What's for Dinner #34 - June is Bustin' Out All Ovah! Edition - June '18

BF defrosted a batch of my carnitas, made salsa fresca, mexi-rice, guac, and doctored up some canned refried beans. he also fried the tortilla chips from made-from-fresh masa tortillas i recently brought home. so thick and good.


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I giggled at the explanation of Eid. :smiley:

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Whenever I buy octopus, it had been previously frozen. Simmering it for an hour and a half in lots of water makes it very eatable. Sous-vide cooking does an even better job. If you buy it frozen, either let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator, or thaw it like the fish markets do, under cold running water.

Thanks! I’m excited now, I have to go buy some. :slight_smile:

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Second stop: Siri Paya (head and feet), chicken nihari, “pasta” (don’t ask), brain masala, dahi pakorian, salad, gol gappa (also called panipuri.)

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I use this recipe quite often in the summer; one of the comments suggested tossing in toasted pine nuts and I now do so when we have them, plus a pinch of red pepper flakes and more spinach. It’s so easy and good!

Looks so good!

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World Cup match Spain vs Portugal tonight, not that I am a big football fan, but only watch once every 4 years. Something quick. Duck breast marinated the whole day with paprika, garlic, Espelette pepper, salt and olive oil. Roasted with sliced aubergines soaked in duck fat.

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Yesterday was even better, the olive lemon chicken tagine with mint yogurt sauce and carrot salad with orange blossom water, roasted pine nuts…

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Both recipes are here:
https://www.hungryonion.org/t/non-traditional-ways-to-cook-duck-breast/611/12

https://www.hungryonion.org/t/moroccan-cuisine-of-the-quarter-fall-2017-oct-dec/11155/22

Husband is still trying to perfect his pizza making. Fire controlling has to be more precise, the common problem is the dough not cooked enough while the top a bit too burnt.

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I thought so too! The huge bag of spinach from Costco is a staple in the Smokey household, so is the perennial bag of TJ Vegetable Rotini. It was only a matter of time before I put the two together. :slight_smile:

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@naf, where is my invitation? That looks STUNNING!

I’m currently enjoying a rosé from Oregon and pondering dinner - the longer I ponder, the more likely it becomes that we will just eat cheese and charcuterie for dinner. :wink:

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Thanks bio! Cheese and charcuterie is the best, and some reds too.

Seriously - I’m taking ONE DAY OFF on Monday - and shit hits the fan on Friday. ::::Sigh:::

All I had the energy for dinner to do was a frittata - chopped asparagus and red bell pepper, and minced onions were sauteed, then some chopped prosciutto added. Some grated cheddar cheese sprinkled on top, then some eggs and heavy cream whupped with some salt, pepper and minced fresh thyme were poured on top. Let the edges set on the stove top, and into a 350° oven for about 12-14 minutes, until everything was set. Let it sit for a few minutes, and then it was dinner.

Oh yeah. You can be damn sure there was wine. And there will be ice cream. Ain’t no one pulling that crap today and thinking I’m not having ice cream!

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You two eat well!

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Perfect for a stressful day. What kind/flavor of ice cream?

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Being a tourist in NYC is EXHAUSTING. Upper west side historical society, (where a docent was giving a private tour to a family and as they left the room i was like why do i know that man…?? Then once down in the lobby there was a huge poster for a david copperfield exhibit opening there. And um, yeah. That was david copperfield and his family!:joy: )

Across central park eventually, over to neue gallerie for Klimt, up to bluestone lane where we had really rediculous avocado toast the size of my head and flat whites at the sidewalk tables, then over and down to william greenburg for mom’s “rugelach research” (verdict: Breads Bakery is still the clear front runner) then to the subway to city hall, walked and wandered over and up to then finally have wine on the terrace with friends before dinner.
Apparently six miles or so walking.

Nearby dinner at china blue was a fantastic surprise, mom and dad love good chinese food but their local options are limited. Sat outside in the perfect weather.
I did some reconnaissance on my way to/from the restroom and noticed most of the dining room was groups of asian customers with plates of the XLB and greens most common.
So the omnis started with the XLB


And my appetizer was wine :smile:
Omnis went with a sauteed pork dish that came with crepes/pancakes and cucumber and scallions as well as the string beans with pork
The sauteed pea shoots photo didn’t turn out but we all loved that, very bright and fresh, and somehow fantastic with the brown rice. I also had the hot and sour soup which was without a doubt the BEST hot and sour soup i have had outside of shanghai.
Great balance of flavors and plenty of mixed mushrooms with some tofu that sucked up the delicious broth. I thought my own version was pretty good but no, what i make is crap compared to theirs! (And I totally made server go double check it was vegetarian, he reported back absolutely yes. Maybe the dried mushrooms are the broth secret…?)

Walked them back to my friends’ place and hopped the subway uptown…

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Third stop: Dahi baray (daal dumplings in yogurt), chicken plao, kofta (meatballs), aloo keema, bhindi gosht (okra with meat), loki/kaddu gosht (squash with meat), achaar chicken, aloo baingan (potato eggplant), and naan.

My aunt is a great cook. She cooked all this (except the naan) from scratch within 24 hours, and she wasnt even home for half the day! The speed with which she cooks is awe inspiring. And everything was good to excellent, not a dud in the batch.

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Wow!

Some grilled fish in Mykonos last week…

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Grilled octopus in Athens…

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Hey Phreddy! Long time!