It’s chilly out but not too cold to grill hamburgers! We had a summer dinner at the end of January. John did a great job grilling our burgers to medium rare. I made a fresh salad to go along side. January or June, grilled hamburgers are a great dinner.
Our dinner for Sunday night was a hearty pasta bowl. While the salted water heated up I sautéed the mushrooms with onions and garlic and wilted the kale in the same pan. When the penne was cooked John drained it and put it in my pan of vegetables. I stirred the penne and veg and then added a half cup of pasta water and a tablespoon of olive oil. We sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on top.
We make a very loose polenta, about a ratio of 6:1, and use it as both a starch and a sauce. It is especially good with broccoli. John cooks the salmon in a 400F oven for 10 to 12 minutes depending on thickness and it is cooked but still moist inside. The whole dinner comes together in about 30 minutes. Easy, quick, and delicious!
Thursday night is Sarah’s night for cooking. It is fun for us to try the dishes she enjoys. Tonight we had a pasta dish that combined spaghetti with buttery cabbage and onions, parmesan cheese, and was topped with crumbled feta. It was delicious! We all wished we could have had seconds.
Here’s the recipe she used. She sent me a text saying “less butter and oil obvi.” She knows I would have cut the bounteous butter and oil obviously.
https://www.thetakeout.com/dinner-recipe-cabbage-fettuccine-pasta-a-pantry-stapl-1842532208/
On Tuesday along with our purchase of rotisserie chicken from Costco we also got a package of loin lamb chops. John does such a good job grilling them and we all enjoy gnawing on the bones. For my part I did the zap part of the potatoes (microwaving) and then handed the cooked, split, oiled, and salted potatoes off to John to give them a bit of char on the grill. IDBS refers to Incredibly Delicious Brussels Sprouts. The halved sprouts are started off in a pan with a little water. They are sprinkled with salt, a bit of sugar, and dotted with butter. They cook cut side down, covered for around 10 minutes. Taking off the cover the remaining water dissipates quickly. At this point I add a shot glass of dry sherry. It really enhances their nutty flavor. The sprouts continue to cook until the cut side is brown. They turn out so delicious!
Thursday night it is Sarah’s turn to cook. I hear she is making a pasta and cabbage combo. Can’t wait!
Today is Tuesday and on Tuesdays I go out to lunch and food shopping with Sarah. We started off at Baja Fresh where we both had a chile lime salad. Then it was off to Grocery Outlet and Trader Joe’s. Last stop was at our new Costco. So convenient! We of course got a rotisserie chicken and while Sarah took the chicken apart I shredded a breast for tonight’s dinner. Originally I planned on chicken tacos but we all voted for enchiladas instead. Happy Enchilada Tuesday!
This is very similar to the dinner I made on New Year’s Day. This time I used two types of canned peas (beans) and a package of Jiffy cornbread that rose more than a half inch LOL! Vegetables added were onions, red bell pepper, a jalapeño, and a can of petite diced tomatoes. For stock I used chicken stock but you could use vegetable stock. I put the pieces of turkey sausage in near the end of cooking so they would be heated through without having their flavor boiled out. The liquid from the stew went really well with the cornbread. I thought this was kind of a southern dish and thus appropriate for MLK Day.
This homey, fairly quick and easy dinner is tasty and economical. Lentils are one of the least costly of proteins. One pound costs about $1.25! We made extra so we would have some soup for lunches. All we would need to do is add more chicken stock to make it soupier.
We don’t have a recipe for this other than cut up sone onions, mushrooms, carrots, and celery in similarly sized pieces. Cook the veg until softened. Add minced garlic, red pepper flakes, and oregano. Then pour in your cooking liquid. We used 1.5 cups of lentils so needed 4-5 cups of liquid. Add the liquid and then the lentils, bring to boil, lower to simmer for about 35-40 minutes.
When the lentils have softened add the sausage cut in quarters and the kale. Cook all together for a few minutes and serve.
Omnivore 