Monday/18-Mar-19: Dinner was a half recipe of Caramelized Onion Frittata with Artichoke Hearts, Zucchini and Goat Cheese (web). This fit in my bigger cast iron skillet and was quite good. The frittata is first cooked on the top of the stove and then finished under the broiler. It worked really well. Then a salad. Then some chocolate-covered madeleines.
Tuesday/19-Mar-19: Tamale dinner tonight courtesy of Chris and Amy. With Mama's Spanish rice and guacamole. And some ice cream after, a mini-cup for me and a mini-bar for Ed. We enjoyed it.
Wednesday/20-Mar-19: Shopping today.
Dinner was a half dose of Foil-Baked Fish Filets (Mustard, p175; cookbooker). Not very good. Served with tiny boiled potatoes. Those were good. Got a cheesecakey thing for dessert (new, on sale). It was so good we ate it all. Oink, oink.
Thursday/21-Mar-19: Started a batch of Pickled Broccoli Stems (VeryBest, p36). To be finished tomorrow.
For an afternoon snack I cleared out some leftovers, topping small tortillas with goat cheese, artichoke hearts from a jar, and roasted red bell peppers strips from a jar. Pretty tasty.
Loosely based on Parsley Chicken en Croûte (MC), I used some frozen squares of pâte feuilettée and stuffed with kip filets, topped with some jarred chestnut-mushroom mixture that's been hanging around in the pantry cabinet for way too long, some parsley, and a dab of crème fraîche that needed to be used. It was pretty good. With trio rice and steamed rice. Chocolate-covered madeleines for dessert.
Friday/22-Mar-19: Finished the Pickled Broccoli Stems today. We'll see how they are tomorrow.
Our afternoon snack turned out bigger than I expected. I boiled up a bit of whole wheat pasta. While that was happening, I sautéed some red onion, then added minced garlic, a bit of zucchini, and some leftover chickpeas and canned corn. It was pretty good, but more than we needed really.
For dinner, there were Easy Salmon Patties (Mustard, p171). These were good, bland salmon patties. Got better with Fiery Habañero Hot Sauce, but that's what this sauce is good for. As a side, some snijbonen chunks. Then we finished the chaource. I'm full.
Saturday/23-Mar-19: Cath came for a meal this afternoon before we went to a movie. We ate outside and started with Cold Beetroot with Cream (Pomiane, p180), an old favorite, plus Mushroom Salad—Salade de Champignons à la Crème (BEFCC, p31), a new dish from a favorite book which was pretty good. Our main was Garlic, Mushroom and Olive Chicken Thighs (web). This was easy and tasty. Have lots of juice and veg left, which I'll buzz up for a potage in the next days. Served with teeny potatoes boiled, buttered, and parsleyed. We had ice cream bars at the cinema for dessert.
Sunday/24-Mar-19: I'm enjoying munching on the pickled broccoli stems. Haven't offered them to Ed yet.
Good dinner tonight. Halfish verions of all. Lots of leftovers. We had Grilled Lamb Chops with Pomegranate-Eggplant Relish (License, p144). The barbecued lamb chops, with a rub of ground coriander, ground cumin, S&P, were delicious. The relish (why isn't this just a veggie side dish?) was delicious. Served with Potato Salad with Arugula & Dijon Vinaigrette (web), which was good. And Mesquite Grilled Broccoli with Preserved Lemons and Greek Yogurt. This is, I think, from a cookbook that I've recently recycled. Our broccoli wasn't mesquite-grilled, but grilled on a grill pan; it could have been parboiled a bit longer. But it was tasty anyhow. We ate well and enjoyed a lovely bottle of Haut Medoc.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 3; #3 COOKBOOK: yes
Cookbooks of the month: The Incredible Secrets of Mustard
This month: #4 PASTA: no; #5 BREAD: no; #6 GUESTS: yes
This year: #7 PROJECT: no
Showing posts with label ~VeryBest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ~VeryBest. Show all posts
Monday, March 18, 2019
Monday, August 29, 2016
This week in the kitchen
Monday/29-Aug-16: Much cooler today—hooray!
Dinner was Zucchini Onion Pie (web; cookbooker), a 70s-style recipe (remember all kinds of bisquik pies?), but still good. Served with some shredded cabbage tossed with sauce left from last week Viennese zucchini dish. Some young goat cheese, a bouygette, with crackers for after.
Tuesday/30-Aug-16: Shopping today, since the next days are busy. What a mess in the expanding Leclerc! No butcher for several days. (Thus no sale items from the butcher section.) Lots of departments mid-move. The new traffic flow is unclear. I'm assuming there will be a new entrance to the shop proper. The café where we usually lunch on shopping day is closing till mid-November.
Dinner was Asian Salmon and Noodles (web). This was okay, but nothing special. I used spaghettoni for the noodles. Leclerc hasn't had these (fresh noodles) for maybe a year, but they were on sale this week and I bought three packages. Two in the freezer and one for dinner. Ed had a magnum bar for dessert; I had one bite.
We walked down to the potager after dinner. Picked our first two tomatoes and one small eggplant. There's a strange looking cuke waiting a few more days, but no zukes to be seen.
Wednesday/31-Aug-16: Lunch out today. Nothing happened in the kitchen.
Thursday/1-Sep-16: A quick dinner tonight before going out to a concert. We shared a can of a "spicy" tongue stew, which wasn't bad, but spicy it wasn't. The ground black pepper in the mashed potatoes had more piquancy. And there was steamed broccoli with a squeeze of lemon juice. Not bad, all in all.
Friday/2-Sep-16: I really seem to be on an Asian noodle kick for some reason. Tonight we had Hot and Sour Soba Salad (VeryBest, p60; cookbooker). We finished off the bouygette of goat cheese for afters.
Saturday/3-Sep-16: Didn't feel much like cooking today, so we had the leftover Zucchini Onion Pie with a big salad. That was it.
Updated my kitchen goals page earlier this week. Not doing too well there. After a brief spurt working on my recipe backlog, nothing has happened since February. Haven't made pasta since January. Have only made bread once. Am managing to keep up with the Foods of the World. That's something.
Finished reading Twenty this week. A really good book. Now need to add lots of recipes to my to-do list.
Sunday/4-Sep-16: Ed said it was time for some Tex-Mex food, so that was today's meal. We had cheese enchiladas as Mama taught me to make them, using some of Robb Walsh's recipe for enchilada sauce (Chile Purée) that I had in the freezer. And Mama's Spanish rice, my variation made without tomatoes for Ed. And guacamole. That was all. Some fruit in the evening.
Yogurt on overnight. (And this isn't the first time this week, just the first time I've remembered to write it down.)
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no for Aug, no for Sep; #4 BREAD: yes for Aug, no for Sep; #5 FotW: no for Aug/Sep
Dinner was Zucchini Onion Pie (web; cookbooker), a 70s-style recipe (remember all kinds of bisquik pies?), but still good. Served with some shredded cabbage tossed with sauce left from last week Viennese zucchini dish. Some young goat cheese, a bouygette, with crackers for after.
Tuesday/30-Aug-16: Shopping today, since the next days are busy. What a mess in the expanding Leclerc! No butcher for several days. (Thus no sale items from the butcher section.) Lots of departments mid-move. The new traffic flow is unclear. I'm assuming there will be a new entrance to the shop proper. The café where we usually lunch on shopping day is closing till mid-November.
Dinner was Asian Salmon and Noodles (web). This was okay, but nothing special. I used spaghettoni for the noodles. Leclerc hasn't had these (fresh noodles) for maybe a year, but they were on sale this week and I bought three packages. Two in the freezer and one for dinner. Ed had a magnum bar for dessert; I had one bite.
We walked down to the potager after dinner. Picked our first two tomatoes and one small eggplant. There's a strange looking cuke waiting a few more days, but no zukes to be seen.
Wednesday/31-Aug-16: Lunch out today. Nothing happened in the kitchen.
Thursday/1-Sep-16: A quick dinner tonight before going out to a concert. We shared a can of a "spicy" tongue stew, which wasn't bad, but spicy it wasn't. The ground black pepper in the mashed potatoes had more piquancy. And there was steamed broccoli with a squeeze of lemon juice. Not bad, all in all.
Friday/2-Sep-16: I really seem to be on an Asian noodle kick for some reason. Tonight we had Hot and Sour Soba Salad (VeryBest, p60; cookbooker). We finished off the bouygette of goat cheese for afters.
Saturday/3-Sep-16: Didn't feel much like cooking today, so we had the leftover Zucchini Onion Pie with a big salad. That was it.
Updated my kitchen goals page earlier this week. Not doing too well there. After a brief spurt working on my recipe backlog, nothing has happened since February. Haven't made pasta since January. Have only made bread once. Am managing to keep up with the Foods of the World. That's something.
Finished reading Twenty this week. A really good book. Now need to add lots of recipes to my to-do list.
Sunday/4-Sep-16: Ed said it was time for some Tex-Mex food, so that was today's meal. We had cheese enchiladas as Mama taught me to make them, using some of Robb Walsh's recipe for enchilada sauce (Chile Purée) that I had in the freezer. And Mama's Spanish rice, my variation made without tomatoes for Ed. And guacamole. That was all. Some fruit in the evening.
Yogurt on overnight. (And this isn't the first time this week, just the first time I've remembered to write it down.)
Progress on goals
This week: #1 BACKLOG: no; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no for Aug, no for Sep; #4 BREAD: yes for Aug, no for Sep; #5 FotW: no for Aug/Sep
Monday, September 22, 2014
This week in the kitchen
Monday/22-Sep-14: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was Pasta with Tuna and Olives (VeryBest, p210; cookbooker). My can of tuna was the same size required in the recipe for four, so I make all the sauce but only half the pasta. The olives should have been coarsely chopped rather than halved, but otherwise it was quite good. Easy and fast. Then a big salad.
Tuesday/23-Sep-14: It was supposed to be an IHCC dinner, for which I cooked a batch of chickpeas this morning, but I turned out to have missed a somewhat important ingredient, so made a quick change to Chickpea and Sweet Potato Curry (web), which was OK, but nothing particularly special. Lots of veg, chickpeas, sweet potato, peas, and tomatoes, which was nice. A big dose of lime pickle helped the flavor. Served over rice.
Wednesday/24-Sep-14: Shopping today. Then a dinner buffet at an acoustic open mike event at a nearby restaurant.
Thursday/25-Sep-14: I was up early and off to an all-day mosaic "taste" class that included lunch. Good fun but tiring. Got home quite late. Had a small sandwich and fruit and off to bed.
Friday/26-Sep-14: Yogurt on overday.
In the afternoon I made some Homemade Sausage (30MinPasta, p161; Handybook). Lots for the freezer and a small amount for a coming dinner.
After that, I made myself at Pineaujito (web). I was a bit dubious about this idea, but it worked pretty well.
For dinner there was Sriracha Garlic Tofu with Mint (web), along with rice and Thai Carrot and Radish Salad (web). The main was quite good, but emphasized the crummy tofu we get here. Also, it should be cut slightly smaller, maybe in spears or somthing more interesting than cubes. Good flavor, though. The salad was also good and went with the tofu very well. I haven't found any "sweet chilli dipping sauce," so used slightly less sriracha and added a dollop of plum jam. No lettuce, just served it plain. All good stuff. We split a magnum classic after. (I'd have really liked just a spoonful of pineapple sherbet, but there was none available.
Saturday/27-Sep-14: Before dinner, I made some Chipotle Brownies (web). (This is a recipe from Family Circle. I eventually managed to find the recipe there, but it was such a miserable experience that I wouldn't recommend their site to anyone.) I had only 1/2oz of semisweet chocolate (instead of 3), so I used a total on 4-1/2 oz of unsweetened chocolate. To compensate I didn't seriously reduce the sugar measure as I usually do. Instead of chocolate chunks added at the end, I had the tiny French chocolate chips, which are really quite good. We had these for dessert and good they were.
The main was Salmon with Curried Cabbage (web). (You'll find this recipe lots of places. Some of them will say it serves four, which is not possible. It's meant to serve one, and that makes sense. I doubled it.) I got this recipe from EAT-L, and didn't realizethat it was meant to be cooked in the microwave (duh) . So I sautéed the cabbage bit in butter and oil, then did the salmon under the broiler. Served with trio rice. Pretty good.
Set a pair of kip filets to marinate for tomorrow's dinner.
Sunday/28-Sep-14: Dinner was Grilled Tandoori Chicken (web), which was very easy to assemble and surprisingly good. I used kip filets, but I expect any bits of chick would work fine as long as they have a good long marinade. Cooked on the grill outside, thank you Ed. Served with Karhai Broccoli (MJ@Home, p148) and Turmeric Rice (Q&E, p100). Both of these are tried&true recipes.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: yes; #5 BREAD: no
Dinner was Pasta with Tuna and Olives (VeryBest, p210; cookbooker). My can of tuna was the same size required in the recipe for four, so I make all the sauce but only half the pasta. The olives should have been coarsely chopped rather than halved, but otherwise it was quite good. Easy and fast. Then a big salad.
Tuesday/23-Sep-14: It was supposed to be an IHCC dinner, for which I cooked a batch of chickpeas this morning, but I turned out to have missed a somewhat important ingredient, so made a quick change to Chickpea and Sweet Potato Curry (web), which was OK, but nothing particularly special. Lots of veg, chickpeas, sweet potato, peas, and tomatoes, which was nice. A big dose of lime pickle helped the flavor. Served over rice.
Wednesday/24-Sep-14: Shopping today. Then a dinner buffet at an acoustic open mike event at a nearby restaurant.
Thursday/25-Sep-14: I was up early and off to an all-day mosaic "taste" class that included lunch. Good fun but tiring. Got home quite late. Had a small sandwich and fruit and off to bed.
Friday/26-Sep-14: Yogurt on overday.
In the afternoon I made some Homemade Sausage (30MinPasta, p161; Handybook). Lots for the freezer and a small amount for a coming dinner.
After that, I made myself at Pineaujito (web). I was a bit dubious about this idea, but it worked pretty well.
For dinner there was Sriracha Garlic Tofu with Mint (web), along with rice and Thai Carrot and Radish Salad (web). The main was quite good, but emphasized the crummy tofu we get here. Also, it should be cut slightly smaller, maybe in spears or somthing more interesting than cubes. Good flavor, though. The salad was also good and went with the tofu very well. I haven't found any "sweet chilli dipping sauce," so used slightly less sriracha and added a dollop of plum jam. No lettuce, just served it plain. All good stuff. We split a magnum classic after. (I'd have really liked just a spoonful of pineapple sherbet, but there was none available.
Saturday/27-Sep-14: Before dinner, I made some Chipotle Brownies (web). (This is a recipe from Family Circle. I eventually managed to find the recipe there, but it was such a miserable experience that I wouldn't recommend their site to anyone.) I had only 1/2oz of semisweet chocolate (instead of 3), so I used a total on 4-1/2 oz of unsweetened chocolate. To compensate I didn't seriously reduce the sugar measure as I usually do. Instead of chocolate chunks added at the end, I had the tiny French chocolate chips, which are really quite good. We had these for dessert and good they were.
The main was Salmon with Curried Cabbage (web). (You'll find this recipe lots of places. Some of them will say it serves four, which is not possible. It's meant to serve one, and that makes sense. I doubled it.) I got this recipe from EAT-L, and didn't realizethat it was meant to be cooked in the microwave (duh) . So I sautéed the cabbage bit in butter and oil, then did the salmon under the broiler. Served with trio rice. Pretty good.
Set a pair of kip filets to marinate for tomorrow's dinner.
Sunday/28-Sep-14: Dinner was Grilled Tandoori Chicken (web), which was very easy to assemble and surprisingly good. I used kip filets, but I expect any bits of chick would work fine as long as they have a good long marinade. Cooked on the grill outside, thank you Ed. Served with Karhai Broccoli (MJ@Home, p148) and Turmeric Rice (Q&E, p100). Both of these are tried&true recipes.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes; #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no; #4 FotW: yes; #5 BREAD: no
Monday, December 2, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/2-Dec-13: It was Baked Orzo with Tomatoes, Roasted Pepper, and Zucchini (VeryBest, p217; cookbooker) tonight. Good it was. Thought to make a salad as a go-with, but decided there was plenty of veg in the dish. Recipe supposedly made 6 servings. Maybe as a side. Two of us ate it all as a main; might serve 3 with a salad.
Tuesday/3-Dec-13: First there was Green Soup from the freezer, an Indian-ish cream of pea soup. For the main I halved a recipe, Tartelette aux Crevettes, Curry, et Courgette (VPG, although I've found it on several different sites with the same picture). Instead of a proper tartelette, I used the last bit of the pumpkin pie crust to make "lids" for the filling. Easy and pretty good, it was.
Wednesday/4-Dec-13: Shopping today.
Dinner was a half dose of Risotto de Quinoa, Courgette, et Saumon (VPG), a risotto with quinoa (I used red because the regular stuff was out of date and smelled off) instead of rice. Not bad. Glad I tried it. Don't need to do it again. Then a salad. Then we split a classic magnum.
Thursday/5-Dec-13: Yogurt on overday.
Leftover roast pork and the pasta/veg thing for dinner. That was all.
Friday/6-Dec-13: The planned dinner involved soaking quinoa overnight, and I hadn't noticed. (Soaking quinoa?) So that's been postponed. Instead, I scratched my felafel itch. In the Netherlands I used to occasionally buy packaged felafels, that only needed to be heated, at the the health food store. But I haven't found these at the health food stores here. But I finally found a packaged mix at Carrefour. I mixed it up, added some extra spices (ground roasted cumin, ground coriander, and cayenne), then followed Bittman's instructions for baking—10-15min each side at 375F. Pretty good, and not greasy-fried. Served with Tahini Dipping Sauce (WofE, p359). As go-withs, there was Michotela (Cream Cheese and Cucumber Salad) (Roden, p65)——and Eggplant with Tomatoes (Roden, p286). The first is an old favorite; the "cream cheese" of the title is feta. The second was new to us, OK, but nothing special. My copy of Roden is falling to bits, but I guess it a bit wasteful to replace it and lost all the notes and smells of my old book. It's going to become a rubber-band book to hold it together.
Saturday/7-Dec-13: Rubbed the Chipotle-Sage Rub (from last summer) from the freezer under the skin of a spatchcocked chicken, plopped it on top of some chunked potatoes, carrots, garlic, and shallots. Popped all in the oven for an hour or so. Pretty good. For dessert with had chocolate maquises from the boulager.
Sunday/8-Dec-13: In the afternoon, I took the leftover pitas from Friday and made Cumin Pita Chips (Spicy, p36). Haven't made those in a while. A nice munchy.
Not feeling too good tonight, not feeling like cooking, no appetite. Defrosted some chicken adobo and served with rice and a quick sauté of shrooms, asparagus, and zucchini. That's all folks!
Ed forgot to mention this morning that there was only one yogurt in the frdige, so I didn't make. And don't feel like it tonight, so it will wait till tomorrow.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no
Tuesday/3-Dec-13: First there was Green Soup from the freezer, an Indian-ish cream of pea soup. For the main I halved a recipe, Tartelette aux Crevettes, Curry, et Courgette (VPG, although I've found it on several different sites with the same picture). Instead of a proper tartelette, I used the last bit of the pumpkin pie crust to make "lids" for the filling. Easy and pretty good, it was.
Wednesday/4-Dec-13: Shopping today.
Dinner was a half dose of Risotto de Quinoa, Courgette, et Saumon (VPG), a risotto with quinoa (I used red because the regular stuff was out of date and smelled off) instead of rice. Not bad. Glad I tried it. Don't need to do it again. Then a salad. Then we split a classic magnum.
Thursday/5-Dec-13: Yogurt on overday.
Leftover roast pork and the pasta/veg thing for dinner. That was all.
Friday/6-Dec-13: The planned dinner involved soaking quinoa overnight, and I hadn't noticed. (Soaking quinoa?) So that's been postponed. Instead, I scratched my felafel itch. In the Netherlands I used to occasionally buy packaged felafels, that only needed to be heated, at the the health food store. But I haven't found these at the health food stores here. But I finally found a packaged mix at Carrefour. I mixed it up, added some extra spices (ground roasted cumin, ground coriander, and cayenne), then followed Bittman's instructions for baking—10-15min each side at 375F. Pretty good, and not greasy-fried. Served with Tahini Dipping Sauce (WofE, p359). As go-withs, there was Michotela (Cream Cheese and Cucumber Salad) (Roden, p65)——and Eggplant with Tomatoes (Roden, p286). The first is an old favorite; the "cream cheese" of the title is feta. The second was new to us, OK, but nothing special. My copy of Roden is falling to bits, but I guess it a bit wasteful to replace it and lost all the notes and smells of my old book. It's going to become a rubber-band book to hold it together.
Saturday/7-Dec-13: Rubbed the Chipotle-Sage Rub (from last summer) from the freezer under the skin of a spatchcocked chicken, plopped it on top of some chunked potatoes, carrots, garlic, and shallots. Popped all in the oven for an hour or so. Pretty good. For dessert with had chocolate maquises from the boulager.
Sunday/8-Dec-13: In the afternoon, I took the leftover pitas from Friday and made Cumin Pita Chips (Spicy, p36). Haven't made those in a while. A nice munchy.
Not feeling too good tonight, not feeling like cooking, no appetite. Defrosted some chicken adobo and served with rice and a quick sauté of shrooms, asparagus, and zucchini. That's all folks!
Ed forgot to mention this morning that there was only one yogurt in the frdige, so I didn't make. And don't feel like it tonight, so it will wait till tomorrow.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: no, #4 BREAD: no
Monday, April 15, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/15-Apr-13: Authentic French Bread in the ABM early, in time to have bread for lunch.
Went to make planned dinner and discovered that my eggplant was moldy. Had to scare up a Plan B. Quickly defrosted some merguez de volaille (spicy poultry sausages) to grill. Parboiled some broccoli and make some grilled broccoli similar to the Ottolenghi one, but with pepper flakes in the oil. Mixed up last night's potato salad and peas. Grill the merguez after the broccoli. Not bad at all. With the ricotta I'd defrosted for Plan A, I made some Coffee Ricotta Mousse (MW@Home, p307), well, I actually make a Chocolate Coffee Ricotta Mousse, adapted from this recipe. Easy and tasty.
Tuesday/16-Apr-13: Ed had a doctor's appointment this afternoon, so we shopped afterwards and had an easy dinner. Warmed up the leftover asparagus tart and had a big salad after. And more of easter bunny #2. (They were still on half-price sale, so we bought set #4, including an extra for company coming soon.) Got the Strawberry Sour Cream/Fromage Blanc Ice Cream out of the freezer. Yum!
Wednesday/17-Apr-13: Dinner was a half dose of Baked Halibut with Tomato Caper Sauce (VeryBest, p300), with haddock (eglefin) instead of halibut (flétan). The sauce was good and used up the last of my frozen tomato sauce. Served with trio rice (not quite right) and some steamed broccoli. Double chocolate mini magnums for after.
Yogurt on overnight.
Thursday/18-Apr-13: Impulse-bought some fava beans the other day. Cleaned those up, parboiled them, peeled them, then made (more or less) Strozzapreti with Favas, Peas, and Prosciutto (web). Never heard of strozzapreti, but the photo looks rather like cascareccia or gemelli, so I used that instead. Good enough, but a bit bland. If I did this again, think I'd use lardons and add them with the shallot, so they crisp up a bit and give some texture. Usually a kilo of fêves gives enough for two people for dinner, but these were pretty full, so we'll have them again in a day or so. I love favas, but don't like that you get to know each bean intimately, first unshelling them, then peeling each one.
Friday/19-Apr-13: Using up the favas tonight, there was (sort of) a half dose of Risotto of Favas, Country Ham, and Savory (VegA2Z, p65). Sort of ... used lardons instead of prosciutto, dried thyme (the outdoor stuff having largely not made it through the winter) plus garden mint and sage. Was good, nevertheless. For dessert, this week's IHCC root vegetable turned up as Carrot and Walnut Cake (Otto, p200).
Saturday/20-Apr-13: Out for the evening. Nothing happening in the kitchen.
Sunday/21-Apr-13: Yogurt on overday.
Ed's stitches out today. Thumb looking pretty good all things considered.
Off to an early evening concert today. Dinner was Lamb Pitas with Cucumbers and Yogurt Sauce (web), using up same lamb from the freezer. Good stuff. I liked the sour or the cuke salad with the lamb and the yogurt. Then a bit of Strawberry Fromage Blanc Ice Cream.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Went to make planned dinner and discovered that my eggplant was moldy. Had to scare up a Plan B. Quickly defrosted some merguez de volaille (spicy poultry sausages) to grill. Parboiled some broccoli and make some grilled broccoli similar to the Ottolenghi one, but with pepper flakes in the oil. Mixed up last night's potato salad and peas. Grill the merguez after the broccoli. Not bad at all. With the ricotta I'd defrosted for Plan A, I made some Coffee Ricotta Mousse (MW@Home, p307), well, I actually make a Chocolate Coffee Ricotta Mousse, adapted from this recipe. Easy and tasty.
Tuesday/16-Apr-13: Ed had a doctor's appointment this afternoon, so we shopped afterwards and had an easy dinner. Warmed up the leftover asparagus tart and had a big salad after. And more of easter bunny #2. (They were still on half-price sale, so we bought set #4, including an extra for company coming soon.) Got the Strawberry Sour Cream/Fromage Blanc Ice Cream out of the freezer. Yum!
Wednesday/17-Apr-13: Dinner was a half dose of Baked Halibut with Tomato Caper Sauce (VeryBest, p300), with haddock (eglefin) instead of halibut (flétan). The sauce was good and used up the last of my frozen tomato sauce. Served with trio rice (not quite right) and some steamed broccoli. Double chocolate mini magnums for after.
Yogurt on overnight.
Thursday/18-Apr-13: Impulse-bought some fava beans the other day. Cleaned those up, parboiled them, peeled them, then made (more or less) Strozzapreti with Favas, Peas, and Prosciutto (web). Never heard of strozzapreti, but the photo looks rather like cascareccia or gemelli, so I used that instead. Good enough, but a bit bland. If I did this again, think I'd use lardons and add them with the shallot, so they crisp up a bit and give some texture. Usually a kilo of fêves gives enough for two people for dinner, but these were pretty full, so we'll have them again in a day or so. I love favas, but don't like that you get to know each bean intimately, first unshelling them, then peeling each one.
Friday/19-Apr-13: Using up the favas tonight, there was (sort of) a half dose of Risotto of Favas, Country Ham, and Savory (VegA2Z, p65). Sort of ... used lardons instead of prosciutto, dried thyme (the outdoor stuff having largely not made it through the winter) plus garden mint and sage. Was good, nevertheless. For dessert, this week's IHCC root vegetable turned up as Carrot and Walnut Cake (Otto, p200).
Saturday/20-Apr-13: Out for the evening. Nothing happening in the kitchen.
Sunday/21-Apr-13: Yogurt on overday.
Ed's stitches out today. Thumb looking pretty good all things considered.
Off to an early evening concert today. Dinner was Lamb Pitas with Cucumbers and Yogurt Sauce (web), using up same lamb from the freezer. Good stuff. I liked the sour or the cuke salad with the lamb and the yogurt. Then a bit of Strawberry Fromage Blanc Ice Cream.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Monday, January 14, 2013
This week in the kitchen
Monday/14-Jan-13: During the day, I looked, a bit belatedly, through Vie Pratique Gourmand's holiday issue. It's chockful of good ideas. Think I'm going to save it, rather than tossing it, and maybe I'll find some ideas for the next holiday season.
An early dinner so we could try going to the movies again. It was a half dose of Broccoli and Tofu Stir-Fry with Garlicky Hoisin Sauce (Raichlen1, p196) served over rice. And 2-1/2 cookies each. Good movie, it was, although we drove home in the snow.
Tuesday/15-Jan-13: What a day! Houseful of hardware errors. Chloe (the pellet-burning heater) didn't want to start. The netbook died and needed a software reinstall. The printer's ink system failed yet again. Chloe started on the fifth attempt. Netbook has been reinstalled but not completely reassembled. New printer has been ordered. Not much else happened. Glad there there were leftovers to reheat for dinner. It was Rice, Cheddar, and Spinach Pie again, with a salad, and some double chocolate mini-Magnums to cheer us up.
Wednesday/16-Jan-13: Another household hardware error today—the washer stopped washing! Handy Ed took it apart and order some brushes for the motor. The washer must be at least ten years old; we bought it second hand eight years ago and it was already two or three years old then. This is the first problem it's had, so if it's an easy and cheap repair, we'll keep it going. Afraid to discover what's going to break next!
Shopping today. Dinner was some spicy "fish fingers," dipped in yogurt thinned with a bit of milk (buttermilk substitute), dredged in a spicy mixture with cornmeal, then grilled, made with a nice piece of cod, today's special. Served with some hominy that's been in the fridge quite a while but looked ok. And some Pan-Grilled Zucchini (MJ@Home, p173). I grilled this with the fish, although it took a bit longer. Quite a nice way to do zukes, cut in half (although thick slices would do, grilled or broiled, then sprinkled with lemon juice, salt, pepper, ground roasted cumin seeds, and cayenne.
Thursday/17-Jan-13: Out for fish and chips this evening. In t.he afternoon, I made up some Seasoned Radishes (MJ@Home, p6) and some Roasted Almonds with Black Pepper (MJ@Home, p8), some munchies for tomorrow.
Friday/18-Jan-13: Yogurt on overday.
Oops! The outdoor crisper got a bit too cold last night when we forgot to close the shutters.
I loved yesterday's radishes and Ed liked the almonds. Oh well.
Dinner was Wild Rice, Mushroom, and Cheddar Tart (Raichlen1, p95). This was good and remarkably tasty for something that looked so bland. Then a big salad. Then some Zucchini Brownies (MC), which were tasty, if a bit on the flat side. Maybe my baking powder is off.
Saturday/19-Jan-13: Yes, baking powder was off. Well, it's dated 2009, so it's no big surprise. The replacement is dated 2012.
Made Stewed Dried Fruit (WofE, p388) for IHCC this afternoon. Meant to make this for last night's dessert, but got it done today for a snack. We've off the the énoisage for our evening meal.
Sunday/20-Jan-13: Dinner was Chicken Kebabs (VeryBest, p323), without the sauce. Kind of so-so, not especially good nor bad. Mashed a potato and a sweet potato together for a side dish. Dessert was stewed fruit over vanilla ice cream, the best part of the meal.
We're out of bread and the snow means we probably can't get out, so it's Authentic French Bread in the ABM overnight.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
An early dinner so we could try going to the movies again. It was a half dose of Broccoli and Tofu Stir-Fry with Garlicky Hoisin Sauce (Raichlen1, p196) served over rice. And 2-1/2 cookies each. Good movie, it was, although we drove home in the snow.
Tuesday/15-Jan-13: What a day! Houseful of hardware errors. Chloe (the pellet-burning heater) didn't want to start. The netbook died and needed a software reinstall. The printer's ink system failed yet again. Chloe started on the fifth attempt. Netbook has been reinstalled but not completely reassembled. New printer has been ordered. Not much else happened. Glad there there were leftovers to reheat for dinner. It was Rice, Cheddar, and Spinach Pie again, with a salad, and some double chocolate mini-Magnums to cheer us up.
Wednesday/16-Jan-13: Another household hardware error today—the washer stopped washing! Handy Ed took it apart and order some brushes for the motor. The washer must be at least ten years old; we bought it second hand eight years ago and it was already two or three years old then. This is the first problem it's had, so if it's an easy and cheap repair, we'll keep it going. Afraid to discover what's going to break next!
Shopping today. Dinner was some spicy "fish fingers," dipped in yogurt thinned with a bit of milk (buttermilk substitute), dredged in a spicy mixture with cornmeal, then grilled, made with a nice piece of cod, today's special. Served with some hominy that's been in the fridge quite a while but looked ok. And some Pan-Grilled Zucchini (MJ@Home, p173). I grilled this with the fish, although it took a bit longer. Quite a nice way to do zukes, cut in half (although thick slices would do, grilled or broiled, then sprinkled with lemon juice, salt, pepper, ground roasted cumin seeds, and cayenne.
Thursday/17-Jan-13: Out for fish and chips this evening. In t.he afternoon, I made up some Seasoned Radishes (MJ@Home, p6) and some Roasted Almonds with Black Pepper (MJ@Home, p8), some munchies for tomorrow.
Friday/18-Jan-13: Yogurt on overday.
Oops! The outdoor crisper got a bit too cold last night when we forgot to close the shutters.
I loved yesterday's radishes and Ed liked the almonds. Oh well.
Dinner was Wild Rice, Mushroom, and Cheddar Tart (Raichlen1, p95). This was good and remarkably tasty for something that looked so bland. Then a big salad. Then some Zucchini Brownies (MC), which were tasty, if a bit on the flat side. Maybe my baking powder is off.
Saturday/19-Jan-13: Yes, baking powder was off. Well, it's dated 2009, so it's no big surprise. The replacement is dated 2012.
Made Stewed Dried Fruit (WofE, p388) for IHCC this afternoon. Meant to make this for last night's dessert, but got it done today for a snack. We've off the the énoisage for our evening meal.
Sunday/20-Jan-13: Dinner was Chicken Kebabs (VeryBest, p323), without the sauce. Kind of so-so, not especially good nor bad. Mashed a potato and a sweet potato together for a side dish. Dessert was stewed fruit over vanilla ice cream, the best part of the meal.
We're out of bread and the snow means we probably can't get out, so it's Authentic French Bread in the ABM overnight.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 IHCC/COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #3 PASTA: yes, #4 BREAD: no
Monday, October 22, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/22-Oct-12: Tonight I made the Incredible Slow Roasted Shoulder of Lamb (web) that I didn't make when Lesley and Toby came to dinner. Pretty darn good. My rosemary plant got a good pruning for this. Served with Clothilde Dusolier's Perfect Roasted Potatoes (MC) and North African Spiced Carrots (MC), which weren't as good as they have been previously. Bill and Ed had some cheese, while I skipped this. Then we finished off the orange chocolate cake topped with some Zucchini Ice Cream, which the cake needed since it was getting pretty dry.
Tuesday/23-Oct-12: Lunched with Bill today before taking him to the train station. Sandwiches and fruit for dinner.
Wednesday/24-Oct-12: Lunch out today. Ate so much delicious food we had nothing for dinner. Definitely didn't shop on an empty stomach afterwards.
Thursday/25-Oct-12: Finally a chance for a light meal. Dinner was Sweet and Sour Chick Pea Flour Soup (MJFlavs, p79), pretty tasty stuff. (This was a post for this week's IHCC.)
Friday/26-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday, with new starter.
Dinner at a quiz this evening, so no further action in the kitchen.
Saturday/27-Oct-12: Nice dinner tonight, a half recipe of Barley Orzotto with Cauliflower and Red Wine (VeryBest, p180)
Sunday/28-Oct-12: Pot of chicken stock simmering on the stove. There were two carcasses and some odd bits in the freezer.
For lunch I mixed the leftover lentils and carrots and dressed them up with a lemon and oil and piment d'Espelette. Made a little vinaigrette for the potatoes and broccoli. These with our usual plate of fruit.
Dinner was Spanish-Style Shrimp with Garlic (Gambas al Ajillo) (VeryBest, p304). My 400g box of shrimp was a bit too much for a half recipe, but used all the spices. It was pretty good. Served with rice and a half recipe of Mediterranean Cucumber and Yogurt Salad (VeryBest, p47), good stuff, like tzatziki. Ed didn't think this went well with the shrimp, but I thought it was fine. Of course, I seem to have gotten a cold, so my opinions might be suspect.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #6 PASTA: not yet!
Tuesday/23-Oct-12: Lunched with Bill today before taking him to the train station. Sandwiches and fruit for dinner.
Wednesday/24-Oct-12: Lunch out today. Ate so much delicious food we had nothing for dinner. Definitely didn't shop on an empty stomach afterwards.
Thursday/25-Oct-12: Finally a chance for a light meal. Dinner was Sweet and Sour Chick Pea Flour Soup (MJFlavs, p79), pretty tasty stuff. (This was a post for this week's IHCC.)
Friday/26-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday, with new starter.
Dinner at a quiz this evening, so no further action in the kitchen.
Saturday/27-Oct-12: Nice dinner tonight, a half recipe of Barley Orzotto with Cauliflower and Red Wine (VeryBest, p180)
Sunday/28-Oct-12: Pot of chicken stock simmering on the stove. There were two carcasses and some odd bits in the freezer.
For lunch I mixed the leftover lentils and carrots and dressed them up with a lemon and oil and piment d'Espelette. Made a little vinaigrette for the potatoes and broccoli. These with our usual plate of fruit.
Dinner was Spanish-Style Shrimp with Garlic (Gambas al Ajillo) (VeryBest, p304). My 400g box of shrimp was a bit too much for a half recipe, but used all the spices. It was pretty good. Served with rice and a half recipe of Mediterranean Cucumber and Yogurt Salad (VeryBest, p47), good stuff, like tzatziki. Ed didn't think this went well with the shrimp, but I thought it was fine. Of course, I seem to have gotten a cold, so my opinions might be suspect.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #6 PASTA: not yet!
Monday, October 15, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/15-Oct-12: Lunch out today. Started Pickled Green Chiles (WofE, p367) to replace the smashed jar of pickle and for the upcoming Jaffrey theme on pickles and chutneys. Set the jar in the sun ... what sun?
For dinner, I defrosted some Gingery Cauliflower Soup. We had that, with some store-bought naan, then a bit of goat cheese, then the rest of the kulfi. A no-effort dinner, not too bad.
Tuesday/16-Oct-12: Shopping today.
Dinner started with Cold Beetroot with Cream (Pomiane, p180), always a favorite. Then there was Oven-Steamed Salmon with Lentils and Sun-Dried Tomatoes (VeryBest, p309). This was definitely so-so. The lentils were pretty blah and the salmon was nowhere as good as last week's, which was cooked by the same method. Maybe it was slightly overcooked, maybe the fish itself wasn't as good (it was on special today), don't know. Then some roquefort smashed with unsalted butter. Then some chocolate tarts from the shop.
Yogurt on overnight.
Wednesday/17-Oct-12: Off to Poitiers for an overnight, prior to a day at Futuroscope. Left Bill with some soup from the freezer.
Thursday/18-Oct-12: Spent the day at Futuroscope, then back home and off to La Bellone for dinner.
Friday/19-Oct-12: We'd intended to eat at a food fair in Limoges today, but it's been raining raining raining, so we decided to stay home. I defrosted some chicken thighs and made Chicken Drumsticks, Ethiopian Style (web), which was quite good. Put some Potatoes Baked with Garlic (MJFamily, p106) in the oven, but too late to eat with the chicken, so made some rice. And a salad. And some mixed berries over a waffle with the last of the vanilla ice milk for after.
Saturday/20-Oct-12: Made Apple-Plum Butter (MC) this morning, and with plums this time. Put the chicken on to marinate for Buttermilk Roast Chicken (Essential, p493). Rain rain rain cancelled the Fête du Vin at St Sornin, but it did start to clear a bit in the afternoon, so we went to La Roche for the Marché du Goût and bought a sackful of goodies. Then we took ourselves out for fish and chips.
Sunday/21-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday. Brought the green chili pickle in. Quick taste shows it to be seriously hot, but not much else in the way of flavor. It will wait to be tried with some food.
For lunch, before going off to an early concert, I roasted the chicken, warmed the potatoes, and steamed some broccoli. A pretty good meal, topped off with some of the cake Bill bought at the Marché du Goût yesterday. That was good, but it turned out to be chocolate with a orange flavors added, which surprised us all.
When we got back from the concert we had some cheese and some cookies from the Marché du Goût.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 2
This month: #6 PASTA: no
For dinner, I defrosted some Gingery Cauliflower Soup. We had that, with some store-bought naan, then a bit of goat cheese, then the rest of the kulfi. A no-effort dinner, not too bad.
Tuesday/16-Oct-12: Shopping today.
Dinner started with Cold Beetroot with Cream (Pomiane, p180), always a favorite. Then there was Oven-Steamed Salmon with Lentils and Sun-Dried Tomatoes (VeryBest, p309). This was definitely so-so. The lentils were pretty blah and the salmon was nowhere as good as last week's, which was cooked by the same method. Maybe it was slightly overcooked, maybe the fish itself wasn't as good (it was on special today), don't know. Then some roquefort smashed with unsalted butter. Then some chocolate tarts from the shop.
Yogurt on overnight.
Wednesday/17-Oct-12: Off to Poitiers for an overnight, prior to a day at Futuroscope. Left Bill with some soup from the freezer.
Thursday/18-Oct-12: Spent the day at Futuroscope, then back home and off to La Bellone for dinner.
Friday/19-Oct-12: We'd intended to eat at a food fair in Limoges today, but it's been raining raining raining, so we decided to stay home. I defrosted some chicken thighs and made Chicken Drumsticks, Ethiopian Style (web), which was quite good. Put some Potatoes Baked with Garlic (MJFamily, p106) in the oven, but too late to eat with the chicken, so made some rice. And a salad. And some mixed berries over a waffle with the last of the vanilla ice milk for after.
Saturday/20-Oct-12: Made Apple-Plum Butter (MC) this morning, and with plums this time. Put the chicken on to marinate for Buttermilk Roast Chicken (Essential, p493). Rain rain rain cancelled the Fête du Vin at St Sornin, but it did start to clear a bit in the afternoon, so we went to La Roche for the Marché du Goût and bought a sackful of goodies. Then we took ourselves out for fish and chips.
Sunday/21-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday. Brought the green chili pickle in. Quick taste shows it to be seriously hot, but not much else in the way of flavor. It will wait to be tried with some food.
For lunch, before going off to an early concert, I roasted the chicken, warmed the potatoes, and steamed some broccoli. A pretty good meal, topped off with some of the cake Bill bought at the Marché du Goût yesterday. That was good, but it turned out to be chocolate with a orange flavors added, which surprised us all.
When we got back from the concert we had some cheese and some cookies from the Marché du Goût.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 2
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Monday, October 8, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/8-Oct-12: It's a using-up day today. For a main, there was 2 kip filets worth of Spice-Rubbed Grilled Chicken (web); just noticed that I forgot to rub on the minced garlic, but can't say it was missed. Good and easy. Working on the potato stash there was Potatoes Cooked with Garlic and Sesame Seeds (WofE, p55), which is one of our favorites. And using my impulse-bought haricots verts, there was Tangy Green Beans with Ajwain and Ginger (SpiceKitch, p38), which is one of my go-to recipes when I want some color on a plate of Indian food. Altogether a yummy meal. IHCC post here.
Tuesday/9-Oct-12: Grocery shopping today, at Intermarché, rather than Leclerc, just to be different. A bit limited in selection of fresh veg, organic stuff, and brand names. Good fora change, though.
Dinner was a half recipe of Soft Tacos with Mushrooms, Onion, and Chipotle Chile (VeryBest, p150). A nice, light dinner, easy and tasty. I used a whole chipotle, with seeds, when only a half, seeded, was asked. Nicely tingly, it was. For dessert we each had a chocolate religieuse that I saw at shop. Definitely something to get again, but not too often. It's a cream puff, filled with chocolate custard, poured over with dark chocolate. A fluted ring of white cream holds a profiterole on top, also filled with chocolate and topped with more dark chocolate.
Wednesday/10-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was a half recipe of Oven-Steamed Salmon with Pan-Cooked Mushrooms (VeryBest, p308). An unusual way of cooking salmon, in a fairly cool oven (300F), with a pan of steaming water on the floor. Not bad at all, although I'm not sure it was any better than broiled. The mushroom garnish was good. Served with steamed broccoli and trio rice. Double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Thursday/11-Oct-12: Oops, I got kip filets out of the freezer this morning, instead of thighs, so tonight's dinner of Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes (web) wasn't quite what was intended. Quite nice, though. I added the breasts about halfway through the cooking so they wouldn't get overdone. Served with a big salad. Then we had just a bit of goat cheese for the taste.
Friday/12-Oct-12: Used up some odd ends of stale bread to make Double-Boiler Bread Pudding (MC). Dinner was a half dose of Zesty Shrimp & Black Bean Salad (web), served with some mâche and roquette salad. Very tasty and easy, although it's really a summer thing.
Saturday/13-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday.
Bill arrived this evening. We had Greek-Style Lentil Salad (WorldVeg, p630), a really easy and nice lentil salad. (This was a post for this week's IHCC.) Then there was Barley Soup with Zucchini (Shaw, p175), which wasn't too bad, in spite of my efforts. First of all, I didn't get enough mushrooms for this week's meals, so I used canned shrooms instead. Then, I got to a stopping place and turned off the soup to finish later ... not. When I came back, it was pretty well burnt to the bottom. I rescued what I could and added water. Fairly tasty even so. Definitely one to try again.
Sunday/14-Oct-12: The old folks of Mazerolles were treated to a lovely lunch today. Just some carrot sticks this evening.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Tuesday/9-Oct-12: Grocery shopping today, at Intermarché, rather than Leclerc, just to be different. A bit limited in selection of fresh veg, organic stuff, and brand names. Good fora change, though.
Dinner was a half recipe of Soft Tacos with Mushrooms, Onion, and Chipotle Chile (VeryBest, p150). A nice, light dinner, easy and tasty. I used a whole chipotle, with seeds, when only a half, seeded, was asked. Nicely tingly, it was. For dessert we each had a chocolate religieuse that I saw at shop. Definitely something to get again, but not too often. It's a cream puff, filled with chocolate custard, poured over with dark chocolate. A fluted ring of white cream holds a profiterole on top, also filled with chocolate and topped with more dark chocolate.
Wednesday/10-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was a half recipe of Oven-Steamed Salmon with Pan-Cooked Mushrooms (VeryBest, p308). An unusual way of cooking salmon, in a fairly cool oven (300F), with a pan of steaming water on the floor. Not bad at all, although I'm not sure it was any better than broiled. The mushroom garnish was good. Served with steamed broccoli and trio rice. Double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Thursday/11-Oct-12: Oops, I got kip filets out of the freezer this morning, instead of thighs, so tonight's dinner of Spanish Chicken with Chorizo and Potatoes (web) wasn't quite what was intended. Quite nice, though. I added the breasts about halfway through the cooking so they wouldn't get overdone. Served with a big salad. Then we had just a bit of goat cheese for the taste.
Friday/12-Oct-12: Used up some odd ends of stale bread to make Double-Boiler Bread Pudding (MC). Dinner was a half dose of Zesty Shrimp & Black Bean Salad (web), served with some mâche and roquette salad. Very tasty and easy, although it's really a summer thing.
Saturday/13-Oct-12: Yogurt on overday.
Bill arrived this evening. We had Greek-Style Lentil Salad (WorldVeg, p630), a really easy and nice lentil salad. (This was a post for this week's IHCC.) Then there was Barley Soup with Zucchini (Shaw, p175), which wasn't too bad, in spite of my efforts. First of all, I didn't get enough mushrooms for this week's meals, so I used canned shrooms instead. Then, I got to a stopping place and turned off the soup to finish later ... not. When I came back, it was pretty well burnt to the bottom. I rescued what I could and added water. Fairly tasty even so. Definitely one to try again.
Sunday/14-Oct-12: The old folks of Mazerolles were treated to a lovely lunch today. Just some carrot sticks this evening.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: no, #2 BREAD: no, #3 SOUP: yes, #4 MIDDAY: yes, #5 VEG/FISH: 4
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Monday, September 17, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/17-Sep-12: No bread in the house. Popped some Authentic French Bread in the ABM this morning when I got up.
Almost out of herb salt, so made a double dose of Herb Salt (Art, p172). Used maldon salt this time; wonder if we can tell the difference?
Froze up the Buttermilk Pineapple Sherbert. Tasty. Think I like this one better than Ed, unfortunately.
Leftover Tamale Pie for dinner. And a salad. And some Pineapple Upside Down Cake.
Tuesday/18-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday. Shopping today. Found pineapple slices (big can) and chunks in juice—which seems to be a fairly new concept here.
For dinner, there was a half dose of Fish with Pineapple Chutney (MWLowFat, p292), making a dent in the leftover pineapple chunks. I blitzed the chutney with the staff mixer; it would have been better to use the food processor to keep more texture. Oh well. Side was a very loose version of Golden Basmati Rice (MWLowFat, p185), golden with turmeric and grated carrots. Ed suggested adding forgotten peas from Sunday's chicken salad, which was a good idea except that I threw them in at the beginning instead of letting them steam atop the rice at the end. They were kind of olive, rather than kelly, green in the end.
Wednesday/19-Sep-12: Dinner was a half dose of Warm Lentil Salad with Goat Cheese (VeryBest, p44). It was tasty enough, but not really successful, I think. Hard to serve it attractively, and I think it would have been better tepid, but then how do you melt the cheese?
Used up Barbara's mirabelles to make another clafoutis from the web. Good it was. Made a half recipe, thinking we'd have it for two nights, but we ended up eating it all.
Ed kept hearing drip drip drip in the kitchen. (Me not hear.) At lunch he couldn't locate it. At dinner, he found it—the little water heater that provides hot water for the kitchen and the Tardis is leaking badly. Guess it's rusted out as these things do. :-( Finished up the dinner dishes and turned off the water outside. That means no water in the toilet in our bedroom also.
Thursday/20-Sep-12: Ed went out looking for a new water heater this morning, found one, did some preparatory work, went off to choir practice, came home, and installed the new thing. It's bigger than the old one, which means we'll have more hot water, but we also lose space for (at least) four mugs. Meanwhile, I washed breakfast and lunch dishes in the bathroom sink.
To console ourselves, we went out to dinner. Also it was the 30-year anniversary of when we arrived in the Netherlands and ended up staying forever.
Friday/21-Sep-12: Pineapple Fried Rice (MC) tonight, with shrimp rather than scallops, which are prettier. Finished off the last of the pineapple chunks, Got everything ready while Ed was out, then assembled quickly. And forgot to add the fish sauce, soy sauce, and cashews at the end. Oh well, it was good, better than last time because I actually had trassi (shrimp paste) around. One day I'll get this recipe right.
Saturday/22-Sep-12: For dinner there was a more or less half recipe of Spicy South Indian Cauliflower (VeryBest, p131; cookbooker), wherein we learn that an average-sized European cauliflower is about 75% bigger than an American one. (Mine was 3.5# vs 1.5-2# specified.) Not bad. Served with rice. And an oh-so-healthy dessert, providing protein and veg, Carrot Pudding with Cardamom and Pistachios (Gajar ki Kheer) (Sahni1, p456; cookbooker).
Sunday/23-Sep-12: Dinner was a half dose of Spicy Tunisian Carrot Frittata (VeryBest, p244), This was quite nice, my most successful frittata to date, maybe because of the cast iron skillet. Served with a big salad. Then double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Thunderstorms forecast (and happening) overnight, so all computers unplugged.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 6
This month: #6 PASTA: no (it's on the menu plan, but just doesn't get done)
Almost out of herb salt, so made a double dose of Herb Salt (Art, p172). Used maldon salt this time; wonder if we can tell the difference?
Froze up the Buttermilk Pineapple Sherbert. Tasty. Think I like this one better than Ed, unfortunately.
Leftover Tamale Pie for dinner. And a salad. And some Pineapple Upside Down Cake.
Tuesday/18-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday. Shopping today. Found pineapple slices (big can) and chunks in juice—which seems to be a fairly new concept here.
For dinner, there was a half dose of Fish with Pineapple Chutney (MWLowFat, p292), making a dent in the leftover pineapple chunks. I blitzed the chutney with the staff mixer; it would have been better to use the food processor to keep more texture. Oh well. Side was a very loose version of Golden Basmati Rice (MWLowFat, p185), golden with turmeric and grated carrots. Ed suggested adding forgotten peas from Sunday's chicken salad, which was a good idea except that I threw them in at the beginning instead of letting them steam atop the rice at the end. They were kind of olive, rather than kelly, green in the end.
Wednesday/19-Sep-12: Dinner was a half dose of Warm Lentil Salad with Goat Cheese (VeryBest, p44). It was tasty enough, but not really successful, I think. Hard to serve it attractively, and I think it would have been better tepid, but then how do you melt the cheese?
Used up Barbara's mirabelles to make another clafoutis from the web. Good it was. Made a half recipe, thinking we'd have it for two nights, but we ended up eating it all.
Ed kept hearing drip drip drip in the kitchen. (Me not hear.) At lunch he couldn't locate it. At dinner, he found it—the little water heater that provides hot water for the kitchen and the Tardis is leaking badly. Guess it's rusted out as these things do. :-( Finished up the dinner dishes and turned off the water outside. That means no water in the toilet in our bedroom also.
Thursday/20-Sep-12: Ed went out looking for a new water heater this morning, found one, did some preparatory work, went off to choir practice, came home, and installed the new thing. It's bigger than the old one, which means we'll have more hot water, but we also lose space for (at least) four mugs. Meanwhile, I washed breakfast and lunch dishes in the bathroom sink.
To console ourselves, we went out to dinner. Also it was the 30-year anniversary of when we arrived in the Netherlands and ended up staying forever.
Friday/21-Sep-12: Pineapple Fried Rice (MC) tonight, with shrimp rather than scallops, which are prettier. Finished off the last of the pineapple chunks, Got everything ready while Ed was out, then assembled quickly. And forgot to add the fish sauce, soy sauce, and cashews at the end. Oh well, it was good, better than last time because I actually had trassi (shrimp paste) around. One day I'll get this recipe right.
Saturday/22-Sep-12: For dinner there was a more or less half recipe of Spicy South Indian Cauliflower (VeryBest, p131; cookbooker), wherein we learn that an average-sized European cauliflower is about 75% bigger than an American one. (Mine was 3.5# vs 1.5-2# specified.) Not bad. Served with rice. And an oh-so-healthy dessert, providing protein and veg, Carrot Pudding with Cardamom and Pistachios (Gajar ki Kheer) (Sahni1, p456; cookbooker).
Sunday/23-Sep-12: Dinner was a half dose of Spicy Tunisian Carrot Frittata (VeryBest, p244), This was quite nice, my most successful frittata to date, maybe because of the cast iron skillet. Served with a big salad. Then double chocolate mini Magnums for dessert.
Thunderstorms forecast (and happening) overnight, so all computers unplugged.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 6
This month: #6 PASTA: no (it's on the menu plan, but just doesn't get done)
Monday, September 3, 2012
This week in the kitchen
Monday/3-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday.
Dinner was a half-dose of Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp and Lemon Cream Sauce (web), with spaghettini instead of angel hair and crème fraîche instead of cream. (My cream was seriously sour and there wasn't any at the shop last week.) Then a salad. Then a double-chocolate mini Magnum and a dog walk.
Tuesday/4-Sep-12: For lunch I made a quickie soup with half a small kip filet, leftover chicken stock, cabbage shreds, and some pasta. Not great, but not bad.
Dinner was a half-ish dose of Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Preserved Lemon (web), using green olives, and good it was. Served with couscous (made too much) and Moroccan Cooked Carrot Salad (VeryBest, p39). For dessert there was Clafoutis aux Mirabelles (web), using up the mirabelles that a neighbor gave us. Unfortunately quite a few of these had gone bad, but there were enough for this recipe. Used crème fraîche again instead of proper cream.
Wednesday/5-Sep-12: Shopping today, mostly on piste. Indian dinner: Methi Machchi (Fish in a Fenugreek-Flavored Curry) (from the web, forgettable), Matar Pulao (Green Pea Pilaf) (Sahni3, p61), and Pan-Roasted Green Beans with Five Spices (Sahni3, p143). The sauce for the fish was quite bitter, maybe the fenugreek? I bought julienne (ling) for the fish since it was on sale and substantially cheaper than cod. Very bony. Will try to remember to avoid that in the future. The rice was OK, but nothing special. The beans were a variation on a potato recipe, not bad, but very similar to the Jaffrey recipe that I frequently use, and I think I prefer that one. Altogether a so-so main course. For dessert we finished off the clafoutis.
Thursday/6-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday. Some bananas getting a bit too ripe turned into Banana Bread (OldLaurel, p308). Mixed all in food processor, how lazy can you get? Recipe asked three bananas, I only had two, so I added an egg. A slightly off taste makes me suspect my wheat germ might be getting rancid in spite of its life in the fridge. Except for that, this is a lovely textured banana bread, in spite of having only whole wheat flour. Found a bunch of old favorites thumbing through this cookbook, might have to put some of them on the plan.
Dinner was, more or less, a half recipe of Southwestern Chicken Salad (VeryBest, p324), using the last of last Thanksgiving turkey, just a bit belatedly. I chopped the chipotle in adobo (unseeded) and added it to the dressing. The recipe calls for quite a lot of chicken broth used to thin the dressing, but I thought it was plenty thin without that. Can't think why it would be too thick: olive oil, buttermilk, lime juice, and white wine vinegar, what's to get thick? Mixed the dressing and meat, along with radishes, cilantro, and avocado, with 100g of mâche+roquette, rather than romaine, of which there was none at the shop. It all tasted good, especially eating outside.
Friday/7-Sep-12: Dinner was Warm Broccoli and Chickpea Salad (VeryBest, p42). Pretty good it was.
Saturday/8-Sep-12: Made some real bread today, For One Loaf (Colwin1, p49), which is a recipe she borrowed from Elizabeth David, A Bloomer Loaf (1) (DavidBread, p280).
Off plan, dinner from the freezer: Perciatelli with Cauliflower, Tomato, Sausage, and Pine Nuts, made in March, over gemelli. And a big salad.
Sunday/9-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday.
Off-plan again. Defrosted some poultry sausages and grilled those. Made up a big salad with all the leftover bits in the fridge, coucous, broccoli and chickpeas, corn, zucchini, carrots, etc. Good stuff. That was dinner.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #6 PASTA: no
Dinner was a half-dose of Angel Hair Pasta with Shrimp and Lemon Cream Sauce (web), with spaghettini instead of angel hair and crème fraîche instead of cream. (My cream was seriously sour and there wasn't any at the shop last week.) Then a salad. Then a double-chocolate mini Magnum and a dog walk.
Tuesday/4-Sep-12: For lunch I made a quickie soup with half a small kip filet, leftover chicken stock, cabbage shreds, and some pasta. Not great, but not bad.
Dinner was a half-ish dose of Moroccan Chicken with Olives and Preserved Lemon (web), using green olives, and good it was. Served with couscous (made too much) and Moroccan Cooked Carrot Salad (VeryBest, p39). For dessert there was Clafoutis aux Mirabelles (web), using up the mirabelles that a neighbor gave us. Unfortunately quite a few of these had gone bad, but there were enough for this recipe. Used crème fraîche again instead of proper cream.
Wednesday/5-Sep-12: Shopping today, mostly on piste. Indian dinner: Methi Machchi (Fish in a Fenugreek-Flavored Curry) (from the web, forgettable), Matar Pulao (Green Pea Pilaf) (Sahni3, p61), and Pan-Roasted Green Beans with Five Spices (Sahni3, p143). The sauce for the fish was quite bitter, maybe the fenugreek? I bought julienne (ling) for the fish since it was on sale and substantially cheaper than cod. Very bony. Will try to remember to avoid that in the future. The rice was OK, but nothing special. The beans were a variation on a potato recipe, not bad, but very similar to the Jaffrey recipe that I frequently use, and I think I prefer that one. Altogether a so-so main course. For dessert we finished off the clafoutis.
Thursday/6-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday. Some bananas getting a bit too ripe turned into Banana Bread (OldLaurel, p308). Mixed all in food processor, how lazy can you get? Recipe asked three bananas, I only had two, so I added an egg. A slightly off taste makes me suspect my wheat germ might be getting rancid in spite of its life in the fridge. Except for that, this is a lovely textured banana bread, in spite of having only whole wheat flour. Found a bunch of old favorites thumbing through this cookbook, might have to put some of them on the plan.
Dinner was, more or less, a half recipe of Southwestern Chicken Salad (VeryBest, p324), using the last of last Thanksgiving turkey, just a bit belatedly. I chopped the chipotle in adobo (unseeded) and added it to the dressing. The recipe calls for quite a lot of chicken broth used to thin the dressing, but I thought it was plenty thin without that. Can't think why it would be too thick: olive oil, buttermilk, lime juice, and white wine vinegar, what's to get thick? Mixed the dressing and meat, along with radishes, cilantro, and avocado, with 100g of mâche+roquette, rather than romaine, of which there was none at the shop. It all tasted good, especially eating outside.
Friday/7-Sep-12: Dinner was Warm Broccoli and Chickpea Salad (VeryBest, p42). Pretty good it was.
Saturday/8-Sep-12: Made some real bread today, For One Loaf (Colwin1, p49), which is a recipe she borrowed from Elizabeth David, A Bloomer Loaf (1) (DavidBread, p280).
Off plan, dinner from the freezer: Perciatelli with Cauliflower, Tomato, Sausage, and Pine Nuts, made in March, over gemelli. And a big salad.
Sunday/9-Sep-12: Yogurt on overday.
Off-plan again. Defrosted some poultry sausages and grilled those. Made up a big salad with all the leftover bits in the fridge, coucous, broccoli and chickpeas, corn, zucchini, carrots, etc. Good stuff. That was dinner.
Progress on goals
This week: #1 COOKBOOKS: yes, #2 BREAD: yes, #3 SOUP: no, #4 MIDDAY: no, #5 VEG/FISH: 3
This month: #6 PASTA: no
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