So...whats for dinner?

Yaay Beaver -thanks for the recipe. Years ago I used to make "real' chili rellenos when I lived in NM. This sounds much easier.

Eric - you inspired me. I paid all my bills today & updated my spreadsheet with taxes, interest, donations, etc for 2021. Also updated this years budget & completed the predictions for next year. Whew....Weird to see that my category "trips" has zero dollars for 2020 & 2021.

I still plan to make date/nut bread and the new almond cookies, but so far I've done NO baking. I could freeze a couple loaves of the date bread, but the cookies would have to be eaten. Since my friends & family have responsibly pulled back again, that means I'd have to eat them all.

Many of the Houston restaurants have closed & cancelled reservations for the remainder of the holidays. One good friend was caught today having to plan an emergency Christmas Eve dinner for 10 after their upscale restaurant closed. (Mae - Jonathan's Rub)

This same friend had to run to HEB today and was not adverse to picking up two lobster tails for me so I don't have to fight the crowds. I got them from her this afternoon & they are not frozen so that will be my Christmas dinner. This small size used to be 2 for $12. Now they're 2 for $18. I just have to decide whether Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. And what sides from the freezer.

True to my resolve to clean out the freezer, tonight was a Seafood Paella from Trader Joe's with rice, shrimp, calamari, mussels, bell pepper, etc. Really quite good & I will buy again. Since it's cooked on the stove top & I have a gas stove, it's a good thing to have on hand for power outages.

Thank you, beaverntx, for the recipe. I think I will try it with modifications, using fresh roasted poblanos and ground beef. Poblanos are always available in the supermarkets and are such pretty peppers.

Yesterday dh did the only baking that will be done in our house. He made his Quaker oatmeal cookies. The recipe is printed on the inside of the container lid. My sister and her dh, our Christmas hostess and host, requested them. There were many years when he made multiple batches and we gave cookies to the neighbors. My job was was coming up with a different container each Christmas.

Today I will cook a pork butt roast for tomorrow's noon dinner and make a creamed spinach casserole. My sister will also make a meat dish, probably a turkey, and side dishes. Christmas dinner in my family has always been a buffet with more emphasis on food than presentation.

Yesterday my inspiration for dinner was waiting for me when I walked inside a small supermarket near my hair lady's beauty shop. A plastic bin of bundles of fresh mustard greens, on special for two bunches for $3. I bought three bunches and a packet of pickled pork for the mandatory seasoning. The washing, vein removal and chopping took some time but it was worth it. Dinner was a bowl of the greens and cornbread with butter. A good amount of leftover greens.

Happy Christmas Eve to all. Our neighbors decided against their open house because of health concerns.

Sandy, your post reminded me of my oyster "experience" several weeks ago. You'd think I would learn after several horrible experiences, but no. Your post still made me want to run out and get some!

I'm making a fritatta tonight; probably vegetarian since we are having fatty duck breasts tomorrow.

Bob went out for Mexican (the only place open w/in walking distance) for brunch today (nothing on their menu I can eat, will spend my cheat carbs at Regalia tonight). I waited till 3 and made myself avocado toast on my usual high-fiber low-carb bread. (Don't think I'll buy the Carbonaut keto stuff again, as only the crust has any taste whatsoever, even when toasted. (The inside doesn't even brown. It's good only as a "vehicle" for melted cheese).

A little bittersweet, though: that avo toast used up the last of our homegrown tomatoes.

57 and misty now--not going down below 50 tonight. Weird. We're headed to dinner at 7:15--who'd have dreamed I'd be wearing a rain parka instead of a wool or puffer coat?

Merry Christmas!

Wally - I've been making guac every week for the last couple of months.

One or 2 ripe avocados sliced tiny then smashed with a fork. Sprinkle with a little lemon juice to prevent browning. Two or three Campari tomatoes - skin off - sliced tiny and added to avocado. Add & mix in - garlic salt, 1-2 teaspoons Mrs. Renfro's green chili salsa, one scant tablespoon mayo. I usually leave it in the fridge overnight before eating but sometimes just dig right in.

I know, I know - wheres the sour cream & the onion & etc?? This is just for me, so while I could add other things from my fancy guac recipe - usually not. It's a good way to eat those healthy (and oh so expensive) avocados. I usually eat it with rosemary crackers, but this week using sea salt & chive crackers.

Wallycat, I keep a box of Wholly Guacamole individual serving packets in the freezer, either just avocado or guacamole. They thaw readily and are handy when guac is a last minute thought!

(Happy walked over my trackpad and my post disappeared--so here we go again).

Bob had planned to go to Beard & Belly for brunch (and to bring me back quiche), but they're no longer open before 4pm (and not at all on holidays). The only place he found open at noon was Susupuato, the Mexican joint, so he simply ate and didn't realize there was stuff on the menu I could eat. I always keep some Wholly Guacamole singles on hand for making avocado toast, which was what I did, topping it with a fried egg.

Dinner at Regalia tonight: French onion soup for Bob, and Wagyu carpaccio with bone marrow & arugula for me; a shared Caesar salad; fusilli marinara with portobellos & sausage for Bob, and halibut with porcini-lemon reduction over garlic rapini with braised baby artichokes for me. We shared semifreddo flambé, basically because this year I forgot to order a plum pudding to set afire (and we also forgot to stop and buy a couple at the Harrod's boutique at Heathrow when returning from London in Dec. 2019).

After we walked home, we FaceTimed with Gordy & Leslie, who are staying outside Dripping Springs, TX through tomorrow, then driving home with an ETA of 12/28. They turned the camera on Dot (their wirehair/Blue Heeler mix), whom Bob had never seen. We'll take them to Regalia on NYE before coming back here for nibbles & bubbles.

Merry Christmas or Happy Saturday. Hope everyone finds pleasure in the day.

Merry Christmas to all. I have been reading your posts for years! You are my connection. I recently made it to ten years this past September so I've been following you all for years!!!!!

I am making prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, gravy, roasted potatoes, green beans and green bean casserole, cauliflower with nutmeg sauce, and roasted brussel sprouts for dinner today. Tomorrow I'm hosting my husband's family (everyone will be taking a rapid test before they come.) I am making Maryland mini crab cakes for our appetizer. Dungeness crab is absolutely delicious but so are "real" Maryland crab cakes!

Thanks to all who post on a regular basis! Hope everyone has a wonderful day! and weekend!

Turkey breast, Belgian baked potatoes, roasted asparagus with browned butter dressing, lemon Jello salad (my mother's traditional Christmas salad) and cherry pie (DH's favorite). Tossed salad available for those who want it.

Today is a roast, roasted carrots and rosemary potatoes with Yorkshire pudding. Dessert is a peach cobbler (still cooking) and of course some See’s chocolates.

Oh my goodness Mae, what a beautiful piece of meat. Even though I rarely eat meat anymore, a good piece of prime rib catches my attention. I need to go back to Laurenzo's for their prime rib French Dip. Supposedly the servers are wearing masks...

Celia - looks delicious.

My Holiday Cheer of choice turned out to be eggnog & Wild Turkey 101. Got 1-1/2 drinks before the whisky ran out.

Oooo - standing rib. Looks great Special K. Standing Rib for one is problematic so I need to get back to the restaurant that has Prime Rib french dip (for Mae - that's Laurenzo's on Washington and supposedly the servers are wearing mask)

Dinner ended up being 1-1/2 glasses of egg nog with Wild Turkey 101. Then because the phone kept ringing - two gin & tonics. In between I had guacamole with sea salt crackers. And a bite or two of See's Peanut Brittle before the phone ran again.

Oh for a dungeness crab!

Hope everyone's holidays were satisfactory. Your meals certainly looked wonderful. Wish I'd thought to get a pic of ours. The reverse seared tenderloin came out an absolute perfect medium rare, which I served with a gorgonzola cream sauce. Sides were roasted fingerling potatoes and whole garlic flavored with fresh rosemary and sage, green beans sauteed with orange/lemon zest and juices, Yorkshire pudding and spiced apple rings. Dessert was an Italian cream cake trifle which I had doubts about, but actually turned out quite good. I won't usually make something I hadn't tried before for special occasions, but it was just us and the kids for dinner and they're used to being my (willing) test subjects. Yesterday was lunch at DH's sister's home, a first actually. In addition to his sister and BIL, attendees were DH's older brother and wife and our niece, her spouse and twin 15 year old daughters. There was lots of good brunchy foods -- my contribution was a waldorf salad (heavy on whipped cream, light on the mayo.) We laughed a lot and played games that awarded funny prizes. I won a package of fancy dinner napkins and a bag of oyster crackers. My niece won a box of spaghetti and DH got a can of piroulene cookies (yum.) Too funny.

We were going to order something out last night but absolutely nothing was open so dinner ended up being tamales from the freezer - pork and red sauce for DH, chicken with green sauce for me. Dinner tonight will be leftovers from Christmas eve dinner. Tomorrow I'm planning on making French onion soup but that will require a trip to the store for additional onions and gruyere.

Happy holidays friends!