Dinner! 2004

[Malawry]

Discussion of the pantry challenge continues here.

[hillvalley]

Last night was leftover, doctored greens from the first meeting of theDC BBQ club and blueberries and black raspberries in cream.

Tonight it is more pea soup, with fresh peas added to the first batch. I've gotta lotta pea soup around. And a lot of blueberries so I'll have more of those.

[mags]

Moved to Challenge thread

Edited June 28, 2004 by mags (log)

[Chef Shogun]

My new scheme is to make large-ish pasta or stir-fry type dishes that I can eat for dinner one night, then eat at work for at least two days. Last week I did a citrusy beef with caramelized onion and bell pepper stir fry that came out relatively well.

Tonight I did a pasta of zucchini, asparagus, peas, and breaded chicken chunks in an alfredo sauce. I'm moderately ashamed to admit that the sauce came out of a jar (Though I CAN make a killer alfredo, it was too much of an effort for tonight), seasoned and spiked with nutmeg, cardamom, and a little habanero powder for warmth. I had a little for dinner just now, and it's quite tasty, and should keep well for lunch, if I keep the chicken seperated so it stays nice and crispy, as long as the sauce doesn't seperate. I like how this scheme is going so far, and should work well one I get it streamlined a bit.

Planning something big for the weekend, if I don't go away. Stay tuned!

[mags]

Pulled pork with (don't flinch) homemade low-carb BBQ sauce and homemade low-carb cole slaw.

[Behemoth]

Over the course of 5 hours:

glass of orange juice cut with seltzer

(take mustard greens out of fridge, stare at them, put them back in fridge.)

handful of paul newman black pepper pretzels

contemplate making pasta with morels, prosciutto and cream sauce.

eat prosciutto with butter on bread

take squash out of fridge. Stare at it, look up a recipe, put it back in fridge

eat a handful of cherries

more seltzer, asprin

contemplate calling for pizza

bowl of oatmeal

more seltzer

now, perhaps a beer.

(the road to hell is paved with good intentions...)

[dumpling]

Jerk Chicken

Pasta Salad with orzo, corn, bell peppers(red, yellow and green), mango and avocado with a little tamarind concentrate

Smashed Broccoli

Banana-Lime Cake

[binkyboots]

sausages and roast cauliflower (mike)

spicy lentil soup with little scrunchy bits of roast cauliflower for me

[suzilightning]

single so i can eat for me ... and johnnybird tells me he will be eating some reindeer for me on travel tonight.

bottle of segura viudas brut reserva while grilling

a package of grillmaster garlic franks - i am pleasntly suprised by the tast and snap in these franks. since the coupon was 1.00 off two and they were on sale i also picked up some cajun franks... maybe some moutard and the recent gift by a neighbor of sweet pepper relish..........

grilled onions

arnold select "new england" buns - no where near real new england buns BUT a

wonderful invention for sausages, franks and the like( lobster salad goes in a

real top cut bun)

some classic yellow mustard

mixed baby greens

leftover squash fitatta

[redfox]

Today made up a nice large batch of pizza dough (enough for four thin-crust pizzas) with three pizzas' worth to be refrigerated pre-proofing for later. Tonight's is with goat and mozzarella cheeses, toasted walnuts, and caramelized onions.

[sassybat]

penne ala vodka (i found the recipe on epicurious). really yummy and made enough pasta for dinner for two and two lunch portions

homage to roast veggies: cauliflower, bell peppers (red and orange), and string beans. i still like the cauliflower the best.

[Susan in FL]

single so i can eat for me ... and johnnybird tells me he will be eating some reindeer for me on travel tonight.

bottle of segura viudas brut reserva while grilling

a package of grillmaster garlic franks - i am pleasntly suprised by the tast and snap in these franks.  since the coupon was 1.00 off two and they were on sale i also picked up some cajun franks... maybe some moutard and the recent gift by a neighbor of sweet pepper relish..........

grilled onions

arnold select "new england" buns - no where near real new england buns BUT a

    wonderful invention for sausages, franks and the like( lobster salad goes in a

    real top cut bun)

some classic yellow mustard

mixed baby greens

leftover squash fitatta

You know how to do the single thing! Way to go.

I am sort of single tonight, too. Russ moonlights at a package store two nights a week, and tonight is one of them, but I also worked at my other job. My second job is better, though... tonight was just a two hour meeting, over dinner, and he has to work until 11:00. I had French onion soup for the first time in I can't remember how long, and a Caesar salad. I'll probably go indulge in some frozen custard at one of my favorite ice cream places a little later.

Last night we made our all-time favorite Pasta Puttanesca recipe. It's an uncooked sauce.

Sunday night I made duck gumbo, chive-jalapeno cornbread, and salad of (pickling) cucumbers and onions.

Saturday night we grilled a boneless lamb roast. It was butterflied, and we spread a little tapenade on it, and placed a few anchovies, sundried tomatoes, and pine nuts in there, rolled it up, and rotisserie-grilled it. Yum. The pasta to go with it was good, too... sort of a wine and stock reduction sauce with just a hint of tomatoes and garlic and fresh herbs. Then, salad of lettuces, tomato, onion, with vinaigrette, gorgonzola, and pine nuts.

Friday night we had our own wine tasting and appetizer/tapas - style foods. The night before the store where Russ is working had a wine tasting, and he got to bring home left-overs. We had samples of 13 wines. We decided ahead for after work, at our regular day jobs, him to bring home surprises to go with white wine, and I would bring home surprises to go with red wine. We had edamame, sushi, a lobster, cheeses, pate', bread, bruschetta, and raspberry chocolate truffles. Quite different than our usual Friday night happy hour out and about.

We're getting ready to go to Orlando/Disney World for a few days in celebration of our anniversary, and have a reservation at Victoria and Alberts!

See you when I get back... Cheers!

[hillvalley]

Pulled pork with (don't flinch) homemade low-carb BBQ sauce and homemade low-carb cole slaw.

Thanks for the warning

More pea soup. I tried to pawn some off on babka, but I haven't heard back from her. I'm getting tired of pea soup.

And more blueberries, probably with more cream. And the raspberries and strawberries I picked up at market today.

[helenas]

Salmon with arabic spices: a recipe coming from my favorite Greg Malouf - lebanese born australian chef - a brilliant way to spice up that boring farmed salmon: fish medallions (i cut and skinned them from the tail part i got in chinese grocery), covered with fresh tyme, zaatar and sumac and very slowly (it took me about 40 minutes) baked on the lowest setting of the oven. Mine is 250F, so i kept the door ajar through the whole cooking (gave me about 200f). The result was a fish of great taste and incomparable texture, almost gelatinous...

The choice of sides was sort of tricky but i ended up making some hummus, served with harissa and romaine instead of pitas.

Cut up radishes and tomatoes.

[spaghetttti]

Over the course of 5 hours:

glass of orange juice cut with seltzer

(take mustard greens out of fridge, stare at them, put them back in fridge.)

handful of paul newman black pepper pretzels

contemplate making pasta with morels, prosciutto and cream sauce.

eat prosciutto with butter on bread

take squash out of fridge. Stare at it, look up a recipe, put it back in fridge

eat a handful of cherries

more seltzer, asprin

contemplate calling for pizza

bowl of oatmeal

more seltzer

now, perhaps a beer.

(the road to hell is paved with good intentions...)

Oooh B!

I've been feeling kinda low, haven't eaten a decent dinner for a coupla days, but upon reading your post I literally laughed out loud!

Thanks, you've lifted my spirits tremendously!

Think I'll go and fix a bowl of oatmeal now.

Yetty

[Adam Balic]

Dinner for a friend.

Marche style Slow roast squab (yep squab, not sodding wood pigeon), with lemon and rosemary flavoured pork stuffing.

Cannelini beans with sage, garlic and truffle oil

Wilted spinach

Quaking pudding (a'la balmagowry) flavoured with rataffia, spices and marmalade, served with rich muscat sauce.

Edited June 30, 2004 by Adam Balic (log)

[curlywurlyfi]

turkey hash that tasted like prison food

Rachel, this made me laugh out loud!

I was feeling most scratchy after hours spent struggling home (tube strike in London), so dinner was three mammoth gin + tonics (but slimline tonic, so really they had no calories at all, and that Tanqueray gin is extremely dry). then my old friend emergency salmon: boneless salmon fillets (from the supermarket on the doorstep), fried crispy on the outside, doused with really quite a lot of good balsamic + equal quantity soy while still in the pan to make sauce, served with steamed broccoli. Then some of my flatmate's Vignotte. And a lot of lying on the sofa letting the healing rays of the television wash over me.

(edited for clarity)

Edited June 30, 2004 by curlywurlyfi (log)

[eunny jang]

Surf and Turf, only not:

Flank steak with an ECSTACY-INDUCING chimichurri

Jerked shrimp, grilled and beheaded/shelled at the table

Little grilled peach/red onion salsa/salad kind of thing

Rice cooked with coconut milk and ginger with scallions stirred in

Greens.

I so have to get a camera.

[Behemoth]

spaghettti, yesterday was a little better. Since the spouse is away, I get to experiment a little. I bought perch for the first time (it seems to be commonly available in decent quality in the Midwest) and played around with it.

I fried a hunk of perch in butter (buerre noisette) with prosciutto slices until deep brown crispy, then deglazed the pan with bianco vermouth. It was a great combination...crispy salty prosciutto against the smooth fish and the complicated slightly sweet & herbal flavor of the vermouth. The vermouth was the kicker. If I make it for guests, I will probably serve it with some sauteed bitter greens like rapini, and pureed cauliflower or potatoes. Lemon dessert, definitely...

Er, I also ate a bunch of otter pops, but I don't think that is anything to be ashamed of!

[tastykimmie]

sauteed center cut pork chops (flavor-enhanced with montreal seasoning), fried corn and salad greens

[hillvalley]

I so have to get a camera.

Anytime you need someone to shoot dinner and finish your leftovers, let me know

Tonight:

More pea soup (groan)

Clams steamed in soy sauce and mirin

kimchi

marinated mushrooms

boiled spinach that was bitter

rice cake with melon filling

[mags]

Another semi-lazy dinner: Giant chef's salad with romaine, tomatoes, avocado, sheep's-milk cheese, grilled chicken thighs marinated with lemon juice, olive oil, and basil, and Snowangel's Divorce Salad Dressing.

[Jason Perlow]

Cavatelli with Broccoli, Sausage and Sundried Tomato.

[irodguy]

Sunday - Was one of my experimental recipe days.

White fish encrusted with fresh Garlic and Parmesan

Fresh Caesar

Coconut Curry White Fish

White Fish Cordon Bleu

Potato croquettes made with Potato Pearls

Monday

Basically Zucchini parmesan croquettes

Spring Mix Salad with Balsamic Maple vinaigrette

Tuesday

Sushi

Wednesday

Sushi ;)

must be this week's theme. Much better restaurant than Tuesday.

Think I will pick up some fish on Sunday and do my own Sushi

[joey madison]

1/2 Bottle of Veuve

Shaved Asparagus and Parmesan Salad

Frogs Leap Sauignon Blanc

Parmesan Encrusted Chicken Basil Roulades with a Mustard Yogurt Sauce

Green Beans with Almonds

Rice

Creme Brulee with fresh strawberries

Inniskillin Ice Wine

I had a date, so I spent a little extra time in the kitchen.