Okanagancook

I don't think I can set the BGE up with a hot and cooler side. I do have a meat thermometer and planned on checking it after five minutes on one side. Do not want them more than medium-rare...on the rare side.

Bistecca. Never cooked such a thick steak but Superstore had Canada AAA grade rib roasts on for $10.53/kg so this 4 rib roast cost me $35! I decided to cut it into four two inch steaks. Not really a "bistecca" since it isn't a T-bone or Porterhouse but it should cook up the same way. Get the Big Green Egg going with a good bit of charcoal and sear hard on each side for about 6 to 8 minutes then rest. How does that sound? Some rosemary/salt/pepper to season and serve with some Balsamic Vinegar.

Ann_T, you're killing me! We just had some fresh crab from the Island....so sweet. Here's DH's breakfast. Curried scrambled eggs made with fresh homemade Madras Curry Powder and a chapati.

God, that looks good. I LOVE avocado and happen to have three ready for use.....we are on the same wavelength these last few days!! I took another look at Simple since buying it and why or why the fork why have I not made anything more from this book. If you need the squid pasta recipe let me know. It IS worth making. cheers.

Great work @Anna N

@blue_dolphin I had just bookmarked this squid/pasta recipe for making very soon. If you make pasta, squid ink pasta is really quite simple to make and deliciously 'oceanie' from the squid ink which is available at your local Italian store. There is a recipe in A16 if you have that cookbook. Squid/Mussels and spicy sausage always good in fact the latter is often on menus around here using sliced Spanish chorizo. A 'healthy' way to eat sausage!

Mexican chorizo sausage cooked to render the fat and then mixed in with frying leftover potatoes topped with an egg done sunny side up.

I read this and immediately wanted to make a warm spinach salad with the gorgeous spinach I scored at the store. Using the White Dog Cafe Recipe as a base....similar ingredients to yours only with the addition of sauté mushrooms in the bacon fat, deglazed with white wine. The dressing has thyme leaves, Dijon, Oil, red wine vinegar, s and p. I love the IP.....no hard boiled eggs around so in about ten minutes I have some in the fridge for my salad. . Regarding your potato, I would agree that a nicely cooked potato needs only some simple enhancements. Cooks Illustrated have a somewhat involved recipe for twice baked potatoes done in the oven. Pots are baked whole, sliced in half and gutted. The whites are combined with similar ingredients to yours or other variations. This mix is stuffed in the shells after they have been put back in the oven to dry out the shell a little...crispy good. They are nice potatoes but the potato is not the star. Nice to see you making proper meals. So difficult when cooking for one.

Have you tried the Grappa?

Thank you for the links and suggestions.

Excellent, thank you for your help.

Going to Portland for a few days and would like some recommendations for cocktail bars and restaurants. We liked Departure the last time we were there. Would like to be able to walk to restaurants in the downtown area. thanks .

Going to Portland for five nights. What would be your recommendations for cocktail bars and restaurants in the downtown area...walking distances opps. ME is east coast and I wanted west coast...will find another thread...sorry

@liamsauntFive Stars for a healthy lunch!

Crab bisque from Peterson's Splendid Soups. Needed a squirt of lemon though. Salad on the side, not shown.

Crab cakes from Cooks Illustrated. Ridiculously big. I KNEW they would fall apart turning them in the pan. Here's a picture before frying. The final dinner plate looks like the cat's breakfast but tasted good. Next time I will make them 1/3 the size, these were 4 oz each and made with crab, a very small amount of bread crumbs, mayo, chopped green onion, spices and some egg. They were left in the fridge to 'set up' from 12 hours.

@HungryChrisThose tacos looks wonderful. I'm with you about the shredded lettuce. I just checked and I have some taco shells in the cupboard......hummmmm, lunch.

Page 189, I know because I've made that recipe so many times the pages have separated themselves from the book. In fact, I love that book. I bought it in 1982!

We love Mulligatawny Soup. Many moons ago I was able to buy 'Bolts' Mulligatawny Soup Paste but it has disappeared. I spent quite a bit of time searching for a recipe that duplicated that flavour and I just made a couple of batches. Mine is just finely chopped onions; a little tomato peeled, seeded and chopped; the paste; lemon juice (in the soup and usually a slice in the soup bowl that the eater squishes to get the amount of tang they like); good stock (chicken or lamb) and a little chopped cilantro to finish. Additions sometimes include those little red lentils or rice; chopped lamb cubes that have been browned (this is probably my favourite addition); chopped chicken (usually left over). I could have a bowl for breakfast!

@sartoric nice looking chapatis! Did you dry fry them and then brush with butter/ghee?

We have the same exact juicer. An awesome old machine.

Thanks. We were lucky to find a 1.7 acre parcel with nothing on it and a lake view to boot. Been here 12 years and love it. That said the yard is a lot of work and can get away on you, hence the massive pruning job this year.

Pictures from the veggie garden coming up but here is the mother load pile of clippings we have awaiting a trip to the dump. In the second picture is the pile of vine clippings from our little vineyard. Weather here is still got the locals grumbling 'where the heck is spring???" The wineries are opening, it should be warm.

Kayb, squid needs just to be kissed with heat other wise you have rubber bands. Tonight I made a pasta dish with squid and fennel. The instructions were to cook the little 1/4 inch slices of squid for 3 minutes! Not. I put them in a hot, hot pan for maybe 30 seconds. Took them out and proceeded with the rest of the recipe which had you add the squid back in to heat with the linguine and they weren't rubbery at all. May 2015 Bon Apetite recipe for A Light Linguine recipe. It was 'meh'. Wouldn't make again. Here is the mis and then the finished dish.

Curry dinner from the other night. The plated dish wasn't pretty so here are some prep pictures! Using The Indian Family Kitchen cookbook to test a few recipes. My SIL was here and loved the curries I made and I taught her some basics. Then she emailed asking about spices and wanting the recipe for dahl that I had made when she was here. I decided I would just buy her this book seeing it is really friendly towards those cooks new to Indian cuisine and the recipes are easy, well described and delicious. She got her spices and some basic ingredients and made the dahl which she said was fantastic. Even her meat and potatoes hubby liked it. I decided to try two more dishes: the spicy lamb chops (marinated in about five spices and grilled.....I burnt mine a bit which is why you only have them when they first when on the grill pan) and rice pilau. This is a really good recipe. The rice is cooked in a similar fashion to the pasta method..extra water/ then drain. This was really good and so easy which is perfect of SIL because she doesn't have a lot of confidence in the kitchen....her first husband was a MasterChef in Germany.