kayb

Me, I much prefer to imagine the taste of the cream cheese, the salmon, the onions, the capers...if not the IPA, given that I'm not an IPA fan (too hoppy for my palate). I had a plate of leftover ham, raw veggies and dip. And two chocolates. Seemed to hit the spot. I am presently making ham stock in the IP with the ham bone, and contemplating making a beef pot pie with the leftover roast.

Some favorite add-ins: roasted red pepper roasted garlic instead of raw artichoke hearts All different kinds of olives Sun-dried tomatoes

I do because it works well with one set of kids/grandkids coming from some distance. Also, it gives us something to stave off hunger while the littles are opening Christmas gifts, which would NOT make for a pleasant dinner if we didn't do it first thing. Also enables me to say, "Dinner will be at xx p.m.," and then no matter what time someone shows, there's something for them to munch on.

Thanks. She's not here a great deal, but it's always good to have something like this when she is. Fortunately, she has always been one who loves fruits and veggies with a minimum of prep. Not big on fancy preps for fish, and not much of a meat-eater. She misses pasta, but quinoa pasta has helped in that regard. And gluten free pizza crust is a mainstay.

FYI -- on gluten free cheesecake crusts -- I've been successful (I have a child with celiac disease) in subbing almond meal for the flour/graham cracker/cookie crumbs. Slightly different flavor profile, but not much.

Absolutely. No one awake but me and the pug. The pug is questionable. Eating leftover from Dec. 23 banana pudding, with a mimosa and a cup of coffee. Will determine what ballgames are on, to which I will nap, shortly. Going to be cold for two weeks. I'm ready.

Light on the kitchen gear this year, but I hadn't expressed a wish for anything. Santa brought me a pink pig kitchen timer; one twists her top half to set the time. I presume she's a "she," as she's a lovely shade of pink. And an amusing book entitled 50 Shades Of Chicken, by one FL Fowler, which intersperses 50 chicken recipes with some potboiling kitchen chef-chicken action. A couple of the recipes looked pretty interesting. Some very cool flamingo gear (I love flamingos), a "pug jazz bar" framed poster, a canvas blow-up of a favorite picture of my grandkids, and other happy odds and ends. And a good day with the family.

I'm with her. Don't do turkey for Christmas. Generally ham. Often roast beef of some description. Sometimes I'll even do a shrimp boil.

Clockwise from lower left, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes with praline pecan topping, rolls, cranberry salad, gravy, asparagus, Brussels sprouts (sauteed with salt and pepper in EVOO, then hit with some balsamic glaze; simple and good); ham, roast beef, mac and cheese. We had chocolate pecan pie that someone ate a piece of, and a cheesecake that no one touched. La Branca Prosecco and Coppola claret. And much shrieking and Christmas chaos from the littles, who mostly filled up on the appetizers (cheese, charcuterie, veggies, pickles, nuts). And a nap.

Lunch: Veggie tray, pickles, fruit salad, cheese and charcuterie. Prosecco. Nuts, candies. Dinner: Ham. Roast beef (Pike's Peak cut, so nothing special, but burbling away now in the sous vide bath). Sweet potato casserole. Mashed potatoes. Brussels sprouts. Asparagus. Cranberry salad. Cheesecake if anyone wants it (likely no one will). Coppola Claret. Tomorrow: Naps and sandwiches. Will pickle the leftover veggies. And maybe devil some eggs.

I started to ask if there was any other kind, but I recalled my cast-iron cornstick pans that bake the corn "muffins" shaped like an ear of corn.... Baked two skillets full night before last to make cornbread dressing for the soup kitchen Christmas dinner today. Nobody left hungry. Most left with carry-outs as well. None of which has much to do with bread...

You should be here. I have three gallon bags of it.

A beautiful job, all the way around. I know you will enjoy it for many years.

And the problem with that is....??

I am. Have discovered the back side of it works wonderfully for pounding thin a chicken or pork cutlet, too.

Deb's co-workers are a fortunate bunch.

Subway's salads are reasonable. Usually. But I swear, they appear to administer an IQ test to prospective employees and hire the ones who score the lowest. I am rarely speechless, but was left so by the employee who asked me with a perfectly straight face, after I'd ordered a salad with "everything but peppers and pickles and onions," "And do you want lettuce with that?" (I'm going to feel really bad if it's their corporate policy to hire the developmentally disabled.)

I have no idea what I was trying to type that my phone autocorrected to that.

Start out by telling us about that lovely confection above, please! And welcome.

@Shelby Dammit, now I want a meat loaf sandwich. And I wasn't planning on meat loaf this week. Oh, well, the best-laid plans...

I'm sorry to hear you've been having to go through this; had wondered where you were. Doubly sorry that you were nearly starved to death; institutional food is just generally SO horrible. You would think the few places who do it right could make a mint teaching their tricks to the many who don't. And I just don't think there's any excuse for serving patients cold meals that aren't supposed to be cold. Talk about insult to injury! How will you handle your shopping now? Obviously it will be a while before you can manage the hike you used to make to the store.

Leftover from Windy ham and cheese muffins, buttered and toasted in t he CSO.

I'm with @Anna N. I vote for the more or less cocktail buffet type thing, which will be much more feasible for the recuperating patient. One thing I like is to make ham and cheese rolls like one would make cinnamon rolls; grind the ham fairly fine in a food processor, grate the cheese (I've used smoked Gouda, or Cheddar, or whatever strikes your fancy), roll out the yeast dough, layer the cheese and ham, roll up, slice. You can put them in the fridge at that point, or even the freezer, depending on how far you need to travel with them, and bake them when you get there. I pour a sauce made of brown sugar, Worcestershire and Dijon mustard over the rolls just before I bake them. They make a great version of a cocktail sandwich. You could also do sliders with pork or beef tenderloin in rolls; take the cooked meat with you and bake the rolls and assemble the sliders there. Crab cake sliders are pretty fun, as well.

Didn't have the macarons at my Aldi this week (wish they had, I would have loved to try them), but I did pick up four of their spiral sliced hams on sale at $1.19 a pound -- three for the soup kitchen Christmas meal, and one for here at home. Those will get baked this coming week for Saturday. Noticed they had prime rib roasts for $6.99 a pound and started to get a couple for Christmas dinner, but passed; I can always go back, but I need to see what kind of roasts I have in the freezer. I think I have a sirloin tip roast I can SV. A plentitude of fresh cranberries remain, at half the price of Kroger. Also picked up a package of what claims to be Iberico ham, at $6.99 for a six-ounce package.

Far from a chef, but from a passable home cook's POV: 1) What is your favourite restaurant (apart from your own) Hard to make that call, but likely Murphy's Wine Bar in Atlanta. That braised pork shank... 2) What is your most important ingredient in the kitchen, and why? Got to go with the others who say salt. 3) What tool is most important in your kitchen, and why? My skillets and my knives. Don't know that I could function without either. 4) Which restaurant, anywhere, is your dream destination to dine? I have always wanted to do the Friday lunch at Galatoire's in NOLA, and have never done it. 5) What trend do you see becoming popular in restaurants in the next year? I haven't a clue. 6) What trend would you most like to see go away? Chatty waitstaff. I appreciate waiters' commentary on food WHEN I ASK FOR IT.