What's For Dinner? Part 70 [old]

[mariacarmen]

Welcome again to our groaning table - what is that you've got bubbling on the stove? Tell us all about it - make us drool and help us make something wonderful tonight!

[iL Divo]

I split the thread to part 71

[greygarious]

Then you should report your post to request the mods add an "[old]" to this thread.

[rabaja]

jumped the gun a bit, no?
Maybe i am remembering wrong, but I thought we were going to 250 or so.

eta: not that it matters really, these threads do get long quickly.

[LindaWhit]

And a link to the new thread so people can easily get there: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/763518

greygarious, I like the idea of asking the Mods to add an "old" to the subject line of the previous thread. Hopefully that will help prevent people from posting in the older thread before realizing a new thread had been created. Or not realizing it. :-)

[mariacarmen]

as long as they don't close them - they don't, right?

[LindaWhit]

Not that I'm aware of. Those that are listed at the bottom of this thread are still open.

And I should have posted "...prevent pepole from posting WFD in the older thread..." :-)

[twodales]

We are well and truly snowed in today. (Chicago) Having some neighbors in for dinner tonight. A simple ham, green salad with mandarin oranges, pecans and a celery seed dressing, dauphinoise spuds, carrot souffle, green beans, rolls, creme brulee or molten lava cakes.

[buttertart]

Can I come? That sounds excellent, perfect for the weather.

[twodales]

The more the merrier. To me, blizzards are delightful as long as everyone is safe. It's a snow day so why not make it fun with friends?

Just thankful our power stayed on through the wind...they did flicker a few times last night.

I've made the creme brulee and the lava cakes can be made a few hours ahead. About to peel and cook my carrots and organize the potatoes. Might bake the ahead of time or at least try and assemble them. Don't want to spend the whole night in the kitchen!

[sunflwrsdh]

Sounds good to me too. Can you share the recipe for the carrot souffle please?

[twodales]

CARROT SOUFFLE

1 lb. carrots, peeled and sliced
salt (to taste)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
3 Tbsp. flour
3 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 tsp. Pumpkin Pie spice (or do your own mixture)

Cook carrots in small saucepot in salted water covered until tender. Drain.

Combine with butter in a blender or food processor and process till smooth.

Combine the sugar, baking powder, flour, eggs and vanilla in a bowl. Mix well and add to the pureed carrots and mix well. Spoon mixture into a greased baking dish.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes.

NOTES: I doubled this and baked it in a large ceramic "pie" dish. There were eight of us and there wasn't much left. It is quite sweet and vanilla-y so folks think it's made from sweet potatoes. It's a good way to get kids to eat carrots. People love it!

[nomadchowwoman]

This sounds good, twodales. Could you describe the texture--airy? custardy?

[twodales]

It's not airy like a traditional souffle but also not as custardy as a pumpkin pie. Think more substantial than pureed squash. Somewhere in between airy and custardy. It does puff up a bit but then falls slightly after sitting.

Does that help?

[nomadchowwoman]

Yes--thanks. I'll have to try that some time. I have trouble thinking of interesting things to do with carrots.

[onceadaylily]

Well, I've finally seen 'thunder snow'. I can move down south now, where the gin is never out of season. Really, any minute.

We are either having a simple black bean soup for dinner, with a pan of cornbread, and a few cheese-stuffed peppers, or breakfast for dinner. Or maybe black beans and rice, with an egg on top. The best of both worlds.

[nomadchowwoman]

Come on down, where we have to chill our gin in the freezer!

[onceadaylily]

We actually talk about moving to NOLA after his girl graduates high school (we have our eyes on three cities in different states). NO is the only city in the south that he is willing to be sweaty to live in. Only three more years, NCW.

This morning he had to wade through hip-deep drifts to get to his car.

[nomadchowwoman]

Well, I'll be sure there's a bottle of gin in the freezer when you get here!

Oh the drifts. I trudged through drifts in Chicago one January, and then ended up stranded b/c no cab/car would take me to the airport. It was a mess. But I'm sure I soothed myself with warming grub and gin. (We only have sweaty summers and killer hurricanes down here.)

Stay warm. Eat soup.

[sunflwrsdh]

I don't even like gin, and that sounds good....

[sunflwrsdh]

Black bean soup + cornbread =Yum!

[nomadchowwoman]

Tried my first Feb COTM recipe--beef stew w/dijon and cognac. Served w/egg noodles and a side (spinach) salad. Pretty good, but not as good as it sounded.

[mariacarmen]

what was wrong with it? it does sound amazing...

[nomadchowwoman]

I posted about it ad nauseum on the COTM thread. In a nutshell, too mustardy.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/763221

[ChristinaMason]

chicken breast tenders baked in homemade teriyaki sauce; wild rice steamed in chicken broth; stir-fried green beans with fermented black bean and hot pepper sauce; mixed greens with toasted almonds, the cutest little grape tomatoes, shredded carrots, diced cukes, and sesame dressing; and peanut noodles with edamame. that's what I cooked for a friend's dinner, but not WFD. :)

FD, I enjoyed some yummy dry-rubbed ribs at a happy hour in town.

[mariacarmen]

YUM, peanut noodles with edamame! lucky friend.

[nomadchowwoman]

Glad you got something good too!

[KailuaGirl]

What a lucky friend!

[mariacarmen]

ta-DAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ChristinaMason]

wow! may I be the first to congratulate you? with a whisk, no less!

[mariacarmen]

thank you CM!! yep, it turned out i just wasn't whisking fast enough. i thought i'd read/seen somewhere it was better to go slower. anyway. WHEW.

btw, just to keep on topic - AIOLI WAS WFD!

[marietinn]

I'm so excited for you!

[nomadchowwoman]

You go, Girl!

[mariacarmen]

you have no idea how ridiculously happy it made me.

[Krislady]

congratulations on your success!

[KailuaGirl]

You (and the aioli) look fabulous! Congrats! My arm gets tired of all the whisking, which is why I use the Cuisinart. Yours looks nicer, though.

[onceadaylily]

*Applause*

You became one with that aioli, girl.

[LindaWhit]

YAY!

[sunflwrsdh]

Nice job on the aioli!!!

[sunflwrsdh]

Lasagna, made with whole wheat noodles, home made Italian sausage, and the help of both grandchildren, which is fun, although a bit nervewracking (they are 2 and almost 5) . tossed salad, garlic bread (made from the last of my husband's last home made whole wheat baguette) and low fat brownies, from a mix, for dessert.

[onceadaylily]

Only 2 and 5 and already making their own sausages? That is impressive!

[sunflwrsdh]

Lol...no, oncedaylily, they didn't make the sausages, my husband did:) They are amazing, but not quite that advanced! They did put the noodles in the pan and sprinkle the shredded cheeses (which they love to do..they eat a shred and then sprinkle a shred and so on.

[JungMann]

One of the vegetables my grandparents always had to force me to eat was bittermelon. Its name says it all -- how are you supposed to enjoy a vegetable that tastes like divorce? So it's no surprise that I had a leftover bittermelon aging and wasting away in my crisper drawer, avoided, unloved and all the more bitter for it. Congenitally, however, I cannot waste food so I thought I would try a riff on the stirfried bittermelon with eggs.

The recipe was largely the same as my grandmother's: a base of onions and garlic followed by bittermelon, scrambled eggs and tomato. The only difference was I added a diced chili and a combination of dark soy and oyster sauces with white pepper, but small changes can mean big differences. The bitterness of the melon mellowed in the sweet and savory sauce. The scrambled eggs were fluffy and soft, providing just a little chew before the crisp and throwing the tomatoes in towards the end helped them to retain their juiciness and vibrant acidity. It's a rare dish that hits all 6 tastes at once but after this I think I could get used to a little more bitterness in my life.

[onceadaylily]

Beautifully said, for an intriguing dish, JM.

[mariacarmen]

ditto.

[Breadcrumbs]

Looks like its pizza tonight.

I'd planned to make my first dish from ENYT - COTM but the dishwasher guy is here and my dishwasher is in pieces all over the kitchen floor.

Total price for this round of repairs for my Bosch dishwasher - $633. 32 - yes, you read that right. I'll be calling Bosch tomorrow.

[krisrishere]

Damn!

[onceadaylily]

Enjoy your pizza, and plan your speech. That's a lot of cheddar, breadcrumbs. Geez.

[sunflwrsdh]

Yikes! Sorry to hear that, BC.

[KailuaGirl]

Criminy! For that kind of money they should be giving you a brand new one and cooking dinner for you just to show you how clean it gets the dirty dishes! If I was you I'd write a really, really nasty note/speech just to get it out of my system, then write a nicer one to actually use with the person on the phone.

[mariacarmen]

Wow, that's incredible. yeah, they should be treating you to a nice dinner out, not just pizza.

[onceadaylily]

We had leftover crash hot potatoes from last night, and they turned out to be softer than I liked (I skimped on the oil), so tonight I thought I would actually fry them in a pan, and then top them with eggs over easy and some hot sauce. We also have some leftovers in the fridge to clean up, but I'm in no mood to re-purpose anything else. I am going to eat, and watch movies with the boy for as long as we the electricity lets us (there have been warnings of an outage, once this really gets under way).

Thank god the boy canceled his trip. He was supposed to leave tonight, and didn't give way on the issue until this morning. At the moment, it just looks like a strong winter storm out there, but it is supposed to escalate. The terms 'white-out' and 'gale force winds' are being shouted by all the newscasters. Why does this put me in the mood for Chinese take out?

[buttertart]

What is it about midwestern men, mine went out in last week's storm to work and found out only he and 2 students showed up because it was closed...would not listen to reason.

[onceadaylily]

The BF already went out at four am *voluntarily* to work for a few hours. He said the snowstorm was just what he needed to clean up his inbox and gain control over his paperwork. He even made an extra stop on his way back, and came home with bagel and lox (which is a fairly reliable way to shut me up, I admit).

[buttertart]

Men. At keast he brought a treat back.

[krisrishere]

Last night I made good ol' corned beef hash and eggs over easy.

Tonight, who knows? Do you ever have those weeks where you can't get motivated to do anything? ...I mean anything; cooking, cleaning, exercising, walking, dressing, watching tv... ;-\

[krisrishere]

Grilled pork chops with Penzey's BBQ 3000 spice mix, roasted green beans, steamed brown rice and a fresh loaf of wheat bread (leftover pita dough).

[LindaWhit]

Sounds like you got motivated. :-)

[krisrishere]

Had no choice ;) It was either make something or starve...not like I'm anorexic or anything. lol

[sunflwrsdh]

I have had those weeks, Kris, and am still having one (most weeks!) with regard to the exercise part of it! I will cook all day , and even cook light and drink my water, but damn, I really can't get motivated to exercise.....

[mariacarmen]

am in that non-motivated-to-exercise mode right now. jeans have caved.

[krisrishere]

My husband asked me last night if I wanted to work out. I said not really and that was the end of that! LOL Later that night he was like maybe we should just start over again next week...fine with me!

[mariacarmen]

Love it. my BF is a little more insistent with me usually, which is what i need, but he knows when i'm really not going to to do it.

[sunflwrsdh]

Weighing in at Weight watchers meeting tomorrow will probably help me get motivated to exercise tomorrow night. I am like, probably less than a pound from losing 20% of my weight since I started in November, and IF I would just get moving, I know I would start losing again....but it's winter and I have a zillion excuses!!!

[mariacarmen]

yay! congrats sunflwrsdh!

[JungMann]

Buttertart put me in the mood for meatballs, but I wanted soup, too, so I had to compromise. I made my soup base by rseasoning some College Inn chicken stock with star anise, charred ginger, charred onion, garlic, two dried chilies, soy sauce and black vinegar.

For the meatballs I loosely formed ground duck with cilantro stems, green chili, five spice, onions, hoisin, Shaoxing wine and white pepper. I browned them in duck fat and then finished the cooking in the broth. Served with noodles, Shanghai bok choy and fresh bean sprouts on top.

[buttertart]

That sounds lovely. The shizitou I had at Fu 1088 in Shanghai were small and about 30% fresh water chestnut - and in a clear absolutely delicious broth. They take many forms. (Did you grind the duck yourself?)

[JungMann]

Those broths are so ephemeral. Their taste is so essential and so hard to capture. I did grind the duck myself. I shudder to think what the market price would be for duck mince in Manhattan.

[buttertart]

I bet D'Artagnan would be ready to set you up with it for an arm and a leg (yours, not the duck's). Food processor or grinder?

[JungMann]

Food processor. I can only dream sweet sausagey dreams of one of those stand mixers with a grinding attachment.

[buttertart]

Sorry to keep belaboring this - those thigh/leg quarters from Chinatown? I must lay in some of those, the legs are the best part of a duck anyway.

[JungMann]

These particular ducks were a pre-hunting season purchase from Chinatown and were supposed to be tasted head-to-head (or leg-to-leg) against my own quarry. Sadly obligations kept me in the city throughout hunting season, so I decided to just give in and cook them on their own.

[buttertart]

Aha. Have you bought those quarters? We usually get whole ducks in Chinatown too.

[JungMann]

These were indeed quarters. I have to admit they weren't the best, but they've also been in the freezer for quite some time. Do you have a source you like for duck in Chinatown? These came from Deluxe.

[buttertart]

We usually shop at the one on Mulberry across from the good fruit lady.

[KailuaGirl]

You guys make me jealous!

[sunflwrsdh]

Me too. China town and its shopping delights are like 4 hours away from me!

[mariacarmen]

oh that sounds lovely - the duck! i'm sorry, i don't want to make this, i want someone to bring it to me right now!

[JungMann]

I'd gladly stop by, but there's a little snowstorm holding up my plane.

[linguafood]

Well, yet another snowpocalypse is upon us, but after last night's rich Indian dinner, I felt like something bright and springy. So it's salad of curly endive in walnut dressing and foglie di ulivo pasta with orange pepper, sugar snaps, and zucchini. "Sauced" with just olive oil, garlic, and a splash of lemon or white wine.

[jeniyo]

edit. it was getting cold, so we turned the pumpkin into a curry coconut soup, topped with seared shrimp and scallions, had it with a big bowl of chopped broccoli salad.

[rabaja]

Enjoying lots of lamb leftovers from the weekend, which is a good thing since I'm working later than usual. Well, actually working at all, which is an improvement from the last few weeks.
Last night I warmed up my version of aushak sauce (just the lamb ragu, not the dumplings) and had it over roasted roasted delicata squash and pears. I put some greek yougurt on top, that had a nice amount of garlic and olive oil stirred in. It was filling, a little rich, but nowhere near as good as what I was trying to recreate.
I need to head to the library and look up some good Afghani recipes.
Tonight will be a staff meal, which I know will involve roasted chicken and it will be cooked with love too, so I'm looking forward to it.
I'm going to try to use mariacarmen's broccolili trick, and eat a big bowl, steamed before each dinner.
I used to eat only that (or some other steamed veg) for dinner and I guess that's why all my cute pants used to fit. Feb 1st, Spring is on the way!

[mariacarmen]

ah yes, i remember my broccoli trick! (buttertart asked what it was.) BT - it's to eat a bowl of it before each meal, to stave off hunger, prevent overeating of other things during the meal, and to keep you full for the evening. must get back to that. as i said below, my jeans have conceded the battle.

Rabaja, your lamb ragu sounded delicious, especially with that squash. when i think of you, i think of lamby goodness.

[buttertart]

Plain steamed? Hmm, my "can fit into prom dress" size 4 60-ish friend eats a lot of broccoli...

[Harters]

There's going to be marinaded boneless pork chops (free-range, of course). A marinade of olive oil, finely chopped rosemary, garlic, lemon juice & zest. The chops will get 3 minutes or so per side in the frying pan. Meanwhile, the marinade enters (stage left) for Act 2 and goes into a pan with some incredibly thinly sliced onion (herself says she doesnt know how I have the patience to do this sort of mindless work - I reply that I'm a man). It boils for a minute then a big splosh of sherry vinegar goes in and the same sized splosh of water. It cooks for another minute then a tin of chickpeas goes in, salt & pepper and any juices in the pork pan.

To serve, some salad leaves go in bowl and the chickpea mix gets mixed through. Pork on the plate. Warm salady thing alongside. Dinner - done!

[sunflwrsdh]

sounds great, Harters! My husband will use our mandoline to slice really really thin, and I am actually afraid of it!

[italia84]

Tonight I'm making that filipino chicken adobo that someone had posted here a while back. It sounds perfect for today. Planning on serving it over rice, and I'm not sure what else. Maybe broccoli, with a little sesame oil and garlic.

[Krislady]

I picked up some lima beans at the market last weekend - the farmer's MOM had shelled and frozen them this past fall - and I've never had non-canned lima beans. I'll try baking them in packets with some tilapia - a pile of lima beans, a fish, some good olive oil (I've got some really nice Greek stuff), s&p, and plenty of lemon and zest. Maybe some garlic.

[KailuaGirl]

That sounds wonderful. As I said earlier, I'll be trying out the pork loin or butt braised in milk and cream combo. I was going to make polenta but it turns out my brother hates it. Dang! So I'll make risotto - maybe a mushroom risotto, I know he likes mushrooms. Still have to figure out a veg of some sort. I take Coumaden so all the good stuff is supposed to be off my food - no spinach, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, bok choy, or any other dark leafy green. I might just have to break the rule and say "To hell with the vitamin K and full speed ahead." Then make sure I don't cut myself for a couple of days. :-)

[ChristinaMason]

If you're thinking mushrooms, these are really good: http://www.guardian.co.uk/theguardian...

You don't need nearly that much parchment, though. The recipe can handle some substitutions, too (different herbs, wine, etc.)

[KailuaGirl]

Thanks CM! I'll have to substitute herbs since I don't have chervil or tarragon. I just got a new roll of parchment paper, though, and it sounds fun and tasty. Maybe I'll make a regular risotto and do mushrooms for the veggie.

[KailuaGirl]

My brother, the birthday boy, announced this morning that what he wanted was chili. That's right, regular old chili. I make that stuff often enough that it's not even remotely special. However, that's what he wanted so that's what I made. It was good and it was storming and raining outside, so appropriate food for the weather.. I started it on the stove then, once I got all the spices just right, transferred it over to the Crock Pot for a few more hours on low. Rave reviews, but still... I was so looking forward to making that pork! I'll have to do it some other day for no good reason other than to indulge myself.

I also made a butter cake and a chocolate buttercream frosting. I liked dessert the best. It must have been good because half the cake went in no time (there are 4 of us) and I only had a small piece.

[sunflwrsdh]

It is a perfect day in the Northeast for Chili:) And your cake sounds wonderful...perfect with chili:)

[Krislady]

Lima beans and tilapia were surprisingly delicious! I forgot the garlic (the HORROR!) but added a dash of cayenne on top. Light, full of lemony flavor, and the lima beans were wonderful. Who knew?

Tonight's a beef and sweet potato stew. I had some leftover braising liquid from a pot roast (http://darksideofthefridge.wordpress....) about a pound of sirloin chunks, and some sweet potatoes that had seen better days. I made the stew Sunday, so it's been in the fridge since then. I'm not sure if it's as thick as I would like, so we will probably end up dumping it over some mashed potatoes - maybe the caramelized-onion mashed potatoes in this month's Cooking Light (IF I remember to stop for buttermilk).

[BIGGUNDOCTOR]

Trying something I thought of awhile back, stuffed Poblanos/Pasillias . Made a batch of rice yesterday, so this was a good time to try my idea out. Cooked a big chub of pork chorizo, added a chopped red bell pepper. Added the rice once the pepper was getting cooked some, and stirred it all up. once it was stirred up I added 1 bunch of chopped green onions, and a Serrano pepper. Heated those up, and then stuffed the mix into 3 big Poblano chilies. The leftover mix will work with tortilla chips, lunch, etc. Baked the chilies for 20 minutes at 350 (when they started to wrinkle), and I am finishing them off with the broiler to blacken the skins some. Should be good, I have done the mix as a snack before, and remembered the stuffed bell peppers from growing up, so I figured why not try this? Didn't think of it till it was too late, but some corn would be a good addition.

Well, how about that? They turned out pretty good. I am thinking that some sort of a melty cheese would help bind eveything together, and add another level to the flavors. The heat is just right. Just enough to let you know there is something going on, but not enough to overpower the other flavors. With the Poblanos, or Pasillias as they are called in the Mexican Markets I go to, being pretty inexpensive right now I will have to develop this one some more.

[ChristinaMason]

yum!!

[KailuaGirl]

Sounds great! I made chicken curry.

[sunflwrsdh]

+1 yum:)

[mariacarmen]

those sound wonderful. i'm going to have to play around with that, as chiles rellenos are my favorite, and i've never made any version of them.

[nomadchowwoman]

To go with our leftover pork, I tossed some wild rice w/ wild mushrooms, sliced scallion, carrots, and butter (hereafter to be known as "Vitamin B"). Also made a salad of bibb lettuce, beets, red onion, and blue cheese. And more roasted brussels sprouts, this time w/ a squeeze of lemon and some parmesan. DH has now requested a moratorium on the brussels sprouts.

[sunflwrsdh]

Delivered pizza tonight. And later, another piece of last night's chocolate orange cake. Still good:)

[ChristinaMason]

We had a massive fresh cod fillet in the fridge that was demanding to be eaten, so DH made a riff on this amazing cod dish we had at a fancy local Indian restaurant (Rasika). He infused melted butter with cinnamon, clove, cardamom, garlic, and bay leaf in a hot non-stick skillet, spooned out the spices, and cooked the fish in it. Very good; I recommend this unsual preparation. As DH said, "This dish has a lot of vitamin B" (Butter).

As sides, I made asparagus roasted with olive oil and some lemon pepper. I also put together a salad of mixed greens, chopped apple, toasted walnuts, and cucumber, topped with a creamy honey mustard dressing (mayo, sour cream, Bavarian beer mustard, sugar, honey, salt, pepper, and white vinegar). I was aiming for something along the lines of Waldorf salad dressing, and it worked.

[onceadaylily]

I'm using that savory butter soon, Christina. Wow. that is just what I've been needing.

[mariacarmen]

"Vitamin B" - love it!

[nomadchowwoman]

What a great way to get your Vitamin B. That spicy butter sounds like it could make a lot of things very special. The whole dinner sounds wonderful.

[ChristinaMason]

Oops, I forgot: he also used some (I assume star) anise in the butter.

[buttertart]

Sounds better and better...

[twodales]

Bangers and B & M beans tonight.

[mariacarmen]

Fried catfish, nice and crispy and light, was W was FD. first time making it. alongside went little fingerling potatoes. we will NOT. TALK. ABOUT. THE AIOLI.

[onceadaylily]

Ha ha!

I love catfish though. Looove it. Did you bread it, maria?

[mariacarmen]

i did! flour and corn meal, seasoned with cayenne, s&p, fried crispy. one half served with the broken "A" word and lemon, and other half with tabasco and lemon. if i do say so myself, it was scrumptious. stuffed now. Here 'tis, but pic is kind of dark.

[nomadchowwoman]

That looks expertly fried MC, best enjoyed un-A-dorned.

[mariacarmen]

thanks!

[buttertart]

What's in the middle of the plate? Looks scrummy.

[mariacarmen]

those are the fingerlings, the dark one is a purple one.

[buttertart]

You and your fancy spuds ;-)

[mariacarmen]

fingerlings are so yummy!!

[buttertart]

I love potatoes. You must REALLY know your spuds considering your heritage!

[sunflwrsdh]

looks delicious, mc!

[Cherylptw]

Breakfast for dinner night: crisp bacon, cheddar scrambled eggs, apple, cabbage & onion hash, toasted bagels.

[onceadaylily]

Cabbage and onion hash? I would love some specifics on this, Cheryl. Does it get browned and crisp?

[nomadchowwoman]

Causes you to slam on the brakes, doesn't it? What mortals get *that* for breakfast?

[Cherylptw]

Well, keep in mind that the apples, cabbage & onions all have water in them so they don't get crispy like potatoes since that has starch BUT I just cook my cabbage for about 10 minutes in some olive oil, stirring to evenly brown, then add in the onions and diced apples. I cook it until it's caramelized over medium low heat.

You could drain the cabbage then sprinkle in some flour and continue to cook a few minutes before adding the onions & apples, which would help to crisp it up. It's just so good. I tossed in a few celery seeds, s & p...

[jeniyo]

We are getting ready for Chinese new year. My mom is cooking, and so this means that we are going to eat as healthy as possible until wed.

tonight will be roasted butternut with some harrisa, some quoina tabouli over a big plate of salad greens.

[ChristinaMason]

Finally got around to making those Lion's Head meatballs discussed last thread. They were really good and easy.

We ended up using a hybrid of buttertart's recipe and this one: http://chinesefood.about.com/od/pork/...

Instead of pork, we used some not-too-lean ground chicken we had on hand. DH also added some mirin along with the whiskey. He did not strain the ginger-green onion mixture, but I recommend that you do, because the little bits can be overpowering. The mixture was a bit loose, so we ended up coating them in dry cornstarch instead of the paste, which just wasn't working for us. Also, we didn't have any water chestnuts on hand and omitted them.

I made a soup of chicken broth, soy sauce, a dab of chili-garlic sauce, granulated garlic, black and white pepper, and a few drops of toasted sesame oil. The browned meatballs simmered in that broth with some chopped bok choy until cooked through. We served this as meatball soup over some leftover noodles.

Verdict: tasty, easy, and destined to be repeated. These would surely be good made with pork, but I was perfectly happy with chicken. The meatballs taste a lot like dumpling/potsticker filling, which is not a bad thing.

[LiveRock]

She offered to cook tonight so it will probably be pasta...hopefully it will contain "real" meat this time instead of that stuff she put in her chili last week. I was good though... "No, really honey...it's good!" I said as I went back for seconds.

Randy

[ChristinaMason]

I assume you meant this in reply to the original post, not mine.

[nomadchowwoman]

LOL.

OT, you all have convinced me. These meatballs shall be made in chez nous this week, as soon as I can gather all the ingredients!

[LiveRock]

You assume correctly Christina. I must have been distracted by those great sounding meatballs! If they taste anything like dim sum I will definitely love them.

[ChristinaMason]

:-) so did you get your meat?

[LiveRock]

Ironically she made Spaghetti and meatballs. Frozen pre-made Turkey Meatballs but I'm not complaining. At least she gave me the night off.

[italia84]

I made black bean soup last night, which I refrigerated in the pot it cooked in. When I get home I'll put the pot on the stove and heat it. While it's heating, I'll chop up some avocado and set out some sour cream. and jalapenos. yum!

[linguafood]

I have a beautiful head of cauli that I plan on roasting, and I'll likely make some spiced yogurt sauce for that, maybe mixed with some tahini.

Chicken thighs in some sort of spicy Indian sauce, and rice on the side.

[Harters]

Noswaith dda.

Yes, tonight's dinner comes from the land of my fathers (or, at least, Granny Harters). A small lamb shoulder joint is going to be roasted. There's going to be Welsh onion cake and something green by way of a veggie. And mint sauce (bottled).

Hwyl fawr am nawr.

[chefathome]

How marvellous! That makes my mouth water. Whenever I hear about anything Welsh my heart practically starts palpitating. I have some Welsh ancestry and love to visit Wales. Lamb shoulder joint with mint sauce? Mmmmm...gorgeous.

Iechyd da!

[Harters]

Diolch.

[KailuaGirl]

I make Welsh/Cornish pasties. I guess the miners brought it to Minnesota, where my father was born and raised, and it moved on over to the railroaders (my paternal grandfather and great grandfather). A friend of mine is an Texas Mexican married to a Welsh woman. He always joked that it was the first time in history that a white woman married a brown man for a green card. Anyhow, whenever I made pasties I always saved a couple for her.

[chefathome]

Cute story! Man, I love Cornish pasties. Haven't been to anywhere in the UK for a couple of years but I really should make them again. Perhaps this weekend?!

[onceadaylily]

Well, the boy's work schedule just went all to heck. He has thirty people working for him, and it seems like most of them are related, so a death in the 'family' usually absents a half dozen of his people. Instead of opening today, he's work the closing shift in of his shops, but still has to do his mandatory inventory before he opens on Tuesday. Which means he'll get home around midnight, and then have to be up by two-thirty so shower and get back to work.

This same scenario has happened before, so I know the drill: be ready at midnight with a meal waiting, and stay up until two-thirty to make sure *he* gets up on time, and has a little breakfast.

I have some sage to use up, so tonight will be baked mahi mahi in a sage pesto sauce (with a little cream and parmesan), crash hot potatoes (red), and the last of the broccoli, steamed and then dressed with a little butter and lemon juice. The potatoes will help him fall asleep faster, I think. And he really loves those potatoes.

[Breadcrumbs]

Last night for Jan COTM so 3 dishes from those books tonight and 2 of them are chicken since I have 2lbs in the fridge to use up. From BoaW we'll be having the Stir-fried Sugar Snap Peas w Water chestnuts (fresh from Chinatown so I'm especially looking fwd to this dish), and the Sweet & Sour Chicken. From SFSE I'm making the Chinese Burmese Chili Chicken which Grace Young recommended on one of her visits to that thread. I'm already craving it!

[Shasty]

Easy...Sausage Broccoli Rabe
in 425 oven, put 8 italian sausage links, 10 peeled cloves garlic and few drops olive oil cook about 1 hour, turning sausages a few times
blanch broc rabe 5 min.. drain.. add to sausages and garlic.. cook another few mins in oven....
Awesome...easy...
And i served it over spaghetti squash...all easy prep..

[buttertart]

This sounds great, my husband loves broccoli rabe, must make for him.

[mamachef]

I made bt's Lion's Head meatballs on Saturday night, and those were insanely good. I just ate the last one, cold (I had to hide it) and it was just as good as it was when it was hot.

[buttertart]

Yay!!! So glad you liked them!

[nomadchowwoman]

May I ask what you served them with, MC? I am planning to try those this week, I hope.

[nvcook]

Dh is still in Idaho, so tonight was my favorite fall back pasta. In a little olive oil saute 3 sliced cloves of garlic, hot pepper flakes, and prosciutto (or bacon). Add a little dry white wine. Then add canned tuna (2) and some frozen chopped spinach, then a little pasta water from the linguine you have boiling. Add all together = wonderful. Just hoping I didn't miss anything (dinner was hours ago and I've had a little wine).

[Cherylptw]

To start, the rest of the potato leek soup from earlier in the week; fresh toasted flour tortilla chips to dunk in the soup then pork riblets glazed with a mix of honey and spicy seasoning blend 1/2 way through the roasting process...fresh collard green roll ups stuffed with cabbage & caramelized onions...potato salad.... Dessert was pan seared apples with homemade caramel over maple ice cream

[Jetgirly]

Super-basic kusherie (rice and lentils) topped with roasted root vegetables that have been tossed in a lemon-tahini-miso sauce. And about a hundred rice crackers topped with Trader Joe's Eggplant Garlic Spread. It's a good thing the nearest Trader Joe's is 700 kilometers away (and that one's not even open yet!).

[onceadaylily]

I *just* bought that spread, but haven't cracked it open yet. The BF goes out of town soon, and I was thinking it might make a nice topper for a sardine laden cracker for a picnic on the couch night. Now, I'm really looking forward to it.

Your dinner sounds delicious.

[Jetgirly]

I've been spreading it on plain rice crackers and letting it sit for about fifteen minutes, until it sort of soaks into the crackers and the whole thing takes on this amazing texture. If I saw a small child walking down the street with a jar of spread in their hands, I wouldn't hesitate to push them over, grab the jar and run.

[mariacarmen]

ahahahaha - love that!

[buttertart]

Simple tonight - roast chicken (our market has some big ones that actually...taste like chicken!) with Goya sazon, bulgur, and some manner of salad (probably butter lettuce with walnuts). Have been overindulging at lunches this weekend.

[buttertart]

The brain waved and the salad was upgraded - to this pink grapefruit and pomegranate one. The green is minced Turkish green olives stuffed with little green chili peppers. It was dusted with Brazilian fleur de sel and the dressing was sherry vinegar and a drop of olive oil. One big colossal YUM especially with the dryish main course and side dish.

[mariacarmen]

that is beautiful! my presentation was much more plebian - i just tossed the whole thing, as i was serving plates in the kitchen, but the colors were awesome. i had chopped parsley strewn on top. dressing included pomegranate molasses and orange juice, but sherry vinegar would have been wonderful. what are the yellow bits on top?

[buttertart]

That's the Turkish chili-stuffed olives. This is perfect for winter. Ooh must make it with blood oranges.

[nomadchowwoman]

Lovely!

[buttertart]

Thank you kindly! And as delicious as it is lovely.

[nomadchowwoman]

Tonight we are having pork braised in milk (w/garlic, sage, and lemon zest), smashed yukon golds, mustard-glazed brussels sprouts (as posted by Linda Whit, I think--thanks LW), and beets in pistachio butter, Lupa-style (thanks to another CH, who posted the recipe a while back). I baked orange-carrot-olive oil cake today, so if we have room for dessert, it's here. And since I've been cooking and cleaning all day, I'm demanding a negroni as a reward.

[onceadaylily]

Can you share the recipe for the beets, NCW? And, from someone who scrubbed and polished and ducked into the kitchen for most of the day, enjoy the negroni! My martini tastes like heaven.

[nomadchowwoman]

Here you go, oadl. This is the link where erica gave the recipe for the pistachio butter. (I did go out and buy a very tiny (pricey) bottle of pistachio oil to make it, but the resulting "butter" was delicious.) Erica notes that Batali includes a red wine vinaigrette recipe in the same cookbook, but I simply tossed the beets first in red wine vinegar and olive oil and then the pist. butter. Both DH and I loved the beets. But it seems to me that in the restaurant version, the pistachio butter stayed green, making for a lovely contrast. At home the beets bled into the pist. butter so the sauce ended up the color of the beets, but not as cool-looking as pist. green on beets.

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/752783

[mariacarmen]

mmmm that sounds wonderful, all of it. i haven't made maiale al latte in way too long.

[nomadchowwoman]

It came out better than last time (in fact, it was quite delicious IIDSSM!), but that's because my itty bitty piece of pork loin came from a happy "heritage" pig. What a difference a little fat makes.

[nomadchowwoman]

pic

[mariacarmen]

yum. that's been the problem i've had here, finding fatty enough pork. i first started making it when living in Italy.

[KailuaGirl]

How is that pork braised in milk? I've been wanting to try it for ages but can't get my family to accept the idea of the caramel colored curds etc. Am I even thinking of the same thing? Your photo looks so beautiful and delicious!

[mariacarmen]

yes you are, and the curds are the best part! you just season the loin and then on all sides in a combo of butter and oil, then fill the pan halfway up the loin with milk. In Italy I've also seen beer added to the milk. You can add herbs to the milk so they infuse it with flavor - sage is really great with this dish.

I actually did it once with coconut milk here in the States, for a richer sauce, and the coconut was only faintly detectable, but it was a nice sauce. You can use cream too. Like NCW says above, tho, the key is finding a fatty enough pork loin.

here's a link to a blogger's recipe, as well as comments about the curds, the fattiness of the pork, etc.: http://memoriediangelina.blogspot.com/2009/11/arrosto-di-maiale-al-latte.html

and here's a thread i posted a long time ago about it:
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/424011

[chefathome]

For a smoother and uniform sauce when I do braised pork in milk (or cream or coconut milk) I blend it in a blender along with the mushrooms, mire poix and other ingredients.

[nomadchowwoman]

Well, I did remove the spent sage and lemon zest and strain the sauce, pressing on the curds, and then I whizzed the sauce w/my immersion blender. So you can can rid of the curd-ish look ; )

But, yeah, the key to success in this dish is getting a loin w/some fat. I've done it a few times w/a standard supermarket loin, very lean, and the meat stays pretty dry despite all the milk.

The tips from mariacarmen's earlier thread are worth noting: sometimes you need to add cream to get the really thick sauce. I had a creamy whole milk, not homogenized, from a local farmer, for this version, and that definitely yields a better result. Still, when I serve the rest as leftovers, I will cook down the sauce some more and probably add a little cream as I would prefer the sauce to be both thicker and darker.

I started yesterday's meat on the stove, browning it and then adding milk and aromatics and bringing milk to a simmer. I then braised it in a (300F) oven, partially covered, to an internal temp of 150F, tented it loosely, and continued to reduce the milk stovetop, lid ajar, for another hour or so. I actually would have liked to reduce more and get the sauce darker, but it was getting late and we were starving. Other times, I've done the whole thing stovetop. This was a bit easier.

[KailuaGirl]

I'm a convert!!! My brother's birthday is tomorrow so I'll try to make the pork braised in milk (with some cream thrown in) and garlic and rosemary in the milk for his b'dau dinner (unless he requests something else). I was thinking of Gorgonzola polenta from epi (love that recipe!) but was wondering if crash potatoes would work better with it. Thoughts? how about a green? Suggestions welcome! The photo in memoriediangelina was gorgeous. If I can get my milk combo to brown up like that and be nice and creamy I think I will have conquered the doubters.

[chefathome]

As I mentioned in my earlier post if you throw the juices into a blender you get a lovely smooth sauce - perfect for mashed/smashed/pureed potatoes.

[Breadcrumbs]

Tonight we're taking it easy after last night's entertaining so it's a meal of "dinners past".

To start we'll have some Muhammara and Cacik w whole wheat pita toasts (leftover from last night). Then, I defrosted some leftover Tangy Veal Ragu (recipe from Stir) which I'm serving over Tagliatelle.

Tomorrow is the final night of the Jan COTM so we'll be having something from there... w chicken since that's what I have in the fridge at the moment....

[wineos]

I have been craving comfort, so Chicken Tikka Masala over Basmati Rice Pilaf (all CI). The two recipes are wonderful together.

Enjoy your meals, Chowhounds!

[rabaja]

Braised lamb riblets with polenta and a chicory salad with a Meyer lemon vinaigrette.
Alternatively, it may be frito pie, with a pringles and rotel-velveeta-sausage dip chaser if I don't stop reading Caroline1's favorite junk food thread.
It's Sunday, it's almost 2pm and I'm still in my pj's. It'd be a good day for gluttony.

[onceadaylily]

Every time I hear about the Rotel Velveeta thing, I feels pangs of longing.

I've learned that my local HMart has seaweed Pringles. I anticipate trouble, for my jeans, if I ever can schedule me time well enough to get there.

[Breadcrumbs]

There is no Ro-tel in Canada! We have to make a trek to the nearest US border town if we have a hankering . . . unless we stock up on it of course!!!

[onceadaylily]

Ha, google rotel copy cat recipes, and see what fills your screen, and maybe, soon your belly. If anyone can perfect it, you are in the running, BC.

[Breadcrumbs]

Thanks oadl, on both counts! I dream of a career in the food industry like many dream of a lottery win!! Wouldn't it be amazing if a Canadian Ro-tel could get me started!!

[buttertart]

A lot of the tomatoes canned (and used in ketchup) in the US come from the Leamington area. I've lived a lot of places that have good tomatoes but nothing compares to an Ontario field tomato in August (beefheart variety please). You could be very successful with this idea!

[onceadaylily]

I'm making a lazy girl cheater 'curry'. Mushrooms, broccoli, water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, onions and tofu in a red curry sauce (store-bought), coconut milk, and a bit of basil. Served over rice fried with a bit of egg and green onion. Salads first though, spinach, hard boiled egg, sun-dried tomatoes (on mine), onions (on his), and sunflower seeds. I'm making a batch of hummus for the before-dinner-bite that the boyfriend likes to enjoy while he unwinds from work. And I'm certain there will be a bit more of the pumpkin pie that I made yesterday.

And SK's mushroom stew was declared a win by both of us last night (except the BF kept picking out the pearl onions, for which I gladly held out my own bowl for a donation). I was glad that I'd made some changes to it though, as I was serving it with bread, instead of noodles. I increased the amounts of onions, garlic, carrots, tomato paste, and broth, added peas, and used a fair amount of rosemary instead of the thyme, and cooked it for a bit longer than called for before adding the slurry. I also added the tomato paste earlier than the recipe wanted, so that I could darken it a bit before I deglazed the pan. I added Swiss chard, and I *won't* do that next time. It really needed a heartier green than that.

[AdamD]

Japanese style curry being made in our hose as well. A big pot of chicken curry is cooking away as we speak-four leg/thigh quarters. Truthfully using a pre-made Japanese curry roux, which is so darn salty it needs something to cut it. Secret? Pureed apples. Helps cut the spice a bit as well so its a bit more kid friendly. Just over rice with Japanese curry pickles, cucumber carrot salad and some leftover boiled daikon.

[isadorasmama]

Tonight it's a soup we've been making for years. Comes from The Splendid Grain by Rebecca Wood and it's called Quinoa and Winter Squash Potage. It's way better with Kabocha but we have Butternut so that's what we're using. Using homemade chicken stock as well.
http://books.google.com/books?id=SDQIvcuqz9oC&pg=PA90&lpg=PA90&dq=quinoa+squash+potage&source=bl&ots=vSZIForuAR&sig=30DuVg9aGUHPquDRVHIQSuMapOA&hl=en&ei=k7JFTeq4OMT58AaR99WzAQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CBoQ6AEwAQ#v=onepage&q=quinoa%20squash%20potage&f=false

Tomorrow we're going to try this, probably with shrimp if we can find some locally that's sustainable.
Spaghetti with Garlic and Cumin
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo...

[KailuaGirl]

Wow! All those great recipes using quinoa. I love the stuff and use it for breakfast (like Cream of Wheat) and in tabouleh salad and a few other things. I've only run into a few recipes (on 101 Cookbooks) so I usually have to just wing it. I'll have to go back and read more of the ones in your post from The Splendid Grain.

[isadorasmama]

Do you have the book? It's a favorite old standby of mine. Some really wonderful recipes in there!
What do you put in your quinoa for breakfast? Do you keep it fluffy or make it more creamy?

[KailuaGirl]

Usually I cook the quinoa in a 50/50 mix of water and milk. Red quinoa is pretty but the beige/white stuff is fine. After almost all the liquid is absorbed (about 15 minutes) I turn off the heat and let it sit for about 5 minutes. Finally I stir in some berries (blueberries are my favorites, but blackberries or raspberries, or any combination thereof works) and cinnamon, and serve it topped with toasted pecans and sweetened with agave nectar or honey. I guess it's somewhere between fluffy and creamy.

I cook 1 cup of quinoa, which is good for 4 servings, but I like the leftovers as a cold cereal with yogurt, sometimes I'll mix it together with yogurt and cottage cheese. It looks kind of disgusting, but tastes grreeeaat. :-). If you have the time of inclination, toasted honeyed pecans or walnuts are exceptional! If berries aren't in season, dried ones will also work.

[isadorasmama]

that sounds fantastic. i'm going to try it!
thanks!

[KailuaGirl]

No, unfortunately I don't have the book. That's why I was so impressed with the variety of recipes in your post!

[isadorasmama]

After making the soup with the Butternut last night I'm going to backtrack and say that it requires a little SOMETHING since it's not as sweet as the Kabacha -- so I added about a tb of curry powder and that added a nice richness. I really think this recipe soars with the Kabacha. It's good with the butternut but not blow your socks off good.

There are some fantastic recipes in the book, definitely a worthy purchase. She also has a book entirely devoted to quinoa, but I've never cooked out of it.

[linguafood]

I am DYING for some Sichuan food, so I'll be making ma po dofu tonight (cheating with some "spiced soy bean curd" from the Asian market) and stir-fried green beans with Grandma Lu's Sichuan seasoning.

Can't. Wait.

[Breadcrumbs]

Gosh I love ma po dofu linguafood, its been too long since I've had it. Note to self . . ..!

[linguafood]

It's been longer than a week for me, which is WAY too long.

[buttertart]

Whatever made you want Sichuan food?
Did you ever get the Fuchsia Dunlop book(s)?

[linguafood]

YOU know exactly why, evil woman. I did get the Land of Plenty, tho I just threw the ma po together with a bunch of packages. Came out real nicely. The beans... meh. Probably shoulda blanched them shortly (didn't look at the book - I need to learn to actually USE the cookbooks I buy :-D).

[buttertart]

Snicker...
What packages?
The beans are great if you fry them from raw in just a small amount of oil until they're blistered, don't blanch them. Much better than if deepfried (and less greasy).

[linguafood]

They're specifically for ma po - soy bean curd sauce. Of course, I added a bunch of toasted & ground Sichuan peppercorns, and a bunch of other hot bean sauces I had in the pantry. It really was pretty close to the real deal.

I recently wanted to make it from scratch and was looking for fermented bean paste. Nobody in the store knew what I was talking about, and one lady I asked pointed me to the packages and said nobody makes ma po from scratch! If you can believe it....

I think I should've made the beans in smaller batches, to get them nice and blistered. But I do wonder if blanching them for a minute wouldn't just give them a nicer color. They were much paler than what we get at CE.

[tristans]

Roast chicken, crash potatoes, and sauteed asparagus. Simple boston lettuce salad to start.

[JerryMe]

Full pan of lasagna w/ salad.

[LindaWhit]

You're going to eat a full pan of lasagna by yourself? ;-)

[JerryMe]

Ha Ha! No! I'm just thinking of leftovers for lunch, friends and family. It freezes so well. Every time I go to make lasagna, I'm thinkin' "Just a small pan" and then my reflects kick in and I make a HUGE pan and have to divide up the leftovers. Came out wonderful, by the way.

[greygarious]

I finally made something I've thought about for a long while - frikadellen using ground pork instead of beef. Caraway rye and applesauce for the panade. The other ingredients - egg, onion, garlic, coleslaw - were the same. Good but not porky enough. Then again, this pork was from H-Mart, where you can also buy pig uterus and ears.....so not sure what's left for them to grind up ;-p. The accompaniment will be roasted sweet potato and creamed spinach.

The dogs are sleeping off what was left of 4# of chicken feet that I made stock with, according to coliver's method. Brought them to a simmer in a pasta cooker, then covered, and into the oven. After 8 hours I added onion, carrot, and celery. It was in the oven for 20 hours, the first time the house has been warm enough in over a month! After removing from the oven I took out the pasta strainer and boiled the stock down to almost a glace which will go into the freezer once defatted. It amounts to about 5 cups.

[buttertart]

Wonder what pig uterus tastes like - haven't seen recipes for it even in my most outré Chinese cookbooks.

[buttertart]

Yesterday went bonkers in Szechuan Gourmet for lunch so wanted something lightish for dinner - chicken keema from Lalita Ahmed's v good "Indian Cooking" pback book: 3 onions, sliced and browned with a handful of curry leaves; add 1 Tb ground coriander and 1 tsp ground cumin, 1/2 - 1 tsp cayenne (I seem to have bought a particularly hot bottle of cayenne, held back a bit) 1 tsp salt, 1 Tb each grated fresh ginger and garlic, 20 oz (a big and a smaller) boneless chicken breast, minced in the FP (spray it and the blade with Pam first or it sticks like Billy-be-damned) - cook until done, breaking up lumps - add a couple of hot slivered chilis , a fistful of chopped cilantro, and the juice of a lemon, garnish with a bit more cilantro. (The original recipe calls for 10 oz chicken, I double it and leave the onions as called for in the recipe, adjusted the spices as above.) We ate it with leftover lemon rice (that I over-turmeric'd, but it was tasty), poppadums nuked for a minute each in the mw and a cucumber raita that I overdid the chili pepper in. More of that damn almond cake with thawed sour cherries for dessert - we're halfway through it and it was only made on Wednesday...pic below.

[buttertart]

My plate, sans raita and poppadums.

[mariacarmen]

looks and sounds scrumptious. I'm going to have to get some curry leaves. Haven't seen any yet at the various ethnic grocery stores here, but i'm sure I can find them in Berkeley on University Avenue.

[buttertart]

Is that Milan Market still there - between Shattuck and San Pablo about midway? I used to shop there when we lived on Berk Way. Don't remember fresh goods although I was primarily looking for spices.

[mariacarmen]

Not sure, i'll have to check it out....

[rabaja]

The bowl usually has them.
Apologies buttertart.

[buttertart]

snif snif

[bushwickgirl]

Bt, curry leaves in NYC, fresh or dried, from where?

[buttertart]

Kalustyan's - dried always, fresh most times. If you use the dried, use triple what you would fresh.

[JungMann]

You can almost always get curry leaves fresh from the Indian store kitty corner from Kalustyan's on 27th Street.

[buttertart]

The big one by Copper Chimney? I must look in there, haven't been in in ages.

[mariacarmen]

oh, good to know. thx.

[Harters]

OK, so I have sausages from the only Italian deli in the metro area - and yes, it's on the other side from where I live (a 40 minute round trip). They'll get browned in the pan and then finished off in a beany, tomatoey, oniony, parsley-y sort of casserole thingy.

Herself continues to bake a weekly cake, even though the diet means she is now giving most of it away to family, leaving just a small slice each for Saturday and Sunday. This week's has not been one of her finest efforts. A sort of blueberry layer thingy, using blueberry jam. It;s more dessert than cake, so that's how we'll have today's tiny piece - with a small dollop of low fat yoghurt and sprinkling of fresh blueberries. On a more positive note, I have lost 2kg this week so all the restraint has not been in vain.

[mariacarmen]

"more dessert than cake" - i'm very curious about that. I think here cake IS usually dessert... unless it's like a coffee cake, something you have a breakfast or a snack....

and congratulations on the 2kg!!

[Harters]

Whereas, in the UK, cake is almost always a snack. And never something you'd have for breakfast (unless it was a muffin-like cake)

[krisrishere]

It's not even 10:30 AM here, but I'm so excited for dinner.

The lamb has been marinating overnight in a mixture of yogurt, lemon, oregano, mint, rosemary, garlic, s&p. Those are going to be skewered and grilled. To go along with it, rice pilaf, homemade pita bread (dough has been fermenting in the fridge for 2 days), hummus and a Greek salad.

The best part about dinner, however, is the plating. I'm taking a cue here from our favorite Lebanese restaurant. As soon as I take the kabobs off the grill, I'm going to let them rest on top of the pita so it soaks up all of the wonderful meat juices. Ugh, HEAVEN!

[buttertart]

Sounds great!

[Breadcrumbs]

Ok, I'm drooling!!! Sounds awesome kris!!

[krisrishere]

It was awesome! I have so much leftover though..oh well :) And let me just say that pita is so easy to make at home, and so much better than the stuff at the store.

[Breadcrumbs]

Oooooooh, I wish I lived near you!!! (and then of course you'd have to be willing to share w the person w their nose pressed against your window pleading for a taste!!!)

Glad it was delicious kris! You've intrigued me w your pita-making. .. where did you get your recipe?

[LindaWhit]

Noseprints on the window glass....always a PITB to try and clean off! ;-)

[Breadcrumbs]

Will clean for delicious food LW!!! LOL

[krisrishere]

Please, I have a dog who just happens to be part American Bulldog (read: SLOBBER)..so my windows are far from clean :)

The recipe is actually from Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. Instead of using white flour, I used a combo of whole wheat and white wheat - it was great. I can't wait to get home from work and eat more.

[buttertart]

"I can't wait to get home from work and eat more."
I know the feelng. Must be great.

[Breadcrumbs]

Mmmm, leftovers! Would you recommend that book Kris? I have to say bread making intimidates me.

[krisrishere]

Absolutely. All of the doughs are mixed in a container and left to the initial rise (no mixer necessary), then you can choose to bake immediately or put in the fridge for up to 14 days and bake as needed.

[Breadcrumbs]

Ok, well that sounds do-able...thanks Kris! We love pita and your flour combo sounds great!

[sunflwrsdh]

Really does sound great, Kris!

[LindaWhit]

I've been determined to clean out my upstairs fridge - I've got bits and bobs of all sorts of things in there, and I just need to use up the little containers! In a quick cleaning this morning (before coffee! not sure what got into me!) I tossed things I knew I'd never eat or use in another dish, but also took out a lb. of ground beef, about 5 sweet Italian sausages, a small container of V-8 juice, and some chopped red peppers. Oh - and a 2 Tbsp. container of tomato paste.

Cooked and combined with chopped sauteed onions, sliced and sauteed mushrooms, and several large cans of crushed tomatoes and herbs and seasonings, it'll become a stockpot of meat sauce. That was one of the items Mom chose for me to help fill up her freezer - so I'll clean out part of *my* freezer and help stock hers. :-)

Spaghetti to serve it over, with freshly grated Parm-Reg. A "bake at home" ficelle bread loaf from TJ's baked and pulled apart for dipping into the sauce, and a small salad alongside, and I have dinner for tonight.

[sunflwrsdh]

I love using up little dribs and drabs of stuff from the fridge to make something really tasty. Your sauce sounds great! I am actually going to do a lasagna this week, much the same way. I also have some fat free ricotta that needs to be used up soon, as well, hence the lasagna plan.

[free sample addict aka Tracy L]

I wanted to order Chinese food to be delivered, but decided to save some $ and eat a little healthier. I made char sui pork using I used a small pork loin roast and home made char sui marinade. I had white rice and braised baby bok choy. It was very simple, but a lot better than delivery.

[nvcook]

Tonight for me was leftovers. One of my daughters friends (and mine) is on bedrest until 3/9 or the birth of her baby. So today I made a large pot of Basque rice with chorizo, a salad. a pan of brownies and stuffed chicken breasts. The chx breasts are butterflied, spread the inside with pesto, some swiss and guyrere cheese and then wrap the breasts in prosciutto. Tomorrow I'm making potato/leek soup and pork chops stuffed with a basic stuffing and apples.

[sunflwrsdh]

Those chicken breast sound amazing!

[iL Divo]

tomato basil soup with crusty croutons, young leafed greens with ranch, cheese ravioli with gravy, iced mocha, maybe a cookie for dessert, we'll see

[roxlet]

Some Egyptian friends for dinner tonight, and the conversation will take place over roast turkey and stuffing, squash casserole, and mac and cheese. Dessert is an apple pie and a lemon tart served with berries. The conversation should be quite interesting...

[krisrishere]

Sounds fantastic and yes, the conversation should be intriguing.

[LindaWhit]

THAT is a tried and true American dinner, if EVER I read one, roxlet! And OMG, it sounds so wonderful! Enjoy the conversation and the food. :-)

[isadorasmama]

Yum. I wish I could be a fly on the wall (for the aromas and conversation!).
What's in your squash casserole? Can you post a recipe?

[Cherylptw]

Salad as indicated yesterday...mixed greens, roasted cherry tomatoes, roasted butter nut squash cubes, cukes, black beans, fresh oven baked corn tortilla strips...chorizo vinaigrette & crumbled queso fresco

[sunflwrsdh]

That sounds like a great salad, Cheryl.

[AdamD]

Nabe night again. Seems like we eat this 3-5 days a week in the winter. This time, I picked up some fresh pink sweet shrimp-amaebi (heads and all), scallops and kurobata pork belly. Oh how I love fresh seafood, freshly prepared with simple seasonings-such as pork fat, ponzu and ginger!

[krisrishere]

I've been running errands and cleaning all day, so I want something easy. I have some ground sirloin in the fridge, so I'll make a cheeseburger on a wheat bun and a salad on the side.

I am, however, starting tomorrows dinner - yogurt marinated lamb kabobs. My butcher was nice enough to cut a boneless leg of lamb in half for me, so I'll cut it into cubes and marinated in a yogurt and herb mixture.

[LiveRock]

Tonight I picked up a fresh Salmon fillet for a simple mustard, dill, and lemon zest broiled Salmon. I have half a bunch of kale left over that should saute up nicely to go with the Salmon. But for tomorrow, I am thinking of a pot roast braise, perhaps in some Guinness...that should get the house smelling real nice by afternoon!

Randy

[LindaWhit]

Yum on kris's cheeseburger, yum on kris's lamb kabobs, and yum on your Guinness-braised pot roast! :-)

[sunflwrsdh]

+1 (or 3!) on the yums for Kris's cheeseburger (which I have been craving lately, and may need to have one of soon:) kris' lamb kebabs and Randy's Guiness braised pot roast. My tomorrow's dinner will be meatloaf with cheddar and stout,(from the Feb/March issue of Fine Cooking, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, roasted butternut squash salad with warm cider vinagrette, home made whole wheat baguette (my husband is making the bread) and apple turnovers with french vanilla ice cream.

[LindaWhit]

Seriously, I want to make all THREE of those dinners very, very soon! And now I want to add your meatloaf dinner as the 4th one. O. M. G. That entire dinner sounds heavenly!

[nvcook]

sunflwrsdh - the meatloaf also covered in bacon? Can't wait to hear what you think. I'm planning that for Monday night when dh gets home from Cascade, Id.

[sunflwrsdh]

Yes. that's the one, covered in bacon, and it was excellent! We really loved it. I actually doubled the recipe, and glazed the other meat loaf with honey. Haven't tried that one yet, but it looked pretty good too. I skipped the Apple turnovers (again, I've been putting them off and finding something else to make for two weekends now!) and we had this amazing chocolate orange cake that I had made the night before...pretty light...a regular sized slice is 5 WW points plus, (as compared to a regular piece of cake with icing, which is 14) and it was very tasty. I think the next time I make it I'll switch the orange out for raspberry.

[buttertart]

Recipe for the cake? ;-)

[sunflwrsdh]

Here it is:
Dark Chocolate Orange Cake
(Yield= 6 servings)
cooking spray
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons cornstarch'
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon Triple Sec
1 tablespoon hot water
dash of salt
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I used Ghiradelli)
powdered sugar
orange rind strips

Preheat oven to 350.
Coat an 8 inch spring form pan with cooking spray; line bottom of pan with parchment or wax paper. Wrap outside of pan with foil.
Place 3/4 cup sugar and eggs in a bowl, beat with a mixer at high speed 7 minutes.
Combine cornstarch and cocoa in a small bowl, set aside.
place juice, liqueur, water, salt and chocolate in a small glass bowl; microwave at high one minute, or until almost melted, stirring every 20 seconds until smooth. Add cornstarch mixture, whisk until smooth.
Gently stir one fourth of the egg mixture into chocolate mixture; gently fold into remaining egg mixture. Scrape batter into prepared pan. Place pan in a 13x9x2 baking pan, add hot water to larger pan to a depth of one inch. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until top is set. Remove cake pan from water; cool 5 minutes on a wore rack. :Loosen cake from sides of pan using a narrow metal spatula; cool to room temperature. Cover and chill at least 4 hours or overnight. Garnish with powdered sugar and orange rind just before serving.

[KailuaGirl]

That sounds like a great cake! I think I'll try it this weekend. Will Grand Marnier work as well as Triple Sec? That's what I have in the cupboard.

[sunflwrsdh]

I don't see why not....it says Triple Sec (orange liqueur)...and I'm planning to do raspberry next time and use raspberry puree, Chambord and garnish with fresh raspberries....sounds pretty good. When i try it that way, I'll let you know how that one went. It really was a good cake...almost a little mousse-like.

[krisrishere]

I am all over that meatloaf. Found the recipe..saving it! :)

[chefathome]

Homemade bratwurst sausages with German mustard, kartoffelsalat served warm and cider vinegar coleslaw (already made the coleslaw and know that it is not a traditional accompaniment but we like it!).

[sunflwrsdh]

Homemade pizza with whole wheat crust...part plain cheese, part with just roasted red peppers and black olives, and part with "the works" onions, roasted red peppers, black olives, turkey pepperoni...looking forward to it, along with a glass of Italian red. (I need to get better about learning the names of the wines I drink, I guess. I'm already pretty good at drinking it! But I really just go to the local wine and spirits store and tell them what I'm eating, and ask them what I should have with it, and they never fail me:) for dessert, I made Weight Watcher's recipe oatmeal raisin cookies as well as a flourless chocolate orange cake, that is not Weight Watcher's but is not too bad either. It, however, is supposed to be cooled overnight before eating. We shall see:)

[LindaWhit]

It was a bowl of Raisin Bran for me last night for dinner - just didn't feel like cooking these past few days. But after running errands all day (and getting in some kitty snugglets with my sister's cats when I went down to feed them this morning!) I'm *finally* in the mood for cooking. Well, I'm also in the mood for tapas and sangria, but my budget, such as it is, was shot all to hell with the veterinary bills from last week. So maybe I'll make an appearance at my fave tapas restaurant *next* weekend.

Chicken is WFD. I have some piri-piri spice mix that a coworker brought back from southern Spain. I'll mix it with a bit of olive oil and schmear it all over some b/s chicken breasts. I think might be a nice counterpart to the vegetable dish I'm making as the side dish: African Vegetable Stew. http://www.ivu.org/recipes/african/af... Picked up a nice small bunch of red Swiss chard and some sweet potatoes during my errands, and this popped into my head as having not been made in a LONG while. It's *great* with grilled chicken, so I'm thinking perhaps I'll pull out the Calphalon grill pan and figure out a way to fit both it and a large fry pan on my stovetop. :-)

[buttertart]

Yum, LW! That sounds very appealing, especially in combination.

[LindaWhit]

It was very nice. And rather than pan-grilling, I decided to bake the 3 chicken breasts in their piri-piri olive oil marinade, spooning it over top on occasion to keep it moist. They were VERY moist! The rest of it will make for some nice work lunches this week (of course, we're expecting yet ANOTHER snowstorm mid-week, so who knows if I'll get there on Wednesday since it's supposed to be very icy!)

[buttertart]

I bet! and same here, ice storm expected, oh no, I'd take another foot of snow over ice any day.

[mariacarmen]

Long awaited girlie dinner party tonight. On the menu is the last-thread-mentioned Provençal-style fish en papillote, with fennel, little sweet cippolines, cherry tomatoes, herbes de provence, fingerling potatoes, salt cured bitter olives and some type of white fish, not sure which yet. to start will be a riff on (I THINK CHRISTINA MASON'S??) salad of pomegranates, beets and clementines, but i think i'm using ruby grapefruit instead (with pepper, inspired by that thread). Apps will be some spanish cured sausage sliced thin, served with acme toast points, and a mushroom pate. dessert will be some kind of deconstructed (because i can't do it the real way!) tarte tatin thing in combo with a cheese plate ... don't know how that will look yet. Aperitif will be bubbly and pomegranate syrup!

i'm going to take another crack at aioli today, for the fish .... better get cracking! wish me luck.

[mamachef]

mc, do try that aioli again. Sis Lisa gave good advice; when it seems counterintuitive, add More oil. And then when it thins, add more again. The incorporation is the key. You need to beat the living crap out of that aioli, and then when you're thinking you're done, you need to beat it some more before you add more oil. The way you'll know is, look at the surface of your emulsion. It should be fully blended. There should be NO film, no bubbles.
Buy some good mayo, and thin it with a little EVOO and lemon and garlic. It will taste most excellent and get you past the aioli hitch, if there is one. Maybe if you are very very good today and don't swear so much, it'll finally happen. : )
Oh, and thanks for starting the new thread, btw. I was gonna try my hand at it but was truly hoping someone else would do it. And someone, was you! Yaaaaaay you!

[mariacarmen]

thanks Mamachef - i will try and be very patient and add sloooooowly. and then add more. and resign myself to the store-bought if it doesn't work out. no swearing. well, not on this board anyway.

and SCORE - local fishmonger had some beautiful looking "fresh wild black cod (butterfish)" - that's what it said. looks great. they said it was from somewhere on the east coast, tho, so i'm wondering if it can really be fresh and not actually previously frozen? or just on ice? regardless, it's WFD, and i can't wait to try it.

[sunflwrsdh]

Sounds great, mc!

[KailuaGirl]

I have good luck with my smallest regular (not mini-prep) food processor with both sauce rouille and aioli. You know that little hole in the top of the thing you put inside the feed tube? I hope I'm making sense, but probably not. In any case, the part that goes into the feed tube has a very small hole in the bottom. If you pour your olive in there it automatically comes out in small drops. It emulsifies beautifully! Good luck!

[buttertart]

I think that was a design feature of Cuisinarts from the first and was specifically intended for mayonnaise making. Nice of them!

[KailuaGirl]

I agree. I think I had mine for over a year before I discovered what I could do with it. It was such a relief not to have to "drizzle in a thin stream" by hand! :-) Along with the aioli and sauce rouille, I do use it for making mayo, too, as well as salad dressing.
Oh, and I guess I did make some sense. You understood what I was talking about. :-)

[buttertart]

Precisely!

[mariacarmen]

oh yes, KG, well acquainted with that feature. i am trying to make it by hand. i actually had it yesterday (tho i "cheated" - my sister was coaching me on the phone and had me put in a tsp of already prepared mayo to start. it was coming alone fine,using just a whisk, then i added a little water to thin it out, per instructions, and had switched to the immersion blender, when it broke. it is sitting in the fridge right now, along with last week's batch, as a reminder of my failure!

other than that, dinner turned out beautifully!

[rabaja]

I am so juiced that the weather has turned grew and misty again! It means I can braise and bake and wear thick socks all day, with a little mood music and perhaps a fire later on.
First off, I am making more lamb riblets. Because I love them and they make me smile. That will be tomorrows dinner, when our "storm" really comes in. (Not sure it will be more than a drizzle, they say a thunder storm is possible, but they always talk big and deliver low).
For tonight, I have Afghani food on my mind. I have squash, ground lamb, yoghurt, fresh mint and ripe pears on hand. I'd like to come up with some dish that encompasses a few different one's I've had at The Helmand in SF.
I want to roast the squash and have it with both a meat sauce and the cool garlicky yogurt sauce, and I'd also like to caramelize the pears and maybe serve them with the braised lamb tomorrow.
I know google is my friend, but do any of you have suggestions for recipes? I thought about making the leek ravioli too, but don't necessarily need all that.
Also, the meat sauce is usually beef, but lamb is what I've got. It's going to be a lamb degustation kind of weekend.
eta: the dishes I'm trying to emulate are some variation of kaddo borwani and aushak. Not sure what the roasted/candied pear is called, or how they do it.

[mariacarmen]

i love your lamb riblets - they were such a yummy inspiration! both your meals sound fantastic. sorry, can't be of much help, i'm sure others will be...