Dinner 2025

[weinoo]

6 hours ago, C. sapidus said:

Apologies, I didn't realize you wanted an actual location. Here you go:

 

I have a lot of terps in my family!

[Maison Rustique]

I subbed blue cheese for the Parm and used my own pecans & freeze-dried blueberries.

 

[Norm Matthews]

We had Mongolian Beef and asparagus tonight

[FauxPas]

On 4/15/2025 at 6:47 AM, Shelby said:

 Breakthrough on the gravy front.  I used xanthan gum and made a cream gravy--carb free and it tasted excellent!!!

 

I just "discovered" xanthan gum fairly recently. I used it to emulsify my hot pepper sauces so they were more attractive as gifts and then realized there was no reason to fear it! It's pretty amazing, but you really need a light hand with it, yes?  🙂

 

[Honkman]

Spaghetti with Shrimps and Kale - kale was quickly blanched before sautéed with almonds and fresno chile and than mixed with spaghetti and pasta water. Shrimps seared with cajun spice mixture. Everything is mixed and finished with some olive oil

[Shelby]

16 hours ago, FauxPas said:

 

I just "discovered" xanthan gum fairly recently. I used it to emulsify my hot pepper sauces so they were more attractive as gifts and then realized there was no reason to fear it! It's pretty amazing, but you really need a light hand with it, yes?  🙂

 

My goodness, yes,  I was shocked at how little it took thicken up 2 cups of liquid!  

[Neely]

Friday early dinner. After much thought about what fish dish to have I ended up making a simple salmon and dill  quiche which we enjoyed. Asian salad with Nuoc Cham dressing as a side salad. Quiche included both fresh salmon and smoked salmon

 

 

 

[Honkman]

Stir-Fried Pork, Eggplant, and Onion with Garlic and Black Pepper - pork tenderloin get marinated in soy and fish sauce before stir-fried. Subsequently, you stir-fry diced eggplants, onions, garlic and black pepper before finishing everything in a sauce made with fish sauce, soy sauce, light brown sugar, chicken broth, lime juice and cornstarch. Finished with some cilantro and served over rice

[Paul Bacino]

Getting ready for Pasqua Gravy

 

[Tropicalsenior]

Just some meals from last week. Monday I made clean the fridge minestrone with homemade whole wheat bread.

Tuesday was Carlos's birthday so I made corned beef and cabbage. It's his favorite meal and I finally found the perfect corned beef recipe. I brined it for 8 days instead of the recommended five and it turned out great.

Wednesday was hotter than Hades so we just had a salad. 

And Friday was more clean the freezer. Ribs, cooked in the oven, with cauliflower and cheese sauce and homemade bread and butter pickles.

[gulfporter]

Haven't made any real meals in awhile due to major pool repair.  Had workers here from 8:30 AM till past 7PM for 5 weeks!  We found large cracks due to last few earthquakes.  Retiled, repaired patio, too.  Been filled with water for 10 days and levels holding (yippee!).  Added a handrail for my husband who continues his recovery from a broken femur that required extreme ER surgery with internal metal plate, screws, wires.   Two weeks ago he was cleared by surgeon for full weight-bearing part of day.  He has a bit of limp but so far, so good. 

 

Made one of our fav meals, Moroccan Chicken with Olive, Prunes and served with Pecan Couscous.  Yeah, it came out a bit charred on the skin side, but we are OK with that. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TdeV]

Lovely pool shot, @gulfporter. Dins too, of course. How do you make pecan couscous?

[gulfporter]

This is the entire recipe.  The only thing I change is that I divide the marinade in half and marinate thighs in one half, and reserve the other half to thin (with water) and heat and serve as a side sauce. 

 

https://www.andiemitchell.com/grilled-moroccan-chicken-thighs-with-pecan-couscous/

[Norm Matthews]

Happy Easter.  We had a modest dinner.  There will be a lot of leftover ham in coming days.

[Norm Matthews]

On 4/16/2025 at 5:35 PM, C. sapidus said:

Taco truck tacos! Chorizo, al pastor, and carne asada for me. Mrs. C skipped the carne asada. Both with guacamole. Generously filled and topped.

 

Apparently there is a tortas special on Wednesdays, but we were craving tacos.

 

 

 

We have one that looks very much like that a few blocks away. It is in a liquor store parking lot and next to a car wash.

[FauxPas]

We had Easter dinner on Friday due to the work schedule of one of our guests, but it worked out well and allowed us to relax and have leftovers for the remainder of the weekend. 🙂

 

We had a simple salad with mixed greens, tomatoes and Persian cukes (all from local farms or greenhouses) topped with a Spring fave - dressing made with some green garlic I picked up at a nearby farm stand, yum. 

 

Turkey breast roast with a stovetop-style dressing with lots of celery, onion and mushrooms, gravy and mashed potatoes. A cranberry sauce I made from frozen cranberries with orange zest/juice and a touch of Grand Marnier.

 

I also made some Saumon en Papillote for stepdaughter who doesn't eat turkey and for anyone who wanted something different. 

 

Other veggies were a corn, red pepper and edamame blend, baked sweet potatoes/yams and a lovely batch of honey garlic and brown butter roasted carrots. 

 

We had a few bottles of La Frenz Viognier, a really lovely wine from the BC Okanagan (Naramata). 

 

I bought a carrot cake for dessert though my first plan was to make a rhubarb pie. I rather wish I'd gone with the pie, but the cake was still very good. 

 

I was the only cook so I didn't have much of a chance to take any photos! 

 

Happy Easter!  ☺️🐰

[Neely]

@Paul Bacino sorry but even after an online search I can’t figure out what all the meat means in reference to Pasqua gravy. Can you help me understand? My cultural denseness at play. 

 

 

We had a Sunday lamb roast with all the trimmings ( stuffing, mint sauce, gravy, pumpkin, roast potatoes, peas ) but I forgot to take a photo with all the busyness of little grandson , Freddy (14 months old) 

I made some raspberry muffins and a passionfruit drizzle apple almond flour cake ( Nigella Lawson ) before guests arrived so I remembered photos for those. 
 

 

 

 

 

[Honkman]

Lamb Tagine with Stewed Chickpeas - diced lamb leg is braised with onions, garlic, dried apricots and dates, jalapeño, orange zest, cinnamon, sesame seeds, coriander and cumin seeds, tomato paste and vegetable broth. In parallel, you cook some chickpeas in vegetable broth and butter. The tajine is finished with cilantro and rose water and served over couscous

[pastameshugana]

16 hours ago, gulfporter said:

Made one of our fav meals, Moroccan Chicken with Olive, Prunes and served with Pecan Couscous.  Yeah, it came out a bit charred on the skin side, but we are OK with that. 

 

That chicken looks and sounds wonderful!

[Ann_T]

@Honkman I love the combination of pork and eggplant.  Your dinner looks delicious. 

 

We skipped dinner last night and went right to dessert.

Pulled some rhubarb out of the garden early yesterday morning and made a rhubarb pie.

First of the season. 

Moe had been looking at that pie all day, so when I got home from work it was decided

 

that dinner should be just pie.   

 

 

[TdeV]

13 hours ago, Neely said:

<snip>

 

We had a Sunday lamb roast with all the trimmings ( stuffing, mint sauce, gravy, pumpkin, roast potatoes, peas ) but I forgot to take a photo with all the busyness of little grandson , Freddy (14 months old) 

I made some raspberry muffins and a passionfruit drizzle apple almond flour cake ( Nigella Lawson ) before guests arrived so I remembered photos for those. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Neely, that cake looks tremendous! I tried to google it but found only an apple & almond cake from Nigella, which I'm sure isn't the right recipe. Could you please tell me a bit more about the cake?

[weinoo]

 

Not meatballs, but chicken balls (well, not the balls of a chicken) - which are a royal pain in the ass to make, at least this first and possibly only time I'll make them.

 

Thing is, they were very tasty - just a pain in the ass to make into a ball shape.  The mixture is so sticky they're almost impossible to roll. I used a pound of breast meat from the freezer, which I ground up in the food processor and mixed with 2 large eggs, bread crumbs, some chicken stock, parm, percorino, ramp greens, parsley, salt and pepper.  Sautéed them in butter and olive oil, and finished cooking in chicken stock enhanced with a tomato sauce I was making at the same time.

 

So...pasta with chicken "meatballs" in tomato sauce. Ramp greens, chives and parsley to garnish.

Edited 18 hours ago by weinoo (log)

[FauxPas]

31 minutes ago, weinoo said:

Thing is, they were very tasty - just a pain in the ass to make into a ball shape.  The mixture is so sticky they're almost impossible to roll.

 

I wonder if oiling your hands a bit might have helped? 

 

 

[YvetteMT]

Gumbo with- shrimp,  andouille, smoked pheasant, elk, and mountain lion. 

[Tropicalsenior]

48 minutes ago, YvetteMT said:

smoked pheasant, elk, and mountain lion. 

Looks good and it seems like the only thing that you're missing is rattlesnake and Bear.