What Did We Eat Today?

[ALenore]

harrie, When I read your description of melty bleu cheese on the steaks, I decided to do it myself to use up a small amount of blue cheese I had.  I googled and found a recipie for blue cheese and onion sauce, and it came out great.   The Gooey Chocolate Cakes didn't come out quite right, the recipe called for sprinkling chopped chocolate on top of the cakes, which I guess was suppossed to melt down into the center, but that didn't happen, they stayed on top and crunchy.   The centers were still fairly gooey though.   They still tasted very good, and I've got leftovers for tonight. 

[KnoxForPres]

I'm alone and pregnant. I made roasted chicken and carrots and potatoes in the oven. But, I got a craving for summer rolls, so I called food in from a Thai restaurant. I had edamame, cream cheese ragoons, and tofu summer rolls with peanut sauce. So, tomorrow, I'll eat the leftovers plus the chicken dish for lunch and dinner.

Not sure where you are, but if you're near TN and keep ordering things like that consider me your new BFF. We can put pajamas on and watch Golden Girls and eat rangoons! You are not alone, you've got us! Edited February 15, 2015 by KnoxForPres

[Betweenyouandme]

Not sure where you are, but if you're near TN and keep ordering things like that consider me your new BFF. We can put pajamas on and watch Golden Girls and eat rangoons! You are not alone, you've got us!

Hey, thanks! Sadly, I'm over in TX, but that does sound like a really good time :) PJs, TV, and food are my daily staples.

[annzeepark914]

If you like Asti don't let anyone make you feel lesser about it (said the woman who, when she drank, preferred Amstel Light (in the bottle please) over most other things). Enjoy it and relish the fact that a lot of folks will be sipping fancy and pricey champagne not because they appreciate the wine, but because they buy into the hype. Not everyone of course.

@ DeLurker:  Actually it wasn't Asti, it's Korbel California Champagne x-dry and it's delicious!  I'd forgotten how nice these bubblies are (being a chardonnay & pinot grigio fan).  Everything was good except that dessert ;>(  I can't believe I didn't pick up on the word "custard" in the name of this dessert. I've never liked custards...it's the soft, damp texture that turns me off.  So I enjoyed the whipped cream and fresh raspberries (I should make French toast and put the whipped cream and raspberries on it!)

 

@ harrie:  Yes--it's such a zoo on Valentine's Day...I don't know how people can enjoy their meals.  Last night the weather around here was quite nasty too--all of a sudden a mini blizzard arrived and the roads got really slick. I think we may go out tomorrow since snow is predicted later on this week (in the Mid-Atlantic area you never know for sure!!)

[ALenore]

I've heard people in the restaurant biz call Valentine's Day "Amateur Night" -- when everyone feels the need to date up and go out, causing all kinds of dining havoc.  Very smart to wait a week

 

One of my coworkers is in Los Angeles this week visiting her son.  She wanted to take him out to dinner Saturday to celebrate his birthday (his actual birthday is later next week).  I warned her it might be tough to get a table at a restaurant on Valentine's Day, she actualy had forgotten what day it was.  I suggested she either plan a early dinner, or go some non-fancy place that wouldn't be crowded  (although that's no guarantee, I remember being in Boston one Valentine's Day,  going to dinner at a very ordinary Chinese restaurant, and having to wait an hour for a table.)

[EllieH]

Homemade black bean soup, which means a lot of leftovers, so a bunch of lunches are taken care of!

[grisgris]

Today I made some barbequed shrimp from an old Frugal Gourmet cookbook. I had potatoes with it.  I also made another recipe from Giada that is pasta with a sauce made of spinach, mascarpone, percorino and tons of cracked black pepper. That will be to eat throughout the week. There were leftover strawberries from Valentine's Day so I made strawberry scones with lemon glaze. (I know... I should have been healthy and eaten them raw or put them in a smoothie...) ;-)

 

I was trying to use up odds and ends from the fridge and freezer before I go grocery shopping later this week.

[mansonlamps]

Today I made some barbequed shrimp from an old Frugal Gourmet cookbook.

I've always thought I'd like to try that recipe, but never did. How did it turn out?

[Lovecat]

I made these for my husband for Valentine's day :-)  

 

Alfajores.  There are several recipes out there and used the more traditional one with the cornstarch in the cookie.  It made for a really light, crumbly cookie, but it does give a weird mouth feel afterward, I think.  However, my husband LOVED them so, go team!  

Oooooh, I *love* Alfajores!  Every time I go to S. America, I come home with several boxes and hoard them.  Last time, I brought my sweetie a box and he didn't care for them--more dulce de leche for ME!

annzeeparker914, I've heard people in the restaurant biz call Valentine's Day "Amateur Night" -- when everyone feels the need to date up and go out, causing all kinds of dining havoc.  Very smart to wait a week.   

That's why we stay in.  It's kind of like New Year's Eve--crowded, expensive, and a lot of pressure to have the perfect night.  My sweetie made dinner--chicken cordon bleu, green beans, tiny potatoes with rosemary (actually, I made those), some nice bread, and wine.  I made a tiramisu for dessert--my first, and it was AMAZING!  I was very proud of myself, and we both made plenty of yummy noises while scarfing it down.  We stayed in our PJs almost the whole day, and snuggled on the couch with the dog to watch Dateline.  I got him some beer snob beer, and he got me some fancy olive oil and chocolate balsamic vinegar.  It was pretty perfect <3

[stillshimpy]

Oooooh, I *love* Alfajores!  Every time I go to S. America, I come home with several boxes and hoard them.  Last time, I brought my sweetie a box and he didn't care for them--more dulce de leche for ME!

 

They actually aren't that difficult to make, and the odd-mouth-feel actually is something that goes away entirely after the cookies sit for a day. If you feel like making them at home.  My husband loved them, so his V-Day gift was a huge success.  

 

On the going out to dinner on Valentine's Day, we go to local place almost every Saturday and it's always pretty crowded during the evening.  Figuring that it might be slammed for Valentine's Day we went in early, at three.  I know the staff pretty well, so I brought them some cookies and whereas there were two tables finishing up lunch when we went in...we had the place to ourselves until 4:45 so it was like we'd rented out the entire place.  Apparently it got busy almost as soon as we left, but we really felt like the V-Day gods had smiled upon us.  It wasn't fancy food, but the cook there will go off menu to make us vegetarian food if we get tired of their vegetarian offerings.  We both eat fish, but no other meat, so it's really nice of them.  

 

Perfectly lovely day and they loved the cookies too.  The only difficult part (at all) was making the dulche de leche and that wasn't difficult, just time consuming.  

 

I made a cabbage, bell pepper, eggplant and lentil dish with Hoisin and thai chili for dinner tonight.  Organic bell peppers were on sale at Lucky's so just in time for a snow storm, we have a nice, summery dish :-) 

Edited February 16, 2015 by stillshimpy

[Quof]

We're recovering from a blizzard followed by an ice storm, so the entire city is encased in ice.  Thankfully, it's a holiday. I was about to go out to begin chipping away at the mountain of ice at the end of my driveway, but my neighbour beat me to it!  So I'm simmering a stock from the turkey I cooked yesterday, then I'll cook up some soup and take him over some.  A small price to pay, I figure.

[amitville]

It's basically whipped cream with condensed milk. You can add whatever you want to flavour such as cocoa powder, vanilla extract, etc. I used my homemade vanilla extract to keep it simple. The Eagle brand of condensed milk has a lot of ideas for it on their website: it's one can (14 fl oz) to 2 cups milk on theirs. I used Nigella's recipe because hers uses less condensed milk, but if you google "condensed milk ice cream" with no churn or whatnot, you'll get a lot of ideas.

Wanted to update you the ice cream was just delicious.  We could not stop eating it. I used Nigella recipe.  Thank You again

[Mountainair]

We don't do Valentine's in my house. I think we celebrated once or twice in high school but over the past 15 years V Day is one holiday I was fine giving up. 

 

The boys were in preschool this morning and I had to go to the office to do some work. Mr. Mountain didn't have a job on the books so for a rare treat we went out for breakfast. Usually, I eat nothing for breakfast or if I am hungry Mr. Mountain will run to Dunkin Donughts and pick up something and bring it to the office. We decided to try out a local joint called Biscuit Head that gets rave reviews. Usually we have the kids with us and don't go out much so this was a nice "breakfast date". The food was super yummy but I wish we had ordered different things so I could try something else. We both ordered the Asheville Benedict which is an open faced biscuit topped with charred scallion cream cheese, fresh tomatoes, 2 poached eggs, hollandaise and a tossed kale salad. OMG, to die for yummy! 

 

I'm still full from breakfast but have left over salad from last nights dinner that I'll eat and I'll scrounge something up out of other left overs for the kids and hubby for tonight. We are finally getting snow (and ice) here. We've been in a snow drought so I'm anticipating no school tomorrow and lots of hot cocoa and sledding :) The kids are beyond excited!

[Betweenyouandme]

Gosh. I miss Boone/Asheville

Ordering in tonight from Mercury Chophouse with a delivery service company. Getting a well done filet (can't eat undercooked meat now), Morrocan beef cigars with aoli, creamed spinach, and jalapeño cheese grits. Won't eat it all today but will eat part of everything. My dad and I always used to go there after his shifts. Makes me a little sad, but I'm going to enjoy this food :)

[grisgris]

I've always thought I'd like to try that recipe, but never did. How did it turn out?

 

It was pretty good. I made a lesser quantity than called for and have some left over for another dinner.

 

Those dolce de lecha cookies sound really good. I have a can of ddl in my pantry. I wonder if it is too old to use up?

[stillshimpy]

grisgris, it should have an expiration date on it somewhere.  They really were good and I will clearly have to put them into the cookie rotation.  

 

Tonight is a garlic and chive fettuccine with an avocado , spinach pesto, cherry tomatoes, sunflower seeds (or walnuts, I haven't decided) and if I actually get up to do it soon, oven-roasted carrots.  It's looking more and more doubtful on the oven roasted carrot front, to be honest.  

 

Whee.  

[ALenore]

I made Chicken Tika Masala last night, it was a lot of work, but came out really good.   Tonight I'm working late, so I'm going to thaw some French Onion Soup and top it with toasted baguette and swiss cheese. 

[PRgal]

Shrove Tuesday/Mardi Gras/Fat Tuesday/Pancake Tuesday, so I'm making (polenta) pancakes to go with beef stew and broccoli. Looks like I can't truly give up too much over the first few days of Lent, since the Lunar/Chinese New Year starts on Thursday!

[harrie]

The hub made some delicious salmon burgers from scratch for last night, served on buns with a sriracha mayo.  They were excellent.  We had one left over, so I had it for lunch broken up over a green salad.   Tonight is a turkey rerun.

[stillshimpy]

It must have been a night where the culinary gods were smiling upon us, because that pasta turned out incredibly well.  I actually ended up making a cucumber salad to go with it instead although "salad" is a generous term.  It was just sliced cucumbers with some salt, pepper, basil and rice wine vinegar.  However the pasta was just insanely good.  It was an altered "Oh She Glows" recipe where I used two cups of raw spinach rather than 1/4 basil and I pan toasted walnuts to go with it and topped with that and chopped tomatoes.  It wasn't vegan  because the pasta I used was made with eggs.  

Still, a good one to have in the arsenal for when a couple of my fully Vegan relatives visit.  

Tonight we are having...whatever the hell I can come up with which right now is looking sort of "hmmm.  Well.  I never did make those carrots and we could have them with...possibly more carrots?" 

[ALenore]

Tonight I'm making something easy, an enchilada casserole.  It's just layers of tortilla, taco-spiced tomato sauce with ground turkey, black beans, and cheese, all set into  a pie plate.   The recipe calls for ground sirloin, but the price of any kind of ground beef (much less sirloin) has gotten so ridiculously high that I generally substiute ground turkey.   I only have beef once or twice a month nowadays. 

[Sweets McGee]

I've been living the rough life the last week with no dishwasher. We're getting the broken one replaced, new one is coming on Monday so I haven't been cooking as much as I normally do because dishes by hand is a lot of damn work. Last night we went out. Tonight I'm heating up a casserole that I had frozen a month ago. It's nice to have that kind of stuff on hand for these situations!

[ALenore]

I'm making  Shrimp and Pine Nut Spaghetti tonight.  Never tried the recipe before, but it looks pretty easy,  I'll make a spinach salad to serve on the side. 

[amitville]

I'm making  Shrimp and Pine Nut Spaghetti tonight.  Never tried the recipe before, but it looks pretty easy,  I'll make a spinach salad to serve on the side. 

I am very interested in pin nut spaghetti , I assume the sauce  has garlic, olive oil, basil  

Edited February 19, 2015 by amitville

[grisgris]

That sounds delicious! Do you mind sharing the recipe?

[Bastet]

I am very interested in pin nut spaghetti , I assume the sauce the sauce has garlic, olive oil, basil

 

Sometimes I make it with a sauce like that (basil or parsley, depending on which plant is overgrowing more), and sometimes I use a creamy sauce and Parmiggiano-reggiano.  For the latter style, there's a Cooking Light recipe that is pretty close to what I do.

 

ALenore, I'd love to see what recipe you're using to see if it contains something I want to add next time I get a hankering.

[ALenore]

Here's a link to the recipe for Shrimp and Pine Nut Spaghetti:http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/shrimp-pine-nut-spaghetti.   I hope the recipe comes out good.  I notice there are some negative comments on it, but that may not mean anything.   One of the commenters suggested sautéing the shrimp with olive oil and garlic instead of boiling it with the pasta, and I think that's what I'm going to do.   

[Mountainair]

Score one for this momma! My five year old ate all his dinner tonight. Pan braised pork chops, quinoa and kale, and Brussel sprouts!

My brother let me know this morning that he was coming to visit for a few days starting tomorrow! We've been iced in all week so the kids and I spent today cleaning the house, tomorrow we will go get groceries. Brrr! I don't get to see my brother often and after this visit it will be at least two more years before I see him again so, the boys are super excited and its a great excuse to spend more on groceries.

I've been craving a good burger so we will grill burgers tomorrow night. Any body have any favorites? I'd like to make a flavored mayo as a side, have pickles, onion, tomato and grilled mushrooms on the side as well as some bacon. I love a good burger. Mr. Mountain went to IHOP once years ago and they had a burger with an egg on top and every where he goes he asks for an egg and no one does it for him. So, I'll probably have an egg available for him tomorrow. I'll do a side salad and fries.

Saturday I procured a babysitter for the night (my BIL) and we will take my brother out for dinner downtown, grab some beers without the kiddos.

I think Sunday I will do a big pot of chili to last the whole day with some crusty bread on the side.

[amitville]

Here's a link to the recipe for Shrimp and Pine Nut Spaghetti:http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/shrimp-pine-nut-spaghetti.   I hope the recipe comes out good.  I notice there are some negative comments on it, but that may not mean anything.   One of the commenters suggested sautéing the shrimp with olive oil and garlic instead of boiling it with the pasta, and I think that's what I'm going to do.   

Thank you i will be adding this to recipe rotation . 

Edited February 20, 2015 by amitville

[mansonlamps]

Score one for this momma! My five year old ate all his dinner tonight. Pan braised pork chops, quinoa and kale, and Brussel sprouts!

My brother let me know this morning that he was coming to visit for a few days starting tomorrow! We've been iced in all week so the kids and I spent today cleaning the house, tomorrow we will go get groceries. Brrr! I don't get to see my brother often and after this visit it will be at least two more years before I see him again so, the boys are super excited and its a great excuse to spend more on groceries.

I've been craving a good burger so we will grill burgers tomorrow night. Any body have any favorites? I'd like to make a flavored mayo as a side, have pickles, onion, tomato and grilled mushrooms on the side as well as some bacon. I love a good burger. Mr. Mountain went to IHOP once years ago and they had a burger with an egg on top and every where he goes he asks for an egg and no one does it for him. So, I'll probably have an egg available for him tomorrow. I'll do a side salad and fries.

Saturday I procured a babysitter for the night (my BIL) and we will take my brother out for dinner downtown, grab some beers without the kiddos.

I think Sunday I will do a big pot of chili to last the whole day with some crusty bread on the side.

Good for you! My brother lives 1000 miles away and I rarely see him either. I don't know where you live but egg on a burger is definitely a "thing" around here in most restaurants and even some fast food types of places. It's very good.

I went low carb about a year ago, so no real burger for me, but your plan sounds fabulous.

[Bastet]

Yeah, plopping an egg on top of various things is very common here, too, so as someone who hates egg yolk, I have to make sure I read descriptions carefully. 

 

As for burgers, I'm pretty simple: season with granulated garlic and Montreal steak seasoning, grill, melt some cheese (whatever kind I'm in the mood for, but often pepper Jack) on top, and then put together on a lightly-grilled bun with mayo, lettuce, onion, and pickle chips, plus tomato when in season. 

 

I also like a Juicy Lucy burger, though, with the cheese inside the patty - so wonderfully gooey to bite into. 

 

There's a bakery near me that makes the most delicious onion rolls, so sometimes I get those for buns.

 

Tonight I'm going to movie night at the home of a friend who can't cook, so I'm assuming what's for dinner is pizza, Chinese, or Thai delivery.  I'm not complaining!

[annzeepark914]

Due to the snow, shoveling, cold temps, etc., I made a big pot of tomato soup (Barefoot Contessa's w/ lots of seasoning added!) and the grilled cheese croutons. The grilled cheese croutons are wonderful but I need a better tomato soup recipe as the BC's we consider too bland/blah.

[harrie]

I throw in a little hot sauce or smoked paprika to perk up my tomato soup.  

 

Last night was a tomato lentil and vegetable soup with bread on the side, which came out very yummy.  Tonight is a pork tenderloin with mashed sweet potatoes and roasted brussel sprouts, with some cava on the side because it's Oscar-TM night. 

[ALenore]

Last night I made pizza with arugula and bacon (made a double batch of dough to freeze half for later).  Tonight i"m making fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy and peas.   Need to build up energy to shovel still more snow that fell last night.   

[mansonlamps]

Tonight is carnitas I made in the crock pot. It's a new recipe and smells fabulous. I think it's the "good" brand of spices I've recently started using while slowly replacing the ancient ones in my spice cabinet.

[grisgris]

Tonight I made chicken cordon bleu (just one serving.) In honor of the Oscars! I'd never made it before. I used boneless skinless chicken thighs because I am not that fond of chicken breast. I had some leftover wild rice from the holidays when I made too much, so I froze it. I had that sauteed with pecans and mushrooms and also had steamed broccoli dressed with olive oil, orange juice and orange zest.

Did anybody see Amanda Freitag on The Kitchen yesterday? She made patty melts and they all got in to a debate over the difference between patty melts and cheeseburgers. There really wasn't a conclusion. Amanda looked very different. I couldn't put my finger on it. Her hair was much lighter and she wore a lot more makeup than she wears on Chopped. Either that or she's had some "work" done.

[backformore]

Did anybody see Amanda Freitag on The Kitchen yesterday? She made patty melts and they all got in to a debate over the difference between patty melts and cheeseburgers.

 

A patty melt, at least in Chicago, is a cheeseburger served with grilled onions, on rye bread, and then the sandwich is grilled like a grilled cheese sandwich.  

[ALenore]

For tonight, since I'm working late, I've got pulled pork cooking in my slow cooker.   If the recipe works, by the time I get home it should have fallen apart, and all I have to do is make some cole slaw to put in the sandwiches. 

[Sweets McGee]

Tonight I pulled what was left of Thanksgiving turkey out of the freezer, cut it up into bite sized chunks and heated it up with broccoli in turkey gravy, then served it in those puff pastry shells that you use for desserts. Turned out quite well!

Edited February 25, 2015 by Sweets McGee

[ALenore]

I made fish tacos tonight, tilapia coated in seasoned flour and sautéed, topped with home made salsa, avocado, cabbage and sour cream with  a sprinkling of chipotle tabasco sauce.  

[PRgal]

Today's "person day" according to the Chinese New Year schedule (aka "Humankind's birthday") so I made spaghetti with mushrooms and turkey breast.  The long pasta is supposed to symbolize longevity. 

[ALenore]

Last night I made gnocchi with brocolli and pine nuts, plus brussel sprouts with garlic and bacon.  Tonight I'm making mixed 3 bean casserole (black beans, chick peas and Great Northern beans).  It was supposed to have bacon in it, but I'm leaving it out since I had bacon both yesterday and today. 

[Quof]

I made an awesome beef stew (America's Test Kitchen) on the weekend, and I've been eating it every night. Now I want to make it again this weekend.

[Bastet]

Rib-eye steak on the grill tonight.  I haven't decided what I'm going to make with it yet - maybe some roasted broccoli - but I'm having a serious steak craving (which is rather odd for me) and can hardly wait to get home and pull that out of the fridge. 

[DeLurker]

Decided to go old school and do Fish Friday for Lent.  Fish Friday when I was a kid was frozen fish sticks or white rice (Asian style sticky) with some drained tuna (sometimes dribbled with soy sauce and sesame oil).  Rice & tuna is still one of my go to favorites when I want something quick and easy (I always have leftover rice in my fridge).

[ALenore]

Tonight I'm roasting a variety of mixed vegetables (butternut squash, parsnips, carrot, onion, sweet potato)  then doing sautéed chicken cutlets in a mustard sauce.   The recipe makes a lot of roasted vegetables, which I'll be using in other recipes this week.   

[harrie]

Tonight is spinach lasagna, plus I threw in some kale that was hanging around. So it's not completely unhealthy.

[Betweenyouandme]

I can't get back on track with my eating since this pregnancy nausea has kicked in. So many things make feel like I'm going to hurl. Today I've had a couple pancakes, a spaghetti lean cuisine, a peach, and Cheez-Its. My stomach feels like a pit in it if that makes sense.

[annzeepark914]

@Betweenyouandme:  I'm so sorry about your preg. nausea...hope it goes away soon so you can get back to a regular food regimen.  I wonder if tapioca pudding would be easy to digest right now? At least you'd be getting an egg and some dairy into your system (and it tastes so good).  Maybe sip some ginger ale too (ginger calms the stomach).

 

Tonight I'm making Creme Senegalese Soup (Curried Cream of Chicken Soup), a recipe (I adapted) from The Essential NY Times Cookbook.  It doesn't even need the Half & Half as the banana makes it creamy.  It's a good way to use up leftover cooked chicken too.

Edited March 1, 2015 by annzeepark914

[DeLurker]

Making Asian style spare ribs because I am desperate for bones to use in a broth. Rubbed with five spice and then baked low & slow with some soy sauce/sesame oil/red wine/brown sugar.

BYAM - I second the ginger ale. Might test room temperature to see if that works better for you. When my stomach is unsettled, cold doesn't help. Water crackers are usually good too. Trader Joe's brand is priced way more reasonably than the ones in the regular grocery store. I have no idea why water crackers are so expensive.