|
|
Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Oct 14, 2024 9:04:53 GMT -5
I've been on vacation since last Monday and it's been a combination of cooking, pulling stuff out of the freezer I already cooked, eating dinner at someone else's house, and takeout, depending on what day it is. I had a friend from Boston visit last week and introduced him to the magic of chicken korma and naan, from-scratch pasta sauce with chicken-feta sausage on fettuccine, and the pho ga I made back in May. His reaction to these foods was as hilarious as it was consistent: "I don't think my family seasons things, Shulkie, they gotta start seasoning things," is a phrase I heard more than once.
This morning, I'm making another olive oil cake — this time with raspberries and lemon zest — plus New Orleans-style barbecued shrimp for dinner tonight. (I just need to grab some bread from the store for that. And more butter.) Tomorrow I'm meeting my dad for lunch at our favorite bagel place, and I swiped a bunch of food from my parents' freezer yesterday when I was there to have the last steamed blue crabs of the season. I'll also make my spin on Mississippi pot roast when another friend comes to visit for a couple of days. HAHAHAHA! That is fantastic! |
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 14, 2024 9:04:54 GMT -5
I've been on vacation since last Monday and it's been a combination of cooking, pulling stuff out of the freezer I already cooked, eating dinner at someone else's house, and takeout, depending on what day it is. I had a friend from Boston visit last week and introduced him to the magic of chicken korma and naan, from-scratch pasta sauce with chicken-feta sausage on fettuccine, and the pho ga I made back in May. His reaction to these foods was as hilarious as it was consistent: "I don't think my family seasons things, Shulkie, they gotta start seasoning things," is a phrase I heard more than once. This reminds me a little of the first time I made pot roast for TWBE and he was like wait, THIS is what it's supposed to taste like?? |
|
|
|
Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Oct 14, 2024 9:11:17 GMT -5
I, too, will be on vacation starting Wednesday of this week. So my meal planning is easy-peasy...
Last Night: I made what turned into a really fantastic rice-and-beans/taco bowl sort of thing, using Caballero beans from Rancho Gordo. The bean goo ended up having chicken and poblanos and everything quick simmered together in some of our garden's plum tomatoes, and I made a really nice salsa fresca with some of the last slicing tomatoes from one of my farmshares. Good times! And it made enough lunches for our two workdays this week.
Monday: I should do something that uses up an assortment of veggies (and a lot of leafy greens), but I'm going to make stovetop mac & cheese with broccoli.
Tuesday: It's Getaway Day! We'll have pancakes! And I'll ignore those leafy greens for one more night!
Wednesday-Sunday: On the road, at New York Sheep & Wool Festival!
|
|
|
|
Post by Floyd Diabolical Barber on Oct 15, 2024 18:39:46 GMT -5
A couple of years ago we bought a used Blackstone 5 burner flattop griddle at a yard sale. It sat buried on the carport since, but we finally got the carport cleaned enough to get to it, and we fired it up for dinner at the kid's birthday party. It had some surface rust, but I looked up cleaning and re-seasoning videos, and it turned out great. I hadn't really cooked burgers on a flattop in 50 years, when I sometimes used to run the Quarter Pounder grill when I worked at Mickey D's, but I remembered enough of the basics that the burgers came out great. The next morning Mrs Floyd did breakfast on it, bacon, eggs, and pancakes. I wish I had thought to take a picture, It was a thing of beauty. I made ribeye's tonight, and they came out great. I am so stoked to see what all we can do on it. We are already talking about trying some Hibachi cooking.
J, our girl who turns 18 next month, made some fantastic ribs for lunch at the party. She made them before I got the flattop ready, and I don't know if she did them on the BBQ grill or in the oven, but they were amazing. They were a big hit with everybody and she got lots of compliments on them.
We have found some transferrable and accredited culinary classes in a nearby town that she may be able to take afternoons two days a week next semester. We are looking into that, and she seems really excited about it. We are hoping we can coordinate it with her high school with no conflicts.
|
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 16, 2024 8:23:53 GMT -5
I made chicken noodle soup last night, pretty basic, just chopped/shredded braised chicken, sauteed onion & carrot, dumped it all in with a bunch of seasonings and better than bullion broth, added egg noodles. My noodle-to-broth ratio was a little off, but the flavor was spot on. I was asking my notoriously vegetable-averse husband* if there was anything he'd change for next time, and he said "this is going to sound weird, coming from me, but more vegetables?"  By which he meant bigger chunks of carrot/onion and maybe some celery, I am not a huge celery fan but it's fine in soup, I could see it. *he eats a small salad most nights at his own request but my making - just greens and carrot - and will eat potatoes, corn, you know, the starchy ones that are good with butter. I hide spinach or peppers in some soups, but overall, it requires creativity. No green beans or veggie stir-frys here. |
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 21, 2024 8:39:06 GMT -5
Food? Food.
Sunday: chicken sliders, salad
Monday: Chicken enchiladas, chips, salsa, salad
Tuesday: bbq pork flatbread
Wednesday: taquitos, salad
Thursday: roasted tomato soup & bread
|
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster 
Posts: 10,278 
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 21, 2024 9:05:32 GMT -5
I'm back. I never went anywhere, but I also wasn't stuck on my computer all day, so the desire opportunities to post were less.
On Saturday we hosted the family for a combined birthday party for both of my kids. Hers is late September, his is early November, and I really don't want to pester people by asking them to drive all the way out to our place twice in so short a time, especially with Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings just down the road.
Very happy with the menu and how it all worked out: Pulled pork Pulled chicken Pork belly burnt ends* Corn salad with southwest spices, kinda like a succotash but no lima beans Coleslaw Mac-n-cheese
*Pork belly burnt ends are: cubes of fresh pork belly rubbed in a traditional sweet bbq rub (Meat Church Honey Hog Hot this go round), smoked low for a few hours until tender, around 195-200F, then smothered in a mix of your choice of bbq sauce (Kinder's Peach Bourbon this time) and honey, then back on the smoker to "tack up." They are outrageously delicious. Effectively a candy. A confection. Two of them will be the best thing you've ever eaten, five of them will make you hate yourself. Got HUGE ups for these things. |
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 21, 2024 9:38:19 GMT -5
Hosting a big meal always leaves me ruined of ideas for the coming week. Remaining fresh ingredients include: burger buns, so much cabbage. So let's at least try to weave those in somewhere.
Monday: Pasta night; really not sure what I'm feeling here. I have a little cream on hand, so maybe like a pesto cream sauce kind of thing. With veggies? Cannellini beans? I don't know, man.
Tuesday: Burgers; choice of toppings or mushroom-swiss if you're me. Oven fries.
Wednesday: Crispy chicken, sticky rice, sauteed cabbage
Thursday: Asian stir-fry to use up more cabbage. Maybe with noodles, maybe not.
Friday: Pizza night at home
|
|
GumTurkeyles
AV Clubber 
$10 down, $10 a month, don't you be a turkey
Posts: 3,065
|
Post by GumTurkeyles on Oct 22, 2024 7:41:08 GMT -5
I came back from my work trip in CA with a cold. I did have covid 1 1/2 months ago, so I've been avoiding taking a test, but just as likely that I picked up another strain.
Anyway, I made chicken soup for dinner yesterday. Of course, I was not expecting the New England late October weather to hit 81 degrees.
Tonight I'm going to do something with chicken thighs. I've done the instant pot chicken and salsa meal before and might do that again, but these are skin-on, bone in. So I'd have to put some work in deboning. So I might just crisp up the skin and then saute/steam.
The sticky rice LazBro mentioned makes me want coconut rice, so I might do that as a side.
|
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 22, 2024 7:58:16 GMT -5
Do the refrigerated or fresh pasta sections in your supermarkets carry gnocchi? I came across a gnocchi soup recipe that looks really good, but the chef highly recommended "the kind you get in the refrigerator section, not the dry pasta section." My Kroger didn't have any, and come to think of it, I don't know that I remember ever seeing fresh gnocchi at the grocery store. Wondering if it's a regional thing.
I don't particularly want to make them, and that shelf-stable stuff is pretty lackluster, in my experience. Don't think I've ever used it in a soup, though.
|
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 22, 2024 8:14:58 GMT -5
Do the refrigerated or fresh pasta sections in your supermarkets carry gnocchi? I came across a gnocchi soup recipe that looks really good, but the chef highly recommended "the kind you get in the refrigerator section, not the dry pasta section." My Kroger didn't have any, and come to think of it, I don't know that I remember ever seeing fresh gnocchi at the grocery store. Wondering if it's a regional thing.
I don't particularly want to make them, and that shelf-stable stuff is pretty lackluster, in my experience. Don't think I've ever used it in a soup, though.
Hmm, I think I've only seen frozen. Fresh section usually has like tortellini and that kind of thing. I'll have to pay attention next week. |
|
|
|
Post by The Stuffingtacular She-Hulk on Oct 22, 2024 11:19:07 GMT -5
Do the refrigerated or fresh pasta sections in your supermarkets carry gnocchi? I came across a gnocchi soup recipe that looks really good, but the chef highly recommended "the kind you get in the refrigerator section, not the dry pasta section." My Kroger didn't have any, and come to think of it, I don't know that I remember ever seeing fresh gnocchi at the grocery store. Wondering if it's a regional thing.
I don't particularly want to make them, and that shelf-stable stuff is pretty lackluster, in my experience. Don't think I've ever used it in a soup, though.
Yeah, most of the supermarkets here carry fresh gnocchi here - but this is the East Coast. Having had both kinds, I recommend fresh every time you can manage to get it. The texture and taste are superior. You can freeze it without cooking first, FYI! You might want to give a call to any Italian delis/markets near you and see if they have some. But PET's mention of frozen would be good, too. They're definitely not going to have all that shelf-stable stuff in them. |
|
Baron von Costume
TI Forumite
Like an iron maiden made of pillows... the punishment is decadence!
Posts: 4,683
|
Post by Baron von Costume on Oct 23, 2024 9:24:19 GMT -5
Yeah can usually find some in the 'deli' section hereabouts.
|
|
|
|
Post by Prole Hole on Oct 24, 2024 6:16:04 GMT -5
My fella and I have fallen into a terrible food trap whereby once a week we will have enchiladas while slouched in front of the telly watching (usually) some form of Star Trek. These are not what you'd call authentic - Old El Paso processed stuff with a few extra Mexican herbs/spices and made with chicken thighs, bell/Spanish peppers and onions, whacked in the oven with a mountain of cheese on top.
I say terrible, it's absolutely awesome and I love it.
|
|
|
|
Post by The Stuffingtacular She-Hulk on Oct 24, 2024 11:54:43 GMT -5
My fella and I have fallen into a terrible food trap whereby once a week we will have enchiladas while slouched in front of the telly watching (usually) some form of Star Trek. These are not what you'd call authentic - Old El Paso processed stuff with a few extra Mexican herbs/spices and made with chicken thighs, bell/Spanish peppers and onions, whacked in the oven with a mountain of cheese on top. I say terrible, it's absolutely awesome and I love it. Dude, I have a culinary degree and access to like a dozen Latino supermarkets within a 20-minute drive of my apartment and one of my favorite "I don't know what else to make" dishes is white-person tacos with flour tortillas, ground meat (usually turkey), salsa, cheese, and sour cream. Maybe some avocado if I'm feeling fancy. Never feel shame for enjoying a delicious and satisfying dish with enough cheese to choke Mr. Creosote. |
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 24, 2024 12:03:22 GMT -5
Basic ground beef tacos are actually on my to-do list right now. If not Saturday, for sure some time next week. I've got sour cream on hand, which is rare, and I can't get the idea of tacos supreme out of my head. I must have it.
|
|
|
|
Post by pantsgoblin on Oct 24, 2024 12:49:29 GMT -5
Basic ground beef tacos are actually on my to-do list right now. If not Saturday, for sure some time next week. I've got sour cream on hand, which is rare, and I can't get the idea of tacos supreme out of my head. I must have it.  |
|
|
|
Post by Prole Hole on Oct 25, 2024 3:01:52 GMT -5
My fella and I have fallen into a terrible food trap whereby once a week we will have enchiladas while slouched in front of the telly watching (usually) some form of Star Trek. These are not what you'd call authentic - Old El Paso processed stuff with a few extra Mexican herbs/spices and made with chicken thighs, bell/Spanish peppers and onions, whacked in the oven with a mountain of cheese on top. I say terrible, it's absolutely awesome and I love it. Dude, I have a culinary degree and access to like a dozen Latino supermarkets within a 20-minute drive of my apartment and one of my favorite "I don't know what else to make" dishes is white-person tacos with flour tortillas, ground meat (usually turkey), salsa, cheese, and sour cream. Maybe some avocado if I'm feeling fancy. Never feel shame for enjoying a delicious and satisfying dish with enough cheese to choke Mr. Creosote. Noted for future reference! |
|
|
|
Post by The Stuffingtacular She-Hulk on Oct 27, 2024 17:13:42 GMT -5
I've had what can best be described as a "vat" of bolognese on the stove for the past six hours. I can't wait to have some over pappardelle with a nice big salad dressed in oil and vinegar on the side. It smells so freaking good in here.
I'm also ridiculously excited because I found out that an authentic Colombian empanada place is literally within walking distance of my apartment. They're only open for dinner. I am definitely going to hit it up sometime this week. Apparently, it's been there for like four months? The reviews from Colombian folks who have visited give it high ratings, so I'm excited.
Pork chops with apples, sweet-and-sour red cabbage, and some kind of potato are also on the menu this week, as is lox, cream cheese, and onion on a pumpernickel bagel. I just need to pull the pork chops, lox, and bagel out of the freezer.
|
|
|
|
Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Oct 28, 2024 8:23:54 GMT -5
I'm back from some travels and a week of modest vacation cooking! And I have a pileup of stuff from the last few farm deliveries... so of course I have to go to an offsite meeting for the next few days in Philly and won't be fully back to normal until Thursday. That's two full weeks of topsy-turvy! UGH! (And I only have to go to this dumb meeting because my boss wants to feel like I'm feeling "valued" and "included", and I'm like, "Dude, I get a paycheck every two weeks. I'm feeling valued. It's fine.") This is FAR too long a time for me to go outside of my routine, and I can't get a handle at all on what's going on this week. It's the pits! Monday: I'm blowing off the reception dinner/meet-and-mingle event tonight in Philly, and instead taking a dinner-hour drive to the city. Whoops! Sorry, boss! I wasn't able to be there in time! ::bats eyelashes innocently:: So I'll scarf a quick early dinner of roasted carrots and broccoli atop rice, with a quick soy-butter sauce. Tuesday: Sigh. Although the offsite dinner is apparently at the Franklin Institute, which I've somehow managed never to go to, so I'm moderately psyched for that. (We moved from Long Island, NY to Central NJ the summer between my last year of elementary school and my first year of middle school. The elementary school kids at my school made frequent field trips to the Franklin Institute, but by middle school we were apparently done with that. I have an enormous blind spot to the cultural institutions of our nearest city, just because I was going to the New York City ones during those school-trip years instead! American Museum of Natural History? Love it! Been many times! Franklin Institute, which is about an hour closer to me and apparently awesome? NOPE.) Wednesday: I should be home by early evening, and I'm hoping to make cider-glazed pork chops and mashed potatoes. Possibly with collards, possibly with roasted cauliflower. Time will tell. Thursday: I have no idea. I'm not going to the grocery store this week, so it has to be something I already have in the house. And I want it to be either quick, or easy to make in the afternoon, because we are in the thick now of our "Thursday nights holiday-season board games" time of year. I believe we have another evening of Sagrada on the agenda, so I can't have dinner prep getting in the way of that! Friday: Pancakes, I guess. |
|
|
|
Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Oct 28, 2024 8:37:30 GMT -5
Oh, and my travel dining report is CHEESE! Hugs and I drove up to scenic Rhinebeck, NY, last Wednesday evening for the NY Sheep & Wool Festival. Rhinebeck is a small town, in an area studded with the like, and we were technically staying in a different town, in a fairly nondescript chain hotel on a main thoroughfare. So we weren't settled in a particularly functional area for easy access to restaurants. Our preferred road-tripping dinner is a cheese-and-cured meats picnic in the hotel after a long day of driving, so we really enjoyed that on Wednesday night. This festival is pure insanity -- they get 30,000 people at this thing. So it's a trick to get yourself around Rhinebeck proper during that weekend; we were there a few days early for a pre-festival workshop, so were able to have a nice dinner in town on Thursday night, but wanted nothing to do with the town on Friday or Saturday (to illustrate, our hotel was 20 minutes from the fairgrounds in Rhinebeck on Thursday, and then in festival traffic it took 90 minutes to get back from the fairgrounds on Saturday). So we were delighted to see a nice cheese shop (called Cheese Louise! Who can resist?) while exploring town on Thursday, and we loaded up our room's little mini-fridge. So yes, reader, that is how I managed to have cheese-and-cured-meats picnics on Friday and Saturday nights as well. Three dinners out of four! That's just good, healthy eating!
|
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 28, 2024 8:45:31 GMT -5
I love the Franklin Institute! I even went back in 2015 or so, and it was still fun.
We had a lovely evening Saturday with delicious tacos and speakeasy drinks, although I ate like.... one portion too many chips and so was SO full by the time we got to the speakeasy. But it was fun. Our anniversary was yesterday.
Sunday: Italian chicken pizza subs
Monday: chili
Tuesday: Taco flatbread
Wednesday: tamales
Thursday: buffalo chicken mac n cheese
|
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 28, 2024 8:54:40 GMT -5
I'm glad it's a light week of cooking, because I really feel that I'm at a breaking point with my family over them not eating anything I make and, as a result of this, spending every evening feeling dejected and pissed off. I'm like Bruce Banner. I'm always angry. Just plate after plate of food going in the trash, because I don't eat leftovers, and if they didn't eat it the first time around, chances are they won't eat it the second. Won't even eat the foods they used to eat. Just stared at the crispy chicken last week, and that's a pain in the ass to make! Last night, for the first time in my life, I made pitch perfect Mexican rice. Virtually indistinguishable from the stuff they will wolf down at our favorite Tex-Mex joint. I was so proud that I finally found a recipe and method that worked out like I wanted. All three refused to take even a bite. Absolutely would not do it.
Anyway...
Sunday: Tacos "supreme" with fresh fried tortilla shells, ground beef, cheese, and sour cream. (I don't like tomatoes or lettuce on my tacos, so by "supreme" I really do just mean with sour cream.) I even bought Taco Bell brand hot sauce to top mine. It was so good. Mexican rice on the side.
Monday: Pasta night with classic meat sauce, salad.
Tuesday: Pizzas in the new outdoor oven. Classic cheese, and I'm still deciding on the night's more interesting option. I made a sausage and fennel pie a couple weeks ago that was outrageously good. I'm still mastering a crispy bottom crust, but on flavor, I would have put that pizza up against anything.
Wednesday: Pancakes, bacon, eggs, fruit.
Thursday: Halloween. We're going to eat out with my parents and then trick-or-treat in their neighborhood.
Friday: My son is staying overnight with his grandma, so the Mrs. and my daughter will probably go do something. I'm off the hook.
|
|
|
|
Post by Powerthirteen on Oct 28, 2024 16:24:48 GMT -5
My fella and I have fallen into a terrible food trap whereby once a week we will have enchiladas while slouched in front of the telly watching (usually) some form of Star Trek. These are not what you'd call authentic - Old El Paso processed stuff with a few extra Mexican herbs/spices and made with chicken thighs, bell/Spanish peppers and onions, whacked in the oven with a mountain of cheese on top. I say terrible, it's absolutely awesome and I love it. You're 100% authentic! This is the traditional food of the Tex-Mex peoples of the southwestern US, as it has been cooked by their mothers for generations. |
|
GumTurkeyles
AV Clubber
$10 down, $10 a month, don't you be a turkey
Posts: 3,065
|
Post by GumTurkeyles on Oct 30, 2024 6:19:34 GMT -5
I made a faux chicken pot pie yesterday (in that it was real chicken but it was not a real pie; it only had the top crust). I've never made one before and it came out delicious. cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018330-modern-chicken-potpieI did end up adding veggies into it, and I only used about 1 cup of stock, and even then I think there was too much liquid. The recipe called for sherry. Fortunately I did have a bottle stored. I'm not sure when I bought it, so it's definitely a few years old, but what's it going to do, oxidize on me? Since then, I've been singing "Oh Sherry", even into this morning. Oh, Sherry Oxidized Fer-mented Graaaape Juiiiice |
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 30, 2024 7:43:46 GMT -5
Pizza night! My sixth (?) go with the Ooni Koda 16. I'm really dialing in my methodology now, delivering a crispy browned bottom while not over-toasting the outer crust or cooking the cheese so hard it splits. Last night's special pizza I would put up against anything. Apologies for my terrible photography skills or lack of attractive lighting. All pictures in my kitchen are bathed in the cold, unflinching glare of uncovered white LEDs. Check'em out. Cheese
Brussels sprouts, bacon, and goat cheese, with a parmesan-garlic cream base. Inspired by the Mrs.' favorite pizza, on the menu at the Alamo Drafthouse. |
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 30, 2024 7:46:55 GMT -5
And related: the rolling pizza cutter is cool and all. It works just fine. But I think I wanna get one of those giant mezzalunas. Those curved blades you see at pizza joints. That looks way more fun.
|
|
|
|
Post by Pedantic Editor Type on Oct 30, 2024 7:53:40 GMT -5
And related: the rolling pizza cutter is cool and all. It works just fine. But I think I wanna get one of those giant mezzalunas. Those curved blades you see at pizza joints. That looks way more fun. I often think I would love one of those, as often as we eat pizzas and flatbreads. But I have nowhere to put it  |
|
|
|
Post by Liz n Dicksgiving on Oct 31, 2024 9:39:33 GMT -5
Dang, LazBro, those pizzas look professional! And holy shit, that brussels sprouts one... |
|
LazBro
Prolific Poster
Posts: 10,278
|
Post by LazBro on Oct 31, 2024 11:08:26 GMT -5
Dang, LazBro , those pizzas look professional! And holy shit, that brussels sprouts one... I feel bad for being a hoarder, but my Kroger has had their fresh pizza dough on a BOGO sale for a couple weeks now, and every time I go in there I clean them out. I've got eight balls in the freezer, and each ball is two pizza of this size.
I'm going to continue working on homemade dough as well, of course, but the store bought stuff is so convenient, super easy to use, and everyone in the family seems to like it. Both of my kids will eat this pizza, which is a small miracle.
|
|
