C. sapidus

Clean-out-the-fridge breakfast concoction: Shallots, garlic, Serrano chiles, and cauliflower rice sauteed in olive oil. Added roasted Poblano chiles, sausage, feta cheese, and Mexican oregano, and then scrambled in the eggs with half and half. Breakfast was spicy and satisfying, and the fridge is much emptier.

Elder son came home for a visit and girlfriends were elsewhere, so it was just the four of us. I can't remember the last time we had a meal with just the basic family unit. Camarones a la pimienta (peppered shrimp) over Mexican red rice. Sauteed white onion, garlic, and sliced jalapenos, added shrimp and lots of black pepper, and finished with a dollop of mayonnaise. Rice was made with pureed tomato, chicken stock, white onion, garlic, roasted Anaheim chiles, and cilantro. Crema de palmitos (pureed hearts of palm soup). Sauteed three bunches of chopped scallion whites and garlic, added chopped hearts of palm, pureed and heated with chicken stock, and finished with the chopped scallion greens. I had mine with crumbled feta cheese.

Hey Kim! Always nice to see you still frying a Pug.

Shelby!!!!!!! Great to "see" you! Boys are good - younger son is half-way through college, and elder son is graduated and working. Oh man, I do love dogs and kraut.

Hey, I haven't been on here since Mrs. C kicked me out of the kitchen but she is on a work trip this week, so . . . butternut squash curry with coconut milk, chicken stock, dried shrimp, Mussaman curry paste, and basil. Great to see Dejah and Ann_T still posting meals I would love to dig into.

Hey Shelby – happy 40th! Looks like you did it up right. And yes, homemade pesto is magical. No picture but we had a nice dinner tonight. Fish molee, Indian green rice, and stir-fried cabbage with fennel. Mrs. C enjoyed her meal on the couch, recovering from a trip to the ER after stepping on a roofing nail.

We looked seriously at induction when we renovated our kitchen a few years ago. There is much to like about induction but I like to bang pans around when I cook. Like, really slam them around. It did not seem that my preferred method of cooking would be compatible with a glass cooktop. We installed a 36" Bluestar gas cooktop instead, and absolutely love it. When we move, we will be getting another Bluestar. Edit: spelling

Pureed pumpkin soup – Simmered potato, ginger, onions, garlic, and jalapenos with turmeric. Added pumpkin puree, buzzed with a stick blender, and seasoned with lime juice and salt. Sizzled cumin seed, crushed fennel seed, and crushed fenugreek seeds in hot oil and added to the soup. I added a slug of half-and-half to mine; Mrs. C had hers as is. Doesn’t look like much but packed lots of flavor. I need to remember this recipe when opportunity arises to make a non-traditional Thanksgiving or Christmas soup. The inspiration for this soup was a friend recommending pumpkin puree to help with our 18-year old dog’s digestion. The dog wanted nothing to do with the pumpkin puree, and we happened to have some ginger and chiles . . . waste not, want not. Or to look at it another way - we ate food that the dog rejected.

Hi Patrick - I know very little about Cuban cooking. This was a sorta-followed recipe from The Catch by Ben Sargent, a gift from a friend. I have been quite happy with the handful of dishes I have cooked from this book so far - it has a "New England meets the Carribean" vibe. "Surfer's Snapper Chowder" was particularly outstanding. Your chicken looks and sounds fantastic, and has most of the known world covered with its ingredients.

Pan-fried Cuban snapper – Whole snapper trimmed (to fit the pan), fried, and deboned. Separately fried garlic paste with black pepper, chile flakes, and orange zest, and then simmered the sauce with freshly-squeezed orange juice, lime juice, and cilantro. Cuban yellow rice – Jasmine rice fried with onion and annatto, and then steamed with bay leaf and smoked turkey stock.

3-step coating for the shrimp - seasoned flour, egg wash, and then a mix of corn meal and seasoned flour. Seasoning was Dizzy Pig Cajun rub. Mrs. C dredged and I fried, and the timing worked out perfectly. Dejah, the rainbow trout and Thai curry look right up my alley . . . Made two quiches this morning with Gruyere cheese - one crab and one Mexican chorizo and onion - for a confused brunch which may be dinner by the time everyone's travel plans, etc. line up.

Shrimp po' boys, a joint effort with Mrs. C. Yeah, hungry boys made most of that pile of shrimp disappear.

Kim - Hot crab dip and baguette slices sounds so very good. Mexican beans with chorizo and greens – Pinto beans with fried Mexican chorizo, Swiss chard, chipotle in adobo, and roasted Poblano chiles, topped with sliced red onion and crumbled queso fresco. Arroz verde (green rice) – Fry jasmine rice with onions and garlic, and then steam the rice with a puree of roasted Poblano chiles, spinach, cilantro, and chicken stock. A remarkable number of my favorite flavors were packed into this meal

Heh. You know the saying about the two things you don't want to see made - laws and sausage.

Mexican chorizo, onion, tomato, zucchini, Thai basil, and eggs, with warm corn tortillas. I finally found a chorizo brand I like (don't ask me which one) so I've been on a chorizo kick.

Mrs. C made dinner on the Big Green Egg tonight – all I did was carve turkey and take pictures. Sides included a particularly good smoked babaghanoush, diced avocado, crab dip, bread, crackers, and two kinds of salad. The star of the show was Mrs. C’s smoked turkey. Before carving . . . . . . and after. Mrs. C has the skin and carcass simmering away to make smoked turkey stock.

Gorgeous! Masala dosa is one of my favorite foods on earth, not far behind Mysore masala dosa (inside of dosa slathered with red chile paste). Clean out the fridge breakfast here -chorizo and eggs with tomatoes, onions, and fresh chiles, topped with Cholula salsa and avocado. Warm corn tortillas.

Thanks, Patrick! Yes, crushed dried Aleppo peppers. Looking forward to seeing your risotto.

Quick dinner – shrimp with slowly-fried garlic, cumin, smoked paprika, Aleppo peppers, S&P, lemon juice, and Thai basil. Tossed with spaghetti and served with green salad.

Scubadoo - You are too kind! I am digging the new job so far, thanks for asking. Thai tonight: beef grapao/kaprow/”kapow” with garlic paste, chiles, onions, fish sauce, dark soy sauce, rice vinegar, and lots of Thai basil. Napa cabbage stir-fried with more garlic, fermented bean paste, and brown sugar. Jasmine rice.

A new job with a longer commute has meant later dinners and fewer pictures. Snapper with chiles, garlic, and ginger, plus red onion, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, black pepper, and rice vinegar. Stir-fried bean sprouts with scallions, plus sliced chiles, garlic, shallot, black pepper, and soy sauce. Jasmine rice

Thank you, TheCulinary Library, awfully kind of you. No pictures because we had guests, but we served grilled five-spice chicken, cucumber salad, regular salad, and fried rice. The chicken marinated overnight with ginger, garlic, soy sauce, five-spice powder, sugar, and oil, and then I added freshly-ground star anise while lighting the grill.

Shrimp, chayote, and spinach soup with lemongrass – Gently fried shallots, lemongrass, smashed red chiles, and shrimp paste. Added coconut milk, chicken stock, and cubed chayote and simmered until the chayote was nearly tender. Added spinach and shrimp and simmered until done, finishing with fish sauce and sugar. Served with jasmine rice and sliced cucumbers. Dogs were comically interested in the shrimp paste.

Basquecook – thank you! Bangkok BBQ chicken – Charcoal-grilled after marinating with coconut milk, curry powder, fish sauce, garlic, cilantro, brown sugar, and white pepper. Sweet chile sauce and jasmine rice to go with. Mixed vegetables with chile-tamarind sauce – Napa cabbage, baby corn, plum tomatoes, red bell pepper, and scallions stir-fried with garlic, ginger, sugar, soy sauce, chicken stock, and roasted chile paste, and finished with Thai basil.

Thank you, PV. Greens were a mix of cilantro and Chinese celery leaves.