dinner. Broiled cod, some mac and cheese (actually ziti and cheese) using some odds and ends of cheese from holiday cheese platters and steamed broccoli.

Today's pressure cooker experiment is Greek yogurt. It's incubating now, so we'll see.

Nance, how do you shape the hamburger buns?

Do you flatten the ball of dough? I was wondering if I could turn a batch of yeast roll dough into buns.

I ordered out for Japanese food--but sashimi, not sushi. Miso soup to start, then octopus on seaweed salad, then the sashimi platter: salmon, tuna, halibut and hamachi, plus ikura (salmon roe) and tamago (flying fish roe). But instead of being served on a bed of rice (which I discard or put away for Gordy) or tasteless shredded daikon (meh) or beet (too carby for me and my guys refuse to eat beets), it came with half an avocado, little hollowed-out cucumber boats for the roe, and mesclun salad. The wasabi was a terrific decongestant. If it weren't so wildly indulgent I'd do this every week.

I feel full, satisfied...and virtuous. (Nutritionally, not fiscally).

This is the little Perrier-Jouet flute. Filled to the brim, it holds less than half of what a regular-sized flute does. Bob came home and we decided to finish the bottle of Thienot before it went flat.

And this is an example of the latte art I can *sometimes* pour if I get the milk textured just right.

Luv, you must read the oldies thread if you saw my hats. I've never seen a post from you there. When I was first dx'ed in 2009, I came to bc.org and found a discussion forum with a small group of women who opted for the same surgery/recon procedure I was having. It was fairly new then. The woman who started the thread called herself Year of the Hat. When she told her father she had bc, he replied, "This must be the year of the hat." I love that story. That group of women were so special to me. After my surgery, my goal was to get to the computer as soon as I was able to "talk" to my friends. We eventually disbanded, although the forum is still active from time to time, and I'm the only one who continued with bc.org. And I'm glad I did.

Moi aussi, Carole!

Chi, my DH would have loved your sashimi meal.....I avoid sushi/sashimi foods since my allergies are set off by many of the components. So whenever I am out of town, DH manages to dine at sushi restaurants.

Last night I made chicken breasts with mushroom and wine sauce, a recipe from NYT, but, of course had to add onions (which I'd diced the night before at the knife skills class) and garlic, which are my staples. We had farro and spinach salad with it.

If I get around to it, I plan to make chicken chili today.

On the real estate front, DS2 closed on the new condo yesterday, so he and DGF are no longer couch surfing. We will go in on Saturday to see their new digs. Maybe we'll get lunch or dinner at the restaurant where I once before had the most delicious kale and butternut squash salad. I'm happy that these two will get settled after their last two months of selling, buying, moving, storing, traveling, and couch surfing.

I am trying to come up with a nice menu for a dinner I am having for two friends next week. Both are older gents who are used to eating well...and heartily. I'd love not to be tied to the stove since I will be the only lady in the house, but don't want to do a casserole-ish meal. Any ideas? I rarely entertain these days, but want to have one friend over while his wife is in Haiti on a medical mission, and the other man is a long time colleague of DH who lives in a retirement community in our town where his wife is cared for in the Alzheimer's unit. These two men do not know each other and both are interesting, strong personalities, so it should be lively. But what to feed them.....

Yes, Beef bourguignon! My DDIL made it for my birthday one year and used tenderloin. Wowza. Don't know if you need to that (although it was pretty awesome), but after the initial prep, it's fairly hands off in the oven (or can be). I think your "faux" french bread and lovely pizzelles with Talenti would be delightful with it.

Today's pressure cooker experiment is a braise - Ligurian Chicken with rosemary, lemon and olives. Some braised mixed greens and teeny weeny farfalles (farfallettes?) will be the sides. The Greek yogurt turned out absolutely perfect. Lovin' this thing more and more.

Yes that's it -- farfallini! I bought a box at the Italian grocer because I had never seen them before. They are so cute.

Fish tonight..... the haddock is running so it was quite inexpensive [for fish.] Did the Moonan "restaurant" style broiler method, and served with a lemon butter sauce. A few roasted potatoes and a large green salad. Very simple, but delicious meal. The French cousin is fabulous! She went off on her own today and walked the entire Freedom Trail, and since she had more time, walked all around Beacon Hill as well. Tomorrow she plans to explore the Back Bay, again, on her own. Friday I will take her out to Lexington and Concord, now that she has learned about Paul Revere and the beginnings of the American Revolution. I think the world of her mother, and clearly, C. is made of the same cloth. Such a delight.

*susan*

Another Maple Farms roast duck half (I took the leg quarter this time and gave my son the breast & drumette), reheated in the oven this time (skin was crispier, no grease); with broccolini sauteed in olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, a touch of truffle salt and red pepper flakes. Accompanied by a 2014 Louis Jadot Beaujolais-Villages. (OK but not worth finishing the last ounce in the glass).

Minus, I would love to give your cousin's daughter some hats. I made a really cute one yesterday. The pattern is out of a book called Chemo Caps & Wraps. I plan to go back to the Mary Bird Perkins cancer center with another supply of hats. I want to see if the ones I left there were taken. If they were, I'll leave some more. The problem here is finding a day cold enough to wear a hat. I wore one yesterday to hide my hair and ended up with a sweaty head.

I made the buns yesterday and modified the recipe by using 1/2 whole wheat flour. I have already admitted my bias against white flour. I discovered a couple of packets of KA yeast especially for wheat bread. It was slightly past the date but tested out good. So we had the buns last night with barbecued beef. The beef bones were meaty so I saved it and heated it up with barbecue sauce. The side was a simple cabbage slaw which I put on my sandwich. I put the rest of the buns in the freezer.

Carrie's chicken piccata sounds good. But we have leftovers. Dinner may be leftover-of-your-choice with a large salad.

Minus, I haven't forgotten to share the oyster mosca recipe. That will be coming soon.

Off to the gym this morning.

Carol, You made a hat in one day? Wow! You are really talented!