What Did We Eat Today?

[JTMacc99]

Since the weather was going to be cooperative, and I knew I didn't have a lot on my plate yesterday, I smoked a whole turkey breast. You know, the free turkey breast you get for spending $X during the Thanksgiving or Easter season that then sits in the freezer for some period of time until you get around to it? That one.

In this case, it cooked up perfectly.  I don't bother brining it, although that would probably be a good idea. I do remove the backbone to go with a kind-of sort-of spatchcock style. It doesn't need me to flatten it out to smoke it, but I find it works better when I take this step. 

My son thinks turkey is boring, so I fried up some bacon and turned the turkey into a club sandwich. THAT is less boring.

[annzeepark914]

I made the Soup Nazi's Cream of Sweet Potato Soup. It was good. Not sure if I'll make it again. His Mulligatawny Soup is much better. Heh...I forgot to scowl, & growl, "No soup for you!" 😡

[Gramto6]

Another rather bland day of eating. I don't ever want to be that sick again!! Plain oatmeal for breakfast a small slice of bread with butter and part of a protein drink for lunch. A couple chicken wings fried in butter and boiled rice for dinner. 

Have to eat my freezer down as Thursday is my next Azure Standard.com pick up and I am going to need the space.

[chessiegal]

Friends from Alabama who visited us last week brought Conecuh Original Smoked Sausage made by the Conecuh Sausage Company in Evergreen, AL. We grilled it and served it with garlic rosemary potatoes. The sausage packs some heat. They have varieties that are even hotter, but this was plenty hot. A palate cleanser of watermelon for dessert.

[Anela]

I'm making a chicken stew that I linked to in the past. I don't really fancy it anymore, but I had to use the chicken, and the beans were soaked. It starts out with bacon frying, and I do that whole, if I use it at all, because I don't like the chunks of bacon in the stew. 

I have been off some foods recently. Just not wanting much of anything, even when my stomach is demanding food. I think it's a combination of depression and the heat. We had Mexican food earlier, and I didn't enjoy the taco at all. I only wanted the beans and rice. I was even off my iced chai, this past week, but that wasn't the case tonight, thank goodness. The bacon I mentioned above, along with the salsa and chips from the restaurant, was the best thing I've tasted in weeks. 

On 7/5/2022 at 6:14 PM, annzeepark914 said:

I made the Soup Nazi's Cream of Sweet Potato Soup. It was good. Not sure if I'll make it again. His Mulligatawny Soup is much better. Heh...I forgot to scowl, & growl, "No soup for you!" 😡

Potato soup might be next on the list for me. That's another thing I saved a recipe for, even though the weather is going to be 80+ or 90+ all week. 

[annzeepark914]

Curried shrimp on basmati rice, and Spicy Mango Salad (I prefer papaya).

[isalicat]

Grilled marinated flank steak with sliced heirloom tomatoes and some tabbouleh on the side. Followed by a perfect fresh peach.

[annzeepark914]

Grilled steak w/ horseradish sauce, sauted spinach, & roasted potatoes with a side of aioli. This trio reminds me of the meal I always order at the Tomato Cafe in Fishkill, NY. Love that place!

[Boston]

I didn't actually eat this yet.  This morning I made a huge pot of chili (went food shopping yesterday and they had previously frozen hamburger so i had to make it work today).  Came out great - I added a little unsweetened cocoa to it - and it is very depth of flavor good. Tomorrow - slow cooker bbq country style spare ribs with onions - goes good with green beans and potatoes of some kind. (some going to my friend, the rest in my freezer).  It's like i'm cooking for the end of the world, but hey, you have to be creative now.  Using the slow cooker early morning.  It is supposed to be HOT here all week.

Edited July 17, 2022 by Boston

[annzeepark914]

It's so hot I decided on a cool dish for supper. I made Ina's Lobster & Shells but subbed shrimp instead (I prefer lobster unadorned, with just a squirt of lemon). We had it on mixed greens. Need to do more of these light dishes while the heat continues.

[oliviabenson]

Yogurt

cereal

watermelon

at this rate I shall be skinny by fall 

[Yogisbooboo64]

Just had homemade shrimp linguine in a rich cheese sauce, washed down with a bottle of Turkey Hill Pomegranate Lemonade.

[chessiegal]

We went out to lunch today. I had shrimp tacos, my husband had red snapper tacos. For dinner, we're having heirloom tomatoes from my CSA box, stuffed with tuna salad.

[oliviabenson]

Eggplant parm 

[oliviabenson]

Cherries were $2.99 a pound so a big bag of cherries!

and I’m loving eggplant lately so I eat eggplant every day.

[BooksRule]

I picked up a chuck roast on sale at the store yesterday and planned to make a pot roast the slow cooker.  I also have the ingredients for a peach cobbler.  But, we've got rain coming in tomorrow, so I needed to mow my yard today.  I'm so wiped out from that chore that I just put a Stouffer's lasagna in the oven for lunch and will have some more for dinner (and I made a salad of grape tomatoes and sliced cucumber with some ranch dressing as an afternoon snack). I'll either make the pot roast tomorrow or put the roast in the freezer for another time.  I'm definitely baking the cobbler, though.  I've been craving one. :) 

[JTMacc99]

On 8/5/2022 at 12:46 PM, Yogisbooboo64 said:

Turkey Hill Pomegranate Lemonade.

What's the review on this?  My daughter has me looking for "no pulp" lemonades. I've got approval on Turkey Hill Pink Lemonade.  Is the Pomegranate Lemonade similar to the Pink one?

[Yogisbooboo64]

5 hours ago, JTMacc99 said:

What's the review on this?  My daughter has me looking for "no pulp" lemonades. I've got approval on Turkey Hill Pink Lemonade.  Is the Pomegranate Lemonade similar to the Pink one?

I've never had the pink lemonade.  All I can say is this one, next to the TH Orange Tea, is very addictive!

BooksRule, I'm coming with a nice sized bowl and strawberry Häagen-Dazs for the peach cobbler!!

[BooksRule]

1 hour ago, Yogisbooboo64 said:

BooksRule, I'm coming with a nice sized bowl and strawberry Häagen-Dazs for the peach cobbler!!

Sounds good! I would share with you if I could. I didn't bake the cobbler yesterday, but I'm getting ready to put it in the oven.  Unfortunately, I have no ice cream or whipped cream to have with it and I'm not going to the store.  I'll have to eat it 'plain' (but I'm sure that the amount of cinnamon and nutmeg I put in it will help).  Now the big question is:  Do I keep it for myself or do I take the pan (missing a serving or two, of course) to work tomorrow for others to enjoy?

[Yogisbooboo64]

38 minutes ago, BooksRule said:

Sounds good! I would share with you if I could. I didn't bake the cobbler yesterday, but I'm getting ready to put it in the oven.  Unfortunately, I have no ice cream or whipped cream to have with it and I'm not going to the store.  I'll have to eat it 'plain' (but I'm sure that the amount of cinnamon and nutmeg I put in it will help).  Now the big question is:  Do I keep it for myself or do I take the pan (missing a serving or two, of course) to work tomorrow for others to enjoy?

Pffftttt, IF there was any left to share!

Pictures!

Edited August 7, 2022 by Yogisbooboo64

[chessiegal]

I can't get over how good the heirloom tomatoes I'm getting from Clagett Farm in my CSA box are. I've never tasted anything like it. They are almost sweet. They are good with just salt and pepper, but for lunch today I added some tuna salad. Heaven.

Hamburgers with heirloom tomatoes on sesame seed buns for dinner tonight.

[isalicat]

I am crazy for tomatoes and love all the different heirloom kinds you can get in the summer around here. Strangely enough though some of the best tomatoes I've ever had are called "Campari Tomatoes" and they are sold at Albertsons (Vons/Safeway) through the house Signature Farms brand. They are totally sweet and always still on the vine in their little plastic box. $3.99 per lb. Well worth it! I eat at least one pretty much every day in my lunch salad.

[oliviabenson]

Even Though it’s like 90 degrees I made chicken soup. It was so good!

[annzeepark914]

19 hours ago, isalicat said:

I am crazy for tomatoes and love all the different heirloom kinds you can get in the summer around here. Strangely enough though some of the best tomatoes I've ever had are called "Campari Tomatoes" and they are sold at Albertsons (Vons/Safeway) through the house Signature Farms brand. They are totally sweet and always still on the vine in their little plastic box. $3.99 per lb. Well worth it! I eat at least one pretty much every day in my lunch salad.

The brand I get at Harris Teeter is called Villager. All the other Campari tomatoes around here have lost their taste (they all look beautiful, though 🥴). 

[Bastet]

12 hours ago, oliviabenson said:

Even Though it’s like 90 degrees I made chicken soup.

I was getting pretty low on chicken stock, so made some overnight.  I'll freeze part of it (I do it in ice cube trays, so I have individual one-ounce portions for thawing when I just need a little bit for something other than soup), and make wonton soup with the rest.  I don't remotely feel like having soup lunches in this weather, but hopefully once I smell it (I use lots of garlic and ginger) I'll get interested.

For dinner, I'm going to make cold shrimp salad tacos -- mix cooked shrimp with lime juice, onion, radish, tomatoes, cilantro, avocado, and habañero and put into a warm soft tortilla.  They're good summer tacos.

[annzeepark914]

Crabmeat salad, with tossed salad, Parmesan crostinis & Prosecco. And Strawberry & Cream Cake (it's so pretty & it's not overly sweet). We have to celebrate the change in weather by dining on the deck. 

[DearEvette]

Portobello mushroom Panninis - Ciabatta bread, pesto, provolone cheese, caramelized onions and portobello mushrooms. Accompanied by a side salad.

[annzeepark914]

Grilled burgers & brats; French fries & sweet potato fries, with spicy ketchup; sorta Caesar salad. No al fresco dining cause it started to rain (but I won't complain now that the temps are down 🎉😁).

[DearEvette]

Chicken Parmesan (made with breast tenderloins) and spinach linguini with pesto and pine nuts.

[chessiegal]

I had a green salad for lunch. I got a pint of heirloom cherry tomatoes from my CSA box this week. I added some to the salad in addition to eating some like candy. They were so flavorful!

[JTMacc99]

11 hours ago, chessiegal said:

I had a green salad for lunch. I got a pint of heirloom cherry tomatoes from my CSA box this week. I added some to the salad in addition to eating some like candy. They were so flavorful!

Interestingly, my favorite cherry tomatoes are an F1 hybrid (Sungold) that nobody can manage to grow out future generations to maintain the sweetness that the hybrid has. So I always grow one Sungold and mix it up with an heirloom cherry or two. 

I made a salad last night from a bunch of them, some mixed radishes I got from the farmers market and a scallion. It's something that my grandfather and father used to do with stuff from their gardens. 

[annzeepark914]

On 8/13/2022 at 6:50 PM, DearEvette said:

Portobello mushroom Panninis - Ciabatta bread, pesto, provolone cheese, caramelized onions and portobello mushrooms. Accompanied by a side salad.

This sounds really good. I marinate portobellos in olive oil, garlic & Worcestershire before grilling. I bet this combination would be like a steak sandwich.

Edited August 17, 2022 by annzeepark914

[DearEvette]

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

This sounds really good. I marinate portobellos in olive, garlic & Worcestershire before grilling. I bet this combination would be like a steak sandwich.

Yup, I marinate and grill the mushrooms before creating the pannini.  And yes, it is very filling.  I love portobello mushrooms, they are a really good meat alternative.

[theredhead77]

Boxed mac & cheese game changer:

Make the mac & cheese as you do and serve your portion
Sautee some mushrooms (I buy the giant dried mushroom container from Costco)
Add mushrooms to the portion
Add a drizzle of truffle oil
Consume

[annzeepark914]

3 hours ago, theredhead77 said:

Boxed mac & cheese game changer:

Make the mac & cheese as you do and serve your portion
Sautee some mushrooms (I buy the giant dried mushroom container from Costco)
Add mushrooms to the portion
Add a drizzle of truffle oil
Consume

Boxed mac & cheese with additions can be really tasty (& fast!) I like to add chopped green chilies, some Monterrey Jack, & a bit of garlic powder. 

[Gramto6]

I had half of an organic beef burger on 1/2 an organic bun. On one quarter of the bun I put a little Best Foods mayo, on the other quarter East Shore Key Lime with Ginger Mustard with dash of Humble House Habanero & Aji Amarillo sauce with grilled onions and roasted garlic. A side of The Real Dill Jalapeno Honey dills and a couple tbsp of Oregon Brineworks marinated ginger root and carrots (like sauerkraut). The burger was marinated in Kentuckyaki, a Bourbon Barrel Marinated Teriyaki sauce. I used up some old fryes from the freezer but they were too old so tossed them. Dessert was a mini Blue Bunny Caramel cone. Most I've eaten in quite a while. When I can eat I do it with style!! LOL!

Edited August 18, 2022 by Gramto6
added on to post

[isalicat]

My butcher offered pre-made (not cooked, of course!) ground beef burgers with Hatch chiles, cheddar cheese and bacon mixed in so I got one and grilled it. Had a corn tortilla on the side and fresh strawberries for dessert. Very yum!

[oliviabenson]

Too much lol. I bought mini cheesecakes and devoured 2! I have not had cheesecake in so long. It hit the spot!

I think they are discontinued. They were $4.50.

Edited August 18, 2022 by oliviabenson

[wilsie]

1 hour ago, oliviabenson said:

Too much lol. I bought mini cheesecakes and devoured 2! I have not had cheesecake in so long. It hit the spot!

I love cheesecake and minis would be just right.

[DearEvette]

Youngest son is off to college tomorrow for his sophomore year.  He requested  Philly cheese steak sliders and key lime pie with dark chocolate oreo crust.  So that is what I made.

[Browncoat]

8 hours ago, DearEvette said:

key lime pie with dark chocolate oreo crust.

So much better than that nasty graham cracker crust.

[annzeepark914]

5 hours ago, Browncoat said:

So much better than that nasty graham cracker crust.

I cannot stand graham cracker crust, bakery made or store bought. Several years ago I started buying the shortbread crusts. We like them, especially with key lime pie.

[isalicat]

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

I cannot stand graham cracker crust, bakery made or store bought. Several years ago I started buying the shortbread crusts. We like them, especially with key lime pie.

Try making a crust with crushed nuts (pretty much any nut will do) - put the whole, shelled nuts in a strong plastic bag and then put it into another second bag. Put on some music! Place the bag on your kitchen floor and dance on it vociferously until the nuts are uniformly crushed. (If you don't feel like dancing, use a mallet.) Then mix the nuts with some melted butter in a bowl and a teaspoon of sugar (or I use dark semi-sweet chocolate bits when I am making cheesecake), and use the nuts to form the crust for your pie. Works with key lime, coconut cream, cheesecake...pretty much anything other than a traditional fruit pie.

[Browncoat]

Hard pass on crusts made with nuts!  I'll stick with chocolate or shortbread.  😉

[DearEvette]

2 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

I cannot stand graham cracker crust, bakery made or store bought.

Yeah, not a fan of graham cracker or store bought.  We had the key lime pie with a dark chocolate 'graham-like' crust in a bakery in Kingston, ON and the taste of the tart/sweet key lime with the bitter dark chocolate was just sooo good.  I recreated the crust using oreo cookies processed in a food processor with some dark chocolate to recreate the slightly bitter chocolate flavor.

[Boston]

This morning I slow-cooked pork chops with barbecue sauce, onions and peppers.  I just realized (he never tells us) my Dad who is 86 is having a hard time cooking (he just moved back here from Maryland - I had no idea of what was going on with him and his girlfriend in Maryland  (who is starting with Alzheimers).  I'm trying to cook small meals for hIM (HE IS WITH IT COMPLETELY).  Luckily I live nearby.  I have a bunch of frozen meals that i made in my freezer and am going to bring to him this week  (He has an appt. with someone from Meals On Wheels and other necessities.  I will be there (he asked me).  When I NEED something, you can bet i'm gonna ask.  There is no shame.

Edited August 21, 2022 by Boston
forgot word

[Leeds]

On 6/11/2022 at 2:29 PM, isalicat said:

I'm sure this is a matter of personal taste, but I think microwaving leftover pizza is a big mistake - the crust turns into rubbery mush. I know an award winning pizza maker here locally and he says to just put the leftover directly on the lowest rack of a super hot oven for 5-10 minutes to keep the crust crisp but remelt the cheese.

I reheat pizza in the oven, but if you do it directly on the lowest rack don't you end up with molten cheese and tomato sauce on the bottom of the oven?

On 8/10/2022 at 11:47 AM, chessiegal said:

I can't get over how good the heirloom tomatoes I'm getting from Clagett Farm in my CSA box are. I've never tasted anything like it. They are almost sweet. They are good with just salt and pepper, but for lunch today I added some tuna salad. Heaven.

I bought an heirloom tomato from a previously reliable farm yesterday.  It's tasteless and mealy.  I didn't refrigerate it and marinated it for a little while in quality olive oil and balsamic.  So disappointing.

Should I just give up on finding decent tomatoes?  (Or move near Clagett Farm?!)

[isalicat]

16 minutes ago, Leeds said:

I reheat pizza in the oven, but if you do it directly on the lowest rack don't you end up with molten cheese and tomato sauce on the bottom of the oven?

Not unless the cheese and tomato sauce are not on top of the crust, where they belong 😸

Seriously though, you can always put a baking sheet or a roaster pan underneath on the bottom of the oven if you are concerned about it. It does make a big difference in the crispiness of the crust, but if this is not important to you, then put it on a baking sheet and then reheat. My usual oven messes have involved the few times I got talked into baking an apple pie - oh my Gawd, the burnt apple/sugar spill over on the bottom of the oven every single time!!

[chessiegal]

I put anything that might drip in the oven on a sheet pan.

I've had success reheating pizza by the slice in a non-stick pan on low on the stovetop, cover, keep an eye on it, and it's reheated with a crispy bottom and warm. It only takes a minute or two.

[JTMacc99]

I reheat pizza on my grill. It has three burners. I turn on all three until it's up to 500+ degrees, then I turn off the middle burner and put the slice or two in the middle. The pizza is on foil, and I like to sort of shield the crust with some of the foil to keep it from burning. 

The crust doesn't go back perfectly to crispy on the bottom, but I do find this pretty effective.