What's for Dinner? #137 - Easter Edition [old]

[LindaWhit]

I just realized that the previous thread is well over 325, so I thought I'd start a new one here (hopefully people will see the post directing them here).

I'll repeat what I posted over <<<----- there in response to Harters' Easter post to start this one off:
~~~~~

I must be British then, as I'm having lamb as well, Harters. I am just a bit British, however; I'm more Irish than Brit. So I do hope you'll forgive me my heritage. :-)

I've got a half semi-boneless leg of lamb (never did understand the "semi-boneless" phrasing!), that is going to marinate most of the day in olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, minced rosemary, and salt and pepper and then go into the oven for roasting to medium-rare. I *might* glaze it with pomegranate molasses towards the end; but then again, I might not. Especially since I'll be making a pan gravy to drizzle on top.

Sides will be a blend of mashed parsnips (I got two from my co-worker's CSA this week) and mashed Yukon Gold potatoes (also from her CSA). I'll whomp those up with my potato masher, blend in some butter, milk, sour cream and chives. Also will have roasted asparagus drizzled with a tiny bit of balsamic and sprinkled with chopped pistachios.

If I get ambitious, I'll be making ANZAC biscuits today, but I've got lots to do around the house, and since nothing got done yesterday, I'm going to try and focus on the "other" stuff vs. baking. We'll see if I manage to get to either. :-)

A very happy Easter to those who celebrate.
~~~~~~~~~~

And if you don't celebrate Easter (I don't - I just love lamb tho!) - what's on your table today?

[linguafood]

Now that we're well over 300, shall we continue here?

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/843201

[nomadchowwoman]

After leftovers, leftovers, leftovers--last night it was pork repurposed into tacos, mine with kimchee, DH's w/lime cream and pickled onions--I refuse to eat leftovers tonight. Since DH has ceremonial duties out at the university, he'll have to make dinner from whatever institutional cheese and finger sandwich platters are offered at the reception. I, however, am going to take advantage of this glorious weather and head out to the French Quarter Festival this evening, where I'll be feasting on all manner of culinary delights while swaying to some New Orleans sound.

[steve h.]

jealous. very, very jealous.

[gingershelley]

Oh, take me back to NOLA! I am in LOVE with your city NMCW. One of the only cities in the US that I feel like I could move to and dive right in and live there happy.

Do tell us how that festival is - maybe some highlights so we (well, I) can live vicariously on the new thread....

[nomadchowwoman]

Oh, gingershelley, it is a great, food-obsessed city, with lots of culture and character and always too many things to do. It is a great place to live an artistic/creative/musical or otherwise unconventional lifestyle, but we are not the best place for economic productivity--too many distractions, which are both blessing and curse. We have lots of problems and the summers are brutal. This past weekend was just about perfect weather though. I went twice to the French Quarter Fest--heard Amanda Shaw, Paul Sanchez, Mia Borders, and lots of other music. I ate a cochon de lait po-boy, Vietnamese stuffed chicken wings, pork & shrimp spring roll, crawfish w/lobster sauce (from a favorite Chinese restaurant), tasted a brisket po-boy and had a bite of a lamb slider. And that was only a small sample of what's on offer. The food at our festivals is always fantastic. And the best thing about the FQ Festival, which has grown mightily, is that it's FREE. Two weeks from now, the Jazz Fest (my absolute favorite event in NOLA) starts. That is unfortunately not free, but the sheer variety and quality of music acts is incredible; the arts and crafts for sale are fabulous; but the main attraction for me, though I love it all, is food,lthe variety of which is mind-bending--and challenging for those of limited stomach. It is a Hound's paradise. I first went when I was 15; my food sensibilities were already beginning to develop. I remember I tried the goat that year and came back and raved about it to my mother, who was then thoroughly convinced that I was doing drugs. No comment on that.
But come on down! We're a very hospitable bunch here.

[Berheenia]

Today I did WFL and made an asparagus omelet- a favorite that I forgot about. Really inexpensive and easy. Tonight is stuffed zucchini with some whole wheat rolls on the side. The zuke will be stuffed with sauteed italian sausage, onions and zuke innards, breadcrumbs and cheese, bound with some sour cream - healthfood!

[onceadaylily]

I had an asparagus omelet for dinner last night, with sun dried tomatoes and.mushrooms. It was perfect after a long workday. I might have to steal that stuffed zucchini this week, but maybe spinach, tomato, onions, cheese, and breadcrumbs.

[gingershelley]

Berheenia and OCDL, I think I may need to climb on that stuffed zuke bandwagon; I have a couple italian sausages that need using up, a nice yellow pepper, and 1/2 a leftover onion and some bread crumbs hanging around... sounds downright springy; tho not sure why, when zucchini this time of year must be coming from much farther south. I haven't had any in a while, and I love a stuffed zuke!

Once again, WFD crowd stires a craving:)

[Cherylptw]

Over the last couple of days we had Filet mignons with baked potato & a salad of spinach & cukes on Tue; last night's dinner was hamburger steak with seared onions & bell peppers, mashed potatoes w/gravy, steamed broccoli and homemade biscuits.

Tonight we're having chicken mole with rice & peas and something else (I don't know what yet). Dessert will be ice cream...it's been a boring food week so far.....

[nomadchowwoman]

Chicken mole, especially, sounds pretty exciting to me! And the others sound delicious.

[LindaWhit]

Wait - since when is filet mignon BORING? And chicken mole? Not boring at all!

[Harters]

Well, in the steak race, I always regard fillet (as we call it - pronouncing the "t") as the one that's going to come last for flavour.

By the by, I'm always curious as to why Americans always refer to this cut by not only a French name, but a French name the French don't generally use for beef (but do for pork)

[LindaWhit]

Who knows why, Harters? We're a hodgepodge nation; figures we'd have a hodgepodge grammar, right? ;-)

[Cherylptw]

Truthfully, I'd rather have the chicken mole than the steak...I love Mexican!

[weezieduzzit]

I have a whole chicken thawed out and when i replaced the lightbulb in the frige I discovered a jar of beautiful preserved lemons I had forgotten about... and I know we have dried fruit since I've been using it to flavor the water kefir.... it looks like we're having chicken tagine for dinner!

[BananaBirkLarsen]

Just another pizza last night, but it was a pretty good one. Homemade peameal bacon, fried until crispy and cut into crumble-sized pieces. These really amazing, super-sweet, red bell peppers and half a head of garlic, roasted in the oven. A combination of Edam and queso quesadilla 'cause I was out of mozzarella.

Also, my boyfriend just asked me, "you won't be offended if I get you something kitchen-related for your birthday, will you?" Ummm, no. No, I won't be offended.

[mariacarmen]

what is peameal bacon, please?

good boyfriend to ask, and to have good instincts!

[BananaBirkLarsen]

It's a Canadian thing, apparently (although we didn't have it in BC, as far as I know). A cured, unsmoked pork loin, rolled in cornmeal or ground dried peas (hence "peameal") before being sliced and grilled. Basically, it's what Americans call "Canadian bacon," but not smoked and rolled in something crunchy. I used Michael Ruhlman's recipe here: http://ruhlman.com/2011/02/canadian-b...

And yeah, he's a keeper!

[mariacarmen]

so unusual! never heard of such a thing. Thanks!

[Harters]

I've had this in Ontario at a breakfast place. An acquired taste *, IMO, particularly when you're used to back bacon without the peameal.

* acquired taste = once was enough

[BananaBirkLarsen]

Is British back bacon typically smoked or unsmoked?

I used cornmeal on mine instead of peameal and enjoyed the slight crunch. It's interesting having a cured bacon that isn't smoked, but I really like it (perhaps it's in my Canadian blood, even if I am from the west coast).

Next time I make it I'm going to try an epicurious recipe that incorporates maple syrup, and use ground peas instead of cornmeal.

[megjp]

They don't HAVE peameal bacon in BC? I knew I made the right decision staying in Ontario ;)

Kudos on making it yourself, though; I'll have to look into this! (My French forebears would be so proud.)

[Harters]

Britsh bacon is always available smoked or unsmoked.

[buttertart]

Here's a delight I shared with some very nice Toronto CHers last month -- a peameal breakfast sandwich (the best way to eat it, in my opinion). I too really prefer back bacon qua back bacon, but this was very tasty (in a Proust's madeleine kind of way)...

[Harters]

I'm at the age where I am becoming a regular at our local hospital. The various bits just don't work as well as they used to. So, by way of a bit of cheering up, I stopped at our favourite fishmongers on the way home to see what was good for dinner.

Well, there were the tiny brown shrimps (the ones the colour blind French call grey shrimps) that are used to make the regional delicacy of potted shrimps. They're also damed good in a salad or sandwich. Or the fritters we made from the Moro cookbook the other week. At £3.50 for 100g, not cheap - but sooooo good.

But what were particularly good were dressed crabs. And that's going to be dinner.

Sliced garlic and fennel seeds get a moderate fry and are then mixed with the crab meat (both the brown and white meat), a chopped red chilli, lemon zest & juice, parsley, sea salt, pepper. It gets stirred through some thin pasta (spaghetti or linguine are in the cupboard). The mix is topped with thinly sliced radish which will add some colour and crunch.

[mariacarmen]

Harters, sorry you needed the bit of cheering... hoping the various bits stop acting up. crab pasta - sounds loverly,

[Harters]

Thanks, Maria. I was a little dubious when I first saw a crab pasta recipe that included chilli. I was sure that it would overwhelm the delicate crab but, so long as you're restrained, a little background kick really enhances it.

[nomadchowwoman]

Hope the pasta w/crab is adequately cheering, and you'll be feeling better soon. (I personally think the chile is necessary in a crab and pasta dish.)

[mariacarmen]

the boy made a yummy rosy med-rare tri tip (nothing on it but salt & pepper), a mushroom gravy (god bless him, it's his go-to lately almost every time he cooks, but it's really good!) over roasted potato, and some wilted chinese broccoli greens. green salad on the side. the pics don't do the meat justice - it was much ruby-er in person. and leftovers for tonight's late-night, after-nightcap-snack!

[LindaWhit]

Nicely done! :::::applause for the boy::::: :-)

[mariacarmen]

thanks!

[nomadchowwoman]

I don't think we have tri-tip here; it must be called something else--but, dang, that looks yummy.

[mariacarmen]

that is so interesting. i did some hunting:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/610424

and it looks like this:

[linguafood]

I had my first tri-tip ever in Lompoc, CA. Was not familiar with that particular cut and was told it was specific to Cali. Who'da tunk?

I think it spread -- it must've, b/c it's available at our local Wegmans (far, far away from CA).

[mariacarmen]

it's REALLY good on the barbi. which we don't have, sadly.... but it's hard to go wrong with that cut.

[nomadchowwoman]

I'll have to investigate b/c I like the looks and sound of it.

[Frizzle]

So many yummy sounding meals again on this forum. JungMann your Easter spread sounds wonderful. A couple of soup nights to report on - a cold snap here made them the perfect comfort food.

Night one was my adaptation of a River Cafe Easy recipe for a thick cavolo nero and borlotti bean soup. It's my go to soup when I feel like I need an injection of vitamins. Onion, carrot, celery and galic get's sweated. In goes chili flakes and fennel seeds, then half a tin of chopped tomatoes. After a 15 min simmer chicken stock and a tin of borlotti beans are added for another 15mins of simmering. Finally rough chopped, rinsed spinach (cavolo nero is not always easy to get) is added and cooked until it wilts. Soup is served with a grating a parmesean and a wee drizzle of olive oil. As my partner says 'it's like eating spoonfuls of good health'.

Night two was a first attempt at an aubergine soup recipe - Turkish inspired with toasted almonds: http://www.britishlarder.co.uk/turkis...
It's delicious, very rich and silky with lots of depth of flavour from the spices and the browned aubergine. Next time I won't bother with the yoghurt swirl as garnish as I felt it distracted from the soup. The colour of the soup is a little off putting to be honest. I can understand why the yoghurt swirl helps.

Tonight is leftovers night. A wild rice salad with roast pumpkin and feta. I'm feeling like something almost crunchy after two soups in a row.

[JungMann]

The aubergine soup sounds very interesting. Was it sweet at all? I tend to shy away from ras al-hanout and sultanas because they have a warm sweetness I find unpalatable.

[Frizzle]

Not really sweet JM. It was nicely balanced I thought. That's why I felt the yoghurt distracted - it already had a pleasant 'lemony' quality despite having no lemon and didn't need the additional sourness of the yoghurt. The ratio of sultanas is quite low compared to the amount of aubergine. I cobbled together my own mix of ras al-hanout as none of my normal shops stock it. I think the fact I dry toasted whole spices before attacking them in the mortar and pestle helped the flavour a lot.
It was incredibly rich though. I wouldn't have it again as a one dish meal. I would do a smaller bowl as a first course.

[mariacarmen]

it sounds really wonderful, Frizzle, despite the color....

[gingershelley]

After the aformentioned big 'too-do' over the scallop salad, today I was craving BIG meat! Wanted lamb (Since didn't have much of it Sunday due to hungry guests, and no leftovers:(), but nothing looked good or reasonably priced at my market, so tonight is a Beef "Round Tip roast", which I understand is better used as kabob meat, and next to the tri-tip, as a muscle, which I like on the grill.

I took a chance, and rubbed with my tried-n true 'The Good Wife' beef roast rub, from the deli I made soups and specials in when I was a teen. Best beef roast ever from there (a whole round, roasted and sliced to order every couple of days). Also the best potato salad as well; so sure I am on good turf for making dinner....

Roast in the oven now with CI low-n-slow roasting temps, and baked potatoes in on the side for the best side!

Hopefully, in just over an hour, we shall have rare beef, potatoes with chives and sour cream, and a side of roasted asparagus.

Smells divine, and I am sure will taste just as ordinary and delicious!

[GretchenS]

Sounds fabulous!!! I am packing for my vacation to England (leave at dawn tomorrow) and seem to have picked up LW's bug, but the description of your dinner perked me right up. I might essay a Saltine...

[LindaWhit]

Have a WONDERFUL trip, Gretchen!

[GretchenS]

Thanks, I will even if the next 24 hours are a bit dicey.... :)

[mariacarmen]

oh no! think positive GS, I WON'T BE SICK I WON'T BE SICK I WON'T I WON'T I WON'T BE SICK! then stamp your foot, ala Veruca Salt, and i'm sure that will do the trick. Hope you enjoy hell out of England - and please report back on meals - even if you do it on the UK/Ireland Board. Ta-ta!!

[LindaWhit]

Fingers crossed that the saltines did the trick for Gretchen and no Veruca Salt foot-stomping was required!

[gingershelley]

Have a lovely time in the Lake District!

[nomadchowwoman]

Bon voyage, Gretchen. Perhaps you'll cross paths w/my SIL. They left for the Lake District yesterday.

[bblonde]

Night class night. Not very creative tonight. Usually I try to make something a bit more exciting to get me over the hump of my 14 hour day.

Ham and swiss sandwich with homemade mustard sauce (from easter)
tabbouleh
strawberries
pumpernickel and onion pretzel rods (not nearly as promising as I'd hoped

[steve h.]

Club steak is on the menu.
We returned last night from Rome. We had our 15 minutes so now it's time to get back in the flow and get busy.
The steak will be heated in a hot, cast-iron skillet on the stovetop to a rare/medium rare. A baked potato and spinach will be on the side. A California red to wash things down. This will be a dining room meal. I drove to the market, the bakery (bread) and the wine store. Pity, I already miss walking to local outdoor markets, favorite shops and so on but that's what makes holiday special. Maybe some Van Morrison on the box. Alas, no late-night stroll for gelato.

[mariacarmen]

welcome back, bittersweetly so!

[steve h.]

Thanks. I like being on the road. Home is good, too.

[LindaWhit]

Welcome back - home your trip was everything you needed for relaxation.

[steve h.]

It was good. Saw some old friends, made a few new ones. We keep going back to the same neighborhood year after year so it's easy to maintain an even strain. Deb and I got a kick out of sharing our home-cooked meals with you guys. You are all very kind.

[LindaWhit]

We were all living vicariously through you and Deb, so THANK YOU! :-)

[gingershelley]

Oh, the pining for the markets and the sweet streets of Roma... sorry for you (and us!) that you are home again. But , it does happen, and I am heartened by what's on your 'box' for music tonight... not much better than Van to sooth a pining soul:)

[steve h.]

I like the measured pace and predictability of our days there. We shop every day and stroll every night. Life in the slow lane.

[GretchenS]

Welcome back! It was fun to vicariously enjoy your trip but it's good to have you home too. I LOVE your back-in-the-USA dinner menu.

[steve h.]

Thanks. It was a good meal that helped smooth the transition from one place to another.

[nomadchowwoman]

Welcome back to you and Deb--and, yeah, your steakhouse dinner sounds like a fine way to ease back into American life.

[steve h.]

:-)

[wyogal]

Just wondering if folks are just not going to use this thread, or is this still all about last week?
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/843201

[linguafood]

The WFD threads each generally run for about 250-300 posts, so we likely won't move over there until we reach that point. The titling could've perhaps chosen in a more neutral way, but the regulars aren't confused, AFAIK.

Plus -- it's not like it's gonna go bad if it just sits around on the HC board....

[gingershelley]

Lingua, you have brought a new acronym to my world.. what is AFAIK? Forgive my inability to translate... Your humble food servant:)

[kubasd]

as far as i know :)

[gingershelley]

Gotcha!

[Frizzle]

AFAIK = As far as I know. This one I know from other forums. Took me ages to work out EVOO here!

[Harters]

Last trip to the States (maybe 4 years ago - time flys), we watched quite a few Rachael Ray programmes. She was forever whittering on about EVOO - took us ages to realise what she meant.

By the by, I know RR gets dissed on this board but I think her shows are really good. We could do with a home cook like her doing a series in the UK - it'd be must more interesting than all the chef led ones. I always think of hers as having an air of real life about them - like someone coming in from a day's work and having to get dinner on for the family.

FWIW *, our "cooking the books" exercise is lurching towards the shelves where we keep our souvenir books from trips. We always try to find one, although not always possible to find something in English. However, expect WFD to feature "Harters cooks RR" in a few weeks.

* FWIW = For What It's Worth

[Rella]

WFD = What's for Dinner - I always do a double take on that one.

[mariacarmen]

hah - you shoulda been here when i started a new thread and called it WTF. i didn't realize it until someone pointed it out to me, several posts in!

[Harters]

I think you should have left it as it was :-)

[mariacarmen]

i think i did, i think it was too late to change. and i think Lingua posted the next thread as WTF is FD or something like that....?

we are a LAUGH RIOT, we are.

[Rella]

Yep, that's what my double take was -- stuck in cyberspace, I yam.

[mariacarmen]

last night was three small hastily gulped cold slices of Trader Joe's pizza at the oldster's. he ate very well (sister made him salmon and leftover rice, and chicken noodle soup [the blandest of the blands]), considering his long day (first treatment). Fingers crossed this continues!

Chez nous, tri-tip defrosting. that's all i've got so far. I think the BF is going to take care of dinner, which will be nice.

[rabaja]

I hope you get to sit down and enjoy the try-tip tonight, MC. Glad your father still has his appetite too. It's the little things.
Sounds like the BF is taking good care of you, as well as dinner!

eta: hey, have you seen this thread?
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/840593

[mariacarmen]

thanks rabaja! and no, i hadn't seen that thread yet, but read a couple others. they are totally helpful, but initially they frightened me with what we have to look forward to.... Thanks so much for pointing that one out! Today my sister was told we don't have to be SOOO stringent with his diet as we thought. i think it will come down to what he wants to eat - and balancing that with trying to get enough calories in him. nothing new there!

[nomadchowwoman]

Glad your oldster still has his appetite, mc. Hope it stays and the treatments aren't too hard on him.

[mariacarmen]

thanks NCW!

[LindaWhit]

Enjoy the tri-tip, mc. And much good thoughts winging the oldster's way for the beginning of his treatment.

[ChristinaMason]

I think tonight's going to be pot-stuck tofu, borrowing a recipe from buttertart, with oyster-sauced bok choy on the side. Maybe some salted edamame to start.

[ChristinaMason]

Really an excellent recipe, buttertart---thank you! We served it with riced cauliflower, oyster-sauced bok choy and asparagus, and a salad with light shiitake dressing. I was pleased that subbing minced shallot for the green onion in the tofu recipe didn't hurt a bit.

[gingershelley]

So I have to report back on the soup and salad dinner last night....

SO predictable of the Frenchman, in a cute way of course. He loved the pate and pickled cherries I put out for starters; is always a big fan of my soups so the asparagus was a hit. Then we get to the scallop salad main. Sigh.

He says' "you know how I feel about greens. But if I had to put it on the scale from Denny's to La Cote St. Jaques (a 3 macaron Michelin resto we ate at in France a couple years ago), then this would fall more to the middle". Thanks for the humor and the absolute wide range of that scale, which tells me nothing.

I liked it, though the dandelion greens were more bitter than I remembered, it turned out to be good with the rich bacon fat, scallops, and potatoes. I added a squiggle of balsamic glaze to the edge of the plate, which was pretty and a nice contrast to drag bites through on occasion.

I would make it again.

Here is the link to the original, which I subbed seared scallops and bay-steamed yukon golds for the poached egg called for.http://food52.com/recipes/11663_dande...

[JungMann]

After nearly 2 weeks of planning, shopping and cooking, my Easter had to be cancelled an hour before sitting to our meal due to a pandemic of "food poisoning" and personal emergencies. Just as I had consigned myself to a quiet evening, guests began showing up. They may have been an hour late, but apparently sometimes people *do* have personal emergencies.

Dinner ended up being slapdash. I made a quick appetizer of spicy pickled okra and lemon and dill pickled green beans which matched up quite well with our pepperoni-spiked Sriracha bloody marys. I already had a a leg of lamb roasting in the oven along with sumac potatoes and a spinach pie, so we were set for mains. Dessert was a batch of chocolate chip and bacon cookies and a Peeps cake the guests had brought.

Because there were still a few last-minute no-shows on Easter, I was left with a lot of leftovers and the brussels sprouts I had set for our side never made it to the table. Instead those ended up being for last night's dinner, roasted with a cardamom-perfumed spice blend and served cold with a tahini and pomegranate dressing. Tonight will be either the last of the lamb or son-in-law eggs with roasted brussels sprouts and a mint and lime vinaigrette.

[mariacarmen]

what a meal! both of them.... cardamom perfumed spice blend..... ohhhh.... i hope you weren't the food poisoning victim, but it sounds like no.... WAIT, WHAT? CHOCOLATE CHIP AND BACON COOKIES? marry me, JM? i'll let you do all the cooking, i promise.....

[JungMann]

The chocolate chip and bacon cookies that came in my Easter basket were fantastic, particularly because they had only just enough bacon to be suggestive without turning the cookies heavy. I believe my friend got the recipe from the Bacon Lovers' Cookbook.

[mariacarmen]

then please ask your friend if he/she will accept my hand in marriage.

[LindaWhit]

LOL! I know you'd prefer having them *made* for you, mc, but just in case you're of a mind to make them for yourself:

http://www.cookingchanneltv.com/recipes/bacon-chocolate-chip-cookies-recipe/index.html

http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/20...

[mariacarmen]

oh alright, i'll bake, i'll bake!

( :

thanks LW.

[Berheenia]

I would bet that those pepperoni-spiked Sriracha bloody marys could stop any pandemic in its tracks!

[JungMann]

They are certainly my kind of antibiotic.

[ChristinaMason]

<pepperoni-spiked Sriracha bloody marys>

Hold it...stop...please explain. I must try these.

[JungMann]

I riffed on Ina Garten's bloody mary recipe with the addition of Sriracha and muddled pepperoni that sat at the bottom of the pitcher. I garnished with lemon-dill pickled green beans and celery spears with pepperoni. Garlic-stuffed olives would not have been a bad addition, but I forgot they were in the fridge. They're definitely a fun brunch cocktail, so I'm certain I'll have the chance to make them again.

[ChristinaMason]

Did the pepperoni come through?

[mariacarmen]

just thinking the same thing....

[JungMann]

The pepperoni came through with a slight garlicky, meaty kick, but as someone who eats the garnish in his drinks, the point was to combine bites of sausage with sips of the cocktail. The idea was admittedly gimmicky -- I made the drink because some friends went wild for something similar they saw in Chicago -- but I think if one really wanted to get a pepperoni infusion, you could achieve that by fat washing the vodka beforehand.

[nomadchowwoman]

Let the kiddies eat candy. I want to be at your Easter table.

[Frizzle]

The brussel sprouts sound absolutely incredible. Can you share a few more details on your roasting spice blend and dressing please if it's not too much trouble?

[JungMann]

First I toast sliced almonds. Then I add a slick of olive oil to a hot pan and add sliced brussels sprouts to pan roast. Just before they're done, I'll add minced garlic and spinkle with my spice mixture to taste (1 part ground cumin : 1 part ground coriander : 1 part sumac combined with Aleppo pepper: 1 part ground cardamom: 1 part ground nutmeg: 2 parts ground allspice) and saute until fragrant. I top with a dressing made of tahini, lemon juice, water, yogurt, pomegranate molasses and chopped parsley and then sprinkle with the toasted almonds.

Normally my spice mixture does not have as much cardamom as it did this time, but I pre-ground them several days ago, so their flavors may have been dull. This is homecooking at it's most immeasurably instinctual, so you'll want to taste you spice blend as you go (after adding salt); I know have the proportions when I can taste an initial, but light cumin and allspice base with a burst of floral from the coriander and nutmeg and a sharp and spicy finish from the chili and cardamom that you'll sense floats above your palate and right into your nose. When the spices are fresher, I use a scant half demitasse of cumin and coriander each, a whole of allspice, just over half of nutmeg, a third of ground cardamom and finish with sumac, Aleppo and pepper to taste. This particular spice blend was hard to crack because it was made by a Nazarene who incorporated some noticeable Aleppan and Lebanese influences, but I'm satisfied with my flavor memory. A good pre-made Syrian baharat with perhaps a dash of cardamom might make this alchemy a little easier.

[Frizzle]

Many thanks :) Great directions on what to look for taste-wise btw, love them.

[rabaja]

Uh oh. After reading over the last two threads I am so sorry to hear about the tales of woe...Linda I hope you are on the mend. Ginger ale and matzoh's always do the trick for me...Mariacarmen, you are such a pillar of strength, all the best to you, your sister and your sweet father. I hope the treatments go over well and may he have many years of bland food ahead...On happier note, enjoy your vacation GretchenS, and it sounds like everyone has enjoyed a lovely Easter/Passover/Weekend. I know we did too.
Tonight it's a LW recipe from last Summer, I think it is, anyway...brown sugar-cumin rubbed chicken thighs (and breast) thrown on the grill in the rain, with roasted butternut squash (thrown in the oven to warm up the house) with a big green salad.
For dessert, our new favorite sorbet bars, Julies. They are delicious, the blackberry is especially good and much kinder to my hips than the girl scout cookies and See's candy we've been scarfing on up until one month ago.
Tomorrow we may have a small batch of lamb stew. We leave for vacation in one week and it's time to clear out the fridge/freezer!

[mariacarmen]

thanks Rabaja, so very much. "years of bland food ahead" - i don't know whether to cry or cry!

your dinner sounds really lovely.

[GretchenS]

What a lovely post, rabaja, and happy vacation / elopement / honeymoon!!!

[LindaWhit]

I am feeling better, rabaja - I'm at work today. Still going to take it easy on the eating, but I'm up and running. :-)

And enjoy your fridge cleaning out in AN-TI-CI-PAY-YAY-SHUNNNNN of your ::::ahem:::: "vacation" (a.k.a. vacation/elopement/honeymoon as Gretchen put it!)

[Chocolatechipkt]

Peanut noodles, used this Chow recipe that appeared just when I was wondering how to use up some leftover roast chicken. Yum ... and fast.

http://chowhound.chow.com/recipes/303...

[L.Nightshade]

I'm in fridge cleanout mode again. Someone had a great acronym for that, but I don't remember what it was. Nothing new will fit, so something has got to go. I've got radishes, radicchio, greens, peppers, chicken, who knows what else. A big salad, and pasta con miscellany looks like the solution tonight.

[LindaWhit]

C.O.R.N. = Clean Out the Refrigerator Night. :-)

And *I* ate spaghetti and sauce instead of bland chicken and rice...and so far, so good!

[BananaBirkLarsen]

I'm making my first attempt at Ruhlman's peameal bacon (with rosemary and peppercorns, as I didn't have the sage or thyme he suggests). The recipe can be found here: http://ruhlman.com/2011/02/canadian-b... It's been curing for the last three days and is now drying in the fridge for the next few hours.

I think I might do a bacon and broccoli quiche for dinner tonight in order to test out both the bacon and my new tart pan. Probably with a crunchy romaine and red pepper salad on the side. Homemade rocky road ice cream (firming up in the freezer as I type) for dessert.

[gingershelley]

Ooh! BBL, I am headed to the libary today to pick up Ruhlman's Charcuterie. Excited to look it over, and hear how your bacon turned out:)

Hopefully, I will join the home-cured meats club here soon.

[BananaBirkLarsen]

I don't have a smoker or a sausage stuffer, so I am limited mostly to the cure-in-the-fridge type meats, but I've really liked everything I've made so far.

The bacon turned out really well, but got lost in all the strong quiche flavours. I've still got a ton of it though. Maybe I'll have a BLT for lunch.

[megjp]

I didn't take any Easter leftovers from my folks' place, which was wise because I'd have had a wholly porkfat blood count by now.

Tonight I blasted some green beans in the oven with five-spice, fried up some leftover rice with an egg, and ate the lot of it very quickly with some of my standby sweet and sour crockpot chicken thighs garnished with toasted sesame seeds. I'm headed to a friend's later, and he is trading me his last perfect suitcase-imported-from-Mexico avocado for enough leftover chicken to make a sloppy big sandwich for work tomorrow. Gotta love the barter! :)

[ChristinaMason]

5-spice on roasted green beans...brilliant!

[GretchenS]

Oh wow, you are the winner of that swap in my book although if he is not a cook he probably figures that he is. Your oven-blasted beans sound heavenly!

[megjp]

He is not a cook! I think it was a win-win, anyway.

I made a nice cool salsa with the avocado and other usual salsa suspects, and had it with tortillas and an egg last night. There's a lot left, so Friday's traditional week's-end pig-out should be well-supplied :)

[nomadchowwoman]

Yeah, I'm wanting everyone else's dinner tonight, not more leftovers. But instead, I'm going to repurpose some of our roast pork into a pork ragu, which we'll have over penne pasta w/a generous sprinkle of parmigiano. I picked up some favas at the FM so I'm going to try grilling those and some asparagus, too, since DH brought some home from the supermarket (odd, as he's not one to pick up produce on impulse--ice cream, yes; veggies, no). But I guess the man wants asparagus, so asparagus he will have.

[ChristinaMason]

<some asparagus, too, since DH brought some home from the supermarket (odd, as he's not one to pick up produce on impulse--ice cream, yes; veggies, no). But I guess the man wants asparagus, so asparagus he will have.>

We have seen your ways with asparagus, so the fact he brought some home on a whim does not surprise US. :)

[Berheenia]

Last night it was our version (we are yankees) of chicken tikka masala- I cut up and sauteed chicken tenders in butter and added a jar of Tiger Brand Tikka Masala sauce. Served over rice with petite peas and some store bought nan. Very exotic stuff and delicious!
Tonight I have a meeting so we are breaking out the restaurant leftovers from Easter lunch. I have ham envy but can't see two old people and one bone in ham so will live vicariously through this thread.
Is anyone making pea soup? mmmm

[gingershelley]

Berheenia, I LOVE chix tikka masala! Used to be able to get this great sauce in the fridge section at Costco that was perfect. Not there now, and I despair of making from scratch at home. Too much work usually when the craving strikes, so I go out for it.

I am now officially wanting your dinner, not mine:)

[Harters]

Tikka masala sauce is an easy peasy one to make:
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/12...

And even easier if you can find a tikka masala paste such as Patak's (if that's available where you are in the world).

Chicken tikka masala is a westernised dish which I don't particularly like. On the other hand, murgh makhani (butter chicken) can be a lovely dish, although a little on the under-spiced side for my taste.

[LindaWhit]

Patak's sauces are very available in our area of the world in regular supermarkets. I've not bought the paste, but their sauces are readily available.

[Harters]

Get the paste!

Far better to start with that as a base for your own sauce. The sauce is a bit, erm, industrial.

[LindaWhit]

I'll have to keep an eye out for it, Harters. I'm not knowledgeable about Indian food, per se, but always willing to try, provided there's not *too* much heat/spice.

[Berheenia]

Hi Linda,

I'm in greater Boston too and first bought Patak's but we prefer Tiger Tiger which sells in the same large chains too. I plan to check out the paste. Before I married Mr. Berheenia I made a mean lamb curry but Mr. Berheenia doesn't eat lamb and has only recently learned to like curry in the form of chicken tikka.masala but ... now he loves it. I started sneaking curry powder into my chicken salad a few years ago and that did the trick!

[ChristinaMason]

The curry I made last night using Patak's kashmir paste was pretty killer spicy, but in a good way. We really liked it. Haven't seen Tiger Tiger 'round these parts (Washington, DC).

[mariacarmen]

yum on that CTM, Berheenia!

[boyzoma]

Tonight is the good ole' scalloped potatoes and ham casserole with cream corn and pull-apart rolls on the side (can't find them in stores anymore so had to make my own, but that's ok, since it makes the house smell so good). Leftovers are always so good and still have lots of ham. Going to break out the food saver tomorrow after I save some of the ham out for split pea soup.

[gingershelley]

Tonight I am serving a nice cream of asperagus soup I made last night (it tastes best after a day to mellow). With a fresh loaf of Bin5.

After, I am going to pain the Frenchman for sure by serving an entree salad - he is not a big salad guy - but I want something light.

Doing a variation on a dandelion salad from food 52; well cleaned greens, tossed with a warm bacon, leek and red wine vinegar dressing - to which I am adding slices of warm new potatoes. Then topped with sauteed scallops, instead of their version which has a poached egg. French don't eat eggs at dinner much - they are for lunch, I am repeatedly told:). More bread on the side.

Mango sorbet with fresh strawberries for 'afters' as Harters would say.

Wish me luck on salad success!

[GretchenS]

Sounds just fabulous, maybe he will have an epiphany on the salad front!

[gingershelley]

GS (same as my abreviation:)! I fear no epiphany, tho he does say begrudingly these days, if he is going to eat a salad, it is at my table as I do a great job.

I had a wonderful teacher in my mom and step-mom, best salad queen's ever...

Salad cannot appear more than 2 times a week when he is in town or there are discussions about my reformist ways. Which are true. And I stand by them!

[ChristinaMason]

My mouth is watering. Tell the Frenchman I'll take his place at the table if he's not careful to be more appreciative ;)

[gingershelley]

Merci. You are invited anytime. And I will pass along your admonition to JF....

[linguafood]

O.M.G. that salad..... now I'm feeling positively pouty about my own salad tonight (a leftover red bell pepper & half a cuke sliced up & served with some feta, olive oil, rwv, oregano.

Care to post a link? I'll happily pretend to be a French man next time dinner comes around. Now -- where was that beret......

[nomadchowwoman]

There's salad, and then there's-- Sauteed Scallops and Warm New Potatoes, served on a bed of greens tossed with warm bacon, leek and red wine vinegar dressing. (Not to mention Cream of Asparagus Soup and freshly-baked Bread to start and Mango Sorbet with fresh Strawberries for dessert.) Called One Damned Fine Dinner in my book!

[gingershelley]

Wow, I leave this lovely space on-line to get my bread set up, and my (TJ's) scallops thawed out, and worry, worry worry if that will turn out as a menu idea.

Thanks to GretchenS, CM, Lingua, and NCW for the encouragement! Apparently, it sounds better to you all than it does to me... was worried about adding the potatoes to the salad (for heft, + plus Jean-Francois devotion to anything Parmentier-related), and subbing out a poached egg for seared scallops.

I mean, a poached egg has a totally different salad vibe than a scallop, non? But, I thought unctiousness would still be there, and more entree-worthy; if your French, and eggs are for noon.

Thanks for the encouragement. Sorry to be needy, but sometimes, I doubt my ideas. Not often, but mostly when feeding a French person with long standing traditions about what is 'correct'. Those folks go WAY back as to how to do things. I like it alot, mostly, but some days, my rebel want's a 'cause that I am sure will not be appreciated:)

You lovely people rock!

[buttertart]

Holy cow, nmcw, that sounds a treat.

[mariacarmen]

that salad sounds very much like a take on Salade Lyonnaise, so i would think the Frenchman would be all over that! i sure would.... wow.

i haven't put anything green in my mouth all day today....

[bblonde]

Put dinner in the fridge this morning--an asparagus and ham stata. Will go in the oven in half an hour. Serving that with a strawberry spinach salad. Glad dinner is already mostly done. I'm exhausted today. Thinking its the histamines and allergens.

[bblonde]

Wanted to add my photo--meal was lovely and springy. Really hit the spot

[L.Nightshade]

Oh, that looks luscious!

[ChristinaMason]

I've got some Patak's kashmiri curry paste I've been wanting to use, so I think I'm going to attempt this recipe (or close to it) with lean ground beef instead of chicken: http://www.pataks.co.uk/recipes/kashm...

I'll top it with yogurt and serve it with whatever veg. is lurking in the freezer or crisper instead of rice (maybe steamed corn?). Probably a salad alongside.

[ChristinaMason]

Dessert: banana-fig-yogurt ice cream for the man, manhattans for us both -- Russels Reserve bourbon, Carpano vermouth, my homemade vanilla-almond brandied sour cherries.

[JungMann]

Perfect-sounding dessert! How do you preserve your cherries? Do they add anything noticeably nutty or woody to your bourbon? I'd be interested in putting up a jar when sour cherry season hits these parts.

[ChristinaMason]

Thanks. I'm fairly obsessed with these cherries. And yes, you definitely get a little whiff of the almond and vanilla in the drink without it being overpowering. I usually add a dash or two of the soaking liquor to my cocktail when I use the cherries.

Here was my method/"recipe": http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/6922...

[JungMann]

The hibiscus ones sound even more intriguing!

[ChristinaMason]

They are really delicious---not sure which I ultimately prefer. Maybe the spicier ones. The hibiscus is purely for color. :)

[Harters]

Eating out night for Harters and Hartess.

French (or French-ish) restaurant in small town just to the south of us. Been there for nearly 40 years and this will be our first visit.

[Terrie H.]

Our Easter dinner was the same menu as every previous year because that's how my mother rolls. Leg of lamb, ham, asparagus, pink potatoes. The only thing that alternates are the appetizers (this year, my sister brought a warm feta with mint and lemon pesto that was excellent), and dessert. Another sister brought a winning strawberry cheesecake. The strawberries are oven roasted and then blended with the filling. She found it on Martha's website (she said she was glad she read the reviews and roasted the strawberries for less time).

http://www.marthastewart.com/340256/s...

[ChristinaMason]

Thank you for sharing that cheesecake recipe. It really sounds great!

[Terrie H.]

Christina - I can't tell you how good it was, and I'm not a big dessert person. It will be perfect for Mother's Day.

[mariacarmen]

pink potatoes?

[Terrie H.]

The pink-skinned potatoes. You know the ones.

[LindaWhit]

I think you mean red potatoes. Even though their hue can often be more pink, they're called red potatoes.

[linguafood]

Finished most of the w/end leftovers yesterday, with a few pieces of lamb & a tiny bowl of caponata remaining. Perhaps this will be lunch here in a bit.

Dinner needs to be on the lighter side, says my scale '-)

It's been a while since my last piccata, so that's looking like a good possibility. Maybe a Belgian endive & citrus salad on the side.

[sunflwrsdh]

Yesterday's dinner was :devilled eggs, bourbon and honey glazed ham,( and Cornell chicken, since my daughter doesn't eat ham) mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, coleslaw, spinach, bread and butter pickles,my husband's home made whole wheat bread, glass of pinot noir, and Hershey's cocoa cake with cream cheese frosting, decorated with a sprinkled "bunny with a bow tie" ( 6-y-o granddaughter's request). Tonight's leftovers, put together by my sweet husband, while I was at work....chicken orzo soup, split pea and fresh pea soup with ham, and ham sandwiches on his home made whole wheat bread.

[gingershelley]

So, as an aside, I have to just post this for your collective wisdom.

Today I happened to pass by this grocery store that just changed from part of the Albertson's chain to a local super-discount grocery. I stopped in to see if there were further 'gourmet bargains' like the maple syrup, wild rice, etc. I got a week or so ago that I posted about.

They are still remodeling in ernest, and my store tour was accompanied by the steady sound of a jackhammer back in the old bakery area that was all taped off with plastic sheeting.

After getting leeks for $1.29 a lb., and tomatoes on the vine for $1.78 a lb, and a fresh mozzerella for $1.20. I was pretty sure I had taken all this place had to squeeze out for my higher tastes

I headed to the meat dept. that last week, was pretty much nothing but a few really low-grade hams and empty cases.

Today, not so much.

Full to overflowing of all kinds of meats, offal, bones, tiny bits. I allways find this fascinating, but not often to buy, as there is no 'grade' label on anything at these local ethnic stores, so I am not sure of provenence. I simply find it fascinating what other cultures want to buy.

Heartened by the fact there was whole tongue, and brazenly excited by beef and lamb hearts, I continued down the case past dubious oxtails (badly cut, and overpriced for no grade showing); on down the row to the 'showcase' in front of the butcher's window. Usually the spot for to-move or 'hot' items. A big pile of Golden Lion-style beef roasts with amazing prices, but wierdly yellow fat were fun to check out and wonder over for a few minutes ( I declined, I think wisely, realizing that fat should be firm and white, not yellow - is this an old dairy cow coming to a sad end?).

But then, I got to the end toward the fish.... not quite to seafood (always culturally interesting what appears), but past the beef.

I spy Duck Heads! Packages and packages of FRESH DUCK HEADS! Fascinating! Interesting! Quite nice to look at, trim beaks, still reasonably-shiny eyes. Kind of elegant, in a "my head is off my body' kind of way. No feathers, just calm nearly-smiling duck heads.

Never-before- seen in any of my local asian markets.

Has any other WFD seen this item for sale, and if so, what do you make with it?

So interesting.... can't wait to hear if any of you know something to enlighten me. Wish I had taken a pic, but I forgot my cell phone on the errand to the 'hood.

[gingershelley]

So, already humbled here.... Bing searched 'Duck head recipes', and found at least two old CH threads on this. Not so informative, but pretty funny;

From 2004: " Actually, you'd be surprised as to the amount of flavor that's stored in the head when you cook it right. Most Chinese and other cultures find it to be a delicacy, and for good reason- if you can get past it looking at you, it's fantastic.
Try looking up a normal Peking type preparation. Cook as normal. Fantastic, especially if you happen to be adventurous."

What is 'cook as normal' for a duck head?

and, http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/689846, asking about putting it in stock. Not so iluminating, but equally questioning as my ask of you'all...

Thanks for any answers- especially any of you with real experience!

[Frizzle]

Not actual experience but when I lived in Singapore ducks came with head and feet. More to your post's query there was a Chinese cafe I used to walk past every day that had a sign outside advertising various meals. One that always caught my eye was fried spicy duck tongue. I never ordered it for two reasons. The first being we had eaten once there before and the food wasn't very good and the second was a fear of not liking the dish and not being able to finish it. The thought of just how many ducks would have to perish to supply enough tongues for one dish - only to have me push it aside was too much for my conscience.

[LindaWhit]

Well, dinner is going to bland today, like mariacarmen's oldster. :-) My stomach hasn't been settled since midnight last night. I got practically *no* sleep (maybe 4 hours tops), and while this morning's Kashi cereal stayed with me, the tummy was still jumpy. I left work after a slow half day, came home and had some plain rice before I took a nap. My gut seems to have settled a bit; I cooked up some chicken tenders (most for the cat who won't eat canned cat food), and I had 1-1/2 of them. If they stay with me, I'll have the rest of the rice.

[L.Nightshade]

So annoying when your stomach betrays you! Hope it tolerates your bland dinner and your back in the flavorful swing of things soon.

[nomadchowwoman]

Feel better soon, LW, so you can dig into that lamb!

[ChristinaMason]

Feel better! Good call with the rice. Some sugar-cinnamon toast might also be of help. Great excuse to eat some, anyway. ;)

[gingershelley]

Sympathies for the holiday backlash LW. No fun.

Was there briefly yesterday when my stomach was not happy with my rich baked-egg breakfast.... not until I did some yard work in the sun did things look clear to cook again for evening meal.

Sometimes, bland is good, as it just lets YOU shine instead of your food!

[LindaWhit]

Well, I'm thinking this might not be holiday backlash - my sister and a friend said they've heard of an intestinal bug going around. I think I caught a touch of it. So far, the chicken stayed with me; just had the rest of the rice. We'll see. Toast with a schmear of preserves (not butter) might also be in the works.

[Breadcrumbs]

. . . Maybe some tea w ginger too Linda? Take care.

[LindaWhit]

I brought home some ginger tea from work - although it's not nausea I'm dealing with, which is what that is usually best for. But GMTA - I'm steeping some right now. :-)

[mariacarmen]

ooh - hope it leaves you soon, LW!

[LindaWhit]

It didn't. :-( Not a good night, so I'm home again today. We'll see how some plain toast with preserves works for breakfast.

[mariacarmen]

waaaah.... pepto bismol? yuck, but....

[LindaWhit]

Remembered I had some generic Immodium left from when the ex would stay over and have "issues". So hopefully the "little blue pill" will help. (Hey! It was little and blue - but it wasn't THAT!)

[L.Nightshade]

Poor thing. It sounded like you were on your way to the prescribed BRAT diet... Bananas, rice, applesauce, toast.

[LindaWhit]

Yeah, I think plain rice and chicken will be on the menu tonight as well. Just in case.

[L.Nightshade]

BRATCH diet, in that case.

[kubasd]

ughhhh.... the words "BRAT diet" bring back awful memories of any time I was sick.... with ANYTHING!! cold, flu, sore throat.... it all meant BRAT. quell horreur!

[linguafood]

We *always* have immodium in the house. Bourdain doesn't travel anywhere w/out it. It has saved many an evening.

[LindaWhit]

I'm glad I remembered I had it. :-) And Bourdain eats a lot more weird things than I would ever try. Hopefully he owns stock in the Immodium company. :-)

[linguafood]

I'm considering buying some stock, at this point.

[nomadchowwoman]

Yes, welcome Phreddy, to this incredible and inspiring table. I'm sure you'll enjoy the dining as much as we all do.
My mouth is definitely watering at all the fabulous food you folks have been making this weekend; unfortunately, now I have lamb and duck on the brain--and neither of those are residing in my overcrowded fridge.
So WFD tonight is the rest of the cannelloni. I'm also evicting from the crisper a lone fennel bulb and two almost over-the-hill leeks and turning them, with some garlic and chicken stock, into a small pot of soup, which we may eat as a first course or possibly save for tomorrow. I have a couple of half-decent campari tomatoes, which I'll cut up and sprinkle w/some vinegar and oil.

[Breadcrumbs]

First off, welcome Phreddy, great to have you dine with us!! Happy Easter from Canada! Yup, for many here in Canada and for most in England, Wales and Ireland, it's Easter Monday and, a holiday!

Back to report on our Easter meal. I'd planned to replicate a meal we'd had at The Stinking Rose in San Francisco but in the end I just made two of the three dishes as time got away from me! So after a simply dressed salad we enjoyed our Silence of the Lamb Shanks over Chianti-glazed fava beans and roasted garlic mashed potatoes. Of course this all went down with the help of more Chianti!

Now, sadly I wasn't one of the fortunate to have the day off today so I tossed a flank steak into a bag w an Asian-inspired marinade last night and mr bc will be grilling that. Served alongside will be some roasted sesame cabbage and steamed rice.

I'm looking forward catching up on what's been going on in your kitchens!!

[Breadcrumbs]

Ooops, forgot the photos:

[L.Nightshade]

Fantastic looking dinner Breadcrumbs! That lamb shank is a thing of beauty.

[LindaWhit]

Nicely done, Bc!

[gingershelley]

FFF-fa-fa-fava-beans! Looks SO delish... If it had not been so nice here (finally!), I would have wanted your lamb dish for my Easter feast. Well done Breadcrumbs:)

Dinner tonight sounds great too.

[Breadcrumbs]

Thanks so much LN, Linda and gingershelley!

[ChristinaMason]

I have a navy bean soup (beans, chicken broth, onion, chunky celery and carrots, garlic, bay leaves, parsley) going in the slow-cooker on low. When I get home tonight, I'll add some chopped ham slice and a little fresh rosemary and crank it up to high to heat through and get the hamy deliciousness out.

[ChristinaMason]

Soup was good, although I'm kind of "meh" on onions that have just been boiled without a little saute first. They seem to sweeten the broth too much. I added a tbsp. of tomato paste, some Tapatio hot sauce, and a bit of liquid smoke to savory it up. Served the soup with chopped red onion and sherry vinegar for drizzling.

On the side, I made (and slightly adapted) my friend's recipe for "special broccoli": 2 broccoli crowns cut into florets, steamed, salted, and tossed with a dressing of : 1 Tbsp. mayo, 1 Tbsp. sour cream (used Greek yogurt), about 1 tsp. of soy sauce, some Tapatio (addictive stuff), and lots of ground black pepper. Then you sprinkle on some grated cheddar (a little under 1 oz.) and crumbled bacon. I added some halved grape tomatoes and minced red onion to the mix.

It was surprisingly good! Broccoli, you've met your new match.

[EmmaFrances]

Ham balls, scalloped potatoes, roasted asparagus, and strawberry-rhubarb crisp with vanilla bean ice cream. The first 2 dishes took me right back to my grandparents house with all of my extended family.

[Berheenia]

I never heard of a ham ball but love the idea! Is it baked or fried?

[gingershelley]

MORE about Ham Balls please!

[EmmaFrances]

Ham balls (as I know them, at least) are baked. They are basically ground ham, ground beef or pork (I prefer ground pork, being from Iowa), breadcrumbs, eggs, salt & pepper. You mix it all up, form into balls, and bake at 350 for 1 hour. Then you make a sauce of brown sugar, vinegar, mustard and a little water, pour over the ham balls, and continue baking for 30 minutes. The sauce turns slightly sticky, sort of like the glaze on a meatloaf. I can post the exact recipe if anyone wants.

There's actually a whole discussion about ham balls on this board. I ran across it the other day and was inspired to bring out my mom's ham ball recipe for the occasion. I think they are Midwestern and Pennsylvania Dutch/German.

[PHREDDY]

Not to cut you short....Grilled Flap steak....roasted tomatoes and asparagus...with twice baked potatoes....and left over desert from yesterday....Napoelon from a local French Bakery....What is sooo bad?

[GretchenS]

Sounds delicious, what time should I be there? ;)

[mariacarmen]

Oops, that was a bit fast... but since it's already done, consensus is to stay here or go to the new thread?

Phreddy, thanks for taking the initiative, and just so you know, we normally wait til we hit at least 300 posts before starting a new thread. In fact, it used to be 200, and we upped it to 300. It gives people a chance to respond to posts. And you should link to the new thread on the old thread so people can find it. Also, asking the moderators to put the word "[OLD]" on the old thread helps too. You'll get the hang of it!

here's the link to the new thread:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/843201

[PHREDDY]

Of course I do...I look at you at the "DEAN" OF THIS BOARD....BUT SINCE it is Monday..and Easter was yesterday...why not....I appreciate your demeanor....polite and susicnt...So lets got to to today...Easter was one day in the past which we all had a great time...but you know # 137 was "EASTER"....we all need to look forward... TO 138 THE DAY AFTER ....monday!!!!

[Berheenia]

But all of the cooks who made Easter dinner get to post their leftover concoctions and I love to read about them as the only Easter leftover I have is from the restaurant we went to. I want to hear about ham balls!

[gingershelley]

Down with the ham balls! Well, really, I mean UP with ham balls!

How can you not be up with anything named HAM BALLS? REALLY?

We do have a sense of humor around here.....

[mariacarmen]

oh gad - i'm not the dean by any means! there are several longer-standing, venerable (not old, venerable) CHers on this board!

[Harters]

Can I just clarify if we're now moving to #138?

If so, perhaps the moderators could be asked to correct a couple of typos in the title.

[L.Nightshade]

Judging from the posts below, I'm guessing we're hanging out here a while longer. Still a lot to catch up on.

[LindaWhit]

I think we're staying here for now.

[linguafood]

i always thought 250 was kinda the happy medium. but yeah - 117 is a bit... premature?

[PHREDDY]

WHAT'S FOR DINER # 138 ....AFTER THE HOILDAY...NOW UP....

[L.Nightshade]

Whoa, that was fast. I was just getting in the swing of this thread!

[GretchenS]

yeah, not quite ready to leave this one, why the rush? Just ready to put the holidays in the rearview? :)

[PHREDDY]

Thus my reply....I am actually sad that everyone has left.....I soooo look forward to this time of year!!!!!

[PHREDDY]

Easter was yesterday...you know this day and age of instant gratification....

[L.Nightshade]

I like that the threads usually go to 300 or so before we start a new one. That way people who were busy (on the holiday, for example) have a longer chance to catch up on posts and to share their own meals.

[mariacarmen]

I have to agree - we're not even at 100....

[PHREDDY]

I guess newbies are not welcome!...so be it we will surface....

[mariacarmen]

Phreddy, of course newbies are welcome! everyone brings something great to this thread. we're just trying to tell you how it's usually done....

[GretchenS]

Phreddy, newbies are always welcome, we learn so much from newcomers, we are THRILLED to have them! And your enthusiasm is very endearing. We just have developed -- by general consensus -- some ways of doing things, one of which is to leave holiday threads open a few days to let everyone catch up. Many of us find the post-mortems almost as much fun as the actual event.

[LindaWhit]

What L.N. said - we usually wait until after a thread goes over 300. I only added "Easter edition" because it happened to be created on Easter. I believe others did the same with Christmas and/or New Year's thread starts. I think this one is the one we should stick with until it does go over 300 or so.

[laliz]

Stuffed celery
Deviled eggs
Roasted Asparagus
Garlic Roasted Cauliflower
Four cheese broiled tomatoes
Hawaiian Bread Rolls (children love them)
El Pollo Loco take out chicken (not my choice, but by consensus) w/salsa
Peeps/sunflower cake w/ice cream

[weezieduzzit]

Easter dinner was unremarkable, the usual suspects- mashed potatoes, brussels sprouts, rolls, ham (which I detest,) etc. My MIL is a good cook- just not an adventurous one.

The lemon cheesecake I made, however, was fanfreakingtastic and everyone gushed over it. I wish I would have taken a pic because it was beautiful, too. I'm quite proud of it- especially since I rarely bake. Nice and tall, smooth topped with an almond crust and lemon curd top, light and creamy. :)

[ChristinaMason]

lemon cheesecake! care to share? that sounds so springy!

[weezieduzzit]

It was 85 degrees so the lighter (tasting, that is...) dessert was perfect.

I started with this recipe but omitted the raspberries and vanilla extract:

http://tendercrumb.blogspot.com/2008/...

and added the zest of 3 medium lemons and 1/4c juice. The lemons were pretty mild so it needed a little more oomph- I added 2t lemon extract. I increased the recipe 20% overall for more volume (3" tall pan and I wanted it tall!!) The lemon curd for the top was just a basic recipe but I have learned from something I read online to cream the butter and sugar like you would for a cake, then add the eggs/yolks one at a time, then add the lemon juice and then put it in the double boiler- perfectly smooth every time.

The directions specify to mix for quite some time after the addition of each block of cream cheese and after each egg and I mixed even a little more at the end- the volume almost doubled with the incorporation of all of that air and it made a wonderful difference in the texture.

The crust was just almond meal from Trader Joe's, a touch of sugar and butter. An excellent solution to wanting to stay away from flour/gluten.

I'm really glad we left the remaining couple of pieces there, I wouldn't have been able to control myself today.

[LindaWhit]

Sounds heavenly! That sounds like the Lemon-Blueberry Sour Cream Cake I make - the instructions after adding each egg (4 of them) are to beat for 2 minutes - the volume really increases, and the cake is very light after baking.

[gingershelley]

Weezie and LW, you and NMC's lemon tart have me just jones-ing for a lemon dessert...

May have to make one for Jean-Francois for tomorrow's dinner here. He is not such a lemon man, but if I put some berries on the side, he will indulge me. And if I make a steamed artichoke with chive mayo to start, by dessert he will be putty in my hands.... hehehe.

Going to buy a bag of Meyer lemons now.

[onceadaylily]

Linda, I would *love* that recipe.

[LindaWhit]

Here you go, oadl - original recipe calls for margarine; I always use butter. Oh - and I was wrong - it has 6 eggs. :-) http://www.lanierbb.com/recipes/data/...

AND if you can get wild Maine blueberries, they are the best. An intense blueberry taste in a tiny little berry.

[onceadaylily]

Thank you, Linda! Maybe for the second time, since firefox wanted me to know that I already had it bookmarked. Have you ever used lemon juice instead of extract? I know that one would have to use more, but I think it might be too much liquid then.

And thanks for the tip. I'll look for the blueberries at WF and TJ's on Saturday.

[ChristinaMason]

Thanks weezie! That sounds soooo delicious.

[GretchenS]

Tonight is a crispy chicken cutlet that I prepped yesterday, along with a salad of crunchy things (romaine hearts, red cabbage, radish, scallions, picked carrots ina-style), also prepped yesterday, with a very mustardy vinaigrette. Actually that will be WFD tomorrow too, I prepped double, knowing I would have a lot to do because I am LEAVING ON VACATION THURSDAY MORNING -- YAY!!!! (English countryside in full spring bloom, can hardly wait.)

[Harters]

English countryside - at its coldest and wettest, I'm afraid. 'Tis horrible today.

[mariacarmen]

wet or not, English countryside sounds lovely. Enjoy yourself!

[nomadchowwoman]

Oh yes, Gretchen, have a lovely trip--and eat well!

[Frizzle]

Every time I hear people saying they are going on holiday in the English countryside I think of the BBC version of Pride and Prejudice (with Colin Firth) and imagine people in open top, horse drawn carriages touring the Lake District. I hope your meal and impending vacation are both wonderful.

[Harters]

Ah, the Lake District is one of the UK's foody hotspots. And less than a couple of hours drive away.

[Harters]

Indonesian-ish pork curry (yes, I know the Indonesians are mainly Muslims so wouldnt be eating pork but allow me some artisitic licence).

Into the pan for a bit of frying goes garlic and ground coriander.Then some sliced pork fillet. After around 5 minutes, mangetout and baby sweetcorn go in and are tossed about till they're bored with being tossed about. If I was a baby sweetcorn, that'd be after a couple of minutes or so. Everything comes out of the pan.

In goes a dollop of curry paste (I've got some tandoori paste which is nice) and some peanut butter and a little sugar. This gets a minute to amalgamate then in goes coconut milk for a bit of a simmer. Meat and veg go back in and warm through again. It's finished off with the juice of half a lemon and lots of chopped coriander leaf. With rice - I see little sprinkling of chopped red and green chilli on top of this.

[ChristinaMason]

Sounds tasty! If you were a baby sweetcorn, well, you'd have some explaining to do (just teasin'!).

[Frizzle]

So many delicious sounding meals have been posted. This forum is such an inspiration, I love it.

We're not religious but have decided to do something to mark various cultural/religious events as a way to introduce out daughter to the world. She's too young as yet to participate but it's great fun starting new traditions. For Easter we decided on a Greek theme to the Easter Sunday menu and invited a couple of friends around for dinner.

Pre dinner snacks (while we fed, bathed and put the one year old to bed): Dolma, a recipe my mother-in-law got from her Greek neighbour in the 70s. Stunning.

Dinner was a butterflied leg of lamb stuffed with greens. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Leg-of-Lamb-Stuffed-with-Greens-and-Feta-231777 It's probably a nice dish, but as New Zealanders living in Australia we struggle with the flavour of grain fed lamb as we have grown up with grass fed meat. The excess greens were delicious. Better than the lamb.

It was served with Roasted Potatoes with Garlic, Lemon, and Oregano http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Roasted-Potatoes-with-Garlic-Lemon-and-Oregano-231779 Again, we were a bit underwhelmed by these although to be fair they were cooked at a slightly lower temperature than recommended so they could be in the oven with the lamb. I was expecting them to be meltingly soft with browned bits on top but they were just a bit hard.
A simple lettuce salad finished the main.

For dessert another recipe from the epicurious site - Galaktoboureko http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/foo... we really enjoyed this, the custard isn't too sweet so it works well with the syrup.

The dolma and the dessert with definitely make it to next year's menu. The lamb and potatoes will no doubt be replaced with something else.

Tonight's dinner is the leftover greens that cooked with the lamb (spinach, fennel and chicory) reheated and put on some grilled pide bread. Lazy I know but comforting. For the rest of this week a couple of Italian bean based soups are on the menu just because we feel a meat overload after the lamb and at the end of the week some Thai dishes to mark Song Kran.

Happy Easter everyone!

[GretchenS]

Wow. Sorry that the lamb was not up to your standards but that recipe looks divine and so do the potatoes. I never unerstand why they pair recipes with different oven temps. Do they really think that EVERYONE has 2 ovens???

[RelishPDX]

Friday and Saturday nights were Freezer Bonanza Nights (no squirrels were found <whew!>).

Hot n Sour soup with Chicken-Asparagus stir-fry on Friday, with everything from freezer containers except the asparagus, then Chili Dogs for DVD night with a friend on Saturday. The dogs used up almost all the last of the colossal dogs from GO, and got doused with lots of canned chili (I know, my bad, but no beans!), chopped white onion, shredded sharp cheddar, and yes, ballpark mustard. I don't think I could eat a chili dog with any other kind.

For Easter dinner this afternoon, more like lunch, a neighbor and her boyfriend came by. They're moving to Denver and I wanted to do something to say farewell and thanks for the help they've given me with a few things while my back is still out of sorts.

For starters, I did deviled eggs and stuffed celery on the relish plate, since it warmed up today. A shank portion ham was the main event instead of a spiral-sliced this year. Other than a turkey, a ham like this is about the only workout the electric knife sees.

For the glaze, I usually do a Chile-Espresso glaze, but found out on Friday that the boyfriend doesn't like coffee, so I needed to do something else. I defaulted to the Honey-Mustard glaze here on Chow since the butter in it sounded good, and it came out very tasty—I did add more mustard and substituted Steen's Cane Syrup for the brown sugar for a bit of molasses flavor. That worked out well, but I seemed to need to add some cornstarch to thicken it all up.

On the side we had roasted asparagus, yams and dinner rolls, all fairly traditional fare. We also had a tray of hot cross buns I'd made early this morning to nosh on after dinner. My guests brought 2 chilled bottles of a really nice German Reisling, so it was a happy afternoon/early evening for all. :)

N.B. I tried my hand at making creme fraiche for the first time today. Made sure to use pasteurized vs. ultra-pasteurized heavy cream + 2 tablespoons of just-opened buttermilk. Nice day today, around 70°, and 18 hours later, absolutely nothing's changed about it. :(

Hope everyone had a great Easter.

[GretchenS]

My homemade creme fraiche sometimes takes as long as 3 days. Don't give up -- your patience will be rewarded. And your Easter dinner sounds lovely.

[Frizzle]

Dinner sounds wonderful and I'm very curious to hear how your creme fraiche turns out eventually.

[suburban_mom]

Ham, corn casserole, grilled asparagus with balsamic brown butter sauce, Pillsbury crescent rolls (the kids love them and we only have them on holidays).

[letsindulge]

The hubs & I are enjoying a relaxing Easter watching the Master's golf finals on TV. Duck breasts are rendering on the stove, herbed potatoes are roasting, and asparagus is awaiting a simple steam. Cherry-Thyme Port sauce needs to be mounted with butter to finish the plate. Pictures to follow.

[LindaWhit]

Sounds amazing! I love duck. Enjoy.

[letsindulge]

It was a wonderful celebratory meal. We uncorked a Mumm's Napa Cuvee Red Sparkling Wine that accentuated the cherries in the port wine sauce. Dessert was a split of Draeger's Markets outstanding chocolate specialties.

[Frizzle]

That looks delicious!

[GretchenS]

Just gorgeous, I am trying not to drool into my keyboard.

[LindaWhit]

Oh my - that looks SO good! Unfortunately, my tummy chose midnight last night to rebel, and it's still not doing well. I'm thinking that looking at pictures of food (even as wonderful as your two photos) is *NOT* a good thing for me right now. :::DISLIKE my tummy right now!:::::

[L.Nightshade]

Beautiful dinner! And two chocolate desserts? You know how to live!

[Chocolatechipkt]

Orange-scallion roast chicken for the carnivores, sauteed tofu for the vegetarians, mashed potatoes, carrots, and a spinach salad. Raspberry shortcakes with lemon curd for dessert.

[ChristinaMason]

Ooooh, nice dessert! How'd ya make those?

[Chocolatechipkt]

Thanks! I just added a description (brief, but ask if you have any questions) over on this thread: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8418...

[BananaBirkLarsen]

Repurposing the leftovers of last night's chili verde as enchiladas. Mostly we just had sauce leftover, so they will be cheese enchiladas studded with rare pieces of pork, baked in green chili sauce with more cheese on top. Perhaps I can come up with some sort of salad for the side that goes well enough to suit my boyfriend (I once suggested having salad with burritos and he responded as though I wanted to serve him a salad made from human flesh -- moral outrage at the mere thought!) The only thing I can think of is a marinated nopales salad, but I don't have any of the ingredients on hand and I don't think the neighbours would appreciate me hacking apart their cactus.

I actually bought a ham I saw on sale a couple days ago, but enchiladas just sounded so good tonight. Besides, I haven't done anything for Easter since I was a kid (even then it was mostly based around chocolate), and he doesn't like holidays much at all. So we'll have the ham later this week and eat mounds of melted cheese and chili sauce tonight! Happy Spring/Easter/Passover/Delicous Dinner to everyone!

EDIT: I just read over and... the pork is rare as in uncommon, not rare as in undercooked.

[ChristinaMason]

Tonight was leftovers from yesterday's Mediterranean feast, with the remains of the grilled pork loin thinly sliced and served on toasted potato rolls. I've pulled the frozen-solid banana-fig ice cream out of the freezer and plan on having an inappropriately large bowlful once it softens. Happy day, all.

[GretchenS]

A lovely piece of salmon, brushed with soy, lemon and butter, and stuck under the broiler with some nice fat asparagus tossed with olive oil for everything to get a bit brown. Happy whatever-you-celebrate everyone!!!

[Rella]

This 'could' qualify for an Easter dinner. I might keep it as a traditional one. Portuguese Salt Cod Stew.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8429...

[jenscats5]

A long, long time ago I suddenly became alone at Easter so decided Chinese takeout was the thing, and since I'm not a big ham fan, I still do! So WFD today was takeout Chinese, which I only have twice a year usually - Christmas & Easter. Good memories!

[L.Nightshade]

Nothing beats a holiday tradition, and I like yours!

[jenscats5]

Thanks! It worked at the time and I'm liking the tradition!!

[Breadcrumbs]

Sometimes the non-traditional makes for the very best tradition. I hope you had a lovely meal.

[mariacarmen]

Nice! i love things that don't normally go together.

[noodlepoodle]

We had Easter brunch and it came out very well. I made Mark Bittman's quiche, baby greens salad, buttered asparagus, rolls, banana bread, sparkling pomagranate juice, iced tea, coffee and a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, the recipe for which I got from a Chowhound. Big success.

[ChristinaMason]

Yum! Which cake?

[noodlepoodle]

ChristinaMason, I used http://www.chow.com/recipes/21792-moi.... I used slightly less cinnamon since it called for 3 tsps. and that seemed like a lot (I used 2), but it didn't taste that cinnamony. I also used dried currants instead of raisins and toasted pecans instead of walnuts. Moist and delicious.

[ChristinaMason]

Thank you!

[L.Nightshade]

Reporting back on the supper club dinner…
Since my contribution was only a fraction (duck tacos with salsas and pumpkin seed brittle), I may not have all the details correct on every dish, but I'll do my best.
Upon arrival, while gazing out on the blue water, we enjoyed ceviche of shrimp and halibut, made with green olives, chiles, lime, etc. Tamarind margaritas to drink.
The first course was a delicious cold avocado soup, topped with pepitas and ground dried chiles.
Next up, we had a small plate of scallops in agavero.
Following this (if I've remembered the sequence correctly), we had little chalupas with chorizo and pineapple topping, and dollop of tomatillo salsa. The chorizo was even home made!
Our duck tacos followed. (I do have the details on this one!) The duck was stuffed with oranges and onions before roasting. After the meat was removed from the bones, Mr. NS made duck stock while I made various accompaniments. Some of the stock, orange juice, and chipotles in adobo were combined into a sauce for duck meat. Charred corn or flour tortillas were topped with the duck, avocado, pomegranate salsa, and a peanut and arbol chile salsa. I pickled cabbage, carrot, and onion to go alongside, or in the tacos, diner's choice.
For the main course, our generous hosts made carne asada and two types of tamales. The meat had been marinated in a mixture that included hibiscus flowers (and I don't remember what else), and grilled to perfection. We each had two lovely tamales, one containing goat cheese and mint, the other black truffles and corn. Absolutely amazing.
After the main course, our palates were refreshed with a lime ice, then on to dessert…
Individual pots de crème made with Mexican chocolate. Heavenly. I served my pumpkin seed brittle with ancho chile powder at the same time, and the crunch worked well with the creamy chocolate.
Some of the photos are pretty dark, but, per request, I'm including them anyway.
Our supper club is an amazing group, and to think it all started when I posted the suggestion on my local chowhound board!

[gingershelley]

I think I need to come visit you next time your supper club meets! I would gladly drive up there for joining in that fun and delicious meal. Wow, it all looks and sounds fantastic LN!

Would love to hear more about your peanut/chili salsa. Also, what is the 'agavero' on the scallops? Not familiar with that term...

[L.Nightshade]

Agavero was new to me also. It's a tequila liqueur. Although the fellow who cooked this dish had just returned from Mexico, he actually bought the agavero in Seattle!

And the peanut salsa recipe is linked below. Mariacarmen turned me on to a list of Mexican recipes at Saveur, I was really drawn to this one:
http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes...

It would be fun to have you up for one (or more!) of our gatherings. And I think we can sometimes handle more people as the weather improves and the setting can spill into yards and patios. I'll drop you another email soon.

[gingershelley]

How kind! We will do it this summer then, after things warm up for us all in PNW.

Today was the first day nice enough to 'spill outside'... read the paper outside for the first time this year:) So perhaps we have turned a corner.

Thanks for the link (and to MC as well) to those recipes. Some good stuff to make for sure!

[LindaWhit]

SERIOUSLY drooling, L.N.! That all looks like restaurant quality dishes. You and your supper club friends are amazing.

[GretchenS]

As LW says, restaurant quality and magazine-beautiful! I get huge vicarious enjoyment out of your supper club!

[mariacarmen]

oh man, it all looks seriously amazing, LN.... those gorditas! and i can just imagine the duck tacos, i think those would be my favorite, followed closely by the truffled tamales.. and the avocado soup... and that brittle... and... and... and....

[Frizzle]

Just amazing! What a wonderful sounding and looking meal. Thank you for the photos!

[RelishPDX]

Duck tacos and homemade tamales! (Do you FedEx?)

[PHREDDY]

Poor photos????? the food just jumps out at you....I made a similar seafood salad, Ecuatorian style, with sliced marinated shrimp, octopus and salmon....What did this salad have i n it?

[L.Nightshade]

Wow! Linda, Gretchen, mariacarmen, Frizzle, Relish, Phreddy, thanks for your kind words!
When you live in a town with few good restaurants, it's great to have friends who can cook. One of our supper club members (the science teacher) has mentioned the need for a portal, so we could pass food and drink to friends at a distance. Or transport remote friends to our table. Would that the WFD crowd had that technology!

[GretchenS]

You have NO IDEA how many times I have wished this!!

[PHREDDY]

Exactly my sentiment..What does restaurants have to do with it?....We can create better food...Grass roots!...maybe that should start a new board?,,,what do you think?

[gingershelley]

Beam it up LN!

[nomadchowwoman]

I really am drooling. Really.

[Breadcrumbs]

LN your tacos and this menu are simply incredible. Congratulations on such a successful meal, I wish I'd been there.

[boyzoma]

You've got some seriously good looking food there. Might have to print out the photos and eat them. Every one of them looks like I can taste it. Well done!

[nomadchowwoman]

Friday, I made mac-and-cheese for the first time in forever, to go with some leftovers and to carb load for a yesterday's Crescent City Classic. With some trepidation, I made it with WW fusilli (I mean, m & c is not meant to be healthy). The resulting dish was bland, dull, flavorless, utter waste of calories. The pasta wasn't the problem; it was cheese sauce, made with various bits that needed using up. But I just couldn't get any oomph into that sauce. Ah well.

We did a big dinner last night, with family and friends, before assorted players leave town today. We started with deviled eggs and champagne, segued into Prosecco when a friend turned up with that (Santa Margherita--one of the best I've had). Dinner was roast pork shoulder (rubbed w/ground fennel, S & P, and cooked w/lots of garlic,fresh thyme and sage) with sides of fennel gratin, corn "risotto" (corn, shallots, chicken stock, cream, parmigiano, whizzed slightly to achieve a risotto-like consistency, into which I stirred chanterelles and peas--my sister's favorite dish), tossed green salad, ciabatta. Dessert was (Lazy Mary's) lemon tart (again!) and fresh strawberries.

On this gorgeous spring day, DH and I enjoyed our typical holiday breakfast--a nice break from our usual granola and/or yogurt--poppy seed bagels w/ lox, cream cheese, red onions, and capers.

Later this afternoon, we'll go to a concert featuring a friend's teenage daughter on cello, and then have the friends over for the veal-mushroom cannelloniIi I made Friday along w/some green beans sauteed w/garlic and sage. Leftover lemon tart for dessert. If I have time I'll make an appetizer w/the leftover lox (on pumpernickel, w/sour cream, lemon zest, red onion).

And this coming week's menus will feature lots of leftovers.

Whatever and wherever you Hounds may be celebrating this weekend, I hope it is a lovely and delicious one. And for those coping with sadness, may nourishing your body help nourish your soul.

[linguafood]

Well said, ncw. Dito that.

[ChristinaMason]

Both menus sound stellar. The pork shoulder with fennel is esp. appealing. Care to share your lemon tart?

[nomadchowwoman]

Christina--This tart is ridiculously easy so it's become my go-to dessert. I do add the zest of a regular (not Meyer) lemon or two to the filling mix b/c I like a more pronounced lemon flavor. Also, I think you really need Meyers for this since you use the whole fruit. (I do de-seed them even though the recipe doesn't say to.) I made a couple of these the other night, and as I was pressed for time and didn't want to take any risks with pesky pie dough, I used the Pillsbury ones that come in a box. Worked fine. Also, I find about 32-33 minutes to be about the right baking time in my oven. So start checking at 30 minutes if you decide to make it.

http://food52.com/recipes/1374_lazy_m...

[gingershelley]

Ooooohhh! NCW! This is an amazingly easy recipe, and looks SO good!

I am a huge lemon fan, and somehow keep lucking into that my nearby Albertson's store regulary has bags of 7-8 Meyer lemons for $2.98.

Thanks for the advice of adding zest of a regular lemon as well, to up the lemon oomphf.

Will definitely save this recipe, and bookmark for making soon:)

The things we find on this thread never cease to amaze me. What did I do before I found all y'all? Many of my local foodie friends are kind of busy with toddler's and foodie businesses these days, so dishing on recipes made at home is at a minimum. What a Godsend.

And to think I found this site 2 years ago just trolling for resto's to visit in San Sebastian, Spain.....

[nomadchowwoman]

I know just what you mean, gingershelley; I found this site looking for a recipe or possibly a restaurant and lurked for years before joining the party. I have learned so much, scored so any good recipes and ideas. It's an addiction for me, but a good one. I have many friends who like to eat (this is a food-obsessed city) but very few who like to cook--three, really, counting my SIL in MI--or talk about food incessantly so it is indeed a joy to be in this community.

[ChristinaMason]

Very nice, thanks! I think I may have even asked for (and received) this previously, can't recall. Sorry.

[Breadcrumbs]

Sounds absolutely lucious ncw, thanks for sharing.

[linguafood]

Let's see. We don't really celebrate anything this weekend, but any excuse (like you need one) to make lamb! My man is making his Armenian shish kebabs -- a 6 lb. leg of lamb cut up into 2 by 2" cubes has been marinating in olive oil, garlic, onion, fresh rosemary, mint & thyme as well as some dried oregano since yesterday afternoon.

I made an oven-roasted version of my favorite caponata recipe (which calls for deep-frying the eggplant and I just didn't feel like the house smelling all oily) yesterday, and, judging from a first taste yesterday, I think it turned out just fine. Perhaps not as rich & luscious as the deep-fry version, but definitely tasty.

Spending this sunny afternoon with friends for a fun little psychedelic easter hunt '-), returning to our abode later in the day where the grilled shish kebabs & caponata will be served, along with pilaf, potato salad, mac & cheese (all carbs courtesy of our friends), and some grilled asparagus. Dessert will be key lime π.

Mmmmmmlamb.

[LindaWhit]

Love the key lime π for dessert. :-)

[gingershelley]

Yum! Caponata and K-A-B-O-B-S! That sounds delightful:) Baaaahhaaaaa

[linguafood]

Caponata & marinating lamb cubes. Only a matter of time now.... (stomach growling not so subtly in the background).

[mariacarmen]

that caponata looks to die for.

[linguafood]

It turned out real well, despite the eggplant not being deep-fried! AND, we have a bit leftover (we never do), as there were so many dishes to sample from. I frankly feel like I am still digesting last night's dinner. There are also roughly 2 lbs. of lamb left. Yay! It's WFD!!

The afternoon psychedelic bocce game was... hysterical. And my man hid some easter eggs for me and our guests, which was also a nice way of working up an appetite.

[gingershelley]

Lingua, I would really like to hear more about what psychedelic bocce entails....

I am sure a great prelude to caponata and lamb kabobs!

[mariacarmen]

i have a feeling fungus was involved....

[linguafood]

i have a feeling we have a winner :-D

it's a great prelude to pretty much anything, save for perhaps operating heavy machinery (yes, that includes cars).

[gingershelley]

I thought there was a fungus amongst us!

[nomadchowwoman]

I can tell those kebabs turned out well.

[Breadcrumbs]

Oh my goodness does that look delicious. I love roasting ratattouille but I've never thought of roasting caponata, thanks for the inspiration and drool-inducing pics!!!

[linguafood]

I still think the deep-fried version is richer, but -- not having a side-by-side trial available, I was really quite happy with the roasted version. Less messy, less involved, less stinky house. Win-win.

[RelishPDX]

Oh those shish kebabs sound almost like how my Armenian grandmother would make them for us. So delicious. It was one of the very few things she'd cook that wasn't vegetarian.

[linguafood]

He really does those well. It's probably my favorite of his dishes -- that, and yuvetsi.

[MaryContrary]

The pork shoulder is in the barbeque pit, rubbed with s&p, minced garlic and jerk seasoning. If you haven't cooked a pork roast this way, do try it. It's one of the best things I've ever eaten. Of course, potato salad, deviled eggs and baked beans. Something green. I'll decide later.

A chicken is also smoking in the pit, for later this week.

Have a blessed Easter, everyone. For those of you who don't mark Easter, Happy Sunday Dinner.

[MaryContrary]

Pork shoulder is now out of the pit and naturally we had to have a "taste" -- or two. Delicious. Crisp on the outside, juicy and tender in. Flavorful throughout. Need to go have another taste, just to make sure I haven't lied to you.

[GretchenS]

I'd be glad to be a taster next time <waving arm madly>!

[nomadchowwoman]

You and Deb really DID Easter, steve.
That pasta sounds about perfect to me.

[steve h.]

Thanks. It really was a tasty dish. A little olive oil, some freshly ground pepper and a little freshly-grated cheese kicked this simple plate up to the big leagues.

The dishwasher (yes, all mod cons) is thrumming and Deb is snoozing on the living room coach. She did the heavy lifting today. There is gelato in her future.

[steve h.]

Prosecco to start off the mid-day meal. Prosciuotto and cheese sourced from Roscioli were the nibbles. In the morning, Deb and I attended Easter mass at the Vatican. U.S. Senator Joseph Lieberman's (I,CT) staff arranged for tickets.

The main meal began with fresh pasta with guanciale and asparagus and was followed with roast chicken and asparagus spears. House red to wash it all down. I had Joe Turner, Ella, others on my iPhone so the tunes fit the meal. Dolce was a superb jam tart from Al Fornaio.

All ingredients were sourced within a few blocks from our little apartment in Rome.

[LindaWhit]

Oh. MY.

You win the Internetz today, Steve.

[steve h.]

;-)

[gingershelley]

Happy Easter in Rome Steve H! I am SURE we are all with you in spirit, and wish in person!

[steve h.]

It was a super day. We capped it with a late night stroll to our favorite gelato place.

[L.Nightshade]

Wow, what a day! And a lovely sounding meal. Ah, food shopping in Rome...

[steve h.]

We always carry a mesh bag and shop every day. The market at the Campo de' Fiori is just a few blocks away.

[GretchenS]

Sounds like a perfect Roman Easter!

[steve h.]

Thanks. This trip was pretty special.

[mariacarmen]

wow, i cannot imagine the scene Easter at the Vatican must have been!

hah- ever since our time in Italy all desserts of any stripe are known as "dolce" to the BF. Could be a Mexican sweet bread or a donut, it's all, "where's my dolce?"

Linda's right, you win, hands down!

glad you're enjoying your time....

[steve h.]

News agencies reported well over 100,000 people in attendance. Our tickets gave us seats up front as opposed to standing cheek-to-jowl in the square. All-in-all, crowd control was exemplary (Easter!).
Following mass, the pope went up to the balcony to give his blessing to the city and to the world. He gave his blessing in over 60 different languages. People went crazy applauding, waving banners and flags when they heard their native language. It was a real hoot.

[PHREDDY]

Reminds me of the Easter in Florence in 2003...what a beatuiful day!!!! At lunch we ate at a vinyard somewhere near a town called Prato.. My friend was part owner of the property....what a day! and the food was local and spectacular.... food ...that I can taste it right now!!!!!

[Breadcrumbs]

Perfection steve. No doubt a day you'll never forget.

[mariacarmen]

don't usually do anything to mark this day, but i think my dad will want it. i've got a tiny half ham that's been sitting in french's mustard and brown sugar all night and 3 teensy lamb chops marinating in olive oil, lemon juice, tons of minced garlic, oregano and rosemary, and a splash of balsamic. and two bunches of fat asparagus. i think i'll make a potato salad and we'll call that Easter.

[LindaWhit]

Sounds like a fine meal all around, mc. :-)

[L.Nightshade]

Your dinner sounds just right for spring.
You are always so good to your dad. He must appreciate you now more than ever.

[GretchenS]

Sounds like just the ticket, mc, both delicious and a nod to the traditional, should be comforting for your oldster. As I recall, your man does not "do" holidays but hopefully he will join you anyway.

ETA: or was that oadl's guy?

[mariacarmen]

ahaha, GS, you got it right. and no he didn't and it was totally fine. all i needed was to worry about him too. he's working on my dad and sister's house for us, so he's over there plenty.

Thanks LW & LN. My sister and i loved the ham, and the lamb came out really good, after deglazing the pan with a little red wine and some butter. But then we put the chops back in a couple times because they were underdone and D'OH - a TAD overdone. still pink, but not that silky red i prefer. still, the sauce was amazing. i also sauteed leeks in unsalted butter and sea salt - oh my those were the best. even tho we forgot to serve them WITH the meal, they were delish. i steamed the asparagus and sprinkled them with olive oil, salt, lemon zest and grated parm. potato salad was a mix of olive oil, a little kewpie mayo, a dollop of French's , a splach of red wine vinegar, minced shallots, s&p, and green peas. for my sister and mine, we added capers. i snuck in a glass of Ravenswood cab for me.

needless to say my dad didn't like the ham and found the lamb too tough (grrrr, that's because we had to overcook it for you!) ... that's ok, he ate everything. Leftovers came home for the BF, since there are many things my dad won't be able to eat when treatment starts. Another chapter in cooking.

hope you all had lovely days!

[Breadcrumbs]

My favourite marinade for lamb mc, no doubt a delicious meal!

[Breadcrumbs]

Tonight I'm replicating a meal we dined on at The Stinking Rose in San Francisco. We're having Silence of the Lamb Shanks with Fava Beans and a Chianti glaze. Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Creamed Spinach alongside.

Yesterday we had a lot of fun shopping at the St Lawrence Market in Toronto. I was delighted to find ramps (much earlier than usual). The ramps inspired WFD last night and we had a super-simple but incredibly delicious Fettuccine with Asparagus and Ramps. A recipe I found in Barbara Kafka's Vegetable Love cookbook. I was also fortunate to find Sicilian blood oranges at the market which quickly found their way into the juicer to be used in cocktails inspired by a post from CH ttoommyy in another thread.

[L.Nightshade]

Love the sound of your menu for tonight, but I'd be fearful to be your guest!

[linguafood]

Awesome looking pasta! Ramps is all over Germany in the spring, and it is thrown in every single dish (a bit over the top, imo), but I could groove to those fettuccine :-)

[ChristinaMason]

Baerlauch?

[linguafood]

Yep. Germans are obsessed with both bärlauch and arugula. It's on *everything*.

[BabsW]

I've been pretty obsessed with ramps this week, too. :)

[gingershelley]

Looks and sounds delicious Bc! I hope to see some ramps here in the next few weeks after our nights warm a bit more.

Like the scary lamb shank meal for today too, though a chill did run up my spine as well......:)

[bblonde]

Reposting from the 136 thread

Short calm before Easter dinner. Picked up donuts before church. Early service for Easter was at least not too crowded. My grandmother made the lemon meringue pies yesterday but I convinced her to hold off on the meringue so I just topped them today. She had a really difficult time making the pies but I'm torn between not asking her to bring anything (really no need) and still getting some of my grandmother's food while she's still around.

Easter 2012:
Glazed spiral ham
mom's mustard sauce (mom)
Hawaiian rolls
deviled eggs (cousin)
Marinated vegetable salad (sister)
creamed new potatoes and peas
cheese grits (aunt)
lemon meringue pie (grandmother)

Us girls are preparing the creamed peas and new potatoes now as the ham cooks. In a mere hour we can start chowing down :) Happy Easter!

[LindaWhit]

I'm sure your grandmother enjoys still being part of the family cooking, bblonde, as difficult as it might be for her. Enjoy your wonderful repast.