Gotta brag on the teenager-prepared dinner. He decided next time he’d use different cheese (the mozzarella was a little bland) but the arepas turned out fantastic. I made the beans and it was nice being the sous chef for a change!
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I should say so!! Very impressive.
ETA: mixing mozzarella with a stronger cheese (sharp cheddar?) will get him melty + flavor.
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Congrats to you and son! Looks fantastic!
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Greetings, People.
Still in afterglow after my 65th Christmas on this planet. It’s always good to see family and friends. Moving forward is a week of do-nothingness at home before starting a New Year and new garden. In the culinary department , still focusing on a few winter indulgences to celebrate the turning of the calendar.
Cooking for two adults in the PNW.
FRI: Chicken and waffles. Green salad.
SAT: Burgers on the grill. Gourmet potato chips.
SUN: Salmon Caesar.
MON: Either Jacques Pepin’s sriracha-baked chicken breasts (gift link here) or NYT’s paprika chicken (gift link here).
TUE: Mac and cheese (a big one!). Brats. Green salad.
WED: New Year’s Eve. Tri-tip on the grill. Leftover mac and cheese. Salad.
THUR: Chowder. Biscuits.
Wishing a happy and joyous New Year, and may all your goals and wishes for 2025 be fulfilled.
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Hello friends I hope everyone is having a nice holiday so far. This week has been quiet since
I am at home nursing a broken toe. There has been lots of reading going on and next weeek I plan on flipping through my cookbooks to see if there are any new recipes I’d like to try in 2025.
On to my menus for this week:
Today: I will be going to a late afternoon movie with one of my meetup groups taking the bus there then we will go out for a bite to eat after at a nearby restaurant.
Saturday: I have a few provisions to pick up for the week so I’m doing that today since we might get freezing rain tomorrow or Monday, depending on which news outlet you listen to. Spaghettini with bok choy for dinner.
Sunday: Thai style fish curry, rice on the side.
Monday: Risotto with sundried tomatoes and leeks.
Tuesday: New Years Eve. Smoked salmon and ricotta on a bagel, artichoke salad on the side.
Wednesday: Happy New Yeer! Pork and green bean stirfry.
Thursday: Tagliatelle with Brussels sprouts and gorgonzola.
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The January discussion is available for when your plan is more in January than December.
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Hi everyone, I hope those who celebrate had a wonderful Christmas. Ours was small, cozy, and adult feeling. And now we’re able to just relax and enjoy each other’s company without any of the stress the holidays can bring. Here’s what we ate:
Mon: SK’s Greek chicken gyro salad, tzatziki, pitas
Tues: spicy Asian noodle soup with fresh herbs
Wed: Christmas! Rosemary and lemon roasted salmon with horseradish sauce; mashers; endive and apple salad with walnuts and blue cheese. Chocolate whiskey bundt cake for dessert
Thurs: pasta with roasted tomatoes, garlic, boursin, and cream
Fri: Lulu spent the night with a friend, while LLD and I tried a new Spanish place in town. It was fantastic, and we’re already planning on going again
Sat: LLD in the midst of making tuna tacos
Sun: carry out
Here’s to a happy, healthy, and delicious 2025!
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Actuals for Christmas week, cooking for 2 in MN. Where 5 days later I’m still including many leftovers in the menu, but think the New Year will start with some new cooking, too. My Christmas gift was an IOU for a winter trip to “somewhere warm”, and we’re in negotiations around potential destination choices within continental USA.
Mon: Scallop potatoes and ham, salad, fruit
Tues: Chili, cornbread muffins (also made corn casserole and roasted sweet potatoes for Christmas Day)
Wed: breakfast - pineapple cherry Christmas muffins, noon dinner - Steak & mushrooms, spinach souffle, baked sweet potato, corn casserole, devilled eggs, cream cheese & olive penguins.
Thurs: Reheated steak, bag Caesar salad, corn casserole, roasted sweet potatoes, devilled eggs, last cream cheese olive penguin.
Fri: Egg bake with remaining turkey sausage, sliced fresh orange
Sat: lunch - chili over baked potato. dinner - Salmon, reheated cubed sweet potato, reheated corn casserole. Bag Caesar salad with added spinach.
Sun: Leftovers – salmon, chicken stir fry, corn casserole, Caesar salad.
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This is probably one of my favourites from SK. I must admit I cheat abit and use already cooked chicken skewers from Costco and tzatziki and pitas from a Persian grocery store but I make the salad myself 
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The tzatziki is amazing though - that little bit of sherry vinegar really makes it pop. If you’re ever up for just a little more work (and believe me, I get it if you’re not), give it a try.
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If it’s that good I must give it a try then!
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Me,too.
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Sherry vinegar? The recipe calls for white wine vinegar - do you usually use sherry vinegar instead? (I’m stealing this plan for our dinner tonight, but am intrigued by the possibility of extra-popping tzatziki.)
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Oh geez, you’re right. I’m so used to using sherry vinegar in everything but yes, I use white wine vinegar in this. And it does give it a little extra zing, which I love. And draining the cucumber as much as possible also helps a lot.
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Hi, all. I hope everyone enjoyed their holidays, or at least made it through with minimal feelings of gross bodily harm towards their loved ones.
I surprised DS with the gift of an air fryer (the InstantPot Vortex Pro, it’s ginormous). We generally try to be silly with the “from” names on gift tags, and so I looked up his teacher for the Joy of Cooking class he’s taking at school this quarter and wrote the tag as To DS from “Mr. Smith.” DS was so confused - “who’s Mr. Smith??” - turns out the teacher has the kids call him by his first name, so DS didn’t know his last name…
Last night he made us chicken parm for dinner, and it was the first time I’ve eaten crispy food at home in I don’t know how long. Win! I also got the ATK subscription I suggested, so I’ve been browsing the recipes online.
Another partial-week plan, I’m really leaning into Chaos Week here!
Sun: burgers, fries (air fryer!), roasted broccoli
Mon: homemade pasta and red sauce
Tues: SK’s chicken gyro salad (thanks, @LulusMom1!) and homemade flatbreads (this but not stuffed)
Weds: tbd…
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Tonight:
Leftover goose maqluba
Beef Rouladen
Potato pancakes
Cooked kale, escarole and spinach.
Ambrosia
Possibly a filo apple strudel.
Monday:
Salmon cakes
Leftovers
Tuesday:
Our friends are having us for dinner, and it will be a surprise.
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Trip to South Padre Island, TX is booked, with intent to miss minus 10 temperatures here and see/hear a SpaceX launch.
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Curious how they will compare to NASA’s. I’ve seen a launch and a landing and they were both pretty exciting, especially for having been unplanned.
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Hi, all! Cooking for a varying number of people in different locations :-). Reflecting on some fun actuals during my travels before I get back to the regular cooking and meal planning routine in Chattanooga next week.
In France, we cooked up a storm for my FIL’s 90th birthday: seared scallops with lemon-butter-dill sauce, tournedos Rossini, gratin Dauphinois, and an almond-marmalade tart. Basically all his favorite foods with special wine pairings. It was a big hit, especially since DH created a fancy printed menu for the occasion.
In Sacramento, I baked a bunch of the NYT Cookie Week cookies (the ginger cheesecake and rum butter ones were the biggest hits) and did a couple of bean-forward meals: a hummus meal (dips for dinner!) and this very delicious bean gratin.
For Christmas Eve at my dad’s, I made crab-stuffed mushrooms and fish soup (feast of 3 fishes?) for me and my parents, and on Christmas Day, I made this rolled spinach omelet (the effort/outcome ratio is great) for breakfast and the roast chicken with cabbage (same comment) for lunch.
In Oakland, I got to try Bakesum which is worth the hype, and we made chicken cutlets, maple-glazed sweet potatoes, and applesauce cake for the return of DH from France.
Back at my Dad’s for delayed family Xmas dinner: halloumi-stuffed sweet peppers, prime rib, potato gratin, creamed spinach, salad, pavlova, and cheesecake for 12. Very fun, very delicious.
Today, we’re off to Napa to celebrate NYE with friends; I’m making a black-eyed pea salad and an apple tart, but we’re not sure what else is on the menu.
And sometime before we go home on Saturday, I want to make this stew but with leftover black-eyed peas.
I hope everyone has had fun, relaxing, and delicious times with their favorite people and hope you will continue to do so in the New Year! Happy cooking!
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Spinach omelettes are one of my favorite things, and that SK version looks great! Thanks for the link!
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