What's for Dinner #174 - Thanksgiving Aftermath/Early-Early-Early Christmas Edition [old[

[LindaWhit]

So how many of us are repurposing turkey leftovers into something else? Perhaps a turkey pot pie (takes care of the turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes all at once!) Or a Turkey Divan? Turkey and rice soup?

Or are you just freezing it and saying "I'm turkeyed out!"

What's cooking?

[mariacarmen]

oops, i'll move to the new spot.

[steve h.]

indeed!

[roxlet]

Let's bring the conversation here:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/880053

[jenscats5]

OK this has been a BUSY week!!! Been working OT every day.....whew!

Can't remember now what was FD on Monday (shrimp with spicy eggplant/zucchini I think), but Tuesday was rainy, so felt like a spaghetti & meatball night. Weds was to use up some Tikka Masala I had, so mixed the paste with some coconut milk & leftover meatballs from Tuesday & served over broccoli. Thursday was spaghetti again, this time with chicken sausages sliced & sauteed with spinach. Friday was pizza nite - fresh mozz., shallots, mushroom & pepperoni for me.

Tonite will be using the leftover stuffing from Thanksgiving (baked in a dish originally) in Baked Stuffed Pork Chops. Have some sauteed cabbage for the side, maybe some applesauce as well or gravy, not sure yet.

[Berheenia]

Snow flurries here in Boston. Two days ago I was eating breakfast in Key West- sob. Our heat and hot water are going off for the day ( as part of a welcome conversion to gas in the building) so the plan is to use the electric oven to make a beef stock and later a build a big wood fire in the fireplace. I love roasting bones and root veg for stock and it will be used tomorrow in a Sunday beef stew to be eaten after the Patriots do their thing. Lunch today will be out at the greasy spoon and we'll be at the local for a drink at 5. When the heat comes back on I think a homemade pizza with TJ's dough and our local italian sweet sausages would be good but hubby will push for pasta.

[LindaWhit]

Awww, I hope you had a good Key Westian vacation! And these flurries are supposed to amount to nothing. No notification was sent out by the French Toast Alert System. ;-) But your meals, both today and tomorrow, sound good!

[Bacardi1]

Last night, after enjoying a local town's annual "Christmas Parade", we visited on of the local Irish "pubs" for dinner. Hubby enjoyed their "Fish & Chips" (with malt vinegar of course), while I had their "Guinness Stew", which consisted of cubed steak & vegetables in a rich gravy, served in a pate choux "bowl". Green beans & mashed potatoes (they called it "champ", but it was just mashed potatoes) on the side. Oh - & Guinnesses from the tap, of course.

[linguafood]

Was this an entirely ironic evening, or what's up with the quotes?

[mariacarmen]

"ha-ha"!
maybe Bacardi writes for "Zagat".

[Harters]

The farmers market had some good looking locally shot pigeons and I bought a pack of breasts (as well as some other game). We'll have a couple each as a starter. Tossed in a little oil and thyme and quickly fried, they'll go on top of a little handful of salad leaves. pan deglazed with red wine vinegar which forms the dressing . A Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall "recipe".

Followed by a simply roasted chicken. Roast spuds. Butternut squash mash, Sauteed leeks, gravy.

I need the chicken carcess to make the Xmas Day gravy. I've a new recipe to try which sees root veg roasted for 50 minutes. The chopped up carcass will go into the pan for the final 30. Pan comes out of the oven and goes on the hob, about 1.5ltr water goes in and it simmers for a while longer. Veg get mashed up and everything gets passed through a sieve. Quick taste to check seasoning and into the freezer. It'll just need warming through on The Day, perhaps with a splash of sherry to enhance..

[mariacarmen]

finally made my DOTM entry - okonomiyaki - japanese pancakes. i made them loosely following this recipe: http://droolfactor.wordpress.com/2011...

i didn't have any dashi, so i used chicken broth. my fillings (besides the cabbage and the scallions) were sliced chinese sausage, bacon, shrimp - or a combo of any of the three. i loved these, they were creamy in the center but crisp on the outside. should have taken a pic of the underside with the nicely browned shrimp and/or bacon/sausage pieces. i topped them with kewie mayo and totoyaki sauce (that's all i had - i added a little worcestershire to mimic okonomiyaki sauce), and katsu fumi furikake on mine (shaved bonito, sesame seed, seaweed). And some pickled ginger on the side (store-bought). The BF had purchased the shrimp, and bought enough extra for me to make a side dish - marinated for a brief time in gochujang, vermouth, shaoxing wine, dark soy, then quickly sauteed. He also bought us each a fresh oyster! slurp slurp. alongside all that was a quick pickled cabbage salad with clementine sections, and a green salad with rice wine vinegar dressing.

[mariacarmen]

follow-up on the oysters the BF purchased, they are Drake's Bay oysters, and we heard a news story tonight that they have lost their 40 year lease and have 90 days to clear out! environmental concerns, etc.... so we may have got some of the last ones! although we have some time to get some more.

AND even more exciting.... the BF just told me that his boss just offered him white truffles that he just brought back from a recent trip to France! not sure how they're packed or anything, but a truffle menu is in the offing. I'M SO EXCITED I'M QUIVERING!!!

[gingershelley]

Looks great, and sounds super tasty!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Last night was teriyaki chicken with steamed rice and a simple Asian salad with wonton strips, dried cherries and sesame orange vinaigrette. Tonight will be bacon kimchi fried rice with the leftover rice plus the leftover teriyaki chicken and another Asian salad. Believe it or not, this is light eating for us, LOL!

[mariacarmen]

bacon kimchi fried rice, be still my heart...

[roxlet]

thumpty-thump-thump-thump

[weezieduzzit]

Steak looked too good to pass up today but rain has made cooking on the grill not look so good (thanks for giving it a shove, MC, much appreciated.) So... it'll get the steak diane treatment and some shredded sauteed brussels sprouts and a second undetermined green on the side.

I know there is wine here somewhere... and I don't know where (I'm the queen of putting things away someplace "safe.") I really don't want to have to go out in the rain but a glass of wine sounds so nice...

[roxlet]

The husband is hard at work in the kitchen working on tonight's dinner. Frisee salad with lardons and Roquefort followed by steak au poivre and gaufrette. I wish he's hurry up!!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Oh man, some of my faves! Sounds wonderful!

[linguafood]

Yes, seriously. I want the salad, the steak and the gaufrette! Where is MY dinner???

Whole Hog needs a delivery service to the mid Atlantic states :-)

[roxlet]

I'll let the chef know :)

[Cherylptw]

Simple pulled bbq chicken sandwich on bun with slaw...no more cooking until Sunday

[gingershelley]

Wow, Glad to know others are not always livin' the "high life" with dinner... Love the idea of a tuna meld LW, as have been craving one. And Steve with a relatively simples Fett Alfredo. I feel justified in my pull from the freezer of leftover turkey, gravy and a tiny bowl of instant good mashers - and - that on some toast, is a HOT Turkey sandwich. With last of cranberry. The one leftover I didn't have I love nearly the most.

I am at the gingershelley diner tonight, with the 'hot turkey sandwich plate', while the rain beats down, and I read a novel. Awesome.

Tomorrow, I finish the bath salt gifts, and head into the salted caramel sauce territory... another day to cook!

[steve h.]

I'm softly laughing to myself. Lunch at home today was turkey salad on rye. It was damn good.

[LindaWhit]

OK, I *love* the idea of the gingershelley diner with the hot turkey plate and you reading a novel!

NOW all you need is a handsome stranger to come into the diner, slowly pull back the hood of his rainslicker as you look up from your book and catch his eye, he takes his coat off and lightly shakes off the rain before he walks over and sits down next to you in the relatively empty diner and ask you what you're reading. And then.....................................................

[gingershelley]

Wow = I could SURE use that guy to walk into the gingershelley diner - I put him on my Christmas list! :) I like a man who is handsome, and interested in reading. Wink!

[steve h.]

Fettuccine, make that tagliatelle, Alfredo.
It's dark and it's cold here in lower Fairfield County. Comfort food is required.
Quality butter, quality grated cheese and cream will support this simple dish. Pepper, too.
House red to wash it down.

[LindaWhit]

OK, now that's a damn sight better than a tuna melt! :-P

[LindaWhit]

I tells ya, I'm living the high life in the ol' homestead on a Friday night! Will be making sangria tonight for a party tomorrow evening, will also be making orange-spiced nuts for the same party, and will be looking up cocktail meatball sauce recipes to make *tomorrow* in the crockpot for the same party.

Meanwhile, I'm waiting for my dinner to finish heating. I took a can of store-bought solid white albacore tuna packed in oil, mixed in some non-homemade mayonnaise, salt, and Aleppo pepper, put it on 2 slices of lightly toasted store-bought whole wheat potato bread, put a piece of the godawful neon-orange American cheese slice on top of both, slid them into the toaster oven to melt for.................................................................................wait for it..........................................

Tuna Melts! Some potato chips and a small glass of 1% milk, and I am livin' large, I tell ya!

Do *I* know how to party, or WHAT? You are all SO jealous, aren't you? Yup. I knew it.

[mariacarmen]

Friday night, after all! wouldn't expect anything less, you animal, you!

[Breadcrumbs]

Oh I so love tuna melts Linda!!!! I was jealous, right up to the milk part...I'll have a glass of red if you have any on hand pls!!! ; - )

[mariacarmen]

a nice crisp white would go good with that melt, too.

[LindaWhit]

Nope. I just couldn't do any wine with a tuna melt. But I did have some red wine on hand. :-) However, I made up for the lack of wine on Friday night with some homemade sangria at a party I attended last night. Lots of water too, so the drive home at 1:00 a.m. was easy-peasy.

[mariacarmen]

you know, actually, a nice iced cold diet coke is probably what i'd have had with that. (i'm not a milk drinker.)

[Harters]

Upcoming......sausages, mustard mash, onion gravy for me. Herself can't abide mash so is having beans on toast with her bangers - which is proper kiddy food in my book. Bless.

[mariacarmen]

what pray tell is mustard mash? mustard greens? mashed potato with mustard?

[roxlet]

Silly girl. It was monster mash

[mariacarmen]

ooooh spoooky!

[gingershelley]

OOOOOOOOOH, we did the Mash (It was the mash, the Monster Mash)......:)

[roxlet]

Whew! I thought I was the only one who knew that chestnut!

[Harters]

Mash with a hefty dollop of grain mustard stirred through. Was very nice.

[mariacarmen]

i know the BF would be all over that. we'll have to try it sometime.

[Bacardi1]

Last night I made a bechamel sauce (with some shreded Italian cheese mix added), stirred in a drained can of "Veg-All" canned mixed vegetables (my dear mom's favorite), & some diced dark & white meat turkey leftover & saved from the grand bird. Served over Pepperidge Farm puff pastry "patty shells". This is one of hubby's favorite Thanksgiving leftover meals.

What's interesting is that except for corn & shell beans, I pretty much intensely dislike & eschew canned vegetables of all types. But "Veg-All" is pretty darn good - carrots, peas, green beans, corn, diced potatoes. And not cooked to obliteration. It was mom's "go to" when making anything "a la King".

[mariacarmen]

got my steak-frites fix........ so happy....

feeling like i'm coming down with a cold, so i felt i really NEEDED the french protein fix (thanks to Mssrs. Harters and Steve H.... plus frites and aioli. and vin rouge, bien sur.

tomorrow, if i'm not actually sick, okonomiyaki. i swear. now, off to bed.

[LindaWhit]

YUM! And I do hope you're feeling better today, mc!

[mariacarmen]

thanks, it seems to have done the trick, i feel great today!

[LindaWhit]

Most excellent.

[PHREDDY]

turkey...the last of it...fresh spinach ,and some choped red onion and carrots....fresh, a dash of curry powder and some fresh roasted aspargas

with some chicken broth .....divino!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[prima]

Moroccan-spiced rack of lamb, roasted ginger/nutmeg/clove hubbard squash and roasted potatoes.

[LindaWhit]

Sounds wonderful!

[prima]

thanks!

[mariacarmen]

i'm ready to make lamb again. the BF, not so much.

[weezieduzzit]

I'll eat with you, I'm ready to have it again, too, and this sounds delicious!

[prima]

It was a quick recipe, from the Australian Women's Weekly Moroccan softcover cookbook. I adapted the recipe from a leg to a 1.7 lb rack (just cut down on the amount of onion, garlic and oil)

Generously sprinkle freshly ground black pepper on the rack of lamb.

Mix together 1 chopped shallot (original called for a red onion) 1 clove garlic (minced), 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon, 1/4 tsp crumbled saffron, 1/4 tsp ground cloves, 1/2 tsp ground cumin, couple pinches aleppo pepper, 1/4 cup evoo in a small bowl. Cover rack with the spice paste. Let sit an hour at room temp.

I roasted this at 360 degrees (convection on) for 40 minutes, for medium, turning the heat up to 375 (convection on) for the last 5 minutes. I'm guessing it could be roasted at a higher temp, but I didn't want to burn the shallot/garlic.

This was pretty good, but I liked the Ottolenghi Jerusalem cookbook shawarma-prep on my rack of lamb even better! http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8691...

[steve h.]

Turkey salad on rye.
Mayo, onion, celery, Worcestershire Sauce, salt, pepper, squeeze of lemon added to the light meat/dark meat mix. Levy's rye bread is the delivery mechanism. A pinch of Hungarian hot paprika sprinkled on top for added punch. Cold beer to wash it all down.

[mariacarmen]

sounds great.

[linguafood]

Another night of kicking boxes, which usually means dinner out... but there's been a bit too much going out this week (and there will be more on the weekend), so we've picked up a rotisserie chicken at Wegmans, some romaine, and canned (!) corn will be the other veggie side.

Sure hope the chicken behaves itself. It's not agreed with us on many occasions, which is why we barely buy it anymore. Bummer, cause it's tasty.

[weezieduzzit]

I think we're having leftover meatloaf. I know that doesn't sound exciting but since I'm not eating bread I had to get creative in my meatloaf making last night so I added about a cup of finely grated parmesan and when I reheated a slice in a skillet for lunch today it gave it this really yummy crust. I'll make more gravy for the man, I'll use sour cream again (neither of us are a fan of tomato topped meatloaf.) Lots of green choices in there for sides.

[mariacarmen]

like, a blob of sour cream on top? or spread over and then baked? what does that do, keep it moist? sounds really good!

[weezieduzzit]

Mostly because I was avoiding the carby goodness of the gravy but it does keep it from drying out and I just like the creamy tangy taste of sour cream. :) I hadn't made meat loaf in many years and then recently decided that I liked it.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yum! Love the sound of the Parmesan crust!

[Cherylptw]

So tonight the bf is having prime rib with au jus and for me, a leftover pork chop from last night (they came out delish!) Sides will be a garden salad of mixed lettuces, cukes, the last bells from my garden, carrots and for me, roasted tomatoes. Lemon vinaigrette for myself and 1000 island for him. Baked potatoes for the both of us; mine will have a grate of smoked gouda.

[LindaWhit]

Tonight? Out. Sangria, tapas, et al. Hugs & kisses. Good talk with friends.

Much needed.

[PHREDDY]

Why not4...tomorrow I am with my friend of 42 years for my birthday...I wil not tell you when...but why not?....go for it!!!!!!!

[Harters]

We're off into the city tonight for dinner and a probable look round the Christmas market (even though it is boring AND expensive).

I can tell you now what we'll both be having for dinner. Salad for starters (with mustard vinaigrette). Followed by entrecote steak frite. How do I know? Well, I know because that's the full extent of their menu. In fact there isnt a menu. They bring you the starter. You eat.Then they bring you the steak, chips and their house sauce. You eat. Then they bring you a bit more steak and a few more chips (so you have piping hot chips again). Then you pay. Simples. Been meanng to go for months since it opened.

[gembellina]

ah, lovely. I do enjoy those Christmas markets, even though everything comes from the central christmas market warehouse and is the same every year in every city. My friend designed the very ugly stand that holds the inflatable Santa there when she was still a student in Manchester, so don't stand too close if it's windy! (kidding, I'm sure it's fine...)

[Harters]

Before that, they used to tie the inflatable to the Town Hall clock tower. Always used to remind me of the scene in the original King Kong film

[linguafood]

That sounds pretty much exactly like the restaurant Entrecôte in Berlin, though they've expanded their menu as of recent.

Really nice salad with walnuts and a Dijon vinaigrette, then the sliced entrecôte with fries. Lovely.

[mariacarmen]

i want that! i want that here! i want steak frites! i want them to just bring me some steak and then bring me some piping hot chips and then bring me some more! can you not hear my foot stamping?

[linguafood]

uh-oh. maria's stamping foot stampede.

everybaddy get daun.

[mariacarmen]

hahahaha

[Dirtywextraolives]

LMAO!

[steve h.]

Bouchon Bistro (Yountville, Beverly Hills) can satisfy your steak frites jones. Sit at the pewter bar (either location), kick back and prepare for a bout of wretched self indulgence.

I was at the Beverly Hills outpost a few weeks ago. There's a report on the LA board.

[mariacarmen]

oh yes, i know/adore Bouchon, but i want what the Euros are describing - a place devoted solely to entrecote. the concept just screams decadence to me.

[Harters]

You may want to go with lingua's suggestion rather than mine.

Best bit of my evening (apart from the lovely company) was the Nutella pancake I got afterwards at the Christmas market. http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/879767

[mariacarmen]

phooey.

[mariacarmen]

I just read it. "Not like a good British steak. But as good as you’d get in France for a steak frites." i had not known that the British were known for a good steak! I've always loved French steak-frites, and their CA counterparts. (hanger steak, here, usually.) sorry it wasn't as good as it sounded.

[Harters]

We're much better with beef than the French. Those folk 22 miles away don't seem to understand the need for long maturing (35 days +) as well as we do. IMO, of course.

[LindaWhit]

And yet they let MOLD grow on their cheeses! Sheesh.

[Harters]

LOL. Although we make some nice mouldy cheeses these days. I think we actually now make more different varieties of cheese than the French.

[mariacarmen]

link, please?

[steve h.]

Easily done.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/866115

[mariacarmen]

merci.

[mariacarmen]

nice. i grew up there, and went back for innumerable visits over the years until 2010. honestly, and no offense to any L.A.ers here (I was one of you), i used to eat out A LOT in L.A., and never really found it a true foodie city (except when it comes to sushi, ethnic joints, and not even withstanding Mozza), but maybe it's finally starting to take its food scene seriously. Love the Getty! glad you had a nice time.

now i want steak frites for dinner. how do i make this happen.....

[steve h.]

The Los Angeles food scene is pretty vibrant and only getting better. Like San Francisco, the newer, more innovative shops, seem to trend toward the middle/upper-middle price point. Unlike San Francisco, it's imperative to have a car.

Next visit I intend to explore SGV. My biggest regret? I didn't eat my way through Korea Town. That's why there's a next time.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Oh, oh yes. You must. You will be amazed.

[Dirtywextraolives]

It is now, sweetie!!

[mariacarmen]

that's what i'm hearing!

[roxlet]

My husband is making steak au poivre tonight, and now I want to talk him into making frites too! Sounds soooo good!

[GretchenS]

Ha, I inadvertantly went to a place like that on a business trip to Paris many years ago. My then-boss was a picky eater and selected the place based on the menu in the window but when we sat down the waitress asked, "vin rouge ou blanc?" and then " 'ow do you want your meat cooked, rare or medium-rare?" and that was the last choice we made. :) It was really really good, if unexpected. No idea why the menu charade. Sorry that yours was not more to your liking.

[Cherylptw]

Tonight we had pork chops ala Campbells Tomato Soup style - meaning, seared & topped with tomato soup, onions and the last fresh bells from my garden...into the oven they went for an hour. To go with, creamy mashed potatoes and a side of steamed green peas finished with a pat of butter, s & p. Simple and delicious...this is a dish my mom made when I was a kid and I still love it.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Sounds good! Haven't heard of this one before!

[perrottwilliamson]

We haven't had turkey salad in awhile and it is on the agenda. Can't wait!

[mariacarmen]

The BF made dinner - pork won tons, korean-style scallion pancakes (totally stealing my thunder for the okonomiyakis i'm going to make on Friday night for the DOTM, the bastard.), and fixings. plus a sesame cuke salad and some rice with leftover pork tenderloin, red peppers and onions. All really tasty and pretty to boot!

[roxlet]

That looks fantastic!

[ChristinaMason]

ooh yum! really nice looking.

[gembellina]

That looks wonderful, what a guy!

[GretchenS]

Gorgeous!

[steve h.]

Smashing!

[mariacarmen]

thanks everyone! i think i'll (still) keep him.

[Dirtywextraolives]

HAHAHAHA! Totally stole your thunder, what was he thinking?! The pancake looks great!

[gingershelley]

Awesome, MC! What a great BF!

[Bacardi1]

About a month ago I received an Amazon offer for 1/2 off a mini Baltimore Chesapeake Bay crab feast. And I bought it. And it was worth it. What was normally a $100 deal cost me $40 (if I remember correctly) & was worth every penny. A dozen BIG (like 7" big) HEAVY steamed female Blue Claw Crabs, 6 steamed JUMBO shrimp, a pound of extra-spicy steaming spices to use when re-heating/steaming the crabs, 2 wooden mallets, & 2 rolls of heavy-duty crab paper to lay out on the table.

All I needed to do was layer the crabs & shrimp in my steamer pot with the spices to reheat them (all of 15 minutes) & melt some butter with lemon. What a feast!

Plus, I have leftover crabmeat that I picked out & froze for another use, & saved the all the crab flotsam & jetsam for a hopeful stock.

[LindaWhit]

NICE meal, Bacardi!

[mariacarmen]

wow! did that all come frozen? what a great dinner!

[Bacardi1]

Not frozen - fresh. Freshly steamed by the Blue Crab Trading Co. in Baltimore, MD, & shipped to me overnight. Although I bought the deal voucher last month, I had till the end of Nov. to use it. My only extra expense was an optional $4 for insurance, which I took just in case the crabs got hung up somewhere enroute.

[mariacarmen]

wow, that really is a great deal!

[Bacardi1]

Yes, it was. It's been so long since I've had a steamed crab feast. In fact, think I've only had them once in the 15 years since leaving NY where I used to catch them myself. It was very nice & very nostalgic. Plus, I made an absolutely kick-ass stock out of the leftover shells. Thought it might end up too salty/spicy because of all the crab spice, but it turned out absolutely delicious. Two quarts of crabby wonderful in the freezer just waiting to be turned into some fabulous soup in the near future!!

[gingershelley]

All that sounds SO good!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Wow, lucky you! Sounds fab!

[ChristinaMason]

We had friends over for dinner instead of blowing lots of $$ meeting them out for drinks and apps. We'd initially planned on going to a Turkish/Med. place, so tonight's menu was in keeping with the theme:

-lemony hummus, harissa carrot spread, dukkah and fruity olive oil w/ homemade pita, baby carrots and cucumber rounds (raki to drink)
-acorn squash soup w/ roasted garlic and warm spices drizzled w/ cilantro oil (rose to drink)
-roasted rosemary-garlic-lemon jumbo shrimp over pine nut cous cous with a salad of arugula/spinach, candied maple squash seeds, clementine segments, craisins, and pomegranate molasses vinaigrette (light Spanish red to drink)

Our friends brought giant, buttery homemade chocolate chip cookies, which were a great way to top off our (dairy free) meal. Yum.

[mariacarmen]

all of it sounds amazing, but i really love the sound of that salad.

[ChristinaMason]

Thanks! It was kind of the sleeper hit. I made this dressing (found it a tad too tart and added a splash of agave nectar): http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/20...

And for the squash seeds, I cleaned and toasted them in a little olive oil on a baking sheet just until they started "popping," then swirled them with a little butter and maple syrup, chili powder, ginger, cinnamon, and allspice and roasted them until candied (stirring occasionally).

[roxlet]

That sounds great! Isn't butter considered dairy, though???

[ChristinaMason]

Yeah, I know, right! I avoided using much, if any of it in the cooking because of that. But apparently he's OK with butter. It's soft cheese and milk that are the real culprits. Weird! (What I meant was, we had buttery cookies to top off our basically dairy-free meal...so strange!)

[roxlet]

Don't you just love people with made-up food intolerances?

[Dirtywextraolives]

LOL, I know as a dairy-intolerant person, butter can be one of the Worst culprits, at least for me! But I try to deal with it for special occasions!

[merrua]

it depends what in the dairy is setting you off i suppose.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Nice!

[prima]

Tuna casserole, made with white sauce made from scratch, sherry, mushrooms, celery and thyme, topped with some Parmesan my friend brought back from Italy.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yum! I love that kind of tuna casserole!

[Cynsa]

Not yet 'turkeyed out', I am enjoying the remainders of turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce and contemplating making more dressing... we're having the second batch Cranberry Sauce on today's Apple Pie.

Sunday's dinner was Turkey Tortilla Pie for the nephew and his bride
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article...

[LindaWhit]

It's Wednesday. You know what that means, boys and girls..........

it's Prince Spaghetti Day! Actually, it'll be Barilla Spaghetti Day, but it sounds better the first way. Plus it's easier to say. And read.

Meat sauce from the freezer, gentle defrost and re-heat on the flame tamer, toss it with some bizsketti, some grated Parm-Reg on top, a small salad with vinaigrette alongside. Whomp, whomp, whomp, Easy dinner.

More Top Chef tonight.

[steve h.]

Pasta sounds great on a cold (and getting colder) day.

Prince Spaghetti Day:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KlNAYC...

[LindaWhit]

Yeah, a couple of years ago, local Boston news found Anthony and did an interview with him about making that commercial. Back then, the woman who played his mother, still lived in the North End. :-)

http://www.boston.com/news/local/brea...

[mariacarmen]

feed those flying fingers, LW!

[roxlet]

Rest up!

[LindaWhit]

No rest for the weary, rox. But I got it done. :-)

[PHREDDY]

K

[mariacarmen]

worked late last night. the BF had already eaten his fill of leftover stuffing, cauli gratin and sausage. so i made quick work of cheesy cauli gratin TACOS. a little sploosh of habanero hot sauce. hit the spot.

tonight, the BF has vowed he will make potstickers with the leftover ground pork we have. i dunno what else yet, but that's enough to look forward to on a gray, rainy day.

[weezieduzzit]

We've got the gray but not the rainy this far south- think you cold give it a good shove this direction?

[mariacarmen]

gladly! we're due for at least 4 more days of this.

[melpy]

Mon-turkey tetrazzini (more or less). Used egg noodles instead of spaghetti and some other variations.

Tues-giada's lamb stew over fettucine. Have used large amounts of turkey broth in both recipes. Also got rid of extra red wine and the dark meat turkey. The whipped cream had separated so I drizzled a little on my pasta since it wasn't too sweet and the vanilla worked with the stew flavors.

Wed- butternut squash risotto with apple chicken sausages to use up more broth

Thurs- hot or cold turkey sandwiches for the last of the turkey and some acorn squash mash plus whatever other leftovers we have

[mariacarmen]

WOW - whipped cream/vanilla/lamb..... i kinda like it!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yes, sounds very intriguing!

[Bacardi1]

Last night we enjoyed some of our leftover Thanksgiving turkey reheated in homemade gravy made from the saved roasting-pan drippings & served with leftover garlic creamed spinach & fresh homemade heavy-cream-&-butter mashed Yukon gold potatoes. Delicious!!!

(Gotta love the leftovers from those utterly fabulous Whole Foods' free-range turkeys.)

[LindaWhit]

I'll be having the last of the turkey leftovers today for lunch with homemade gravy, mashed potatoes and green beans. And then BOOM! it's all gone. ;-)

[Harters]

So, it's a dash to a very inauthentic south asian meal tonight at Harters Hall.

We don't usually use jarred pastes and sauces for south asian cooking but we needed a jar of Madra curry paste for something else months ago and the remainder has been lurking in the fridge ever since. It'll go together with some chicken (freezer use-up), onions, tinned tomatoes. There's also a small brown gloop bean curry in the freezer.

Herself says she'll make chapattis to go with them.

And there'll be halva for dessert. This is packet halva - just add milk. Made by the wonderfully named Gits. Now I wonder if folk outside of the UK use the word "git" to describe someone. In British English it's a mild form of abuse for someone which one website describes as being "incapable of doing anything other than annoying people". Often ageist as in "old git" - which in Harters-speak usually applies to someone driving in front of me at a very slow speed when I'm in a rush. Although I rather suspect that I may soon be in line for the name.

[roxlet]

I think that git is rarely used here in the US, except for Britishisms enjoying a certain vogue among parts of the population. What that word always brings to mind for me is the character that Jack Nicholson played so brilliantly Chinatown -- Jake Gittes!

[JungMann]

Interesting. Googling Gits Halwa shows that it's made from agar agar. I've had agar jellies made with water plenty of times, but didn't know it could set milk. I have a bar of agar agar in my cupboard which needs using up so I think I've got my next experiment right here.

[mariacarmen]

love the word.

[Harters]

The Mallorcan brother in law always says English is a richer language than Spanish, or his dialect of Catalan, when it comes to insults and swearing.

[mariacarmen]

you all do have a way....

[Dirtywextraolives]

Never heard of "git" and Apple apparently, hasn't either. I think I have some other choice names for those driving too slow in front of me that aren't quite as pleasant. But then again, I drive like I did in Boston.

[gingershelley]

An ex BF of mine had this great expression for people driving slow, and I can't ever shake it; 'Mr. (or ms.) pokey-pokerson"! Polite enough I can say it with disgust no matter whom is riding in the car with me:)...

[Dirtywextraolives]

LOL, I'll have to remember that one! It's one I can use when my kids are with me!

[Cherylptw]

So I've been gone for almost a week from here; so much food related activities going on during that time....so here's an summary from those days: I didn't cook Thanksgiving dinner this year; the bf & I were invited to my mother's and his uncles houses. It was requested that I bring some mixed greens to mom's. I made a batch of mustard/kale/hanover greens with smoked pork jowl & crispy bacon AND a batch of collards with smoked turkey neck meat for my sis in law who don't eat pork. There were the usual Thanksgiving suspects. I took home a plate of turkey/stuffing and some cake/pie.

Off to the bf's uncle's house we went for more of the usual suspects and a table groaning with desserts. I took a coconut custard pie. It was insisted we take home a few plates of everything, so we did. Friday, we weren't hungry and I spent the day preparing for a family dinner out of town. I brought a pickled and fresh veg tray and bowls of caramelized onion dip and roasted tomato dip with assorted crackers & crostinis. I took our fish fryer and fried about 40 pounds of trout, breams and perch.

We also had bbq chicken, venison tenderloin & gravy, lasagna, mac & cheese, collards, cabbage, green beans, black eyed peas, potato salad, cole slaw, homemade rolls, hushpuppies & cornbread and a TON of desserts. Of course, we had to bring some of this home. So, with all the leftovers from these last few days, that's what we've been eating. Until tonight....it's sandwiches. Fixings for Italian subs on wheat rolls; to go with, leftover potato salad and cole slaw.

Tomorrow, I cook something different.....

[gingershelley]

Wow, Cheryl - that is SOME spread of eating over the holiday weekend - I would like some of your nice diverse leftovers in my fridge:) Sounds like a nice time and good food and family times.

[Cherylptw]

The food and family gatherings were just great! And like some here, I have turkey in the freezer which will be used up in some nice turkey salad, stir fry and stock soon!

[GretchenS]

Wow, I am coming to stay with you for the long weekend next year -- what fabulous eats you've been having!!!

[Cherylptw]

The more, the better...you would be most welcomed!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Wow! You guys sure know how to eat!! Sounds so yummy, all of it. Can you tell me what Hanover greens are?

[ChristinaMason]

Bourbon. Fried chicken. Yes.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Oh. Yes!!

[LindaWhit]

Using up the sirloin tips from Saturday's dinner in a panino - some ciabatta spread with garlic herb cheese, layered with slices of the beef, some lettuce, lightly oiled the outside of the ciabatta, and it was grill-pressed on the grill pan. The "side dish" will be french fries and ketchup.

My veggies tonight are the lettuce and ketchup. Almost a salad! ;-)

[Dirtywextraolives]

Sounds perfect!

[GretchenS]

Brutal work week so keeping it simple and comforting for dinners this week. Last night cheeseburger (sharp cheddar), tonight spaghetti and meatballs -- pulled the sauce and meatballs from the freezer this morning. Looking forward to it this cold snow/rainy day!

[JungMann]

Cold and rainy here so I'm curling up in front of the hot pot tonight. Sukiyaki, Tokyo-style, replete with an egg for dipping.

[Dirtywextraolives]

We love sukiyaki (well, I do, but only made it once for my kids but they loved it!) but how do you do it hot pot style? And do I need a sterno pot to keep it hot on the table?

[JungMann]

To serve it hot pot style you'll need a tabletop burner which provides more cooking heat than a sterno, but since I don't have that luxury I unashamedly ate my dinner in the kitchen.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Oh okay, I'll just serve sukiyaki the way I normally do, already cooked!

[juliejulez]

The turkey is all in the freezer now, but will be reborn on Sunday as a casserole. Tonight is chicken marsala pasta. No veggie (Unless you count the mushrooms in the pasta), cause we're naughty like that.

[Dirtywextraolives]

I adore Marsala anything, vegs or not!

[roxlet]

Last night was latin style rotisserie chicken from Fairway with a ratatouille that I made with the extra eggplant from Saturday's moussaka. It actually went really well together, and there was enough ratatouille left to make a ratatouille frittata for breakfast this morning (and maybe tomorrow too). Tonight's dinner will be in stark contrast to the weather. It has been snowing for about the last 2 hours, and it is beginning to stick. So what am I making for dinner? Pasta with pesto and grilled chicken. It's one of my son's favorite meals, thus good in any weather or clime. It is actually a first for me -- I am using pesto from Costco, which is apparently made with Genovese basil. My last batch of pesto was quite unsatisfactory since it oxidized the instant it came in contact with the air. Brown pesto is not appetizing, so I tossed the last of it. We'll see if Costco gets us through the winter before I address the problem again next summer!

[gingershelley]

Many things came up yesterday to distract from getting my Tourte au Chou made; pastry done, but not the filling or cooking in time to be worth it for yesterday, so back on the plan for today....

And the Turkey-Wild Rice soup was too boring - like many of you - I am kind of sick of turkey/sage/thyme flavors, so I threw in some old-school fresh curry powder and a chopped apple and converted the soup to Muligatawny - now THAT hit the spot for dinner last night. Bright gold and full of warm British Raj flavors. Most of it into the freezer for other cold nights....

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yum!

[Harters]

We're having ragu and pasta. Or, as we Brits generally call it, spag bol.

[Bacardi1]

Last night we enjoyed hot open-faced turkey sandwiches - white & wheat swirled Pepperidge Farm toast topped with shredded white-meat from our outstanding Whole Foods free-range Thanksgiving turkey reheated in turkey gravy & topped with sliced Swiss Cheese untl melted. Delicious!!

I'll NEVER get over how consistently fabulous Whole Foods' free-range turkeys have been over the years. Serious turkey flavor, & even the leftover white meat has never ever been dry. An absolutely wonderful bird year after year. Worth every penny.

[LindaWhit]

I'll have to spring for that next time, Bacardi. I went with a Hannaford's Nature's Place organic turkey breast, and while it was good, I wasn't wowed by it for the money I spent.

[Bacardi1]

We've been buying the Whole Foods' fresh, free-range turkey for gee - maybe 15 years now? While the bird itself is wonderful, the leftovers are unbelievable. I've never had leftover turkey that was so moist & tasty. It's what keeps us coming back year after year. Not cheap - last year & this I think we paid $2.49/lb. But considering how very many top-notch meals we get out of that one bird, the per meal cost ends up more than worth it.

And the free-range is fine. The pricier free-range "organic" really isn't any different unless you're into the ethics of it. The free-range is completely hormone & antibiotic free; the only difference seems to be that the organic birds are fed organically-grown feed.

(Oh - & it's best to pre-order your Whole Foods' fresh turkey to make sure you get one. You don't have to pay until pickup, but at least you'll be ensured to get one. They sell out fast.)

[LindaWhit]

That's what I paid for my Hannaford turkey breast. And good to know re: pre-ordering. Thanks.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Is it the WF label on it? May have to check that put next year, as WF is not my favorite store to shop in, but I will take your word for it and try it next year, or next month, if I decide to do a turkey dinner again over Christmas.

[Bean Counter]

Made a quick ground beef chili. Son had a cheesy tortilla alongside I just had the chili with a dollop of sour cream. Nothing unusual about the chili but polished off the rest of my rancho Gordo chili powder which I've been quite pleased with. Must get more and some hominy to do posole again.

[weezieduzzit]

We're having modified Shrimp Diablo, I'm subbing lemon juice (maybe lime...) for the orange juice and it will be served on sauteed shredded Napa cabbage. I'm in the mood for spicy so an extra sprinkle of red chili flakes might be needed.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Almost done with eating down the turkey, doubt I will have anything left to freeze, yay! Soup and stocks have been made, will probably get rid of the rest of the vegetable leftovers tomorrow, saving the cranberry sauce. So it's turkey BLTs on toasted rosemary bread with arugula & avocado, with some roast garlic mustard and mayo on the bread.

[mariacarmen]

dammit - we gave the rest of our leftover turkey to a friend's friend who is a bit cash-strapped right now (before you think we're such do-gooders, though, we did think we were tried of leftovers already!) but i forgot to make a turkey BLT! your sandwich sounds delish!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Aren't you sweet? Both for giving your turkey away to friends, and for commenting on my simple turkey BLT! You are a do-gooder, whether you like it or not!! ;))

[gembellina]

You had me at rosemary bread, and then you went to roast garlic mustard!

[Dirtywextraolives]

LOL, both are staples in our grocery store. The bread comes from La Brea bakery, which is huge out here in LA, and the mustard comes from stonewall kitchens, and I'm sure you could mail order it, they are in Maine but with a huge mail order business. This s, without a doubt, the best mustard I've ever had, so delicious!

[gembellina]

ooh we get stonewall kitchen here, I'll have to keep an eye out. Though we just spent a ridiculous amount on mustards from the local craft show so maybe we'll get through those first!

[Dirtywextraolives]

I know what you mean, I have a couple of unopened jars of different mustards, also! I tend to 'collect' condiments....

[gingershelley]

Now THAT may be what's for lunch today with the last of the turkey breast -UUmmmm TBLT!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yup, it was yummy!

[jenscats5]

Ended up having to work late again, so threw together a quick "stir fry" type of dish......Used a bunch of veggies already in the fridge - zucchini, spicy eggplant, broccoli, leftover caramelized onion....Served with quick-cook frozen shrimp from BJs.....topped with Sriacha......

[steve h.]

Club steak is on the menu. Carrots and recycled mashed potatoes pan fried on the stovetop will be on the side. California red to wash it all down. Ice cream and the remaining apple galette if necessary. Football will be on the plasma.

[steve h.]

The anti turkey.

[LindaWhit]

Ooh - like the idea of pan-frying the mashed potatoes!

[mariacarmen]

what the ..... what the hell did you do to that club steak to make it look so good?? my memory of club steaks are rough little flavorless things from a local coffee shop my dad used to take us to in L.A.

i too love pan fried mashed taters. buttery, crispy, soft inside... mmmm.

[steve h.]

Thanks.
We didn't do anything special. Deb cooked it on the stovetop in a cast iron skillet with a little salt and pepper. The Angus beef was a little less than one pound and well over an inch thick. There was a goodly amount of marbling that contributed to the flavor and juiciness.

[Dirtywextraolives]

I don't think I've ever heard of a "club" steak. What cut is it?

[steve h.]

Here you go:
http://culinaryarts.about.com/od/glos...
It has much more flavor than a T-bone in my opinion.

[Berheenia]

Clubs were the best steaks and our Saturday night treat from a much beloved butcher shop here that closed a good 15 or 20 years ago. Never found a cut that we liked as well. RIP Roth's Market.

[steve h.]

A good butcher and a good fishmonger are pretty important. We mourn the passing of your beloved butcher.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Ah yes, the Delmonico steak. Those are wonderful. They don't name them that out west, so I usually stick with rib eyes. I will look out for that, thank you!

[steve h.]

A pleasure.

[Uncle Bob]

Bourbon........
Red Beans & Rice.....
Fried Pork Chop......
Bread......
A piece of fudge for D-Zert....

[mariacarmen]

leaving it up to the BF tonight. i know we still have a container full of the Thxgiving cauliflower/chile/cheesy gratin thing, and we made turkey stock yesterday.... dunno what else. i'm hankering for some korean, though. enough with the holiday carby food!

[gembellina]

Salivating over everyone's turkey dinners and evern turkey leftovers; very much looking forward to our Christmas turkey when I go home! Also very jealous of Harters' full English - I miss a good fry-up!

I've been craving SPICE and PUNCH and ZING for ages but everything I have bought has been blaaaand so tonight is an attempt at laab gai. I ate this every day for a week in Laos and I hope my version eaten during the winter in Canada won't be too much of a disappointment. Lots of lime and chilli and mint and crunchy veg should surely provide what my tastebuds are needing.

[mariacarmen]

yummmmmm that's what i'm talkin' about!

[linguafood]

It'll make you sweat and feel way less chilly! Love larb -- one of my favorite Thai/Laotian apps (or main, since it can be quite filling).

[gembellina]

I think my tongue is broken :( 3 limes, 4 chillies, a big bunch of mint and... nothing. I even threw in a bunch of thai basil and some fish sauce in an attempt to make it pop, and still nothing. Then bf came home and ate his, and the man with no tastebuds commented how hot/salty/fishy/limey/herby it was. I guess the cold that has been threatening is still threatening. Just hurry up and make me sick so I can taste again!

[linguafood]

I hate that when I can't taste anything. My poor man deals with lots of allergies (even when it rains!?!), so he often can't smell/taste much of what I prepare.... so I often add some heat to even the most innocuous dishes. Poor guy.

Maybe your cold needs another Thai assault: tom yum!

[weezieduzzit]

Great suggestion, lingua. Tom Yum is the best thing for colds. Ever.

[LindaWhit]

Wow. That's a lot of flavor to *not* taste! I hope your tastebuds return from their vacation soon!

[mariacarmen]

wow poor baby! hope you skip right over the cold and start tasting again! maybe your taste buds have now immunized themselves and you can eat as hot as you like...

[weezieduzzit]

Its on the menu for some time this week here, too. Love, love, love it!

[ChristinaMason]

I'm using up the last of my meaty ragu and half a jar of marinara (Tutorosso) in a pan of spinach-ricotta rollatini. I've never made these before, because I always suspected they were a lot of work. I was right, but I think they're going to be very tasty after a brisk walk in the chill night air. The filling is whole milk ricotta mixed with a handful of chopped parsley and egg white, plus spinach that was sauteed with shallot and spiced with freshly grated nutmeg. I added a bit each of pecorino romano and parm. and was generous with the salt and pepper.

We'll probably have some spinach and arugula salad in vinaigrette on the side.

[juliejulez]

We're turkeyed out. I don't have a ton left but I'm going to freeze it tonight to use in a casserole next week. Tonight is pork chops marinated in buttermilk then breaded, and some sauteed zucchini (bought like 2 weeks ago to use and didn't use them, so I need to do something with them). Might have some leftover mashed potatoes with it too, we'll see.

[linguafood]

I'm currently thawing two chicken, feta & spinach sausages from DiBruno's in Philly. Side will likely be sautéed spinach, maybe a salad. I know, *really* exciting '-)

[linguafood]

To make tonight's dinner just slightly more interesting, I've decided on a spinach gratin of sorts. Never made it before, looked at a few recipes, and starting throwing stuff together.

The spinach has thawed/semi-simmered briefly in sazón-augmented water (b/c I didn't have any broth at home), then was squeezed dry-ish in the colander. Tossed with a tiny shake of flour, a few more generous shakes of parmesan, a very generous splash of heavy cream augmented with the rest of the sazón, then topped with grated swiss and panko, and finally kissed with 2 tbsps of melted butter, it is now sitting in the oven baking away for the next 20-30 minutes at 375 until golden brown. If it's a success, I might add spinach gratin to my reg'lars.

[rabaja]

That sounds absolutely delicious. I'd like to dive into that for my dinner.

[linguafood]

It came out ok. The crust was nice and golden brown, but I really think it needs more spinach (more like 2 or 3 lbs -- that would be for more people of course, or... leftovers!!), and the spinach more substance. Amazingly enough, it also needed more salt.

My man suggested adding feta next time around à la spanakopita (ya know, on top of the parmesan and swiss cheese that's already in it!), but I'd like it to stay mainly a spinach gratin, and I don't want it to get too heavy. I could see adding *some* feta, though.

Anywhos, 'twas nice for a first try, but it needs improvement. Thankfully, we both love spinach, so it won't be a difficult project :-)

The chicken sausages, OTOH, were really quite yumboski.

[gembellina]

That sounds great. I wonder if mixing the spinach with a heavier green like kale would give it the "substance" you're looking for? I'll keep this dish in mind to go with steaks in the near future.

[Berheenia]

My go to recipe for this is an Ina Garten one and she uses a lot of chopped yellow onion sauteed in butter. like 4 cups onions to 3 lbs frozen spinach.

[gingershelley]

Sounds good Lingua - I made similar last week (- panko and swiss) to go with a small lamb steak; leftovers went into some mashed potato pancakes a couple nights ago. Baked spinach is delish!

[linguafood]

I'll be having that last slice with a fried egg on top for brunch today :-)

[rabaja]

I am completely over turkey after roasting and smelling one all day long yesterday. -we didn't take leftovers from my parents house on Thursday because we are SO smart. We roasted one on our own instead. Ugh, couldn't even face making proper sides. The Hubs was good enough to take it off the bone and I stashed it out of sight in the fridge. Enough already!
Tonight will be chile verde, the last of a batch I threw together Wednesday night. Over rice, with a veg if someone else insists.
I will try to shake off this bah humbug attitude and do better tomorrow. I am excited about Christmas and pulling out our decorations this weekend!

[rabaja]

Well, dinner has turned into turkey sandwiches as the pork stew went into the freezer for a quick meal down the road.
In an attempt to get excited about this I am heading out for squishy wheat bread ( unless the white calls to me), and American cheese. It's a craving, what can I say.
I may even open that can of Campbell's tomato soup I found in the cabinet earlier. One less thing in there!

[gingershelley]

Today I am making a double crust savory pie called a 'Tourte Au Chou", from a fondly remembered popular bistro offering at a place I worked in San Diego in my early 20's - Piret's. A few of you may know this establishment...
I found the Torte in the Piret's cookbook, and since I have all the ingredient's on hand, I am making that this morning to mellow all afternoon.

Also on deck on this nice, sunny very cold Monday, is picking the last of the turkey carcass and getting stock and soup on.

Dinner will then be Turkey and wild rice soup, a nice watercress salad, and Tourte au Chou!

[Harters]

So, a couple of cod fillets are going to be marinated for 20 minutes in soy, honey, ginger, rice wine vinegar and a pinch of dried chillis. It then gets cooked in the pan, with the marinade which reduces and gets sticky.

Alongside, a watercress and orange salad with a dressing made with olive oil, Dijon and honey. And some new potatoes - we have my favourite Anya's.

And, today, I've finally started to try to write my next book - the one about food during the Great War. I don't think this is going to be at all quick and easy :-(

[LindaWhit]

Yum! on the dinner, and good luck with the book. Will this be about what the soldiers were eating or just food in general during that time period?

[gingershelley]

Fish sounds tasty, as does rest of the meal, Harter's.

Very interested in your next book - have you done alot of research for this already? And will it be what was had IN Britain during this time, or various war fronts around as well?

[Harters]

Loads of research already done - with lots of personal accounts collected. There'll be a mix of chapters with most being about the soldiers' food - how it was prepared, how it was cooked, what treats and celebrations they had that involved food and so on. There'll also be a couple of chapters about how it was at home, particularly in the last couple of years of the war when rationing and other restrictions came in (mainly but not exclusively using where I live as the example). Keeping on topic for this thread (sort of), I'll also be including some recipes - both civilian and military ones.

I'd also like to try and do a chapter about soldiers who fought with other armies and have a post asking for help on this "Chowhounds Wanted" thread - http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/855725

[gingershelley]

This does sound engrossing, Harters! Look forward to hearing how it goes..... I would like to read it when it comes out!

[mariacarmen]

sounds like you've bitten off just enough for you to chew, Mr. H. sounds a fascinating read.

[steve h.]

Congratulations on the new book.
Were soldiers in the trenches issued a daily ration of wine or booze?

[Harters]

Steve

Unless the commanding officer directed otherwise (and some did), there was a daily tot of rum amounting to a quarter of a gill (about 4 tablespoons' worth). It was stored in ceramic jars, labelled SRD. SRD meant "Special Rations Department" or, as the soldiers would have it "Seldom Reaches Destination".

[steve h.]

Thanks for the timely response. I'm assuming the daily tot of rum (Pusser's?) was a British tradition. Did the French have a similar program?

[Harters]

The French did better than a few tablespoons - getting a daily wine ration. 0.25 litre in 1914 but, by 1916, it had increased to 0.75 litre.

[steve h.]

I think you've chosen a fascinating topic for your new book. Just describing the (backbreaking) research process could make for a good read.

Well done.

--steve

[Bacardi1]

Last night I finished the leftove rhalf of the wonderful pulled chicken sandwich I'd taken home from a local BBQ joint we visited Saturday night. Hubby has been under the weather, so he enjoyed some soup he had a taste for.

[Bean Counter]

Doing an interpretation of a Sunset mag recipe for pasta with sausage and chard. Sautéed up some hot Italian sausage, onions, leeks for a bit then added a handful of sundried tomatoes, a buch of chard. Cooked down and added some cream. Soon the cooked pasta, a bunch of grated parm, and a handful of basil will be added. Tastes good so far. Also looks like it would make a good soup base for after Monday when I return to cutting down/out the carbs. No salad, no garlic bread just the pasta. I strayed from the original recipe with the leeks and the sundried tomatoes(recipe calls for fresh but don't have those around in Nov).

[GretchenS]

That sounds really tasty, B C! In your low carb mode would it work with cannellini or other white beans instead of pasta?

[Bean Counter]

That would work - thanks for the idea!

[gingershelley]

Went North to the parents for a 'family Thanksgiving night' yesterday, including my wonderful BIL n SIL that just had a baby girl 12 days ago (to go with the set of 3 - (3!) small boys under 6 they already have; this is the end of baby-making for them - so we all got together with some close family friends for a night of MORE turkey, etc. dinner...

Best pecan topped sweet potatoes I ever had, great other food, moist, moist organic turkey, and my take on Joel Robochon potatoes and dark herb gravy. But, none of that could compare to the scampering small children, the decorating of the Christmas tree, and all of us together around the table.

God bless us, every one. :) A great real start to the true meaning of holidays - togetherness, and gratefulness. It could have been gruel and one small candle... and we all would have been glad for the magic.

Looking forward to the next month of giving out and appreciating.

[weezieduzzit]

Whatever this white fish is (Cod? this will teach me to label things...) will be broiled on each side for exactly 4 minutes and then taken out of the broiler to have a mixture of mayo, parmesan and lime juice slathered over the top and back in the broiler for 4 more minutes it goes. It comes out with a lovely browned top and creamy texture. Kale will be sauteed in some bacon fat and then stock will be added and the lid put on until it's done. Not sure about the second veggie side, we'll have to see what's in there that needs to be used first.

Nothing fancy, just tasty and easy for a Sunday night.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Grilling skirt steaks with simple seasonings and sides. Crashed hot fingerling potatoes and a salad of romaine, spinach & arugula, with mini heirloom cherry tomatoes & blue cheese crumbles, with a simple red wine vinaigrette. New version of chimichurri sauce for the steaks, and some Cabernet for the glasses.

[JungMann]

What goes into your updated chimichurri?

[Dirtywextraolives]

I used a recipe from the Zuni cookbook by Judy Rodgers. Noting just the differences, they heat the oil up ahead of time, just bruised the herbs in a mortar & pestle, and use paprika and bay leaves in it, none of which I've ever done. And even with the charred red jalapeño, which I didn't even bother to seed, it was not spicy at all. Normally I use my blender to chop and combine the herbs with the garlic, oil & red pepper flakes & vinegar. It was certainly tasty, but I think I will use this for a marinade; as a condiment only, it is just not spicy enough for us.

[LindaWhit]

I made some lovely browned chicken stock overnight in the crockpot, so half of it went into a small stockpot with 3/4 of my leftover turkey (saving some for one more decent turkey sandwich), a honkin' big carrot sliced up, leftover rice, some fresh broccoli florets (and towards the end, some leftover cooked broccoli added just to heat up), some cut-off-the-cob fresh corn I had frozen a few months ago (about a cup and a half), a cup of cannellini beans from the freezer, a bay leaf, some dried fine herbes, and some salt. It's on the flame tamer on a very low simmer.

Some garlic bread alongside using half of the ciabatta bread, and it's dinner. And at least two work lunches.

[linguafood]

I'm not much of a soup person at all, but I'd eat that in a shot. Yumboski.

[linguafood]

OK, so the seafood extravaganza won't be nearly as extravagant as I had hoped.... but also not as expensive :-)

Dinner tonight will be sfoglie d'ulivo (and unloved pasta shape at casa lingua, but it's got to be et at some point) with blanched green asparagus, tossed with the crazy-wonderful garlicky vietnamese noodles "sauce" -- mostly butter & garlic -- and topped with 3 seared scallops for each of us.

Should be tasty 'nuff.

[Dirtywextraolives]

I was contemplating doing scallops tonight too. Sounds really good!

[linguafood]

They came out really well. As for the sfoglie, I really think long-strand pasta is more suitable for the garlicky, buttery goodness that is the "sauce". Also we had way more asparagus than pasta, but that's probably a good thing :-)

No vampires showing up on our door (or in our 'hood) tonight, no way, ma'am.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Looks wonderful, linguafood. Nice job, will have to do something similar very soon! Can you elaborate on the "sauce"? TIA!

[linguafood]

It's basically the recipe for Vietnamese garlic noodles, a recipe that enjoyed quite some popularity here on the HC board for a while. You can probably just google it, but hey -- I got pepperplate open right now, so here goes:

VIETNAMESE GARLIC NOODLES

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4 as a side dish
10 ounces fresh or 8 ounces dried linguine pasta
1 tablespoon Shaoxing rice wine or dry sherry
Scant 1 tablespoon Maggi Seasoning Sauce
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 1/2 tablespoons packed mashed fresh garlic mixed with 2 teaspoons water
Salt, kosher preferred, to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook until tender (go beyond normal, chewy al dente). Ladle out and reserve 1/2 cup of the slightly thick cooking liquid. Drain the pasta. Drain the pasta but do not flush it with water.

To the reserved cooking liquid, add the rice wine (or sherry) and Maggi Seasoning Sauce. Set aside near the stove.

Heat a skillet over medium-high heat and add the 1/4 cup butter. Once it has melted, add the garlic. Cook, stirring frequently for just 1 to 2 minutes, until softened, fragrant and just about to turn color. Add the reserved cooking liquid and stir to combine. When the mixture vigorously boils, raise the heat to high, then add the warm pasta.
Cook, stirring with tongs, until the sauce clings to the pasta and there is no liquid visible in the skillet. Remove from the heat, season with salt, and then stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon butter to add a final rich note. Divide the noodles between 4 bowls and serve immediately.

Full disclosure -- I did NOT add an extra TBS of butter at the end. B/c the pasta I used was small-shaped, it certainly didn' need any extra butter it wouldn't soak up.

But with fettuccine or linguine it is decadently delicious, and while it's garlicky, it's not bitingly so.

PS: REALLY fast dinner, too!

[Dirtywextraolives]

Thank you so much for copying it for me, perhaps this was hashed out before I became a member of the club....!

[linguafood]

It is so, so good. If it weren't for the pasta and the 1/2 stick o'butter, I could have this at least twice a week. Ah, to be 10 again....

[mariacarmen]

those noodles are a revelation, i always say.

[linguafood]

I could eat green grass (not *that* kind) with that garlic butter sauce. Bricks, even.

[jenscats5]

Oh wow that sounds good! <<copying for future use>>

[mariacarmen]

ah, there they are. FANTASTIC!

[gingershelley]

Excellent scallops can cover a lot of sins, missy... - and THOSE garlic noodles! Enjoy:)

[ChristinaMason]

We stopped in an Italian market during our Sunday stroll today and picked up some dried Italian sausage (cacciatorini) and giant green olives (cerignole, I think). Those are being enjoyed with the last of the Thanksgiving mourvedre. The main will be a white bean and kielbasa soup with lots of kale, plus some things from the crisper: haricots verts, rutabaga, and...?

Jungmann, I'm with you. Once the leftovers stuffing the fridge are eaten down, it's lower-carb time til Christmas. I don't want anyone mistaking the layer near my waist for a wreath :)

[JungMann]

Coincidentally I saw cacciatorini for the first time today during a failed search for sobrasada for the rabbit dish I actually wanted to make. How does it taste? I'm usually reluctant to experiment with what my Long Island friends colorfully call "greasy meats" since they often taste like little aside from grease to me.

[ChristinaMason]

It was delicious! I'm no expert in cured meats (aside from just eating them), but this one was very tasty. It had a nice chew, good spicing, and reminded me a bit of chorizo without all the paprika. And it wasn't greasy at all---think pepperoni with bigger chunks of meat and fat. I would do it again.

[JungMann]

I am a big fan of Spanish sausages, so saying the cacciatorini tastes like chorizo is really baiting the trap specifically for me. I'll give it a try.

[JungMann]

I have no leftovers since I was a guest rather than host at this year's Thanksgiving, but that does not mean I do not *feel* as though I am weighed down with an excess of food. On the contrary, I feel like I'm carrying about a kilo of stuffing and mashed potatoes around my midsection right now. To make up for it, we're having game tonight, rabbits to be specific. They are intensely lean with an ideal ratio of protein to calories, so they are perfect not just for the season, but also for those of us counting carbs and calories around the holidays. Since it's cold, I'm leaning in the direction of a hearty cacciatore-style braise served atop Dreamfield rotini. There's frozen spinach to round out the meal, probably to be tossed with toasted almonds, sherry vinegar and Urfa pepper. And in a nod to Stir Up Sunday we'll be stirring up a pudding for dessert. Sugar-free pistachio Jell-o pudding might not be traditional, but it's a personal favorite.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Yum, sounds good!

[LindaWhit]

Love the idea of a cacciatore-style braise - enjoy!

[gingershelley]

JM - DO tell about 'stir up Sunday" ?

Rabbit sounds like it would be great in the pot about now!

[JungMann]

We touched on Stir Up Sunday round these parts when I mistakenly got a head start on my holiday preparations: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/8754...

Rabbit was tasty, though the sauce was crying out for acid. I must start purchasing drier wines so I've got something appropriate for sauce making rather than just getting sauced.

[gingershelley]

Ah, yes - how could I forget - the ol' figgy pudding mix day!

[jenscats5]

Don't have a ton of T-day leftovers (which is how I planned it!), but with the turn in chillier weather, I'm moving on to something hearty. Beef Stew came to mind & with some tips from an old CH thread, I'm hoping it will taste better than my attempts in the past.

[linguafood]

Beef stew will be on the agenda here soon as well. It sure is getting colder...

[jenscats5]

And to boot, it's a gray & windy day here.....good day for it!!

So I sauteed up some bacon slices, removed them from the pan then seared the beef cubes in the bacon fat. By the 4th batch, had to add some oil. After the meat was seared, I sauteed onion, carrot, celery, mushrooms & added some leftover diced tomatoes, broth, red wine, tomato paste, salt/pepper, bay leaf & Wooooooster-shire sauce. Smelling good so far!!

Bears game on the TV......Da Bears!

[mariacarmen]

yum. always forget to think of using bacon for fat. stupid me.

[jenscats5]

OK so thanks to Chowhound, my beef stew was DELICIOUS!! I've never really been happy with how I've made it in the past - bland & flavorless......Today's version was flavorful & not bland. Even my vegetarian husband said it smelled good.....

Got 1 container for the fridge & 2 for the freezer.

[LindaWhit]

Beef stew is always better a day or so later! Glad it worked out well for you, jenscat!

[gingershelley]

Happy beef stew CH success!

Isn't it great how we help each other be better cooks? Happy Thanksgiving for all the help and support here:)

[jenscats5]

It IS wonderful!! I've gotten some great ideas here and some excellent tips for improving things.....The WFD threads really are interesting to read....

[linguafood]

I've been dealing with a stomach bug these last few days, so wasn't really able to partake in much of the TG feasting. My "meals" on Friday and Saturday consisted of Greek yogurt w/honey and tomato soup for dinner. Yay.

However, things are on the upturn, as I could actually snack on some drunken noodles (besides a rather boring wonton soup) yesterday at the occasion of a poker game. During which I lost a whopping $45.... thankfully, my man won most of that money and then some, so I've decided we will splurge on a seafood extravaganza tonight.

This will likely include scallops, maybe some king crab legs, maybe some lobster salad -- we'll see what the Wegmans seafood section has to offer today -- and some vegetable or salad on the side that won't kill me :-)

[LindaWhit]

Very bad timing on the stomach buggie, lingua! But sounds like you're feeling better with the seafood extravaganza!

[linguafood]

Yea, just my luck to come down with that before turkey day. Wah.

But the plat de fruits de mer should make up for it :-)

[Harters]

I'm a complete sucker for a fruits de mer ever since we had a lunchtime one at Calais before getting the ferry back to the UK. Weirdly located restaurant at the top of an apartment block - great views though - could see England 22 miles away. Whelks, winkles, brown shrimps (the ones the French call grey), oysters, prawns and langoustine. And that was just a starter - main course, cheese and dessert to follow.

[linguafood]

Whoa, nice! Not sure how nuts we'll go on the bivalves /raw bar part of the meal, as we've had a bunch of nasty cuts (due to overwhelming stupidity) in the house lately, so the idea of shucking oysters or other clams is a daunting one :-)

I shall report after my shopping trip on tonight's bounty....

[gingershelley]

Hi Lingua, sorry you were feeling poorly in 'the days of eating' - but glad you rallied for a fine Plata de Pesce! That is a rallying turn!

Hope delish....

[mariacarmen]

and think of the carbs you saved.

[jenscats5]

Seafood extravaganza sounds delicious LF! Glad to hear you are feeling better!

[mariacarmen]

holy hell, you MADE that scallops dish i saw on that other social networking site??? beautiful, 'twas!

[linguafood]

Aw, shucks. I did. But it really was ridiculously easy. And my ipod camera sucks. All fuzzy.

[Bacardi1]

Since yesterday was "Small Business Saturday", I registered my Amex card & got a $25 credit towards our dinner last night at a local participating BBQ place.

Sampler Appetizer Platter (chicken tenders, onion strings, fried pickle chips, ribs), Pulled Chicken sandwich with cole slaw (fabulous, by the way), & a Turkey Burger with Mac & Cheese on the side.

With Amex's $25 credit, we pretty much ended up with meal for free. Can't beat that.

[Harters]

Dinner comes mainly from our "cookbook of the moment" - "Favourite Middle Eastern Recipes", Pat Chapman, 1992. This was a brief foray into the food from that part of the world for Chapman, whose foody background is definitely set in the cuisine of south asia. He's founder of the UK's "Curry Club" which has published a guide to the best around (at least I assume it still does - havnt bought a copy in many years).

I'm going to use his recipe for a quick houmous - tin of chickpeas, tahine,lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, whizzed in the processor. He also suggests usign garlic powder instead of real garlic - well, I'll be ignoring that as I havnt got a clue what garlic powder might be or why anyone might consider it in preference to the real thing.

There'll be another mezze dish from the book - Loub'yeh b'zayt. Green beans in oil, garlic, tomatoes, chopped coriander. And there'll be bits and bobs of other mezze stuff from the fridge. Herself made flatbreads a couple of weeks ago and froze them away. They'll do nicely.

For a main course, an Iranian lamb Koresh. Cubed lamb, onion, turmeric, cinnamon, cloves, sumak, lime (should be dried but I'm using fresh) and dried apricots. A little water moistens it and it cooks in the oven for round about an hour. Patna rice will be the carb.

[LindaWhit]

The lamb koresh sounds great! And dried garlic powder *is* useful in some instances - I like to mix it with dried parsley and use it for garlic bread.

[JungMann]

Some people might recommend using dessicated garlic in hummus since it is less aggressive than raw garlic and doesn't affect the texture of a truly smooth hummus. Like you, however, I stick with the real stuff. Mashed in the mortar and pestle with salt, garlic paste does just the trick for my homemade recipe.

The khoresh sounds terrific, by the way, as does the entire meal in general.

[ChristinaMason]

I use fresh garlic, too, but I mellow the clove over low heat in some olive oil before mashing (use the garlic oil, too, naturally).

The best "trick" I've found for making hummus is to simmer canned chickpeas for another 15 min. or so in their liquid until they are super-soft before pureeing. This makes for an extra-smooth hummus.

[Dirtywextraolives]

Tonight is a simple turkey noodle soup with garlic bread grilled cheese sammies for the kids, and a turkey Cobb salad with bacon, blue cheese, tomatoes, avocado, olives, & a hard boiled egg for us. Whatever is leftover of the soup with be used as stock for the next few days, if anymore is left over, I'll freeze it.

[mariacarmen]

ok, this is cheating, but it WAS going to be WFD tonight. instead, it was WFBrunch today. Turkey hash with red peppers, scallions, garlic, shallots, and a poached egg. a little aleppo too. hit the spot.

the BF has threatened to make pizza dough tonight, since we now have a stone. we'll see.

[LindaWhit]

NICE! What a wonderful brunch meal - and a great way to use up some leftovers.

[steve h.]

That's a good looking meal, mc.

Keep us posted with the pizza experiments.

edited to add: Deb was a tad under the weather this evening and chose not to eat. I pulled a burger patty out of the freezer, caramelized some onions, melted cheese on top of the meat disk, toasted a roll and there you have it. There were Lay's Kettle Fried chips on the side. Maybe a slice of the leftover apple galette later on. Notre Dame/USC will be on the plasma.

[mariacarmen]

Thanks steve! sorry to hear about Deb, hope it's a very temporary thing.

the pizza was not an unmitigated success, unfortunately. he actually made three different doughs, as he was just trying to see which crust would be best. one is still rising. the other two we tasted plain, and they were fine. then he made one with pesto (frozen fresh from this summer) and some mozz, and another with shallots and dry cured olive pieces. mehhhhhh.... they were ok, just not PIZZA, they were more like flatbreads or something. a little dense. nice and thin, but the end result was crackery and not soft in the middle - which i think may have something to do with not enough sauce? anyway. kudos to him for trying. he looked at a variety of different recipes/methods. but it's back to the drawing board at this point. and we totally know that there are SO many variables to deal with.

[steve h.]

Yep, no quickie nirvana when it comes to pizza at home.
Keep us posted as things develop.

[juliejulez]

We're going out for steak around 4 :) My folks are flying out late tonight so we decided to forego having turkey again and get something different.

It'll probably be back to turkey sandwiches tomorrow though. I caught BF's cold and won't be up to cooking much. I do make a good one though on ciabatta rolls with bacon and honey mustard. I'll keep enough out to make me some sandwiches for lunch at work next week but after that, it's all going in the freezer to save for other things later on once we're not tired of turkey.

[LindaWhit]

Ohhhhh! BACON on a turkey sandwich with honey mustard. Nicely done, julie! I might have to save some turkey for a work sandwich next week vs. putting it into soup or freezing it. :-)

[juliejulez]

It's one of my favorite combos! I also wrap up the made sandwich in a paper towel and microwave it for about 30 seconds, to soften up the ciabatta roll and make it warm :)

[Bacardi1]

Last night we enjoyed our traditional day-after-Thanksgiving meal - TAKEOUT CHINESE - lol!!
Gives the cook (as in me) a break, & is definitely different from the T-Day meal.

Enjoyed Egg Drop Soup, Boneless Spare Ribs with Pork Fried Rice, Crispy Shrimp with White Rice, & Egg Rolls. Worked for me. ;)

[Breadcrumbs]

Earlier this month I was in London on business and dined at a CH recommended Italian restaurant called Bocca. The entire meal was divine. When I returned home I purchased their cookbook and was delighted to see the recipe for Orecchiette with ‘Nduja that I so enjoyed at the restaurant. If I remember correctly, the restaurant makes their own sausages and I’d have to say, it was the quality of the Nduja that differentiates the restaurant dish from the cookbook version of the recipe I made tonight. Although I paid a hefty price for my Italian-imported sausage, it had far more paprika than that in the Bocca restaurant dish and ultimately, the restaurant dish prevailed. Nonetheless, this made for a tasty dinner and our Tuscan Lucente paired nicely. The first pic is one I took of the delicious dish at the restaurant. The other two are of tonight’s home version.

[Harters]

'Nduja seems to be THE ingredient in the UK at the moment. And served with orecchiette seems a favourite way - was our introduction to 'nduja a few weeks back (http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/872655)

[Breadcrumbs]

Thanks for sharing that Harters, it sounds as though we enjoyed almost identical dishes. I wish this unusual sausage was enjoying the same popularity here however I'm only aware of one restaurant using it at the moment and in their case, it's smeared on a pizza and not nearly as pleasing as it was in Bocca's pasta.

btw, your review has left me craving sardine filets on toast. We had this for the first time at a restaurant in Bagno Vignoni in Tuscany. The freshness of the tender fish atop a small crostini w just hint of garlic is one of those food memories that we still recall with fondness today. We've had it again, including at home but somehow we've never quite been able to replicate that experience.

[Harters]

Since my earlier post, I've been to the local shop and come across 'nduja in yet another new form. Now offered as sliced alongside the other pre-packaged sandwich meats.

I think it's taking over the world. You read it here first!

[Breadcrumbs]

...or at least the UK Harters!! Hopefully word of your proclamation will reach this side of the pond and Toronto will become awash w 'nduja in all it's shapes and forms!!

I can't imagine how you'd "slice" it. The versions I've seen have been quite soft and spreadable. Where there's a will there's a way I guess!!

[linguafood]

Isn't it weird about the sudden explosion of nduja all over the place?

I've had it for the first time ever at a brew pub in Milwaukee a few weeks ago as part of a charcuterie platter. While it's very similar to the German teawurst (a smoked sausage spread that is awesomely addictive), I love that it has a bit of spice in it.

I'll have to have a look-see if Wegmans carries it at this point....

[gingershelley]

That is so interesting - it must be a UK thing, as orechietti is from Puglia, and Nduja is Calabrian; in Calabria, I understand Nduja is usually just served spread on bread.... Must be a 'trendy Chef' thing to serve it in a cooked pasta dish...

[mariacarmen]

i have happily had it served stuffed into calamari. IT'S SO GOOD!

[Harters]

'Nduji stuffed squid? WAAAANT!

[gingershelley]

YUM! I so far have not found Nduja here in SEA. Sigh.

[mariacarmen]

i love the stuff too, and your dish looks wonderful.

[LindaWhit]

Both dishes look VERY good, Breadcrumbs!

[GretchenS]

Oh YUM Breadcrumbs!

[roxlet]

Since we left Thanksgiving behind in La Jolla, we are moving on. Tonight we are having a visit from a couple of old friends, and she is half Greek, so we're veering off into the eastern Mediterranean. We'll start with a greek salad, and our main will be moussaka, which I'm really looking forward to. My husband says he doesn't like eggplants, but there are two exceptions, moussaka being one, and the eggplant and meatball pizza at Yorkside in New Haven being the other. For dessert, I will make some sort of pie. My son is agitating for another lemon meringue pie, but I will see if I come up with another interesting option that also only requires a bottom crust.

[Harters]

Not so much the Thanksgiving aftermath as the start of the Xmas festivities at Casa Harters.

That's involved a trip that we do once or twice a year to a farmers market about an hour away into the next county (Derbyshire). We've stocked up on some produce that'll put in appearances round that time. It was good for locally shot wild game - pheasant, mallard and pigeon are now all in the freezer. There were also some foody gifts purchaed - a couple of tiny Xmas puddings, some biscuits and the like. And a rare treat in the local cafe - a "full English" breakfast - sausage, bacon, black pudding, egg, mushrooms, tomatoes, fried bread. The "Full Monty" as we'd say. Well, it stops you getting peckish. And all for £5.

Oh, and we also bought the makings for dinner.

We'll be starting with smoked salmon, dill mayo and a slice of herself's homemade bread.

Followed by free range Large White pork belly. It'll be roasted simply and, hopefully, will have crackling that, when snapped, will be heard in Boston, Lincolnshire if not Boston, Massachusetts. There'll be baked potatoes. And long braised red cabbage with a chopped Bramley apple and a good grate of nutmeg.

Nothing for "afters" unless a bit of fruit calls to us.

[roxlet]

Wow, that's a great day of farmer's market shopping, eating, and cooking! It sounds wonderful!

[LindaWhit]

Good point - I just changed the subject line to reflect the early Christmas set-up. :-) And £5 for that full English breakfast is a deal! Enjoy the crispies on the pork belly! Still something I've not cooked for myself.

[ChristinaMason]

my kind of day shopping and eating! dinner sounds divine.

[mariacarmen]

oh my! you are stocked to the gills with delights!

[GretchenS]

Everything about your day and your eating during it sounds wonderful!

[LindaWhit]

As for me, I've enjoyed a turkey, goat cheese, cranberry-orange relish and lettuce on ciabatta as a Thanksgiving Day "late dinner", I had leftovers of everything last night for dinner, and I'll probably have another sandwich today for lunch. But after that, I think I'm freezing the rest or I'll make a quick turkey-rice-kale-and-whatever-else-soup for freezing.

Tonight, I'm having steak tips. My local butcher gives 20% off marinated meats after a Patriots win - and after Thursday's game, I *had* to go in and get a couple of burgundy sirloin tips (I'll add some Aleppo pepper before I grill them). So it's WFD tonight, along with a baked potato (sour cream and butter) and a salad. Not sure of the vinaigrette I'll make, but I bought a nice little small capacity bottle with a hermetically sealed ceramic cap at The Container Store earlier in the week that'll be great for me to make a small amount of vinaigrette and shake it up. A good work salad dressing bottle. (Psssttt - they'd be great if any of you are gifting people with homemade vanilla or herb-infused oils!)