I also want to add to last night’s dinner post that it had probably been 10-15 years since I had Kraft Mac and Cheese.
While mac and cheese is great, its not something I make often, and that calls for making it from scratch. But last night, HELL NO. It was a very stressful day, I got out of work, and my BF was at the grocery store asking for ideas and I blurted out KRAFT MAC AND CHEESE! And SHAKE AND BAKE! (I did, however do my brown sugar and bourbon sprouts-- that much effort I insisted on).
Boy has Kraft come a long way! No more cheese powder, but actual cheese sauce in a packet. “All natural, no added colors or preservatives”. Tell that to the powder!
It was actually delicious. Extremely salty, but delicious! It won’t be a regular thing, but it won’t be 10 years either.
we had a M&C cook-off at work one day years ago, and my entry had manchego cheese and spanish chorizo and it was DELICIOUS. but the one that won? the one made with Velveeta. Sometimes we just want what we loved as kids.
Thanks for the link and the advice! Anxious to try soon, and also found some smaller wooden types on Etsy that are beautiful but $$. At least they wouldn’t take up as much room as the much larger wooden one used at the event I attended. It was a lot cheaper however, they told me about $20 only. They had also made the best meatballs in a tomato Chile sauce that I’ve ever tasted. I mean even just the meatballs, we were blown away…and I do love albondigas soup and must make some soon.
I’m in San Diego, but we are still (mostly) isolating at home and not doing anything external other than pick-ups.
I have a chapati press that my mom gave us all (well it’s really a puri press because it doesn’t press as thin as a chapati needs to be, so I roll those out). It’s basically the same as a tortilla press, just a slightly different handle and angle.
The first masa harina I tried was Bob’s (for pupusas), but I managed to get Maseca here and it’s far superior in flavor and texture imho. I may take the spare bag back with me!
Yes, it looks elaborate, but as I’ve (overly) explained, we have many food preferences and (voluntary) restrictions in play; it is what it is. Most meals have at least 3 versions - kids, adult vegetarian, adult non-vegetarian.
But this wasn’t actually elaborate for a change - I made the tortillas and rice, the rest was assembly and leftovers. Jarred mole and salsa verde, leftover refried beans from takeout, sibling had marinated fish that I grilled while I was waiting on the rice. Actually an easy meal - for us
My first attempt at rendang - using chicken legs, because apparently our very stocked freezer does not have any beef that would take to a braise or stew.
I took some liberties to make up for missing ingredients - no fresh lemongrass at hand, so I used some dried, plus red curry paste that also had the missing galangal, plus some frozen vietnamese marinade that used the last fresh lemongrass I had found. I felt quite proud of myself!
Done and put away, as all the recipes say it tastes better after a rest. Left it saucier because I always want more gravy when I order this out!
Tonight’s dinner is going to be Penang curry dropped off yesterday by a friend of my hosts, but will need supplementing as they inverted the vegetarian and meat portions. I had marinated thicken thighs last week with thai flavors, so I think that will get grilled to fill out the meal. Stir-fry for the kids. Rice and salad for everyone.
Chicken skin “chips” dusted with ranch as chef’s treat - I marinated the other package of legs in a soy-ginger mixture for another day.
Slow roasted pork loin, roasted cauliflower and chickpeas, sautéed garlic spinach, and roasted potatoes. Hint of curry powder dusted on the pork and cauliflower.
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Thanks @Saregama; it was none of my business where you were, but I was getting a strong feeling it wasn’t in LA or greater LA. Huge county!
What a wonderful place to be stranded, but even paradise gets old when you want to be home. I’m sorry you’re not getting the enjoyment of being able to enjoy the fun and beauty it has to offer, but perhaps you’ve enjoyed it many times before. I’m glad you’re eating well, at least. And I do get it about all the food choices. We played that game too, a bit when the girls were growing up. Thanks for the mention of the maseca and explanation of your family press. Best to you and yours! Oh the chicken to be looks and sounds great, along with the cook’s treat.
NY Strip steaks with rosemary-garlic roasted potatoes and sauteed mushrooms with a touch of red wine. Just mom and I tonight. My BF does not like steak (just burgers or VERY thin skirt steak, etc) so I picked up a couple of strips at Wegmans today and something else for him when he gets home late from work.
Do enjoy! So glad H loves red meat as I do, and it looks perfectly cooked @gcaggiano. Enjoy! BTW, almost out of that Chile sauce. Ate about 3 tablespoons of it today with ramenish. Sooo good. Will post in lunch thread.
I defrosted a couple of dumplings last night to “test” the crispy chili oil. It was excellent. Actually, it reminded me of Sichuan peppercorns because my tongue started to tingle and go slightly numb.
Hell, I liked it so much, I was putting some on my shake and bake pork chop! I almost wanted to eat a spoonful out of the jar.
I look forward to cracking open the jar I received at Christmas. Happy you liked yours!
ETA, love the burning numb. Had an interesting cocktail in Charleston at Xiao Bao Biscuit that had a crushed Sichuan peppercorn rim. ‘‘Twas amazing, and the owners had just bought it fresh in China.
Ooh a cocktail with crushed peppercorns? Interesting!
The Sichuan place we go to (a 30 minute drive, but worth it) has a three-pepper chicken dish that is out of this world. A combination of heat that sneaks up on you and the numbness that sets in after only a couple of bites.
Dumplings again - again not ideal. BF decided to just steam them this time, and they still turned out a bit gummy, and the pork inside toughened up a bit. the wrappers i used said they were “thick” although i don’t remember ever using ones marked “thin” before, but maybe… his Korean scallion pancake was tasty, with my kimchi, his rice, and friend’s sichuan chili crisp. glad we’re through with that batch of dumplings.
I made an Instant-Pot rendition of Smitten Kitchen’s one-pan farro with tomatoes, adding local Mexican chorizo and bay leaves and omitting the cheese and basil. Served it topped with toasted almonds and crispy cumin-coriander spiced cauliflower and chopped lettuce and cilantro, and drizzled with honey-lime vinaigrette.
Yes. Welcome to chili crisp addiction! I have to have a few bottles stocked, lest I run out… I also tend to give them away quite freely when people like it if I’ve served it.
