BTW, typo error! It was ’ PONZU ’ I used. ( Yuzu infused soy-sauce )
Last night’s dinner was Gnocchi with grilled chicken in roasted red pepper sauce. I took a couple of liberties in making this recipe working with what I had. The recipe called for grilling a chicken breast and since I don’t have a grill of any kind I opted for stir frying the chicken. (I could have poached it but I was hoping to make last night’s dinner a one pot meal.) So I heated a little grapeseed oil in a fry pan then sautéed a shallot until translucent then added a clove of garlic then the chicken breast cut into cubes. When cooked I pushed the mixture to the side of the pan, added a little flour to the oil, added a half a cup of skim milk (foodie faux pas I know but I’m a weight watcher) then stirred until slightly thickened. I added the roasted red pepper pesto, gnocchi, and spinach then stirred until blended. I added the cheese and stirred until melted. I added at least double the spinach called for since it shrinks a lot. I might add even more next time. Definitely a keeper.
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Nice! Will try.
Ocean view? The best!
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Yesh!
Easy dinner of frozen momos (Tibetan dumplings) tonight.
We had 3 types: Vegetable and Paneer, Original Chicken, and Desi Chicken (which is my favorite because it tastes like a kabab inside a dumpling 
).
The effort here is in steaming the quantity required for dinner. But I finally tried something to simplify this that I’ve been itching to for a while: using the idli steamer my mom bought a while back (for my brother’s idli-loving family, but then he made a silly fuss about it carrying it back so it’s still here) as a momo steamer.
Worked perfectly: this thing has 3 stacking tiers that fit into a steel outer, with the bottom layer resting on a ridge far enough above the water that the lowest level doesn’t get soggy. Top tier: veg, middle: chicken, lowest: desi chicken. 2 dumplings per idli cavity.
10-15 mins later, perfectly steamed momos! But mostly, I’m very pleased that the idli steamer finally got used 
For dessert: Banana bread reimagined as cake and custard (for everyone except me).
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Top layer:
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Middle layer:
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Bottom layer:
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Brilliant
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(takes an immodest and very silly bow)
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You hit the nail on the head. Sometimes we want good food. Maybe even most of the time. Sometimes we want crap, and it could be the nostalgia factor or a comfort food type thing. That’s what I tell myself every time I crave combos, which are delicious and also gross.
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Gotta get a grill! Small habachi? Stove top cast iron grill pan? Electric plug in portable? Ya gotta get one!
Leftovers/Re-Dos/Remnants/Re-Heats tonight:
• Flank steak fajitas meats and veggies
• Crab and asparagus quiche
• Hot crab open face sandwiches
• Tossed green salad
• Overnight oatmeal
•Steamed asparagus
• Deviled eggs from yesterday
• Lemon cheesecake bars
• Almond butter thumbprint cookies with apricot or huckleberry jam or with a whole toasted almond with sprinkled sugar (I just gotta give these away)
Hope to get is all consumed to make room so I can just fill it up again later this week. Stuffed pasta shells are planned.
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Interesting filling! Did you make your own or were they store bought?
A favorite soup, Mexican Turkey Meatball Soup, originally posted by Christine Gallary on the Chowhound site sometime before 2015. My paraphrased version below has half the spice level in both the meatballs and broth and only half the broth amount.
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Mexican Turkey Meatball Soup
Adapted and paraphrased from a Chowhound recipe by Christine Gallary
For the meatballs – I make full recipe with half-spice. Levels shown are my adjusted version:
1 pound ground turkey
¼ medium white or yellow onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
1 t. dried cilantro
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
For the soup – quantity is half original, with spice levels shown my adjusted version for that half:
2 tsp. vegetable oil / mist of veg oil spray
1/4 medium white or yellow onion, medium dice
1/2 medium garlic clove, finely chopped
½ tsp. table salt
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
4 cups (2 cans or 1 carton) low-sodium chicken broth or stock
1 medium carrots, large dice
1 medium Roma tomatoes, cored and large dice – I use half-can of fire roasted tomato
1 medium zucchini, large dice - this gets added later, after meatballs have simmered 20 min
OMITTED for us -1 teaspoon Mexican-style hot sauce, such as Cholula or Tapatío, plus more as needed
For serving: OMITTED for us - Coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
Tortilla chips or warmed tortillas, optional shredded cheddar
For the meatballs: -Using your hands, combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl and place in the refrigerator.
For the soup:
Heat the oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add the onion, garlic, measured salt, chili powder, and cumin and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes.
Increase the heat to high, add the broth or stock, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer.
Meanwhile, form the meatballs: Use a 1 T scoop or your hands. - Fill a small bowl with water. Roll the meat mixture into 1-1/4-inch balls (about 1 heaping tablespoon each), wetting your hands as necessary to keep the mixture from sticking. Place the meatballs on a baking sheet, or lid of casserole dish or the plate on which you refrigerated mixture.
Add the carrots and tomatoes to the broth, stir to combine, and return to a simmer. Add the meatballs, evenly placing them around the pot (no need to stir as you add them, but I do stir a couple of times during the 20 minutes simmer), and return to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium low and cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid. Cook until the rice and the meatballs are cooked through, about 20 minutes.
(Optional - can also bake some of the meatballs – 350, about 20 minutes)
Add the zucchini, stir to combine, and simmer uncovered until the zucchini is done to your liking, about 5 - 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the (optional) measured hot sauce, if using, and stir to combine. Taste and season with additional salt and hot sauce as needed.
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Simple meal tonight: sauteed onion, garlic, sweet Italian sausage, dried oregano and parsley, and Aleppo pepper was mixed with 1 cup of marinara and 1/4 cup of red wine, with convection-roasted broccoli florets and a small handful of grated Parm-Reg.
Served on pappardelle with a sprinkle more of Parm-Reg.
Wine.
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Lovely white Friuli with a Rogue Creamery blue & pink bartlett preserves for starters; Wagyu cheeseburgers the main event. No fries needed tonight 
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Had a little extra cooking time on my hands. Sous vide steelhead trout with a crisp skin “sail” and mustard sauce. 1/2 dozen oysters 'cause I missed the razor clams by thismuch. And spinach schav.
Very successful across the board! Except I kind of butchered the oysters and had to pick out a lot of shell fragments.
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Prime ribeye on the grill. Garden spinach, creamed with shallots. Seasoned potatoes, par-cooked and finished on the grill. Served with chive butter (and lemon wedges).
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Temperatures hit 90 today. Feeling like summer put me in the rare mood for burgers. There was no argument. Alas, burger night it was. Sautéed mushrooms and onions. Swiss cheese. Toasted Brioche bun. Tomato. Mayochup (mayo, ketchup, lime juice, ground pepper). Air-fried shoestring fries. Perfection.
Martini to drink outside in the garden, though we have not worked on it yet. Soon.
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