What are you having for dinner? (wanna share your recipe?)

[Friday]

This is what is for dinner tonight, tomorrow and a few days after. Having both cataracts done at the same time tomorrow, the joys of aging. So I thought an Energizer pot of soup would be good. I have baby spinach to add, but I hate how spinach goes slimy in soups, so I grab a handful and ladle the hot soup over it each time I heat a bowl. Spinach is not normal in it, but it saves making a salad.

Moroccan Harira Soup

Harira is a flavorsome Moroccan soup made with tomatoes, lentils, chickpeas, lamb, and warm aromatic spices for a wonderfully comforting meal.

www.allrecipes.com

That. Looks. Amazing.

I think I’ll cheat & use ras el hanout, and probably sub macaroni just because it stands up. Even though macaroni is more of a Mali thing? I used to have a steady supply of… merguesa? Mergueza? Smoked Moroccan lamb/beef (goat?) sausage… but that butcher is sadly living the dream in Fiji. C’est la vie.

And it’s soooooooup season!!! Yay!!!

My sis made her tomato bisque this week, (last week? the week before? We’re not quite up to a new soup each week weather, or twice a week, but getting there) TheKiddo & I made a big ole pot of gumbo. He made the Cajun napalm & did all the choppifying.

The bisque is one of those fantastic on its own, but also works as a perfect springboard, so I keep adding things (chickpeas in this bowl, crab in that one, tin full of salsa, shredded bread and basil, garlic pepper toast & melty cheese like substance, fire roasted peppers, etc. whatever mood strikes.)… which stretches things so much (and keeps 5 bowls of soup a day interesting)… I keep getting asked if I want soup??? Had mine! And mine. And mine.

***

Did you decide on what vision depth to go for? Near/Far/Mixed?

 

[nursenurse]

I did not use the pasta, nor the flour thickener. It is plenty thick and stewlike.
I wear progressive glasses and contact lenses, so going for the gusto. The latest is light adjustable, we have to pay extra beyond manual slice and dice and mono lenses. Having laser as opposed to manual and the progressive type implants, the eye quack thinks i will get better vision and closer to my goal of no glasses than with the light adjustable.
I would have used ras al hanout but mine is getting old, when i opened it it did not smell as wonderful as the mix of spices which were fresher.
Merguez…I think….?

 

[Friday]

My Fave Meatloaf Leftovers (Recipe is kind of stretching the definition of the word!)…

Never really been a meatloaf sammie girl, but I happen to adore being lazy! So I take the slices, add them to ramekins on top of a dab of gravy, pour gravy over the tops until they’re about halfway up the slice, then top off with mashed potatoes (or green beans then potatoes). Seal the lids on, and freeze. Et Voila! However many future meals, just need to zap bubbling hot in the microwave. No work (or stouffers) required.

^^^ About twice a year Dowan Ramekins with Lids goes on sale for half off. ($10 instead of $20) At which point I buy 2 or 3 (sets of six). So I have about a hundred, hundred and fifty or so, of them in various sizes (in storage, at the moment, but usually in my pantry; but I did drag a box of them with me to my mom’s). Outside of the Irish bakeware, that I can’t seem to find retail? (Most restaurants I’ve worked at use either el cheapo but stacks okay, or badass Irish superstacking/baking/hurl them at the floor and they just do not break, from freezer to fire what thermal shock you talking about?!? porcelain.) These are the best I’ve ever worked with. And, as I’ve said? Laaaaaaazy. So I really love turning tonight’s food, into things I’ll be eating for the next 6 months.

 

[Teasel]

Those ramekins look good @Friday
I recently got myself some Pyrex Zero glass dishes that go from freezer to microwave or oven, love em, plastic free and stackable. They cost a pretty penny tho and don't come in small sizes

 

[nursenurse]

Love me a good meatloaf sammie! I love storage containers, have zero place to store storage containers. I also love frying pans. There is only me, have 13 of various sizes and materials. Dont get me started on purses which I never use, because that is why God invented pockets. Hats? Could open a kiosk in the airport. And never wear a one. But how I love storage containers because they do have a probability of being used. And those ramekins ship to Canada with no import duties….

 

[Friday]

I’m trying to work up the chutzpah to grill some salmon… problem is that a I’ve got half a fish of sashimi grade I would need to process at the same time (flash frozen on site, day it was caught/split, next best thing to Tokyo fish markets) into what I’m keeping raw (and using within 24hrs), what’s going into other things, and what’s being grilled up tonight. >.< Too much work. Too many decisions. Nope. Nope. Nope.

Okay. Bit of a cop out. The decisions have already been made
- Thinnest belly for wrapping around sea scallops to miso poach & sear
- Next palm sized strip to graxlax up >>> Beetroot Gravadlax | Fish Recipes | Jamie Oliver Recipes
- Section after that for sashimi, place on rinsed kombu after skinning, & fridge overnight ; deal with tomorrow.
- Now we’ve reached the grilling section, cut those out, bit of salt/pepper & grilled for a few minutes a side, done!
- Scrap from all sections for salmon burgers & batter dipped bits or jerky
- Serious scrap to whirl for cat food.

See? I’m being a big wuss. No decisions. Just work.

Makes me wish I could eat a cup’o’noodle. (Allergies).

Griping about sashimi grade fish, FFS.

For the record? I ALSO don’t have it in me to bake bread, so Sammies are out. Faaaawk. I really hate food, sometimes. I can do a lot with it? But it needs a lot done.

***

There was a time in my life I was processing 80lbs of salmon a day, the morning’s catch / apx 4 fish… and THAT-Me would be looking at Me-Me like I’m insane. 4 whole fish is 30 minutes, maaaaaybe. And that’s if we’re getting fancy. Looking at a half of a stupid fish as taking hours??? Bah. Pull the other one! Shrug. Illness & Injury is an SOB. It would take me half a day to do it, and 2 days to recover from, if I don’t wait until I have the verve.

<chuckling> I suppose we could look at this as ‘troops ain’t bitching, something’s wrong’… I’m griping so it ain’t that bad. AND there’s even a fun recipe up there. KK.

 

[nursenurse]

Nothing is ever simple, @Friday. If you could wiggle your nose like Bewitched it would all be done in a flash with minimal effort. My sister in law (Italian) does gravlax for Christmas (7 fishes thing). One of my very favourite things in the world. My day today was spent making ahead for t-giving, Canuck one is a week from this Monday, and i have 11-13 folks coming. Yesterday was make ahead mashed, the kind with sour cream, cream cheese, green onions and chives. Today was turkey stock and sweet potato and carrot crisp. Dinner tonight was the meat from the ginormous turkey wing from the stock in a sammie with a real, not injected, smoked gouda, some cherry tomato bits, a few green leaves, and I mixed grainy dijon with a really nice organic apricot jam to spread on one slice of bread, a dab of mayo on the other. I think it was just my mood today, but dang it was a mighty fine sandwich!
PS the beetroot gravlax looks mighty fine!

 

[Friday]

A Portuguese-y Brazilian-y fish stew with badass rice.

I tend to think of this as lazy-not-paella. As in it COULD BE paella, if I gave a f*ck, or didn’t crave soup. But as I’m either unwilling/unable to make paella, or am craving soup? Et voila! 10,000 variations of this fish stew exist in Brazil & Portugal. I suspect for many/much the same reasons. “I want soup” or “can’t be arsed”.

Rice
Garlic
Onion
Parsley
Cilantro/ fresh coriander
Red & Yellow peppers
Tomatoes
Chicken or Veg stock
White wine
Fish / Shellfish

^^^ My own self, I tend to dice/mince half the veg, and leave the other half very chunky/roughly chopped. So that half vanishes into the soup, and the other half stands out / stands up. The fish, use BIG chunks, so it does NOT vanish.


Rice-part

Sauté onion, garlic, & rice in olive oil (like starting a risotto) then add chicken stock (all at once, unlike a risotto), a pinch of saffron*, & a lot fresh parsley: simmer/steam until done. About 20 minutes. Throwing in a handful of minced peppers? Creates some lovely Christmas/Fiesta colour with the parsely, but I only do it sometimes… as it’s already in the soup.

Soup-part

Marinate the fish in olive oil, garlic, salt/pepper, & lime for 15-30 min or so (aka however long it takes to prep & start the veg). ANY fish is good, I’m using cod, salmon, & shrimp this go.

Sauté garlic, onion, red & yellow peppers, until translucent… add tomatoes, white wine, chicken or veg stock, saffron*, and a handful of chopped parsely & cilantro. Set to simmer. Aim for 20-30 minutes, but it’s soup. It’s flexible.

EITHER flash-sear the seafood and then add to soup, or simply add to soup. The extra step creates a totally unnecessary crisp’d edge /smokey loveliness. But I only do it when I’m selling it, or feeling my oats, and don’t miss it when I don’t.

After adding fish, it will only be 5-10 minutes until done, as fish cooks wicked fast. So only add it once you’re happy with the base. Turn off the burner, & garnish with citrus & cilantro. Serve in same bowl as rice. Either centered rice, like gumbo, or soup on one side, rice on the other… to let people stir in -or not- as they please.

* I’m not overly fond of saffron. The floral note is unmistakable, and I don’t dislike it, but -unlike annato, which I crave & miss if it’s not there, in curry- I’m just as likely to use yellow food colouring in saffron’s place.

** For people who seek out the turmeric+black pepper thing? This soup loves that. Add it to the veg when sautéing. We just have to avoid tumeric, in this house, as several people are sensitive to it.

 

[Friday]

Chicken, Pork, & Rice (& kitchen sink) Meatballs

This started because I had some leftover (fairly dry, cough, water, cough) basmati. And tons of ground chicken & pork. So I hit the rice with the blender to small-it-down some… and then basically got silly adding things. The BASE is super easy. Everything that followed? Worked. So I’ll keep it in my back pocket the next time the mood strikes (or need to use up ingredients that aren’t enough all on their own for anything, but thrown together? Worked just great!).

BASE
- Equal parts ground chicken & ground pork
- Minced Basmati (couple pulses in the blender/food processor, or a meditative mincing session with a knife).
- Sautéed (cooled) ginger/ garlic/ shallots (or red onion)
- A sploot (that’s a measurement, I’m almost certain) of Hoisin Sauce
- A splash of chicken stock or chicken jell-o
- Seasoned to taste (&/or ethnicity; like Italian herbs, or Ras el Hanout, or Smokey BBQ, or, or, or)

Where things got crazy… and I just. kept. adding. things. (What else do I need to use? What do I have? Would this go with that? Well, it wouldn’t NOT go with it, so SURE! Add. Add. Add. Consider. Bin. Consider, shrug, in for a penny. What about…?)

- Minced stoplight peppers
- A couple minced sun dried tomatoes
- Minced green onions
- Crushed pineapple
- Finely shredded zucchini
- Minced water chestnut
- Fresh parsley minced
- Cilantro stems minced
- Fire roasted peppers, minced
- Some lemon & lime & orange peel grated
(More meat, because these were starting to look like veggies glued with meat)
(Panko, because I’d added more meat, but had already used up all my rice)
(More chicken stock… start humming “there was an old lady who swallowed a fly”)
- Spiced Rum, because I decided I felt more Caribbean than Mediterranean (or teriyaki or bbq)
- Brown sugar, clove/allspice/nutmeg to accentuate the rum
- some coconut milk because I decided to serve them with ham fried rice with toasted coconut… and the higher the fat content, the better things freeze. So they needed more fat, and coconut tied in better than bacon. (I also stuffed a few bacon wrapped jalapeños with the mix to see if that works as well as I suspect… aaaaaand to use up the leftover bacon & jalapeños I’d decided not to add, but might have been lovely. But I haven’t cooked those, yet).

Ice cream scoop / Mellon baller onto a cookie sheet and bake until 180F inside and since they weren’t browned as much as I wanted hit them with the broiler for a minute or three until they got more golden.

Seriously. BONKERS. I won’t be making this on purpose, very often, (how often do I have half a tomato, a couple inches of zucchini, half a tin of crushed pineapple, half a tin of water chestnuts, 3 pepper tops, etc. etc. etc.? Leftovers that either needed to be used or binned) but they came out amazing. Juicy, flavorful, bouncy, mouthwatering. Now? We’ll see how they freeze! And stuff a pepper.

^^^ MOST of the time when I’m stone-souping? It’s with soup. That this mood hit me whilst making meatballs? If anything is a lesson winging it & trusting your gut. I have NEVER come across a meatball recipe as STUPID as this, but? It worked.

 

[Teasel]

Vegan saag aloo with aubergine, love it

Meera Sodha’s recipe for vegan saag aloo | The New Vegan

A tried-and-tested recipe for potato and spinach curry with added spiced aubergine

www.theguardian.com

 

[nursenurse]

But what is that potato variety in the recipe? This sounds absolutely delish @Teasel , and something non veg folks would love!

 

[Teasel]

@nursenurse yes non veggies would love it too, traditionally it would be made with ghee. Maris Piper are the most common spuds grown in the UK, a good all rounder white spud

From Wikipedia
Maris Piper has a fluffy texture and is considered an "all-rounder" potato.[17] It is widely used to make chips (French fries)

It has been recommended by chefs Heston Blumenthal and Tom Kerridge for making triple cooked chips.[20][21] In his book Perfection, Blumenthal stated they were "in a league of their own" for making roast potatoes[22] and he also considers them the best variety for mashed potatoes.[23]