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Grilled hamburger with chopped salad. 11/26/22
John grilled the burgers to perfection and I assembled a pre-packaged salad. No inventiveness in this meal but if I am going to have a red meat dinner, I would always choose a hamburger over a fancy steak.
Posted in Vegetables, Beef, Grilling, American, Easy, Salad, Weeknight dinners
Tagged Hamburger
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Thanksgiving and the day after. 11/25/22
We had an all-hors d’oeuvres Thanksgiving dinner with the whole family. Each person brought an item or items in appetizer form. It was fun and relaxed although probably as much work as doing the whole big traditional spread. Here are some pictures of our dinner.
When we all sat down at the table there were more yummy treats.
I would like to say that is all I ate but it is so easy to have just one more of this or that. Plus there were desserts. I made Indian pudding served warm with vanilla ice cream and there were also three kinds of pies.
For dinner the night after Thanksgiving we had an instant replay of leftovers. Now I think we are done with Thanksgiving foods and can get back to almost normal! I think grilled hamburgers are on the menu for Saturday night. They are kind of a treat too. But after that John and I have to address our weight gain from too much indulgence. (Although my birthday is coming up and then there are Hanukkah latkes, and Christmas cookies. Sigh.)
Tomato-mushroom fettuccine with zucchini two ways! 11/23/22
Our vegan pasta dish this week was so delicious and so filling! Using tomatoes, mushrooms, and chunks of zucchini plus stretching my pasta allotment with zoodles gives me a portion size that I really enjoy. The zucchini really did double duty! Think about adding more vegetables to your pasta dishes and you will end up with a healthier and more plentiful dinner.
Posted in American, Easy, Healthy tips, Italian, Pasta, Vegan, Vegetables, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners
Tagged pasta, zucchini
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Chicken enchiladas with spicy black beans. 11/22/22
This dish is heavily reliant on staples in your pantry and fridge. The enchiladas are corn tortillas filled with shredded rotisserie chicken, some jarred salsa verde, chopped onion, and cheese. The cheese I used here was what we had, feta. A melting cheese would have been a better choice but we are working on clearing space in the fridge for Thanksgiving and the feta needed to be used. We warmed the tortillas in the microwave to make them more pliable.
The rolled tortillas were nestled next to each other tightly in a 9×13 dish. The salsa verde covered the bottom of the dish and top of the tortillas. I also sprinkled any remaining cheese on top. It baked at 350F for 1/2 hour.
The spicy beans are simply a can of rinsed and drained black beans and a can of Original Rotel heated together stovetop with a dash of cumin and chipotle powder.
Posted in American, Easy, Legumes, Methods, Mexican, Poultry, Southwest U.S., Uncategorized, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners
Tagged chicken
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Salmon bowl. 11/21/22
This bowl is a family favorite and we make it three different ways, this one with salmon, another with shrimp, and my favorite with tofu. Other than making rice and cooking the salmon, there is no other cooking involved. I use a small mandolin for slicing the cucumber and cabbage (although you could just buy a bag of shredded cabbage.) The shelled edamame come from a frozen bag. Defrost and salt. One large, ripe avocado is plenty for the three of us.
In your bowl start with a portion of rice and lay the salmon on the rice. Add the cabbage, edamame, cucumber, and avocado around the edges. Dress everything with the soy vinaigrette and oil. Garnish with cilantro, chopped green onions, and optional furikake.
Posted in Asian, Fish, Healthy tips, Legumes, Methods, pescatarian, Recipes, rice, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners
Tagged salmon
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Weekly Menu November 21 – 27, 2022
Happy Thanksgiving Week! This year our son and daughter-in-law are hosting the dinner with ample assistance from our daughter. They have composed an all-hors d’oeuvres dinner which feature all sorts of finger foods. I’ve left that day blank on the menu since I am not totally sure what everyone is bringing. Have a happy day with friends and family!
Posted in Weekly menu
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Harira, ham, and egg. 11/20/22
This Sunday’s Breakfast For Dinner made use of leftover Harira, a Moroccan stew we made earlier this week. I added a piece of deli ham that I cut in strips, an over easy egg, and a squirt of sriracha to spice it up. I found the resulting dish a little sweet for my taste. I also think I like the taste of an egg better on its own. I know that runny eggs are supposed to be a crowning touch to many dishes but it is just not for me.
Posted in American, Easy, Eggs, leftovers, North African, Pork, stew, Vegetables
Tagged Eggs
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Farro bowl with sheet pan eggplant and Brussels sprouts. 11/19/22
This dish started out as a quinoa bowl with tahini sauce that I saw on the NYTimes cooking site. John is not a fan of quinoa so I changed the grain to farro. I did not want all the calories from tahini so I made up a sauce of non-fat yogurt and peanut butter powder.
Here is my easy, fool-proof oven-baked recipe for farro (and also brown rice!)
The eggplant and Brussels sprouts I toss in olive oil and salt. I use a separate sheet pan for each vegetable. I roast the vegetables at 425F for 20 minutes for the eggplant and then put the sprouts in for the last 10 minutes. The edamame I just defrost and add a little salt.
I can only give approximates for the sauce because it is a kind of taste as you go recipe. So 1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt, 2 tablespoons of peanut butter powder, 1/2 teaspoon each soy sauce and sesame oil, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, a dash of salt, and water to thin the sauce out. That’s my best guess.
Posted in Grains, Healthy tips, Legumes, Recipes, Sheet pan, Vegetables, Vegetarian
Tagged Eggplant, farro
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Grilled hamburger with tabbouleh 11/18/22
Once again John is responsible for making the burgers and I am taking care of the tabbouleh. He does a masterful job of cooking the burgers out on the grill in the almost dark. They are more on the medium side of medium- rare but still delicious.
I have been working on getting the most out of my patio garden. Yesterday I harvested all my basil and made pesto which I froze. Today I am using up mint and parsley. Making tabbouleh is somewhat onerous what with all the washing, drying, picking of leaves, and chopping. Today it was worth using my full-sized food processor even though it is more of a pain to clean.
This dinner was a delicious nod to summer using the last bits of our patio produce before Jack Frost kills it off.
Posted in American, Beef, Grilling, Recipes, Salad, Vegetables
Tagged hamburgers, tabbouleh
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Omnivore 