Basilgirl

Chicken seems to be very popular lately... Pan roasted chicken breasts with smashed garlic, prosciutto, sage, Marsala and butter sauce Barilla tortellini and tortelloni tossed with butter, olive oil, scallions, a little salt & a lot of pepper

Brats on the grill pan, split and topped with melted cheddar, on squishy hot dog rolls with spicy brown mustard Potato pancakes (mix) Sierra Nevadas

A personal size pepperoni pizza with tons of cheese from a local pizza joint. It was either that or the cheeseburger sub Bottled water A few of my boss' fries

"Cubans" on squishy white bread, heavily buttered, baked a la Jaques' croque monsieur method Extra Nathan's pickle chips on the side Sea salt & vinegar potato chips Sierra Nevadas While watching the Skins-Dallas game. WHAT AN ENDING! Good thing my brother-in-law called to congratulate and woke me up so I could Tivo the last 4 minutes.

Back from a week-long feeding frenzy starting at a truck stop in Ashland VA on the way to VA Beach. Sausage gravy & biscuits began the long slide into my now very bloated stomach. Anyway, last night I made white bean chicken chili and cornbread with scallions. It was the best meal I had all week.

How about a beer batter? 1/2 cup or so of flour, 1/4 cup cornstarch, salt (Cajun seasoning is good here), 1 beaten egg, salt, 3/4 cup or so beer. Let stand for an hour. It should be like pancake batter. If it's too thick, add more beer. Dip the fish in flour then in the batter and fry in 2 - 3" of vegetable oil.

I would be a croissant, because I'm flaky I asked the Basilman years ago what kind of bread he would be, and he said "Burnt toast"

Barilla tortelloni with a quick butter sauce with scallions, fresh tomatoes, hot chiles, served with leftover fried chicken slices. It was GOOD.

Saturday: lasagna with Mario's ragu bolognese. I've made bolognese a few times now, including Marcella's, and I don't know...I just don't like it. Anyway, the lasagna was not very good. I didn't use enough cheese and it was just blah and dry. Oh well. From now on I'll stick to my Mom's tried and true 1950's style recipe. Sunday: Fried chicken and Vidalia onion rings in a beer batter, tomato salad, corn on the cob with lime & cayenne butter, baked poblanos with Mexican cheese and scallions Monday: Pork loin stuffed with garlic-rosemary-sage-salt paste, roasted green beans with garlic, lemon & anchovy, tomato & fresh mozzarella bruschetta. Also did an "Italian" beef in the Crock Pot for French dips tonight. A beautiful Labor Day weekend, and I'm glued to reruns of 24 on A&E and of course the hurricane coverage.

Tomato, onion, garlic, basil, queso fresco frittata Jimmy Dean sage sausage Buttered toasted Ray's bagels. These frozen bagels are outstanding. They just started carrying them at my store. They're from NYC and are really, really good.

Braised pork chops from Molly Stevens (chicken stock, white wine vinegar, white wine, hot peppers) - good stuff Really buttery, lots of s&p egg noodles Baked tomato halves with fresh mozzarella, olive oil, basil on top

I think her worst crime was the "Tapas and 'Tinis" episode where she made "pulled pork" out of store bought cooked baby back ribs. She managed to mangle the meat off the bones and tear it into chunks, then added chili sauce and taco seasoning and served them on frozen oven fried potato chips. What the hell kind of "tapa" is that? Another favorite was her grilled cheese sandwiches made with canned cheese soup. I mean, the soup was mixed with shredded cheese and then put in between the bread. Remember, always Keep It Semi-Horrendous.

I've been on a pan roasted chicken breast kick lately. It's so quick and easy to do after a long day at work. Last night's toppings were proscuitto, Saga Blue and basil. The Saga melted down into the chicken stock/lemon sauce so I threw some provolone on there too. Served with Asiago bread to sop up the sauce. Cheesy meal. And of course cheap Chardonnay.

Off the cob, sauteed in butter, S&P, fresh chiles and basil

I have a toaster oven...it's stored in my basement. BUT my mom and I used to make the best open face toasted cheese - we just buttered white bread and slapped American or cheddar on it and broiled in the toaster oven until the cheese was all gooey and blackened in spots. Mmmm. I want one right now.

Tuscan canteloupe with prosciutto Heirloom tomato, fresh mozzarella & basil salad Asiago cheese bread Cheap Chardonnay

Friday night: leftover homemade pizza; brie on baguette; many beers while watching the Redkins lose again Saturday: homegrown red & yellow peppers stuffed with moistened bread, bread crumbs, olive oil, anchovies, tons of garlic, chopped tomatoes, oregano, braised in tomato sauce; hot Italian sausage on the side Sunday: Spicy gazpacho, sauteed corn with chiles and basil, pupusas from the Food Lion (actually from El Salvador)

Would you take a stab at listing some quantities? I made something like this before after reading about it on another thread, and it didn't have any flavor beyond just the beef flavor. It tasted fine, but not what I'd call "Italian Beef." I am pretty sure I just didn't use enough seasonings. ← For a 3-lb roast I use about a cup of broth, one packet of Good Seasons, about a head of garlic (smashed & peeled), 10 or so pepperoncinis, about a 1/4 cup of the pepper juice. Sometimes I put oregano and pepper flakes in there too. I find it very flavorful, especially if you let the meat sit in the broth overnight (after you take it out of the Crockpot). I read somewhere that you should really beef (!) up the seasonings when Crockpotting.

Pan roasted chicken breasts with smashed garlic, prosciutto, fresh thyme, chicken stock, lemon juice, melted provolone on top Roasted garlic bread from La Brea Bakery to sop up the yummy sauce Baked tomato slices topped with melted fresh mozzarella & basil Kendall Jackson Chardonnay Tonight - leftover cheddar & Vidalia tomato pie

Bonnie's Buffalo Chicken Dip. Google it. People go nuts for it. Plus you could keep it warm in a Crockpot. Basically, it's shredded chicken, cream cheese, jack cheese, bottled ranch dressing and a lot of hot sauce. Sounds terrible, doesn't it?? It's not.

This morning's temperatures reminded me of the first day of school Lentil soup with corn bread White bean chicken chili French onion soup Chicken with 40 cloves of garlic Beef stroganoff That Buffalo chicken dip that's all over the Internet made with Monterey Jack, Frank's Hot Sauce and Ranch dressing - sounds terrible, but it's surprisingly yummy on tortilla chips and good for watching the Redskins lose

Not very authentic, but I make "Italian Beef" in the Crockpot. Basically it's just a chuck or round roast, beef broth, Good Seasons Italian Dressing Mix , garlic cloves (lots), pepperoncinis and a little of their juice...cooked for 8 - 10 hours on low. We like to shred it and put it back in the juice and then serve it on good buns with melted provolone. It ain't Chicago, but it might help a little to satisfy your cravings...

BLTs! With Black from Tula (unreal), Beefsteak, and Pink Ribbed tomatoes; Safeway Select bacon - from Canada - very salty & lean (and comparatively cheap) Lay's Kettle Cooked Sea Salt & Vinegar potato chips Sierra Nevadas

Black from Tula and Beefsteak tomato, basil, garlic (LOTS), EVOO, sherry vinegar bruschetta That was all. Edited to add the forgotten Belgioso "fresh" mozzarella - yummy, salty goodness

Sunday: Roasted chicken chunks with garlic, rosemary, grill seasoning, lemon & white wine Roasted corn on the cob with thyme butter Broiled tomato halves with garlic & olive oil, sandwiched with fresh mozzarella and basil so the cheese was slightly melted YUM Sourdough boule to soak up the juices from the chicken and tomatoes Saturday: Spent ALL DAY processing the 400 POUNDS of tomatoes that all came in at once in The Basilman's garden. I was tired and drank my dinner.