Dinner - The Polyphonic Food Blog

[JPW]

Ooops, sorry! Wrong site.


Seriously, didn't anybody eat anything this weekend? Nobody has any food related thoughts today?
C'mon! With Peanut around, I have to mainly live vicariously through the good folks on this board.

[Tweaked]

hmmm, lets see

Thursday: Ugly Mug for ex-Matchbox miniburgers and pizza. The minburgers were yummy as always, but not quite a juicy as past miniburgers. The proscuitto pizza was tasty, although I'm not overly convinced that a cooked pizza with uncooked proscuitto thrown on top is the best way to present it.

Friday: A nice bowl of beef pho and fried egg rolls from Pacific Cafe helped settle the loopy feeling I was suffering from after receiving a battery of immunizations for my upcoming India trip

Saturday: A very poorly constructed grilled cheese sandwich at the Capitol Lounge...large chunks of foccacia slathered with melted Kraft cheese slices, topped with a slice of tomato and overdone bacon. plus DC United lost. However the Bass and the women were nice. A late night drunken rummage through the refrigerator scored me some left over upma and which I topped with a fried egg

Sunday: Dominos new 5/5/5 deal, that's right buy 3 medium one topping pizzas for $5 each with a side of Survivor Finale.

So really you and peanut didn't miss all that much!

[JPW]

hmmm, lets see

Thursday: Ugly Mug for ex-Matchbox miniburgers and pizza. The minburgers were yummy as always, but not quite a juicy as past miniburgers. The proscuitto pizza was tasty, although I'm not overly convinced that a cooked pizza with uncooked proscuitto thrown on top is the best way to present it.

Friday: A nice bowl of beef pho and fried egg rolls from Pacific Cafe helped settle the loopy feeling I was suffering from after receiving a battery of immunizations for my upcoming India trip

Saturday: A very poorly constructed grilled cheese sandwich at the Capitol Lounge...large chunks of foccacia slathered with melted Kraft cheese slices, topped with a slice of tomato and overdone bacon. plus DC United lost. However the Bass and the women were nice. A late night drunken rummage through the refrigerator scored me some left over upma and which I topped with a fried egg

Sunday: Dominos new 5/5/5 deal, that's right buy 3 medium one topping pizzas for $5 each with a side of Survivor Finale.

So really you and peanut didn't miss all that much!

Didn't miss all that much?
Nonsense.
With a child that is hitting a phase where I will no longer be able to take her out for multi-course meals (not to mention all of the money she has started sucking from my pocket) info on the Ugly Mug and pho is all that much more important to me. IMO one can never have too much discussion about pho. Not to mention knowing never to get grilled cheese at the Capitol Grill.

However, you are correct that your Sunday meal was of no great interest to me. Especially since I was watching Desparate Housewives and eating leftover Armand's pizza that our babysitter had ordered Saturday night.

[FunnyJohn]

Sorry Joe, had to take a wkend off -- wait til Peanut attends Prom. Tune-in to these spaces next week, I'll supplement your vicarious needs.

[bilrus]

momrus was in town so I ate out almost too many times this weekend.

[Heather]

Nothing much to write about here. I missed the market Sunday morning because of a family commitment, and had a truly crappy "meal" at Polly's before our show at the 9:30 Club last night. Don't order the grilled cheese there either.

[shogun]

Yesterday, with my boss and a friend, I made a tour of some of the finer crappy chain diners in the Springfield/Woodbridge area, having a late breakfast/early lunch at Bob Evans, and then a late dinner/dessert affair at Silver Diner. A full report in it's own thread will be written forthwith.

[mktye]

Mr. mktye was on leave, so this past week has been much more eventful than normal. The food highlights:

Monday -- Picnic lunch (chicken with chile-mayo on sourdough) in the midst of hiking ~8 miles at the Manassas National Battlefield Park.

Tuesday -- Surprisingly good black bean tamal and fried plantains at the National Museum of the American Indian.

Wednesday -- Good (and strong!) margaritas, decent chile rellanos, great frijoles refritos at Tacqueria Poblano in Del Ray. But the best part of the evening was the Lemon Meringue ice cream at the Del Ray Dreamery (with pieces of pie crust mixed in!).

Thursday -- Pretty typical hotel banquet food at the USO Benefit Casino Night, although the mashed potato bar was a bit of a guilty pleasure.

Friday -- A bag of mixed potato & sweet potato chips in the car with my hubbie while out shopping for upholstery fabric for our new dining room chairs. (I picked out the sweet potato chips and left the regular ones for him!)

Saturday -- Melrose to celebrate our wedding anniversary. Unfortunately, dancing on their teeny-tiny dance floor was better than the food.

Sunday -- Two different types of topped focaccia -- ricotta/proscuitto and blue cheese. I wanted to see how they tasted at room temp (in case, perhaps, one were to take some to a picnic...) but they taste better right out of the oven.

[brr]

I was in a wedding this weekend so food choices were beyond my control

Fri night rehearsal dinner was at The Chart House in Alexandria - expectations were low but the set menu featured some really good crab cakes, lots of lump crab and there were two great red wines doing the rounds, one of which was Sterling Reserve Cab

Wedding reception was at the Cedar Knoll Inn, overlooking the Potomac, the food was ok, barely (I had beef tenderloin), although the general attitude at Cedar Knoll Inn seems to be, "we have a nice view, what more do you want?"

On Sunday we ate with the in-laws, and feasted on pancit (filipino noodle dish), popeye's chicken (yum!), and another filipino dish that featured head on shrimp, eggplant, spinach, and butternut squash in a coconut milk sauce (one of my all time fave dishes)

Then when we got home, we discovered the neighbors had cooked a group dinner so we concluded the weekend w/ mariniated grilled shrimp and scallops, cous, cous, mango salso and grilled portabella's stuffed w/ goat cheese and topped w/ a corn and tomatoes and cilantro - yum

on reflection, maybe it wasn't such a bad food weekend after all!

[Nadya]

Hmmm, this weekend. Saturday I had to work till 10 pm but was lucky to have a friend who doesn't mind hanging out late - we descended on Komi for cheese and desserts. I wolfed down my cherry gelato with hazelnut biscotti and most of his triple chocolate terrine with spearmint oil, too. I wish I wrote the cheeses down, but they were as always. Sebastian and Chef Monis never disappoint.

Sunday I had a res at Mendocino that unfortunately had to be wasted as something unexpected came up. Oh well, something to look forward to next time.

So no wild stories this time, but if you watch this space for a couple of weeks, I promise you won't be disappointed.

[crackers]

Thursday: Blue Agave in Federal Hill. Tequila dinner: Chilpachole, a spicy lump crab soup with charred tomatoes and jalaepnos, serrano-orange duck confit enchilada with mole xico, achiote grilled quail with salsa de huitlacoche, sauteed nopales and arroz verde, and a mango and chocolate empanada with vanilla ice cream and cajeta sauce. Margaritas with Herradura Silver, Reposado and Blanco. The best was with fresh lime, prickly pear juce and triple sec.

Saturday night home with friends: coquilles St. Jacques, roast stuffed chicken with Eastern Shore asparagus, market salad with croutons and Humboldt Fog chevre, strawberries with sabayon. awesome lightning display, but the power stayed on.

Sunday: Joss. nothing special, maybe even going downhill. Tempura shrimp and veggies, tofu salad, some pickled mackerel sushi (guaranteed to keep teenagers' chopsticks away) and beef negamaki.

[brr]

Humboldt Fog chevre

mmm, love that cheese - now that you mention it on Sunday I also partook of some Montenebro and Firefly farms cheese (the aged one that shaped a little like a pyramid)

[txaggie]

Thursday: Straits of Malaya in Dupont - beautiful night. We sat outside. Curry puffs to start. Dinner was curried chinese eggplant with chicken and another chicken dish that was finished with coconut milk. To drink - Tiger beers and Singapore Slings.

Friday - 2 Amy's. While waiting for a friend, cjsadler and I shared cod fritters, deviled eggs, and olives. He had a Tupper's Hop Pocket and I had some white wine. It was fruity and refreshing but I can't recall the name. My friend finally arrived and the three of us shared the lamb meatball calzone, the porcini mushroom pizza, and the etna. We ordered a bottle of the Gragnano. Dessert was strawberries soaked in Gragnano with rhubarb ice cream, a plate of cookies, and the toffee chocolate ice cream (out of this world!).

Saturday - an Indian dinner with friends: cjsadler and I made saag paneer, spicy chickpeas, shrimp in a coconut curry, rice, and naan. Dessert was chai pots de creme with cardamom sugar cookies.

Sunday: Leftovers from Saturday while watching 'Napoleon Dynamite' and strawberries with cinnamon whipped cream for dessert.

[JPW]

Seeing as this has become our multiauthored food blog...

Friday - Hamburgers on the grill

Saturday - friend's wedding. typical country club food. Lobster bisque with a pastry crust on top (OK once I added a fair amount of pepper), filet (overcooked) with steamed veggies, wedding cake.

Sunday -- By the time I cam home from dropping the babysitter off Saturday night it was way too late for me. As a result, instead of pork larb and a chicken with chinese broccoli and bamboo shoot stir fry, we had the aforementioned leftover pizza with leftover hamburger.

Edited May 16, 2005 by JPW

[crackers]

mmm, love that cheese - now that you mention it on Sunday I also partook of some Montenebro and Firefly farms cheese (the aged one that shaped a little like a pyramid)

Whole Foods had it - still unopened in a box in the back until I asked. Good with mango chutney on peppery water crackers. Edited August 28, 2005 by crackers

[Gastro888]

Saturday night - tapas at Jaleo in Bethesda followed with ice cream at Giffords. The tapas were okay, nothing spectacular.

Sunday afternoon - fantastic meal at Huong Viet: lotus root salad w/ pork & shrimp, banh xeo and caramel fish along with a perfect ca phe su da.

My time has been and will be consumed with practice for our upcoming competition so my foodie side must be put on hold for my hypercompetitive, kick butt and take names side.

[Jacques Gastreaux]

Saturday night - tapas at Jaleo in Bethesda followed with ice cream at Giffords.  The tapas were okay, nothing spectacular.

Sunday afternoon - fantastic meal at Huong Viet: lotus root salad w/ pork & shrimp, banh xeo and caramel fish along with a perfect ca phe su da.

My time has been and will be consumed with practice for our upcoming competition so my foodie side must be put on hold for my hypercompetitive, kick butt and take names side.

Kick butt, don't bother wasting your time taking names.

[MelGold]

I'm so glad I wasn't the only one who had an unspectacular culinary weekend!

Friday night - cold pizza from Domino's and Doritos during a poker game - whole lot of wine (can't recall the label anymore)

Saturday - cold cuts and an assortment of salad options at a family friends' send off. Highlight of the evening, my mother baked all the desserts - favorite chocolate rice krispie cookies - check, apple cake bites - check, turtle cheesecake bites - check. Worth the drive up to Germantown!

Sunday - worked three tables at the Toast of Alexandria, so I grazed on Hard Times chili, Bombay Curry offerings and our own dishes (shrimp & grits from Evening Star Cafe, Grilled Bison Hanger Steak with Mozzarella and Sundried Tomato salad, and Stilton and Apricot Crostini with Vanilla Honey Drizzle). Finished the night off with a small salad with Aunt Annie's Goddess Dressing - YUM!

[DonRocks]

[Y'all feel free to write some in-depth reports on the individual restaurant threads (and feel free to begin one if it doesn't already exist!) ]

[hillvalley]

Nothing I ate was worth it's own post

Saturday lunch was Chipolte (not my choice). Got my sodium intake for the month with the free range pork burrito.

Saturday night was pizza at Red Dog. My wild mushroom, roasted shallot and Gouda was better than my friend's pepperoni and mushroom.

Sunday night I cooked dinner to celebrate my friend's 30th. We had a micro tomato, basil, mozzarella salad, flat iron steak topped with a lemon basil/roasted garlic pesto with roasted asparagus wrapped in prosciutto. For desert I topped the first strawberries of the season (which aren't quite sweet enough to eat on their own) with framboise creme anglaise. We washed it all down with bellini.

Sunday late night snack: more strawberries and creme anglaise.

[Sthitch]

Friday, a sleave of Town House crackers and a couple of beers.

Saturday Geppetto's catered a wine tasting event at the Australian Embassy. No pizza to be found but their passed snacks were surprisingly good. However, the wine was the star of the night, especially Torbreck's Run Rig, and Colonial Estate's Exile.

Sunday was Bombay Curry Company for some Butter Chicken.

[mdt]

a micro tomato

Perhaps this goes in the other thread, but WTF is a micro tomato? A cherry tomato?

[hillvalley]

Of course At the Arlington market they gave them some fancy name so they could overcharge. The salad contained micro basil and greens so I kept the theme going.

[DonRocks]

[Please don't let this thread deter you from writing detailed postings about individual restaurants in their proper threads. Thank you! Your mother.]

[Al Dente]

My ol' lady did a beautiful job on some pan-fried breaded chicken cutlets over arugula and "micro" tomotoes that were bought at Dupont yesterday. I should have taken a picture-- nice presentation!

[JPW]

Balsamic glazed chicken with rice and grilled endive.

edit to add -- forgot steamed asparagus

[laniloa]

Chicken with a wine-sundried tomato sauce, brown rice, and roast asparagus.

[JPW]

Chicken with a wine-sundried tomato sauce, brown rice, and roast asparagus.

Great minds think alike.

[Tweaked]

I bought a roast chicken from Eastern Market which I will be consuming all week over various salad greens and raw veggies.

[Gastro888]

Last night was spent at Maria's Bakery and Cafe in Rockville. Yeap, I'm there at least once a week feeding my HK diner jones.

We had:

Milk tea

Wonton Lo Mein

Fresh Veg w/ Oyster sauce

Baked Portugese Chicken with Rice

Strawberry Cake

'Twas, as always, great comfort food for me. I had the leftovers today for breakfast/lunch.

[Mrs. B]

Last night we finally got around to eating the goat purchased at Mt. P. market the previous week. We slathered it with a homemade caribbean curry mix (hot!) and initially cooked on Saturday (I was a little concerned because it was tough, tough tough after hours of cooking so we went to Radius). It was served with coconut rice (1st try at this and wow it's yummy and easy), pigeon peas, fried plantains and mango. Another 3 hours cooking low and slow did the trick for the goat texture.

[JPW]

Chix quesadillas with Monday night's leftovers.

[CrescentFresh]

Last nights dinner was sponsored by the letter "J."

Grilled porterhouse with roasted asparagus and blue cheese mashed potatoes. (Sorry about the photo quality. Twas a cameracellphone.)

Thanks to Jill, from Cheesetique, for the Crater Lake Blue that was in the potatoes.

Thanks to my co-worker Joyce for the asparagus from her friend's yard.

Thanks to Jake, jparrot, for the Monterosso De Franchi 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend from Stellenbosch.

Edited May 19, 2005 by CrescentFresh

[Gastro888]

Me and the girls headed to a Chinese-American joint on Capital Hill SE last night near the Ugly Mug. We were looking for something cheap and filling. Being underpaid forces you to do that, ya know...

Lo and behold, a restaurant run by Cantonese people! (it's rare nowadays - seems like alot of Chinese-American joints are run by non-Cantonese people) We had:

chicken and corn chowder

baby shrimp chow fun

roast pork with mixed veggies

The soup wasn't bad - not too much cornstarch and had a decent amount of chicken and corn. The roast pork with mixed veggies was good - firm veggies and nice roast pork. The chow fun could've been done better - it was just mixed together and not "chowed".

And the chile oil blew my brains out. Holy crap!

[JPW]

Last night's dinner was at JPW's Thai Home Eatery

Pork larb - absolutely exquisite. The chef has really perfected this dish

Cucumber salad with salty sweet lime dressing - not bad but nothing special

Chix stir fry with chinese broccoli and bamboo shoots - nicely done and just the right amount of heat. Could have used a little bit more sauce as the bamboo shoots are thirsty little bastards.

[FunnyJohn]

Last night's dinner was at JPW's Thai Home Eatery

Pork larb - absolutely exquisite. The chef has really perfected this dish

Cucumber salad with salty sweet lime dressing - not bad but nothing special

Chix stir fry with chinese broccoli and bamboo shoots - nicely done and just the right amount of heat. Could have used a little bit more sauce as the bamboo shoots are thirsty little bastards.

Have you taught Peanut how to use chopsticks yet?

Edited May 19, 2005 by FunnyJohn

[Gastro888]

Oh, yes and do tell which end of the chopsticks she grasped first.

If she went for the bottom part, it means she'll marry someone from nearby - if she grasped the top part, it means she'll marry someone from far away.

Old wives' tale but cute nonetheless...

[JPW]

Have you taught Peanut how to use chopsticks yet?

Generally do Thai food, so no chopsticks yet.

I'll have to remember Gastro's little which end she grabs thing

[Gastro888]

Forgot mention if she waps you on the head with said chopsticks, you're going to have a REALLY expensive wedding to pay for...

Dinner last night was leftover shrimp with lobster sauce made by my father. Best cook in the world, my pappy is.

Tonight I have kal bi on the menu!!! Yippy!

[bilrus]

I did Shaking Beef (scroll down about 1/3 of the page to see recipe) from Charles Phan of the Slanted Door in San Francisco. I really didn't like the restaurant when we were there, but this dish is very nice.

[Gastro888]

Oooh, bilrus, that looks good.

One question though - I noticed the recipe didn't have sesame oil listed as an ingredient. Did you feel the lack of it affected the taste? I find it a little odd that it's not used. (Of course, this could be just me as I am a sesame oil addict. I put it in my ramen noodles!)

[bilrus]

Oooh, bilrus, that looks good.

One question though - I noticed the recipe didn't have sesame oil listed as an ingredient. Did you feel the lack of it affected the taste? I find it a little odd that it's not used. (Of course, this could be just me as I am a sesame oil addict. I put it in my ramen noodles!)

I didn't notice it missing one way or another, but when you mention it, a little sesame oil would be good in this, maybe in the marinade for the beef.

[Gastro888]

Try it next time and let me know how it is. It just seemed really odd that there was no sesame oil. Borderline sacreligious!

[MicGSD]

A bit late, but the memories remain nonetheless ...... Sunday after hitting Dupont and Eastern markets, I was obviously hungry so we went to Belga Cafe. Mussels and frites and wine while others ate breakfast - haha. Monday - larp kai, Tuesday - spinach and feta chicken sausages, and tonight - soft shell crabs

[bilrus]

Courtesy of the Arlington Farmer's Market. Aside from a bit of goat cheese and my dijon vinagrette, everything for dinner came from the market this morning (eggs, lettuce, maitake mushrooms, spring onions):

[Heather]

Bill, that omelet looks delicious.

After gorging at the picnic yesterday all I had room for was some nonfat Total yogurt with a handful of walnuts and a drizzle of honey.

On the menu tonight - spaghetti with Italian sausage and meatballs. Mmmmmmmm.

[crackers]

After gorging at the picnic yesterday all I had room for was some nonfat Total yogurt with a handful of walnuts and a drizzle of honey. 

You ate!? Impressive. I'm wondering what I can do with all the left overs. Come home for dinner tonight kids! Edited August 28, 2005 by crackers

[JPW]

Sausage and kale with penne a la Mario. He suggests making your own stinging nettle pasta, but I was just too god damned tired.

As a side note -- My copy of Simple Italian Food is almost RIP; binder falling apart, pages falling out. I have yet to try a recipe from this book that needs tweaking. And as any cookbook addict knows, that is VERY unusual.

[mktye]

A savory bread pudding made with leftover bread from the picnic and layered with mozarella, roasted eggplant, garlic and basil.

[Heather]

Sausage and kale with penne a la Mario. He suggests making your own stinging nettle pasta, but I was just too god damned tired.

As a side note -- My copy of Simple Italian Food is almost RIP; binder falling apart, pages falling out. I have yet to try a recipe from this book that needs tweaking. And as any cookbook addict knows, that is VERY unusual.

Didn't make your own pasta? On a weeknight? After working all day? How dare you!

Funny about the cookbook. I much prefer the Babbo book - gave Simple Italian Food away.

Edited May 24, 2005 by Heather

[laniloa]

Risotto with basil and roasted zucchini, sauteed chicken.

[JPW]

Funny about the cookbook.  I much prefer the Babbo book - gave Simple Italian Food away.

Well, if you ever feel like giving the Babbo cookbook away....

One of these days I'll get around to ordering a used copy from Amazon.

[bilrus]

Speaking of the Babbo Cookbook.

Last night I used my Asparagus from the Arlington Market to make a "Shaved Asparagus and Parmeggiano Salad" from the Chez Panisse Cafe Cookbook and Asparagus and Ricotta Ravioli from the Babbo Cookbook.

Well, if you ever feel like giving the Babbo cookbook away....

One of these days I'll get around to ordering a used copy from Amazon.

Do it. I've not made a single bad recipe from this book yet. Although I have stuck mostly to the Pastas. The Babbo website linked above does have a lot of recipes in the archives.

Edited December 26, 2006 by mktye

[JPW]

Both look nice bilrus.

What's the dressing on that salad?

[Al Dente]

Just curious, but how does one "shave asparagus"? Seems like it would fall apart.

[bilrus]

Joe - The dressing is shallots, olive oil, lemon juice, champgne vinegar, salt and pepper

Al - The asparagus is raw, so it does hold up some. I don't own a mandloine as the recipe suggests. (I got really nice one for xmas a few years back and sliced my finger pretty good taking it out of the box. It went back to Williams Somoma - after I cleaned the blade.) I tried using a carrot peeler, but it wasn't sharp enough. So I ended up just using my knife (and medicore knife skills) to do a real fine julienne.

[cjsadler]

Goat cheese and scallion ravioli with black olive butter. This was from M. Batali's new book-- I just decided to make it a tomato dough instead. I have to figure out how to take better pictures with this new camera, though.

[bilrus]

Goat cheese and scallion ravioli with black olive butter. This was from M. Batali's new book-- I just decided to make it a tomato dough instead.  I have to figure out how to take better pictures with this new camera, though.

That looks really good. What did you add to the dough to make it a tomato dough?

As for the pictures, have you seen the Photobug thread on eG? They've got some pretty good tips.

Tonight's dinner for me was a Salumi platter with fixin's from the Italian Store in Arlington - Sopressata, Mortadela, Prosciutto di Parma, Buffalo Mozzarella, some toasted bread and some assorted olives with my new revalation - pickled garlic cloves.

[hillvalley]

Tonight's dinner for me was a Salumi platter with fixin's from the Italian Store in Arlington - Sopressata, Mortadela, Prosciutto di Parma, Buffalo Mozzarella, some toasted bread and some assorted olives with my new revalation - pickled garlic cloves. 

Be careful with that revalation...I discovered it a few years ago. The day after indulging myself in a meal just like yours I was informed by a student that "I smelled funny"

[Al Dente]

Goat cheese and scallion ravioli with black olive butter.  This was from M. Batali's new book-- I just decided to make it a tomato dough instead. I have to figure out how to take better pictures with this new camera, though.

That's a stunning dish. I gotta start working on my pasta skills.

[JPW]

Last night's dinner has inspired the beginning of an ode, "Ode to Stir Fry". Expect more bad poetry soon.

Tired? Don't feel like cooking? Looking for an easy clean-up? The humble stirfry has the answers to all these questions.

Put rice and water in rice cooker, plug in.

Chop up some veggies (last night was bamboo shoots, carrots, and onion)

Slice up some meat (last night was chicken)

Wait until rice cooker is done.

Heat oil in wok, toast some chili paste.

Add meat. Add veggies. Add some chix stock.

Cook through. Take off heat. Sprinkle with basil. Time to cook = 10 minutes total.

Easy as you please. Limited number of dirty things makes my dishwasher very happy.

[CrescentFresh]

That's a stunning dish. I gotta start working on my pasta skills.

Perhaps mdt will add it to the June 4 pasta class menu?

[cjsadler]

That looks really good.  What did you add to the dough to make it a tomato dough? 

Tomato paste. For each cup of flour you need roughly a tablespoon. Just mix it in with your eggs.

(Careful if you use that paste that comes out of a tube like I did- it has a fair amount of olive oil mixed in. I already use olive oil in my dough so this extra oil resulted in a dough with a hard to work with texture that had me cursing up a storm.)

[JPW]

Tomato paste.  For each cup of flour you need roughly a tablespoon.  Just mix it in with your eggs.

(Careful if you use that paste that comes out of a tube like I did- it has a fair amount of olive oil mixed in.  I already use olive oil in my dough so this extra oil resulted in a dough with a hard to work with texture that had me cursing up a storm.)

It's also very salty, so it is important to monitor theseasoning of your filling and/or sauce.

[Gastro888]

Roasted lamb, rice, and leftover veggies.

Dessert (which was before dinner, hee hee): A Vietnamese dessert from Eden Center - cubes of steamed rice jelly/dough with pandan flavoring, palm sugar and coconut cream. Oh yeah...

Must plan my carbing-up meal. Hmm. Pasta or mein, pasta or mein. Hmm.

[cjsadler]

Chive spaetzle and chicken and mushrooms braised in riesling. I love spaetzle, and it's about the quickest most foolproof thing to make.

[Gastro888]

Steak - pan fried, served with a side of white rice.

Mix the pan juices with the rice and gobble up like there's no tomorrow.

Ahhhh.

[brr]

chive spaetzle - looks and sounds delicious!

Chive spaetzle and chicken and mushrooms braised in riesling.  I love spaetzle, and it's about the quickest most foolproof thing to make.

[txaggie]

The spaetzle was yummy the next day too. I ate the leftovers for lunch.

[Al Dente]

Last night-- an enormous pile of spaghetti with Rao's marinara and about 8 lbs of Reggiano grated over it. For shits and giggles I added a quart of Cholula hot sauce.

It was one of those days.

[Gastro888]

Korean kal bi on the bone. Different than the boneless ones - I think I'll stick with the boneless next time.

Tonight - carbing up for the competition tomorrow. More kal bi and rice. Lots of rice. We will be a rice rocket dragon boat tomorrow at Thompson's Boat House!

[JPW]

Clean out the fridge night.

Cheese remnants, prosciutto that was a day too old, leftover pita from the picnic, some really crappy rose that I got at Paul's.

Shared a pear with Peanut.

[brr]

we had a snacky, cheese-dominated dinner w/ some friends and some wine incl a great Los Vascos Reserve Cabernet that I picked up at CW a few months back for $11 a bottle - drinks like a wine 3 or 4 times the price!

Cheeses: Belle Etoile, Shropshire Blue, Manchego, Montenebro and Forsterkase (an amazingly pungent, earthy, buttery cheese wrapped in spruce bark that some friends brouight down from Murrays cheese in NYC - I must ask Jill at the Cheestique tasting if she has ever had it in stock)

Wasabi peas from Whole Foods

Fancy Terra chips of some kind

[bilrus]

At the Arlington market this weekend I succumbed and bought some early tomatoes from Toigo after tasting a bite of the samples they had sitting out and I picked up some bacon from one of the other stands. You can see where this is leading.

But a few days ago jenrus watched the movie Spanglish - not my idea of a great movie, but whatever. In the movie Adam Sandler plays a top-level chef and was trained before filming by Thomas Keller. One of the extras on the DVD is Keller making his ideal sandwich. basically a BLT on good toasted bread with a yolky fried egg and melted Monterey Jack cheese. With that inspiration I gave it a shot.

No pictures, because it didn't look very pretty on the plate. But it was mighty tasty. The tomatoes were very nice for this time of year (can't wait for the summer to unfold) and the yolk from the egg gave the sandwich the extra bit of richness you probably didn't know that a BLT needed.

Edited May 27, 2005 by bilrus

[bookluvingbabe]

At the Arlington market this weekend I succumbed and bought some early tomatoes from Toigo after tasting a bite of the samples they had sitting out and I picked up some bacon from one of the other stands. You can see where this is leading.

But a few days ago jenrus watched the movie Spanglish - not my idea of a great movie, but whatever. In the movie Adam Sandler plays a top-level chef and was trained before filming by Thomas Keller. One of the extras on the DVD is Keller making his ideal sandwich. basically a BLT on good toasted bread with a yolky fried egg and melted Monterey Jack cheese. With that inspiration I gave it a shot.

No pictures, because it didn't look very pretty on the plate. But it was mighty tasty. The tomatoes were very nice for this time of year (can't wait for the summer to unfold) and the yolk from the egg gave the sandwich the extra bit of richness you probably didn't know that a BLT needed.

I've made something similar during the summer using the smoked mozzerella from the Blue Ridge Dairy. It's a pretty wonderful Sunday morning brunch item with bread fresh from the market. Takoma Bakery has a dill cottage cheese bread that's great and I've had great luck with Atwater's various breads.

Jennifer

[hillvalley]

Chicken breasts stuffed with prosciutto, provolone and lots of basil with sauteed snap peas from Market.

[FunnyJohn]

Spent yesterday smokin' -- a slab 'o pork ribs. Then it rained -- well, ok, spritzed is the better description, and I thought I'd have to finish them in the oven. But the Gods were kind and it stopped spritzing and I was able to fire up the grill to finish the ribs. Um-Um delicious. The secret (aside from apple wood) -- my hoisin based marinade and finishing sauce. Losen my tongue with a few glasses of wine and I may divulge it one of these days.

[JPW]

Hamburgers that would make Frank Ruta jealous!

The buns, however, needed an upgrade.

[bilrus]

Grilled pork tacos with mango salsa and goat cheese:

[Stretch]

Leg of Aussie lamb from Trader Joe's. Very nice. Pan gravy. Haricots verts and a spring green salad. Barossa shiraz (Shotfire Ridge, OK for the price.) Couple of Macallans.

Screw diets and screw abstaining.

PS: Bought a bag full of Bahn Mi from An Binh the other day and put some in the fridge. Today I nuked one for breakfast. I highly recommend hot white radish with your morning coffee.

Edited June 3, 2005 by Stretch

[squidsdc]

pho!

[wineitup]

It was didn't go shopping, let's see what's left in the fridge, freezer, pantry night.

Grilled spicy sausage on focaccia bread, grilled potatoes, mixed green salad with vine ripe cherry tomatoes.

Had it with an 03' Rock Rabbit Syrah, that opened up nicely by the end of the meal.

[Stretch]

It was didn't go shopping, let's see what's left in the fridge, freezer, pantry night.

Ditto. Cold leg of lamb and tapenade in wholewheat pitas. Hummus and salad on the side. Bottle of Abadia Retuerta. Power, and aircon, and fans, went out halfway through dinner so family repaired early to bed by candlelight with a couple of beers, on the grounds that they would just get all warm anyway.

[JPW]

Thai night last night.

Pad Ka Prow with chicken and larb with pork.

washed down with a couple bottles of Victory Prima Pils.

[FunnyJohn]

Had six split chicken breast halves to deal with (one of those buy one get one free deals at Safeway). They were Purdue's birds so I new I would have to spice them up in order for them to have some degree of tastiness. I cross halved each one and then sprinkled liberally with some Penzey's lemon pepper salt blend and smoked Spanish Paprika before throwing them on the barbecue over some mesquite. I whipped up my own barbecue sauce and the end result was quite delicious with plenty of left over chicken for this week. Enjoyed it with some ratatouille and a bot of Gruner Vertliner.

[mdt]

Sunnyside steaks on the gril, some greens with a simple lemon vinaigrette, the last of the ricotta torte, but most importantly NO TOMATO SAUCE.

That will figure into dinner tonight and many more in the upcoming weeks....

[mktye]

the last of the ricotta torte

The first one or the second one?!?

Hmm, we are also have something with tomato sauce for dinner tonight...

[mdt]

The first one or the second one?!? 

The second one was deemed unedible and tossed. I need to go back and re-read the recipe and see what needs to be corrected. Live and learn...

[Heather]

Thai night last night.

Pad Ka Prow with chicken

Joe, what recipe do you use?

[JPW]

Joe, what recipe do you use?

None really.

Lan Chi Chili Paste with garlic (Whole Foods). Toast the paste in some oil. Stir Fry meat. toss in basil and onion (or other veggie du jour). stir fry for a minute and then finish off with a little stock.

[Pete]

Picked up some nice Mahi Mahi from Wegman's yesterday. Briefly marinated it in a soy/orange juice/mirin concoction, and threw it on the grill. Washed down with a couple of glasses of Domaines de Pouy. Delicious.

[hillvalley]

Cream of roasted asparagus soup and a sirloin tip steak I picked up at Sunnyside. This was the first time I was disappointed with their meat. It was chewy and not nearly as flavorful as their other cuts.

Could someone please tell me why I felt the need to turn on the oven on the hottest day of the year?

[bilrus]

Cream of roasted asparagus soup

This is on the menu for tomorrow night.

Tonight I used the pasta dough I took home from Saturday's lesson as the basis for Papardelle Bolognese from the Babbo Cookbook.

Nothing like two light meals in a row on hot summer nights.

Edited June 7, 2005 by bilrus

[CrescentFresh]

Could someone please tell me why I felt the need to turn on the oven on the hottest day of the year?

I did the same thing. Must be some kind of curse or something.

[JPW]

Grilled Caribbean-marinaded tuna steaks.

Pouch fried peppers

Steamed broccoli

Hugues Beaulieu Picpoul de Pinet

[Stretch]

Pouch fried peppers

How do?

[JPW]

How do?

"Pouch fried" was the best term I could come up with

Thinly sliced bell peppers with lots of olive oil, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.

Put in aluminum foil pouch and toss on back of grill.

[bilrus]

St. Louis style pizza made from mail order fixin's:

[bookluvingbabe]

OMG! My husband would plotz if I showed this to him.

Took him to St. Louis, showed him Amighettis, took him to Steak and Shake, made him toasted ravioli. (It was too cold for Ted Drewes.) Bought him Bissingers Chocolates. What is he still talking about six months later?

Imos Pizza. I've never seen a non-native take to it the way he did.

So the mail-order stuff from Imos works well????

Jennifer

[bilrus]

OMG! My husband would plotz if I showed this to him.

Took him to St. Louis, showed him Amighettis, took him to Steak and Shake, made him toasted ravioli. (It was too cold for Ted Drewes.) Bought him Bissingers Chocolates. What is he still talking about six months later?

Imos Pizza. I've never seen a non-native take to it the way he did.

So the mail-order stuff from Imos works well????

Jennifer

Yep it works very well. If you want to read more, I expounded a bit in this thread.

And my Ohioan wife didn't miss a beat in helping me put away the two pizzas I made tonight. She picked up the habit (and many of the others you mentioned above) pretty quickly. Edited July 30, 2013 by RWBooneJr.