HungryChris

Deutche Kuche uncured Bavarian bratwurst (Aldi), pickled onions and yellow mustard. with veggies, pickles and marinated goodies. HC

Kielbasa, scalloped potatoes, garlic / parmesan / butter and lemon, foil pouch cooked asparagus (lemon juice goes on after removal from the foil). This meal takes 1 and 1/2 hour and all goes into a 350 oven starting with the potatoes. The kielbasa goes in (also in foil) after an hour, followed by the asparagus packet, 25 minutes prior to serving. It works out well and can be prepped ahead of time. HC

Chorizo stuffed clams, steamed asparagus with blue cheese dip and marinated veggies. HC

Salad for lunch today. HC

Mortadella and marinated zucchini ribbons on rye. HC

Why, Thank you, @CatIsHungry, I am pleased to read that. HC

Chef salads with fresh picked lettuce last night. I have been waiting for this! HC

Homemade smoked salmon with the works, including the first of the season homemade garlic dills. HC

Wild ramp omelet. I'm not sure if these ramps in my two modest patches can be called wild, as I put them together with several trips to the Union Square Farmer's Market over a few years, planting them when I got them home. They do not propagate well at my low altitude, so I leave the bulbs in the ground and have to be happy with just the leaves, which I greatly enjoy. HC

Takeout sushi. HC

Wings and potato salad tonight. HC

Soft shell crabs tonight. I smoked up the kitchen pretty badly at my last venture, so tonight, I went out to the grill, preheated to 400 (F). Added a few TBS of butter to a hot sizzle platter and added the freshly cleaned crabs that had been dredged in seasoned flour and lightly shaken to remove excess coating, turning once after about 8 minutes. I cooked for another 3 or 4 minutes and turned them out on the grill, brushing with melted roasted garlic and ramp compound butter and briefly turned them again. I served these with a spicy kimchi tarter sauce. My only comment: KILLER!!!!!! HC

I found some fresh, local haddock fillets at $6.99 pp and the rest was history. Haddock fish and chips always makes me happy and Deb had no complaints either. While I was at the market, I learned that live soft shell crabs were coming in just before the 10 AM opening bell. Guess who'll be there as well tomorrow morning! HC

Aldi potato and cheese pierogies, fried zucchini and a cucumber and onion salad with lots of fresh basil. HC

On a recent cruise, Deb and I enjoyed popcorn shrimp with a spicy tartar sauce a couple of times. I spotted some in the freezer section and gave them a try. It seems just a few days ago that I stated that I never buy cooked shrimp, and off I went and did it. These were not bad (served with a kimchi tartar sauce), but I would make my own from scratch in the future and probably serve them as a side. HC

No, I never have, but I am always on the lookout for good blue cheese. There is not a great selection around here and I have yet to try mail order. HC

Spotted these little steaks after a pretty late lunch with Deb and thought they might just fit into our dinner plans, which they did. I smeared them with roasted garlic compound butter and threw then onto a hot, hot grill for just a few scant minutes. Some sour cream with the first of the season chives out of the herb tubs on the deck was a welcome addition. HC

Cheese, crackers and fruit. HC

A note on last years calendar and a few phone calls, got me to the first soft shell crabs in the area today. Even though these were not the smaller "mediums" that I am used to, old habits die hard. I made these "hotels" as sandwiches, the rolls were quickly cast aside. I served these with a kimchi and onion tartar sauce, and they were the best!!! HC

I refuse to buy cooked shrimp. I peel fresh (or frozen), raw shrimp completely, so that the entire shrimp can be eaten, steam them for four minutes, plunge them in ice water and pat dry when cold. HC

Shrimp cocktail and char broiled oysters with hot bread. HC

Deb found some nice looking pork chops, on sale, the other day and made some sauce with the few leftovers. Tonight, I worked some of that sauce into a rigatoni dinner with a bit of bruschetta. HC

I remove the stem, scrape out the gills and stuff with garlic & herb Alouette cheese, topped with a mixture of seasoned bread crumbs and freshly grated parmesan cheese and bake at 400 (F) for 30 min. HC

Baked, stuffed Portobello mushroom caps, fried zucchini chips with a lemon and garlic aioli dip, some very nice Capri tomatoes with olive oil and seasoning and a few hazelnut stuffed olives. We like to drizzle these stuffed caps with a little Balsamic vinegar. HC

I could not agree more, but the last pears I bought skipped right over being ripe! HC