So...whats for dinner?
Comments
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Oh, Mae, be still my heart! That pork looks so amazing, (maybe because we don’t eat mammals very often and my eyes get big every time I see a delicious looking serving!). And I am a kale girl, so this plate is just beautiful to me.
So the king cakes are done, as is the kitchen clean up. And yes, Nance, by the time DH finished almost a week’s worth of research, he realized that he was making a large, highly decorated cinnamon bun! And he went for it anyway! I was minimally involved in the process, but by the end he was happy to let me do the sugar sprinkles. I was impressed that after we each enjoyed a piece of his first effort at baking, he went back to several of the recipes he’d looked at to see if the temp and timing in the oven might be improved...and decided what he will try the next time. A successful snowy day at this house! Now maybe DH will start baking bread! He is a huge consumer of bread (and never gains a pound!), and I bet he would love to start baking it. I’m tempted to buy some sour dough starter for him!
Dinner was thrown together...some carrot hummus with veggies, tortilla chips with last minute guacamole, and leftover balsamic chicken.
Have to attach a pic after all this talk about DH’s “late” king cake... I think DS2 and his crew will get a kick out of being gifted with a big oldlasagna along with a king cake! I think this one looks a bit like a stylized pumpkin.
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Minus, we just cross posted. Glad to hear that you were able to get your second shot despite all the weather chaos, and serum hold ups for many states. And really happy that so far you are experiencing no unpleasant SEs. Yay! Hoping that it stays that way
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Thanks Lacey. And that cake looks delicious. I like the sourdough starter gift idea. Maybe Eric can fill in with some easy beginner recipes?
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Wow Lacey, he did great! I think the sourdough idea is great. The care and tending of it is very motivating and makes you want to bake regularly.
Beautiful meal illime.
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illimae happy birthday! And the dinner/pork looked delicious.
Lacey impressed with DH culinary skills. Bread making might be just the thing.
Tonight was simple and a bit routine but good. Fresh sausage and cheese pastas with sauce and a sprinkle of parm. Started woth a delicious green salad with chopped mushrooms and tomatoes. I think it tasted so good because everything was purchased recently. I have a habit of letting produce "age" before guiltily consuming it before it goes bad but its no longer best.
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Before the little pink plastic baby, a bean was placed in the king cake. Before my time (LOL) but that's what I have read. DH and I are not fans of the plain cinnamon flavored king cakes. We like the lavishly filled ones that are moist and gooey. We had two this mardi gras season from the same store, filled with cream cheese and blueberry jelly. They were delicious.
Also popular in our "neck of the woods" is the crawfish king cake, served as an appetizer or party food.
Because of liability issues, the pink plastic baby is no longer inserted into the king cake by the baker. The buyer has to insert it. The person who gets the baby in his/her slice has to provide the next king cake.
Off subject, dh and I watched an hours long documentary on George Washington that was eye opening to me. I had no idea he was such an admirable man. He was just a portrait that hung in all the classrooms. It's sad that he enjoyed only two years of retirement from public service before he died of an illness that could easily have been cured by an antibiotic.
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When we were in New Orleans for a spring break minivac years ago, we bought the best King cake at the street marketplace. It had the cream cheese filling and was so delicious that we bought several more to bring home for family. The one we bought this year was just a giant cinnamon bun with the Mardi Gras colored icings, beads, fleur de lis, and coins. Haven't found the baby yet so not sure if there is one. It's okay tasting but wish I could have one from New Orleans with the cream cheese filling.
We also found a satellite Beignet shop (owned by the Cafe du Monde) in a shopping center that overlooked the Mississippi. We would get some coffee, beignets and sit on the outside deck to watch the ships go up and down the river. Miss traveling and moments like this.
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Carole, where do you get your king cakes? When I make them I always make them cream cheese filled. . The best king cake I ever had from a bakery in Galveston was raspberry filled.
Homemade pizza tonight with lemon meringue pie. Carb fest!
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Happy birthday Illimae!.
I have my favorite sourdough bread and sourdough dinner roll (uses extra yeast) recipes.
I juiced enough oranges from our tree to get almost 35 gallons of orange juice. Each morning I make about 3 gallons of orange juice and I do the same each evening. If I go any faster, the freezer can't cool down fast enough to prevent the other foods from thawing. I'm now done and the dogs are disappointed....it turns out they love oranges, orange peels and orange pulp.
The vet said it's OK for them to eat oranges, but to not let them eat too many at one time due to the likelihood of what they termed "unpleasant digestive issues". :-)
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The meringue came out a little wimpy because I didn’t have cream of tartar. Bet it tastes better than it looks.
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Can't figure out how to make these pics smaller.
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Lacey, that's the prettiest king cake I've ever seen! The ones I've bought from Bennison's were oblong, with choice of plain, cream-cheese or almond-paste filling. The "baby" is the same kind of metallic hard plastic as Mardi Gras beads, in the traditional colors--last one I got was green.
Betrayal, I know that Riverwalk mall branch of Cafe du Monde well--was last there in Feb. 2019. Never had a problem finding a seat, especially on the outdoor promenade. (At the original, in the French Market on Decatur, you have to pick out an occupied table that looks like the person or people are finishing up, then stand over it and watch it like a hawk. And there are always panhandlers going table to table). Biggest problem with eating beignets outdoors is the powdered sugar--one wayward breeze and you're wearing it.
Bob wanted to order brunch from Beard & Belly/Honey Pie. I had bacon quiche (left the crust) and mesclun salad; he had a couple of fried eggs, three large sausages (each one nearly the size of a hot dog), and a house-made biscuit & jam.
For dinner, we walked around the corner to Ethiopian Diamond. (They're great neighbors--helping cater the block parties and even helping dig Bob out of the alley when he got stuck in the snowy alley). They'd been doing takeout & delivery all winter but tonight's their first night offering indoor dining since November (and our first indoor restaurant meal since Oct.--and even then, we'd only dined indoors twice, both times at Cellars, since the shutdown just before St. Pat's Day). Even with only 40% capacity allowed, they appeared to be doing well. Many of our neighbors were there. We had the "tibs sampler:" started with sambusas (like a cross between Indian samosas and Greek spanakopita)--lentil & chicken. Then, a platter (lined with injera--a teff*-flour pancake) of slightly spicy cubed chicken breast & lamb, plus beef strips; spinach; turmeric cabbage; spicy red lentils; and salad. No utensils--just more injera. You tear off a piece and use it to scoop up your food. Need I tell you that as a result, I definitely carb-cheated tonight? (Not to mention that the mead, made in-house, was sweet). Next time I'll swallow my pride and ask for a fork!
(I'd never considered ordering out from them, because an Ethiopian meal is a social, shared occasion).
*Teff is a grain native to Ethiopia. Since we have three Ethiopian and two Nigerian restaurants w/in a 2-mi. radius, there's an African grocery across B'way.
Tomorrow night, I'll make steak & broccolini. (Brunch will be tonight's leftovers, plus eggs).
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And who would ever want those pix to be smaller!?!? What a perfect Sat dinner! I love homemade pizza and DH and I have recently rediscovered how much we like lemon meringue pie. So this was perfect food porn for me! Totally outdoes any king cake pix (which was also not reducible somehow).
Eric, so far, DH is just making allusions to trying homemade pizza dough next, which will be pretty easy, but I’d love you to share your favorite sour dough recipe, if you are willing, if he gets on the sour dough bread baking train. I do hope he does. I have to say that while I have been getting very little beyond sewing done, DH has been amazingly productive in many new ways throughout our pandemic isolation. While I admire it, I could never get close to matching his creative activity level.
Tonight I made eggplant pizzas (more virtuous, perhaps, but waaay less satisfying than the "carby" version), balsamic roasted veggies,and salad. It was all tasty and healthful, until we had some of the cherry pie DH picked up impulsively this week. Yum!
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Nance, we bought the two king cakes this year from a small supermarket in a nearby town. King cakes are available at every supermarket and at bakeries. The famous bakery that ships king cakes all over the country is Randazzo's.
Those home-made pizzas look delicious. And lemon meringue pie is one of my favorite cream pies.
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We had spinach & cheese ravioli with homemade sauce - really delicious. Sides of green salad, garlic bread & 2018 Michael David Freakshow Zinfandel.
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Dinner was fettuccine with jarred red sauce with veggies to which I added seasoned ground turkey and a side of garlic bagels. Wine was a Cass club wine, a red Bordeaux blend. Finally have propane so I could use the stovetop and the boil water advisory has been lifted so we are moving back to "normal", or as normal as it is with covid. One thing about dealing with all of last week's issues is that covid was not at the forefront of my thinking!
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Last night was grilled ribeye and microwaved potato.
I have now painted out the wall paper in the kitchen and dining area. Not a lot of surface but quite a bit of work. Saturday I applied oil based primer. Yesterday the color coat, a Benjamin Moore water based paint, a traditional blue that will contrast nicely with the white quartz countertops. Today I will use a brush to do touch up. Now we hold our breath and hope the wallpaper stays stuck to the wall.
The countertops installation has not gone well. Wednesday a different installer is supposed to bring the second set of countertops and install them the correct height and with better seams. DH has handled the problem.
Now we're shopping for decorative tiles to do a backsplash behind the stove.
I hope this downward trend of COVID cases continues.
Glad the Texas folks are getting back to normal. I read that this cold weather will result in more expense that the most expensive hurricane to hit the state. Also the Texas people were surprised to learn that the executives in control of the power grid do not live in Texas.
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Carole - good luck with the countertops on Wednesday. I too have to pick some backsplash tile, or something???
Dinner was 4 pieces of French Toast made with sourdough bread. Really - I rarely eat even 2 slices of bread in an entire week, but I covered it with syrup and it was delicious.
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We had those Ethiopian leftovers (lamb & chicken cubes, beef strips, spinach, red lentils) for brunch yesterday--I gave Bob the leftover injera; I used a fork, and had leftover mesclun salad on the side. Dinner was a seared grass-fed filet mignon and brown rice biryani for Bob; we both had canned lobster bisque and palak paneer (Indian spiced spinach with cheese), and instead of the brown rice I had riced cauliflower with sea salt & olive oil.
Today for brunch was a double-yolk olive-oil fried egg over avocado low-carb toast (with chopped shallot, tomato & cilantro). Dinner tonight (just me--Bob's working late) was a grass-fed cheddar cheeseburger (no bun) with grilled sweet onion & tomato; plus some more cauliflower "rice" with black truffle salt & white truffle oil.
Our fave restaurant, Cellars, is reopening for takeout, delivery & limited indoor dining on March 4!
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I made a quick run to Costco today to return some items and while there I picked up a meat loaf with mashed potatoes for dinner. Peas were the added veg. Meatloaf sandwfor lunch tomorrow
Our backsplash tilers are due in tomorrow morning. I hope it goes better than your countertops Carole. I’m ready for this project to be completed.
We finally got scheduled for vaccines locally on Saturday. Another project I’m ready to be completed. We had appointments for Thursday in our old area but it’s 90 miles from us and the new appointments are 8 miles. Worth the two extra days wait. .
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Wed. is my second Moderna shot, at the same Walgreen's out in Norridge as my first. On the way home (sort of, if I don't take the expressway) is a Polish bakery that does paczki all year round. One more till next Mardi Gras won't kill me. OTOH, I have no desire to hit the Kosher bakeries in search of yeast-raised hamantashen like I did pre-keto. (And the little cookie-dough ones that all the supermarkets around here carry don't float my boat--just not "carb-worthy").
Speaking of Mardi Gras, still have the tricolor beads hanging on my front door--too lazy to go digging around for the spring-themed banner.
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minus - I made French toast for DH on Sunday from thick sliced brioche, topped it with syrup, strawberries and whipped cream! Super naughty! French toast is a fave of his, as are Belgian waffles. Sometimes you just have to go for it - not to mention you, and your fellow Texans, have been dealing with adversity! French Toast reward!
I sympathize with the wait for kitchen stuff! My new cooktop was installed yesterday - it is so beautiful I am now afraid to cook on it, lol! I did boil water for pasta last night and it was hella fast! Still waiting on the oven/micro and fridge. I need to have a plumber come and run a new water line to the current kitchen fridge that will be in the garage. I am hoping it will be easy as the water source for the washer is right on the other side of the wall from where this fridge is going. Just had an estimate on replacing the massive slider in the family room and the glass regular swinging door that is adjacent in the kitchen, as well as converting the current bedroom slider into an inward opening French door. Eight weeks on the big slider, 12 weeks on the other two. Bleh.
chisandy - yay for Cellars!
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After my ocular onc appt. (all good!) at UIC, we went to Greek Islands for late lunch/early dinner. Started with flaming saganaki (the waiter's accompanying shout of "opaa!" is Greek for "holy crap, this is HOT!"); then tomato salad and grilled octopus. Main course was a grilled Mediterranean sea bass and dandelion greens. No dessert. Later this evening, grilled cheddar & tomato on keto bread.
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I just learned today that there are paczki...and then there are paczki. To celebrate my good eye scan results yesterday, and my second Moderna shot this morning, I stopped off en route home at a Jefferson Park Polish bakery that makes them all year long. They had the traditional chocolate-frosted custard, plum jam, lemon curd & raspberry varieties, but I wanted to take it to the next level (and Bob requested a boozy one or two--the only place around that does that). They ran out of my first choice--salted caramel--in half an hour. But I got one each passionfruit jam, rose petal jelly, vodka custard (vodka in the dough & custard) and chocolate-drizzled Jameson's whiskey custard. Just had the passionfruit: O to the M to the G!
So what's the difference between real Polish paczki and the kind made in German or American bakeries? The latter ones resemble jelly-or-custard doughnuts from Krispy Kreme or Drunken Donuts, only supersized: the dough sort of collapses when you bite into it and the filling often squirts. The real thing is more resilient but with a tender crumb, and the filling stays put till you reach it. The outside--especially the bottom--has a nice crunch to it, with an almost savory hint. (I suspect they use leaf lard or liquid oil rather than vegetable shortening). It's gonna take major league discipline not to eat the rose petal one today. (One no-no carb a day, if even that, till they're gone).
Also got a couple slices of ham & cheese quiche--their crust is very thin. If we don't have enough leftover sea bass and tuna poke for dinner tonight for the two of us, I'll give Bob the lion's share of the fish (unless he didn't have meat for lunch) and I'll have quiche & veggies. (Jews don't "do" Lent; I like to kid Bob that what he really gives up for Lent is Mass--but for the second year in a row, pretty much all Catholics in the Chicago area have had to do that all year long).
I might just for spits & giggles see who's doing yeast-raised hamantashen this week, but don't feel like driving out to the Kosher bakeries in West Ridge, standing in line, and wrecking my diet for something I'm not really craving. (I like only the poppy-seed-jam "mohn" ones anyway).
BTW, yesterday we jumped the gun by a week on "Greektown Restaurant Week." (March 1-7). Turns out that Artopolis, which I thought (from the name) was an art gallery, is a very-much-open restaurant & bakery. 7 restaurants are participating. So maybe on one of Bob's Union Health days, I'll pick him up for lunch and we'll try one of them.
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Sandy, if I ever find a Polish bakery, I know what I’ll be getting. Don’t know how you resisted the plum jam though. Yum!
Lamb and white beans tonight with a salad dressed with champagne vinegar, shallot and walnut oil dressing, this from a bottle from Stonewall Kitchen. I was given this one and a couple of others as Christmas gifts. For some reason lamb shanks are impossible to find around here except at Global Foods, the international supermarket, although all the other parts of the lamb are available at all of the stores near me. I got some lamb shoulder, which I’ve never used before so we’ll see.
The backsplash is in and looks great! The guy did a really good job. The only downside was having to listen to hiphop music from his radio for Six.Hours.Straight. My ears were bleeding by the time he left. I suppose Ishould be thankful it wasn’t rap or heavy metal. Anyway, will try to post some before and after pics (the kitchen not my ears) tomorrow.
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Nance - looking forward to the pictures.
DInner was a giant salad starting with Dole Sunflower Crunch mix w/bacon and adding tomatoes, mushrooms & cucumbers. Served with sourdough slices in the toaster & lots of butter.
Eric - hope you are OK - and Sharon & DD.
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Around here, Costco carries frozen cooked lamb shanks in sauce.
Bob didn't want the boozy paczki tonight, because he had a huge early dinner full of carbs (mac & cheese, fries). So he'll take them in to Union Health tomorrow & share them with his Polish nurse & echo tech. I made fish tacos out of the Greek leftovers and 2gm-net-carb whole wheat tortillas. As for the "plum jam," it's actually prune puree (which I've had in kolačky, Danish & hamantashen...meh). Not sure how much I'll like the "rose petal jelly," but if it tastes anything like rosewater-soaked Middle Eastern sweets, yum. (If it tastes like Choward's Violet candies, then not so much). I felt if I was going to indulge in paczki a week late, I might as well go for exotic. No danger of my repeating this during the year, because I have no reason to go out to the Jefferson Park 'hood (unless I have to go back to Walgreen's in Norridge to get the Moderna S. African-variant booster if & when it's available).
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All is well here. I gleaned about 750 pounds of oranges from the tree, juiced them and put the juice in the freezer. Also the plant nursery got some more gold spot euonymus plants, so I'm back to planting those. Two, maybe 3 more to go and I'm done with all that. These make some very nice hedges.
Today I "relaxed", sort of.
Test daughter's husband has been working 12-14 hours a day, 7 days a week (that time of year) and his truck needed a new clutch, so her dad and I went over and took care of that. We worked about 3 hours today and it's about two thirds finished. We'll be back over there on Friday to finish up.
And, then I got to play a joke on MIL. MIL called and asked if I could come over to her house to take care of a stopped up toilet, so Sharon and I arrived wearing this... :-)
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eric - LOL!!!
Dinner last night was a burger with Vermont cheddar and some red potato salad with dill/sour/cream/mayo dressing for DH and nothing for me due to an iffy tummy. Feeling better today, but beginning to suspect tomatoes and tomato things like marinara and salsa are causing trouble for me as I connect the dots between what I am eating and how I am feeling. If so, I will be sad because I love all things tomato. Dinner tonight is looking like either pasta primavera, or penne in an Alfredo Cajun sauce with smoked sausage and broccoli, probably with a green salad.
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Well, Eric, now that Daft Punk have hung up their helmets, you & Sharon have apparently picked up the baton...
Brunch was a 2 egg/3 yolk (one egg was a double-yolker) omelet with sausage crumbles, cheddar and a cupful of assorted chopped peppers, 'shrooms & onions. I'm tempted to cut into the remaining paczki (rose petal jelly), except that omelet was just too filling. Feeling mildly crummy anyway, as the reaction from yesterday's second Moderna shot is setting in. Not really feverish (hovering in the upper 98s, which is high for me) but have a sort of gnawing headache--could be stress of trying to get a new primary care doc now that my new one--whom I'd seen exactly once after a four-month wait for an appointment--suddenly left not only her practice but her health system, w/o any notice. Tricky trying to send anything in my patient portal because there's no "assign me a new Care Team member" option. Only option is to choose one and then spend forever on the phone trying to reach them. I have an army of specialists, but no family doc, except for a nurse practitioner at a different system.
(Or maybe I'm just undercaffeinated).
Dinner tonight will be quiche & salad.
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