So...whats for dinner?

carole - we did eat pizza in Italy, although definitely more pasta. I like all kids of pizza but the best I have had is at a restaurant in Sacramento, CA called Hot Italian. It is a thin crust, no red sauce pizza, with prosciutto and thinly sliced potato and basil oil. I dream about it. Glad you are feeling better!

susan - sounds like a great meal!

I am not a whole wheat pasta enjoyer (that is not a word...) either, and now do mostly quinoa pasta or brown rice pasta, which is good right when you eat it, but not good leftover, it gets a little rubbery.

Carrie, not boring at all! I admire your tenacity, while your relatives may not! Glad that your Dad enjoyed the luncheon, but it must be worrisome to see your Mom looking less than hearty

Last night we weren't able to make a reservation at the restaurant we wanted to try near the Garden, so just tried without one. Since it took over an hour to get into town, we were at the end of a long line for dinner, so ended up having a slice of old school pizza at a huge corner pizza joint, standing with a crowd chowing down our pepperoni (!) slices. Such a departure for us veggie types! That "dinner" was followed by a cup of gelato at the game for me, a sausage sandwich for DH, then later in the game, some popcorn.

Tonight, DH grilled a couple of hake fillets (with a garlic balsamic glaze I made), which we had with butternut squash mash and a giant many lettuce salad. Unfortunately, it was such a light meal that I ended up munching on peanut brittle afterwards.

Earlier this week, I learned from my PCP (during an annual physical) that my surgeon, who I really like, is leaving her current practice to head up a BC program at another healthcare facility. What a disappointment! Tho I shouldn't be surprised since she is a really bright, ambitious lady, and I'm glad for her if it meets her professional needs. But, one does enjoy knowing that one's BC team members are still around in case of......Oh well......

I'm missing hearing from Nance. I hope her dad is ok.

I was late going to the gym this morning and could have saved myself the trip. There was no parking place in the parking lot and vehicles were parked all over the place. T-Ball games and a yard sale to benefit the YMCA. I returned home and looked up a recipe for pancakes and made pancakes for breakfast. They were the kind with no fiber and easy on the stomach.

The poor Jazz Fest folks are slogging through mud and swimming through humid air. With enough cold beer they're probably enjoying themselves anyway.

CRAP!! Just lost half of a long post!! So. Aggravating. Here we go again.

Sorry to be kind of off the grid for a while. I have been reading and enjoying your food adventures and pictures. I'm so sorry about Carole and her family and Carrie's DH and their bouts of noro. Been there, done that and it is no fun. You have my deepest sympathy. I'm glad all are on the mend. I enjoyed the Seder food discussions and the articles. Before DH, my former paramour grew up in a Kosher household, yet I learned little about it from him. His mother educated me some even though she had determined that keeping Kosher was "too much trouble" and had quit years before. I find dietary laws fascinating.

Dad Update - part of the reason I've been AWOL is because of him. A week ago, he woke up so weak he couldn't get out of bed. He called himself an ambulance and off he went to the hospital. The previous week, he had fallen four different times and hurt his arm to the extent that he developed cellulitis. To top it off, he wasn't eating or taking his meds, which may have accounted for some of his weakness. After tests of various kinds and a four day stay in the hospital, he was transferred back to the rehab facility where he'll be for about six weeks. Everyone who works with him is of the opinion that he cannot continue to live completely alone, and I agree. The tentative plan is for him to be released to an assisted living facility. At least everyone has that opinion but dad. He is very upset and sad about this and it breaks my heart to see him so sad. He wants nothing more than to live his life in his own apartment on his own terms. He keeps asking me how other people can tell him how he has to live his life and can't seem to accept the fact that it's dangerous for him. Anyway, I've been busy putting together the necessary documents and applying for financial aid for him to be able to go to a facility. His IL Dept of Aging case manager has been so helpful, for which I'm extremely grateful. I had no idea where to begin with all of this. In the meantime I've been doing a lot of running back and forth putting lots of miles on my car but at least I'm not worrying about him every minute of the day and night. So we'll see how this goes.

It seems like dinner has been nothing but carryout pizza or hamburgers lately. Tonight I splurged on a couple of lovely ribeyes that we'll have with a salt baked potato and some roasted tomatoes with boursin topping. I might pressure cook an artichoke for myself. I got some lovely ones at Costco yesterday.

Regarding whole wheat pizza crust, I've had the best result with it if I use no more than a third (or less) whole wheat flour. I've not tried with the white whole wheat flour. DH likes whole wheat crust, but I prefer white to all else.

Carole, my mom was a bingo fanatic who only played where the "big" money was. I went with her a couple of times and I was horrified when she handed me six cards to play. For herself, she played a dozen. I could barely keep up and I was terrified that I would get a bingo. These people were hard core. If you called bingo and it turned out you were wrong, they were hostile! When she was in hospice, they played bingo at the facility a couple of times a week. She always played and always won prizes, which were cookies, that she promptly gave away. It was just a love of the game to the very end.

Special - I'm very glad your daughter was not seriously injured and Minus - yay on getting to drive again! Susan -- on to the next great event - the P'nut's arrival!

Spring is sprung here and everything is green and lush. Rain the past couple of days has kept my vegetable garden on the front porch. All of the flowers except a few zinnia seeds have been planted. I'm hoping to get the vegetables in tomorrow. We've had lots of beautiful birds (summer residents) -- Baltimore orioles, orchard orioles, rose breasted grosbeaks, red headed woodpeckers, indigo buntings, and of course hummingbirds, at the feeders. They're fascinating, all I want to do is sit and watch the windows. And of course, we've already had a black snake (smallish) in the garage. Hello summer!

Nance, I second the hope expressed by Minus, that your dad come to terms with his situation and make the best of things for his sake as well as yours. Are you the only family caregiver? On other subjects, the birds sound so beautiful. I have never seen an oriole in "person." And Indigo Buntings have to be in the class of most exquisite birds. We occasionally are treated to the sight of them during migration.

We were under tornedo watch for a period this afternoon but now all is calm. Jazz Fest was cancelled and so was golf play at the PGA tournament. What a difference a weekend can make. Last weekend was perfect weather for both events.

We had a late lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and so far the subject of dinner hasn't come up.

Breakfast for dinner for me--two olive-oil-fried eggs and a piece of low-carb toast. Harrowing afternoon driving through the deluge back to Edgewater from down in Minooka. My friend who’s recovering from her bmx, with whom I stayed last night, doesn’t keep eggs, milk or butter around the house (not only is she diabetic but also a heart patient). Yesterday en route home from the hospital we went through the drive-thru window at Culver’s for salads (mine plain green, hers strawberry-chicken) and a walleye sandwich for me. Still playing hooky from my diet--tomorrow is our rabbi’s retirement party, featuring wine, cheese & chocolate. (Entertainment is by Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and his son--his wife is Jewish, so their kids are too; and Jeff was converted by our rabbi shortly after the bat & bar mitzvah. A couple of years ago, he brought along SNL’s Fred Armisen & comic Jeff Garlin for a fundraiser).

Wow, Nance...you have been through a lot with your dad, and I too hope that he is able to make peace with his next setting, which sounds like it is the best option for him, safety-wise. Such a difficult thing to witness with a loved one.

We ended up using the leftover amt on a Sweet Basil gift card for dinner, ordering up some calamari, a Greek salad, and a chicken dish in a cream sauce over rigatoni. Calamari was great as was the salad (tho I made my own Greek dressing for it as theirs is too creamy...DH used that as a bread dip), but the chicken dish was way too salty...the signature of this restaurant, sadly. So now that the card is used up, we will not be ordering from there any time soon.

Susan, your account of the Sarma meal was so interesting. I love that you have such interesting restaurants right near you! I still enjoy such good memories of our Pasha lunch.

As DH was clearing "stuff" from the garage today, he came across several carousels of slides that my father took in the 50's and 60's. I think my sister must have dropped them here after selling our childhood home, on her way to VT. So DH is now researching the most cost effective way to get them transferred to digital motif. The funny thing is that I keep seeing the slide projector in our basement, wondering if it might make sense to get rid of it (we are in clearing out mode...finally, and will be for some time!) since I could not remember if and where we might have slides to show on it. DH is dying to see the slides of me visiting my college for the first time, since we met after we both finished grad school. Ha! I honestly do not think I have ever seen them myself. My dad (deceased since 1990) was very big on documenting everything photographically.

Yes, Joyce, it is a beautiful time of year here! And I love that you had a Michelle style dinner!

My last few days have not been what I had planned for myself. Our ancient Quicken file imploded. We have been nursing an old machine so we could keep this file alive. Who knows what happened on November 15th, but as of a few days ago, all our entries were there. When I opened the files Wednesday, planning to port the data to a new program, entire categories were missing. All our deposits were gone. Random charges, missing. So I have spent three days recreating 6 months. But once into this project, I created ASSET accounts so we have a cost basis for both homes. I have added some of our investment accounts [which sounds far more impressive than their balances would indicate] and plan to add our retirement funds next week.

Last night, I folded.... we ordered from our new 'favorite' Indian spot. We ordered the chicken wings, dal, and tried a new dish... the tandoori salmon. This put us over our normal "per dinner" price range and it was worth every penny! The salmon was marvelous. Tandoor ovens are such amazing things. They sent the salmon with a marsala sauce which I found to be delicious. Usually, they are all about the ghee and cream, but this one was about the tomato and spices. I thought it was too much for the salmon, but over the rice? Oh yea! As you can imagine, we had lots of chicken, rice and dal leftover so that was lunch today. Dinner was zucchini-feta cakes, smoked beef sausages and some roasted potato chunks. Not a bad supper, but not exceptional. Tonight, I made up a oatmeal cookie dough. At Mr. 02143's request, i reduced the sugar by a third. I think, based on observation, that I need to reduce the amount of egg to account for the lack of sugar. Either way, Mr. 02143 is happily munching on cookies right now.

nance, so good to hear from you. Your Dad [and many other Dads I guess] has a point. He is an adult and he wants to live the way he wants to live. But damn, you have to take your meds. You have to eat. You have to take in enough liquids. That is the price for freedom. I am highly sympathetic to his wants, but only if he can do it successfully.

Lacey, you know.... if you want, I could increase the count for my next Sarma reservation if you want. I will be in touch to see if that might amuse.

Bedo, how is your recovery coming along?

Joyce, wasn't this one of the most beautiful NE days imaginable? Even in the midst of my accounting nightmares, I found myself drawn to the back porch just to enjoy the sunshine and light breezes. Mr. 02143 spent a few hours building more raspberry cages. The robins are back this year, so we might not get to eat any of them.

I know I have missed someone..... and some people. Sorry. Always a problem at the top of a new page.

*susan*

I thought sushi was supposed to be raw, not well done (sorry, couldn’t resist)!

Well, Carole, don't be too envious. We are forecasted to have rain practically all of this week. I always figure that whatever you are experiencing will eventually head this way. But no heat nor humidity, which I guess is a plus. We were spoiled most of this past week. I should not complain since the raindrops chase some of my pollen enemies.

Eric, it sounds like older folks may need to enjoy something like a five year country dream before checking back into the healthcare meccas....if they can even afford to. Folks who move away from here often find it prohibitive to move back, so I won't be budging.

Nance, I wish your dad had a "good buddy" at the new facility so that he could at least have something to look forward to. My mother was also a bingo fan, but her passion for it would pale in comparison to your mother's! She mainly played at her church, many cards but fairly tame and minor winnings.

I'm trying to continue some clearing out and organizing professional materials that I still use today. DH is on a tear getting things out of the garage....including our bikes, which realistically we will not be using (I would still bike, but my racing bike tires would not be too good for me at this age). So there is a gal coming to buy them right now! And possibly a canoe buyer later today.....

Exciting news.....next time Susan and her DH goto Sarma, this couple will be joining them!

Lemonaise sounds good. You can't miss with lemon and mayo.

Carrie, mussels aren't southern. I first ate them on PEI at an rv park. One of our rv neighbors was a mussels farmer. He brought over a large bowl he had cooked in wine. We tried them and found them delicious. I have never cooked them. They're usually served as an appetizer. I've seen the bags of mussels in supermarkets but have not bought them.

I had three, yes, THREE doughnuts today. A Boston cream (chocolate covered), a chocolate covered, and a glazed. Other nourishment was a pack of peanut butter crackers and 4 oz of chocolate protein shake. With thunderstorm warnings crawling across the top of the tv screen, I set out to visit my mother, taking a travel cup of coffee for her the way she likes it: real cream and three large spoons of sugar. I made a stop at the doughnut shop which is just minutes from the nursing home and bought a dozen doughnuts so there would be extra to share. I brought two glazed cake doughnuts home for dh and he promptly ate them. Doughnuts are a rare treat and I triple-treated.

Dinner will be a bowl of leftover soup or a boiled egg. Or maybe cottage cheese and strawberries.

One of these days, I will probably start cooking again. Grazing is actually kind of nice.

Tonight dinner is going to be some USDA Prime steaks. DD will be home from work in about an hour, so I will start them then. Currently they are in the microwave oven--protection against counter surfing dogs. :-) I haven't quite figured out what to have for side dishes. I do have some sourdough rolls ready to pop into the oven, so that will be one. My leanings are toward a fruit salad and maybe even some bacon wrapped asparagus. Saturday would be a better day to cook, but DD works until 9 or 10pm. So, Sunday is "the day".

Today when I walked in to see mom, "Bruce. Why are you here?", while speaking to me. Bruce is my brother. He's in China.

Nance, it just shouldn't be so hard, right? I hope that he finds a way to be happy with whatever choice has to be made.

Eric, very hard... I have told you about my mother-in-law haven't I? She had Alzheimers; a slow and painful descent. (The same rate that I see with my husband.) Anyhow, I won't bore you with this long story again if I have told the story before. Dinner sounds like it has a mighty delicious anchor. Hope it meets expectations.

Lacey, Sarma reservation is now for four. Evidently, I am now in the "regular" category since Brad knew who I was immediately. No one should be jealous of this weather. Gosh was it cold and damp. Don't you have a cabin in NH? That can be your "country retirement" home, rent out where you live now, and move back if you need the medical attention. Is the cabin a year-round one with heat or not?

Minus, Houston doesn't have any public transport for those with mobility challenges? In this 'gig' economy, I bet it will be possible to arrange a driver to come to get you with an app on your phone and take you to the market or hospital for appointments. We have something called "The Ride" which is run by the MBTA. It is not particularly good, but it is something. I think there are many people who prefer to age in place and don't have great dreams of moving elsewhere. Man does a pork chop sound good!

Carberry, ah yes. Accounting. I worked my way through college as an auditor, working for hotels balancing their front desks and restaurants nightly. I then used those skills to run two non-profits and even booked myself out as a bookkeeper when the economy slumped. My Dad was adamant that I know how to balance the books, read a financial statement and file my own taxes. He also felt I needed to know how to use an electric drill and know how to make scrambled eggs. He was not your average man at all.

Carole, can your mother not get coffee the way she likes it at her home now? What part of the magic formula don't they have?

Dinner tonight was grilled bone-in chicken thighs that had a 32 hr dry brine, sweet potato wedge oven fries with garlic, rosemary and thyme, steamed green beans with lemon zest, and a salad. My body has been back to 'normal' which should last about four days, so I want to eat as many colors of the rainbow as possible while I can.

*susan*

I had picked up some "riced" cauliflower at Trader's a few days ago so decided to make cauliflower pancakes with it tonight to gomwith our leftover Sweet Basil chicken dish and multi greens salad. Since I didn't think I would find the pancakes that appetizing without a topping of some sort, I mixed some siracha in sour cream and it was a nice accompaniment. DH had suggested apple sauce, but these are really not that close to latkes....good though.

Eric, I am sorry for your mom's cognitive decline and inability to recognize you. Very sad. Smart of you to protect those steaks from the counter surfers! LOL I hope you all enjoyed your Sunday supper!

Carole.....three doughnuts?! Be still my heart! DH and I were just talking about how we used to buy them for breakfast on Saturdays after the kids' soccer games. They are so easy to scarf down....but have not had one in years. My favorites are glazed and jelly....but I could easily be convinced to substitute a Boston cream for either ofthose two!

eric - I have a very well behaved dog, who wouldn't dream of stealing off the counter, but definitely a counter surfing 6 month old kitten/cat/catten (new word for teenaged kitten/cat). I either put stuff in the pan it will be cooked in and top with a glass lid, or the oven or microwave for protection. He is a total marauder, without any conscience. The dog would be happy, but beside himself with guilt, lol!

Now I want doughnuts.