Thursday, 5/28/20

At my request, Jason made another batch of his new style pizza. 4 pies: fresh mozz+cherry tomatoes, pepperoni with fresh and shredded mozz, goat cheese with spinach and caramelized onions, and spinach, feta and cherry tomato. He really nailed it this time. They were all perfectly cooked and delicious.

Wednesday, 5/27/20

Quick dinner at home before a socially distant visit with Laurie and the gang. Jason made Instant Pot alfredo, which in my (literally professional) opinion was only somewhat successful. He doubled the pasta, and the result was too dry and chewy. I added peas and spinach to mine, and really regretted not sauteeing the spinach first. Oh well. I did convince him to add more liquid next time. We brought cupcakes to Laurie's for dessert (it was her birthday). Just a pretty basic recipe from Smitten. I guess I am only meh about chocolate cake, but Laurie seemed happy, so that's good! Nice to see friends in person.

Sunset from the car on the way home

Tuesday, 5/26/20

Rice and beans repeat from a few weeks ago. I doubled the beans this time, and in the rice recipe, I used one small can of diced tomatoes w/ green chiles (instead of regular tomatoes), plus 1 pack of Goya seasoning. Carter had broccoli, and Jason and I had summer squash. The rice is a bit of a production to make, but worth it.

Monday, 5/25/20

Jason made us some popovers, and we had them with kielbasa and a cream of asparagus soup. The soup was a little disappointing (local asparagus is not cheap!).  I put in a bit too much liquid, so it was a bit on the thin/flavorless side.

Sunday, 5/24/20

I had been eyeing this chicken recipe from Bon Appetit for quite a while, and the stars finally aligned. You marinate chicken breasts with a paste made with garlic, ginger, turmeric, amchur powder, coriander, mint and cilantro, then pan sear, then let them finish in the pan, covered. I threw a little butter in the pan too make a quick sauce and these were so flavorful and still pretty juicy. We also had roasted cauliflower, some leftover pita, and these little mini samosa things I picked up at Aldi. No complaints even from Carter.

Saturday, 5/23/20

Jason really surprised me by trying a new pizza recipe. And he actually followed a recipe (from Serious eats)! So after several days of fermenting/rising, we had

thin, Neapolitan style pizza for dinner! Two plain cheese, one with pepperoni, and one with feta, spinach, garlic and cherry tomatoes. The first one was a bit underdone, the second a tad overdone, but the last two were perfect. It was a really fun change.

Friday, 5/22/20

Jason wanted to try making waffles with his beloved store-bought pancake mix. They were fine, I guess. Carter and I agreed that they were not tender enough (but my bananas sauteed with rum, brown sugar and butter helped), and that my raised yeast waffles are better. Served with some brussels sprouts that I found in the freezer (I honestly don't remember even buying them. They may have come from my Mom's freezer). I sauteed those little guys with bacon fat, onions and a little bit of leftover spicy diced tomatoes. Carter declared them his new least favorite vegetable. Take that, zucchini! Also, some breakfast sausage.

Thursday, 5/21/20

Sort of an impromptu meal since Jason made a batch of pita. So we had that with scrambled eggs (with onions and cheese), plus a grilled vegetable salad with spicy fish sauce sauce (Carter had some plain broccoli; he doesn't like zucchini unless I fritter it). I also made a small amount of yogurt-tahini-lemon dip for the pita. Pretty good for an ad hoc dinner!

Wednesday, 5/20/20

Tofu sauteed with scallions, garlic, ginger and green beans, with Cravings sauce. Served over rice. Carter thought it was too vinegary but I liked it.

Tuesday, 5/19/20

Eggplant parm that wasn't my best. I don't think it was my fault---one of my eggplants was a little bitter. I was going to serve it with brussels sprouts, but decided eggplant was already a vegetable, so...
Also, spaghetti.

Monday, 5/18/20

Jason and Carter have been arguing about burgers for a while, and Carter finally convinced his dad to make them smaller and flatter (the poor kid really misses McDonalds). Happily for Team Carter, they really turned our well! We also had potato patties and a salad that I made with chick peas, grilled zuccini and onions, roasted peppers, capers and feta. Actually my favorite part.

Sunday, 5/17/20

I made a red bean curry (from the NYT) that I was only moderately happy with. I used crushed tomatoes that I thought made the sauce too thick, and my garam masala is a little too cinnamon-forward for my taste (I should just make my own blend). We had rice and (spicy) sauteed cabbage with it. The best part was dessert: rhubarb cobbler (from Pioneer Woman: as usual, I cut back the sugar, increased the rhubarb, and doubled the topping) with hard sauce. I let Jason make the hard sauce and while I privately thought it needed more powdered sugar, it was nice of me to let him help.

Saturday, 5/16/20

In a couple of firsts, we had (outdoor, socially distant) dinner with friends, AND take-out food. It felt like a big leap. The pizza was from Low Brow in Northampton, and would probably have been better had we eaten it hot. Jen made a really good salad with feta, grapefruit and almonds, and I made cakey style brownies from King Arthur (fine. Brownies), plus a Jason bread. It was nice to see Jen and John and their new deck. It still felt a little transgressive, though.

Friday, 5/14/20

I am sorry to report that it was a giant tray of nachos for dinner. I didn't even serve a vegetable with it (and the tomatoes on top don't count, especially since Carter tried to discreetly take his off).

Thursday, 5/14/20

Relatively exciting dinner of seared tuna steaks and spring rolls. Lots of dips. I made a peanut sauce and nuac chom for the spring rolls, plus a sesame-ginger-soy sauce for the tuna. Plus we had hoisin and Thai chili sauce. So dinner was very customizable. I filled the spring rolls with rice noodles, carrot, cucumber, cilantro and mint (because that was all we had).

Wednesday, 5/13/20

Once again, breakfast for dinner. Things are getting repetitive. English muffin sandwiches with sausage, egg and cheese. I have to admit, they really are pretty tasty. I made everyone eat some roasted squash and cauliflower because we aren't savages, after all.

Tuesday, 5/12/20

Jason made a truly gorgeous loaf of bread, at my request. That was the main point of dinner, but I also made a lentil soup (from the NYT) with tomato and lemon to go with it. Threw in a bunch of spinach, so we all ate a vegetable.

Monday, 5/11/20

Quasi Italian grinders: salami, provolone, sauteed spinach, peppers and onions, plus pepperoncinis and cherry tomatoes. Found a bag of Aldi Fritos to go with it, but I thought they were inferior to real Fritos. Poor us. The sandwiches were great, though.

Sunday, 5/10/20

Spaghetti with meat sauce, plus sauteed broccoli rabe. I used some finely diced salami, plus ground beef and pork; the boys really liked it. I have really been on a broccoli rabe kick lately. The bitterness really grew on me.

Saturday, 5/9/20

I had been seeing glowing reviews for an onion galette from Bon Appetit, so I finally made it. Onions, scallions and garlic, plus a little dijon and parmesan. The crust was amazing, and the filling was fine, but not stellar. I knew I wouldn't love the mustard in there, so I am glad I went light on it. We also had deviled eggs and a salad, plus tapioca for dessert. I found the tapioca recipe at Simply Recipes, and it worked well, except for being a little too sweet. And it used up the cup of tapioca pearls that has been taking up valuable cupboard space forever.

Friday, 5/8/20

Jason is demanding breakfast for dinner all the time. So it was pancakes and bacon tonight. I perked mine up with some bananas sauteed with brown sugar, butter, and bourbon. Fine, even if I don't understand the appeal of breakfast at night.

Thursday, 5/7/20

We finally made it to the Asian market, so we were able to replenish our tofu stores (and sriracha!). So I made baked tofu with soy sauce, sriracha and brown sugar over rice, with sauteed Chinese greens (unsure what kind). Carter got it into his head that he wanted to try Jello salad, so I made him a small batch (strawberry Jello, canned fruit salad, although at least I didn't buy the kind in heavy syrup). I didn't try it myself, but he gamely ate it. Kids.

Wednesday, 5/6/20

At Carter's request, I made another batch of his IKEA meatballs. Skipped the stovetop browning this time and just baked them; much easier (and neater) and worked fine. Mashed potatoes and some yellow squash sauteed with onion and a little togarashi. Luckily, the recipe made a lot of gravy, so I had frozen half and we had plenty.

Tuesday, 5/5/20

Midday approached, and it was discovered that I had no plan for dinner! So Jason made us a couple of pizzas, including one with salami, provolone and pepperoncini, which was excellent.

Monday, 5/4/20

Stovetop macaroni and cheese from Serious Eats, along with some sauteed broccoli rabe. It was good, but (and I can't believe  I am saying this) I am getting a little tired of macaroni and cheese. I guess comfort foods can only take you so far. But I really like the bitterness of the greens with the creamy sauce.

Sunday, 5/3/20

I made (for the third time) Smitten's baked chick peas with pita chips and tahini yogurt. I forgot to buy cucumber (and ran out of cherry tomatoes) so I had to improvise on the little vegetable salad that is supposed to go with it. I used some grilled vegetables I had laying around instead. The pita chips are really what makes this meal good. So thanks Jason for making pita.

Saturday, 5/2/20

I asked Jason to make some bread, so then I had to come up with some kind of soup to go with it. What is the one vegetable we have plenty of? Cabbage, of course! I had always thought cabbage soup would be grim and unpleasant, but it was good! Tomato based, with onions and carrots, coriander, cumin and fennel. Maybe go lighter on the fennel next time. Plus Jason bread with ricotta and honey.

Friday, 5/1/20

Tacos and burritos with guacamole, mexican rice and I think that was it. Little to say.

Wednesday, 4/29/20

Mexican style rice, plus black beans in the Instant Pot; I finally found a recipe that cooked them perfectly: throw beans and water  (1:3) in the pot with salt, onion and garlic, 30 minutes pressure, natural release. Done but not mushy. The rice was also excellent---like what you get in a not quite authentic Mexican restaurant, which is what I was aiming for (saved the recipe). Served with tortilla chips, avocado, cheese and lime. I should have made more.