Dinner 2017 (Part 6)

[David Ross]

This was sort of an accident dinner.  I had found this very nice piece of tuna at the market.  And I thought it would go well with a Greek salad I made.  I've been working on a different take on Greek salad recently.  It's basically taking the ingredients and cutting them all down to a small dice.  I've been using it as the garnish for spicy tacos rather than the typical taco toppings.  And it's delicious.  So I ended up with a tuna with chopped Greek salad.  It was pretty good.

[HungryChris]

16 minutes ago, David Ross said:

This was sort of an accident dinner.  I had found this very nice piece of tuna at the market.  And I thought it would go well with a Greek salad I made.  I've been working on a different take on Greek salad recently.  It's basically taking the ingredients and cutting them all down to a small dice. 

A truly good Greek salad is a fine thing, indeed and I would like to hear about how you prepare yours including where you get the feta cheese and the dressing ingredients. I have some fresh Greek oregano growing on the deck that needs a purpose.

HC

[David Ross]

This is my recipe.  I buy Feta at a small gourmet market.  It's tangy and a bit salty, but not overly strong flavored.  I didn't keep the package so I'm not sure where it's made.  I didn't like the fresh oregano I found in a couple of markets, so I went with my reliable dried Mexican oregano.  I buy it at a local Mexican store and they dry it themselves.  It's the full bud of the oregano flower and leaves then dried.  When you rub it between your hands it releases a wonderful fragrance and aroma.  But I'm sure your Greek oregano would be much better.  I basically cut the tomatoes and cucumbers in about a 1/4" dice. 

 

3/4 cup peeled, seeded and diced cucumber

3/4 cup seeded diced tomatoes, (I used Roma's since our local tomatoes are just now coming into good flavor)

3/4 cup peeled and diced red onion

1/2 cup chopped, pitted Kalamata and Greek green olives

3/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese

1/3 cup minced parsley

2 tsp. rubbed dried Mexican oregano

2 tsp. dried lemon peel

2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

1/2 tsp. dried red pepper flakes

3 tbsp. olive oil

Salt and black pepper to taste

 

I've also made it by adding some diced zucchini which is also very good. The cheese in the photo has taken on a bit of pink color from the Kalamata olives since it was a day old, but usually it's best eaten the day you make it and not stored in the fridge for the next day for the flavors to stay fresh and the vegetables crisp. 

[Okanagancook]

No green peppers in the Greek salad?

Edited August 27, 2017 by Okanagancook
Fix salad name (log)

[David Ross]

10 minutes ago, Okanagancook said:

No green peppers in the feta salad?

I never thought of green peppers but I'll try it next time.  Would add some more crispness and another flavor.

[chefmd]

Roasted chicken with pan seared zucchini and garlic aioli

[Okanagancook]

31 minutes ago, David Ross said:

I never thought of green peppers but I'll try it next time.  Would add some more crispness and another flavor.

This is my go to salad when the gardening season yields succulent green peppers.  I think you will like the addition.  A friend uses whole cherry tomatoes to keep the juices to a minimum.  Nice idea but you can be chasing them around the plate, I find.

Edited August 27, 2017 by Okanagancook
Add another idea. (log)

[Anna N]

 

it felt as if mother nature came knocking at my door tonight when a friend showed up with some fresh-from-the-market/farm vegetables, peaches and just-laid eggs. 

 

I ate two peaches immediately!  

 

Dinner was roasted green beans, corn and a simple beet salad with blue cheese. 

 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

I wasn't hungry when I got home from the grocery store until about midway through my cool shower and I'd cooled down. Then I became famished.

 

I'd picked up some beef chuck freshly ground in the store today and I had Hatch chilis, so I decided on a green chili cheeseburger. I quickly researched, and it seems that it's usually beef, chilis and sometimes grilled onion on top, then American cheese on top of that. I had bought some colby-jack for this purpose, but decided to stick with the white American I also had. I roasted the chili in a dry pan, then peeled, deseeded and chopped wearing gloves. The only other components were a little mayo on the grilled bun. This was really good, but messy to eat.

 

I made a Greek salad to eat first and heated an individual blueberry pie for dessert. The cherry pie is good, and the first ingredient is cherries. I won't buy the blueberry one again. I suspected blueberries wasn't the first ingredient here, and it wasn't.

[Shelby]

Ronnie and Chum caught us some catfish from the river.

 

[liuzhou]

Tonight. Beef marinated in Shaoxing wine with a little potato starch. Stir-fried with garlic, yellow garlic chives (aka hotbed chives), coriander leaf, ginger, red chilli, and green chilli. A little soy sauce and sesame oil. Very spicy dish. With rice.

 

[Okanagancook]

T Keller duck breast, mashed potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini, shallots and mushrooms with some duck glaze from the freezer.  Could have done with more duck.  It was delicious.

[Toliver]

On 8/26/2017 at 10:07 AM, mgaretz said:

Hash made with the leftover meatloaf:  Meatloaf, red potatoes, cauliflower, onion, peas, tossed with some extra ketchup.

 

 

@mgaretz

Mark,

The hash made from leftover meatloaf is a brilliant idea.

Though I would hate to have to choose between making the meatloaf hash or making a meatloaf sandwich slathered with horseradish mayo.

Thanks for the inspiration.

[mgaretz]

34 minutes ago, Toliver said:

The hash made from leftover meatloaf is a brilliant idea.

Though I would hate to have to choose between making the meatloaf hash or making a meatloaf sandwich slathered with horseradish mayo.

Thanks for the inspiration.

 

Well when you have to stretch it into a meal for two, a sandwich isn't an option!  

[scubadoo97]

Sliced a chicken breast in half and lightly pounded  to make two chicken sandwiches.  Panned in butter till golden.  Lettuce, tomato and basil leaves to dress it.  

[robirdstx]

 

Grilled Garlic Sausage Wrap

[chefmd]

Scallops with sautéed vegetables (onions, pepper, zucchini, eggplant, yellow tomatoes).

[liamsaunt]

Sandwich night (again).  BLT for me. 

 

 

 

Warm lobster in brioche mini rolls for the husband. I personally hate lobster but will cook it for those who do not share my aversion.

 

 

[scubadoo97]

On August 27, 2017 at 5:43 PM, HungryChris said:

A truly good Greek salad is a fine thing, indeed and I would like to hear about how you prepare yours including where you get the feta cheese and the dressing ingredients. I have some fresh Greek oregano growing on the deck that needs a purpose.

HC

My Greek oregano is dried but very aromatic.  My go to feta is Valbresso.  French but darn good 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

45 minutes ago, liamsaunt said:

I personally hate lobster

 

Exceptionally good-looking food and photography as usual, liamsaunt. But who hates lobster; are you an alien?  If you are an alien, you must be a kind one to indulge us humans by cooking up such a delicious creation as those little lobster rolls.

 

The person who invented BLT's deserves some kind of award, but those mini lobster rolls are even better to me.

 

Good live lobsters are one of the things I can't find anymore around here. Harris Teeter used to have them in a tank years ago. Now the only place I know is Grand Asia Market, but that's out of my walking distance, and the last time I bought some there they were "muddy" tasting, as if they had been subsisting in a dirty tank. Hmmm. Maybe my seafood monger can order them or something. They do have tanks and they are friendly and accommodating in my past interactions with them. Since HungryChris found them at such a bargain recently they might even be reasonably priced. A girl can dream ... about perfect lobster rolls.

[Katie Meadow]

On 8/27/2017 at 2:43 PM, HungryChris said:

A truly good Greek salad is a fine thing, indeed and I would like to hear about how you prepare yours including where you get the feta cheese and the dressing ingredients. I have some fresh Greek oregano growing on the deck that needs a purpose.

HC

I'm still making my Greeks the way I remember them in Greece. Since that was more than thirty years ago I don't know if my salads have morphed or not, but they are pretty basic. I cut up cukes and tomatoes (bite size wedges, not little dice) and mix them into individual bowls. I sprinkle on some salt, toss gently, and let sit fifteen minutes or so. This starts a nice puddle of juice at the bottom. Of course it is predicated on having nice ripe summer tomatoes. Then I add a bit of very finely shaved red onion. Radishes, maybe, if I have them. Sometimes I add a dusting of dry oregano, sometimes not. I spritz on just a wee bit of lemon juice and a good drizzle of olive oil. Then I add French Feta, which I find to be creamier than most others, and less salty. The salad gets topped with Kalamatas or some other good quality black olives. That's it. Eat with fresh baguette and sop of every drop of juice.

 

Green bell pepper? That's just wrong.

Edited August 29, 2017 by Katie Meadow (log)

[weedy]

Uni pasta with fried head-on shrimp

 

 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

33 minutes ago, scubadoo97 said:

My go to feta is Valbresso.  French but darn good 

 

I used to buy Valbreso sheep's milk feta at the Mediterranean store, but it comes in a 21.4 oz can in brine, and I see after looking it up on Amazon ($23.99), that they want almost twice as much for the can as the Harmony Market does($12.99). It seems to also be available from Costco in a 21 oz. plastic pouch, but no price, at least for me, a non-member. I like this brand a lot usually, but I did get one can from Harmony that was too gamy for my taste. I bought another after and it was fine, so either my palate varies or the product does. Alas, the big can is more than I can use on my own now, so I am buying lesser feta in smaller quantities, that is much less expensive and doesn't vary in its taste. Athenos is the one I got recently. It seems to be made from cow's milk and is from Wisconsin. It's kind of creamy for a crumbly cheese, always consistent, and doesn't challenge me with too much funk. I like Athenos a lot too. Valbreso is the one I will buy if I ever brave the maintenance morons to get my oven fixed and make spanakopita to mostly freeze. Hmmm? Spanakopita freezes fine unbaked and bakes up like freshly made does.

 

Why shouldn't feta? Does anyone have experience with freezing feta? Would it still be suitable for salads?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

Last night from Bugialli again -- Sardinian Fregola con Patate e Sedano (p72).

 

 

Hoping @rotuts won't catch on.

 

I substituted sage for basil.  Getting tired of dinners of tomatoes, basil, and fruit flies.  Besides, the basil has bolted and gone off to seed.

 

 

 

Served with CSO roasted Bell & Evans chicken from amazon.  Bowl of Concord grapes, also from amazon, not shown.  Guess what's on the menu for tonight?

 

 

[Thanks for the Crepes]

I deviate from the traditional Greek salad by adding cos/Romaine lettuce. I like it that way. Lots of restaurants serve it that way, and that was my first experience of Greek salad. My long since passed first FIL never made a Greek salad to share with us, but I have enjoyed his spanakopita, moussaka, baklava, avgolemono, tiropita and a bunch of other stuff. He loved to cook much more than most men I'm familiar with and owned a restaurant in Memphis, TN many years ago.

 

I did manage to buy a cucumber from Food Lion grocer that was almost as crisp and fresh tasting as a good, freshly harvested garden one. The skin was still too tough not to peel, but this has to be the best cucumber I've bought from a grocery store. I wish I had  bought more.