What's for Dinner #43 - 03/2019 - the SMarch Edition

Eating in courses tonight, mostly because I haven’t had much of an appetite, and slightly because I’m working through produce that I don’t want going bad rather than eating what’s easy.

Starting with a copycat of one of my favorite restaurant dishes ever - crispy maitake mushroom. I sautéed mine (instead of deep fried) and guessed a bit at the cheese “spread” it’s served with - didn’t have the cheese they use, so I subbed ricotta thinned with kefir.

Came pretty darn close, and delicious even if it hadn’t been!

Some crispy okra might be the next course…

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Oh, thanks for this post, RedJim! Now I know what to do with the mostly potato/veg. leftovers from our Saturday dinner, and will top them with fried eggs since there’s almost no leftover corned beef.

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@naf Except for the chicken knees and horse sashimi, that meal looks incroyable!

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Virtual hugs.

It’s lucky that you can be there to help out sometimes. I’m sure your parents enjoy the visit - and the change of caregiver, and your siblings must appreciate the respite.

With my grandparents, softer, familiar foods became the easiest pleasers. Recently similar for my dad, who is an adventurous eater otherwise, but craves the familiar, plain, and soft when he is down (chicken soup with soft vegetables at the top of the list). My uncle loved carbonara, bolognese, and ramen - all overcooked and soft - when he was undergoing chemo.

Maybe some of the leftovers that your dad enjoys (like meatloaf) can be frozen in portions for after you leave?

Your comment about polishing dad’s shoes jogged some memories and made me smile.

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Yes. I contemplated contacting you. Now that I’m here I’m reminded why I don’t attempt any socializing in this area. Plans change a dozen times a day. It will be pretty stunning if I manage to snag a Cuban and a cafe con leche!

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Miso salmon, sesame soba with ponzu, butter, edamame and mushrooms, and a green salad with balsamic vinaigrette and pumpkin seeds. My babe ate close to half my salmon.

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True. I’m taking pains to have the food look attractive. Trying to play with textures too. I’ve found a beverage and a few snacks that appeal to him. Suggested he use half n half with cereal rather than low fat. The high fat worked and he is very enthusiastic about breakfast now. Hopefully we can find more options that make him happy this week!

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:laughing:!

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That is so cool!

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We had dinner at a nice little Brazilian restaurant in Montclair, NJ called Samba. We shared 3 appetizers of Caprese stuffed avocado with mozzarella pearls, local farmed cherry heirloom tomatoes, pesto, and balsamic glacé. We also had fried yuca with Brazilian pork sausage and sautéed onions, as well as a yuca empanada stuffed with dried beef and butternut squash. For entrees Mrs. P had a carved acorn squash filled with creamy butternut squash, shrimp, fresh herbs, and parmesan cheese. I had thin panfried sirloin steak topped with 2 fried eggs, sautéed collard greens and fried plantains. It all went great with a 2016 Cooper & Thief red blend that was aged in bourbon barrels for 3 months.








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My dear wife chuckles at me when we find Meatloaf at a new to us restaurant, because I’ll always order that. But not at $25!

Great photos. Thank you for posting.

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Last night’s dinner was yummy but forgot to take pictures ( maple duck farm duck legs as main course) was usual when guests are here.
They stayed over and today, some other friends of my son arrived after our breakfast of salmon and croissant so, they went out to the marine museum and had lunch out.
I had been up every. few hours smoking a 4 lb pork per request instead of brisket

Followed Meathead’s recipe from amazing rib which is usually a hit with his friends ( but of course nowadays, it is taboo for me)
I am very happy to learn that cutting the 2 pork butts horizontally into 4 pieces did cut down the cooking time to 8- 10 hours instead of 14-16 hours ( smaller pieces were done in 8 hours) and of course, more surface area for the rub and caramelization with more of those wonderful bark.
Here is recipe if anyone is interested.
kosher salt for dry brining ( 1/2 tp per pound) 24 hours before to give time for salt to penetrate the meat.
After 24 hours , I brushed the meat with peanut oil, then applied generous amount of Memphis Dust per Meathead Goldwyn’s recipe from Amazing Ribs

MEMPHIS DUST ( I make a whole recipe and store them, usually for 2 use)
3/4 cup demerera sugar
3/4 cup white granulated sugar
1/2 cup paprika
1/4 cup garlic powder
2 TBSP ground pepper
2 Tbsp ginger powder
2 Tbsp onion powder
2 Tbsp ancho powder
2 Tbsp rosemary powder
Set point of MAK 1 grill at 250 degrees using
Target 203 degrees, The 2 smaller pieces took 8- 8.5 hours, while the 2 larger pieces took 10 hours .which means THAT IN THE FUTURE, I DO NOT HAVE TO START SMOKING AT 2:00AM.
Since I am not sure when they will return, I wrapped the pork with 2 layers of foil, placed the in a cambrio filled with kitchen towels.
Pull pork with bear claws North Carolina Vinegar sauce and Stubbs BBQ sauce as choice

NORTH CAROLINA VINEGAR SAUCE RECIPE

1.5 cup of cider vinegar ( I prefer this to distilled white vinegar)
2 tsp or more of tabasco
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp salt
2 tsp black pepper 2 tsp red pepper
Garlic!

One smaller piece was set to a neighbor together with sauce etc, a piece of last night’s apple pie, some champagne mangoes as she lost her husband a week ago.
The picture shows


only one piece was pulled for dinner, but that was not even consumed as I had Boursin garlic cheese and crackers as appetizer .Of course I could not eat the pork but had crackers, cheese and last night’s left over duck leg .
Made some coleslaw without mayonnaise
dessert was tres leches from Costco.

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Trying to change up the usual salad stuff i swapped in artichoke hearts (hmm, can’t see those much), radishes, edamame (also buried), plus usual cilantro and some scallions. Missing those olives but the other stuff made a nice combo, added kimchi vinegrette after the pic.
Kombucha and prezel goldfishies a la carte

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Okra (microwave) fries … added some cornstarch and the crispness factor went through the roof! Seasoned with chili, lime, and chaat masala.

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Sounds like you have your hands full.

FWIW you can snag a decent Cuban and cafe con leche at the airport

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It’s that time of year again . Sweet , a little salt , with tang . Very satisfied with my Russian dressing for the Reubens tomorrow. And all . Wine to drink , Cheers :wine_glass:

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Thanks Jimmy! I was surprised to see a meatloaf special at a Brazilian restaurant. I’m sure they put their own twist on it, but I don’t go to a Brazilan restaurant to order meatloaf :grinning:

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I noticed that last time I flew down! Drove this trip. Worst case there is a spot just off I75 near Ocala which does a decent job. Their guava pastries are nice. Flaky though, which makes for 12 hours of interesting discoveries of hidden crumbs! :wink:

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Food is often the way we show love and provide a healing touch. Chemo makes it so difficult to give that way. The whole thing just snowballs. The patient needs nutrition and some simple pleasures. Those caring for the loved one are frustrated not being able to actively help fix the situation. When nothing tastes good it is harder to meet nutritional needs…I was joking that since he has nixed most of his usual favorite foods perhaps we should explore the vast world of vegetables since he has never been a fan!

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Those flavors seem to work. We are making a trip to an Italian deli to stock the freezer. I think having someone in the kitchen for long periods just gets him agitated at this point.

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