So...whats for dinner?

The gizmo that fits on the thing on the whatchamacallit. ?????

We grilled a whole spatchcocked chicken with rosemary and lemon and some fresh corn on the Weber last night.

Tonight we'll be having lamb chops and roasted carrots with harissa and greek yogurt.

Magari, I'm a self-invited guest! Your dinners sound wonderful.

The eggplant lasagna-type dish was delicious but the ricotta was not a taste enhancement. I will leave it out in the future. Maybe if I had used Sandy's whole milk version, I would have a different opinion! Using the outdoor grill as an oven worked fine. I lit only the main burner and even turned it down a bit. Normally I light all three burners to heat up the interior grill space. Not necessary.

Today is Tuesday, ww meeting at 5:30 pm. Afterwards dh and I will eat out at a restaurant that is "new" for us.

Tonight was cheeseburgers with chipotle gouda on flat bread and sweet potato fries. Tomorrow is brats and red potato salad, with maybe some green beans with dill. I have a skin cancer removal surgery in the morning and will be wanting something easy for dinner.

minus - I always loved Paul Newman's quote about cheating on his wife - he said something to the effect of why go out for a hamburger when you have steak at home. Seems fitting for this thread...

I was down .6 lbs at ww weigh in yesterday afternoon for a total of 7.8 lbs. Not exactly a ww poster child! LOL. I was prepared for a slight gain or maintenance. I enjoy the meeting but it's so different from my Louisiana meeting where people speak up and share. These MN ladies are more reticent. The leader makes a good effort to get a discussion going. In Louisiana the meeting is more of a support group. I am making an effort to sit with different people each meeting. There are two men who attend regularly.

After the meeting we went to Boulders restaurant for the first time. It has a nice main room with large windows on three sides. Tablecloths and rather formal. I had a by-the-glass cabernet, Grayson from Napa Valley, and liked it a lot. $9 a glass so I had only one. I ordered a lemon pepper walleye which came with a tasty tartar sauce, slice of lemon, steamed veggies that were almost raw, and a wild rice blend with cranberries.

Dh ordered a night's special, lamb shank which was served with a gravy-like sauce on the side and mint jelly. His side was mashed potatoes which he said were ordinary. He enjoyed the lamb which you're not likely to find on most menus up here.

We both enjoyed a hot roll, medium to small size, dipped into an olive oil and seasoned parmesan mixture.

My conclusion was that Boulders is pricey but does offer some more "sophisticated" menu choices you won't find at most local restaurants. We won't be going there every Tuesday after the ww meeting.

Tonight will be ribeye steak and baked potato and salad.

Today I'm playing golf with the 18 hole women's group at Headwaters Golf Club.

val - hey! Missed you! Hope you're doing well. I can't really help on the stroganoff quest - but someone will come along who can I am sure. I usually use leftover rib-eye that is somewhat rare, slice it n strips, and add it toward the end just to warm though. I rely on larger quartered mushrooms cooked over high heat to be the start of the sauce, with some Wochestershire, sour cream, and a teeny bit of tomato paste.

Tenderloin for the Stroganoff???

Patsy - flowers are lovely. Good luck tomorrow. Let us know.

Blood draw went well. Results down the road.

Val - I'm glad to see you too. We've missed you. I usually use round steak for Stroganoff.

Food today was cottage cheese with leftover canned peach slices. I may have a green salad after water aerobics, but maybe just some watermellon.

What about hanger steak for Stroganoff? It's a flavorful but not photogenic cut that butchers used to save for themselves before foodies discovered it. More expensive than skirt or flank steak, but cheaper than strip, filet or ribeye.

Tonight was weird. If I were Catholic I'd have been praying nonstop to St. Anthony (patron saint of lost & found objects)--mid-evening, I was trying to gather the stuff I'll need for the dulcimer festival this weekend, but couldn't find the tote bag I'd taken to my last gig in Madison, which I thought had my harmonicas, velcro wrist wrap (for holding ice packs), Traumeel gel and an ice pack. So after sending a text to the venue where I'd played, I went out to the car to see if it was in there with my emergency duffel and stash of reusable shopping bags. Reached into the closet for my leather jacket, but it wasn't there! I realized I'd forgotten it this afternoon at the nail salon (it had warmed up outside and everyone else was walking around coatless). Salon owner, who lives in my 'hood, dropped it off. On the way back in from the garage, I saw a big black (likely expensive) metal water bottle tucked into a corner of the deck--texted the landscaper, who replied it was his. Went back inside and there was a really pretty pair of glasses I don't own--they're my housekeeper's (I lusted after them and wanted to buy a pair, but she got them at the V.A. eye clinic, not open to non-vets). Texted her that they're on the dining room table. Then I found the harmonicas in the accessory pocket of one of my dulcimer cases.

So dinner was kinda late. Fortunately, I'd defrosted a piece of Copper River sockeye salmon, which I pan-seared. Sautéd snap peas, and steamed & seasoned some freekeh--always wanted to try it, because it's high-fiber and cooks more quickly than rice.

I rarely make stroganoff. Once upon a time I think I used a tough cut of beef like round steak but I like the idea of a tender cut that wouldn't be overcooked. At some point in my life I stopped liking tough beef that has to be cooked and cooked and cooked to be chewable. My mother "smothered" round steak and made a delicious dark brown gravy. The flavor was in the gravy, served over white rice, a staple in our southern family.

Last night's ribeye was a bit overcooked but the slices in the middle qualified as medium rare. I had half a baked potato with butter and a delicious romaine salad with tomato, cucumber, avocado, blue cheese and Greek olives sprinkled with olive oil and white balsamic.

Tonight's menu will be boneless chicken thighs, sweet potato chunks and salad. We don't seem to tire of our romaine tossed salads. DH always adds generous amount of sweet onion to his and uses a bottled onion dressing, Ken's brand.

I've been scanning some of the "billions and billions and billions" of slides and old photographs.

ET (evil twin) and Pest. Pest is the cat. :-)

This was taken in late 1986.

My last frozen Wagyu sirloin filet, seared on the grill in cast iron (had started it on the stove but I set off the smoke detector)! Mushrooms with butter, dry marsala and the juices left over after slicing the steak--8 oz, fed two of us. Broccolini with garlic, lemon, olive oil and chili flakes. Leftover freekeh with butter and porcini-infused sea salt.

Considerably less sophisticated fare this weekend, as I'm doing a dulcimer festival in a small town about 2 hrs. SW.

Carole - please tell him Happy Birthday. The B-day dinner sounds great.

Happy Birthday "Mr. Carole".