So...whats for dinner?

Hello friends, Salisbury steak with additional mushrooms in the gravy, pan cooked potatoes and onions, and a baby cabbage, nuked then mixed with butter, salt, pepper (and for DH) vinegar. Pretty yummy. I had not seen the baby cabbage before. Trader Joe's of course, complete with instructions to microwave it. I cringed as I pressed start as the little baseball sized guy was wrapped in plastic but I threw caution to the wind. Next time though I wonder if wrapping it in paper towel instead might work as well? Then at least I'd avoid nuking plastic wrap which kind of gives me the Willie's. 😜

Special hope you found your cabbage!

Gosh, you ladies walk a long way! 5 miles. 7 miles. How long does it take to walk 7 miles, Minus? I got my physical workout yesterday doing gardening. I dug up the daylilies in a large bed that I want to re-plant with double red knockout roses. I got all the lilies out along with weeds and sneaky vines that grow under the landscaping cloth and two of five roses planted in 2 1/2 hours with a couple of brief rests. By then I was very tired and had an aching back. Glancing around the yard, I mentally catalogued other gardening chores. I remember working in the yard 5 or 6 hours in more active gardening days.

Interesting info on daylilies. I once bought different varieties in different colors but as time went on, it seems that the yellow color dominated. I had one clump that was purple and yellow that was striking.

As for food, I was recovered enough by dinner time to cook a simple, tasty meal. Fried rice made with leftover brown rice, finely chopped carrot and celery. Thin chicken breast cutlets breaded in plain panko and browned in a skillet.

Today I will dig out a ribeye in the freezer to cook tonight, making sure it is a ribeye!

Special - I'm to the point that I go over as much as my body as I can possibly see or feel before my derm appointment and circle questionable 'spots' with a pen. Luckily most of them turn out to be AKs. You've inspired me. I think I'll dig out my SIL's recipe for Chinese Cabbage salad. Weird about the early wake up. For some reason this last week I haven't been able to sleep more than 4 hours. It really throws a kink in my day to wake up at 3am & read to 6am & sleep to 9am.

Carole - I can't keep track of steps or fit-bits and such but I know a mile takes me approx 17 minutes. I just round up & call it 20 minutes - so one hour is 3 miles. We have a City park at the end of our neighborhood. During the quarantine I started picking up trash & have kept that up. I'm thinking of writing the adjacent elementary school to suggest a unit on littering. I watch the parents line up in their cars to drop of kiddos every morning & the just drop their breakfast trash out of the windows (not to mention used diapers - ugh)

Reader - I bought some round steak on sale a couple of weeks ago & stashed it in the freezer. Salisbury steak is in my future!!

Eric - I can't remember where you said you were going to live once your house is packed up. Maybe an RV?

I'm making chicken stroganoff tonight. Not sure if I have egg noodles, so whatever is in the pantry will get used. One of 3 'shrooms I will use are our foraged chanterelle.

Monkfruit (erythritol) is my go-to sweetener--it tastes the closest to sugar (even more so than aspartame and sucralose) with none of stevia's bitter aftertaste. It works in cooking & baking, too, as it's pretty heat-stable. Since it's a sugar alcohol, though, I have to be careful not to consume too much of it lest I start, uh, "making music" without singing or playing an instrument. Lakanto is my favorite brand--I even tried its "European Drinking Chocolate," making it with hot water rather than whole or almond milk. Tastes much better and mixes more completely than Swiss Miss No Sugar Added.

No C-diff. The "old" infection has returned.... :-(

I'm sorry about your MIL's relapse, Eric. Had to shake my head at the thought of a truck camper as an in-between residence. We spent 4 months in a Lance with a slide out when we made our trip to Alaska. I really liked having my bathroom with me wherever we drove but dh found it much too cramped for comfort. There was nowhere to sit inside except the dinette seats and we had to spend some time inside. The shower was small for him and he made use of the facilities in the rv parks where we stayed. Despite having a generator and intentions to do some "dry camping," we always stayed in rv parks, some of which were powered by generators in the Yukon.

The knockout roses are planted after two days of "heavy" gardening that required shovel work. Each "day" was 2 1/2 to 3 hours with a couple of rests. Today I'm taking a break from yard work. When we moved into this house twenty-some years ago, I did all the landscaping, including building the beds. My favorite part was always the designing and planting. Upkeep is not as much fun.

I was happy that dinner was so easy last night. DH cooked our large ribeye on the grill, perfectly done to medium rare. I baked four smallish potatoes in the toaster oven and got out the butter and sour cream and steak sauces. The steak was especially good in my opinion, a reminder that I do enjoy a ribeye every two or three weeks.

Now another day and the same question: what's for dinner tonight?

We have a Lance as well, but without the slideouts. I'm hoping it won't be for too long, although we spent about 6 weeks in the camper while going to and from Michigan and it was okay.

The hospital where MIL is being treated has a one visitor per patient per day policy. I won the coin toss, so I took MIL's cell phone and charger up to her room. ...I get there and there is a big yellow sign on the door to her room, plus a shelf stacked with full PPE next to the door.

C-diff.

Sigh.

Eric, so sorry to hear your MIL is having such a rough time, as are you and Sharon as a result. Can only hope her infection can be cleared up this time.

Eric, I’m so sorry about your MIL’s worsened condition, and hope that she can fight this off. Not easy for any one. Fortunately you are close to the hospital.

Wallycat, I was also curious about succa, and had a nice time researching it, and finding some recipes I am eager to try. Then could not locate chick pea flour at the three stores I tried, so just ordered it from Amazon. It will be here on Sunday, so the experimenting can begin. I was thinking about making an herb bread to have with a soup I’ll make when a friend comes for lunch this week.

Minus, I also miss Susan, whose birthday just passed. And last week, as I was trying to log in to a care group to select a date to cook for a neighbor who just had a mastectomy, I was asked for my password when I did not know I had participated in the group before. Well, when I got in, I saw that I had brought a meal for Michelle. A few of you may remember her. Such a lovely woman, I was honored to get to know in person. She is probably still pictured in a bunny costume (not that kind!) early on this thread’s pages.

DH and I celebrated our 48th anniversary this week, and decided not to trek into Back Bay to an old fave haunt, (where we would have to dine indoors) but to order food locally, and stay here to watch the Celtics play Miami. Obviously we are crazed loyal fans of this team that has struggled during the first six games, and has yet to even win at home. We had a pretty good meal…Italian, seafood themed, and were rewarded by a big win for the Cs over what was the best team in the East so far.

Last weekend we brought pizza dinner over to DS2’s and joined our little toddler dinosaur, and friends for her first trick or treat experience in their neighborhood. It took her two houses to realize that all she needed to do was ring a bell, say the T or T words, and obliging adults would give sweet treats. I chuckled as she closed out each “visit” with…”Okay, next house!” A pragmatic sweet lover!

Had my mammo on Monday and despite the new regs for safety at the hospital (aka…get the patients out as fast as possible!) the tech was kind enough to ask the radiologist to read mine right away since I almost always need more pix, and didn’t want to find that out in a letter two weeks later. Good news, all was fine!

I am envious of all of you walkers since my darn back issues make it very difficult to continue our walking regimen. Minus, I had to reread the sentence describing trash being deposited out of car windows! Do “no litter” laws not exist in every state?! I well recall growing up in NJ when the litter laws began. What a difference on the roads to the shore! I love your idea of introducing littering unit to the local elementary school. The kids would probably embrace it! Maybe you could do a show and tell with pictures of “yield” from your walk/clean up efforts.

Carole, I appreciate your enjoyment of the infrequent steak dinner. We pretty much avoid eating mammals, but get the hankering for beef or lamb every few months. This week, we had that hankering for lamb burgers, but the store was out of ground lamb, so DH bought bison meat, and I prepared burgers in the same way, with fresh garlic, rosemary powder, and crumbled feta. Boy did we enjoy them!

Tonight was back to roasted chicken, asparagus, sweet potatoes, and our typical garden salad…my idea of a boring meal

I'm making refried bean nachos tonight.

Tomorrow, I'll roast some turkey thighs. LOVE dark meat!

Eric, I am so sorry to hear of your MIL's plight. Fecal transplants have helped many people with c. diff...life saving.

Lacey, let us know how you liked the socca.

The small roasted chicken was good. Sides were cooked fresh cranberries, cauliflower mash and stovetop dressing, a last minute addition when dh commented that he liked the "gospel bird" with dressing. I had planned to make a romaine salad. I usually have a box of lower sodium Stovetop in the pantry.

Tonight will be leftovers.

Exhausted from finally being able to switch out my summer wardrobe for my winter one (we had an Indian Summer here for a bit), so I have some chili leftover from a couple nights ago. Just gonna cook up some pasta and mix in the chili.

Pulled some beef & broth from the freezer that was going to be French Dip - but the wonderful Artisan Cibatta rolls I bought on Wednesday have way too much mold. Disappointing since I only got to eat one of the 4.

So beef heated then broth drained, made a light gravy/sauce, beef tossed back in, mixed with Gemelli pasta with some broccoli on the top. Weird but great flavor & certainly filling. The "banana pudding" made with cheesecake flavor pudding is delicious.

Lacey, that looks lovely. I agree, you cannot conflate "pizza crust" with socca otherwise you will be disappointed. I consider it a healthier alternative, and easier, since I have not mastered a good 'za crust with flour. I have tried the no-knead version and it works OK, but not great. I may have to try kneading the flour dough ball in a processor...maybe. Any tips you have for a thin crust, crispy 'za are most welcome.

The French version of Socca is more like a crepe, but I use all of the batter and treat it like a crust or side dish/bread. When DH comments that something "isn't like the name it implies" I ask him if it tasted good. If it is a yes, I tell him to name it something else