This week in the kitchen

Monday/22-Aug-22: Nice dinner of Nigel Slater's Za'atar Lamb (web), very tasty grill lamb chops with a fun salad of pomegranate seeds, bulgur, parsley, mint, and other good things. Then we finished the upside-down cake. Oink oink.

Tuesday/23-Aug-22: Dinner was Quick Whole Wheat Pizza with Artichokes, Capers, and Fresh Tomatoes (VegHarv, p259). Pretty tasty as food, but not very successful as pizza. This might be the first time I tried to transfer a pizza from my peel to the hot stone in the oven. Made a right mess. I cooked the second one on a cookie sheet on a baking sheet; that worked better. The topping combination was very good (artichokes, capers, mozzarella, chopped tomatoes). Might try the "quick" whole wheat dough another time, in a rectangular pan like I usually use. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after (maybe Ed had two).

Wednesday/24-Aug-22: Dinner was Dahl de Lentilles Jaunes et Chou-Fleur Rôti au Curry (web; SG#3). Not bad, although the half recipe was a bit skimpy. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

Thursday/25-Aug-22: Shopping today. 

Dinner was Creamy Garlic Salmon (web). This was okay; cream sauce is always nice. Served with whole wheat linguine and steamed broccoli. Some store-bought dark chocolate mousse for after.

Friday/26-Aug-22: Dinner was Smokey and Spicy Yogurt Marinated Chicken Kebabs (web; GD). Served with trio rice and some Pineapple-Apple Slaw (TooMany, p48), an ancient recipe I've made quite a few times. A bit of cheese from a cheese platter I bought yesterday for after.

Saturday/27-Aug-22: Dinner was Flank Steak Salad with Plums and Blue Cheese (web; GD), a yummy one-dish meal. I made more or less a whole recipe (serving four) and the two of us ate it all. A Ben&Jerry mini ice cream cup for after.

Sunday/28-Aug-22: Dinner was Kathy's Crab Cakes, a recipe I collected from the Mercury News in July 2008; can't find it online these days. It was nice because the crab cakes were baked rather than pan-fried. Served with Mama's Garlic Coleslaw, an old favorite, and Cilantro Lime Sweet Corn (web). I used a small can of corn for this, with a half recipe of the tasty stuff; it's kind tarted up canned corn, very tasty. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 PHOTO: no;
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG2: yes; #6 BACKLOG3: no; #7 RECYCLE: 8; #8 NEW: 4

This week in the kitchen

Monday/15-Aug-22: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Warm White Bean Salad with Arugula Pesto and Preserved Lemons (Dinner, p240). Tasty stuff.

Tuesday/16-Aug-22: Dinner was a halfish version of Toulouse Sausage Cassoulet (web), using up my freezer stash of Toulouse sausage. Not really a cassoulet, but on that road. Not bad for being so easy. Then a chocolate-covered madeleine each.

Wednesday/17-Aug-22: In the afternoon, I made up some Rustic Oven-Roasted Tomato Sauce (VegHarv, p306); used half and froze the rest. Our main was Cumin-Scented Chickpeas with Roasted Eggplant and Rustic Tomato Sauce (VegHarv, p152). This was easy and tasty. I made more or less a whole recipe; it was a good veggie main. We also thought it would be a good side from a bbq or a pot luck dinner perhaps. Then a chocolate-covered madeleine each.

Thursday/18-Aug-22: This was shopping day, so pooped tonight.

Dinner was Tuna with Wine, Vinegar, Tomato, Chile, and Capers (MedHot2, p109). This was okay. Ed thought the sauce was too strong for the tuna, but it was good with the orzo I served as a side. Served with Grilled Pepper Salad with Feta and Cilantro (MedHot2, p92), a nice little salad. It was easy to make and can be put together in steps as other things are happening. I had a yellow bell pepper needing to be used so that stood in place of one of the three red bell peppers asked, making the dish even more colorful. I made a whole recipe, which was really enough for four as a side. Served on sucrine (baby romaine) leaves. Very tasty and pretty. Then, surprise, a chocolate-covered madeleine each.

Friday/19-Aug-22: Dinner was Anchovy Chicken with Lemon and Capers (Dinner, p46). This was a hit. Easy and extra delicious. Served with trio rice and steamed broccoli. Some store-bought riz au laits for after. 

Saturday/20-Aug-22: Ah well, when it got to be the time, I didn't feel like cooking tonight's dinner. Se we had a snacky dinner instead, sliced hams, some cheese, carrots, cucumber, avocado, cherry tomatoes, etc. That's all, and we were full.

Sunday/21-Aug-22: I've been having a bit of a yen for this, so this afternoon, I made a Pineapple Upside Down Cake (web; GD, notes). This turned out yummy. Our main was Broccoli Soup (Monastery, p116) which was good, if mis-named. The tomato paste pretty much overwhelmed the broccoli flavor. Still, quite edible. Then, a double dose of cake each. 

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 3; #2 PHOTO: no;
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG2: no; #6 BACKLOG3: no; #7 RECYCLE: 10; #8 NEW: 4

This week in the kitchen

Monday/8-Aug-22: Leftover Turkey Phyllo Pot Pie for dinner. Good it was. And a simple salad. Some Far aux Pruneaux (GD; GD) for after. Good stuff that. 

Put beef on to marinate for tomorrow's dinner. 

Tuesday/9-Aug-22: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Vietnamese-Style Skirt Steak with Herb and Noodle Salad (Dinner, p65). This was yummy. (I forgot what kind of beef I bought; maybe I'll find this on the receipt upstairs. Later: the receipt says biftek, which helps not a bit.) Then, oink-oinks that we are, we finished the far.

Wednesday/10-Aug-22: We went to a local marché des producterus tonight. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Thursday/11-Aug-22: Shopping today.

Dinner was Cajun Salmon with Rosemary Sweet Potato Wedges (web). This was good, but now way sweet potato wedges ever get crispy when baked. Just doesn't happen. A pair of store-bought egg custards with caramel for after.

Friday/12-Aug-22: During the day I made a tomato sauce for pizza that was supposed to be tonight's dinner. This is tasty but very thin. Then I thought, given the heat wave, who wants to turn the oven up to 500F to cook a pizza? Some adjustments in the meal plan were called for.

Instead, dinner was a halfish version of Citrus Caesar Salad with Spicy Shrimp (web). This was pretty good. I grilled the shrimp without skewering them. The hard-boiled egg was a bit of an anomaly. Some almond financiers for after (the same maker as our favorite chocolate-covered madeleines).

Saturday/13-Aug-22: I blended the tomato sauce I made yesterday with some jarred roasted bell peppers, giving a thicker sauce. Into the freezer with that, pizza to be cooked when it gets a bit cooler.

Dinner was Stir-Fried Chicken Breast with Black Pepper and Green Chilies (MJ@Home, p80). This was easy, fairly fast, and yummy. As suggested, served with Tomato Pullao (MJ@Home, p211). Did this with brown basmati on the stovetop rather than in the oven. It needs a bit more water than directed, and I didn't add quite enough extra, but it was tasty. Some almond financiers for after.

Sunday/14-Aug-22: Dinner was Roast Pork Tenderloin with Spicy Apricot Jam (web; CL/apr15). This was easy and delicious. The apricot jam was nice. Finished the packet of almond financiers for after. 

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 2; #2 PHOTO: no;
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG2: no; #6 BACKLOG3: no; #7 RECYCLE: 8; #8 NEW: 4

This week in the kitchen

Monday/1-Aug-22: For dinner there was Savory Zucchini Ricotta Cheesecake (web). This was pretty good, although it was a bit runny in the center (raw zucchini probably, and wet mozzarella), so I cooked it quite a bit longer after adding the grated mozzarella topping. I used one 125g ball of mozzarella for the cheesecake and half of another one to add at the end. Ed thought more browned mozzarella would have been nice. For a starter, I took the extra zuke slices and marinated them like the zucchini carpaccio I've made a few times. Then sliced a tomato and the rest of the mozzarella, and picked some basil leaves to put together a sort of insalata caprese, topped with pistachio oil rather than olive oil. Turned out pretty good. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after. 

Harvested our first zucchini this year.

Tuesday/2-Aug-22: A half dose of Caribbean Rice Salad (MWDaily, p202) for dinner. This was easy, colorful, and tasty. A whole recipe, or even doubled, would be good for a pot luck dinner. I used an orange bell pepper; a yellow one would have been better because the orange blended with the sweet potato. We split a mini HD ice cream cup for after; that was our last one, old enough to be from before the recall.

Wednesday/3-Aug-22: Dinner was Turkey Phyllo Pot Pie (web). This was okay, if nothing special. I'm writing this a day later and neither of us can remember if there was a side! But there was a chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

Thursday/4-Aug-22: Dinner from the crockpot, Chicken with Vinegar and Garlic (SlowItal, p118). This was okay, but the chicken (thighs) was dry as is often is from the crockpot. Served over polenta, with a quick cucumber salad for a side. And, yes, a chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

Friday/5-Aug-22: Dinner was Spanish Bacalao a la Vizcaina (web), I put the cod on a rectangle of polenta left from yesterday and surrounded with the sauce. Quite pretty. Ed didn't much like the sauce, but I thought it was okay. Store-bought riz au laits for after.

Saturday/6-Aug-22: Leftover zucchini cheesecake for dinner. It wasn't as good the second time round. Followed by a big salad. For me, a dish of tapioca pudding for after. Ed prefers it cold, so he passed.

Sunday/7-Aug-22: Dinner was a halfish dose of Thai Noodle Salad with Peanut Sauce (web). Actually, this is what I planned for next Wednesday; tonight was supposed to be a Vietnamese skirt steak salad. Will have to freeze the beef till next Wednesday. Tonight's salad was easy and good. We finished the tapioca pudding for after. In the afternoon, forgetting about the tapioca, I made a Far aux Pruneaux, (GD). That will have to wait till tomorrow.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 PHOTO: no;
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG2: no; #6 BACKLOG3: no; #7 RECYCLE: 8; #8 NEW: 4