So...whats for dinner?

I have a multi-use pot that lives in a cabinet. I made the mistake of buying an 8 qt. size and it is huge. I may donate it and try a smaller Insta Pot. This summer I made use of a moderate sized slow cooker but left it in MN. I have a larger one here that is seldom used. At home the stove top and the oven are my favorite cooking methods.

The navy bean soup I cooked yesterday was good. Lots of leftover. I wasn't very hungry because we had Subway sandwiches for lunch.

I'm having lunch with friends today at Half Shell Oyster House and am hoping to have some good oysters.

Dinner will probably be leftover meatloaf.

For me, it's more about the "spice," as in seasonings for pumpkin pie. I have some sugar-free Torani Pumpkin Spice syrup, which I bought for DIY lattes so I could avoid *$. (It's a rebus). Tried it the other day, but after nearly 2 years of being low-carb found it so sweet as to be cloying. For me, pumpkin itself belongs on the table--pie, mashed, soup, etc. I've tried two different pumpkin beers: Great Lakes Beer Co. Pumpkin Lager (at its downtown Cleveland brewpub), which just smelled & tasted gross, like the odor of raw pumpkin guts during a mass-Jack-O'Lantern-carving fest; and Lost Duck Pumpkin Ale, at the tavern of the same name along the riverfront in Ft. Madison, IA--brewed onsite, it was delightful. (It gets its name from the fact that the Mississippi R. flows E-W there rather than the usual N-S direction. Migrating waterfowl follow the river each spring & fall---until they hit that little stretch at Ft. Madison/Nauvoo, where they roost and go "WTF???").

Been laying low of late, what with HK out for 2 weeks, my back repeatedly going out, various cat-ailment woes, etc. Saturday night we went to Terra & Vine in Evanston--all I could eat there was chopped antipasto salad, grilled salmon and steamed broccoli. Last night, we went to the Rosemont (suburb next to O'Hare) location of Fogo de Chao churrascaria. Bit longer drive, but free parking and less boisterous clientele than their River North location. We like the chain because Bob can load up his plate and I can eat only what I'm allowed and as much or little of it as I want. My salad bar plate was mesclun and grilled veggies, with a bit of chickpea-black bean salad. The meats I had from the roving "gauchos" were slices of beef rib, top & bottom sirloin, seared cheese (no honey), lamb steak and a chunk of garlic beef. I had to spurn the mashed spuds, fried polenta, and cheese rolls.

Then this morning I got up and promptly threw my back out again (fourth time in as many weeks), but this one is the worst I'd had in years. I'm getting around (inching & shuffling) with a Rollator, cane and reachers. Even so, I barely could get anything together to eat--an Atkins bar for breakfast, string cheese and the end slice of a loaf of whole-grain bread for lunch. Had a pound piece of Norwegian Fjord trout (steelhead) already defrosted, so I had to (painfully & tremulously) cook it for dinner. Bob brought home some linguine & clams, plus spinach. We'll make our own plates--I hurt too much to try to clear and set the table and he doesn't know how; I'll put my plate on the Rollator seat and take it into the front room. There will be leftovers.

I mentioned my fructose elimination diet. It requires 3 or fewer small servings of fruit and veg (combined) per day, and no wheat products, onion or garlic. I'm starting to figure out how to eat around that. Today for lunch I had a dish of quinoa (cooked up earlier this week) with turkey (deli meat). Both of those are free. I also cut up and cooked 1/4 cup of carrots and a 1/4 cup of broccoli to add up to 1 whole serving of veg. I added the cooked veggies to the quinoa and turkey, splashed on a few drops of soy sauce, and heated it a few seconds in the microwave. Yummy! And I had some Greek yogurt with 1/4 cup of mixed berries (a whole serving of fruit). And because I was really indulging myself, I put a few corn tortilla chips on a small plate, covered with grated cheddar and a sprinkle of cayenne, and melted it in the microwave.

Then dinner was grilled chicken breast with a few more bites of cooked broccoli and a few bites of mashed potato, to make up my 3rd serving of the day.

So it's coming around and I'm starting to feel like I can eat around this for the required time. But it will be great when it's loosened up, too.

Last night was the leftover bean soup and a tossed salad. DH said the soup was even better the second time.

Hurrah! The new refrigerator is scheduled to be delivered today. Even a few days of no refrigerator in the house has made us grateful at the thought of not having to walk to an outbuilding for anything requiring refrigeration. Hoping for a successful delivery and an undamaged refrigerator.

Not sure what's for dinner tonight.

Sounds like they put you on a low-FODMAP diet. Wheat (and most starches) are converted to sugar (mostly glucose) fairly quickly--even before you swallow it. Back in kindergarten (after we returned from our field trip to the A&P for cream and saltines to churn butter), our teacher had us chew a cracker and notice how sweet it quickly tasted--she said it was our saliva that did that. (We were too young to understand what an "enzyme" was, so she didn't explain further).

Just out of curiosity, who (i.e., what kind of practitioner) diagnosed your fructose malabsorption?

This a.m., I felt limber enough (albeit still stiff & painful) to make coffee and avocado toast (ready-made guac, a diced homegrown tomato, minced shallot & cilantro) with a fried egg for brunch. Tonight, Bob's bringing home wings & spinach salad.for dinner. Might add another tomato if a ripe one on the sill is getting soft. A couple more on the vine are beginning to ripen--so tomorrow when it gets a bit chillier & wet I will pick them to complete their ripening on the sill.

Arnica gel helps me with bruising, as well as sore small joints like knuckles or elbows. It does nothing for my back strains--or any muscle strains, for that matter. The topicals I use in rotation (a different one every few hours) are menthol (Bio-Freeze), Voltaren, lidocaine roll-on, and a 1:1 CBD:THC massage-in balm. Might try going to bed with a Flector (prescription diclofenac) patch.

Carole - Oh no, but I do agree with DH based on the placement of the dent. You all have me worrying about buying a fridge. Mine's working but it's from 2006. For years I had my grandmothers from the 1950s. It lasted almost 50 years - even in the heat of the garage for many years. I don't think newer things last as long.

I tried the arnica tablets back when I had knee pain pre-TKR. They might as well have been saccharin. The placebo effect can be a powerful one--an intense desire to not have to admit you're wasting your money can outweigh skepticism...up to a point. Homeopathy (NOT the same thing as "natural" treatments) is utter and total b.s. It is founded on a hypothesis called "The Law of Similars" ("law" being a stretch because it isn't even as credible as a "theory" as it is unproven & unprovable): that any ailment can be cured by ingestion of the very substance that triggers it...only in an extremely weak dilution. But here's where it gets even more ridiculous: desensitization injections start weak and end up strong (when the allergy symptoms disappear, the shots are stopped); but homeopathic remedy dilutions start out exceedingly weak and get ever weaker to the point of near-undetectability of the solute--crazier still is that homeopathy holds that the weaker the dilution, the stronger the effect! Even alchemy makes more scientific sense. But hey, it's your money, not mine.

What's confusing is that when it comes to some topicals & drops, homeopathic-remedy companies do make natural but non-homeopathic stuff--like Boiron's arnica gels & calendula creams and Similisan eyedrops.

The Flector patch wore off in only about 8 hours. My back hurts the worst in the morning when I try to get out of bed, which requires rolling on to my side, swinging my legs across, and then trying to push up from the side to sit up. That stretch is the most painful of the day--and I have to constantly remind myself to get used to the pain and slowly work through it, rather than flinching (which only triggers another spasm) or tensing up my muscles. I managed to sponge-bathe & dress myself (though I still can't get over the rim of the tub to shower). My HK was able to capture Happy & load him into the carrier & then the car--she drove us and we were both allowed in so long as we kept our masks on. (Gordy had an audit of his work computer, plus needed to get an Uber to pick up his dog from daycare while Leslie's at work. We will all be together at dinner tonight, though I may teetotal it because I'm taking Aleve--unless I hold off on my evening dose till bedtime. Mercat a la Planxa has a special wild-game tasting menu tonight.

Tonight was the garlic and herb pork tenderloin again, by request with half of a huge baked potato and broccoli. With wine and to be followed by ice cream.

Our dinner was pecan crusted tilapia, roasted baby potatoes and steamed green beans.

Welcome, Mimi. The chicken mushroom pie sounds delicious. Beautiful plate, Illimae. As always, Sandy, your food descriptions are incredibly detailed. Minus, your sandwich sounds good, too. I love grilled cheese sandwiches.

I should feel underprivileged about our meal last night but I enjoyed it and was satisfied. Romaine salad with additions on a dinner plate topped with chicken strips. My planned eggplant lasagne didn't "pan" out when one of the eggplants proved not to be edible. I was fooled by a glossy exterior. So I thawed some thin sliced chicken breast fillets, couldn't figure out a vegetable side, and made the salad dinner instead.

We purchased a different refrigerator from a different appliance retailer. It's exactly what I originally did not intend to buy. Stainless, not white. French doors with bottom freezer, not side by side. No dispensers in the door/s. But I'll get used to it and may like it. IF it is indeed delivered on Tuesday and works. Oh, and it cost $1000 more than the first one we purchased. Now my collection of magnets from all the places we've visited will not have a home.

Tonight will be fried catfish dinners picked up at YMCA. The dinner is a fundraiser. I plan to pick them up early, about five, while dh is making martinis. I will use the air fryer to heat the fish when we're ready to eat. Usually about 7 pm.

Welcome Mimi! We just had some foraged chanterelles and they are SO good, aren't they? I'm going to look at your recipe again and see if we get more 'shrooms!

Sandy, yes, I know exactly what homeopathic tablets are (or should I say, are not, LOL). The Arnica Montanta is supposed to be specific to back pain and for $5.00, even if it is hokum, may be worth trying. DH was in so much pain, he figured what could a sugar pill hurt. He was shocked it worked. I thought acupuncture was hokum till I had a friend who was studying for her license and needed a guinea pig to practice on. To this day, the car accident neck pain has not returned since my two sessions with her....nearly 20 years ago now. I figure first do no harm; the easy stuff before I throw big guns at it. Your mileage may vary. Your meal sounds incredible. How wonderful to be able to share it with family and try a lot of different items on the menu. Kudos!

Carol, the newer "stainless" should be fingerprint proof and magnetic; ours is so I hope yours is too.

Illimae, OMG that photo! I could just dive into that potato. I just had lunch and am now hungry again.

I'm making rock fish tonight...it will sit on a bed of creamed spinach with white beans, shredded carrots and butter.

I just assumed the stainless steel is not magnetic. I did read placards that claimed no fingerprints when we were shopping appliance departments. Our refrigerator in the 5th wheel in MN is a house refrigerator with a similar design, stainless, but it has a single large door on the top, not the two doors.

The best thing about the catfish dinners from the Y fundraiser was the catfish. The side portions of cole slaw and potato salad were so tiny that I bought a third dinner, giving us each three pieces of fish and a more normal serving of the sides. The air fryer worked great for warming up the catfish. Next year I will pass on buying the dinners.

Today I will cook a pork roast stuffed with chopped green onions, garlic and cayenne pepper. Side will be baked sweet potatoes. I'm thinking I will dig out the slow cooker since the weather is very warm for using the oven while cooling the house with the a/c. Someone, I'm hoping dh, will need to go to the store for the green onions.

Illimae, I will be interested in your meals for the eating plan.

I have two jars of Goya products on a pantry shelf. I bought them on impulse for who knows what reason. One is Recaito and the other is Sofrito. I went online today looking for inspiration for how to use them and didn't come up with anything. Is anyone here familiar with either or both? I don't know whether you use the whole jar in a recipe or Tablespoons.

Carole, although paella comes immediately to mind, you can use it the way you would a holy trinity. It's great in beans. It's also the base for a lot of dishes. I've kept it frozen and used broken off pieces in different things (like beans or rice for extra flavor.). It’s good in stewed meats or as a sauce for chicken or other meat. It’s pretty versatile.