dcandohio

Soup of hot Italian sausage, white beans, kale. The base is homemade chicken stock with red wine, diced canned tomatoes, plus carrots, celery, onion, garlic and Italian herbs.

Mexican rice topped with shrimp. I added frozen Argentinian red shrimp from Trader Joe’s onto the top of the rice as it finished steaming. I should have also made a salad, but I was lazy.

Cheddar grits topped with crumbled bacon. Pure comfort.

Blue corn tortilla-crusted steelhead trout - I mixed a bit of mayo with some white wine vinegar, hot chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, and garlic, and spread this on the fish. I baked the fish in the hot oven, and right before it was done I added the crushed corn chips, drizzled with a little bit of olive oil, and ran it under the broiler. Roasted broccoli and salad of Romaine and tomatoes with a simple vinaigrette.

Steel head trout from wild Fork foods with a spicy maple mustard glaze. A tacky, 1980’s spinach and artichoke casserole. Still delicious.

Inspired by Pat’s post above, I used the Punjabi turnip recipe to make Punjabi potatoes. Great recipe. I think the potatoes mitigated some of the heat, but it still had a nice low burn and the cilantro stems were surprisingly great. The potatoes accompanied chicken thighs that I trimmed, and then marinated in a mixture of tahini dressing (homemade) and zhoug (Trader Joe’s). This mixture made a tasty marinade and would also be lovely as a sauce or a dip with crudités. After the thighs were in a hot oven for about five minutes, I put them under the broiler. This was a really satisfying meal, and I think that the chicken thighs might make good chicken salad tomorrow, especially if I mix a little bit of this zhoug into the mayo. i’m grateful for this group as a source of cooking inspiration!

Two of my Covid pod friends came over last night and we employed the grill under the Tiki hut at my condo. I grilled a flat iron steak that I had marinated in Nandos hot sauce, ponzu, soy sauce, ginger, garlic, olive oil, and agave syrup. I grilled it to a very nice medium rare. I also sliced up potatoes and onions and cooked them in a foil packet on the grill. My friends brought a lovely Napa cabbage salad that had a lot of nuts and seeds in it, and it was a great complement to the steak.

Gravlax. To use all the dill.

Schadenfreude.

Three friends came for dinner, and it was the first time I’ve had four people around my dining table since the pandemic began. Caesar salad. Red and yellow peppers stuffed with a sort of “pork burrito” filling. Onions, garlic, Cumin, smoked paprika, ground pork, black beans, cilantro, jalapeño, homemade salsa. Roasted asparagus. Blueberry Clafoutis.

Gazpacho: tomatoes, cucumber, yellow pepper, red pepper, orange pepper, onion, garlic, green olives, Partially ripe mango, cilantro, White wine vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, cayenne, coriander, basil.

I had one of my go to meals last night. Salmon under the broiler, topped with a little bit of honey, smoked paprika, cayenne, salt and pepper. Roasted asparagus and leftover basmati rice rounded out the meal. I could probably eat salmon three or four times a week and not get bored with it!

We are all devastated. Her work has elevated all people. But her work has especially elevated women. May she rest in power.

Yep. A good product for certain applications. Not too much sugar or sodium in that marinara, either.

I had opened a jar of Trader Joe’s marinara sauce, and I was inspired to use a lot of things that needed using up to create a “pasta sauce.” Some expensive imported salami from Fresh Market that I didn’t really like got chopped up and thrown in with onions and garlic, and when that was all cooked down, I added shredded chicken that I had cooked several nights before. Into the sauce went lots of herbs, a decent amount of red wine, and finally a bunch of really good black olives that I had pitted. The end result was definitely greater than the sum of the parts, and I really enjoyed it. I served it on some cheese tortellini that also had to be used.

Jersey Shore? Fire island?

Greek style baked pork chops (Lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, oregano, dill) and roasted yellow squash.

Following the lead of many of you on this thread, I have been trying to eat things out of the freezer and the pantry. The box of couscous in the pantry had expired in 2018. Oops. I made the couscous with chicken stock, lemon juice, and basil. It was fine. I use it as a base for a bunch of sautéed vegetables with Kalamata olives. I had squash, celery, red pepper, and onion, which I seasoned with garlic, salt, pepper, basil and thyme. It was a pretty plate, and a very nice dinner.

Broiled salmon, topped with a mixture of barbecue sauce, mustard, maple syrup, and cayenne. Corn on the cob.

Marinate chicken pieces or pork ribs in olive oil, lemon juice, dill, oregano, and lots of garlic. Grill. Delicious.

And we all hope he had a very happy birthday.

My best friends finally decided to break their self imposed quarantine to come to my house for dinner tonight. I served a salad of Romaine, tomatoes, avocado, and bacon, bound with a little mayonnaise, salt, pepper and white wine vinegar. So easy when summer tomatoes are just perfect. I topped mahi-mahi with a mixture of chopped Kalamata olives, tomato, capers, garlic, onion, salt and pepper, olive oil, lemon juice. I wrapped it all in parchment paper and baked it on a sheet pan. While the fish was cooking, I sautéed parboiled tiny new potatoes, cut in half, in olive oil with some rosemary.I had succumbed to the temptation of the dessert case of the wild Fork foods near me. The little beignets filled with chocolate were divinely delicious. it felt almost normal to have friends over for dinner

Roasted chicken, sliced, on top of sliced roasted potatoes and oven roasted asparagus. Drizzled with a cheddar cheese sauce. That little meal used up quite a few odds and ends in the refrigerator.

Sunday I had the last package of the “Sunday gravy” that I made and froze at the beginning of the pandemic, served with penne. Trying to transition from full freezer quarantine mode to empty your freezer hurricane mode. Ah. Summer in Florida.

We had a little potluck last night, and I grilled a pork tenderloin. I marinated it in soy sauce, ginger, garlic, Thai chili garlic paste, blackberry jam, sesame oil, and olive oil. I grilled it to just passed medium, and everybody loved it. One neighbor contributed his famous homemade potato salad, which had a hint of horseradish, and was delicious. The other neighbor brought coleslaw. Add in a bottle of sparkly and a good, socially-distanced time was had by all.