Monday/24-Feb-20: Yesterday afternoon, I started the batter for a no-knead bread that I got from an EAT-L friend. The recipe is slightly different from Lahey's classic, and it's still a puddle bread, but the timing works better for me. This morning I put the oven and casserole on the heat, then dumped the bread and formed a (flat) ball. After 30 minutes, into the oven to cook, 30 minutes covered and 15 minutes uncovered. I used T110 flour which is a close relative of whole wheat flour (T150). Not sure of the difference, but it's definitely a brown bread, with not much rise. Very tasty though and I like the schedule.
For dinner we had skinless, boneless chicken thighs, sprinkled with Penzey's Quebec Spice mix (a bit too salty) and grilled under the broiler. Then some "short spaghetti" with garlic butter and some snijbonen. Then some Häagen-Dazs mini ice cream cups for dessert.
Tuesday/25-Feb-20: Ed went off to the dentist this afternoon and came back saying he had to have mushy, cool food for dinner. So no magret, that was planned. I did a quick shuffle of the meal plan and we had a half recipe of Curried Lentils with Coconut Milk (web; cookbooker). This was easy and extra delicious; no hot stuff, but full of taste. Then we had some Abondance. Then a pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each.
Yogurt on overnight.
Wednesday/26-Feb-20: Nice dinner tonight. There was Magret de Canard à la Sauce Rose (web). I used Patricia Wells method for cooking the magret, which is the best. In the afternoon, I boiled some potatoes, then sautéed them in the rendered duck fat. There were also some steamed carrot coins, with parsley and lemon juice, and a little salad of grated broccoli stems, which was really good. In the afternoon, I made a half recipe of an Easy Blueberry Cobbler (MC) that wasn't bad. We ate well.
Thursday/2Feb-20: As we were leaving to do our weekly grocery shopping, I reached for RezaSpice and couldn't find it. Instead, having recently felt the need for some more interesting vegetarian meals, I grabbed A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen, by Jack Bishop. It turns out I've used this a bit, but not recently. Nevertheless, I've found quite a number of interesting recipes so far.
Dinner was Baked Fish with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273), with salmon. I've made this a few times and since kumquats have been at Leclerc for the last few weeks, I thought it was time again. Served with some "short spaghetti" and steamed asparagus. The rest of the blueberry cobbler for after.
Friday/28-Feb-20: Early in the day, I made up a batch of Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter (ClassicItal, p152). At dinner time I made Spinach and Ricotta Dumplings (web). I made up a full recipe have frozen half, along with a goodly chunk of the tomato sauce. I used really parmesan, of course. Also, had to add at least double the amount of flour to get something that would hold together into a "dumpling." Served with a big salad. A pair of chocolate-covered madeleines each for after.
Saturday/29-Feb-20: Dinner was Ooroomas Badun—Fried Pork Curry (Solomon1, p138. This was yummy. Served with basmati rice and Gujerati Carrot Salad (MJ1, p170). For munchies we had Spicy Cucumber Wedges (MJ1, p172. For dessert, there was Faux Kheer of store-bought riz au lait, topped with chopped pistachios and ground cardamom.We're full.
Yogurt on overnight.
Sunday/1-Mar-20: Dinner was Lex's Roast Chicken (MC; web). I used two dejeunettes (half baguettes for the bread. The cuisinart did a good job for the sliced onions and celery. Yum. Served with a salad, using up the rest of yesterday's carrot salad. And some chocolate-covered madeleines for dessert.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: 3; #2 BACKLOG: no
This month: #3 GUESTS: no for February, no for March
This year: #4 SHORT: no; #5 LONG: no
On-going: #6 READ; #7 RECYCLE; #8 NEW
Showing posts with label ~Uncommon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ~Uncommon. Show all posts
Monday, February 24, 2020
Monday, October 27, 2014
This week in the kitchen
Monday/27-Oct-14: Yogurt on overday.
Company gone. Back to a normal eating regime. Whew.
Dinner was, sort of. Chile-Lime Veggie Noodles (web). More or less the whole recipe for a generous dinner for two. Used shao-xing wine instead of sherry, only 1 teaspoon of sugar, and three eggs for the omelet part. Pretty good. We split a magnum classic for dessert.
Tuesday/28-Oct-14: Dinner was a half recipe of Summer Corn & Scallop Pasta (web). Pretty interesting and good. Out of whole wheat spaghetti (yesterday's dinner), so used linguine instead. Used canned corn. Then a big salad. That was all.
Wednesday/29-Oct-14: Shopped today, then had a mid-day lunch of Baked FIsh with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273), which is one of my two kumquat recipes. Served with haricots verts and shrooms. And some crozets, a kind French pasta, tiny squares, a bit thick. (Mine were nature, but the buckwheat version is traditional, I see. I'll get some of these, since that kind of earthy taste is sometimes nice to have.) For dessert, I bought some apricot pastry things which were tasty.
Thursday/30-Oct-14: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was Arroz al Ajillo con Camarones (Garlic Rice With Shrimp) (web), which was pretty good. I made a halfish recipe. Cooked all the bacon this morning, so used lardons instead. My shrimp were frozen (thawed), but worked okay. I cut them in half lengthwise as she did. Having no green onions, I used shallots. Some parsley would have been nice for the color. Finished off the strawberry ice cream for dessert.
Friday/31-Oct-14: Made a triple dose of apple butter this morning, made it in the Dutch oven so it wouldn't spatter too much. Ha. Ended up giving the backsplash, utensils, and stovetop a thorough cleaning. Used most of a cheap sack of apples. Tasted pretty good.
Boiled up so artichokes for a meal coming up.
Getting the fresh pasta in on the last possible day, dinner was a half recipe of Tagliatelle ai Funghi Porcini (Lorenza, p91; cookbooker). Used shiitakes, since there were no cêpes at the grocery this week. Then a salad. Two squares of chocolate with almonds for after.
Saturday/1-Nov-14: An anniversary today, but neither of us wanted yet another meal out after the last weeks and at least two more coming soon. So, we had our dinner in the early afternoon, a halfish dose of Poulet Sauté à la Bordelaise (Sautéed Chicken with Shallots and Artichoke Hearts) (TLProvFr, p43; cookbooker).
Ed brought home two points of flan for dessert. Then we took ourselves out to a movie.
Sunday/2-Nov-14: For dinner, there was a half dose of Fusilli with Sausage, Ricotta, and Fresh Tomatoes (30MinPasta, p165; cookbooker) using Hazan's homemade sausage. Good stuff. Then a big salad. For dessert, I used the rest of the ricotta from the pasta sauce to make my version of Coffee Ricotta Mousse (MW@Home, p307), including cocoa plus Kuhlua instead of coffee and brandy. Good stuff for next to no work.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #3 PASTA: yes for October/no for November; #4 FotW: yes for October/no for November; #5 BREAD: none
Company gone. Back to a normal eating regime. Whew.
Dinner was, sort of. Chile-Lime Veggie Noodles (web). More or less the whole recipe for a generous dinner for two. Used shao-xing wine instead of sherry, only 1 teaspoon of sugar, and three eggs for the omelet part. Pretty good. We split a magnum classic for dessert.
Tuesday/28-Oct-14: Dinner was a half recipe of Summer Corn & Scallop Pasta (web). Pretty interesting and good. Out of whole wheat spaghetti (yesterday's dinner), so used linguine instead. Used canned corn. Then a big salad. That was all.
Wednesday/29-Oct-14: Shopped today, then had a mid-day lunch of Baked FIsh with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273), which is one of my two kumquat recipes. Served with haricots verts and shrooms. And some crozets, a kind French pasta, tiny squares, a bit thick. (Mine were nature, but the buckwheat version is traditional, I see. I'll get some of these, since that kind of earthy taste is sometimes nice to have.) For dessert, I bought some apricot pastry things which were tasty.
Thursday/30-Oct-14: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was Arroz al Ajillo con Camarones (Garlic Rice With Shrimp) (web), which was pretty good. I made a halfish recipe. Cooked all the bacon this morning, so used lardons instead. My shrimp were frozen (thawed), but worked okay. I cut them in half lengthwise as she did. Having no green onions, I used shallots. Some parsley would have been nice for the color. Finished off the strawberry ice cream for dessert.
Friday/31-Oct-14: Made a triple dose of apple butter this morning, made it in the Dutch oven so it wouldn't spatter too much. Ha. Ended up giving the backsplash, utensils, and stovetop a thorough cleaning. Used most of a cheap sack of apples. Tasted pretty good.
Boiled up so artichokes for a meal coming up.
Getting the fresh pasta in on the last possible day, dinner was a half recipe of Tagliatelle ai Funghi Porcini (Lorenza, p91; cookbooker). Used shiitakes, since there were no cêpes at the grocery this week. Then a salad. Two squares of chocolate with almonds for after.
Saturday/1-Nov-14: An anniversary today, but neither of us wanted yet another meal out after the last weeks and at least two more coming soon. So, we had our dinner in the early afternoon, a halfish dose of Poulet Sauté à la Bordelaise (Sautéed Chicken with Shallots and Artichoke Hearts) (TLProvFr, p43; cookbooker).
Ed brought home two points of flan for dessert. Then we took ourselves out to a movie.
Sunday/2-Nov-14: For dinner, there was a half dose of Fusilli with Sausage, Ricotta, and Fresh Tomatoes (30MinPasta, p165; cookbooker) using Hazan's homemade sausage. Good stuff. Then a big salad. For dessert, I used the rest of the ricotta from the pasta sauce to make my version of Coffee Ricotta Mousse (MW@Home, p307), including cocoa plus Kuhlua instead of coffee and brandy. Good stuff for next to no work.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #3 PASTA: yes for October/no for November; #4 FotW: yes for October/no for November; #5 BREAD: none
Monday, July 21, 2014
This week in the kitchen
Monday/21-Jul-14: Yogurt on overday. We made an all-day outing to Family Village (yes, that's the French name), a sort of outlet mall, that included lunch at Alinéa, which is the French version of Ikea. There's also a Grand Frais, a grocery store carrying lots of unusual and exotic fruits and veggies. Just discovered there's on in Soyaux, too; that's a suburb of Angoulême, so it's a bit closer.
Because we had lunch out, we had only fruit for dinner.
Ed drove with two other choir members to yesterday's concert in Limoges; they had to be there quite a bit ahead of time. I travelled with the partners of the other two. We were both surprised that these people had barely visited Limoges before. One couple has been here four and a half years, the other longer than we have. But they'd barely been to Limgoes either for sightseeing or for shopping. Seemed very strange to us.
Tuesday/22-Jul-14: Used the gooseberries I bought yesterday to make a half recipe of Gooseberry-Apple Crisp (Uncommon, p218). A nice easy recipe that could be done with other fruits. Should put this in the HandyBook also. While that was cooking, I roasted lots of veggies, mostly leftovers bits from the fridge—eggplant, zucchini, red bell pepper, carrot, and some asparagus from the Grand Frais. Served those with polenta. Then the crisp with a bit of vanilla ice cream.
Wednesday/23-Jul-14: Shopping today.
Dinner was (more or less) Spiced Fried Fish (RealCook, p120), with two filet of lieu noir (saithe?) cut into thirds. As a go-with there was Fragrant Rice (RealCook, p213; cookbooker). There's a problem with this recipe, which is supposed to serve two as a side; I made less than half and we had enough to serve four as a side. Then there was more of the Grand Frais bounty, two ears of corn. Very good, better than the ones we get at Intermarché. I forgot to note whence they came. Then a scoop of vanilla ice cream with some bramen (blackberries) from Grand Frais.
We drank a whole bottle of wine with the dinner, then sat outside, till the mosquitos got too bad, watching bats and listening to Ed's bat detector.
Thursday/24-Jul-14: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was a half recipe of Green Peppercorn and DIjon Chicken Cutlets (web). Good stuff and easy. Accompanied by butternut squash gnocchi from the freezer with a bit of sage butter, which really wasn't needed because there was plenty of sauce from the chicken. And some Roast Asparagus with Long Pepper Gremolata (web). Long pepper is what was used by the Greeks and Romans for a peppery flavor before black pepper was available. Can't say I was struck by the flavor, but the whole effect of the long pepper, coriander seeds, lemon zest, and garlic was very pleasing. For dessert, I had the very end of a classic magnum while Ed ate the rest.
Friday/25-Jul-14: Oscar went to the vet a 8am for a biopsy.
Baked a cake this morning for a visitor this afternoon and for tomorrow night's picnic dinner, Chocolate Bundt Cake (web; cookbooker), a super cake. The visitor was Max, just turned 21, the son of long-time Dutch friends. We're not remembering when we saw him last, but now he's all grown up and it was a treat to see him.
The main course as dinner was Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shanks with Aubergine (RealCook, p127) for IHCC, but I don't feel like posting for it. Lamb shanks (souris) usually come in packages of three for some reason. I happened to find a package of four, so now have the extra two in the freezer. As an accompaniment there was whole-wheat couscous, made with the rest of a jar of chicken stock, plus Carrot and Cilantro Salad (WorldVeg, p618), a very nice little salad. I had a tiny slice of chocolate cake after. (Ed had two slices earlier.)
Saturday/26-Jul-14: This evening we went to a benefit picnic with music for the Children of Chenobyl, a charity that brings these kids to France (and elsewhere I think) to stay with local people so they can have a proper vacation in a healthy location. I made Greek-Style Lentil Salad (WorldVeg, p630) for our meal. This is a nice salad I've made before. Made some guacamole to go with corn chips. Managed to go off without the chocolate cake, that I'd hoped to share around.
Sunday/27-Jul-14: Fresh pasta tonight with Spinach and Tomato Pasta Sauce, Romagna-Style (MarCuc, p142). The sauce was good, but not spectacular. I used frozen spinach and a real tomato and some water instead of canned imported Italian plum ones with juice. And a salad. And some chocolate cake with a dab of cream.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes for IHCC, but not posted; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: yes; #4 FotW: no; #5 BREAD: no
Because we had lunch out, we had only fruit for dinner.
Ed drove with two other choir members to yesterday's concert in Limoges; they had to be there quite a bit ahead of time. I travelled with the partners of the other two. We were both surprised that these people had barely visited Limoges before. One couple has been here four and a half years, the other longer than we have. But they'd barely been to Limgoes either for sightseeing or for shopping. Seemed very strange to us.
Tuesday/22-Jul-14: Used the gooseberries I bought yesterday to make a half recipe of Gooseberry-Apple Crisp (Uncommon, p218). A nice easy recipe that could be done with other fruits. Should put this in the HandyBook also. While that was cooking, I roasted lots of veggies, mostly leftovers bits from the fridge—eggplant, zucchini, red bell pepper, carrot, and some asparagus from the Grand Frais. Served those with polenta. Then the crisp with a bit of vanilla ice cream.
Wednesday/23-Jul-14: Shopping today.
Dinner was (more or less) Spiced Fried Fish (RealCook, p120), with two filet of lieu noir (saithe?) cut into thirds. As a go-with there was Fragrant Rice (RealCook, p213; cookbooker). There's a problem with this recipe, which is supposed to serve two as a side; I made less than half and we had enough to serve four as a side. Then there was more of the Grand Frais bounty, two ears of corn. Very good, better than the ones we get at Intermarché. I forgot to note whence they came. Then a scoop of vanilla ice cream with some bramen (blackberries) from Grand Frais.
We drank a whole bottle of wine with the dinner, then sat outside, till the mosquitos got too bad, watching bats and listening to Ed's bat detector.
Thursday/24-Jul-14: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was a half recipe of Green Peppercorn and DIjon Chicken Cutlets (web). Good stuff and easy. Accompanied by butternut squash gnocchi from the freezer with a bit of sage butter, which really wasn't needed because there was plenty of sauce from the chicken. And some Roast Asparagus with Long Pepper Gremolata (web). Long pepper is what was used by the Greeks and Romans for a peppery flavor before black pepper was available. Can't say I was struck by the flavor, but the whole effect of the long pepper, coriander seeds, lemon zest, and garlic was very pleasing. For dessert, I had the very end of a classic magnum while Ed ate the rest.
Friday/25-Jul-14: Oscar went to the vet a 8am for a biopsy.
Baked a cake this morning for a visitor this afternoon and for tomorrow night's picnic dinner, Chocolate Bundt Cake (web; cookbooker), a super cake. The visitor was Max, just turned 21, the son of long-time Dutch friends. We're not remembering when we saw him last, but now he's all grown up and it was a treat to see him.
The main course as dinner was Moroccan Spiced Lamb Shanks with Aubergine (RealCook, p127) for IHCC, but I don't feel like posting for it. Lamb shanks (souris) usually come in packages of three for some reason. I happened to find a package of four, so now have the extra two in the freezer. As an accompaniment there was whole-wheat couscous, made with the rest of a jar of chicken stock, plus Carrot and Cilantro Salad (WorldVeg, p618), a very nice little salad. I had a tiny slice of chocolate cake after. (Ed had two slices earlier.)
Saturday/26-Jul-14: This evening we went to a benefit picnic with music for the Children of Chenobyl, a charity that brings these kids to France (and elsewhere I think) to stay with local people so they can have a proper vacation in a healthy location. I made Greek-Style Lentil Salad (WorldVeg, p630) for our meal. This is a nice salad I've made before. Made some guacamole to go with corn chips. Managed to go off without the chocolate cake, that I'd hoped to share around.
Sunday/27-Jul-14: Fresh pasta tonight with Spinach and Tomato Pasta Sauce, Romagna-Style (MarCuc, p142). The sauce was good, but not spectacular. I used frozen spinach and a real tomato and some water instead of canned imported Italian plum ones with juice. And a salad. And some chocolate cake with a dab of cream.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes for IHCC, but not posted; #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: yes; #4 FotW: no; #5 BREAD: no
Monday, October 14, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/14-Oct-13: Leftover night. Sliced the remaining pork roast and warmed it with the rest of the broccoli parmentier. For a starter we had a simple salad of mâche and rucola topped with a bit on goat cheese on toast. That's all.
Tuesday/15-Oct-13: Anniversary lunch out today. For dinner there was popcorn, carrot sticks, plums, and cherry tomatoes in front of an old movie.
Wednesday/16-Oct-13: Yogurt on overday.
Shopping today. Found a package of "homemade" croissants, like biscuits. Will try in the next days. The brand is good, but there are a lot of questionable ingredients for something that should be essentially flour and butter.
For dinner I grilled swordfish and served with Thomas's Green Sauce for Poached or Grilled Fish (MrLatte, p178). I liked this OK, but Ed not at all. Have tons of the sauce left. Maybe will freeze it up to use by the drab in salad dressing or some such. Accompanied by some trio rice and some Perfect Pan-Roasted Green Beans (HandyBook) and a little salad made of grated broccoli stems, suggested by Dusolier in a box on the Broccoli Parmentier page—grated (peeled) stems with raisins, sunflower seeds, and a yogurt dressing. Used walnuts instead of sunflower seeds. Successful salad. Two squares of hazelnut-filled chocolate for dessert.
Thursday/17-Oct-13: Finally got some pasta made for dinner. Tagliatelle, to go with Porcini-Style Shiitake Mushroom Pasta Sauce (MarCuc, p152). Tonight's mushrooms were oesterzwamen (or pleurotes or oyster mushrooms) with cremini. Nicer with porcini and shiitakes, but those aren't to be found. Strange that it's the season for cêpes, but they are not to be found in our grocery. As a starter we had Smoked Salmon Salad with Dill (BEFCC, p35), a nice little salad, quick to make. Neither of us are fennel fans, but fennel and cucumbers are a good combination.
Friday/18-Oct-13: For dinner tonight, there was Tom's Brick Chicken (CastIron, p63). I've done this before; a nice way to cook a bird. I actually started out to make a half recipe of Twin Roasted Chickens with Garlicky Bulgur Dressing (GreeneGrains, p90), but decided I didn't want to stuff a bird. Instead I just made the stuffing on the side. Good it was. And, using up the kumquats I bought last week, there was Broccoli and Kumquat Salad with Olives (Uncommon, p271). We finished off by sharing a classic Magnum. The chocolate on these just isn't as good as it used to me. Too bad.
Saturday/19-Oct-13: Yogurt on overday.
An unexpected dinner tonight, since we originally planned on going to the Fête du Vin at St Sornin tonight, but decided against it. So, we had a more or less half recipe of Shocking Pink Pasta (Dusoulier2, p115). Shocking pink, it was, too, beets and cream. I took the lazy way and used the staff mixer, but probably should have used the blender, since it was the sauce was a bit grainy. This is one of those things I'm glad I tried, but maybe don't need to make again. Although, it might make a nice starter or side dish if you needed a bit of color or a talking point at dinner.
Followed by a salad, topped with some blue goat cheese. For afters, a bit of Morbier. Both bought today at the Marché du Goût at La Rochefoucauld.
I have used quite a few seldom used cookbooks this week, but I haven't done separate posts for them. Sorry, just seems like too much trouble.
Sunday/20-Oct-13: Lunch at 4pm meant we didn't get to dinner till really late. I didn't really plan anything for today, since I thought we'd be eating out. Wrong. So it was a last minute, what-can-I-do-to-use-up-stuff-in-the-fridge sort of meal. I more or less made Spicy Eggplant Stew with Potatoes, Mushroom, and Chickpeas (WorldVeg, p196). A really tasty recipe. We split a Magnum classic for dessert.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Tuesday/15-Oct-13: Anniversary lunch out today. For dinner there was popcorn, carrot sticks, plums, and cherry tomatoes in front of an old movie.
Wednesday/16-Oct-13: Yogurt on overday.
Shopping today. Found a package of "homemade" croissants, like biscuits. Will try in the next days. The brand is good, but there are a lot of questionable ingredients for something that should be essentially flour and butter.
For dinner I grilled swordfish and served with Thomas's Green Sauce for Poached or Grilled Fish (MrLatte, p178). I liked this OK, but Ed not at all. Have tons of the sauce left. Maybe will freeze it up to use by the drab in salad dressing or some such. Accompanied by some trio rice and some Perfect Pan-Roasted Green Beans (HandyBook) and a little salad made of grated broccoli stems, suggested by Dusolier in a box on the Broccoli Parmentier page—grated (peeled) stems with raisins, sunflower seeds, and a yogurt dressing. Used walnuts instead of sunflower seeds. Successful salad. Two squares of hazelnut-filled chocolate for dessert.
Thursday/17-Oct-13: Finally got some pasta made for dinner. Tagliatelle, to go with Porcini-Style Shiitake Mushroom Pasta Sauce (MarCuc, p152). Tonight's mushrooms were oesterzwamen (or pleurotes or oyster mushrooms) with cremini. Nicer with porcini and shiitakes, but those aren't to be found. Strange that it's the season for cêpes, but they are not to be found in our grocery. As a starter we had Smoked Salmon Salad with Dill (BEFCC, p35), a nice little salad, quick to make. Neither of us are fennel fans, but fennel and cucumbers are a good combination.
Friday/18-Oct-13: For dinner tonight, there was Tom's Brick Chicken (CastIron, p63). I've done this before; a nice way to cook a bird. I actually started out to make a half recipe of Twin Roasted Chickens with Garlicky Bulgur Dressing (GreeneGrains, p90), but decided I didn't want to stuff a bird. Instead I just made the stuffing on the side. Good it was. And, using up the kumquats I bought last week, there was Broccoli and Kumquat Salad with Olives (Uncommon, p271). We finished off by sharing a classic Magnum. The chocolate on these just isn't as good as it used to me. Too bad.
Saturday/19-Oct-13: Yogurt on overday.
An unexpected dinner tonight, since we originally planned on going to the Fête du Vin at St Sornin tonight, but decided against it. So, we had a more or less half recipe of Shocking Pink Pasta (Dusoulier2, p115). Shocking pink, it was, too, beets and cream. I took the lazy way and used the staff mixer, but probably should have used the blender, since it was the sauce was a bit grainy. This is one of those things I'm glad I tried, but maybe don't need to make again. Although, it might make a nice starter or side dish if you needed a bit of color or a talking point at dinner.
Followed by a salad, topped with some blue goat cheese. For afters, a bit of Morbier. Both bought today at the Marché du Goût at La Rochefoucauld.
I have used quite a few seldom used cookbooks this week, but I haven't done separate posts for them. Sorry, just seems like too much trouble.
Sunday/20-Oct-13: Lunch at 4pm meant we didn't get to dinner till really late. I didn't really plan anything for today, since I thought we'd be eating out. Wrong. So it was a last minute, what-can-I-do-to-use-up-stuff-in-the-fridge sort of meal. I more or less made Spicy Eggplant Stew with Potatoes, Mushroom, and Chickpeas (WorldVeg, p196). A really tasty recipe. We split a Magnum classic for dessert.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Monday, November 5, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/5-Nov-12: Geen zin in het koken vandag, i.e., I didn't feel like cooking. Dinner was Omelette Soufflée aux Courgettes (VPG), which was good enough, but nothing special. Served with Haricots Verts in Walnut Oil (Lunch, p216, MC, now HandyBook). Very good, as always. We didn't eat all of them, so they will appear elsewhere in the next days. Then a big salad, including some of the roasted cauliflower.
Tuesday/6-Nov-12: Started up Lime Pickle (Shoba Ramji's Alimucha Oorga) (MJFlavs, p211) today. Licking the spoon leads me to believe this is better than the green chili pickle.
Dinner was Cheesy Broccoli Quinoa (web). This is meant as four side servings, but I thought it would do perfectly well as a main. And it did. Tasty, but a bit plain. Then an Easy Berry Cobbler (MC, HandyBook) with frozen blueberries. Served with vanilla ice cream. Yum. Blueberries aren't very pretty, but sure taste good.
Wednesday/7-Nov-12: Did the shopping today after my ophthalmologist appointment, while Ed took advantage of our little sunny spell to work on the new woodshed. Not much impulse buying.
Bought some salmon for Baked Fish with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273), using the kumquats I found shopping with BIll. Love this easy recipe, one of the few I've made from this book, but this one repeatedly. Some trio rice and some steamed broccoli. Then we finished off the blueberry cobbler with some vanilla ice cream.
Thursday/8-Nov-12: The latest issue of Vie Practique Gourmand (which is now, I see, calling itself just Gourmand) has an article with 30 best recipes for hamburgers, many of which can't be picked up to be eaten. Quite a few use what look like soft American-style hamburger buns, which I've never seen in the shops. There are burgers that are French (including foie gras), British (cod instead of hamburger), island (shrimp and pineapple), provençale (eggplant, fennel, olives), Greek (vegetarian, in pitas with feta and dried tomatoes), Indian (chicken and Madras curry powder), Thai (lamb, lemongrass, and tomato sauce), etc. The American version is a double cheeseburger with bacon, including what looks whole lot like Kraft American cheese; the ingredients just say slices of cheese, without even suggesting what kind of cheese to use. The "country burger" (in English, just like that) has a sunny-side-up egg on it. The oddest must be the tomato burger, where the bun is replaced by a large tomato, sliced in half at the equator, with a fat hamburger patty and more of the unspecified cheese slices.
There was Creamy Fettuccine with Brussels Sprouts & Mushrooms (web) for dinner. Used my mushroom-flavored chantarelle-shaped pasta instead of fettuccine. Nothing special. Roasted Brussels sprouts work, sautéed don't. Then a salad. Then small slices of store-bought hazelnut cake with a dab of vanilla ice cream.
Yogurt on overnight, with a new starter, since the last batch had some green bits in it, probably parsley bits that didn't get rinsed from the whisk. Or something.
Friday/9-Nov-12: Dinner was a half dose of Rabbit in Mustard Sauce (Essential, p466; cookbooker), quite good. Served with a whole dose of Spaetzle (MW@Home, p203) which was really too much, but was nice anyhow. Then a salad. No room for dessert.
Saturday/10-Nov-12: It was a half dose of Leek & Porcini Pappardelle (JamieMag) for dinner, and, yes, with fresh pasta, tagliatelle instead of pappardelle. Then a salad. No dessert. Especially since I ate a package of corn chips while I was making pasta.
Sunday/11-Nov-12: Remembrance Day or Veterans' Day, we went to the memorial service at our commune, then to a remembrance day lunch at our local ferme-auberge. Not even thinking of looking at food this evening.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #6 PASTA: yes
Tuesday/6-Nov-12: Started up Lime Pickle (Shoba Ramji's Alimucha Oorga) (MJFlavs, p211) today. Licking the spoon leads me to believe this is better than the green chili pickle.
Dinner was Cheesy Broccoli Quinoa (web). This is meant as four side servings, but I thought it would do perfectly well as a main. And it did. Tasty, but a bit plain. Then an Easy Berry Cobbler (MC, HandyBook) with frozen blueberries. Served with vanilla ice cream. Yum. Blueberries aren't very pretty, but sure taste good.
Wednesday/7-Nov-12: Did the shopping today after my ophthalmologist appointment, while Ed took advantage of our little sunny spell to work on the new woodshed. Not much impulse buying.
Bought some salmon for Baked Fish with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273), using the kumquats I found shopping with BIll. Love this easy recipe, one of the few I've made from this book, but this one repeatedly. Some trio rice and some steamed broccoli. Then we finished off the blueberry cobbler with some vanilla ice cream.
Thursday/8-Nov-12: The latest issue of Vie Practique Gourmand (which is now, I see, calling itself just Gourmand) has an article with 30 best recipes for hamburgers, many of which can't be picked up to be eaten. Quite a few use what look like soft American-style hamburger buns, which I've never seen in the shops. There are burgers that are French (including foie gras), British (cod instead of hamburger), island (shrimp and pineapple), provençale (eggplant, fennel, olives), Greek (vegetarian, in pitas with feta and dried tomatoes), Indian (chicken and Madras curry powder), Thai (lamb, lemongrass, and tomato sauce), etc. The American version is a double cheeseburger with bacon, including what looks whole lot like Kraft American cheese; the ingredients just say slices of cheese, without even suggesting what kind of cheese to use. The "country burger" (in English, just like that) has a sunny-side-up egg on it. The oddest must be the tomato burger, where the bun is replaced by a large tomato, sliced in half at the equator, with a fat hamburger patty and more of the unspecified cheese slices.
There was Creamy Fettuccine with Brussels Sprouts & Mushrooms (web) for dinner. Used my mushroom-flavored chantarelle-shaped pasta instead of fettuccine. Nothing special. Roasted Brussels sprouts work, sautéed don't. Then a salad. Then small slices of store-bought hazelnut cake with a dab of vanilla ice cream.
Yogurt on overnight, with a new starter, since the last batch had some green bits in it, probably parsley bits that didn't get rinsed from the whisk. Or something.
Friday/9-Nov-12: Dinner was a half dose of Rabbit in Mustard Sauce (Essential, p466; cookbooker), quite good. Served with a whole dose of Spaetzle (MW@Home, p203) which was really too much, but was nice anyhow. Then a salad. No room for dessert.
Saturday/10-Nov-12: It was a half dose of Leek & Porcini Pappardelle (JamieMag) for dinner, and, yes, with fresh pasta, tagliatelle instead of pappardelle. Then a salad. No dessert. Especially since I ate a package of corn chips while I was making pasta.
Sunday/11-Nov-12: Remembrance Day or Veterans' Day, we went to the memorial service at our commune, then to a remembrance day lunch at our local ferme-auberge. Not even thinking of looking at food this evening.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 5
This month: #6 PASTA: yes
Monday, May 7, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/7-May-12: A nice quiz dinner this evening. Nothing happening in the kitchen,
Tuesday/8-May-12: Had an idea to make fresh pasta today, but that didn't work. Dinner was a half dose of Linguine with Lemon, Garlic, and Thyme Mushrooms (web) with DeCecco linguine. Then a salad. Then the rest of the bread pudding, with some strawberries.
Wednesday/9-May-12: Yogurt on overday. Shopping today. There were green asparagus this time, so the new recipes go back on the plan.
Dinner was an oldie-but-goodie, Baked Fish with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273) with some very nice salmon fillets. Accompanied by clean-out-the-fridge roasted veggies.
Thursday/10-May-12: Bought apples and plums for apple-plum butter last week, and added three Golden Delicious apples that tasted ok but had a terrible texture. Made up a more-or-less double dose of Apple-Plum Butter, and gave the extra to Vanessa and family.
Dinner was Thai Rice Noodles with Chicken and Asparagus (EAT-L). Wasn't bad, surprisingly unspicy, even though I added more than a full amount of chili-garlic sauce for a half recipe. Ed added a goodly dose of sriracha at the table. Maybe not a keeper.
Friday/11-May-12: Using up some of the frozen, grated zucchini still in the freezer, dinner was Penne with Zucchini Pistou (CL/jul10). The recipe had you slice the zuke, but the grated worked fine. It wasn't bad at all. Some double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Made up some rub for tomorrow's roast chicken. Rubbed it in and have the chickie sitting in the fridge till it's time to cook it.
Saturday/12-May-12: Simple dinner tonight, Mimi's Sticky Chicken (somewhere on the web), rubbed, then slow-roasted. I put the rub under the skin, rather than on it, and the meat turned out too salty. Not sure why it's supposed to be "sticky". Mine wasn't. But it's a pretty good way to do a chicken, long cooking at 250F. Accompanied by some boiled potatoes and haricots verts. All tasty. The rest of the strawberries for dessert.
Sunday/13-May-12: Dinner was Asparagus and Mushroom Risotto (EatingWell). Tasty. But risottos that start off with red wine are not as pretty as those that start off with white wine. To use up the asparagus, there was a bit more than 2 servings, so we're stuffed. With a salad and some camembert after.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Tuesday/8-May-12: Had an idea to make fresh pasta today, but that didn't work. Dinner was a half dose of Linguine with Lemon, Garlic, and Thyme Mushrooms (web) with DeCecco linguine. Then a salad. Then the rest of the bread pudding, with some strawberries.
Wednesday/9-May-12: Yogurt on overday. Shopping today. There were green asparagus this time, so the new recipes go back on the plan.
Dinner was an oldie-but-goodie, Baked Fish with Kumquats and Ginger (Uncommon, p273) with some very nice salmon fillets. Accompanied by clean-out-the-fridge roasted veggies.
Thursday/10-May-12: Bought apples and plums for apple-plum butter last week, and added three Golden Delicious apples that tasted ok but had a terrible texture. Made up a more-or-less double dose of Apple-Plum Butter, and gave the extra to Vanessa and family.
Dinner was Thai Rice Noodles with Chicken and Asparagus (EAT-L). Wasn't bad, surprisingly unspicy, even though I added more than a full amount of chili-garlic sauce for a half recipe. Ed added a goodly dose of sriracha at the table. Maybe not a keeper.
Friday/11-May-12: Using up some of the frozen, grated zucchini still in the freezer, dinner was Penne with Zucchini Pistou (CL/jul10). The recipe had you slice the zuke, but the grated worked fine. It wasn't bad at all. Some double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Made up some rub for tomorrow's roast chicken. Rubbed it in and have the chickie sitting in the fridge till it's time to cook it.
Saturday/12-May-12: Simple dinner tonight, Mimi's Sticky Chicken (somewhere on the web), rubbed, then slow-roasted. I put the rub under the skin, rather than on it, and the meat turned out too salty. Not sure why it's supposed to be "sticky". Mine wasn't. But it's a pretty good way to do a chicken, long cooking at 250F. Accompanied by some boiled potatoes and haricots verts. All tasty. The rest of the strawberries for dessert.
Sunday/13-May-12: Dinner was Asparagus and Mushroom Risotto (EatingWell). Tasty. But risottos that start off with red wine are not as pretty as those that start off with white wine. To use up the asparagus, there was a bit more than 2 servings, so we're stuffed. With a salad and some camembert after.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Monday, May 9, 2011
This week in the kitchen V2
Monday/9-May-11: There was a quart of strawberries, so I made a half recipe of Grandmother Katie's Strawberry Preserves. The recipe seemed clear enough when I typed it up years and years and years ago, but when I actually did it, I've got lots of questions. And no one to ask. Don't we miss our grandmothers! Before being jarred, it has to sit in a bowl (at room temp?) for 3 days or more, getting stirred a couple of times a day. Too bad I'm not such a big strawberry jam fan.
Dinner was a quickie, good, if quick—a half recipe of Tonnarelli ai Canestrelli (Tonnarelli with Scallops) (ClassPast, p107), scallops, with De Cecco linguine in this case. An interesting recipe because a part of the scallops were chopped fine. Probably the larger ones could have been quartered. Served with a salad of mâche.
Tuesday/10-May-11: Yogurt on overday. Busy stirring the strawberry preserves periodically as directed.
We had our main meal at lunch today. Started with a Greek-ish zucchini salad (as that was the only veg in the fridge—where did the broccoli go that I thought was there?), steamed zucch slices tossed with olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, and mint and topped with crumbled feta. Served with red lettuce leaves from the garden.
For the main, I roasted a pintade/guinea hen in the Romertopf, salted, with a lemon stuck up its bum, sprinkled with lemon thyme leaves from the garden, and surrounded by carrots and potatoes. Its feet came untucked while it was cooking.
It's so easy to cook a bird or whatever in the Romertopf. I just forget about. It is funny that it actually browns while closed in the dish.
Anticipating that I won't feel much like chewing after surgery on Friday, I've started a bit pot of stock, using the pintade and a chicken carcass from the freezer.
Wednesday/11-May-11 and Thursday/12-May-11: Cloud computing, ha! Blogger's gone and lost two days of updates here! If they're restored, I'll update this. Meanwhile, I'll try to remember what was going. Some things that happened:
Dinner was a quickie, good, if quick—a half recipe of Tonnarelli ai Canestrelli (Tonnarelli with Scallops) (ClassPast, p107), scallops, with De Cecco linguine in this case. An interesting recipe because a part of the scallops were chopped fine. Probably the larger ones could have been quartered. Served with a salad of mâche.
Tuesday/10-May-11: Yogurt on overday. Busy stirring the strawberry preserves periodically as directed.
We had our main meal at lunch today. Started with a Greek-ish zucchini salad (as that was the only veg in the fridge—where did the broccoli go that I thought was there?), steamed zucch slices tossed with olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, and mint and topped with crumbled feta. Served with red lettuce leaves from the garden.
For the main, I roasted a pintade/guinea hen in the Romertopf, salted, with a lemon stuck up its bum, sprinkled with lemon thyme leaves from the garden, and surrounded by carrots and potatoes. Its feet came untucked while it was cooking.
It's so easy to cook a bird or whatever in the Romertopf. I just forget about. It is funny that it actually browns while closed in the dish.
Anticipating that I won't feel much like chewing after surgery on Friday, I've started a bit pot of stock, using the pintade and a chicken carcass from the freezer.
Wednesday/11-May-11 and Thursday/12-May-11: Cloud computing, ha! Blogger's gone and lost two days of updates here! If they're restored, I'll update this. Meanwhile, I'll try to remember what was going. Some things that happened:
- Wednesday evening I made Lime-Pepper Chicken (MC). Served with polenta, and ... a veg, but what veg?
- Using cherries from our tree, I made up the broth for cherry sorbet. Had a senior moment, intending to make a half recipe, but ended up with a whole recipe, using only a (short) half of the sugar.
- Thursday, I jarred up the strawberry preserves; took one to Barbara and David, who provided the berries; the other is for us.
- Dinner was Fava Risotto with Fresh Sage (Uncommon, p185, cookbooker). And a salad. And for dessert ...
- Froze the Cherry Sorbet (Scoop, p127) using cherries from the garden.
Yogurt on overnight.
Friday/13-May-11: Yay! Didn't have to stay in the hospital overnight! (I had salivary gland stones removed.) Hadn't really planned on dinner, since Ed had planned to eat out during the day, but that didn't happen. Quickly defrosted some Creamy Roasted Carrot Sauce, grated some Parmesan, boiled some spinach penne, and that was our late dinner.
Saturday/14-May-11: Nice healthy chicken noodle soup tonight, well, bird noodle soup. Broth was chicken and guinea hen; meat was turkey; noodles were whole wheat. A big shot of tabasco and it made a tasty soup.
Friday/13-May-11: Yay! Didn't have to stay in the hospital overnight! (I had salivary gland stones removed.) Hadn't really planned on dinner, since Ed had planned to eat out during the day, but that didn't happen. Quickly defrosted some Creamy Roasted Carrot Sauce, grated some Parmesan, boiled some spinach penne, and that was our late dinner.
Saturday/14-May-11: Nice healthy chicken noodle soup tonight, well, bird noodle soup. Broth was chicken and guinea hen; meat was turkey; noodles were whole wheat. A big shot of tabasco and it made a tasty soup.
Ed picked a kilo or two of cherries. I'll have to find something more to do with these.
Sunday/15-May-11: Dinner was a quiche/tart thing with broccoli, roquefort, and walnuts, a very nice combination. Then a salad of roquette (rocket or arugula), with a vinaigrette featuring the walnut oil from the nuts we shelled. Then a clafoutis de cerises, (Petit, p898, with touches from others).
Sunday/15-May-11: Dinner was a quiche/tart thing with broccoli, roquefort, and walnuts, a very nice combination. Then a salad of roquette (rocket or arugula), with a vinaigrette featuring the walnut oil from the nuts we shelled. Then a clafoutis de cerises, (Petit, p898, with touches from others).
Went to the boulanger this afternoon only to find that they're on vacation. Bread in overnight, Authentic French Bread (Magic, p22) the only ATM bread whose recipe I can remember.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: yes, #2 SOUP: yes, #3 MIDDAY: yes
This month: #4 PASTA: yes
Progress on goals
This week: #1 VEG/FISH: yes, #2 SOUP: yes, #3 MIDDAY: yes
This month: #4 PASTA: yes
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