This week in the kitchen

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

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

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

Thursday/25-Aug-22: Shopping today. 

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

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

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

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

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/11-Jul-22: Tonight we had Tagliatelle with Artichokes and Olive Oil (web). Unfortunately I didn't manage to print all the steps, and by the time this handicapped computer managed to get to the recipe online, it was too late. I didn't go to all the trouble to make the toasted bread crumbs, but used chapelure doré (toasted bread crumbs) instead. And I really don't see the point of cutting the leaves off the mini artichokes; leaving them whole or maybe halving them would have been fine. Still, it was pretty tasty stuff. Served with a plain salad. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after.

I finished reading Ingredienti last week, and really enjoyed it. It's Hazan's last book, where she talks about, yes, ingredients, how to choose and how to use them. No real recipes, but some

Tuesday/12-Jul-22: Dinner was Mojito Shrimp, a recipe I collected from EAT-L in 2007. This was okay, but nothing fantastic. Served with polenta and a salad loosely based on Grilled Corn Salad (web). A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after. 

Wednesday/13-Jul-22: A yummy dinner of Spicy Beef Salad (RezaSpice, p27). This kind of meal is really good on a hot summer day.  The pieces of rump steak that I got were thick and thin, making the cooking a bit difficult, but I managed to still have some red in thinner one. The success of this makes a bit of a dilemma. I've been thinking I'd recycle my two Reza books when I get to that again. Now I see I've been pretty happy with what I've made from this one, although the instructions often leave a bit to desire, so I may have to reconsider. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after. 

Thursday/14-Jul-22: Dinner was a half recipe of Onion and Chorizo Clafoutis (Master, p340). This was an interesting idea, but didn't quite work. Unlike every other clafoutis I've made, there was no flour or such in the batter to help the custard set up; I added a rounded quarter cup of flour, which was probably a bit too much. I baked in the toaster over, and it seems the temperature was a bit high. And the sweet, soft onions on the bottom seemed to clash with the rest of the dish. Edible, but nothing special. Then a simple salad. A bit of Morbier and a chocolate-covered madeleine each for after. 

Friday/15-Jul-22: Shopping at Leclerc and both Drives today. 

Dinner was Pan-Fried Trout with Rosemary, Lemon, and Capers (web), made with lieu noir instead of trout. This was pretty good. As suggested by one of the comments, I added bruised rosemary with the shallots and removed at the end. Served with trio rice and and old favorite, Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114). Some store-bought vanilla riz au laits for after.

Saturday/16-Jul-22: A nice dinner tonight. We started with an old favorite Zucchini Carpaccio with Avocado, Lemon Thyme, and Pistachio Oil (VegHarv,  p214). (I have some zuke left, maybe for a lunch treat tomorrow.) Pretty much used up my pistachio oil on this. For our main, there was Gingery Hot Duck Salad (web; GD; notes). Cooked the duck following instructions in VegHarv, p111, which is the best way to do it. Following the lead of the pistachio oil, we had a pistachio madeleine each for after. (These aren't as good as the chocolate-covered ones, but now we know.)

Sunday/17-Jul-22: Tonight I scratched my itch for some stir-fried rice by making stir-fried rice. No real recipe; I just read a few and smerged them. Itch scratched. A chocolate-covered madeleine each for after. 

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/5-Apr-21: Made a 1-1/2# loaf of Basic Whole Wheat Bread (Magic, p33) (WW/Rapid/M/-/-).

Used up lots of odds and ends to make a halfish recipe of Cabbage Wedges with Meat Sauce (TooMany, p54). This is kind of an old-timey dish, something my grandmother might have served, but was pretty good. Cabbage, not overcooked, topped with a tomato sauce with ground pork. There was supposed to be some green bell pepper involved, but I didn't have one, so I used up the rest of last week's asparagus. Wasn't bad at all, but some red pepper flakes in the sauce might have been good. Strawberries and cream for after. 

Tuesday/6-Apr-21: Ed picked up groceries from two Drives today.

Dinner was Moroccan Fish Tajine (web), served over whole wheat couscous. This was okay, nothing that needs to be done again. Some store-bought vanilla yogurts for after.

Wednesday/7-Apr-21: Yogurt on overday.

Dinner was a half recipe of Pasta with Asparagus-Lemon Sauce* (web). This was pretty good. As suggested by a comment, I added lots of lemon zest and a bit of juice to the sauce and roasted the asparagus tips. This was delicious but a bit skimpy as a dinner; I was too lazy to make a salad. Strawberries and cream for after. Then a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines as a snack while ironing/watching a video.

Thursday/8-Apr-21: Dinner was Lemon Chicken (web), a recipe from an old Bon Appetit that I got from EAT-L. This was easy and very tasty, although there was too much sauce. Served with sautéed zoodles; these sat in a drainer for three hours or more before cooking and hardly needed squeezing. Then a salad. Then more store-bought vanilla yogurts with the rest of the strawberries. 

Friday/9-Apr-21: There was a mouse caught in the Ivar shelving this morning. Ed let him (juvenile male, I think) when he took Buddy for a walk.

We got our first vaccinations today—yay!

Made some Authentic French Bread (Magic, p22) (Basic/Rapid/M/d/-). I used half bread flour and half T110 ("light" whole wheat flour). The dough seemed a bit dry so I added another bit (1tbl maybe) of water. A bit more even might have been nice. Pretty good though.

Dinner was Garlicky Tortellini, Spinach & Tomato Soup (web). Easy to make and delicious. Some HD ice cream cups for after. 

Saturday/10-Apr-21: Oops, didn't think to start our crockpot dinner till too late, so we had tomorrow's dinner instead. That was a half recipe of Curried Fried Rice (MW@Home, p226), using cooked basmati rice that's been leftover in the last week or so. This is always good and feels like a healthy dinner. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Sunday/11-Apr-21: Yogurt on overday. 

Late in the morning, but earlier than yesterday, I started Simple Beef Curry* (Hériteau, p36) in the crockpot. It was done too late for dinner, so I've jarred it up and put it in the fridge. We liked this a lot last time, but it seems relatively tasteless to me, even though I doubled the amount of curry powder. Off the DoMeAgain list, with this one. We'll have it one day next week.

Before I started dinner, having a surplus of pears, I made a Pear Bundt Cake (MC). This is an old favorite recipe. It's still good.

Dinner was another DMA recipe, Orecchiette Pasta with Chicken Sausage and Broccoli* (web; GD). This is easy and fast and very tasty. A pinch of red pepper flakes with the garlic wouldn't hurt at all, but it's fine without. Pear Bundt Cake for after, of course. I forgot to take a picture of dinner, so there's no photo this week.

Started a batch of Overnight Boule.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 4; #2 PHOTO: no; #3 *DMA: yes
This month: #4 GUESTS: n/a
This year: #5 BACKLOG1: yes; #6 BACKLOG2: no; #7 RECYCLE: 11; #8 NEW: 3

This week in the kitchen

Monday/7-Dec-20: Baked off my Overnight Bread this morning. I left the kitchen and missed the dinger for taking the lid off; wandered back some time later. Took the lid off to find it nicely browned and nicely done. I thought that taking off the lid was for browning and crisping the crust, but now I'm not sure.

Picked up and order from Leclerc Drive today.

Dinner was a two-thirds-ish recipe of Ragoût d'Ignames—Lamb-and-Yam Stew (TLAfrica, p37). This took some time, but it was easy to do. Tasty, and not at all spicy. Served over some whole-wheat couscous, although I don't suppose that was really necessary. Finished the Crème au Chocolate for after.

Yogurt on overnight.

Tuesday/8-Dec-20: Dinner was, more or less, a halfish recipe of Croquettes de Thon aux Olives (VPG). Can't find this on the web. It's not really croquettes, as I know them, but tuna patties, with ricotta, parmesan, black olives, an egg, and flour. These are breaded, in the usual way, flour, beaten egg, and crunchy bit. Instead of chapelure, I used some crunchy stuff I made up recently (but can't remember what for) and didn't use up. These were pretty good. The veg was carrot, cauliflower, and broccoli with lemon juice and home-made herb salt. Some French "short spaghetti" as a go-with. And a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Wednesday/9-Dec-20: Dinner was Red Pork Curry—Gaeng Ped Muu (ThaiCC, p45). These was easy and good. Having no bamboo shoots on hand, I used zucchini, as suggested. Served with basmati rice and our favorite Thai Cucumber Salad with Peanuts (HandyBook; web). And a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines for after.

Thursday/10-Dec-20: Forgot to start Overnight Bread last night, so I made some English Muffin Bread (BMB,  p17). Must have measure the 7/8cup water a bit long; the top is pretty caved in. But tasty.

Caught a mouse in the kitchen today.

This afternoon I added labels for all the breads I've baked this year, at least all the ones I've recorded. Since I know I'm making two or three loaves a week, it's clear I've not written all of them down. This is mostly to satisfy my curiosity about what I've been making.

Dinner was a halfish recipe of Sumac Chicken with Cauliflower and Carrots (CL/jan-feb17; web). This was a sheet-pan dinner, easy to do and very tasty. For after we shared a bit of cake we bought at a charity shop this afternoon.

Friday/11-Dec-20: Picked up an order from Intermarché Drive today.

We got our "gourmet panier" today from the commune, in lieu of this year's old folks meal. There were several jars of rillettes from a local shop. We opened one of those and snacked as I was cooking.

Dinner was a half recipe of Grilled Salmon with Avocado Salsa (web). Since the pieces we got were of different thicknesses, I baked them in the oven. Easy to make and very tasty. Served with trio rice and Zucchini with Cilantro Sauce (MWLowFat, p335; MC); that's an old favorite that well with the rest of the meal.

Made up the batter for Overnight Bread

Saturday/12-Dec-20: Baked the Overnight Bread.

Roasted a turkey leg today, on the way to making some cornbread stuffing for a meal. 

Dinner was Curried Fried Rice (MW@Home, p226), this time with curry powder rather than a Thai curry paste. An easy and comforting dish. Some HD mini ice cream cups for after.

Sunday/13-Dec-20: Picked the turkey leg this afternoon. The drumstick was pretty done, but the thigh was still pretty red. And I thought it was overdone yesterday. Tomorrow I'll measure and freeze it up in packets for later use.

Dinner was Curried Green Pea Soup (TooMany, p155), complete with turkey bits. This is an old favorite. We had some  rillettes on bread and crackers beforehand, so didn't need dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 3; #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/17-Sep-18: Still away. Nothing happened in the kitchen.

Tuesday/18-Sep-18: Home from Île de Ré today. Oscar not well.

Made the shopping list for tomorrow.

More evidence of a mouse in the pantry shelves, but three emtpy traps.

We had barbecued chipolatas for dinner, accompanied by assorted veggies: smash sweet pots, steamed broccoli, and Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), which is an old favorite.

Wednesday/19-Sep-18: Shopping today.

Our starter was Figues Fraîches Facies au Chèvre et au Jambon Serrano (VPG); unfortunately VPG doesn't put its recipes online and I haven't been able to find a similar one. This very easy and very nice. The recipes has three figs per person, but I think one or two would be fine. To make: quarter each fig, not quite all the way. Add a bit of serrano ham (one slice divided into three parts), tucked into the splits to make a sort of basket. Fill that with a tablespoonful of soft goat cheese. Then add a little drizzle of honey and a sprinkle of piment d'Espelette, and put under the grill for five minutes or so. There should have been a sprinkle of basil leaves, but I forgot. Nevertheless, it was good.

Our main was Quick-Braised Cod with Herbed Yogurt (web), made with lieu noir, which is cheaper than cod, and, Ed thinks, tastier. With a side of tagliatlle. This was nice and easy, and fairly quick. Then a salad. I bought some chocolate puddings for dessert, but we were too full.

Thursday/20-Sep-18: Our meal today was a half-recipe of Cold Noodles with Sesame Sauce, Chicken and Cucumbers (web). Easy and pretty good. Then some store-bought dark chocolate pudding.

Friday/21-Sep-18: Dinner was a half recipe of Whole Wheat Penne with Masses of Broccoli, Green Olives, and Pine Nuts (VegSups, p56). Good. Chocolate-dipped madeleines for dessert.

Saturday/22-Sep-18: Busy day in the kitchen. Started off making a half dose of Big Beans with Fresh Herbs and Fruit Olive Oil (O&C, p208), the suggested go-with for tonight's planned stew.

Then used most of the sauté de porc that I bought on sale to make Homemade Sausage (30MinPasta, p161) for the freezer. Froze up two small ziplocs of porc for stew or whatnot.

Took a break, then started a half dose of Pork Stew with Olives, Anchovies, Cilantro, and White Beans (O&C, 398). Didn't absorb the fact that this wants to cook for 2 hours before it's ready. Quick change of plans for tonight. Instead we had Zucchini Skillet Cakes with Capers and Pine Nuts (VegSups, p82). Topped with some cherry tomatoes and yogurt-garlic sauce. Not the best-ever zucchini pancakes, but not bad. Some mini ice creams for dessert.

Sunday/23-Sep-18: Finished off yesterday's stew for dinner. Delicious stew (cookbooker) and yummy beans (cookbooker).

Yogurt on overnight.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/24-Jul-17: Early meal today. I made a recipe that Jacky posted on Facebook recently, Orecchiette with Peas, Shrimp, and Buttermilk-Herb Dressing (web). Well, I sort of made it. I didn't have enough orecchiette, so I used malfada. Rather than all shrimp, I used the end of two packages of shrimp and scallops. No buttermilk, so I used yogurt. And a bit more lemon juice to cut the taste of the mayo. It was good. I made a whole recipe and we ate it all. Yum.

Made a salad, but we didn't eat that. Back in the fridge for tomorrow.

I defrosted a packet of pâte feuilleté squares yesterday and turned them into a little dessert today. An apple chopped in smallish bits, some walnuts, and some mixed dried red berries, mixed with cream cheese, a dab of honey, some cinnamon, some quatre épices, and a slog of kirsch. Made little packets of them and baked for 25min or so. Pretty good for minimal effort.

Tuesday/25-Jul-17: Froze up 16cups of chicken stock today.

Early meal of Cilantro Lime Chicken (web). Easy and very yummy. Served with some plain couscous, livened up with some Moroccan spice mix. (Probably wrong continent since the chicken came from a Malaysian site.) Then yesterday's salad. Then the last two apple packets.

Wednesday/26-Jul-17: Both of us slept late today, so we didn't get to shopping till really late in the day. A full store, but all the check-out counters were going so that part went fast. Tuna was on sale, but they were out, so I bought so tuna and replanned when we got home.

I'd defrosted some tomato sauce for the planned tuna dish, so instead we had Salmon in a Tomato-Cream Sauce (MJ@Home, p56), which we liked a lot last time I made it. No cilantro for the sauce today, but it was still good. Served with plain rice and plain peas, but it all went together well.

Thursday/27-Jul-17: Lovely bbq with Cath&Doug and their daughter Alison and her daughter Sophie this evening. I took Isla Bonita Pork Tenderloin (MC), with three huge varkenshazen. And Pineapple-Apple Coleslaw (TooMany, p59; MC), an old favorite that I haven't made in quite a while. Every was good.

Friday/28-Jul-17: Leftover cheese enchiladas for our main meal, with some pretty spicy guacamole, and a bit of coleslaw. Some chocolate cake from last night for dessert.

Did no cooking for tomorrow, which is a shame.

Saturday/29-Jul-17: Yogurt on overday.

Made two salads for a wedding dinner this evening, both old. There was Greek-Style Lentil Salad (WorldVeg, p630) and Zucchini and Feta Cheese Salad (WorldVeg, p640). Unforuntately, not as many people attended the dinner as were expected so we have gaboons of leftovers.

Sunday/30-Jul-17: Zucchini salad for breakfast. Lentil salad for our main meal, along with the leftover pork from Thursday. Nothing further happened in the kitchen.

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

This week in the ktichen

Monday/21-Nov-16: Lunch out today. Fruit for dinner.

Started some chicken stock. Made cornbread. Put chicken on to dry-brine for tomorrow.

Tuesday/22-Nov-16: Stopping today. Still a mess at Leclerc. Where is stuff? Ed and I both picked up packaged veggies, not seeing the loose kind. Then he spied what he was after on another aisle, and there was mine too. Loose (vrac) and packaged versions of the same veggie not together. Still haven't found the little section that used to be at the end of the flours that had yeast and baking powder and other such baking needs, all hung in small packets. And nine things on my list were not present. Maybe the first time I've ever noticed that there were no limes at all to be had. They haven't had the feta I like for at least two weeks, maybe three. Very annoying experience. Definitely considering moving primary shopping elsewhere

Froze up the stock.

Dinner was, sort of, Cajun Dry-Brined Roast Chicken Inspired by Zuni Café (web). I used the rub, but spatchcocked the chicken and cooked in a cast iron skillet, pressed in the oven. Quite yummy it was, and the three of us ate it all.

The method is basically this: Apply rub/seasoning to spatchcocked chicken and let it rest in the fridge overnight. Oven to 400F. Add a bit of oil to hot skillet and brown the chicken for 5 minutes, skin-side down. Turn the chicken over and top with another heavy skillet. Into the oven for 40-45minutes. Perfect.

Served with polenta and Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), which wasn't as good as usual. I suspect something to do with the mayonnaise I used, Maille, which was the first non-canola/rapeseed oil mayo I found. (I've got another from a health food store.)

Bill had an ice cream bar for dessert. Ed and I had nothing.

Wednesday/23-Nov-16: Lots of Thanksgiving cooking today.

Used up the rest of the lamb for dinner to make Lamb in Spiced Gravy (30MinCook, p179). Yummy, served over rice. Vanilla ice cream with crème de cacao for dessert.

Thursday/24-Nov-16: Bill requested a proper roast turkey for Thanksgiving, so that's what we had. I asked the butcher for 4kg; came home with 5.2kg. When I went to pick it up this morning, the butcher asked if I wanted him to truss it. I said Well, ok. He took a ginormous needle threaded with string and ran it through the turkey side to side, through one wing, the body, and out on the other side, then back and tied off.

Then he tucked the “ankles” together, went through one drumstick and out the other, then back.

Not any kind of bird trussing I’ve ever seen, but very sturdy.

Planned on cooking the turkey in the right oven, but it wouldn't get up to temperature. We were about an hour late for dinner, after I finally realized it wasn't heating and then got the left one heated up. Now I'm thinking that's why the cheesecake took so long to cook last night, that the oven was never quite hot enough. Started the puff and the dressing in the right oven, but moved them to the left one when I took the turkey out. All came out okay in the end, just late.

Friday/25-Nov-16: Thanksgiving leftovers for dinner. We've finished half the turkey now. The cranberry sauce was pretty well wiped out, so I made another dose of Cranberry-Port Relish (MC).

Put a pork loin on to brine for tomorrow's dinner.

Saturday/26-Nov-16: We hit a couple of marchés de noël today, and came away with some xmas gifts—in support of a worthwhile charity, even better.

For dinner there was Chile-Brined Roasted Pork Loin (web), which turned out quite good. Served with some steam/sautéed potatoes and canned corn (there being no corn on the cob at the grocery this afternoon). Finished off the pumpkin swirl cheesecake for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/27-Nov-16: Lunch with Bill before the train. Nothing further happened in the kitchen.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/10-Oct-16: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Moroccan Missile (Wraps, p87; cookbooker). Used lavash, rather than flour tortillas for the first round. Don't think the coucous was really needed. After two round, we were full.

Tuesday/11-Oct-16: Chicken for dinner, plus garlic mashed potatoes and a big salad. That was all.

Wednesday/12-Oct-16: Shopping today. Fish and orzo for dinner, along with steamed broccoli. That was all.

Thursday/13-Oct-16: Chicken for dinner again. Served with Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), which is a very old favorite, and the last bit of some multi-colored pasta shells, tossed with shallot, garlic, the rest of the mushrooms I bought for yesterday's orzo, and chopped parsley. For a salad, we had Cold Beetroot with Cream (Pomiane, p180), another old favorite. That's all there was.

Yogurt on overninght.

Friday/15-Oct-16: Dinner was Baked Beef Curry (MJ@Home, p139), which was pretty easy to put together, and tasty to eat. Served with rice, and then some Pan-Grilled Zucchini (MJ@Home, p173) again. This time I sprayed my zucchini slices with olive oil before cooking them under the broiler. This worked super well. That was all.

Saturday/15-Oct-16: Lunch out today for our anniversary. Nothing further happened in the kitchen, but I did get a lot of ironing done.

Sunday/16-Oct-16: Salmon pasta for dinner, followed by a big salad. It was good and I was full. Ed had a mini magnum after, I had nothing extra.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/2-May-16: Sophie ended up spending the night at the vet, since there were no other emergencies in the afternoon. The hole that we saw when we took her in was only the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. The actual wound is about three times as long. She is home, cone-headed, and complaining because she has to stay in. Painkiller and antibiotic every day for a bit.

Used up the last bit of some small cooked shrimp from the freezer to make up a partial recipe of Potted Shrimp (TLBrit, p45) this afternoon to try in the next days.

For dinner, I marinated some lamb steaks in my usual marindade (olive oil, soy sauce, red wine vinegar, with lots of black pepper and garlic powder or smashed cloves), then grilled them. Served with Christophe au Gratin (TLCarib, p85), using a zucchini instead since there were no chayotes at the shop last week. This was a pretty bland version of stuffed squash, but not a bad side dish. And some trio rice.

Tuesday/3-May-16: We went to a concert in Angoulême this evening, so had our meal a bit earlier than usual. I made a half dose of Shrimp and Corn Chowder (CL/sep14; web) followed by a salad. Then the end of Mama's vanilla pudding with some fresh strawberries. The soup was quite good and easy to make. Used dried thyme, rather than fresh. Used one small can of corn (no frozen and canned is better imho). Served the soup with Irish Soda Bread (TLBrit, p18); posted about this here. (Well, yes, somewhere I did say that I wouldn't join another cookalong again for a while, but here I am again. Since this one actually matches an idea I'd already thought about for next year, I'm joining in early with my Time-Life books.)

Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/4-May-16: Shopping today at Intermarché. Tuna was on sale, but they didn't have any. Very annoying store.

Potted Shrimp munchies before dinner.

Started a crockpot this morning with Simple Beef Curry (Hériteau, p56; cookbooker). Too much liquid, but otherwise pretty tasty considering that it was indeed simple. Served with plain basmati rice, and Green Peas in a Creamy Sauce (Q&E, p87), an old favorite that went very well with the beef. Some store-bought crème brulées for dessert.

Thursday/5-May-16: Working on Ed's hemoglobin level again (although it's pointless right now since he went for his follow-up blood test on Tuesday). Dinner was Boudin Noir Poêlé aux Pommes (web). This was with boudin noir à l'oignon (with onions) and was quite good. Served with a side of
taglitelle and a dish of steamed haricots verts (done to Ed's taste!) with a bit of shallot sautéed in olive oil. For dessert some crêpes with Grand Marnier, an impulse buy from yesterday.

While we were eating outside this evening, we enjoyed watching a pair of blue tits carrying bits of food to the next box in the lime tree.

Friday/6-May-16: A busy day today. On the way back from my haircut, I stopped for a bit more shopping (including four chairs for outside dining). Then home to put it up in time to take Sophie to the vet to have her bandage changed. Actually it was removed. So now we see the bare, green stitches closing a gash about as long as my index finger. Another week till they're removed.

Dinner was Cabillaud au Citron Vert et Baies Roses (web); that's cod with lime and red peppercorns for those whose menu French isn't up to snuff. This was supposed to be cooked in close dishes in the microwave. I did it in foil-covered dishes in the oven. Pretty good. Served with trio rice and Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), an old favorite. For dessert we had more Grand Marnier crêpes with the rest of the strawberries.

Yogurt on overnight. Chickpeas soaking overnight

Saturday/7-May-16: Went to a pottery fair today, the one we visited two years ago. Before we left, I put the chickpeas on to cook in the slow cooker.

Dinner was a half dose of Chickpeas Cooked in a Moghlai-Stye (WorldVeg, p32). This is actually pretty easy to make if you have all the ingredients, ground roast cumin seeds (I used up my stash and topped it up with regular cumin), garam masala, puréed tomatoes ( made some and froze the leftover bit). Quite tasty. Served with Cabbage Salad with Mustard Seeds (WorldVeg, p617), Carrot and Cilantro Salad (WorldVeg, p618), and Potato Chaat (MJ@Home, p165). All quite tasty. MiniMags for dessert. We ate well.

Sunday/8-May-16: Early dinner tonight before we went to a movie. We had Swartzuur—Lamb Stew with Tamarind and Dumplings (TLAfrica, p33). Pretty good. Takes some clock time, but not especially hard to make. The meat is not browned, just plopped in the pot with onions and chicken stock, then simmered. After a while tamarind water gets added in. Then some dumplings, the oddest I've ever made. Flour is dumped into boiling stock (rescued from lamb pot before the tamarind was added) and stirred into submission; after that cools a bit, you stir in an egg. Or stir,stir,stir as my mother used to instruct. Tasty sweet-sour result.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/11-Apr-16: Yogurt on overday. And in the dining room, since Ed had the electricity off in the kitchen today to install under cabinet lights.

Dinner was leftover meatloaf (still good) with Feuilleté aux Courgettes, Fromage Frais et Olives Noires (web), sort of. I forgot to buy fromage frais, so I used pyramid (goat) cheese instead. All was good.

Tuesday/12-Apr-16: Sophie brought in a bat today. It was still alive, so I put on a heavy pair of oven mitts and caught it gently between my hands. Took it outside and put it on the honeysuckle so it could rest safely. Instead it flew away, circling the cour.

More leftovers today. This time the broiled chicken from Ed's Saturday picnic (still very good) with a halfish recipe of Asparagus Ambush (TLNewEng, p76) as a side dish. This might actually be meant as a sandwich, although it was in the vegetable section. I split a demi-baguette, so one end of the "boat" is not really closed. The asparagus are topped with a lemony white sauce. This might make a nice starter in smaller breads. (Idea from Barbara D.)

Wednesday/13-Apr-16: Shopping today, back at Leclerc.

Dinner was Monkfish with Sage and Roasted Garlic (web). Monkfish (lotte) is on sale this week. It's a good fish, but I need to learn to ask them to clean and filet it for me. That was a pain. Otherwise, the recipe is easy and tasty. Served with brown rice and some steamed asparagus. Strawberries with marscapone-cream for dessert. Then I had a pair of chocolate easter eggs, while Ed worked on his bunny.

Thursday/14-Apr-16: Dinner was a half recipe of Greek Chicken Stew with Cauliflower and Olives (web) served over brown rice. The recipe said it would serve 4-6; the whole recipe might have served 6, since we were quite full with our half. Strawberries and ice cream for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/15-Apr-16: Made Apple-Plum Butter (HandyBook) during the day. Managed to burn it fairly badly, so the yield was low.

Used one of the eggplants needing using to make a two-thirds-ish dose of Eggplant and Yogurt Spread with Red Onion and Olives (O&C, p35). In the fridge, and we'll see how that is tomorrow.

Dinner was the last of the leftover meatloaf, with some buckwheat crozets tossed in a bit of garlic butter, plus some Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), an old favorite, to use up the last eggplant. A pretty good dinner, if a bit old-fashioned.

Saturday/16-Apr-16: Had planned to make pasta today, but no oomph, and other things to do.

Our main meal was in the afternoon, since we went to a movie. It was Pepper and Anchovy Pasta Sauce (MarCuc, p149) with spaghetti, using up the bell peppers in the fridge. Then a very big salad. That was all.

Later we had some crackers spread with the Eggplant and Yogurt Spread. I liked a lot, Ed not. Oh well.

Sunday/17-Apr-16: Dinner was Acquacotta—Tomato and Bread Soup (TuscTable, p105). Made it using tomato "sauce" from the potager rather than peeling and deseeding tomatoes. In the end it was good, and indeed serves four, but I have no idea how close it was to real acquacotta (cooked water?). There was way too much celery for my taste, so I put some of that in the freezer for my next batch of chicken stock. And too much water to be added; my medium saucepan would be overflowing. The result was good even though I manage to break both egg yolks. Put the remaining bit in the freezer for another night. Also finished the last two Feuilletés aux Courgettes, Fromage Frais et Olives Noires; they held up quite well.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/7-Oct-13: Yogurt on overday. Boiled up and froze the chicken stock I started the other day.

Using up leftovers and odd bits, tonight we had Roasted Cauliflower, Chickpeas, and Olives (MC). Not enough cauliflower, so added some broccoli. I think this was meant to be a side dish, but I stir the stuff into pasta. Good tastes.

Tuesday/8-Oct-13: Reaching a cookbook crisis point here. Looking for a missing book (which I later found on a completely wrong shelf), I gathered most of the cookbooks scattered throughout the house and started putting them away. In at least two places I don't have room for the books I have. May have to break down and, yipes, give away some books. Sigh.

Dinner was Spicy Sesame Noodles (MC) with shrimp, an easy oldy, but goody. Then a salad.

Wednesday/9-Oct-13: Shopping today. More raw beets on sale, so I bought some again; usually there are only ready-cooked ones.

Dinner was Maple-Miso Dijon Salmon (web), which was pretty darn good. Served with trio rice and a side of broccoli-mushroom-shallot-garlic. Leclerc has a small section of food just short of its sell-by date, heavily discounted, so I bought a pair of charlottes with red fruit for €1. The picture on the package showed the charlottes heavily covered with fresh fruit. What there was was a small spoonful of jam-like stuff. Edible. Barely.

Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/10-Oct-13: Dinner was Thai Chicken & Mango Stir-Fry (web). I had half the meat, but made all the sauce. This was fine, but a lot for two, although Ed doesn't mind eating more-or-less two servings, especially since the doctor said he was underweight. For dessert we had Easy Berry Cobbler (HandyBook), with blueberries and raspberries, and a dab of vanilla ice crea

Friday/11-Oct-13: Dinner was a halfish recipe of Ligurian-Style Pasta Sauce with Raw Tomatoes, Olives, Capers, and Anchovies (MarCuc, p134). Followed by a salad. And then the rest of the cobbler with ice cream. Oink.

Saturday/12-Oct-13: Continuing the Marcella Hazan theme, tonight's dinner was Roast Pork with Vinegar and Bay Leaves (ClassicItal, p419), using up a chunk of pork from the freezer. Served this with Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), an easy favorite, and some especially nice fried potatoes. For the pots, I parboiled the potato chunks and drained them. Then finished off by frying them while I was finishing the rest of the meal. Stole the parboil idea from Dusoulier's Perfect Roasted Potatoes and the finishing by frying from Hazan's Pan-Roasted Diced Potatoes. Whatever works. We split a classic Magnum for dessert.

Sunday/13-Oct-13: Dinner was Broccoli Parmentier (Dusoulier2, p134; cookbooker), a tasty dish with brown rice and lentils on the bottom and puréed broccoli on the top. The two of us ate more than half.

For dessert we had two little pear tartelettes I got at the boulangerie this afternoon.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/6-May-13: Yesterday at a plant fair, we bought two eggplant plants. Today the eggplant seeds are sprouting. Geesh.

Yogurt on overday.

Slow starting Monday. I went off to the grocery to do some shopping since Wednesday and Thursday are holidays. Dinner was Skewered Chicken (a moldy-oldy recipe from the green book) done on the bbq, accompanied by Mama's Garlic Coleslaw (MC) and Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114). Followed by Double Boiler Bread Pudding (MC), three of us (mostly Ed and Bill) finished it all,

Tuesday/7-May-13: Fish and chips for dinner. Nothing happening in our kitchen,

Wednesday/8-May-13: Had a super lunch out today. Nothing happening in the kitchen this evening.

Thursday/9-May-13: Waved BIll off at the train station today.

Dinner was a double dose of Spaghetti with Fried Eggs and Pangritata for One (MC). I'm doing this a bit different from the recipe, and could be more different still, but it's still a nice, satisfying pasta dish. As a go-with there was an Ottolenghi salad. For afters we had a bit of Camembert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/10-May-13: Dinner was Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche with a Brown Rice Crust (web), which turned out pretty good. And a salad. That was all.

Saturday/11-May-13: Dinner was Eggplant Steak with Chickpeas, Roasted Red Bell Peppers, Feta, and Olives (MC), an old favorite. Served with rice. Then finished off the Camembert for afters. And had some squares of Lindt chocolate to accompany our evening dogwalk.

Sunday/12-May-13: A lazy day in the kitchen. Had the rest of the broccoli quiche-y thing, which held up well to reheating. Followed by a big salad. Then some double-chocolate mini magnums.

Yogurt and ABM bread (of the "Authentic French" sort) on overnight.

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

This week in the kitchen

Monday/27-Aug-12: Pizza round 2, a loose interpretation of Chicken and Herb White Pizza (CL/oct11), using the store-bought pizza and turkey (still from Thanksgiving!). It was OK. Ed says my homemade pizza crust is tastier, if thicker, more like foccacia really. A bit of Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding for afters.

Tuesday/28-Aug-12: A neighbor brought a bowlful of plums. Made some Plum Amaretto Jam (SmallBatch, p50) and still have a quart or more or mirabelles left. Tomorrow maybe.

Pizza round 3. Ed didn't say "lunchtime" till 15.30, which would have made dinner way too late. So I popped the leftover pizza in the oven and we had that for whatever meal you call it at 16.00. Later we had some fruit.

Wednesday/29-Aug-12: Shopping today, pretty much following the list. Froze up the Vanilla Ice Milk (MC); I'd cut this recipe back by a quarter, but it was still a bit too much for my freezer.

Dinner was a half dose of Zucchini Rice Casserole (web, cookbooker), good but a long time in the cooking (nothing difficult, just time in the oven). Beforehand we had some "toasts" with chive Boursin topped with smoked salmon. Followed by a salad. Then we finished off the Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding.

Thursday/30-Aug-12: Had our main meal at lunch today, a half dose of Cashew Salmon with Apricot Couscous (web), very good. Would be a nice company meal probably. Then a salad. And then chocolate mini Magnums for an easy dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/31-Aug-12: After the little bit of rain, the squash plants are blooming like mad. The day turned into a kitchen day somehow.

Roasted another pair of beets from the garden. Made some Marinated Zucchini Sticks (Goldbeck, p67), which turned out to be pretty good, although we really didn't need them in the end. Then made again Chocolate Zucchini Cake (TooMany, p215). Used most of the Chinese cabbage I bought for Mama's Garlic Coleslaw (MC), which is a very nice coleslaw. Then there were Savory Grilled Potatoes (MC), which I did in the toaster oven rather than on the grill. The main was grilled kip filets with Chipotle-Sage Dry Rub (HC); a tasty rub, have a bit in the freezer now. Fridge is full of leftovers too.

Sally came for dinner after visiting Mike in the hospital. He may get out on Sunday after more than a week. Sent her home with some Chocolate Zucchini Cake.

Saturday/1-Sep-12: One of my weekly cleaning tasks is to "deep-clean" three shelves, i.e., all the books off each shelf, dust or vacuum, dust the books and replace them, considering if there are any candidates for recycling. Today I'm back to the beginning! The goal was to go all the way around in a year, but I think it's been a bit quicker, so maybe I need to slow down my pace.

Finished off the Zucchini Rice Casserole and Mama's Garlic Coleslaw for dinner. No dessert since we had Chocolate Zucchini Cake after lunch.

Sunday/2-Sep-12: Sort of ate our main meal at lunch today, two of us split one three-course meal at a vide grenier. In the evening, we had a big salad with some cooked chicken. And some Chocolate Zucchini Cake.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 2
This month: #6 PASTA: yes for Aug, no for Sep

This week in the kitchen

Monday/23-Jul-12: Yogurt on overday.

Starting to address the zucchini garden surplus, I made up and froze some curried zucchini soup.

Since we went to a concert this evening at a time that made eating dinner awkward, we had our main meal at midday (well, it was more like 3pm, but that's not dinnertime). Made some Red Pepper Pasta (PastaMach, p71), which is just regular pasta with some red pepper flakes added. To top it, there was Cajun Shrimp (PastaMach, p138), more or less. Quite tasty. Then a big salad. Since I haven't been using this cookbook much lately (I forget that it's full of tasty sauces), this could have been a meal for Cookbook Sundays, but I didn't take a picture, so I guess I'l skip that. (Unfortunately, it looks like Cookbook Sundays may be closing up shop since the current host wants to stop. I thought about taking it on, but decided I didn't need one more thing to do at the computer.)

Tuesday/24-Jul-12: Without thinking, I'd planned shrimp two nights in a row, so tonight's dinner was a last-minute change. I defrosted a pair of duck breast scallops. Pan-fried those and served topped with Marsala Wine Pan Sauce (HowTo, p160), which is about as simple a pan sauce as you can get. All you do is deglaze with a slog of marsala, reduce to almost nothing, and top up with a dab of butter. Pretty good for minimal effort. Served with some garlicky, steam-fried potatoes. Then some Shaved Zucchini Salad with Parmesan and Pine Nuts (web), which turns out to be a pretty nifty way to use up zucchini. Make a lemony vinaigrette with some red pepper flakes. Use the mandolin to shave long slices from a zuke. Toss with the vinaigrette, pine nuts, and Parmesan shavings. Should have been some chopped basil in there too, but I forgot—that would make it even better. Definitely a keeper, this one. For dessert we had some mini-Magnums.

Wednesday/25-Jul-12: Hot. Shopping today. This evening our Dutch friends Wim and Patrice, who are camping nearby, came for dinner and a visit. I bought some nice lamb steaks and we had Grilled Lamb Steaks with Rosemary, Garlic, and Red Wine (Thrill, p150), very easy and extremely really tasty. (Although I had about two weeks' worth of red meat protein in one sitting.) Made some Summer Rice Salad (Rodale, p129), a very old favorite, and Shaved Zucchini Salad with Parmesan and Pine Nuts, a very new favorite, the a second night in a row. Had planned to grill some eggplant also, but it seemed like too much. After walking the dogs, we had Strawberry Sorbet with some fresh raspberries.

Thursday/26-Jul-12: Hotter. ugh. Yogurt on overday.

Still full from yesterday evening's meal. No cooking today. Leftover dinner. Finished off the galette along with the zucchini salad (which held up remarkably well, unexpectedly to me) and the rice salad.

Friday/27-Jul-12: Another attack on the zucchini harvest: Chocolate Zucchini Cake (TooMany, p215. This used an amazingly big pile of grated zucchini. (Thank you, food processor.)

A recent Vie Pratique Gourmand explained how to cook ears of corns: peel them and boil for 25 minutes! Then, because they're too hot to hold, you stick a toothpick in each end. Right.

Yesterday after choir, Ed went to Intermarché, and came home with two two-packs of fresh corn. They have this for a few weeks each summer, and it's our only chance to have one of our favorite veggies. (Although, it's looking like we may get three ears from the garden this year.) So tonight we had, yes corn on the cob, along with Lemony Leeks with Chickpeas and Feta (web). This turned out to be a dish of nice tastes that went surprisingly well together. We both thought that the leeks should have been cut thinner. And I tossed everything in a bowl before serving, rather that arranging  it all tidily on the plates. But tasty it was, a nice, easy hot-weather main dish.

Saturday/28-Jul-12: Started with Beet, Stilton, Apple, and Nut Salad (MoreFast, p4), a recipe I found watching a video someone posted to EAT-L. Then I realized I had the book. No Stilton to be found, used bleu d'Auvergne instead. Not bad, interesting collection of tastes. Ed suggested that the apple, instead of being chunked, should have had the the quarters sliced crosswise fairly thinly.

The main was Pasta with Yogurt and Carmelized Onions, from Kassos (Essential, p341). This was one of those glad-I-tried-it-don't-need-to-do-it-again recipes. Why do you drain sheep's-milk yogurt, then mix it with pasta water?

Both of these could have been an entry for Cookbook Sunday; still no word on a new host.

Ed had a piece of Chocolate Zucchini Cake for dessert; I had some Strawberry Sorbet..

Sunday/29-Jul-12: Yogurt on overday. Wim and Patrice took us out to dinner this evening, so the planned zucchini dinner didn't happen.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, sort of, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH:  4
This month: #6 PASTA: yes

This week in the kitchen

Monday/9-Jul-12: Had our main meal late midday today. Loin of Pork with Green Peppercorns (web). Had a boneless loin instead of one with bones. Very tasty, meat tender. The sauce was good but there was a lot of it. I ended up freezing 3 cups of it, along with 300g of meat. Served with polenta and some steamed green beans.

Tuesday/10-Jul-12: Authentic French Bread from memory in the machine this morning.

Really not into cooking tonight, and we don't much like our closest pizza place. So, dinner was Scallops with Thai-Scented Pea Purée (web; cookbooker). Some double-chocolate mini-Magnums for dessert.

Wednesday/11-Jul-12: Had a little barbecue after BIll and Panos arrived. We started with Cold Beetroot with Cream (Pomiane, p180), one of our favorite salads, using the first two beets from the garden. With our grilled poultry merguez we had North African Zucchini Salad with Garlic, Chili Paste, and Caraway (MedHot, p32) and some potato salad, very loosely out of Joy of Cooking.

Thursday/12-Jul-12: Bill took us to dinner at La Bellone tonight. Nothing happened in our kitchen.

Yogurt on overnight.

Friday/13-Jul-12: Bill suggested Indian, so that's what we had this evening. The main course was Spicy Baked Chicken (Masaledar Murghi) (MJ1, p71), using a bunch of chicken thighs. This is an easy, yummy dish, nice for company because you set the chicken to marinate until less than an hour before you're ready for it, then pop it in the oven, turning only once. As Jaffrey suggests, I served with Rice with Peas (Tahiri) (MJ1, p149) and Red Split Lentils with Cumin Seed (Masoor Dal) (MJ1, p122), both of which I've made many times. As a go-with, I made some Yogurt with Cucumber and Mint (MJ1, p162), which is my standard raita recipe.

Saturday/14-Jul-12: Yogurt on overday.

Sunday/15-Jul-12: Dinner was Almond Crusted Roast Lamb (web;  LaFrance, p86), a very nice leg of lamb, browned in a skillet then cooked at high temp. Lots of leftovers to deal with tomorrow. Accompanied by Carrot Pilaf (MC) and Steamed Summer Squash Vinaigrette (TooMany, p202). Followed by Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake (web), a pretty darn good chocolate cake and easy too.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 1
This month: #6 PASTA: no

Steamed Summer Squash Vinaigrette

Too Many Tomatoes, Squash, Beans, and Other Good Things
Lois M. Burrows and Laura G. Myers
Harper&Row Publishers (1976)
ISBN 0060907657

Too Many Tomatoes is probably one of the first cookbooks I ever bought, a book for using up your garden surplus. The recipes are maybe a bit old-fashioned, US cooking from the 50s and 60s, but still useful. I've used it a lot over the years, and even bought a second copy when we were moving back and forth between houses. My main copy is held together by a fat rubberband. For one reason or another, it's been languishing on its shelf for a while now. With a box of organic courgettes in the fridge, I gave it a look and found this winner or a side dish.

This is about as easy a dish as you can make. Start by slicing your zucchinis thin; because I know that European courgettes are a bit larger than a typical American zucchini, I cut mine lengthwise before slicing. Steam the slices. When they're fork tender, a bit crispy still, drain them and cool them by dunking in ice water or rinsing under lots of cold water. Drain them well and pop them in the fridge till you're ready to serve. Mix up a plain vinaigrette of olive oil, red wine vinegar, a good dash of Dijon mustard (the recipe called for proportionally more mustard than I usually use for a salad vinaigrette), salt, pepper, and maybe a chopped up shallot. Just before serving,  toss the chilled slices with the vinaigrette. Easy to make and much enjoyed by my husband's who's not known as a zucchini fan.

This post is linked to this week's Cookbook Sundays.

This week in the kitchen

Monday/2-Jul-12: Popped some Authentic French Bread, with one cup of whole wheat flour replacing bread flour, into the bread machine just before the the bread truck came, so we're plentifully supplied with bread for a day or so.

Off to a quiz/dinner in the evening. Nothing further happening in the kitchen.

Tuesday/3-Jul-12: For dinner, a half dose of Tonnarelli ai Gamberi e Funghi (ClassPasta, p104), Tonnarelli with Prawns and Mushrooms. Pretty, but it seems a bit "cluttered" with cream and shrimp and tomatoes and shrooms; and there was a lot of sauce. Then a simple salad. And some mini-Magnum double chocolate bars for dessert as we dogwalked.

Wednesday/4-Jul-12: Shopping today. For our Fourth of July dinner Ed bbq'd a pair of kip filets marinated in Chicken Marinade 4 (MC 2BTried). I reduced the sugar in the marinade; the effect was good. As a go-with there were Grilled Potato Slices with Salt and Vinegar, from several places on the web. Probably my slices weren't 1/4" (I used the thickest setting on my mandoline), and they were well impregnated with vinegar. This is good in potato chips, but not sure about a side dish. Guacamole as a salad/side dish. A red, white, and blue parfait for after with vanilla custard (my mother's recipe—stir, stir, stir), blueberries, and strawberries.

Yogurt on overnight.

Thursday/5-Jul-12: Dinner was a half dose of Filet de Flétan aux Cranberries (VPQ), no halibut (flétan) in the store, so I used panga instead. Sauce of cranberries caramelized in sugar, mushrooms, celery, shallot, cream, vermouth, and bird or veg boullion. Weird but tasty after you got into it. With some rice and some peas with shallots. Made some salad, but neither of us felt like eating it. Off for a dog walk, then two squares of 70% Lindt chocolate each.

Friday/6-Jul-12: The latest Vie Pratique Gourmand has an article on carpaccios, the oddest (to me) being fine slices of foie gras (duck) interleaved with bits of strong dark chocolate and beet leaves, topped with salt, pepper, and olive oil. Suppose I'd eat this if it were served, but don't think it's anything I'd every consider making.

Dinner was a half dose of Mini Farfalle with Roasted Peppers, Onions, Feta, and Mint (CL/mar11, web). Pretty good stuff. Then the salad we didn't eat last night, with some walnut oil and a squeeze of lemon.

Saturday/7-Jul-12: Bought a box of organic courgette, so trying to use that up now. Made Zucchini Pound Cake (GreeneGreens, p407). One of those egg-splitting cakes, so not on my everyday list, but pretty darn good. (cookbook sunday).

Dinner was Chicken with Blueberry-Ginger Chutney (CL/jan05, web). The chicken was regular grilled kip filets that had been marinated a bit with some herbs, nothing too fancy. The chutney is what made this special. And I'm sure the leftovers will go well with another meat before too long. Accompanied by trio rice and Steamed Summer Squash Vinaigrette (TooMany, p202).

Sunday/8-Jul-12: Yogurt on overday.

Didn't feel like cooking what was on the plan, so there was Pasta Salad with Fish (PastaCarluccio, p55) instead. Then we had some Zucchini Pound Cake with the last of the vanilla custard and topped with a handful of fraises de bois picked this afternoon.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #6 PASTA:no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/6-Feb-12: Finished off the chicken stock this morning. Ended up with 11 cups in the freezer. Out of freezer containers now.

Simple dinner tonight. Defrosted some merguez de volaille and grilled them. Made mashed sweet potatoes from the enormous single pot that I bought last week. Then a salad with the marinated Brussels sprouts. These were better with just a dab of arugula and were rather overwhelmed by the plateful of mâche/arugula mix.

K's Sweet Potato Bread (MC, a smerge of two recipes) on overnight. Moved the ABM in by the pellet burner, since I know it's not happy baking in a cold room.

Tuesday/7-Feb-12: Wasn't it nice to awaken to the smell of fresh bread this morning! Ordinarily, when the ABM sits in the kitchen, the smell doesn't really reach us in the bedroom. It's a pretty golden color, but not especially sweet tasting.

Brought the frozen chicken half indoors this morning. In the afternoon, I picked the meat for tomorrow's dinner, then roasted the bones and popped them in the freezer.

For dinner I embellished a can of black beans, mashed it all up a bit, topped with bits of leftover polenta, then heated in the oven for a bit. Served with a salad of avocado, radish, and cuke, mixed with lime juice and crème fraîche. Pretty good for little effort.

Wednesday/8-Feb-12: Used the rest of the mashed sweet potato to make Southern Sweet Potato Pecan Bread (MC). That really was a big sweet potato! Good quick bread.

Somehow, when you eat lunch at 3pm, and have a quick bread snack after that, you just don't think about cooking dinner till too late in the day. So leftover pizza it was, warmed in the oven.

All our events are being cancelled, choir practice, line dancing, gardening club. I have a doctor's appointment in Angoulême in Tuesday, but think I'll call tomorrow to cancel that, since it doesn't look like the roads will be clear by then.

Thursday/9-Feb-12: Authentic French Bread from the ABM this morning, and never cut into it. It will still be good, but not great tomorrow.

A neighbor with a 4x4 braved the roads to go to the grocery. We got milk and lettuce; I forgot to ask for eggs, which we could run out of. Can't be too bad out there. Ed went to refill a prescription and it took him only two tries to get back up the hill in Mazerolles.

Repurposed leftovers for dinner tonight. Made a sort of hash/stew thing from the rest of the chicken, potatoes, and the bit of sauce remaining, with this and that thrown in. Served over the remains of the polenta. Not bad at all. A bit let from lunch in the next day. Then a salad.

Friday/10-Feb-12: We made a trip out today. Stopped at a grocery for eggs and a few other things, then picked up a load of sacks of pellets for the heating. Pretty scary driving on the little roads.

Tonight, the pork roast I found in the freezer when I defrosted was on the menu. Best Crockpot Pork Roast Ever (web). Best? Well, maybe; good for a crockpot recipe anyhow. (Part 2 of the recipe to come—"bbq" pulled pork.) Accompanied by steam/sautéed potatoes and carrots and Baked Eggplant Slices (TooMany, p114), using up the eggplant in the fridge. This is still one of our favorite eggplant recipes. Finished off the last of the vanilla fromage frais. Curious that if I'd made something like this, our servings would have been twice as large. Think we need to practice some portion control here.

Saturday/11-Feb-12: Still cold, soup weather. Dinner was Lentil Soup with Red Squash and Fennel (Verdura, p171; cookbooker).

A couple of days ago a friend ventured out for some shopping and I asked her to bring us 3 liters of milk. Instead she came with 3 2-liter bottles. So we're starting a use-up-the-milk project. Tonight was Chocolate Tapioca Pudding (MC). Easy to make and good. This will last us several days.

Sunday/12-Feb-12: Late lunch today. Topped some stale baguette with the leftover chicken hash and let it sit under the broiler for a bit. That and our usual fruit plate was lunch.

Had thought about making pasta for dinner, but we weren't very hungry, so we had just a salad. Then a bit of St Maure. Then some Chocolate Tapioca Pudding, small servings like the fromage frais toetjes we've been eating. We're full.

Bread on overnight, sitting near the heater again. We'll awaken to the smell of cooking bread. I intended to make a whole wheat bread, but laid a measuring spoon on the opposite page and started following the recipe for White Bread (BHGBread, p8). Very similar recipes and I hadn't gotten to the part where they diverge. Should be OK.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #6 PASTA: no

This week in the kitchen

Monday/15-Aug-11: Nothing happening in the kitchen today since we attended a méchoui and ate our fill of spit-roasted lamb.

Tuesday/16-Aug-11: A cute little female mouse was in the live-trap this morning. Ed released it at the bottom of the South Forty. We'll see if she makes it back.

In the morning, I went up to help with the clean-up of the Mazerolles fête and stayed for lunch of leftovers and omelettes. Can't even think of further food. Ed ate the leftover Zucchini and Eggplant with Pork over rice.

Yogurt on overnight. English Muffin Bread (BigGerman, p15) on overnight.

Wednesday/17-Aug-11: Dinner was a half dose of Ziti with Mushrooms in a Marsala Cream Sauce (KnowHow, p245). First thing I've made from this book, pretty good. I used some mushroom-flavored trumpet-shaped pasta instead of ziti. Served with sautéed zucchiniwith some lemon juice and shredded basil tossed in right at the end. And a simple salad of shredded carrot with a lemon vinaigrette. (All the lettuce in-house was well-past its use-by date and got tossed.)

Thursday/18-Aug-11: Shopping this afternoon.

Made some Zucchini Drop Cookies (TooMany, p212). My my good. We ate enough that I had to jettison dinner plans and we just ate a big salad of mâche and roquette with more zucchini and Asian Dressing (MDSalads, p61). Now I have to think about recombobbling the plan to use what I bought today.

Friday/19-Aug-11: Hot day today, hotter coming. Dinner was a very nice summery salad, collected from the web, Green Goddess Pasta Salad with Herbed Scallops (soon to be MC). For two, it asked for 6 sea scallops, 3/4-1#; I had 400g, which were 16 altogether, and they were the little ones. Sea scallops must be huge. Anyway it was good. Some reblochon for after.

Saturday/20-Aug-11: And hotter today; overnight will be 24C/75F outside if we're lucky. Inside is hotter. The reserve of cool in the stones seems to have been exhausted.

Sophie was out all night, meaning neither of us slept very well. I called from two doors about 4am to no avail. At 7am, she zoomed in the terrace door, eager for dinner/breakfast. She was out for a while today, but came in early and hasn't asked to go back out.

Only one zucchini harvested today. Plus some cherry tomatoes. There are lots of bigger tomatoes that will be ripening in a couple of days. Another bumper crop to harvest. One ear of corn doesn't feel very substantial. The haricots verts and favas that I planted between the tomatoes, following a suggestion in some magazine or another, are buried by tomato plants, which are quite lush.

Dinner was, surprise, stuffed zucchini, using some cooked shrimp from the freezer and some leftover brown rice. Ok, and helped by jalapeño tabasco or sriracha, depending on the plate. Some frozen fruit juice "popsicles" for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/21-Aug-11: Hot overnight and hot, hot, hot overday. And I had a thawed chicken to cook.

For a starter there was Zucchini and Lemon Salad (GreeneGreens, p400). No red bell pepper in house, so I used roasted ones from a jar. Picked some big cherry tomatoes and used those. Thinly slicing a peeled lemon was challenging. Altogether a nice salad that would make a good starter for company since it can be done ahead.

Then Weeknight Roast Chicken (CI mag, sep/oct11). This was good enough, but maybe more trouble than it was worth. And certainly not in the range of what I call weeknight (i.e., meal on the table in 30 minutes), since the chicken takes about an hour and a half to be ready. Served with garlic smashed potatoes and steamed broccoli. No dessert needed.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: yes, #2 SOUP: no, #3 MIDDAY: no
This month: #4 PASTA: not yet

This week in the kitchen

Monday/1-Aug-11: Off to a quiz tonight. Bread on overnight.

Tuesday/2-Aug-11: Shopping today. Dinner was Tequila-Glazed Grilled Chicken Thighs (CL/jun11, soon to be MC); quite good, but the recipe recommended on thigh per person which seems quite skimpy. We had two each, and some grilled zucchini, and some trio rice. Meant to bbq, but thunderstorms at dinnertime meant the broiler was called into the breach. For dessert we finished off the lemon sherbert with some chopped pineapple (needed the juice for the chicken glaze).

Yogurt on overnight.

Wednesday/3-Aug-11: Dinner was a half dose of Shrimp and Arugula Salad (another CL/jun11, soon to be MC). Well, it wasn't arugula after all. My box was out of date and looked OK through the plastic, but when I opened it, I found it was smelly and slimy and not something I wanted to deal with. So a bit of mesclun it was instead. Supposed to be a 20-minute dinner, and might be if you didn't have to peel those shrimps. What a tedious job, and I've done it twice lately. Anyhow, the salad was good. Then a bit of chaource. Then a skillet upside-down cake with the pineapple left from yesterday's tequila marinade. I scaled the recipe down from Joy and it turned out quite well.

Thursday/4-Aug-11: Made 2 liters/quarts of curried zucchini soup as a first step in dealing with the zucchini surplus. Loosely followed a recipe from the web. The interesting thing about this particular recipe was that it included chopped apple for a touch of sweet in the curry.

Dinner was a pizza with, yes, grilled zucchini.First spread with pyramid goat cheese mixed with minced garlic, then some of Ed Giobbi's Sweet Red Pepper Sauce for Pasta (from the freezer), then the zucchini, chopped artichoke bottoms (also from the freezer), sliced mushrooms, chopped black olives, sliced mozzarella, and a sprinkling of oregano and lemon basil leaves. For dessert, a toasted waffle with blueberries and crème fraîche.

Friday/5-Aug-11: Made zucchini garlic soup today, this one with a bit of powdered ginger added for zip. Into the freezer.

Dinner was Zucchini and Feta Gratin (MC) followed by a salad. And the end of the pineapple upside down cake.

Saturday/6-Aug-11: A bit of a lazy day today. Intended to do some baking, but never found my round tuit.

Dinner started with Curried Green Pea Soup (TooMany, p155), a very old favorite. This time I used the new (heavy) cream that's been at LeClerc, but it actually seemed a bit too creamy. Next time I might try some milk with a bit of crème fraîche for richness. Then there were Zucchini and Chickpea Pancakes (MC), which we liked before and Ed liked this time, but didn't suit me as well. Served with a sauce of buzzed together crème fraîche, mango chutney, and cayenne. Some mini charlottes with red fruits (defrosted) for dessert.

Yogurt on overnight.

Sunday/7-Aug-11: Spent the afternoon in the kitchen today. Finally made cantuccini, a longtime want-to-do project. Used a recipe that a friend got in an Italian cooking class. They're easy to make and pretty tasty, but a bit messy looking and not brown enough. Although I measured the flour carefully, there just wasn't enough to make a "soft dough". I added a bit more, but ended up scooping the dough onto the cookie sheet, rather than make worstjes. No problem, they'll get eaten.

Then I made some Chocolate Zucchini Bread (collected a while ago). Good stuff. And, hooray, no zucchinis needed to be picked today, but there are at least two tomorrow.

Dinner was No-Butter Chicken (soon to be MC), a recipe from the web. Low-fat Indian! Easy easy and it tasted good. Served with Zucchini in a Yogurt Dressing (SpiceKitch, p58) and plain basmati rice. No kulfi, so some ice cream with chocolate zucchini bread for dessert.

Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: yes, #2 SOUP: yes, #3 MIDDAY: no
This month: #4 PASTA: not yet