Monday/3-Aug-20: Tthis afternoon Ed said how much he liked yesterday's dessert. Surprise. He especially liked the misbegotten dumpling-ish things on the top of the peaches.
Started some Abm Whole Wheat Bread (MC) (WW/Rapid/L/-/-). My goodness this smells good when it's baking!
Dinner was a halfish dose of Baked Greek Shrimp with Tomatoes and Feta (web; cookbooker). Used 300g of cooked shrimp (with covered tails) that I added more or less frozen. Served over orzo.
Peach cobbler with ice cream and cream for dessert.
Tuesday/4-Aug-20: Off to BookChatters today. Only four of us, but a long discussion.
Dinner was a half dose of Artichoke Purée with Olives, Capers, and Oregano (PeV, p33), served over linguine. Good stuff. We finished off the peach cobbler with plain ice cream for after.
Wednesday/5-Aug-20: This was vet day. Sophie had her shots and seems not to have kidney failure or diabetes as we'd feared. Oscar isn't doing well and probably won't be long with us. :-(
Dinner was Grilled Chicken with Peach and Onion Relish (MC; web), a third of the meat with half the relish. The relish was delicious; I used half the sugar I should have. Have lots of this left for something else. It was served with very plain kip filets, where it could have used a more flavorful meat, chicken thighs, pork something? Served with short spaghetti and some steam-sautéed mixed veggies (carrots, broccoli, zucchini, eggplant), cleaning out the fridge a bit. They were good, with lots of lemon juice at the end. We're full and satisfied.
Thursday/6-Aug-20: Dinner was a close version of Shakshouka with Potatoes (web). Easy and pretty tasty. Filling on a hot hot day.
Yogurt on overnight.
Friday/7-Aug-20: Buckwheat Bread (BMB, p49) this morning (WW/Rapid/S/-/-). A small loaf, as are all in this book, but quite delicious.
Dinner was Eggs on Curried Rice (Rodale2, p113; MC). Short grain brown rice. Old recipe. Good stuff. Then a bit of salad.
It's occurred to me that my cookbook reading has largely ground to a halt. I was reading as we travelled to and from the grocery store. But that's not happening any more, and likely won't for quite some time, so I need to find another way to work this into my schedule.
Saturday/8-Aug-20: Another hot hot day. I don't do hot well.
Ed picked up an order from Intermarché, so it's fish for dinner.
Which was Coconut Fish Curry (web). No coconut oil or coconut aminos. It was okay. We got a mango in the groceries, but I decided not to make that fish dish. Instead I made Cucumber Mango Salad (web), a recipe printout I found tucked in a book last night. This was pretty good. I stirred in some cilantro, which only made it better. I made up the broth for some ice cream and macerated some peaches and nectarines, but didn't feel like freezing it. Tomorrow.
Ed brought in a bucket full of purple plums, so tomorrow is probably jam-making day.
Sunday/9-Aug-20: Busy day in the kitchen. Started out making a loaf English Muffin Bread (BMB, p17). The dough must have been a bit too wet and the top sank. Tastes great, though, so I'll try again.
I used about half of the bucket of plums (quetsches) to make Plum Jam (FancyPant, p92). I was also looking at Classic Plum Jam (PutEmFruit, p211). I used the amount of sugar (sucre de confiture with pectin included) from PutEmFruit and omitted the lemon juice. Followed FancyPant's procedure of softening the plums with the pits in, then putting them through a food mill to remove them. That didn't work very well, and I ended up picking them out by hand. Have four jars of jam now, three in the freezer.
For dinner, we had hamburger patties, plain hamburger dressed up with tamari, garlic, and Tabasco. Served these with the Peach and Onion Relish from earlier in the week. Over-roasted the remains of some mandolined potatoes. Made up a broccoli salad. And for after we had some peaches and cream ice cream. We're full.
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
Showing posts with label ~PeV. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ~PeV. Show all posts
Monday, August 3, 2020
Monday, July 8, 2019
This week in the kitchen
Monday/8-Jul-19: For starters there were insalatas caprese. For a main I used much of the orange cauliflower I bought last week to make a half recipe of Grilled Cauliflower "Steaks" with Tonnato Sauce and Walnut Salsa (web). This was good, if a bit light for a main course. Ottolenghi does say it's a starter and it would be good like that. Ed liked the tonnato sauce and the walnut salsa (especially), but didn't like them together. I thought they were fine together. For afters I had a HD ice cream cup and Ed had a mini Magnum bar.
This is the first "steak" cut from the cauliflower following Ottolenghi's instructions, i.e., only two steaks per head, cut from the center. This means each steaks has a substantial part of the stem to hold it together.
The completed dish, with the steak sitting on tonnato sauce and topped with walnut salsa, looked like this.
Tuesday/9-Jul-19: Dinner was kind of late because in the afternoon I made myself a simple tuna salad sandwich with tuna leftover from yesterday.
The orange cauliflower appeared again today as Cauliflower with Tomatoes, Green Olives, and Capers (PeV, p96). Served this over whole wheat pasta, which maybe wasn't the best choice. But the sauce was good.
Then a big salad. Then some chocolate-covered corn flakes. It's late and we're stuffed.
Yogurt on overnight.
Wednesday/10-Jul-19: Dinner was, sort of, Roasted Veggie Pasta Salad (web). I used the last of my orange cauliflower, a red bell pepper, a zucchini, a carrot, garlic cloves, and some ~1" pieces of snijbonen. About 10min before these were done, I added a handful of fresh peas (those that didn't make it into the risotto), some kalamata-ish olives, and some oven-dried tomatoes (seedless) from the freezer. Served over malfada corta. Made the dressing in the recipe, more or less; I think it would have been better with all lemon juice and no red wine vinegar. Didn't wait for anything to cool, just served it all up after the veggies came out of the oven. Good stuff. Some mini ice cream bars for dessert. We're full.
Thursday/11-Jul-19: Shopping today.
Dinner was Salmon Wrapped in Spinach Leaves with Caper, Lemon, and Olive Sauce (VegHarv, p86; cookbooker). There was no large-leaved spinach today, so I used sorrel instead. Tried to parboil this as directed for the spinach, but it turned ugly quite quickly, so I just used the raw leaves. The shorter time, 3 minutes, was good for my thinner end of the salmon back; Ed's thicker end could have used another 30 seconds or so. A bit surprised that the sauce ingredients were not blended before or after simmering. Served with gnocchi and spaetzle from the freezer. And there was a simple grated carrot salad; I used the spiralizer thing to "grate" the carrots. Some store-bought semoule au lait for dessert. We're full.
Decided on next month's cookbook, took it to read on the way to and from shopping, and discovered that I've already used it a bit and didn't remember. Duh. Wondering if I should continue, or do Nigella Lawson's How To Eat, which I've recently finished reading. Hmm...
Friday/12-Jul-19: Early dinner tonight so we could go to the Folk Galerie. We started with that old favorite, Spicy Cucumber Wedges (MJ1, p172). For our main, there was Squid or Scallops in Spinach-Tomato Curry Sauce (Q&E, p72), with scallops, over plain rice. (I really have to make this with squid sometime.) Some mini ice creams for after.
Yogurt on overnight.
Saturday/13-Jul-19: For dinner there was Chicken Breasts with Mint, Capers, and White Wine (VegHarv p110). This was simple and good. For a side, I augmented the leftover gnocchi and spaetzle with the caper-lemon-olive sauce with some onion and red bell pepper and olive oil and lemon juice to make a pretty good salad. We were meant to have Zucchini Carpaccio with Avocado, Lemon Thyme, and Pistachio Oil (VegHarv, p214) as a starter, but it ended up following the main. Really like this salad. Then some silver medal Langres. Then some chocolate-covered madeleines. We're stuffed.
Sunday/14-Jul-19: Dinner was Sesame Peanut Noodles (web) which was greatly improvee by a liberal dose of my "fiery" hot sauce. I forgot to add the sesame seeds and the chopped coriander. Used spiralized zucchini for the bean sprouts; spiralized carrot for the red bell pepper, which I used up yesterday; and chunk of lightly steamed snijbonen for the mangetout. Then some chocolate-covered madeleines.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 6; #3 COOKBOOK: yes
Cookbooks of the month: Vegetable Harvest
This month: #4 PASTA: no; #5 BREAD: no; #6 GUESTS: no
This year: #7 PROJECT: no
This is the first "steak" cut from the cauliflower following Ottolenghi's instructions, i.e., only two steaks per head, cut from the center. This means each steaks has a substantial part of the stem to hold it together.
The completed dish, with the steak sitting on tonnato sauce and topped with walnut salsa, looked like this.
Tuesday/9-Jul-19: Dinner was kind of late because in the afternoon I made myself a simple tuna salad sandwich with tuna leftover from yesterday.
The orange cauliflower appeared again today as Cauliflower with Tomatoes, Green Olives, and Capers (PeV, p96). Served this over whole wheat pasta, which maybe wasn't the best choice. But the sauce was good.
Then a big salad. Then some chocolate-covered corn flakes. It's late and we're stuffed.
Yogurt on overnight.
Wednesday/10-Jul-19: Dinner was, sort of, Roasted Veggie Pasta Salad (web). I used the last of my orange cauliflower, a red bell pepper, a zucchini, a carrot, garlic cloves, and some ~1" pieces of snijbonen. About 10min before these were done, I added a handful of fresh peas (those that didn't make it into the risotto), some kalamata-ish olives, and some oven-dried tomatoes (seedless) from the freezer. Served over malfada corta. Made the dressing in the recipe, more or less; I think it would have been better with all lemon juice and no red wine vinegar. Didn't wait for anything to cool, just served it all up after the veggies came out of the oven. Good stuff. Some mini ice cream bars for dessert. We're full.
Thursday/11-Jul-19: Shopping today.
Dinner was Salmon Wrapped in Spinach Leaves with Caper, Lemon, and Olive Sauce (VegHarv, p86; cookbooker). There was no large-leaved spinach today, so I used sorrel instead. Tried to parboil this as directed for the spinach, but it turned ugly quite quickly, so I just used the raw leaves. The shorter time, 3 minutes, was good for my thinner end of the salmon back; Ed's thicker end could have used another 30 seconds or so. A bit surprised that the sauce ingredients were not blended before or after simmering. Served with gnocchi and spaetzle from the freezer. And there was a simple grated carrot salad; I used the spiralizer thing to "grate" the carrots. Some store-bought semoule au lait for dessert. We're full.
Decided on next month's cookbook, took it to read on the way to and from shopping, and discovered that I've already used it a bit and didn't remember. Duh. Wondering if I should continue, or do Nigella Lawson's How To Eat, which I've recently finished reading. Hmm...
Friday/12-Jul-19: Early dinner tonight so we could go to the Folk Galerie. We started with that old favorite, Spicy Cucumber Wedges (MJ1, p172). For our main, there was Squid or Scallops in Spinach-Tomato Curry Sauce (Q&E, p72), with scallops, over plain rice. (I really have to make this with squid sometime.) Some mini ice creams for after.
Yogurt on overnight.
Saturday/13-Jul-19: For dinner there was Chicken Breasts with Mint, Capers, and White Wine (VegHarv p110). This was simple and good. For a side, I augmented the leftover gnocchi and spaetzle with the caper-lemon-olive sauce with some onion and red bell pepper and olive oil and lemon juice to make a pretty good salad. We were meant to have Zucchini Carpaccio with Avocado, Lemon Thyme, and Pistachio Oil (VegHarv, p214) as a starter, but it ended up following the main. Really like this salad. Then some silver medal Langres. Then some chocolate-covered madeleines. We're stuffed.
Sunday/14-Jul-19: Dinner was Sesame Peanut Noodles (web) which was greatly improvee by a liberal dose of my "fiery" hot sauce. I forgot to add the sesame seeds and the chopped coriander. Used spiralized zucchini for the bean sprouts; spiralized carrot for the red bell pepper, which I used up yesterday; and chunk of lightly steamed snijbonen for the mangetout. Then some chocolate-covered madeleines.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 6; #3 COOKBOOK: yes
Cookbooks of the month: Vegetable Harvest
This month: #4 PASTA: no; #5 BREAD: no; #6 GUESTS: no
This year: #7 PROJECT: no
Monday, July 10, 2017
This week in the kitchen
Monday/10-Jul-17: Early meal today. We had Grilled Buffalo Chicken Tacos (CL; web). I sort of made a whole recipe, that should serve four, for the two of us. I used two kip filets as asked, and had much more romaine; even so, I made only half the dressing, using yogurt instead of buttermilk and feta instead blue cheese (because I forgot to buy this, duh). It was good, but I'll do it again when I'll remember to buy the cheese.
Yogurt on overnight.
Tuesday/11-Jul-17: Dinner was Rice Salad with Tuna & Avocado (PatSalad, p57). Made about a half recipe; wasn't obsessive about measuring. Maybe a bit plain, but very pleasant. I used short-grain brown rice rather than white.
Wednesday/12-Jul-17: Shopping today.
I recently read somewhere about Nicolas Freeling's The Kitchen Book, and got myself a copy. Actually the copy includes two books, The Kitchen Book and The Cook Book. He's known for the van der Valk mysteries. I didn't know that he worked as a chef for 15 year. Started reading this today. Really enjoying it.
Dinner was a sort of half recipe of Grilled Salmon with White Bean and Arugula Salad (web). I had half the salmon, but probably had close to all of the salad part. Very tasty. The salad part could be good with a kip filet on top.
Thursday/13-Jul-17: Made Chile Puree (TexMex, p50). Put it up in three AH jars (two in the freezer), although four probably would have been all right; we'll just have lots of sauce for the next batches of enchiladas.
Our main course this evening was a two-thirds-ish recipe of Spicy Cumin Lamb Skewers (web). Ed grilled this outside (after the rain finally stopped). I used shaoxing wine instead of sherry. Yummy meat. This was billed as a "marriage of Middle Eastern and Chinese influence," so I chose the side dishes from book I haven't used before, but clearly need to pay some attention to.
There was Shredded Beets with Thick Yogurt (EastMed, p30) with a 250g beet. This is supposed to be a sauce or dip. I think it would be a fine small salad. I thought it was very tasty; Ed liked it a bit less.
And a half recipe of Grilled Red Pepper Strips with Pomegranate and Cumin (EastMed, p154), another small salad. We liked this a lot. It might be pretty to do it with a mixture of red, yellow, and orange bell peppers.
And a two-thirds-ish recipe of Eggplant with Pomegranate Sauce (EastMed, p155). Instead of baking the eggplant slices, I put them under the broiler. They could have been done a bit longer. Nevertheless, quite tasty.
Finally a third recipe of Rice Pilaf with Noodles (EastMed, p233), which was a nice change from plain rice. I didn't soak the rice.
Friday/14-Jul-17: Bastille Day today. For dinner we had Warm Pasta Salad with Shrimp and Avocados (web). This was pretty good. I called the recipe dinner for two and used 7oz of tagliatelle (the end of a package, and no fresh stuff in the freezer). A bit of an odd combination, but it worked fine. Shrimp, avocado, artichoke hearts, chives (I used a whole can, about twice what was asked), and green olives, with a vinaigrette of white balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, and olive oil.
Saturday/15-Jul-17: Pasta day today. Made Hazan's regular pasta with 1 cup flour and 2 eggs (actually I add quite a bit more as I knead, since it's fairly damp when I start). Cut as fettuccine on 5; tasty. By accident, after I roughly mixed the pasta dough, but before I started kneading, the dough rested for a bit. It was nicer to knead with this pause.
For a sauce, there was Arugula Purée with Walnuts and Goat Cheese (PeV, p39). Pretty good. I made a whole recipe and have two more lumps in the freezer now.
Sunday/16-Jul-17: Off to a vide grenier today; didn't buy anything.
Dinner was Chicken & Corn Salad (PatSalad, p99). Easy and tasty. Two of us ate what should have been for four.
Yogurt on overnight.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes; #4 BREAD: no
Yogurt on overnight.
Tuesday/11-Jul-17: Dinner was Rice Salad with Tuna & Avocado (PatSalad, p57). Made about a half recipe; wasn't obsessive about measuring. Maybe a bit plain, but very pleasant. I used short-grain brown rice rather than white.
Wednesday/12-Jul-17: Shopping today.
I recently read somewhere about Nicolas Freeling's The Kitchen Book, and got myself a copy. Actually the copy includes two books, The Kitchen Book and The Cook Book. He's known for the van der Valk mysteries. I didn't know that he worked as a chef for 15 year. Started reading this today. Really enjoying it.
Dinner was a sort of half recipe of Grilled Salmon with White Bean and Arugula Salad (web). I had half the salmon, but probably had close to all of the salad part. Very tasty. The salad part could be good with a kip filet on top.
- Roasted some red bell peppers for tomorrow's dinner.
- Set some yogurt to draining for tomorrow's dinner.
- Put some lamb cubes on to marinate for tomorrow's dinner.
Yogurt on overnight.
Thursday/13-Jul-17: Made Chile Puree (TexMex, p50). Put it up in three AH jars (two in the freezer), although four probably would have been all right; we'll just have lots of sauce for the next batches of enchiladas.
Our main course this evening was a two-thirds-ish recipe of Spicy Cumin Lamb Skewers (web). Ed grilled this outside (after the rain finally stopped). I used shaoxing wine instead of sherry. Yummy meat. This was billed as a "marriage of Middle Eastern and Chinese influence," so I chose the side dishes from book I haven't used before, but clearly need to pay some attention to.
There was Shredded Beets with Thick Yogurt (EastMed, p30) with a 250g beet. This is supposed to be a sauce or dip. I think it would be a fine small salad. I thought it was very tasty; Ed liked it a bit less.
And a half recipe of Grilled Red Pepper Strips with Pomegranate and Cumin (EastMed, p154), another small salad. We liked this a lot. It might be pretty to do it with a mixture of red, yellow, and orange bell peppers.
And a two-thirds-ish recipe of Eggplant with Pomegranate Sauce (EastMed, p155). Instead of baking the eggplant slices, I put them under the broiler. They could have been done a bit longer. Nevertheless, quite tasty.
Finally a third recipe of Rice Pilaf with Noodles (EastMed, p233), which was a nice change from plain rice. I didn't soak the rice.
Friday/14-Jul-17: Bastille Day today. For dinner we had Warm Pasta Salad with Shrimp and Avocados (web). This was pretty good. I called the recipe dinner for two and used 7oz of tagliatelle (the end of a package, and no fresh stuff in the freezer). A bit of an odd combination, but it worked fine. Shrimp, avocado, artichoke hearts, chives (I used a whole can, about twice what was asked), and green olives, with a vinaigrette of white balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, and olive oil.
Saturday/15-Jul-17: Pasta day today. Made Hazan's regular pasta with 1 cup flour and 2 eggs (actually I add quite a bit more as I knead, since it's fairly damp when I start). Cut as fettuccine on 5; tasty. By accident, after I roughly mixed the pasta dough, but before I started kneading, the dough rested for a bit. It was nicer to knead with this pause.
For a sauce, there was Arugula Purée with Walnuts and Goat Cheese (PeV, p39). Pretty good. I made a whole recipe and have two more lumps in the freezer now.
Sunday/16-Jul-17: Off to a vide grenier today; didn't buy anything.
Dinner was Chicken & Corn Salad (PatSalad, p99). Easy and tasty. Two of us ate what should have been for four.
Yogurt on overnight.
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes; #4 BREAD: no
Monday, August 24, 2015
This week in the kitchen
Monday/24-Aug-15: Lunch out today. Some fruit followed by popcorn and a movie for our evening meal.
Tuesday/25-Aug-15: Pasta night at last! We had Dilly Pasta (p75, PastaMach) with Shrimp Dill Sauce (p135, PastaMach). Kind of a so-so dish. Ed thought the whole thing was too dilly. I didn't find that. I did think the pasta might be good with a lemon-cream sauce. Then a big salad. That was nice. Afterwards we had Angel's Kisses, a nice little drink.
Wednesday/26-Aug-15: Tried to get the list done today. Have trouble concentrating and choosing. Too many good things to eat, too tired to think.
Dinner was the leftover yassa. With some whole-wheat couscous, and some broccoli-and-carrots.
Thursday/26-Aug-15: Out all day at a literary festival with Cath. In the evening we ate dinner out. Nothing happened in the kitchen.
Friday/28-Aug-15: Not feeling great today. Shopped.
Dinner was Thon Grillé Sauce Vierge—Grilled Tuna with Herbed Tomato, Garlic, Oil, and Lemon Sauce (p140, BistroWells). Coincidentally, last night we were wondering what sauce vierge was; I'd already planned it for tonight but didn't remember. Duh. Maybe a bit too much olive oil in this recipe, but it was tasty. I didn't slice the tuna on a platter, just on the plate. The sauce was good with everything. Served with little buckwheat pasta, whose name I can't remember right now, and Shredded Zucchini (p87, MW@Home), an old standby. Mini magnums for dessert.
Saturday/29-Aug-15: Hot and humid weather is here again. Ugh. Finished off Dutch and US taxes today. Now only need a trip to the post office.
Dinner was Pork Chops with Hot Garlic Sauce (MC) which was pretty good. Served with Terry's chipotle salsa, which was good, but didn't go at all. For a side I made a halfish recipe of Grilled Zucchini with Tomatoes and Balsamic Vinegar (p308, PeV). Think this was meant to be a main, but worked nice as a side. (Ha, I see I've made this before without the pasta.) Finished off the Nectarine Sorbet, huge servings, good stuff.
Sunday/30-Aug-15: Made apple butter today for the first time in ever so long. Dinner was soup from the freezer, followed by a small scoop of vanilla ice cream with the last of a a bag of frozen raspberries.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 UNUSED: yes; #3 GRAINS: yes; #4 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #5 PASTA: yes; #6 BREAD: no; #7 FotW: holiday for August
Tuesday/25-Aug-15: Pasta night at last! We had Dilly Pasta (p75, PastaMach) with Shrimp Dill Sauce (p135, PastaMach). Kind of a so-so dish. Ed thought the whole thing was too dilly. I didn't find that. I did think the pasta might be good with a lemon-cream sauce. Then a big salad. That was nice. Afterwards we had Angel's Kisses, a nice little drink.
Wednesday/26-Aug-15: Tried to get the list done today. Have trouble concentrating and choosing. Too many good things to eat, too tired to think.
Dinner was the leftover yassa. With some whole-wheat couscous, and some broccoli-and-carrots.
Thursday/26-Aug-15: Out all day at a literary festival with Cath. In the evening we ate dinner out. Nothing happened in the kitchen.
Friday/28-Aug-15: Not feeling great today. Shopped.
Dinner was Thon Grillé Sauce Vierge—Grilled Tuna with Herbed Tomato, Garlic, Oil, and Lemon Sauce (p140, BistroWells). Coincidentally, last night we were wondering what sauce vierge was; I'd already planned it for tonight but didn't remember. Duh. Maybe a bit too much olive oil in this recipe, but it was tasty. I didn't slice the tuna on a platter, just on the plate. The sauce was good with everything. Served with little buckwheat pasta, whose name I can't remember right now, and Shredded Zucchini (p87, MW@Home), an old standby. Mini magnums for dessert.
Saturday/29-Aug-15: Hot and humid weather is here again. Ugh. Finished off Dutch and US taxes today. Now only need a trip to the post office.
Dinner was Pork Chops with Hot Garlic Sauce (MC) which was pretty good. Served with Terry's chipotle salsa, which was good, but didn't go at all. For a side I made a halfish recipe of Grilled Zucchini with Tomatoes and Balsamic Vinegar (p308, PeV). Think this was meant to be a main, but worked nice as a side. (Ha, I see I've made this before without the pasta.) Finished off the Nectarine Sorbet, huge servings, good stuff.
Sunday/30-Aug-15: Made apple butter today for the first time in ever so long. Dinner was soup from the freezer, followed by a small scoop of vanilla ice cream with the last of a a bag of frozen raspberries.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 UNUSED: yes; #3 GRAINS: yes; #4 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #5 PASTA: yes; #6 BREAD: no; #7 FotW: holiday for August
Monday, April 28, 2014
This week in the kitchen
Monday/28-Apr-14: Clear on the fridge night. Roasted some asparagus, broccoli, and tomatoes and served them over the re-warmed spoon bread with a sauce of garlicky-lemony goat cheese. Pretty good it all was. The spoon bread reheated surprisiningly well
Tuesday/29-Apr-14: Shopping today.
Dinner was Fried Fish in the Moroccan Style (30MinCook, p120) with lieu noir, which is saithe or pollack, depending where you look. Tasty way to do fish, if a bit too fried for me. For sides there were half doses of Tunisian Potato Salad with Cumin (MedLight, p117) and Spicy Carrot Salad (MedLight, p114). A nice dinner.
Wednesday/30-Apr-14: Made some Oven-Dried Tomatoes (MC HandyBook). Wonder why I bought only 7 tomatoes instead of 8 to fill the tray?
Just under the wire, we had fresh pasta tonight, tagliatelle with Broccoli in "Hot" Pink Tomato Sauce with Basil (PeV, p63). Good it was. Making pasta isn't all that hard, it's the clean-up that's so boring. Flour all over the pasta maker, the counter, and the floor. (Pogo took care of the floor. Raw flour?) Served with a simple salad of the end of a sack of roquette, the end of a head of lettuce, and a few leaves off the new head of lettuce.
Yogurt on overnight. Tomatoes on a plate in the big freezer to freeze individually.
Thursday/1-May-14: Leftover Tandoori Turkey Roll from the freezer tonight, along with Green Beans with Mushrooms (Q&E, p86) and Turmeric Rice (Q&E, p100). Both of these I've made many times, although this is may be the first time with I've included the tomato (seeded) in the green beans; it's actually fine without this. We split a classic magnum for dessert.
Friday/2-May-14: Worked late on our French taxes this afternoon, so had to jiggle the schedule a bit. Ended up making tomorrow's planned dinner tonight, one for IHCC. Served the potatoes with a big salad. Nothing else needed.
Saturday/3-May-14: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Coconut Pecan Crusted Chicken served with Sweet and Spicy Apricot Sauce (web). Now, I couldn't find the sweet chili sauce from Thai Kitchen, of course, so I substituted sriracha mixed with a bit of confit de piment d'Esplette that I found hiding in the back of a cupboard waiting to be used (piment d'Esplette being a Basque chili with just a tickle of hot). I thought it was pretty good; Ed thought it was so-so. But, I like apricot and he doesn't, so that could be the difference. Served with coconut rice and some steamed broccoli topped with a dab of sesame oil, sesame seed, and garlic.
Sunday/4-May-14: Yogurt on overday. Today's major deal was defrosting the fridge. Why do I dislike this job so much?
Better weather tomorrow, so I postponed a bbq dinner. Instead I sautéed a pair of duck breast scallops, served with polenta and a little pan sauce of chicken stock (which is brewing on the stove) and balsamic vinegar. Then a big salad. Then some defrosted mixed berries over ice cream. That's all folks.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes for April/no for May; #4 FotW: yes for April/no for May; #5 BREAD: 0 for April/0 for May
Tuesday/29-Apr-14: Shopping today.
Dinner was Fried Fish in the Moroccan Style (30MinCook, p120) with lieu noir, which is saithe or pollack, depending where you look. Tasty way to do fish, if a bit too fried for me. For sides there were half doses of Tunisian Potato Salad with Cumin (MedLight, p117) and Spicy Carrot Salad (MedLight, p114). A nice dinner.
Wednesday/30-Apr-14: Made some Oven-Dried Tomatoes (MC HandyBook). Wonder why I bought only 7 tomatoes instead of 8 to fill the tray?
Just under the wire, we had fresh pasta tonight, tagliatelle with Broccoli in "Hot" Pink Tomato Sauce with Basil (PeV, p63). Good it was. Making pasta isn't all that hard, it's the clean-up that's so boring. Flour all over the pasta maker, the counter, and the floor. (Pogo took care of the floor. Raw flour?) Served with a simple salad of the end of a sack of roquette, the end of a head of lettuce, and a few leaves off the new head of lettuce.
Yogurt on overnight. Tomatoes on a plate in the big freezer to freeze individually.
Thursday/1-May-14: Leftover Tandoori Turkey Roll from the freezer tonight, along with Green Beans with Mushrooms (Q&E, p86) and Turmeric Rice (Q&E, p100). Both of these I've made many times, although this is may be the first time with I've included the tomato (seeded) in the green beans; it's actually fine without this. We split a classic magnum for dessert.
Friday/2-May-14: Worked late on our French taxes this afternoon, so had to jiggle the schedule a bit. Ended up making tomorrow's planned dinner tonight, one for IHCC. Served the potatoes with a big salad. Nothing else needed.
Saturday/3-May-14: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Coconut Pecan Crusted Chicken served with Sweet and Spicy Apricot Sauce (web). Now, I couldn't find the sweet chili sauce from Thai Kitchen, of course, so I substituted sriracha mixed with a bit of confit de piment d'Esplette that I found hiding in the back of a cupboard waiting to be used (piment d'Esplette being a Basque chili with just a tickle of hot). I thought it was pretty good; Ed thought it was so-so. But, I like apricot and he doesn't, so that could be the difference. Served with coconut rice and some steamed broccoli topped with a dab of sesame oil, sesame seed, and garlic.
Sunday/4-May-14: Yogurt on overday. Today's major deal was defrosting the fridge. Why do I dislike this job so much?
Better weather tomorrow, so I postponed a bbq dinner. Instead I sautéed a pair of duck breast scallops, served with polenta and a little pan sauce of chicken stock (which is brewing on the stove) and balsamic vinegar. Then a big salad. Then some defrosted mixed berries over ice cream. That's all folks.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes for April/no for May; #4 FotW: yes for April/no for May; #5 BREAD: 0 for April/0 for May
Monday, April 7, 2014
This week in the kitchen
Monday/7-Apr-14: Forgot that I had a doctor's appointment today (quarterly checkup on ears, nothing serious), so the list for tomorrow isn't finished. Maybe I can get it done in the morning.
Nigel Slater again tonight, intended for IHCC but didn't make it. Made A Chicken Roasted with New Garlic and a Fresh Pea Pilau (Diaries, p184), served with haricots verts. Regular garlic instead of new. Was a good chicken, but didn't much like the sauce with way too much vermouth. Here's Ed trying to convince Sophie to get out of his chair and away from the chicken.
Yogurt on overnight.
Tuesday/8-Apr-14: Hmm...it seems the yogurt problem hasn't been resolved. It wasn't cooked this morning, but was finally done after several two- and three-hour extensions. Happened to glance in the manual for the old yogurt maker and discovered the lids are supposed to be off for the cooking with that one too. I've always had them on. Wonder why they should be off? Current theory for the crummy yogurt is that something is not getting sufficiently clean. Since the jars and lids go through the dishwasher, I'm guessing that the tupperware 2-liter measure that I use might have gotten contaminated somehow and handwashing is not getting it sufficiently clean. Only a guess, but I've ordered a stainless steel bowl with a pouring lip to give that a try (thank you, Amazon France) after not finding anything while shopping today.
Shopping today. Broke down and bought some fêves from Spain.
Dinner was Fish Fillets in a 'Curry' Sauce (100Curries, p39), a not-quite-Indian dish with a curried bechamel for the fish. The fish was soaked in milk and spices, then dipped in bread crumbs (chapelure or paneermeel), then baked at a high temp. Meanwhile the sauce is made from the soaking milk. That's finished off with chopped coriander and lemon juice, which was a nice touch. For a side there was Diced Potatoes with Spinach (WofE, p53; 100Curries, p140), which was nice. No dessert needed.
Wednesday/9-Apr-14: Ate out tonight before going to a concert in Cognac.
Thursday/10-Apr-14: Picked the chicken and made (more or less) Curried Chicken Salad (MC; Rosie, p34). No cabbage on hand, so I shredded some broccoli stems. This is my "standard" curried chicken recipe, not that I follow it exactly, but it's an outline for possibilities. Ate our dinner outside for the first time this year.
Friday/11-Apr-14: The stainless steel yogurt-mixing bowl arrived today, so I gave it a good hot wash and started yogurt. We'll see how it is in the morning.
Sat outside and shelled the fêves this afternoon.
Dinner was Stir-Fried Crabmeat with Bean Curd (TLChina, p61). Relatively tasteless, but helped by liberal application of sambal. Recipe has the ingredients not in the order used, annoying. Since we have no scallions/green onions here, I used a shallot instead; the green of the tops would have been a nice addition of color. Somewhat less tofu would be fine too.
As a go-with, I made Cucumber Salad with Spicy Dressing (TLChina, p40). Spicy with one of our favorite Chinese ingredient, Tabasco. This was a hit. Would be good with any vaguely oriental dinner. Sorry picture is fuzzy, I only took one.
Saturday/12-Apr-14: May have licked the yogurt problem. I hope. At least this batch is good.
Dinner out tonight, so nothing much happened in our kitchen,
Sunday/13-Apr-14: Parboiled and peeled the favas. I do love these, but it is somewhat annoying that you've met each of those babies personally, once in the shelling, once in the peeling.
We had our main meal in the afternoon today, since we went to a movie in the early evening. We had a half recipe of Fava Beans with Shallots, Fresh Herbs, and Goat Cheese (PeV, p132). Unfortunately there was no basil in the shop this week, fresh or frozen, so I had to use the dried kind. Still, it was quite a nice dish. Then a salad. Then some mini magnums.
Monday's meal was supposed to be for IHCC, but I haven't had time to write a post, so I'll have to skip it this week.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: yes; #5 BREAD: 0
Nigel Slater again tonight, intended for IHCC but didn't make it. Made A Chicken Roasted with New Garlic and a Fresh Pea Pilau (Diaries, p184), served with haricots verts. Regular garlic instead of new. Was a good chicken, but didn't much like the sauce with way too much vermouth. Here's Ed trying to convince Sophie to get out of his chair and away from the chicken.
Yogurt on overnight.
Tuesday/8-Apr-14: Hmm...it seems the yogurt problem hasn't been resolved. It wasn't cooked this morning, but was finally done after several two- and three-hour extensions. Happened to glance in the manual for the old yogurt maker and discovered the lids are supposed to be off for the cooking with that one too. I've always had them on. Wonder why they should be off? Current theory for the crummy yogurt is that something is not getting sufficiently clean. Since the jars and lids go through the dishwasher, I'm guessing that the tupperware 2-liter measure that I use might have gotten contaminated somehow and handwashing is not getting it sufficiently clean. Only a guess, but I've ordered a stainless steel bowl with a pouring lip to give that a try (thank you, Amazon France) after not finding anything while shopping today.
Shopping today. Broke down and bought some fêves from Spain.
Dinner was Fish Fillets in a 'Curry' Sauce (100Curries, p39), a not-quite-Indian dish with a curried bechamel for the fish. The fish was soaked in milk and spices, then dipped in bread crumbs (chapelure or paneermeel), then baked at a high temp. Meanwhile the sauce is made from the soaking milk. That's finished off with chopped coriander and lemon juice, which was a nice touch. For a side there was Diced Potatoes with Spinach (WofE, p53; 100Curries, p140), which was nice. No dessert needed.
Wednesday/9-Apr-14: Ate out tonight before going to a concert in Cognac.
Thursday/10-Apr-14: Picked the chicken and made (more or less) Curried Chicken Salad (MC; Rosie, p34). No cabbage on hand, so I shredded some broccoli stems. This is my "standard" curried chicken recipe, not that I follow it exactly, but it's an outline for possibilities. Ate our dinner outside for the first time this year.
Friday/11-Apr-14: The stainless steel yogurt-mixing bowl arrived today, so I gave it a good hot wash and started yogurt. We'll see how it is in the morning.
Sat outside and shelled the fêves this afternoon.
Dinner was Stir-Fried Crabmeat with Bean Curd (TLChina, p61). Relatively tasteless, but helped by liberal application of sambal. Recipe has the ingredients not in the order used, annoying. Since we have no scallions/green onions here, I used a shallot instead; the green of the tops would have been a nice addition of color. Somewhat less tofu would be fine too.
As a go-with, I made Cucumber Salad with Spicy Dressing (TLChina, p40). Spicy with one of our favorite Chinese ingredient, Tabasco. This was a hit. Would be good with any vaguely oriental dinner. Sorry picture is fuzzy, I only took one.
Saturday/12-Apr-14: May have licked the yogurt problem. I hope. At least this batch is good.
Dinner out tonight, so nothing much happened in our kitchen,
Sunday/13-Apr-14: Parboiled and peeled the favas. I do love these, but it is somewhat annoying that you've met each of those babies personally, once in the shelling, once in the peeling.
We had our main meal in the afternoon today, since we went to a movie in the early evening. We had a half recipe of Fava Beans with Shallots, Fresh Herbs, and Goat Cheese (PeV, p132). Unfortunately there was no basil in the shop this week, fresh or frozen, so I had to use the dried kind. Still, it was quite a nice dish. Then a salad. Then some mini magnums.
Monday's meal was supposed to be for IHCC, but I haven't had time to write a post, so I'll have to skip it this week.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: yes; #5 BREAD: 0
Monday, June 3, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/3-Jun-13: Parboiled and peeled the fêves that I removed from the pods on Saturday (I guess it was). They turned into Peeled Fava Beans with Red Onion, White Wine, and Mint (PeV, p130). I made all the sauce for half the pasta; otherwise it would have been really skimpy. Tasty. Then a big salad. Then we finished the St Marcellin.
Can't get all excited about Ottolenghi this week. The week theme is a sweet; the monthly "community challenge" is hummus. Neither of which really ring my bell. If I don't get something for Ottolenghi done, tonight's dinner will be my cookbook, since this is only the second thing I've made from this book.
I assembled our new Weber grill today, so tomorrow we'll probably bbq. Something easy, but it's time to inaugurate it.
Tuesday/4-Jun-13: Off to the dentist early today; turned into a lazy day. Meant to bbq this evening, but Ed was tuckered out from installing the wallboard behind the stove, so I did everything inside. Grilled some duck sausages, which were good but way too salty. Eating them with some hominy lessened the impact. I think this brand (Le Gaulois) is the source of other very salty sausage we've had. (The packaging was a candidate for Consumer Reports back page: the package was the size of most all sausage packages leading you to believe they're the same length. The printed part of the label covered one end of the package, which give you a clue. Pull back the wrapping, and what you find is a little "step" hidden under the printed part, leaving sausages about 2" shorter than expected.) As a go-with, I made Grilled Zucchini with Tomatoes and Balsamic Vinegar (PeV, p308), which is intended as a pasta sauce, but I served as a side without the pasta. Actually it would probably be okay served as a pasta salad kind of thing. For dessert we had toetjes from the boulangerie where I got bread this morning. Kind of a cream puff thing, covered with yummy dark chocolate and topped with a walnut half; the cream filling was walnuty also. Good, but we could have shared one, rather than having a whole one each.
Wednesday/5-Jun-13: Shopping today. Unfortunately when I got home I discovered that the duck breasts I bought for a meal later this week were the same brand as yesterday's sausages. Didn't even think to look. Same deceptive packaging too!
Dinner was the leftover coquelet, which reheated very well, along with an improvised salad of broccoli, zucchini, and feta, and some trio rice. Some double chocolate mini Magnums for after.
Thursday/6-Jun-13: Made some Rhubarb-Ginger Compote (Essential, p607) today. Served with some broiled salmon. Also made (more or less) some Old-Style Mustard and Rosemary Roasted Asparagus (web), which was quite easy and quite good. And some 5-grain tagliatelle that I picked up somewhere. Tasty dinner. The compote was surprisingly good and will appear again soon.
Friday/7-Jun-13: Yogurt on overday. David brought over a huge basketful of strawberries today, so I spent most of the day in the kitchen making two different strawberry jams.
We went to a murder mystery evening that included a buffet dinner, so nothing happened in the kitchen after the jams.
Saturday/8-Jun-13: Dinner was Chickpea and Potato Curry, Caribbean Style (WorldVeg, p33; cookbooker). Really good stuff. Made a whole recipe, thinking I'd have leftovers, but we ate it all, and the servings weren't that big.
Sunday/9-Jun-13: Make a cake for IHCC today and got it posted just in time for this week's theme.
Dinner was Grilled Eggplant with Chick Pea Purée and Harissa (RealFast, p132). Have made this several times now and enjoy it for a fast and tasty dinner. Then a salad. Then some of the cake for Ed. (I had my piece before making dinner.)
Yogurt on overnight.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no
Can't get all excited about Ottolenghi this week. The week theme is a sweet; the monthly "community challenge" is hummus. Neither of which really ring my bell. If I don't get something for Ottolenghi done, tonight's dinner will be my cookbook, since this is only the second thing I've made from this book.
I assembled our new Weber grill today, so tomorrow we'll probably bbq. Something easy, but it's time to inaugurate it.
Tuesday/4-Jun-13: Off to the dentist early today; turned into a lazy day. Meant to bbq this evening, but Ed was tuckered out from installing the wallboard behind the stove, so I did everything inside. Grilled some duck sausages, which were good but way too salty. Eating them with some hominy lessened the impact. I think this brand (Le Gaulois) is the source of other very salty sausage we've had. (The packaging was a candidate for Consumer Reports back page: the package was the size of most all sausage packages leading you to believe they're the same length. The printed part of the label covered one end of the package, which give you a clue. Pull back the wrapping, and what you find is a little "step" hidden under the printed part, leaving sausages about 2" shorter than expected.) As a go-with, I made Grilled Zucchini with Tomatoes and Balsamic Vinegar (PeV, p308), which is intended as a pasta sauce, but I served as a side without the pasta. Actually it would probably be okay served as a pasta salad kind of thing. For dessert we had toetjes from the boulangerie where I got bread this morning. Kind of a cream puff thing, covered with yummy dark chocolate and topped with a walnut half; the cream filling was walnuty also. Good, but we could have shared one, rather than having a whole one each.
Wednesday/5-Jun-13: Shopping today. Unfortunately when I got home I discovered that the duck breasts I bought for a meal later this week were the same brand as yesterday's sausages. Didn't even think to look. Same deceptive packaging too!
Dinner was the leftover coquelet, which reheated very well, along with an improvised salad of broccoli, zucchini, and feta, and some trio rice. Some double chocolate mini Magnums for after.
Thursday/6-Jun-13: Made some Rhubarb-Ginger Compote (Essential, p607) today. Served with some broiled salmon. Also made (more or less) some Old-Style Mustard and Rosemary Roasted Asparagus (web), which was quite easy and quite good. And some 5-grain tagliatelle that I picked up somewhere. Tasty dinner. The compote was surprisingly good and will appear again soon.
Friday/7-Jun-13: Yogurt on overday. David brought over a huge basketful of strawberries today, so I spent most of the day in the kitchen making two different strawberry jams.
We went to a murder mystery evening that included a buffet dinner, so nothing happened in the kitchen after the jams.
Saturday/8-Jun-13: Dinner was Chickpea and Potato Curry, Caribbean Style (WorldVeg, p33; cookbooker). Really good stuff. Made a whole recipe, thinking I'd have leftovers, but we ate it all, and the servings weren't that big.
Sunday/9-Jun-13: Make a cake for IHCC today and got it posted just in time for this week's theme.
Dinner was Grilled Eggplant with Chick Pea Purée and Harissa (RealFast, p132). Have made this several times now and enjoy it for a fast and tasty dinner. Then a salad. Then some of the cake for Ed. (I had my piece before making dinner.)
Yogurt on overnight.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no
Monday, April 8, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/8-Apr-13: Yesterday at the bric-à-brac, someone was selling their old tupperware, including a colander complete with the lid (I use mine frequently to keep our cat friends out of defrosting shrimp and such) and the lettuce keeper (mine no longer has the inner spike). It was tempting to buy the colander since it was in better shape than mine, and a pretty yellow color instead of green.
Used up the frozen shredded zucchini to make Chocolate Zucchini Cake from a 1995 email printout. The recipe missed two important ingredients, so I searched the web and found more or less the same recipe to get those. Mixed it all in the cuisinart, which is a nice way to do this kind of thing. Pretty good it was.
Dinner was a half recipe of Seared Scallops with Bacon, Cabbage, and Apple (CL/jan-feb13, web). Seemed like a strange combination at first, but not when you think about it. Pork, apples, cabbage, all classic go-togethers. Adding the scallops on top? Why not? They have a sweetish taste that goes well. Very good. Served with roast potatoes as suggested. And cake for dessert, of course.
Last night's ABM bread having been eaten up in the course of the day and no one having gone out to find a boulanger, tonight we have Whole-Wheat Soda Bread (Magic, p66) in the machine overnight. Just made this two months ago, I see now, but no note in the book. Good thing I liked it!
Tuesday/9-Apr-13: Well, this day didn't turn out the way it was expected, what with a trip to the doctor for Ed to get three stitches in his thumb.
Dinner was Chili-Rubbed Chicken Thighs (MC). This is a nice old recipe that should be done on the bbq grill, but I don't think I've ever done it that way. You make a nice spicy rub. A bit of this, plus some sliced onions and a dab of butter, goes inside a potato per person, each wrapped in foil and baked. The rest of the rub gets rubbed into some skinless chicken thighs. Tonight they were not quite thawed, but they cooked fine about ten minutes per side under the broiler. As a go-with there was Chargrilled Broccoli with Chili and Garlic (Otto, p41), for this week's IHCC theme, wherein we pretend broccoli is a leaf vegetable. Then more Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Wednesday/10-Apr-13: Shopping today.
Dinner was Swordfish with Smoked Paprika (web), a definite keeper. Luckily Ed is not being bothered by all the tomatoes I've been seeding lately. Served this over rice, although I think spaghetti might have been nice. Then a salad. Then more Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Yogurt on overnight.
Thursday/11-Apr-13: Oops, there was no winter squash at the shop (as there was the previous week), but I did impulse buy some asparagus. (Can't figure out why start-of-season asparagus here are cheaper than height-of-season asparagus in the Netherlands.) Dinner was Asparagus and Ricotta Tart (web). Quite good it was. Used my regular pâte brisée recipe, and added some almond powder (rather than hazelnut as suggested), which gave it a nice nutty taste. Then a big salad. (Big, because the smallest packages here are 100g or 125g, whereas in NL, I used to ask at the greengrocers for 75g of mixed lettuces for the two of us.) Then we finally finished off the Chocolate Zucchini Cake. I'm full.
Friday/12-Apr-13: Dinner was Meyer Lemon Chicken (web), a recipe with weird proportions, asking two chicken breast halves halved and two thighs to serve 6 people. Pretty skimpy servings those. I used two whole legs. Was edible but not a favorite. Served with with haricots verts tossed with olive oil, garlic slices, and sea salt, then roasted. Those were good. Started in on one of our extra pairs of chocolate easter bunnies for after.
Saturday/13-Apr-13: At last, the weather is threatening to turn warm. Looks like tomorrow will be summer!
Dinner was a half recipe of Braised Leeks with Yellow Bell Peppers and Fresh Tomatoes (PeV, p191). First thing I've made from this book. Looks like it will be worth a thorough-lookthrough. Served over home-made linguine. Crèmes brulées from the freezer for dessert.
Sunday/14-Apr-13: Two days ago it was winter; today was summer. Where did spring go? Went bric-a-brac-ing today. Ed got a crowbar and I found two nice shot glasses (to top up our mismatched assortment) for a euro and a pretty little pitcher (I'm a sucker for pretty little pitchers) for 50 centimes.
We intended to bbq this evening, but that didn't happen. So I grilled a half recipe Glorious Kebab-Burgers (MJFamily, p105). Accompanied by Peas with Mushrooms and Onions (MJFamily, p105) and some potato salad loosely based on Joy of Cooking's recipe with a lemon vinaigrette and cuke, radishes, black olives, red onion, hard-boiled egg, etc. For dessert, we had toasted waffles topped with the last of the pineapple sherbert and blueberries from the freezer. All tasty and we're full.
Yogurt on overnight. We have just enough bread for breakfast, so will have to address that in the morning.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Used up the frozen shredded zucchini to make Chocolate Zucchini Cake from a 1995 email printout. The recipe missed two important ingredients, so I searched the web and found more or less the same recipe to get those. Mixed it all in the cuisinart, which is a nice way to do this kind of thing. Pretty good it was.
Dinner was a half recipe of Seared Scallops with Bacon, Cabbage, and Apple (CL/jan-feb13, web). Seemed like a strange combination at first, but not when you think about it. Pork, apples, cabbage, all classic go-togethers. Adding the scallops on top? Why not? They have a sweetish taste that goes well. Very good. Served with roast potatoes as suggested. And cake for dessert, of course.
Last night's ABM bread having been eaten up in the course of the day and no one having gone out to find a boulanger, tonight we have Whole-Wheat Soda Bread (Magic, p66) in the machine overnight. Just made this two months ago, I see now, but no note in the book. Good thing I liked it!
Tuesday/9-Apr-13: Well, this day didn't turn out the way it was expected, what with a trip to the doctor for Ed to get three stitches in his thumb.
Dinner was Chili-Rubbed Chicken Thighs (MC). This is a nice old recipe that should be done on the bbq grill, but I don't think I've ever done it that way. You make a nice spicy rub. A bit of this, plus some sliced onions and a dab of butter, goes inside a potato per person, each wrapped in foil and baked. The rest of the rub gets rubbed into some skinless chicken thighs. Tonight they were not quite thawed, but they cooked fine about ten minutes per side under the broiler. As a go-with there was Chargrilled Broccoli with Chili and Garlic (Otto, p41), for this week's IHCC theme, wherein we pretend broccoli is a leaf vegetable. Then more Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Wednesday/10-Apr-13: Shopping today.
Dinner was Swordfish with Smoked Paprika (web), a definite keeper. Luckily Ed is not being bothered by all the tomatoes I've been seeding lately. Served this over rice, although I think spaghetti might have been nice. Then a salad. Then more Chocolate Zucchini Cake.
Yogurt on overnight.
Thursday/11-Apr-13: Oops, there was no winter squash at the shop (as there was the previous week), but I did impulse buy some asparagus. (Can't figure out why start-of-season asparagus here are cheaper than height-of-season asparagus in the Netherlands.) Dinner was Asparagus and Ricotta Tart (web). Quite good it was. Used my regular pâte brisée recipe, and added some almond powder (rather than hazelnut as suggested), which gave it a nice nutty taste. Then a big salad. (Big, because the smallest packages here are 100g or 125g, whereas in NL, I used to ask at the greengrocers for 75g of mixed lettuces for the two of us.) Then we finally finished off the Chocolate Zucchini Cake. I'm full.
Friday/12-Apr-13: Dinner was Meyer Lemon Chicken (web), a recipe with weird proportions, asking two chicken breast halves halved and two thighs to serve 6 people. Pretty skimpy servings those. I used two whole legs. Was edible but not a favorite. Served with with haricots verts tossed with olive oil, garlic slices, and sea salt, then roasted. Those were good. Started in on one of our extra pairs of chocolate easter bunnies for after.
Saturday/13-Apr-13: At last, the weather is threatening to turn warm. Looks like tomorrow will be summer!
Dinner was a half recipe of Braised Leeks with Yellow Bell Peppers and Fresh Tomatoes (PeV, p191). First thing I've made from this book. Looks like it will be worth a thorough-lookthrough. Served over home-made linguine. Crèmes brulées from the freezer for dessert.
Sunday/14-Apr-13: Two days ago it was winter; today was summer. Where did spring go? Went bric-a-brac-ing today. Ed got a crowbar and I found two nice shot glasses (to top up our mismatched assortment) for a euro and a pretty little pitcher (I'm a sucker for pretty little pitchers) for 50 centimes.
We intended to bbq this evening, but that didn't happen. So I grilled a half recipe Glorious Kebab-Burgers (MJFamily, p105). Accompanied by Peas with Mushrooms and Onions (MJFamily, p105) and some potato salad loosely based on Joy of Cooking's recipe with a lemon vinaigrette and cuke, radishes, black olives, red onion, hard-boiled egg, etc. For dessert, we had toasted waffles topped with the last of the pineapple sherbert and blueberries from the freezer. All tasty and we're full.
Yogurt on overnight. We have just enough bread for breakfast, so will have to address that in the morning.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
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