I sprinkled coarsely grated feta over mine, and I also added a tiny bit of toasted sesame oil to the olive oil. Wowzah. I should have made twice as much.

Probably Chinese food from the food court downstairs. That's my usual Monday lunch.

(I've been eating lunch from the same food court just about every workday for 17 years, so it's gotten a little... routine.)

I made a damn fine pot of parsley dumplings in a chickpea broth over the weekend. Tonight, probably a soyrizo frittata.

Roast chicken, salad and cornbread (no cornbread for me though , *sigh*)

(oh, that's tonight! lunch is fruit salad and greek yoghurt - yum!)

I don't know yet, probably coffee and a cigarrette. Last night pips made me lamb with some potatoes.

Lunch: Lean Cuisine three-meat pizza - I wish it was more exciting but I'm trying to eat better. And it's cheaper than going out for lunch.

Dinner: BOCA BURGER! I only get to eat these things when the BF is at work. He's against fake meat products.

I should now ignore this thread until after lunch. I'm very hungry and forgot to bring my veggies for a snack. :(

Lunch was a nasty so-called ‘club’ sandwich from the office vending-machines; while this evening I shall likely be dining on leftover baked macaroni & cheese, which I made with a mix of mature Somerset cheddar and Mahon Curado, a fantastic Spanish cheese I’d not tried before yesterday: while un-aged Mahon is somewhat cheddarlike, the curado more resembles parmesan, only crumblier, and with a very pleasantly-persistent aftertaste.

I just made a playdough taco with my preschooler, but tonight is chicken fajitas. It's a simple marinade of cilanto, lime juice, olive oil, cumin, and chili powder.

All of these meals sound scrumptious. I must make the broccoli arrabiata this week.

Lunch will be homemade beef stew, with green beans, potatoes, carrots, onions, mushrooms and corn.

Dinner may be baked beans or leftovers.

I cooked a ham earlier, but will probably have lemon pepper turkey with roasted veggies tonight, followed by fresh pineapple and mango (the Oxo Mango Splitter I got for Christmas truly rocks).

I'm having fresh pineapple tonight, too!

I'm making Sonoran style chili, cornbread and apple pie for dinner, tonight. Lunch will be a ham/macaroni/green pea salad, over cucumber and avocado wedges.

How do you make the chili, paulsc? I need details, people! Ideas! Inspiration! Feeeeeeeeeeeeeed me!

Inspired by arrabiata, last night I found another way to make broccoli really yummy (and brought it to my monthly Slow Food potluck). Steam 4 heads' worth of broccoli florets until crisp-tender, then chill in cool water and drain. Mix a dressing of 2 T. soy, 2 T. honey, 2 T. rice vinegar, and 2 T. honey. Marinate the broccoli in the dressing for an hour or so. Before serving, sprinkle generously with lightly toasted sesame seeds.

It's delicious!

What is it about sesame oil that makes vegetables taste so rich and satisfying and great? It's alchemy.

Right now? Coffee and cigarettes.

Sonoran cooking is all about umami, taz. You're going for a subtle blend of flavors, and a richness of taste and mouthfeel.

Here's my Sonoran chili:

2 hours ahead of time, cube 1 1/2 pounds of flank steak, or sirloin tips, and marinate in Dale's Seasoning.

Premix dry chili seasoning:
1 1/2 tblsp Hershey cocoa
2 tblsp chili powder*
2 tblsp masa flour
1 tsp ground cumin seed
1 tsp ground cinammon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp ground summer savory
1/2 tsp ground white pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

*chili powders vary a lot in heat and richness, and most cooks find ones they like, or make their own. I like Badia brand chili powder, but I also get some nice chili pastes from a source in Arizona that I'll use in substitution.

Prepare 3 cups cooked long grain rice in beef broth, with basil, marjoram, bay leaf and cracked black pepper seasoning, to taste. When done, set aside and keep warm, for inclusion in chili, later. Remove bay leaves from rice before adding to chili.

Prepare 2 cups dried black beans, according to package directions, or have 1 14 oz can friolies negroes of a quality brand.

Finely chop two medium sweet onions, 1 cup white mushrooms, 1/2 cup celery, 1 clove fresh elephant garlic.

Decant 1 14 oz can black olives. Seperate and reserve liquid, and finely chop olives.

In a large cast iron skillet, heat 4 to 5 tablespoons olive oil. Sweat onion mixture until onions are translucent. Add cubed meat, and brown. Add 1 cube beef bullion while meat is browning, and dissolve completely in oil. Add chopped olives. When meat is fully browned, reduce heat, and add chili seasoning mixture above, stirring forcefully until mixture is fully emulsified in meat, onions and oil. Add 1 tblsp cider vinegar, 1 tblsp Worcestshire sauce, and liquid from olives, stirring to develop gravy. Slowly add 1/2 cup marsala or red wine, stirring. Slowly add 1 1/2 cup water, continuing stirring, to develop rich gravy, and fully cook meat (about 10 minutes over medium heat).

Add black beans. Add rice. Stir thoroughly. Add water, if necessary to desired consistency.

Serve with sliced avocado, grated fresh cheddar cheese, and oyster crackers.

Serves 4 to 6.

That sounds great! What would you use if you had to substitute for the Dale's (which I definitely won't be able to find here)?

Wait -- not honey, twice. it's 2 T. each of honey, soy, sesame oil, and rice wine vin. Sorry.

Lunch: Krab meat and cole slaw salad.
Dinner: Grilled shrimp Greek salad.

(eating like this = 8 lb. of weight lost so far this year :)

I think I'll try that chili recipe at our church's annual chili cookoff next year, paulsc.

Steamed kale with olive oil and lemon. Sure, laugh all you want, but try it first. It is really good.

"That sounds great! What would you use if you had to substitute for the Dale's (which I definitely won't be able to find here)?"
posted by taz 08 January | 11:54

I suppose you could come close to Dale's with something like this:

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup water
1 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp molasses
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp MSG (don't leave it out - it's umami)
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground paprika

At least it'll be a decent marinade!

Y'all put these on the cooking blog pleeeeeeease?

Oh and for lunch I had one of those Lean Cuisine paninis, which are actually pretty good, and an elderly apple. I'm back on my damn diet after basically ignoring it all weekend. Do y'all think 5 days a week of virtue can possibly outweigh 2 days and 3 nights of vice?

Yes, I do. I splurged for about two weeks... not batshitinsane splurging, but I wuz in my holidaze eatin my foodz... and I only gained back two pounds - I think. Only two have shown up, anyway. So yes. The answer is yes. All will be well. Yes, it will.

Lunch will be whatever is left in the bag of Cheetos and dinner is pasta with garlic bread.

Gah. Biting is not my favorite thing these days. (Dental work, touchy wisdom tooth, and the sudden onset of sinusitis. My face is a mess!)

I just made a gorgeous plate of French toast, only to discover that its meltingly tender goodness was a bit too robust for my sad sad jaw.

Dinner tonight will be some form of soup, or possibly a couple of ibuprophen and a long nap.

But this morning we planned a crunchy dinner for when I'm feeling better: a big plate of crispety nachos, raw carrot sticks, Heath bar ice cream, and caramel corn. YAY!

Taboule for me. We lasagnaed our garden this weekend with compost, newspaper, and really, really stinky manure, but were able to get one last good parsley harvest beforehand. Can't wait 'til spring!

Sorry for the momentary derail...mrmoonpie, when you lasagna your beds, do they become higher than the rest of the yard/garden, or does the sod decompose, and become level with the yard? I have been wanting to do this for a couple years to an area in my back garden, but haven't got around to it. I suppose I better hop to it. When will you begin your first plantings after you have done this lasagna method; how long does it take to decompose? Thanks so much.

Oh, yay, taz! Glad you liked it. (And the last time I made it, I actually thought that sesame seeds might be a good addition, but I don't use them that often so I wasn't sure. Glad to hear the sesame direction was a good impulse!)

This is the first year we've done the lasagna thing, so I can't speak with great authority. We put in raised beds last year, and had 4 cubic yards of soil trucked in. The soil settled over the last year, so we want to raise the level a bit.

We're also planning on planting along the fences on either side of our long, narrow yard, so we layered leaves, newspaper, compost, and (purchased) composted manure directly on the ground there. My understanding is that the new beds will be raised somewhat, but only 2 or 3 inches.

I also understand that we won't have to wait until everything is decomposed before we start planting. I do know that decomposing paper and leaves tend to suck nitrogen out of the soil, but the manure and finished compost should (we hope) compensate for that.

At any rate, we won't be planting until March or so, when we'll direct-seed lettuces and spinach and such. In our area, we might lose the first crop to frost, but we're willing to take that risk.

Thanks for the info MrMoonpie. Your garden sounds great.

I have a raised bed also for vegetables and herbs, but I wanted a way to create a new bed easily without pulling up sod, or spraying an herbicide. Thanks again, 2 to 3 inches isn't bad at all. :)