So...whats for dinner?
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carole - same deal here on the T-Giv plans. We normally get together with long time friends, who are local now but we've been friends for 25 years since we met in Virginia, and their whole fam. I am unclear about who is vaccinated and who isn't but I don't think they all are, and they have young ones not yet eligible for vaccination, so we declined to celebrate together this year. I have been careful too long to take the risk. I can count on one hand the people I have eaten a meal with in the last 18 months - and they are all vaccinated. Could be a tiny T-Giv this year, but I am a loon and still cook a huge variety of foods - it is my favorite holiday as well. Prob because it is about FOOD, plus thankfulness.
We have resumed our anti-inflammation diet since Monday. Much easier this time around as I know what I am doing - last time I floundered for the first three weeks while in the middle of the sugar withdrawal - lol! DH announced that this morning, for the first time in a long time, his back didn't hurt. That's a win, if it continues. His oncological endocrinologist suggested he try going gluten free as many hypothyroid patients do better without it - sounds to me like he may be one of them! Dinner tonight is chicken breast, butternut squash zoodles with pesto, and a kale salad with goat cheese and hazelnuts and a vinaigrette dressing. Just made a big pitcher of green tea with a little monk fruit and lemon, and another pitcher of filtered cold water with orange slices in the infusion pitcher.
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Left over curry.
Tomorrow will be frozen pizza and a flu shot.
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Last night's dinner featured boneless chicken thighs, trimmed of excess fat. I cooked them in a skillet with a can of cream soup (MN influence) thinned with white wine. One side was steamed brown rice cooked in the usual way with salt and about a tablespoon of olive oil. Last night I also sprinkled some poultry seasoning powder. The other side was tossed salad with romaine, tomato, and blue cheese, dressed with EVOO and white balsamic.
Easy and tasty. I am cutting down on my portions and getting back to some basic WW techniques to drop the added 5 to 7 lbs I picked up over the summer.
Yesterday our refrigerator died and came back to life. It was bizarre. The temperature dropped, the ice cubes in the freezer started to melt. I took the few packages in the freezer to the outside refrigerator and bagged up some ice. I returned the settings to normal (we had turned them to colder settings) and the refrigerator motor kicked on. The freezer made ice all night. I could hear the dumps. This will give us time to shop for a new model. This one is 20 plus years old.
The big Thanksgiving gathering with dh's extended family is all but cancelled. In private texting I've learned that physician BIL will not attend a "mixed" occasion and his college graduate nephew will not, either. I feel somewhat guilty about my feeling of relief over the prospect of staying at home. Car travel at Thanksgiving is hazardous with all the people on the highways and filling the motels, not to mention the expense.
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carole - shop carefully for a new fridge - I am still waiting for my Kitchenaid refrigerator I ordered in JANUARY!
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Special - my son had the same problem when he moved last year & left his old fridge in the old house. My fridge has started feeling hot around the freezer doors. Since I no longer have a "garage fridge", I've given some though to ordering one now. Oh ugh....
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minus - the good news is I have a perfectly functional fridge in the kitchen and a garage rated one in the garage. I even have a small stainless one in the outdoor kitchen, although it only seems to hold beer. If I actually needed a fridge I’m not sure what I would have done. To compound that, my door installer was here last week - early because he had a cancellation. He installed one door which is perfect, 50% of the French door is warped slightly - but for the cost it should be 100% good - and there is no track or handle for the 96”pocket slider. So I wait some more…ack.
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Oh no Special. I know you are just SICK of waiting on this darn door project.
Linner was leftover meatloaf. I meant to make sandwiches but decided I didn't need the bread so just cut thick slices and spread mayo & mustard on top. I even ate them with my fingers. Accompanied by leftover baby carrots steamed with dill.
Last night I treated myself to a slice of Edward's freezer pie. I try to keep the two slice package of Hersey's Chocolate Cream Pie in the freezer - but it had migrated to the back & I hadn't thought about it for months. YUM.
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Neighbors that we yard sit while they are in Alaska for most of the summer dropped off a small grocery bag full of foraged Chanterelles. I used a garden leek, the 'shrooms as a bed and roasted chicken parts over it. IN-credible! Made a second apple sharlotka so had a piece for dessert.
Sorry to hear the fridge angst. Our fridge bit the dust in August of last year and we lucked out ordering a lower end whirlpool french door from costco; arrived within a week, installed. Hope they can get yours working/installed soon.
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Burger and tots on the deck 😁
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Oh Mae - how lovely. I hope that means you two are not relaxing after the crazy last week. Glad to hear your friend has been moved to a larger hospital. Did you find his cat?
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Leftover chanterelle's, chicken and broccoli and a slice of apple sharlotka. I'm leaving the rest of the dessert for DH.
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eric95us:
The pan holders would help. Sometimes I use a pot holder, but I don't really understand why the handle was designed as it was to begin with.
Dinner was a few bites of mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, a salad from the salad bar with lettuce, carrots, red cabage, garbonzo beans, kidney beans, tomatoes, some chicken, kalamata olives in oil, some blue cheese, and lemon vinegar dressing. Dessert was half a giant chocolate chip cookie and a few bites of frozen yogurt.
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Minus, I updated on the my life thread since the story of my crazy few days hasn’t been told here and it’s so much to get into.
I think we’re heading home today, dinner will either be sandwiches that I’ll make this afternoon or some kind of truck stop food.
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Mae - I understand. Thanks. Glad you are on the way home. I vote for truck stop food so you don't have to do ANYTHING.
Drove to visit my BFF yesterday - an hour to the North. We have only seen each other twice in 18 months - both times on my patio when she was in town for a dentist or doc appointment. We toured the grounds of the original Boy Scout Camp Strake - which is now massive acres of concrete with homes, duplexes, retail.... While the construction quality seems reasonably decent - I bemoan the loss of the acres & acres of wild natural forest & ground covered over with impervious parking lots & streets & buildings & driveways. Many happy scouting & camping memories in the past.
Lunch was at a small Italian place. I had a reasonably decent spinach & mushroom combination in a cream sauce with garlic toast. My BFF had Chicken Marsala. Unfortunately it was Montgomery County so NO ONE (except me) wore a mask. It was weird having a server hang over you w/o a mask. I've only been out to eat 3 times in a year and this is the first time at a place where at least the employees didn't wear masks. I'll continue calling first and declining to patronize restaurants if at least the employees aren't masked.
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Vegetarian nachos. I used refried pinto beans (canned).
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Wally - I'm pretty sure I have a can of re-fried beans in the cupboard. Need to dig them out.
Interesting to discover all the yearly "hurricane" supplies not that I HOPE the season is over - for Houston anyway.
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WC3...being a guy...and an engineer, I got a double dose of the "fix it" gene! :-) When I would interview candidates for engineering positions, I'd ask about their non-engineering interests and hobbies. I always felt that engineers with lots of hobbies and outside interests worked out better than "the double pocket protector with a propeller hat" crowd...even if the latter could more quickly answer the technical stuff. An engineer that cooked would know that a skillet *needs* an easy to hold handle. :-)
MIL went back to her house today. Her back is still bothering her, but it's needing to wait until she gets some blood work done (making sure the infection is truly gone) before anything else can happen. I was amazed at the lab wait times for blood draws. All the places are appointment only and within 45 miles there was only one open appointment in the next 2 weeks!!!!!!! I don't know if her cat is glad to not have the "dirty-stinky-noisy-uncouth" dogs around, or is missing them...he sometimes acted as if the dogs were "cat toys". :-)
Dinner tonight was pumpkin soup. It's not a "light" soup.
saute a medium onion and 3-4 minced cloves of garlic until the onions become translucent. Add two 15oz (weight) cans of pumpkin, a similar sized (as the pumpkin) can of coconut milk, 2 cups of vege stock, 1 tablespoon of maple syrup, 2 tsp of ground ginger, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon, 1/4 tsp of ground nutmeg, salt to taste (I use around 1/2 tsp) and a 1/4 tsp of cayenne pepper..
Stir, bring to boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes. I use a blender to puree the soup (smooth out the onion chunks).
We are hosting next week's music jam...two couples, neither of which don't get out much, plus my MIL. Anyway we all bring a bit of snack food to eat before the music starts. So, I'm going to make some of the usual cheese-garlic rolls and some of (I think I described it here here several years ago) what seems like a naan bread, plus some lemon-herb chicken "nuggets".
Minus, I always mourn the loss of open space.
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eric95us:
I agree.
The engineer on the saucepan team should have taken notes from the engineer on the skillet team.
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I was in the process of making sourdough bread, but....
Today is one of the music jam group members birthday and we are getting together to celebrate their birthday.
The bread would have been in the middle of it's first rise when we need to leave, so the bread is "cooling its heels" in the refrigerator and I'll finish it tomorrow.
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Making a recipe for red beans and rice tonight, using canned kidney beans. While driving by NOLA my DH and I had a conversation about red beans and rice. I looked up several recipes from my passenger seat and thought I would try this one and then try one with dried beans and check out the differences.
We are doing well on our restricted eating plan - DH has lost 3 lbs, I have lost 2lbs. He wants to lose a total of 10-12, I need to lose 15. We are on the right path - he feels more energetic and has less low back pain. I’m thinking it is the gluten for him. I need to get out and walk - but it is so hot here still.
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Special - I'll be interested to hear your verdict about canned vs. dried beans. I still have a couple bag of Anasazi beans that I ordered last year. And I'm trying to get myself to cook more lentils. I particularly like French Green Lentils - just not part of my habit pattern so I keep forgetting.
Eric - hope the jam is fun - and the B-day celebration. Somehow I can't get excited about all the pumpkin foods.
Dinner was sauteed mushrooms & onions & chicken breasts in a brandy cream sauce. While it was quite good, I still haven't been able to replicate the brandy cream sauce I had at an Italian restaurant three years ago. Frustrating, but I'll keep trying. Sides were long grain & wild rice and spinach. Dessert was lemon pudding.
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Roasted sockeye (done medium rare), corn and broccoli as a side.
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Chicken enchilada casserole. Ingredients: poached chicken breasts, black beans, chopped mild chiles, grated cheddar, small corn tortillas, canned red enchilada sauce. Tasted good. Only problem is the consistency of the tortillas. Side was cole slaw with hand sliced cabbage, mayo and white balsamic, a packet of sweetener. DH liked the slaw a lot and ate most of it.
I cannot imagine that the canned kidney beans are as good as the dry.
Tonight we are invited to the home of friends to have a Pontchartrain Poboy meal of shrimp poboys and mac and cheese. It will be good to visit with these friends.
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minus and carole - I am also guessing the dried beans will be better, although DH was pretty enthusiastic about this canned bean version. That may be because he was not having chicken again for dinner, lol! I did not taste last night's iteration yet because - and I am trying to listen to my appetite so I don't eat when I am really not hungry. I will report in when I try the next recipe.
carole - I use small flour tortillas for enchiladas because I don't like to dip the corn ones to soften them. I have used gluten free and/or low carb versions of flour and they all work pretty well. I usually nuke them gently in the microwave to soften for ease of rolling up the filling but you don't need to put them in the sauce, once rolled and in the pan I just pour the sauce over. I have found that a small package of flour tortillas (6, I think?) and a can of sauce makes a square glass pan of enchiladas.
minus - I am not a fan of pumpkin stuff unless it is a baked good. I have a really, really good recipe for pumpkin bars with cream cheese frosting from Sally's Baking Addiction (Sally knows what's up...) that is awesome, but I have zero interest in anything pumpkin that is not dessert. I have never had a pumpkin spice latte from Starbucks, and I never will - even though they are insanely popular - just can't do it.
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SpecialK, I tended to feel the same about pumpkin (and the pie had to be loaded with whipped cream) but then I tried a martha stewart pumpkin enchilada sauce that was pure heaven. That reminds me to make it.
As for (s)charbucks, nope, never ordered any of their "dessert" coffee and I never will, LOL.
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Special & Carole: I too only use flour tortillas anymore. Easier to handle & easier to chew.
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I have a bias against white flour "anything." Thus my preference for the corn tortillas. Occasionally I will "splurge" and eat a biscuit or French bread. Last night's shrimp poboy at our friends' house was on French bread and so loaded with shrimp that they spilled out. The sides were mac and cheese, also from Pontchartrain Poboy, and cole slaw.
The food was tasty and it was so good to catch up on news with our friends.
Today I'm throwing in the towel on the "go natural hair" experiment and will have my hair colored back to the "former me look." Afterwards I will buy some ground beef for a meatloaf dinner tonight. DH will be happy.
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wallycat - I just looked that recipe up - it does look interesting! I'm thinking the spicy aspect might cancel out enough of the pumpkin-y that I would like it - I did make a pumpkin soup once - like 25 years ago, lol! It was also spicy, and it wasn't too bad.
Speaking of soup - has anyone made a carrot soup? I had some at a wedding in Austria and I know it had ginger, and was delicious. Recipes?
carole - would you consider whole wheat tortillas? My stores also have an artisan style corn and wheat combo that is more pliable than corn on its own. They are at Publix and the brand is LaTortilla.
Not sure what is for dinner tonight, but maybe turkey chili and a green salad. DH is over at DD's house - she is due home from camping tonight - checking on the A/C that was repaired yesterday to make sure it is cooling down the house. His beloved 1996 BMW Z3 (usually a paperweight in the garage) just had to get a new battery so he is doing double duty - running the car and checking on the A/C repair.
Where is chisandy?
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Re tortillas, due to trying to avoid gluten, I primarily use corn tortillas. No problem for enchiladas as I usually make a layered casserole instead of individual rolled enchiladas. I have found one brand of gluten free tortillas that works ok for quesadillas but other brands I have tried did not make the cut! My arthritis appreciates it when I avoid gluten but I really miss my good homemade bread!
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Thanksgiving is my DH's favorite holiday too -- so much so that we have to have another turkey dinner at our house after spending the holiday most years at his sister's home. Of course, last year we did not gather at his sister's and had one small dinner here with the kids. This year all of the siblings and their kids are vaccinated (many of us triple vaccinated) so it looks like it's on. If I can find a small enough turkey, I'll fix that on Sunday along with a couple of sides. I do like the thanksgiving leftovers.
Special - it's funny you should mention those wheat/corn tortillas. Just yesterday I bought some at Fresh Thyme to fix enchiladas last night. Trader Joe's has a version of them that I like awfully well and I usually like La Tortilla's products. Although they were very easy to work with, I found them to be more on the doughy side than TJ's and somewhat disappointing. I'll probably stick with the corn for enchiladas. I don't usually dip mine but heat them briefly in the microwave or a cast iron skillet to make them more flexible.
This week I went to a neighborhood lady lunch gathering.. This group meets once a month at a different restaurant. Although I've been invited every month since they started up again this summer, something has always come up on that particular day. It was quite a pleasant outing and nice to meet some neighbors. We ate at a Walnut Grill which they describe as a "restaurant group" and not a chain as they are a small group located mostly here and Pittsburgh. I didn't feel too nervous about it since we had a room to ourselves and most of us are the same age (or older) and all vaccinated. I had a rather large crab cake that was heavy on the crab and light on the filler. It was delicious although it was within a hair of being overly salty.
For the first time since forever I'm baking bread today. I chose an oat/whole wheat loaf that will go well with the fire roasted vegetable soup I'm fixing for dinner. It was cold enough this morning to turn on the heat and the next several nights are to be the same. We spent yesterday bringing in the plants. The orchids are happy - the herbs not so much. At least it's sunny today after many days of rain and gloom.
Carole - I've stuck with the natural look for now. Mostly I like being free of the obligation of coloring it. It's not as white as I anticipated and is more ashy than I like but most people don't even notice it. Go figure.
I don't get the pumpkin spice thing either. Is it the spice that's so appealing? Last year at Trader Joe's I watched a guy take every can of pumpkin spice coffee off the shelf and put them in his cart. That's hard core.
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