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So...whats for dinner?

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  • SeasideMemories
    SeasideMemories Member Posts: 2,462
    edited March 2023

    Ahhhh... Thanks for the info, Lago!

    Edited to add: just noticed you are in Chicago!  Hope you are doing well... Saw the pictures from the mid-west states and... YIKES!  We had quite a bit but nothing like what you all had!  Stay safe!

  • tracie23
    tracie23 Member Posts: 214

    Lago that sounds soooo good . The Burnham house is having Chicken Parmigiana and Sauteed Spinach. Enjoy everyone

  • sheila888
    sheila888 Member Posts: 9,611

    lago...I love cabbage and have one in the fridge.

    I use lamb since its the same idea I can add some ingredients from your recipe.

    Thanks

    Wink

  • Even though hubby is still away, Im making a really easy Turkey, Corn & Black Bean Chili. It's quick, easy, and I'll eat it tonight and have it tomorrow for when my husband comes home. Voilà! Dinner is done for 2 nights!

  • SeasideMemories
    SeasideMemories Member Posts: 2,462

    tougherthanithought,

    I hear you on the picky kid thing!  I can remember my aunt (who had 5 children) making 4 different pots of chili when she would make it because all the kids dis-liked certain ingredients...

    So she would have one with no onions, one with no peppers, one with no beans and one with everything.  I remember thinking wow, when I have children, I will never do THAT.  They will eat what I make!

    Well.... Let's just say... Easier said than done once you actually HAVE the children!  lol....

    When my kids were little I did make different things for them.  It kept the peace and made it so we didn't have to have the same 2 or 3 things that they would eat in that given month, EVERY day...

    Now that they are teens and early twenties, I don't worry so much about it.  I make what my husband and I want but, have stuff on hand so they can make a sandwich, salad or some alternative!

  • SeasideMemories
    SeasideMemories Member Posts: 2,462

    tracie23,

    MMMM.... Chicken parm.... Italian food is one of my favorites!  Spinach too!

    Sounds delicious!!

  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,047

    most of us sound motivated tonight with dinner!  The chicken chili is a recipe I would love to get :)

    We are having chicken Madeira with pasta and tomato sauce.  Yum!  Hubby got out of work early with the storm and is playing with the boys outside while I quietly cook.  Doesn't happen often and I love it!

    Cheers!

  • I know, Seaside, there are only a few things I can make that EVERYONE likes...so frustrating!!!

    Laurie, I'm not sure you were referring to my chili recipe...if so, here it is :)

    Black Bean, Corn and Turkey Chili

    Tbsp Olive Oil

    1 lb. ground turkey

    1 large onion, chopped

    2 Tbsp chili powder

    1 tsp. ground cumin

    1 tsp oregano

    1/2 tsp black pepper

    1/4 tsp garlic powder

    1 can chicken broth

    1 cup chunky salsa

    1 Tbsp sugar (I use a bit less)

    1 can rinsed and drained black beans

    1 can drained white corn

    1 sm can diced tomatoes

    Heat oil.  Add turkey, onion, chili powder, cumin, oregano, black pepper and garlic powder.  Cook until turkey is well browned.  Stir in broth, salsa, sugar, tomatoes, beans and corn.  Heat to a boil.  Reduce heat to low & simmer about 30 minutes.

    I serve it w a little shredded cheddar cheese and scoop tortilla chips (this is one recipe that my kids ACTUALLY eat, and the scoop chips are the ringer!)

    This way is pretty mild, so if you like more heat, add more chili powder or some hot sauce.

    Enjoy!

    Sherrill

  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,047

    thanks for sharing Sherrill!

    On the topic of children and dinner.  I too was raised that you eat what your mother made, you say it is good ( no matter what) and you say thank you.  I am trying to do the same with my kids.  They are 1 and 3 and they eat what we eat.  Tonight I made chicken madeira with pasta and both my three and one year old ate it and my three year old even told me it is the best "gravy" ever.  If I know they truly don't like something I don't push it though.  My oldest doesn't like tomato sauce so if we do italian, like chicken parm, I don't put sauce on his.  So far so good, but I have many more years to go before I could ever say I am successful.

  • For my kids, the pickiness didn't really kick in until they were about 2 and 4.  I remember my son would eat Salmon, flounder, other white fish,any kind of chicken I made, any kind of pasta, they both ate broccoli a few times a week, carrots, green beans etc.  It was like a switch went off and things they used to like, all of a sudden, not so much!  The one that gets me is my homemade macaroni and cheese (real butter, whole milk, very decadent, if you ask me!)  You would think that would be a kid's dream...but no.  My kids prefer the fake, orange, boxed kind!  UGH!!

    Hopefully your kids will continue to eat your meals!  I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! :)

    Sherrill

  • catbill
    catbill Member Posts: 102

    LuvRVing-

    I'd like to have it too...if you don't mind sharing it.

    Tonight it's stuffed peppers with Quinoa (keen-wa) replacing the rice.  It's really good, and my oncologist says the Quinoa is a great grain to eat.

  • That's funny b/c I made quinoa for the first time last week!  I think I sauted it over too high heat, because the little grains were really dark (sort of like coffee grinds), but I liked it anyway.  It got a big thumbs down from the kids (shocking).

  • NatureGrrl
    NatureGrrl Member Posts: 681

    My mom didn't make us eat what was on the table, but she didn't go out of the way to cook for us, either (her standard line was, "if you don't like it you know where the peanut butter is")... but she did go out of her way to cook for dad, a Midwest farmer (she was a Southerner so this was a big change for her:  meat and potatoes every night).  My younger brother might have been the exception as for years all he ate (pretty literally) was pasta with butter and NOTHING else on it, cereal, peanut butter, and hot dogs.  Sheez :)  Kids!   When dad was away, she made homemade mac & cheese, like you mention, Sherrill, the good stuff, and the three of us kids would fight over it.  My brothers have limited palates and are still very meat-and-potatoes oriented but even as a child I loved some of mom's southern foods:  lima beans and just about any veggie, grits, etc.  And I love experimenting and trying ethnic foods and new taste treats and all that.  We were all raised the same so I guess it was just a personal thing that our tastes turned out so different, but I can't help feeling sorry for them for not appreciating the variety of tastes in the world!

    Sorry, I went all over the map there!

    Lago, yum.... thanks!!  In your original post you said you do add meat... does that mean you've made it without?  I can understand the richness the meat would add but also always like to try veg*n versions of things so I'm curious.

    Reading everyone's dinner plans inspired me so I made split pea soup and corn two muffins (NOT my mother's Southern corn bread, she would be appalled!) :)   after all.  Very perfect for a cold snowy day.

    This thread is great, not only for the new ideas I'm getting, but for the older ideas it's bringing back!

  • SeasideMemories
    SeasideMemories Member Posts: 2,462

    tougherthanithought,

    LOL.... Even though I had a pot of bean soup made (started yesterday and completed today) my son, who would normally have eaten the soup, had a friend staying over... Well, they were not going to eat the soup sooooooooo, I made them Mac and Cheese from the famous blue box.....

    Sometimes the more things change the more they stay the same!  Wink

  • NatureGrrl
    NatureGrrl Member Posts: 681

    PS I love quinoa, very tasty! tougherthan, I never heard of sauteing it, I cook it with water... but it does look weird (from a kid's perspective) so it'll probably be a hard sell no matter what!

  • I sauted it first w/ olive oil according to the package, then added the water and cooked for like 25 minutes.  I'll have to try it again, though, because I liked it.  It has a nutty flavor.

  • o2bhealthy
    o2bhealthy Member Posts: 1,089

    What a fun thread!  We are always struggling on 'what's for dinner?' - since my dx I have been trying to stay away from processed food and eat more veggies... (hummmmmm, I guess I should have passed on the Reisen Chocolate chews today at lunch).  Eating healthier has been a challenge! Each week I try a new veggie, this week is acorn squash, we are going to try a stuffed acorn squash with wild rice, ground turkey, veggies and jack cheese...we'll see what the family thinks.  My kids are 16 and 12 and they have learned not to complain over the last 1yr + and they have actually enjoyed a few of my experiments!  

  • lago
    lago Member Posts: 11,653

    NatureGrrl I have had it in restaurants without the meat. They tend to make it too sweet to make up for the lack of meat. You can do a search on the web. This is one I found:
    http://www.ifood.tv/recipe/sweet-sour-cabbage-soup

    -------------------------------------
    We ate healthy tonight grilled chicken breast (no skin), spinach sauteed in garlic/olive oil and a small red potato.

  • LuvRVing
    LuvRVing Member Posts: 2,409

    SeasideMemories and Catbill - have you ever tried Dreamfields pasta?  It is a low carb pasta that you can find in most grocery stores, either in the regular pasta aisle or in the health foods section.  It's a bit pricey - about $2.25 or so for a 12 ounce box.  You can use it as a substitute for regular pasta in any recipe.  It actually tastes like the regular stuff, unlike a lot of the low carb products.  Even my grandkids can't tell the difference.  I am diabetic and my daughter uses it when I am visiting. 

     My mac and cheese recipe came out of  "desperation" one night when I had a meat and veggie planned, but decided I needed something else to go with it (for my hubby) and made a quickie version of mac and cheese.  I figured it had to be at least as good as Kraft...lol...and it was. 

    Cook about 3 cups of pasta to "al dente" stage.

    While the pasta is cooking, melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan.  Stir in 2 tablespoons of flour with some salt and pepper (sorry, I don't measure), then stir in 2 cups of milk and cook until thickened.  Remove from heat and add about 1 1/2 cups shredded cheese - a combination of sharp cheddar and swiss or gruyere work best.  Stir until melted (should take just a minute), then combine the cheese sauce with the pasta.  Sprinkle some nutmeg and adjust salt and pepper to taste.

    That's it...that was my easy mac and cheese.  You could put it in a casserole dish, top with buttered bread crumbs and bake it for 20 minutes.  BUT Dreamfields loses its low carb properties if it's overcooked, so I stick with my quickie version.  

    Other than shredding the cheese, making the sauce takes about five minutes. 

    Catbill - I've had quinoa but never tried to cook it.  I do make stuffed peppers and I've always used Minute Brown Rice which does not need to be cooked.  I will assume that you would have to cook the quinoa first, is that correct?  I am diabetic, and quinoa would be a better substitute than any kind of rice.

    Michelle

    Lumpectomy and SNB 7/21. Mammosite Rads finished 8/4! Follow my blog at www.mch-breastcancer.blogspot.com. BC is a wrinkle in the sheets of my life.
    Diagnosis: 6/29/2010, IDC, 1cm, Stage I, Grade 3, 0/4 nodes, ER+/PR+, HER2-

  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,047

    I've never even heard of quinoa?  It sounds as though it a kind of small grain like coos coos? (I know my spelling is wrong, sorry!)

  • sheila888
    sheila888 Member Posts: 9,611

    quinoa. It says high protein.

  • Faith316
    Faith316 Member Posts: 1,088

    We made something really good last night called Stovetop Chicken Pie.  Very easy and so good.  (Makes 6 to 8 servings.)

    Bake 8 frozen biscuits according to pkg. directions

    Saute 1 small sweet diced onion in a tablespoon of canola oil over medium-high heat about 5 minutes.  Add  8-oz. fresh mushrooms and saute 5 more minutes.  Stir in 4 cups chopped cooked chicken, 1 can cream of mushroom soup, 1 cup chicken broth, 1/2 cup dry white wine, half of a 0.7-oz envelope of Italian dressing mix, and an 8-oz. pkg. of cream cheese, cut into cubes.  Stir frequently, about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and mixture is thoroughly heated.  Stir in 1 cup of frozen baby peas which have been thawed.  Cook 2 more minutes.  Spoon mixture over hot split biscuits.

    Everyone at my house liked this a lot and it was quick.  I bought a couple of rotisserie chickens and used them and it made it even faster.  I also used the entire envelope of the Italian dressing mix instead of only half on it.  I will definitely make this again.

  • Laurie08
    Laurie08 Member Posts: 2,047

    Faith- thanks for the recipe. The Italian seasoning packet is very different.  Sounds like something I would try though, I'll have to remember to buy extra cream cheese when I go shopping (and the seasoning packet)  the rest are regular staples which I love about this.

  • thefuzzylemon
    thefuzzylemon Member Posts: 631

    MMM ... tonight it was homemade chicken and noodle soup (more like dumplings, amazing) and mashed potatoes!  My daughters boyfriends family made it and brought it over!  Nothing more tasty than and meal that is prepared and delivered :)

  • NatureGrrl
    NatureGrrl Member Posts: 681

    I have today off work (planned a vacation day some time back) and although it's cold out, it's sunny and just gorgeous with the snow, so I'm bundling up for a hike in the woods.  Then I'm coming home and making homemade pasta so I can make manicotti tonight.  It's an indulgence I allow myself a few times a year and homemade pasta is so tender and good.  Yum!

    fuzzy, your meal last night sounds perfect -- and yes, isn't it best when someone else does the cooking? :)

    Quinoa is a seed but not a true grain (grains are all in the grass family) (sorry, it's the botanist in me) :)  but it's cooked like one, and as someone mentioned, it's got a nutty taste and is really high in protein.  Especially good for veg*n meals.  I love it and there are dozens of great recipes on the net.  Cooks quick, is good hot or cold, and mixed well with just about anything.  After manicotti tonight I think I'll have to plan something leaner with quinoa for the weekend!

    Happy cooking, everyone!

  • Jane_UK
    Jane_UK Member Posts: 1

    I don't have a clue what's for dinner tonight! My parents have come to stay for a few days to help me out with the house and family because I was very ill with an infection after my first chemo and everything got a bit neglected.

     My mum is currently in the kitchen cooking up something that smells delicious but apart from the fact that it involves chicken, I have no idea what it'll be! Laughing

  • jacee
    jacee Member Posts: 219

    Love....love....love  this thread!!!!

    Cabbage is a favorite! One very easy meal....Chop a few potatoes, carrots, and onion and put in a baking dish. Top with 1/2 a head of shredded cabbage. Top with sliced kielbasa. Pour about 2 cups of chicken broth over all.....a few pats of butter (or more) and salt & pepper. Cover with foil and bake at 400 for about an hour. Yummmmy....we eat it with cornbread and sometimes pinto beans on the side............yep, I'm a southern girl!!  

    Joni

  • NatureGrrl
    NatureGrrl Member Posts: 681

    jacee, that sounds like something my mother would have loved!  So, not to raise a controversial issue Smile but do you like cornbread with white corn meal or yellow?  I understand it's very regional but my mother was a total snob about that one issue -- if it wasn't white cornmeal (and no sugar!  never any sugar in cornbread!!  gasp!) Wink it wasn't cornbread. (She also thought only 3 states qualified to be called "Southern," she sure had her opinions!)   I actually like both now but I still don't like it very sweet.  Anyway, I always thought white cornmeal was pervasive throughout the South but some Southerners have looked at me aghast when I suggest white cornmeal in cornbread. I also thought rice was standard Southern fare, but some friends from Little Rock thought I was crazy and said they'd never heard of that and that pototoes were the Southern food.  Love those regional (and sometimes just family) variations.

    Jane, I can't think of anything more delightful than having your mom cook for you... enjoy!

  • thePuppetLady
    thePuppetLady Member Posts: 21

    Sausage lasagna tonight!  Got the sauce on the stove and it smells heavenly :)

  • jacee
    jacee Member Posts: 219

    I make cornbread with yellow. But I do like white as well. And, yes, never any sugar in cornbread!!! My mother was adamant about this when making cornbread for cornbread dressing for Thanksgivng! Funny the things we pick up from our families, and never really know why?? I think rice is more popular in the deep south, like New Orleans with the Cajun dishes. Or, I remember living in Mississippi, some would cook white rice, say with chicken....but it had to be served with gravy...lol. I hardly ever do gravy anymore. Love brown rice.

    I was recently in Charleston for my recon surgery.....where grits are served everywhere. I bought some to bring home....they told me white grits are creamier, yellow are sweeter.