What Did We Eat Today?

[backformore]

last night I made this: cajun chicken pasta 

super easy, and everybody liked it.  And I used extra chicken, so we'll have it again tonight.
 

Quote

 

Ingredients
1/2 box penne pasta
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (thin cut)
1 tbsp. Cajun seasoning
3 tbsp. butter
1 pt. half and half
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. Pepper
1/3 c. plus 3 tbsp. grated Parmesan
1 diced tomato
1 tsp. sliced flat-leaf parsley

Directions

Cook penne according to package instructions. Drain and set aside.

Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and dust both sides with Cajun seasoning until thoroughly coated. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add chicken, cooking through completely, about 5 to 6 minutes for each side. Remove chicken from skillet and set aside.

Add remaining butter to skillet, along with half and half, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and 1/3 cup Parmesan. Stir until combined and remove from heat.

Toss pasta in sauce and divide onto two plates (there will be some leftover). Slice chicken and place atop pasta. Sprinkle each with remaining Parmesan, diced tomato, and parsley. Serve.

 

Edited April 28, 2016 by backformore

[JTMacc99]

Hmmm... let's see. It is Friday, so there will be no homework for me to lord over. I'm going on a date later, so I need to make something that won't take too long to cook or prepare, and that the kids will eat.  I have some boneless chicken breast in the refrigerator.  Weather is nice enough to grill, but it's cool enough that I could quickly bread them, cook them in the oven and turn them into chicken parm (which buy's me a lot of points when I ditch them with their mom for the rest of the night, but might take longer than I think it will.) Not that they don't like being with their mom. They just like making me feel guilty for ditching them.

Need to come up with a plan.

Edited April 29, 2016 by JTMacc99

[BooksRule]

It's been a long day (after a long week).  Tonight is leftover fried chicken warmed up in the oven and I might make some skillet corn (corn kernels browned in a skillet with a couple of pieces of cooked bacon crumbled up and some butter).  

[chessiegal]

We had leftover pasta salad I made for a potluck lunch. It was well received but the recipe makes a ton. It's Ina Garten's shrimp and feta orzo salad. I swapped salmon for the shrimp since 1 person at the lunch is allergic to shrimp. Still delicious, but I like the shrimp better.

[Tabbyclaw]

Coming in just under the wire, tonight was this month's New Year's Resolution cooking. The first savory new thing of the year: goat curry. A quick (well, comparatively so) recipe that makes a hell of a lot of food involving a meat I'd never eaten before, so it's a good thing I ended up liking it.

[DeLurker]

Last night was experimental cooking - braised beef short ribs using this recipe.  The meat was drier than I was expecting, but I've never made short ribs before nor used this recipe.  I liked the flavor though and I liked the site this came from.  A quick peruse of it gave me several ideas for things I want to try.

[annzeepark914]

Tonight's dinner was odd.  I'd bought Trader Joe's frozen porcini lasagna several months ago and decided it needed to be used or tossed. Whoa...shudda been tossed.  That is some weird stuff.  The color, texture (mushy) and taste put me off.  Mr. P914 ate his, said he'd eat the rest of it (he hates to see food tossed). Good thing I also made baked pilaf (my favorite) so I had something to eat!  Some things at Trader Joe's are just not good.  Most items are, though.  I love their pork tenderloins (the tenderest tenderloins around), Arrabbiatta sauce, CA Olive Oil,  Reduced Guilt potato chips and RG mac & cheese, Prosecco, chicken salad when they have it, lavender laundry sheets, flowers..well, I could go on and on.  But beware the Porcini Lasagna!

Edited April 30, 2016 by annzeepark914

[mansonlamps]

41 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

Tonight's dinner was odd.  I'd bought Trader Joe's frozen porcini lasagna several months ago and decided it needed to be used or tossed. Whoa...shudda been tossed.  That is some weird stuff.  The color, texture (mushy) and taste put me off.  Mr. P914 ate his, said he'd eat the rest of it (he hates to see food tossed). Good thing I also made baked pilaf (my favorite) so I had something to eat!  Some things at Trader Joe's are just not good.  Most items are, though.  I love their pork tenderloins (the tenderest tenderloins around), Arrabbiatta sauce, CA Olive Oil,  Reduced Guilt potato chips and RG mac & cheese, Prosecco, chicken salad when they have it, lavender laundry sheets, flowers..well, I could go on and on.  But beware the Porcini Lasagna!

To each their own.  One of my last favorite products at TJs is their  CA olive oil!  I think it tastes and smells like perfume.  Favorite, TJs original salsa.

[BooksRule]

Quote

Tonight's dinner was odd.  I'd bought Trader Joe's frozen porcini lasagna several months ago and decided it needed to be used or tossed. Whoa...shudda been tossed.  That is some weird stuff.

I don't live near a TJs, so I only visit one when I visit my brother and my sis-in-law in Atlanta.  My brother told me that they bought some kind of frozen beef there (beef brisket, I think) and he said that it was one of worst meals he had ever had.  I've only bought snacks there--I loved their Ginger Cat cookies ('They're for people!') and their Lemon Crisp cookies drizzled with dark chocolate, but they've been discontinued (as far as I know).  I should have stocked up.  (I think you can still get their Triple Ginger  Snaps, though--those are good.)

I didn't cook tonight, but ate pretty well.  I had two big plates of crab legs, two desserts (banana pudding and coconut pie) and a few bites of a green salad as a brief nod to health.  (I had a coupon for a free buffet dinner at a local casino that expired at the end of the month--Today!)  They had tons of other stuff to eat, of course, but I go for the crab (and usually shrimp, but I didn't see any--it must have been in another section.  Crab was enough, though.

Edited May 1, 2016 by BooksRule

[Mittengirl]

I love Trader Joe's Porcini lasagna!  It was one of the first non-snacks items I bought there and I try to always have one in the freezer for those days when I just want to eat, but not cook.

[chessiegal]

I was planning on making a WW recipe for spring vegetable and orzo soup, and adding a protein for dinner tonight. The veggies in the soup are peas, asparagus, and carrots with spring onions and fresh dill for seasoning. I was thinking of adding shrimp, and when I got to Whole Foods in Annapolis, someone from a crab packaging house on the Eastern shore was giving samples of fresh crabmeat that he said were caught yesterday. It was wonderful, and on sale. I bought a pound of backfin crabmeat and added it to the soup at the end. It was SO good, and enough for the 2 of us to have for dinner tomorrow. Yummm.

[Medicine Crow]

Lucky you!!  We don't have a Whole Foods up here in Calgary.  Your recipe sounds divine!!

[chessiegal]

4 minutes ago, Medicine Crow said:

Lucky you!!  We don't have a Whole Foods up here in Calgary.  Your recipe sounds divine!!

And even if you did, I doubt you'd get fresh blue crab from the Chesapeake Bay. Our Whole Foods prides themselves on local ingredients.

[Medicine Crow]

56 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

And even if you did, I doubt you'd get fresh blue crab from the Chesapeake Bay. Our Whole Foods prides themselves on local ingredients.

Bragger!!!  LOL.

[biakbiak]

That sounds delicious.

Went for a quinoa mango curry salad with leftover roast chicken. It's such an easy filling meal and a great way to clean out the fridge.

[Quof]

6 hours ago, chessiegal said:

 Our Whole Foods prides themselves on local ingredients.

Really?   Cuz I was once in a Whole Foods in Chicago, and saw they were selling (regular old plain) bottled water from New Zealand.   Made me question their commitment to preserving the environment.. 

[DeLurker]

Chix fried rice (homemade) twice - once at a normal dinner hour and then again about 2 hours later. And plain greek yogurt with a fresh yummy mango in between. 

[BooksRule]

I mowed the yard when I got home, but I put a couple of chicken thighs in the oven with some BBQ to bake while I worked.  They were ready when I finished, but I'm just now getting hungry.  I zapped some frozen veggies in the microwave (carrots, snow peas, water chestnuts, broccoli medley) and I'm all set.  

[PRgal]

Yesterday, we had a huge (and I mean HUGE) Mother's Day brunch, so dinner ended up being a can of tomato soup and half a not-so-cheesy toasted sandwich (or what my mom called "grilled cheese" when I was little).  Tonight, I'm making veggie noodles with tofu.

[ethalfrida]

Yesterday I made Cajun grilled alligator ribs, herbed potatoes and a lemon non gluten and non dairy lemon icebox pie. I planned to have leftovers today but the ribs were just so-so. They just tasted like grill chicken breasts. A little spicey but not even that. I've already had the potatoes with bacon for breakfast. So the leftover ribs go into the freezer and I will share with family if they want to try some.

Alligator is really great fried and served as you would fish or on a Po'Boy and I eat it often. It also makes a super delicious sausage.

[NewDigs]

Visited a cousin today who took an organic, packaged, pizza crust, drizzled it with olive oil, layered on fresh spinach and yellow and red peppers, scattered some shredded italian cheese mix over, baked and served.

Delicious!!! Wow. 

[BooksRule]

Oven-BBQd chicken thighs, roasted okra and a green salad.

[NewDigs]

6 minutes ago, BooksRule said:

Oven-BBQd chicken thighs, roasted okra and a green salad.

And I'm fixing that when I get home. Tasty and easy. Thanks for the quick tip! And I'll almost always favor dark meat over white, more flavor. imho

(Well, minus the okra...)

Edited May 9, 2016 by NewDigs

[ethalfrida]

1 hour ago, NewDigs said:

Visited a cousin today who took an organic, packaged, pizza crust, drizzled it with olive oil, layered on fresh spinach and yellow and red peppers, scattered some shredded italian cheese mix over, baked and served.

Delicious!!! Wow. 

Have to do this!!!! Thanks...

[chessiegal]

Tonight we had grilled chicken breasts marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, minced garlic, and rosemary, steamed broccoli, and warmed up Whole Foods potato wedges. We're leaving on Monday for a month long trip, so I'm trying to get rid of perishables before we go. We'll have chicken stir-fry and chicken fajitas the next 2 nights. I may just do take out until we leave after that. Woohoo! A whole month I don't have to plan, shop, and cook.

[NewDigs]

2 hours ago, chessiegal said:

Tonight we had grilled chicken breasts marinated in olive oil, lemon juice, dijon mustard, minced garlic, and rosemary, steamed broccoli, and warmed up Whole Foods potato wedges. We're leaving on Monday for a month long trip, so I'm trying to get rid of perishables before we go. We'll have chicken stir-fry and chicken fajitas the next 2 nights. I may just do take out until we leave after that. Woohoo! A whole month I don't have to plan, shop, and cook.

Not a mustard fan but have used it to good effect on grilled pork chops. Had not thought of trying it on chicken. Gonna give that a try. Thanks!

[annzeepark914]

chessiegal:  I hope you have a wonderful trip/month!  And I can't wait to hear all about it, especially the QM2 and your visit to France.

[BooksRule]

Nothing too fancy tonight:  Chili dogs with mustard (I suddenly got a craving for hot dogs this afternoon while at work), chips and Blue Bell Butter Crunch ice cream for dessert (this flavor chosen mainly because it's one flavor I don't think I've tried before).

[Sandman87]

Salmon was pretty cheap again at the local market this week, so microwave poached salmon tonight. Made some simpleminded tartar-like sauce to go with it; mayo, minced garlic, capers. Add in some microwaved fresh veggies (broccoli was cheap this week) & potato, and it takes about 15 minutes for everything. Mincing the garlic is the most time consuming part

The leftover sauce is also excellent on sandwiches instead of plain mayo.

[PRgal]

Really enjoyed a fancy dinner with my husband (just to celebrate the Victoria Day long weekend) at a restaurant I haven't been to since the 90s (it was his first time).  At the table next to us was a family - mom, dad, a teenage son and a very young daughter (maybe five or six).  It was really nice to see a girl her age actually eat what the teen and parents were eating (she didn't get her own meal and was eating off her parents' plates...and maybe some additional sides).  She knew how to hold a fork and knife too.  Too often now, you don't see that with kids.  Or adults for that matter. 

[Bastet]

I made this vibrant garlic and greens soup yesterday and, yum!  It's so flavorful.  (And such a beautiful color; it looks like it's going to taste great, and it does.)  It can easily be made with different ingredients depending on what has popped up in the garden/at the market, so it's my kind of recipe.  Next time I'm going to use leeks, which I almost did this time, as I love them so, but I had some scallions that needed to be used ASAP.  

The only things I did differently were to use a little more spinach since I had so much (the recipe calls for 4-5 cups and I used at least 5-1/2) and to omit the creme fraiche/quark swirl because I don't like either one and didn't have anything on hand that might make a good addition to the soup.

This is not remotely a filling soup (for Seinfeld fans - if this is what Jerry had bought Kenny Bania at Mendy's, it would not count as a meal), but it's great as a substitute for a side salad with dinner or along with a half-sandwich or just some good bread as a light lunch.

[biakbiak]

I was randomly craving cabagge rolls and luckily it was cold enough they werent too heavy.

[Sandman87]

Tonight it was my favorite quick dinner - garlic & pepper flake pasta:

• Boil up some spaghetti
• Saute some garlic & red pepper flakes in olive oil
• Dump the spaghetti in the pan, and mix it up

It's quick, easy, and doesn't need any meat. Garlic breath is the main downside. I used to have this several times a week when I had housemates & had very limited cabinet space for storing my cooking stuff.

[annzeepark914]

I made a chicken curry last night and included a peeled, chopped Granny Smith apple in it.  It was quite good!

[DeLurker]

I don't like curry at all, but several of my brothers would love that.  Most remember to tell them.

After a long day of waiting for a service call, I was out of energy to actually cook a real meal.  It was a toss up between Culver's and breakfast for dinner (bacon and eggs).  Breakfast won because the deciding factor in going to Culver's is to check the flavor-of-the-day for the frozen custard.

[mansonlamps]

3 hours ago, DeLurker said:

I don't like curry at all, but several of my brothers would love that.  Most remember to tell them.

After a long day of waiting for a service call, I was out of energy to actually cook a real meal.  It was a toss up between Culver's and breakfast for dinner (bacon and eggs).  Breakfast won because the deciding factor in going to Culver's is to check the flavor-of-the-day for the frozen custard.

I hesitate to ask how many brothers you have if only "several" of them would like that curry idea. ??

[JTMacc99]

An unexpected softball make-up game popped up on my calendar for today. This happened yesterday; all of the sudden there was another 6:00 PM game on my daughter's schedule.

Such things really screw up my dinner planning for the week. Given the band concert on Monday and the scheduled softball game on Tuesday, I had two decent quick meals lined up.  Tonight's going to be one of those Purdue breaded chicken patties on a bun with God knows on the side.  I'll probably end up just eating some salad and some sort of leftover stuff I can shovel into my mouth as I'm making the quick turnaround from home from work to out the door for the game.  

I'm cooking something, ANYTHING, tomorrow.  I don't care if dinner is an hour later tomorrow, it's going to be an actual meal.

[Qoass]

More often than not I just eat a piece of fruit for breakfast once I'm at my desk so this morning I put together a strata to have for breakfast-for-dinner tonight.  It was a great way to use up some odds and ends and dairy that were starting to get past their sell-by dates.  

[ethalfrida]

Holiday menu?

Edited May 28, 2016 by ethalfrida
Wrong category

[annzeepark914]

Well...not exactly holiday inspired but Mr. P914 is driving home from MI tomorrow & the main floor of the house is not quite AC-cooled (problems w/ that AC unit which won't be cured until 6/6) so, with ceiling fans running, I just mixed up the "sauce" for Summer Spaghetti for tomorrow night. All I have to do when he arrives is cook the pasta & serve a salad with it.  Sunday or Monday?  One of those days I'm making potato salad & grilling Michigan brats & heating some sauerkraut from Wegman's.  The flag is out (got the outdoor lights shining on it so it's all legit) & will be watching the Nats play the Cardinals. Go Nats!!  Hey, have a good weekend, everyone, remembering our veterans--those still with us and those who have passed.  Bless their hearts.

[BooksRule]

Tonight will be breakfast for dinner.  I had some buttermilk left over from a cake I made a few days ago, and decided to make buttermilk pancakes this morning (something I make about once a year).  Of course, the recipe made a ton of batter, so I made a few pancakes and put the rest of the batter in the fridge.  If the batter is still 'workable', I plan to cook up a few more pancakes for dinner (along with a couple of pieces of bacon--maybe). 

[Quof]

If you have time, you should cook up the entire batch, then freeze them spread on cookie sheets, then stack in a freezer bag. It would be shame to waste buttermilk pancake batter.

[BooksRule]

Freezing the leftover pancakes is a good idea.  I might just do that!

[annzeepark914]

We had grilled brats tonight.  Why can't I pronounce them properly?  I keep getting corrected by Mr. Midwesterner ("they're called brots, not braaaaats").  I kinda like mispronouncing them! :>)

[biakbiak]

Made a yummy cilantro chicken thighs with a rice pilaf and cucumber salad. 

[DeLurker]

A random assortment of leftovers rounded out with fresh fruit.  So pizza, taco meat made into nachos, chicken yakitori, rice, plus strawberries, apples and cherries.

[BooksRule]

I went to visit family yesterday and brought back boiled shrimp and a nice slice of watermelon.  So, that's what I'm having for dinner (along with some sliced cucumbers from my dad's garden).  He also gave me some yellow squash, but I'm probably going to oven-'fry' some of that tomorrow.

[NewDigs]

Yum! Shrimp and watermelon. And fresh cukes. 

I enjoy yellow squash steamed w/ thinly sliced onions. Never heard of oven-fried. Is panko involved? I've got that.

[BooksRule]

The shrimp was good. It had just enough spice (bite) to it and had been boiled just right (I hate shrimp that has been boiled until it is either mushy or tough).  These were perfect.   I had a big bowl of sliced cucumbers with some 1,000 Island dressing as well.  I had to share my shrimp with one of my cats.  One didn't care and went off to nap, but the other one came running as soon as I opened the container and lifted up her head like she was going to bay at the moon.  And, she had the patience of a boiling kettle--she patted me with a paw, paced around and jumped from the couch to the table and back.  We're both stuffed, though (she's sleeping it off).  Watermelon will wait until tomorrow.

[annzeepark914]

That's a good kitty---patience is overrated (or, underrated?).  We had Parmesan Chicken Cutlets from a 03/2013 Bon Appetit. I must say they were good and something to serve when company comes to town (I can make ahead of time).  We still only have fans to cool the first floor (hope this gets fixed asap) so I boiled some tiny bowties & dressed them with butter, freshly ground Parmesan & lemon juice w/ S&P, and served them w/ some salad, & cooked spinach. I love the crispiness of the chicken cutlets.