Scrambled eggs, veggie patty, toast. 2/1/23

Scrambled eggs, veggie patty, and rye toast

After getting a good start on Monday with my menu, things have gone off the rails. Tuesday we ended up eating lunch for dinner (open faced tuna sandwich and vegetable soup for me and I forgot to take a picture!) Then Wednesday we went to a friend’s house for lunch and had chili, salad, and cornbread. After such a big lunch we ended up with breakfast for dinner!

I am hoping to get back on track today since I have already bought most of the food for my planned menu. I think I will skip the chili this week since we had it for lunch on Wednesday. John votes for fusilli with mushrooms and asparagus for Thursday dinner. Sounds good to me!

Posted in American, Breakfast For Dinner (BFD), Easy, Eggs, Vegetarian, Weeknight dinners | Tagged | 1 Comment

Shrimp and broccoli over polenta. 1/30/23

Shrimp and broccoli over polenta

John set up the polenta for me to stir as he got the shrimp ready to be cooked. We buy frozen 21-25 shrimp with tail-on so he removes the tail for ease of eating. As the polenta thickened and I stirred, he kept adding more water until it was about 6 parts water to 1 part polenta. It is seasoned with salt, 2 bay leaves and 2 garlic cloves. I put in a teaspoon of butter near the end of cooking. It comes out quite loose which is the way we like it.

In the time it took to cook the shrimp, I cooked the broccoli. So the dinner came together really quickly. The polenta made a kind of thick sauce for the shrimp and the broccoli. Dinner was great!

Posted in American, Easy, Grains, Methods, pescatarian, Shellfish, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Weekly menu. January 30 – February 5, 2023

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Hamburger on ciabatta, tater tots. 1/27/23

Hamburger on ciabatta and tater tots

Medium-rare hamburger on a toasted ciabatta bun with lettuce, onion, mayo, and ketchup, yum! I misjudged how long it would take to cook the tater tots so mine had the texture of being microwaved. At least the underdone potatoes kept me from eating too many. I put the rest of them back in the oven so the guys could have crispier ones. John ate the rest of them in an omelet of leftovers this morning.

Saturday is our son’s birthday and our last day here in Utah. We are planning on eating a birthday pizza from a pizzeria we know makes decent pizza. I will cook up all the leftover onion bits to put on top. We plan on leaving for the long drive back to Northern California around 6AM on Sunday. Maybe I will plan next week’s menu in the car. I will surely be dininglite the next few weeks.

Posted in American, Beef, Easy, Grilling, Vacation cuisine, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged | Leave a comment

Fancy dinner night. 1/26/23

Mushrooms, asparagus, mashed potatoes, and braised leeks in a beurre blanc with seared scallops

As a part of our vacation tradition every year our son makes us his “fancy dinner.” John and I are his willing sous chefs. Years ago we had dined at the now defunct Oak City Grill in Menlo Park, CA. The chef at the restaurant made a scallop dish which we all loved and that our son has created through his taste memory. It starts on the bottom with braised leeks, then mashed potatoes, followed by sautéed asparagus and mushrooms. This gets enrobed by a beurre blanc sauce. The scallops surround this mound of deliciousness.

For my part I made the mashed potatoes, and cut up the asparagus. John was in charge of prepping the mushrooms. Our son cooked the asparagus, mushrooms, leeks, and scallops. Then he made the sauce and assembled the dish.

It was so delicious! The scallops were cooked perfectly. Yes, it is an expensive and decadent meal. However, if we had gone to a restaurant for this dish it would probably have cost $150 and that is without tax, tip, and a bottle of wine. We spent about $60 for the ingredients and had a great time making it together!

Posted in American, Methods, pescatarian, Shellfish, Special occasion, Vacation cuisine, Vegetables | Tagged | Leave a comment

Shrimp tacos, Mexican rice, spicy beans. 1/25/23

Shrimp tacos, Mexican rice, and spicy beans

Wednesday’s dinner was more like what we normally eat at home. It was lighter on the fat and the portion size was certainly smaller than the gigantic steaks of yesterday. However, it was just as tasty and filling.

John, as usual, cooked the shrimp perfectly. The tortillas were a little flimsy and I ended up eating my tacos with a knife and fork. Along with the shrimp the taco encased cabbage, onions, salsa, and guacamole. I have never put guacamole in a shrimp taco before and it was wonderful. I think I will be making shrimp tacos with guacamole from now on.

I call this rice Mexican rice because I have had this tomato-y, spicy rice at Mexican restaurants. To make the rice I use the liquid portion of a can of Rotel plus enough water for the amount of rice. I add the solids in after the rice is cooked. Everyone liked it. The beans are simply 2 cans of drained black beans, 1 can of Rotel, and 1/4 teaspoons of cumin, heated together.

So another vacation day dinner. We tend not to eat out while we are here because 1) cooking together is fun, and 2) this area is not known for its great cuisine. Tomorrow our son is making a fancy dinner for us. I am really looking forward to it!

Posted in American, Easy, Methods, Mexican, pescatarian, rice, Shellfish, Southwest U.S., Vacation cuisine, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ribeye steak, twice-baked potato, broccoli. 1/24/23

Ribeye steak, twice-baked potato, and broccoli

This vacation week is a cavalcade of food I do not usually eat. John seems excited by the prospect of dinners that include beef, cheese, and butter plus salty, crunchy snacks with cocktails. It is our son’s birthday week and I want him to eat what he likes. I shall repent at leisure for this over-indulgence.

There is a gas grill right outside the kitchen door here and John used it to cook the steaks perfectly. We like ours medium-rare. We each got our own steak which was too much for any of us to eat. Everyone is interested in leftover steak sandwiches for lunch or steak and eggs for breakfast.

The original plan was to microwave the potatoes and then finish them on the grill. That is the method we use at home. Since I am an indulgent mom I asked our son if he would prefer a twice-baked potato and his eyes lit up. After microwaving the potatoes I sliced the potatoes in half and scooped out the potato innards. The shells went into a 350F oven to crisp up while I mashed the innards with butter, milk, and cheddar cheese. After stuffing the creamy, cheese-y concoction back into the potato shells I baked them briefly followed by short stint under the broiler.

I cooked the broccoli in a little water and butter. Afterwards I garnished the florets with Parmesan cheese.

I just want to state that although our dinners have been and will be over-the-top this week, zero desserts have been eaten. At least it helps that I do not like sweet things. It is my one saving grace.

Posted in American, Beef, Easy, Grilling, Methods, Special occasion, Vacation cuisine, Vegetables | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Penne with tomato sauce and meatballs. 1/23/23

Penne with tomato sauce and meatballs (picture by sunbasket.com)

As often happens when I make pasta I am so excited to eat it that I forget to take a picture. Luckily there are plenty of images on the internet of penne and meatballs.

Although I purchased pre-made frozen meatballs, I did make the sauce. Making spaghetti sauce is easy. I sautéed onions and garlic adding red pepper flakes, oregano, and salt as they were cooking. Next came a can of tomato paste followed by 1/4 cup red wine to deglaze the pan. Then a large can of Muir Glen crushed tomatoes. I let that cook together for half an hour and then added the frozen meatballs. The whole mixture cooked together for another half hour and then it was time to correct the seasoning, serve it up, and garnish with Parmesan cheese.

It was pretty yummy although the meatballs were a little spongy. Homemade meatballs would have been so much better. But, hey, I am on vacation and allowed to take some shortcuts!

Posted in American, Beef, Easy, Italian, Pasta, Vacation cuisine, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Shrimp street tacos and salmon summer rolls. 1/22/23

Shrimp street tacos

I am always trying to find items which will not blow my food budget when we are on a road trip. Although these tacos came with chips (which I gave away to my dining partners), shrimp and corn tortillas are always a good choice. I wish they had not squirted the pink stuff on top but otherwise this lunch was pretty good. We are so happy that Tia’s in St. George, Utah seems to be prospering especially since most restaurants in the area are closed on Sundays and we were hungry!

After we got to our destination and checked into our condo for the week, we headed to the grocery store for supplies. Sushi was the easy dinner for Sunday night. When you have been on the road driving all day the idea of making a complicated dinner was a non-starter. I chose salmon summer rolls. We raised our glasses of Negroni sbagliato and wished each other a very happy vacation.

Salmon summer roll picture thanks to tastykitchen.com
Posted in Dining out, Easy, Fish, Japanese, Mexican, pescatarian, Shellfish, Vacation cuisine, Vegetables | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Hamburger and salad. 1/20/23

Hamburger and salad

Tonight we enjoyed a hamburger which John cooked beautifully on the grill. If I could only choose one way to eat beef it would be this, a simple burger with a slice of onion on a bun with a smear of mayo on the bottom and ketchup on top. The salad was good too!

Posted in American, Beef, Easy, Salad, Vegetables, Weeknight dinners | Tagged | 1 Comment