This week in the kitchen

Monday/18-Jul-22: For a starter tonight, I add smoked trout to the extra (now well-)marinated zucchini strips from yesterday, topped with a sprig of dill on each plate. Worked out very well. Dinner was Rumsteck Mariné Basilic et Citron (VPG; can't find on web). This was only so-so. The lemon-and-oil marinade for the meat was not very interesting or appropriate. The recipe has you cooking the meat 5 minutes on each side, way too much. I cut this back substantially and the meat was still too well-done. Served with the teeny ravioli from the east of France, ravioles de Dauphinés, stuffed with cheeses and parsley. And some steamed snijbonen chunks. 

Tuesday/19-Jul-22: Dinner was Alessia's Favorite Mushroom Sauce (web), wherein dried cèpes amplify the taste of plain old shrooms. I made a whole recipe (3 servings) for two people, and served over polenta rather than pasta. This was pretty good. Then a salad. 

Wednesday/20-Jul-22: For dinner I made a whole recipe of Pasta with Fast Sausage Ragu (Essential, p343). This should serve four and I intended to freeze half for another day, but ended up serving it all over whole wheat spaghetti. Good stuff. 

Thursday/21-Jul-22: Dinner was Chili Garlic Shrimp (web), which was pretty easy and quite tasty. Served over basmati rice. Accompanied by a clean-out-the-fridge salad (cuke, half a red bell pepper, shreds of carrot, radishes) with an Asian-ish dressing which turned out pretty good. Some vanilla ice cream with a slog of crème de cacao. 

Friday/22-Jul-22: Shopping day today, the full complement. Leclerc Drive, Leclerc, and Intermarché Drive.

Dinner was 15-Minute Thai Coconut Curry Salmon (web). This was easy and tasty. Served over brown basmati rice. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

Saturday/23-Jul-22: Made up some ground roasted cumin since I'm almost out.

Dinner was Chicken Salad with Mint, Onion and Lemon Grass—Laab Gai (ThaiCC, p68). This was fast and easy and quite tasty. No ground chicken, so I chopped up some aiguillettes, just a bit tedious but works well. Served with leaves of sucrine (mini romaine lettuces). Some store-bought riz au laits for after.

Sunday/24-Jul-22: Lunch out today. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

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: 0; #8 NEW: 3

This week in the kitchen

Monday/21-Feb-22: Dinner was White Veal Stew with Mushrooms, Corn, and Sherry (Essential, p553). Unfortunately I forgot to notice how long it wanted to cook, so I ended up plopping it in the pressure cooker and finish it off there. Served over a bit of tagliatelle. Good stuff.

Tuesday/22-Feb-22: Dinner was Mediterranean Vegetable & Fish Stew (web). This was yummy, but made twice the servings that the recipe indicates (only two). There's the amount of fish I'd serve for two, plus the amount of shrimp I'd serve for two. I'll freeze the leftovers for another time.

Wednesday/23-Feb-22: Dinner tonight was Gingery Cauliflower Soup (Q&E, p11). This is a yummy soup I've made a couple of times before. Served with Sandwiches with Mint and Chili Butter (Q&E, p19). These should be proper English sandwiches with white bread missing their crusts. I found some square bread, whole wheat and thinly sliced, and used that with the crusts. Interesting and went will with the soup. Not sure why you need to slice up some lettuce to decorate the plate. 

Thursday/24-Feb-22: We had lunch out with friends from The Netherlands today. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Friday/25-Feb-22: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Crabby Crab Cakes (web). (Ed asked why we couldn't have Cheerful Crab Cakes.) Using two 145g cans of crab bits, I made four crab cakes. These were good. Served with leftover beans and rice, and (more or less) Cilantro Lime Sweet Corn (web) with a small can of corn. This was a nice way to tart up a can of corn. Good dinner altogether.

Saturday/26-Feb-22: It was Lex's Roast Chicken* (MC; GD), made with the two coquelets that were meant for our xmas dinner. This is really a favorite. Plus some steamed broccoli. 

Sunday/27-Feb-22: Dinner was Baked Stuffed Tomatoes (SimpSups, p49; cookbooker). I used some freezer-burned mimolette for the cheese, along with a spring onion and a bit of the flesh of the tomatoes. As suggested, served with Broccoli Slaw (SimpSups, p208). No packaged broccoli slaw mix here. I shredded the end of a broccoli, the last of the cauliflower, and a couple of carrots; simple dressing of lemon juice and olive oil. Some onion might have been nice. 

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 PHOTO: yes;
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG2: yes; #6 BACKLOG3: no; #7 RECYCLE: 0; #8 NEW: 2

This week in the kitchen

Monday/25-Jan-21: Dinner was a half recipe of Roasted Broccoli Pasta with Lemon and Feta (web). I don't have any whole wheat pasta with shape, so used mafalda instead. Whole wheat would be nice. Instead of making up a steak seasoning (lots of recipes on the web), I used some of Montreal Steak Seasoning I made for something a while ago. We finished the blueberry mascarpone tart for after. 

Overnight Boule brewing overnight.

Tuesday/26-Jan-21: Baked the Overnight Boule this morning.

For lunch I made another improvised sort of reuben sandwich, with the same nice little Russian dressing-ish sauce that I made last week. 

Dinner was Lentil Spinach Soup with Lemon (web), which was pretty yummy. I made it with brown (blond) lentils and two blocks of frozen spinach leaves. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Wednesday/27-Jan-21: Off for a haircut today, with rumors we may go to lockdown #3 soon.

Left my first batch of yogurt going with 9 hours on the clock. It wasn't quite done after that, so I added another hour. Perfect. Yay! No more overnight yogurt!

Dinner was canned tongue with a grainy mustard sauce. Made a whole dose of Spätzle (MW@Home, p203), which was too much, so have some leftovers of this

. Also some steamed broccoli and cauliflower bits. Then some butterscotch tapioca pudding for after. We're full.

Thursday/28-Jan-21: Dinner was, sort of, a half version of Duck Breast with Cranberry Sauce (web).  I used aiguillettes instead of a whole breast, since that's what was in the freezer and they defrost quickly. Didn't use as much honey as asked. Served with leftover spätzle, followed by a salad. We finished off the tapioca for after.

Friday/29-Jan-21: Made a loaf of French Bread Extraordinaire! (MagicHints, p158) (Basic/Rapid/M/d/-), which is somewhat similar to Authentic French Bread in Magic. I baked it in the bread machine rather than in the oven. Used 1-1/2cups T110 and 2cups T65. 

My bread machine will turn 20 this year. Still going strong? Not really, but still going. The gear in the base of the pan is not working as it ought. Ed will try to repair.

Picked up an order from Intermarché today.

Dinner was Spiced Tilapia with Coconut Rice (CL/sep18; web). With cod since tilapia isn't sold around here. Served with Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts* (web). We'll call this a DMA even though it's gone beyond that now. For after, we had some store-bought vanilla. Very good.

Apparently no lockdown right away, but big shopping centers are closed and travel in and out of the country is restricted. Nothing that affects us really. The 6pm-6am curfew remains.

Saturday/30-Jan-21: Last night, figuring out what to eat today, I narrowed it down to two recipes, then choose one. Unfortunately, I left the tag on both recipes. Tonight, I turned to the first and started that one before I realized what I'd done. 

Made yogurt during the day today. 

So dinner was not as planned, but it was good. I made Turkish Pilaf from my old Green Book, recipe probably from either Family Circle or Woman's Day (do these still exist?), collected well before we moved to NL. It's supposed to serve two, but that's very generous; it would probably serve three easily. Had a bit of a salad after. No dessert since we were stuffed.

Sunday/31-Jan-21: Made a loaf of Bill Hatcher's Italian Bread (MC) (Basic/Rapid/M/d/-). Hmm, see that I've done this as a Large loaf before; it's really between Medium and Large. Don't expect it will make much difference. The load looks lovely. We'll see how it is tomorrow. The gear in the bread pan turned as it ought to, without complaint. Yeah, Ed!

Dinner was a half recipe of Sea Scallops with Sweet Red Peppers and Zucchini* (Essential, p409). Good stuff.

For after there was Sara Lee's Crumb Cake (MC), a recipe I collected a long time ago from EAT-L. Made in the food processor, it's easy and fast to assemble. And delicious. Sara Lee-like? Sort of I guess.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 PHOTO: yes; #3 *DMA: yes
This month: #4 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG1: yes; #6 BACKLOG2: no; #7 RECYCLE: 9; #8 NEW: 1

This week in the kitchen

Monday/30-Nov-20: Picked up an order at Leclerc today. Dinner was a halfish version of A Night in Tunisia (web), which sounded good, but was only so-so. Followed by a big salad. And more pumpkin cake.

Tuesday/1-Dec-20: Yogurt on overday.

Dinner was a halfish dose of Gulai Udang Dengan Labu Kuning—Shrimp and Zucchini Curry (TLPacSEA, p81). I wonder what the veg should have been,since I don't think of zucchini as a Malayan veggie. And I bet the lemon juice should have been lime. Nevertheless, it was good stuff. Served over basmati rice. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Wednesday/2-Dec-20: We're out of bread, so this evening I made another loaf of English Muffin Bread (BMB, p17).

Dinner was a big half of Rigatoni with White Bolognese (Essential, p344; cookbooker). I used 5% ground beef and 8oz of Hazan's Italian sausage from the freezer, which made about a pound and a quarter altogether, when 2# was asked for the whole recipe. No celery in house; I added some dried celery leaves to the carrots and onions. Happened to have some rigatoni, so used that. Very good. Then a small salad. And a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each for after.

Thursday/3-Dec-20: Dinner was about a third recipe of Braised Balsamic Chicken (web). This was pretty easy and pretty good. Took the skin off the thighs, since we don't like that braised. Nice sauce. Served with polenta and a little made-up salad of cuke and radish. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each for after (the last sack expiring tomorrow).

Friday/4-Dec-20: Made some Apple Chipotle Jelly (Raichlen1, p215) this morning. The recipe calls for an enormous amount of sugar. On the web, I found that jellies made with apple juice generally asked for +/- twice the amount of sugar as juice. (I used sucre pour confiture that has the pectin already added.) Given that cider vinegar was part of liquid (three cups in total), I used three cups of sugar. Tastes good, but it hasn't jelled up. 

 

Dinner was a halfish dose of Lasagne coi Gamberi e Canestrelli—Lasagne with Prawns and Scallops (ClassPasta, p142). This was barely seasoned, just tasty with the shellfish and the bechamel. Pretty good, but nothing special. Then a salad. Then some mini HD ice cream cups.

Yogurt on overnight.

Saturday/5-Dec-20: Made a loaf of Maple Oatmeal Bread (BMB, p41) (Basic/Rapid/S/m/-), using only 1/4cup maple syrup as my previous notes said. The loaf turned out very high; maybe cook as Medium, even though flour-wise it's Small. It's a tasty bread but too soft inside, which makes it hard to cut.

Picked up an order from Intermarché Drive today. Annoyingly several items were not included, even though they are still in the assortment on the site. Think someone was rushed and didn't feel like collecting the items. Ordered a bit of rumsteack for a beefy meal sometime; it's thin and the size of a small placemat! Ordered a turkey leg to roast for making gravy to go with a cornbread stuffing dinner we're going to have before long. Weighty thing, it's 1.638kg; I've had turkeys not much bigger than that!

 

Dinner was a halfish recipe of Boulettes de Poisson Blanc, Sauce Piquante (VPG; web; mine). I'm puzzled by what was piquante in the sauce, but it was good nevertheless. For the tomato sauce, I used a bit of Marcella Hazan's famous tomato sauce from the freezer; I added a bit of Cajun spice mix along the way. A marinara-ish sauce might work too. I used a moulinette to grind the (fresh, not frozen) fish, but I expect the cuisinart would work just fine. I added some cilantro to the fish. I did not add the oil to the pan before cooking the fish balls in the sauce. Served over long-grain brown rice (fiber!) with some lemon-sprinkled steamed broccoli. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each for after.

Sunday/6-Dec-20: Didn't feel like making what was one the plan, and the cooking of that will work better tomorrow, so I made a halfish dose of Shrimp and Leek Spaghetti (CL; web). This was easy, quick, and good. While I was making that, I also made some Crème au Chocolate Express (mine). We should have had three nights of these, but I managed to drop one of the  bakjes as I put it away, leaving a half-ful dish and a mess on the floor. Ed ate the remaining half and we'll make two servings from the remaining three dishes. 

 

Made the batter for Overnight Bread.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 5; #2 BACKLOG: yes 

This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #4 SHORT: no; #5 LONG: no
On-going: #6 READ; #7 RECYCLE; #8 NEW

This week in the kitchen

Monday/10-Aug-20: I picked up an order from Leclerc today after my French lesson.

The sweltering heat continues. We had a big thunderstorm this morning, and may have more in the next days. Thursday it should start cooling off.

Dinner was a half dose of Basil, Shrimp & Zucchini Pasta (web). Pretty good stuff, made with surprisingly little tomato sauce. (I buzzed the proper amount of canned tomato pulp to make the sauce, and froze the rest.) Peaches&cream ice cream for after.

Tuesday/11-Aug-20: Made another loaf of English Muffin Bread (BMB, p17), this time using less water. This is a delicious bread and smells wonderful while it's baking. Although most breads smell wonderful.

Dinner was a halfish dose of Tomatoes and Eggplant over Couscous with Caper Sauce (VegPlanet, p257). I used a preserved lemon for the lemon juice and peel. Feta on top at serving. Quite good, but not quite well-seasoned enough. Finished the peaches and cream ice cream for after. Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/12-Aug-20: No phone and internet briefly in the morning. Dinner was Roasted Masala Lamb Chops with Pistachio & Pomegranate (Jamie). This was good. Didn't serve on flatbread (bone-in lamb chops on flatbread?), but served with Moroccan couscous (from the organic shop) and Crushed Spiced Carrot Salad (Morocco, p78), a tasty favorite. Some chocolate-covered madeleines for after. (Leclerc Drive has finally started carrying these!)

Thursday/13-Aug-20: Neglected to defrost something for dinner and my mind was a blank, even though there's lots of veg in the fridge. Pizza it was, with the rest of the package of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Started some Overnight Bread.

Friday/14-Aug-20: Baked up the Overnight Bread in the morning.

Dinner was Spicy Turkey Salad (PatSalads, p102). (Wish I'd remembered this book when it was seriously hot.) I had about 300g of turkey scallops (two of them) and minced those rather than grinding. Interesting that the meat is cooked in a mixture of lime juice, lemongrass, and garlic, with no oil involved. It was a bit short on meat, but otherwise I did a whole recipe. A very light meal for two, not four. We started a new packet of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Yogurt on overnight.

Saturday/15-Aug-20: Picked up an order from Intermarché Drive today. Lots of fruit; not much veg, which we're over-endowed with right now.

Dinner was Sweet-and-Sour Salmon in Almond Prune Sauce (Essential, p431). This sounded a bit odd (sauce of prunes, honey, dijon, etc.), but turned out delicious. I'm not sure, but I think everything with pomegranate molasses might be delicious. Served with trio rice and some steamed haricots verts. Store-bought crème caramels for after.

Sunday/16-M Aug on-20: Used more of our plums to make Plum Amaretto Jam (SmallBatch, p50). About a pound of plums (maybe a teeny bit more) make two AH jars. Tastes good. Into the freezer with them.

Dinner was Corn with Cauliflower (WorldVeg, p173), which sounded a bit odd, but worked quite well. Served over short-grained brown rice. The rest of the store-bought crème caramels for after.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 BACKLOG: no
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #4 SHORT: no; #5 LONG: no
On-going: #6 READ; #7 RECYCLE; #8 NEW

This week in the kitchen

Monday/8-Jun-20: First day for French lesson.

Last night, I put 100g of a mixed bean mix (that I bought on impulse) on to soak. This evening, sans electricité, I sautéed some chopped onion and potato with some sliced garlic, then added 4 cups of water, a chicken bouillon cube (organic), and a ham bone from the freezer. Cooked for a good long while. Turned into a pretty good soup. One hundred grams makes two substantial servings.

Tuesday/9-Jun-20: Made a loaf of Buckwheat Bread (Magic, p73). Used potato flour, 1:1, for the instant potato flakes; used treacle for the dark corn syrup. Tasty stuff.

Using up zucchini and red bell peppers, dinner was Zucchini and Red Pepper Tart (MDTarts, p38). The store-bought crust was not wonderful, but the tart itself was pretty good. It came out late, so we didn't have more to eat.

Wednesday/10-Jun-20:  Ed picked up an order from Intermarché today. That included fish, but I’d already defrosted some lamb chops, so dinner was Lamb Cutlets with Mint, Chilli & Potatoes (web). There were only three lamb chops in the package, each with a long fat and meat “tail”. Very tasty this were especially the potatoes, which were steamed, then finished off in the fat and herbs left from the lamb. Served with some green beans that had been boiled, then topped with olive oil, lime juice, grated lime peel, and red pepper flakes. All good stuff. Some goat cheese for after. Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/11-Jun-20: Using the cod we got yesterday, dinner was Fried Fish Steaks (Q&E, p67). Served with Karhai Broccoli (MJHome, p148) and Potato Chaat (MJHome, p165). All was good. More goat cheese for after.

Friday/12-Jun-20: Last night I used the last of my asafoetida. I remember my Indian cooking teacher said the little bakje would last a lifetime. It lasted about 40 years, not quite a lifetime. Knowing I was almost out, I ordered more. Twice. (Memory fail.) Today I discovered that neither contains pure asfaoetida. So I ordered yet another jar of the pure stuff. And that order has been cancelled.

Using my newly bought-via-Amazon buttermilk powder (no Saco here), I made Buttermilk Bread (MC), using chestnut honey, which might be a bit strong.

While Lockdown Lit was on, I put together Amazon Cake (Cocoa Cake) (Essential, p779). This is a really easy cake. It went in the oven at the same time as the leftover shepherd’s pie. We had the leftover pie with a nice salad, and followed by cake. We’re stuffed.

Saturday/13-Jun-20: When I defrosted the freezer on Thursday, I found a packet of skinless, boneless chicken thighs that had been declared lost. Today I defrosted that and we had a halfish recipe of Holy Yum Chicken (web), except that I only cooked my thighs for 30 minutes. Served with plain rice and Chinese-Style Asparagus Salad (QuickWok, p108). Pretty good stuff. Chocolate cake for lunch and for dinner.

Sunday/14-Jun-20: Made a loaf of Bill Hatcher's Italian Bread (MC), Basic/Rapid/L/d/-. It's good.

My second order of asafoetida has been cancelled. There's plenty of options with a mix (I have a couple of those) but the pure stuff seems to come only from India, where the post office seems not to be functioning.

Dinner was a halfish dose of Christmas Eve Cajun Shrimp, a recipe I collected in 2017 from EAT-L. Good stuff it was. Served with polenta and some haricots verts and asparagus. The buttery soppy from the shrimp was good with both. For dessert, with finished off the chocolate cake with some cream and raspberries fresh from the garden (including a little spider).

Yogurt on overnight.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 3; #2 BACKLOG: no
This month: #3 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #4 SHORT: no; #5 LONG: no
On-going: #6 READ; #7 RECYCLE; #8 NEW

This week in the kitchen

Monday/18-Nov-19: Used up odd bits of stuff from the freezer to make Poor-Cousin Paella (Secrets, p249). Make a whole dose and we've got half in the freezer for another time. Some squares of chocolate for after.

Tuesday/19-Nov-19: Off plan today. Found a recipe to use up odd bits in the fridge and we had a halfish recipe of Broccoli, Mushroom, Spinach and Cheese Pasta (web). Pretty good. We have a bit left, so the half recipe would probably have served three, rather than the four suggested by the recipe. I forgot to notice the breadcrumbs on top, but remember thinking as I put it in the oven that breadcrumbs might be nice. Oh well.

Wednesday/20-Nov-19: Tonight the two of us ate a half dose of Shrimp, Saffron and Preserved Lemon Mac and Cheese (web). (The half dose should have served 3.) I choose this because it sounded rather improbable. And it was. Okay to eat but don't need to do it again. Followed by a simple salad. Then a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each.

Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/21-Nov-19: Shopping today.

Dinner was a half recipe of Fish Steamed over Vegetables and Fresh Herbs (Essential, p434). This was okay, but nothing special. Served with Potato "Tostones" (Flattened Potatoes) (Essential, p301), as suggested. These were good (especially good because I used duck fat rendered from the magret we had recently), but tedious to make. For dessert, I bought some gateau de fromage. Delicious but filling.

Friday/22-Nov-19: In the morning, I made a half batch of Bold Teriyaki Sauce (web). Part will go into the crockpot that I'll start tonight for tomorrow' meal; the rest will go into some stir-fried Chinese-ish veggies soon.

Dinner was Tuscan beans from the freezer, topped up with canned tuna, lemon juice, and a bit of olive oil. Served that with some lettuce topped with the rest of yesterday's veggies dolled up with a bit of vinaigrette.

After dinner, I froze up gaboons of chicken stock, mostly in 1-liter jars since there weren't many smaller ones available.

And started a crockpotful (a half recipe since I have only a 3-quart crockpot) of Slow Cooker Thai Pulled Pork (web). My pork had no bones. This has to cook 10 hours, so should be ready. After that the meat has to be shredded and the sauce fiished with peanut butter (not "natural" it says — why? that's all we have in the house, so that's what it will be) and lime zest and juice. Smells good already.

Saturday/23-Nov-19: Served the Thai pulled pork with white rice and steamed broccoli as they showed on the site. Yummy stuff. Another meal in the freezer.

Sunday/24-Nov-19: Dinner was kip filets with a yummy basting sauce from the freezer. Cooked four kip filets; the other two will be used in the next couple of weeks. Served with a half dose of Parsley Salad with Bulgur, Mint, and Tomatoes (BigFlav, p216). This was good, made with lime juice instead of lemon, because there was some in the fridge leftover.

Yogurt on overnight.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 4 #3 COOKBOOK: n/a
Cookbooks of the month: none
This month: #4 PASTA: no; #5 BREAD: yes; #6 GUESTS: no
This year: #7 PROJECT: no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/17-Jun-19: Ed grilled some merguez from the freezer, very salty ones; served with a bit of polenta. We also had Grilled Artichokes and Lemons with Spicy Garlic Mayonnaise—Artichauts à l'Aïoli (VegHarv, p158; cookbooker) with one of the huge artichokes that we got at a vide grenier yesterday. I doctored some plain mayo to make the sauce. Yum. And some snijbonen sort of done like this. For dessert we shared one of the two small charentaise melons we got at the vide grenier. We're stuffed.

Yogurt on overnight.

Tuesday/18-Jun-19: Ed brought in a bowlful of raspberries and red currants. We had a few, then decided they'd be good in ice cream. I told him to macerate them with 1/4cup of sugar. When I went to get them later, I discovered he'd 1) not measured the sugar and 2) added a cup of more of water. Not sure of his reasoning. Anyhow the maceration was defeated. I dumped the water, full of flavor.

For a starter we had the other artichoke and more of the doctored mayo. Good stuff. The main was Frittata Fêve & Menthe (C&Z, p67; cookbooker). For dessert there was raspberry-currant ice cream. We ate well.

Wednesday/19-Jun-19: Had our dinner, with Cath, at the marché des producteurs in La Rochefoucauld this evening. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Thursday/20-Jun-19: Shopping today. Tuna was on sale, so we had, sort of, Char-Grilled Tuna with Toasted Corn Vinaigrette and Avocado Salad (Essential, p410; cookbooker). This was yummy.

While putting away the groceries, I found an older bakje of ice cream and we had that for dessert. Mango I think it was. How did that get left behind, I wonder?

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/21-Jun-19: Dinner was a half dose of Pepper and Anchovy Pasta Sauce (MarCuc, p149) over tagliatelle. I've made this sauce at least once before, and it's still good; a bit tedious peeling the bell peppers, but worth the effort. For dessert we each had half of one of the little melons we bought on the weekend.

Saturday/22-Jun-19: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Superfast Crispy Chicken Thighs (web; CL/may15; cookbooker). Served with Shredded Zucchini (MW@Home, p87) and trio rice. For dessert there was Rhubarb Crumble (ClayCook2, p157). Yum.

Sunday/23-Jun-19: Took Cath for lunch today to celebrate the sale of her house. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Yogurt on overnight.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3; #3 COOKBOOK: yes
Cookbooks of the month: Römertopf cookbooks
This month: #4 PASTA: no; #5 BREAD: no; #6 GUESTS: yes
 This year: #7 PROJECT: no

Tweede kerstdag 2018

Verrines de Crevettes au Pamplemousse Gigot à la Provençal et Gratin de Pommes de Terre Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Mustard Vinaigrette Terres d'Exceeption Bordeaux Millisime 2016 Chocolate Fondue with Kiwi, Pear, and Toasted Pound Cake

Cath came to dinner tonight, and we managed to eat at a more reasonable hour.

For a starter we had Verrines de Crevettes au Pamplemousse (VPG, download). This was supposed to be a salad, but I served in in verrines, layers of shrimp, finely chopped cucumber, and red grapefruit sections. Topped with a sauce of fromage blanc, lemon juice, chives, salt, and pepper. Easy and very tasty.

Our main was Gigot à la Provençal et Gratin de Pommes de Terre (Essential, p537). My lamb leg was a bit smaller than asked, but that wasn't a problem; I used fewer potatoes too. This was accompanied by Balsamic Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Mustard Vinaigrette (web). (I didn't add the Parmesan shards to this, but it would have been a nice touch.) These all made a nice main.

The wine was one brought by a guest this summer. It's been waiting for a special meal, and was worth the wait.

For dessert, I thought I'd make use of the fondue pot that I got as a holiday gift from HP many many years ago. So, there chocolate fondue with spears of kiwi, pears, and pound cake. The fruit was good, but the fondue was nothing special, and hard to take a picture of, so I didn't. The fondue pot will go to a charity shop now.

This week in the kitchen

Monday/2-Oct-17: Today's meal was a half recipe of Indian-Spiced Chickpea Curry (Chana Masala) (web), served over brown basmati rice. This should have served two as a main, but I've got two more servings in the freezer. It was ok, especially with lime pickle and mango chutney. Mini Magnum bars for dessert. Froze up the rest of the chickpeas.

Tuesday/3-Oct-17: Didn't feel like making what I'd planned today, too much chopping involved. Instead I made Delhi-Style Bhuna Lamb (MJ@Home, p120; cookbooker), a very yummy dish, not at all hard to make. Served with Rice and Peas with Garam Masala (SpiceKitch, p65) and Karhai Broccoli (MJ@Home, p148). We were ate it all and were full.

Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/4-Oct-17: Shopping today.

Dinner was Cod in Saffron Broth with Chorizo, which I got from a Cook's Illustrated/America's Test Kitchen freebie, a sampler from The Best of America's Test Kitchen 2018: Best Recipes, Equipment Reviews, a book I don't have. Pretty satisfying, but we both thought the cod was a bit overpowered by the chorizo and that shrimp might be a good substitute. Served the rest of Sunday's cauliflower salad as a salad. Then some store-bought custards.

Thursday/5-Oct-17: Early meal today. I made Asian Spaghetti and Chicken Meatballs (BH&G/jan17; web; cookbooker). Pretty yummy, especially with a bit of sriracha on squirted on. Some store-bought brownies for desserts, not bad.

Friday/6-Oct-17: Early meal today. Made Risotto with Lemon and Crème Fraîche (Essential, p345). It was good enough, but nothing as special as Hesser suggests. Crème fraîche to make risotto creamy is a bit OTT. Then a salad.

Yogurt on overnight.

Saturday/7-Oct-17: Indian again today. We're doing a lot of that lately. For a munchie, I finished off a sack of cashews to make Spiced Roasted Cashews (MJ@Home, p7), easy and very more-ish. Our main was Pork (or Lamb) with Lentils (MJ@Home, p135; cookbooker), made with pork. Easy and very good. I made the whole recipe; we'll have three good servings from it. As suggested, I served this with Salaad (MJ@Home, p235), a very nice little salad. For dessert, there was Vermicelli Kheer (MJ@Home, 274; cookbooker); tasty but still runny after more than the prescribed cooking time. Altogether a tasty meal.

Sunday/8Oct-17: We had sandwiches at the fête du pain today and didn't feel much like eating when we got home. Not much happened in the kitchen.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 BREAD: no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/2-Jan-17: Tonight's dinner was a half recipe of Sausage-&-Quinoa-Stuffed Zucchini (web; cookbooker), which was pretty good. For a starter, I used up some magret fumé, laying the pieces out with slices of avocado, and a little pile of some shredded lettuce, all topped with a bit of vinaigrette. Pretty good. I had some fromage blanc topped with sucre de canne for dessert; Ed had a mini magnum.

Tuesday/3-Jan-17: Worked on the meal plan and list today, plus putting pressure cooker recipes into the spreadsheet. Still have a couple more books to add.

Oscar showed up this afternoon covered in blood. Missing his collar; bunches of holes in his right front leg; a claw ripped off his right rear paw. Off to the vet, who thought the holes in his leg might be buckshot! But not worth xraying to find out for sure since the treatment is the same. Because his kidneys are failing, he can't have painkillers (steroids), so he'll just have to tough it out. He's leaving bloody footprints all over the house.

Dinner started out to be Spaghetti with Parsley Pesto and Sausage (web), but I hadn't paid attention to exactly how much parsley was needed (5 cups), so was notably deficient in that area. Instead I used up my broccoli to make the pesto. Wasn't great, wasn't bad. For dessert we had pieces of a three kings' cake, but neither of us got the token. Tomorrow!

Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/4-Jan-17: Shopping today.

Dinner was Chili-Rubbed Salmon with Avocado Salsa (web). It wasn't bad. Served with polenta.  Ed had his piece of three kings' cake for breakfast; I had mine for dessert. And got the token.

Oscar is still leaving bloody footprints. We're finding more little holes in his body. Still can't imagine what happened.

Thursday/5-Jan-17: We've recently had another mouse visitor, a little one, who caught herself in the trap we'd left set for months. We found her dead, although she hadn't been dead too long. This afternoon I cleaned the middle section of shelves, where she seems to have been busy. Tossed a bunch of out-of-date stuff while I was at it. This little mouse liked vital gluten and made quite a mess breaking into that package. Shelves down I found an enormous mess, including peanut skins. Haven't discovered where the peanuts came from.

Tonight's dinner started with Leeks Vinaigrette (Essential, p217; cookbooker), which was tasty and quite simple to make. Our main dish was chicken from the pressure cooker. No dessert for me; Ed had a mini magnum.

Friday/6-Jan-17: We had our mail meal early today, a risotto from the pressure cooker. Then a big salad, using the leftover vinaigrette from yesterday's leeks. I had a mini magnum for dessert.

Saturday/7-Jan-17: Dinner was a half dose of Tunisian Meatballs (web or web).  (This is actually from a cookbook I don't have, but might need to get one day. I've seen only very good comments about it.) This dish was super. I made it with ground beef. You make the sauce and the mixture for the meatballs early in the day, then fry up the meatballs and simmer them in the sauce when you're ready to eat. I served with what I think are Israeli couscous, with a bitter butter, some golden raisins, and a dash or cinnamon, as suggested. Yum.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/8-Jan-17: Dinner was a halfish recipe of One-Skillet Chicken Pot Pie in Just 30 Minutes (web). I used cooked chicken from the freezer, turkey stock instead of chicken, carrots I cut and boiled myself along with frozen peas. Dumplings on top. We were full.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 2
This month: #3 PASTA: yes; #4 BREAD: no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/26-Dec-16: Picked the leftover chicken, then froze the bones and the meat.

Didn't really feel like a fancy meal today, but we had one anyway. For a starter there was the terrine de pigenneau (squab) that we got at the marché de noël. Put a bit of arugula on the plate, topped with a vinaigrette, then some dried cranberries and walnut pieces. This was all very good. The main was veal marsala, broccoli alla romana, and the last of some nettle pasta I bought at a marché gourmand. Dessert was pears with gorgonzola. All tasted good.

Tuesday/27-Dec-16: Early dinner with a mix of leftovers. Shepherd's pie, the cauliflower curry, and a dab of orzo. The shepherd's pie held up quite well. And a slice of raspberry bûche to end it all.

Wednesday/28-Dec-16: Shopping today. Still disliking new Leclerc arrangement/design. Such a mess.

Dinner was unexpectedly good. I made a halfish recipes of Down by the Sea (Wraps, p61). The filling was lots of onions, softened in olive oil, then simmered with lemon juice, champagne vinegar (not—regular white wine vinegar did the job), and dried tarragon. This is mixed with chunks of grilled swordfish, chopped arugula, and chopped black olives. Wrapped in lavash tonight because there were some to use up. Very yummy.

Thursday/29-Dec-16: Dinner was a kind of polenta lasagna from Time-Life. Very delicious. Served with a salad. That was enough.

Friday/30-Dec-16: In the afternoon, I roasted some eggplants to use tomorrow.

Friends invited us for apèros this afternoon, so we had are rather small dinner. There was an Italian steak accompanied by some peas with shallots and some crozets mixed garlic butter-olive oil. That was all.

Saturday/31-Dec-16: Spend most of the day in the kitchen today.

• Started yogurt, thinking I might use much of what's in the fridge to make tzatziki (but didn't in the end).
• Used the roasted eggplants to make Baba Ghanoush (WofE, p334) for serving with veggies this evening.
• Started the rabbit dish for tomorrow's meal. Left it in nature's refrigerator overnight.
• For lunch, sautéed some onion, garlic, and leftover shiitakes, plopped this on slices of bread, topped with some blue cheese, and toasted to melt the cheese. Yum.
• Stuffed two mini peppers in the fridge with a little filling of cream cheese, chives, onion flakes, black pepper.

Dinner was a half recipe of Scallop Sauce with Olive Oil, Garlic, and Hot Pepper (ClassicItal, p185). I've made this before on new year's eve. It's good. Then a salad. 

For our late-night munchies with had the baba ghanoush with carrots, cukes, and radishes, along with the stuffed mini pepper. Looked like a lot, but we ate all of the veggies; didn't quite finish the dip.

Sunday/1-Jan-16: Dinner was delicious. Rabbit Ragu with Pappardelle (Essential, p352). Made a full recipe and froze about half. Served over some wide tagliatelle, home-made!, but not wide enough to call it pappardelle. Then a salad. That was all

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no for December; yes for January; #4 BREAD: no; #5 FotW: yes for November/December

This week in the kitchen

Monday/14-Mar-16: Dinner was an easy one, Shrimp in Green Sauce (Essential, p430; cookbooker). Only about a third of the parsley was the flat kind, since I bought curly parsley last week. And shallots instead of scallions. Still good. Served with polenta. And mini mags for after.

Tuesday/15-Mar-16: We had a Groupon lunch out today. Nothing happened in the kitchen this evening. Except for yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/16-Mar-16: Shopping today.

Had wanted to make something from this month's Time-Life book tonight, but there was not swordfish on offer. Instead we had Thon à l'Ail Arrantzaleak, Sauce Pipérade (BistoWells, p142). Pretty good this was. The tuna was broiled then served with a garlic sauce (lots of garlic, sautéed, then with red wine vinegar added) which was surprisingly good with the fish. And a Basque pipérade, which was good, but not the best I've had. Then a salad.

Thursday/17-Mar-16: Dinner was Spaghetti with Anchovies, Garlic, and Red Pepper with Lemon-Caper Broccoli (web). This is a magazine clipping, "Cook Once, Eat 3x"—I didn't keep the other bits. The lemon-caper broccoli is a nice side, could be used any only time: a bit of oil, a bit of lemon juice, cooked broccoli, chopped shallots, chopped capers, S&P. Voila! The pasta was simple and yummy. Then a salad. Then some gariguettes (yes, this week again) with vanilla ice cream.

Friday/18-Mar-16: Dinner out tonight. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Saturday/19-Mar-16: Dinner was Chicken Supreme Dijon (MC), one I haven't made in a long while. Good stuff. All the sauce with just two kip filets. Some brown rice and steamed broccoli on the side. Mini magnums for after.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/20-Mar-16: Trying to get back into the business of cleaning kitchen shelves . Did the left Ivar section today. Discovered that a mouse has been busy with the food umbrellas we have. The last one with daisies has been deflowered. The other one umbrella-style one has been chewed. (Have one more of those still in its plastic wrapper.) What on earth can be interesting about these? Think this is fairly new work, so need to keep an eye out there.

Half recipes of all. Dinner was Steak au Poivre (Essential, p573; cookbooker) using rumsteaks that were pretty thin, so they didn't spend any time in the oven. Used black peppercorns, long pepper, and red peppercorns for the coating. As suggested, served with Mashed Potatoes Anna (Essential, p294; cookbooker) and Haricots Verts with Balsamic Vinaigrette (Essential, p231; cookbooker). All good.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 BREAD: no; #5 FotW: no for Feb/Mar

This week in the kitchen

Monday/8-Feb-16: Dinner was a halfish version of Creamy & Spicy Spaghetti with Aubergine (web). Used tomato purée from the freezer. Linguine instead of spaghetti; a shaped pasta might be nice too. Anyhow, it was good. Followed by a big salad.

Tuesday/9-Feb-16: Yogurt on overday.

Changed the plan to start working on getting Ed's hemoglobin up. Stopped at the butcher on the way back from BookChatters and picked up a chunk of beef to make Sri Lankan Beef Smore (MJ@Home, p140). Very yummy stuff; should serve 4-6, will only serve 3. (We have one more meal of sauce with some meat that I'll serve over rice.) Served with Karhai Broccoli (MJ@Home, p148) and Sri Lankan Rice with Cilantro and Lemon Grass (MJ@Home, p210). All yummy.

Wednesday/10-Feb-16: Worked on backlog during the day. Out in the evening. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Thursday/11-Feb-16: Defrosted a home-made pâte brisée, roasted one of our stash of winter squash, and made Winter Squash Tart (Greens, p246). Pretty good it was. (The first time I made this, I set the Pyrex pie plate on the (wooden) table on a trivet. As we sat there, there was a Pop from the pie plate, which fell into two parts. I wrote Pyrex and they replaced it at no charge. Very nice of them.) And a salad. That was all.

Mandolined more red onion to add to the pickling broth, getting another use of it.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/12-Feb-16: Shopping today.

Planned to go to dinner and a concert in Limoges, but ended up bringing pizzas home.

Saturday/13-Feb-16: Cooked up a batch of cannellini beans in the slow cooker. Made up my variation of Coffee Ricotta Mousse (MW@Home, p307) with the rest of the ricotta that I opened for Monday's pasta. I use less coffee and add cocoa. Also a slog of Kuhlua, although it occurs to be that crème de cacao would be good too.

Dinner was Seared Tuna in Black Pepper Crust (Essential, p409; cookbooker), a winner. Tuna is coated with crushed black pepper and seared, then served on a bed of spinach and cannellini beans. Sounds a bit odd, but was perfect. A bit of prep (and cooking the beans from scratch) but easy and goes together quickly and easily at the end. Served with a pilaf (vermicelli, rice, shallots, soaked dried shiitakes cooked in mushroom stock) and Avocado and Beet Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette (Essential, p193; cookbooker). A good salad, except my beets (chioggas, first time I've used them) didn't really get done. Ed poured a bit of cream over the ricotta mouse as he served it, so it was extra yummy.

Sunday/14-Feb-16: We had our Valentine's Day meal at one of our favorite restaurants. Nothing further happened in the kitchen.

Yogurt on overnight.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 BREAD: no; #5 FotW: yes for Jan/Feb

This week in the kitchen

Monday/28-Dec-15: Clearing out the pantry night. Baked potatoes with pyramid goat cheese and cheddar and lardons. Steamed asparagus with a bit of lemon juice. A strange salad of leftover green beans and chopped walnuts with a dressing of pyramid goat cheese, olive oil, and cider vinegar. Worked really well. Followed by more pecan pie bread pudding.

Thinking I had the meal plan ready, I meant to make the shopping list today. But I didn't, so I didn't. Maybe tomorrow. Ed's ready to wait till Thursday afternoon to shop, since it was relatively empty then last week.

Tuesday/29-Dec-15: Dinner was, more or less, Thai Chicken Salad (30MinCook, p98; cookbooker). I used duck aiguilettes (the long, narrow muscle behind the breast proper). Oops, we're out of carrots; used some peeled broccoli stems for the extra crunch. No mint either, but—surprise!—there was some outside. (There really shouldn't be mint at this time of year.) Ed thought it was almost uneatably salty. I thought it was salty, but not that bad. But very tasty.

Then we finished off the pecan pie bread pudding. I didn't make the version with corn syrup, which would have tasted more pecan pie-ish, I suppose, but we did like the nuts. Next time I make my double-boiler bread pudding, I'll put some nuts in with the caramel.

Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/30-Dec-15: Shopping today. Cilantro was in short supply. There was a space labelled Coriander at Leclerc, but it was really Cerfeuil (chervil). The nearby Casino was closed for their very long lunch break. Found two small packages at Intermarché.

Dinner was Fish Gyros with Cucumber Tzatziki Sauce (web). Tonight's fish was lieu noir again. I made all the sauce, more or less with half the fish. Served in pita bread things, oval rather than round. Good, easy, very fast. With some store-bought rice puddings for after.

Ed started on tiling over the kitchen sink this afternoon. Hooray!

Thursday/31-Dec-15: Our New Year's Eve dinner got its own post.

Friday/1-Jan-16: We had our first meal of the year out today, and very nice it was.

Saturday/2-Jan-16: Dinner started with a half recipe of Potage Parisien with Sorrel Cream (Essential, p148; cookbooker). This is a really yummy soup, easy and relatively fast to make. This was a recommended starter for Scallops with Pea Purée (Essential, p429; cookbooker). This was okay, nothing special. For dessert, we had the last two laits du riz from shopping day.

More tiling done today.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/3-Jan-16: Eating from the freezer tonight. Two little lamb pot pies, in small square casseroles, topped with squares of pâte feuillittée. Good stuff. Then a salad, with the sauce from the lime-marinated scallops as dressing. And a mini-mag for after.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 UNUSED: no; #3 GRAINS: no; #4 VEG/FISH: 2
This month: #5 PASTA: no for December, no for January; #6 BREAD: no for December, no for January #7 FotW: yes for November/December, no for January/February

This week in the kitchen

Monday/16-Jun-14: I planned a crockpot dinner when we thought we'd be out for the day. That didn't happen, but I'd already defrosted the turkey, so this morning I started Slow-Cooker Turkey Stroganoff (web), using two turkey filets rather than bone-in breasts. Turned out the filets I got had been brined or otherwise treated; I just hadn't read the label that closely and there was no clue in the name. Good thing, then, that I added only half the salt to the sauce. I was short on mushrooms (a 500g package was hiding in the fridge), so I served over mushroom pasta. It was pretty good actually, and might be worth making again with some unadulterated meat.

Before dinner I made some banana bread with smashed banana from the freezer using a recipe for Banana Cupcakes (SimpSups, p274). Baked into two smaller loaf pans at the advertised temp, but for at least twice the time. Still a bit damp on the bottom but quite tasty. Didn't frost.

Tuesday/17-Jun-14: Shopping today; nothing special, although they did have chicken livers. Some now in freezer.

Dinner was a half recipe of Linguine with Lemon, Garlic, and Thyme Mushrooms (web), which simple and pretty tasty. I was worried about having enough thyme, but as soon as the pasta was added to the sauce the thyme smell bloomed. Followed by a big salad.

Wednesday/18-Jun-14: Off to Vallée des Singes for the day. Put Sicilian Lentil, Vegetable, and Pasta Soup (SlowItal, p32) in the crockpot before we left. When we were back six hours later, the lentils were still a bit crunchy. Poured the whole lot into a Dutch oven and simmered a while, then added the dilatini (the first pasta suggestion, which I thought might be too small, but was just right). It made a lot, so I froze the rest.  Some banana cupcake bread for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/19-Jun-14: For this month's potluck at IHCC, I made a some of Mark Bittman's vegetable stock along with some broccoli soup. It was good.

Friday/20-Jun-14: Stopped at the store today to get some fish (since we missed our fresh fish earlier in the week) and also found some pretty good looking corn on the cob. Dinner was a very loose interpretation of Po'Boy Sandwich (SimpSups, p172), served with Mama's Garlic Coleslaw (MC, HandyBook) and corn on the cob. I got blue ling for the fish, fillets which turned out to be quite bony, ugh. I rolled the fish in cornmeal and seafood seasoning, then sprayed with olive oil and broiled rather than frying. They turned out nice and crispy. Should try this technique again. Fish served on ciabattas, topped with coleslaw. The seafood seasoning I used (not Old Bay) was a gift from someone along the way, but was very salty. Decided to toss it. Dessert was two almond triangles from a boulanger, crispy pastry with almond paste filling. All pretty good.

Saturday/21-Jun-14: As a go-with for dinner, I made Cayenne Cornbread (BigGerman, p182) in the bread machine. Except that I forgot to add the yeast, duh. Actually it was better than I'd have expected with no leavening at all. Not going to make a sandwich, but it was good for munching and better crumbled in the soup.

The soup was Chile Bisque (H2CEV, p130), a recipe I spotted while looking at the broccoli soup. Sounded promising, but was almost too bitter to eat. I'll try to salvage the leftovers by adding some beans and corn. We split a classic magnum for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/22-Jun-14: Off to a concert this evening, so we had our main meal in the early afternoon. That was Broiled Lamb Leg Chops on Eggplant Planks with Mint-Yogurt Sauce (Essential, p549). I had only five little chops, so made a halfish recipe. The mint-yogurt sauce was a nice touch, but too sweet even though I cut back the honey. The eggplant slices were oiled, S&Ped, and had minced garlic pressed into the side that was down for the first bit of broiling. They were good. The lamb chops were coated with coriander seeds, black pepper, and salt; instead of crushing and grinding, I whizzed them all in my spice grinder. Broiled, then rested while the eggplant cooked. Served with some orzo. All good. No dessert.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: no; #5 BREAD: none

This week in the kitchen

Monday/2-Jun-14: Yogurt on overday.

Dinner was a half dose of Zucchini, Caper, and Herb Linguine (web). Pretty good stuff. Then a small salad. For afters, there was some banana bread that I put in the oven before I started dinner. It was Banana Tea Bread (Essential, p655). The recipe from 1947 made a really nice banana bread. I used my cuisinart for all mixing. Used butter instead of shortening. Used slightly more than 1/2cup sucre de canne. More-ish.

Tuesday/3-Jun-14: Shopping today. Back on schedule for a while.

Dinner was Mirin-Glazed Salmon (web), except that it turned out I'm out of mirin. Somehow forgot to add it to  my Dutch shopping list. Substituted sherry. Was pretty good, might be worth doing again when mirin reappears on the shelf. Served with Broccoli in a Fragrant Wine Sauce (HotWok, p156), a favorite not made in a while, and some rice.

Wednesday/4-Jun-14: Lunch at a friend's going to a patchwork exhibition. Only sandwiches and fruit at dinnertime.

Thursday/5-Jun-14: Yogurt on overday.

A Nigel Slater brunch dish for dinner tonight, followed by a nice salad. That was all.

Friday/6-Jun-14: Grilled Chicken with Garlic and Lemon Butter (Diaries, p262), a recipe calling for "chubby poussin". Love reading Slater's recipes. I didn't make the butter bit, just marinated and grilled the birdies. They were good cooked under the broiler at a low temp, with the rack set on the bottom, but the marinade wasn't especially thrilling. Served with Clothilde Dusolier's Perfect Roast Potatoes (MC, HandyBook) and A Radish, Mint, and Feta Salad (Diaries, p195). For dessert I made up another half dose of the shortcakes for Strawberry Shortcakes (TLAmer, p90). Cut the baking powder back to 1-1/4tsp as suggested by Barbara. Much better, i.e., quite good. I made six shortcakes, we both thought that one each was too much; better would be to split one for two desserts. Poured marscapone cream over the berries.

Saturday/7-Jun-14: Dinner was a half dose of Alfredo Pasta with Cajun Spiced Chicken (web). Good stuff, and easy. Used a packet of aiguillettes de poulet (~225g) and some Cajun run I made up for something or other. Used about 1 teaspoon of this for my half recipe, which is about four times more than asked. Also spray the chickie bits with a bit of olive oil spray. Then cooked on the grill pan. Cut them in half to toss with the pasta and sauce. Followed by a big salad. That was all.

Sunday/8-Jun-14: Yogurt on overday.

Lunch with friends today. For dinner, we shared a plate of fruit plus some strawberries over the last shortcake.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: no; #5 BREAD: 0

This week in the kitchen

Monday/6-May-14: (Managed to loose what I wrote on Monday, so this bit is reimagined.) Working on the freezer inventory, we grilled some chicken sausages on the bbq. Served with Mediterranean Lentil Salad with Lemon-Thyme Vinaigrette (Essential, p288), a yummy side dish salad that could be a vegetarian main. For after there was Easy Berry Cobbler (HandyBook) fresh from the oven, served with ice cream.

Tuesday/7-May-14: Shopping today.

Dinner was fish from Nigel Slater for IHCC. Served with boiled new potatoes and some of the yellow beans from the freezer. Finished off the cobbler for dessert.

Wednesday/8-May-14: Yogurt on overday. Boiled up the the chicken&pigeon stock yet again and froze it.

Some 1970s American food for dinner. I made a half recipe of Deviled Crab (TLAmer, p71), served over some nouilles bouclées (curly noodles) along with some broccoli.

Thursday/9-May-14: Easy dinner tonight. Arroz con Pollo from the freezer, followed by a salad. The chicken was very good still. The rice was tasty enough, but pretty soggy. Not sure if that was from its time in the freezer, or being well covered in the oven for quite a while.

Friday/10-May-14: And a really easy dinner tonight. Some so-so broccoli sauce for pasta from the freezer, brightened up with a bit of lemon juice, over the rest of the nouilles bouclées, followed by a big salad.

Saturday/11-May-14: Picked up Barbara from the train today. There was a train broken down and all trains were delayed about 50 minutes. Hers was the first late one into the station. Stopped by Leclerc on the way home to do a bit of shopping.

For dinner we had Potaje de Vigilia from the freezer and a big salad. Then some cheese (morbier and camembert) with some of Barbara's homemade membrillo (which goes really nicely with cheese).

Sunday/12-May-14: Ed had a late afternoon choir concert today and restaurants aren't open Sunday evening. He went early for practice and Barbara and I went later, leaving a Slow-Roast Lamb (Diaries, p62) in the oven. When we got back, we smashed some potatoes and steamed some broccoli. The lamb was delicious. So were the cheeses (finished off yesterday's two). Then we had some little store-bought rice puddings.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: no; #5 BREAD: 1

This week in the kitchen

Monday/16-Dec-13: Made some Hot Milk Cake (MC) today. Moldy-oldy recipe; good stuff. For dinner we had Cranberry Chicken (MC), another moldy-oldy recipe, along with some steamed broccoli and trio rice. We've eaten well.

Tuesday/17-Dec-13: Off to Bordeaux to get a form notarized. Ate lunch out there; it was so-so. For dinner we had fruit and popcorn and watched TV and I ironed.

Wednesday/18-Dec-13: Didn't shop today. And no real plan for dinner. Found the recipe for Ottolenghi's Conchiglie with Saffron, Capers, and Raisins (web; cookbooker) in my stack and made that. A surprising combination of tastes, it made a pretty interesting dinner. We ate it all, then finished with the last bit of camembert.

Thursday/19-Dec-13: Shopping today.

Dinner was Smoky Maple-Mustard Salmon (web; cookbooker), quite good and easy. The recipe suggested ground chipotle as a substitute for smoked paprika. Huh? Served with orzo and some sautéed veggies, onion, garlic. shiitakes, zucchini, tomato, with a sprinkle of smoked paprika. All pretty good.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/20-Dec-13: Dinner was Lamb with Rosemary and Port (web), kind of so-so. The meat was good, but the sauce wasn't especially. Think the port was too sweet (I used tawny instead of ruby) and red wine would have been better. Served with polenta and steamed broccoli.

Saturday/21-Dec-13: Dinner was a half recipe of Curry Scallops & Cilantro Rice (web). Discovered at cookbooker I've made this before, but seem to have collected it again. Oh well, it's still good. Then a big salad. Then we split a Magnum classic.

Sunday/22-Dec-13: Off to the marché de noël at Chassenon today to look for goodies for our xmas dinner, not too successfully, though. Many of the food vendors seemed to be missing. We did get our tree and now have two days to get it up.

Dinner was David Eyre's Pancake (Essential, p813); I'd collected this recipe off a blog also. It gets raves everywhere. Only problem was the recipe says it serves 2-4, so we split one pancake but could easily have eaten a whole one each. Yum. For dessert I chopped up a kiwi, sectioned a mandarin, scooped out a (yellow!) passion fruit, and chopped an apple, then stirred in a dab of honey, lime juice, and a sprinkle of ginger (à la MW@Home, but without really measuring anything).

Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: no, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/4-Nov-13: Dinner was Zucchini and Butternut Squash Soup (MC 2BTried). A so-so soup that improved with the addition of some good hot sauce. Then a bit of cheese. Then we split a Magnum Classic.

Tuesday/5-Nov-13: Dinner was sort of a halfish dose of Scallop & Pepper Tacos (EW/jun13; web). Tasty, but I think they would have been even better over polenta. Then there was a salad of the remaining spinach, along with a sort of bacon dressing. For dessert, a toasted waffle with some mango chunks and a dab of vanilla ice cream.

Wednesday/6-Nov-13: Shopping today. Thus, fish for dinner. The main was Nina Simonds's Broiled Halibut with Miso Glaze (Essential, p413). As suggested, I served with String Beans with Ginger and Garlic (Essential, p260); these were pretty good and easy to make. And some plain basmati rice. For dessert, there was Coconut Rice Pudding with Lime Syrup (Essential, p846; cookbooker).

Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/7-Nov-13: For dinner, I made the Zucchini and Feta Gratin (MC), but with broccoli, which turned out very good. Think I'm going to write this up with my changes and call it my recipe. Served with a big salad. And then some cookies for dessert.

Friday/8-Nov-13: Used most of the neck of my butternut squash to make Butternut Squash Ribbons with Spinach Tagliatelle (web), well, really with basil tagliatelle, since that was the only green sort to be found. Quite nice, although the recipe was a bit weird. Maybe you can buy already sautéed mushrooms in the US? Then a salad. Then some cheese.

Saturday/9-Nov-13: Ed's Montbron choir had a concert this evening. We had pizza afterwards. Nothing happened in the kitchen, beyond some cleaining today.

Sunday/10-Nov-13: Made a Pumpkin Roll (MC) today to take to a party this evening, then didn't feel like going. Hope I'm not getting sick. Ed went and had a nice time. For dinner I had some corn tortillas with thinly sliced onion, tomato, and cheese, using up the ends of two bits.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: no, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no