Chicken cutlets, sauteed with lemon and butter, with a bunch of leftover broccoli thrown in. I wasn't happy with the texture of the sauce (too thin) and the chicken wasn't as tender as I would have liked. B- at best.
Monday, July 31, 2023
Saturday, 7/29/23
Jason wanted to make a big batch of eggplant parm, and I was happy to do so, but I didn't expect 5 eggplants. It took quite some time to bread and fry all that. They did turn out well (thanks, electric skillet) and we now have a freezer full of eggplant ready to go. For dessert I made no-bake chocolate mousse bars from the NYT. I used an Oreo crust instead of graham cracker, and I stand by that choice, but the crust wasn't thick enough (I used the crust recipe from last week's peanut butter bars; I cut the butter in half and that worked, but that recipe was only a 8x8 dish and this was a 9x13. I could have doubled the Oreos). They were still a hit, though. VERY chocolate-y.
Friday, 7/28/23
Jason's parents rented a house down in Waterford, CT....after a lot of prodding he was convinced to go down for at least the day (the place was huge....we totally should have spent at least one night). After a day at the beach (Jason and I both somehow got sunburned) we were lucky enough to have dinner prepared by Kristen. Spaghetti pangrattato from SK was delicious and it was actually pretty fun having everyone together for dinner.
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View from the back deck |
Thursday, 7/27/23
I had somehow never gotten around to planning something for dinner, and by the time I got home from work I just gave up and we had nachos (in the microwave, no less). Not my best showing.
Thursday, July 27, 2023
Wednesday, 7/26/23
Fried rice with tofu, broccoli, and some green beans Jason brought home from the farm. If I have to be on the porch, at least I had my fancy electric skillet and a glass of wine.
Tuesday, 7/25/23
Zucchini fritters, from SK. I skipped scallions but added feta and nigella seeds. Jason toiled out on the porch over the deep fryer and they turned out perfectly. Carter turned up his nose at zucchini but had to admit that they really just taste like fried deliciousness. Jason also made some pita bread and hummus,and I made pickles over the weekend (too spicy, BTW). Still working on the too-rich peanut butter-Oreo bars.
Monday, 7/24/23
Butter chicken, adapted a bit from The Ministry of Curry (more spices, skipped the coconut milk). Pretty good, although the chicken was a little too tough for my liking. I think it makes sense to leave it in bigger pieces and then cut it up. I also added an entire bag of spinach which seemed excessive but of course cooked down to nothing. Basmati rice and some mini samosas from Aldi to round things out.
Monday, July 24, 2023
Sunday, 7/23/23
Potato-kale hash (loosely adapted from a Blue Apron recipe) with bacon and cheese. Let's face it, they are homefries and they are one of my favorite things for dinner. Potatoes+melted cheese is always a winner in my book. And with kale it is delightfully healthy.
For dessert I made no-bake peanut-butter Oreo bars (from Food52). These were very, very rich. I think you could cut back the butter in the crust by a third; I also didn't care for the tanginess that the cream cheese added to the peanut butter layer. So while these were pretty easy I am not sure I will be making them again.
Saturday, 7/22/23
Dinner with Jen and John. John is still obsessed with his Ooni, so we had steak and chicken grilled in there, along with zucchini, onions and peppers (from the farm) and a surprise but brilliant addition of pineapple. In my opinion, John is overcrowding the pan, but everything was delicious so who cares. Jason made garlic flatbreads and they were amazing in the Ooni. I now believe that really good pizza from it is in our reach. For dessert Jen made some brownies (you cannot beat the Ghirardelli mix) and we had them with raspberries and whipped cream. And Carter even came with us so that was nice.
Friday, 7/21/23
Pesto pizza, with provolone and tomatoes. Funny how Jason was allowed to use the oven....
Anyway, it was pretty good and no complaints. I am hoping good local tomatoes show up soon, but July has been tough, weather-wise.
Friday, July 21, 2023
Thursday, 7/20/23
Dinner with Jay and Jodi to celebrate Jodi's half Ironman (yikes!). Zac and Sam made pasta salad with various customizations: lemon, feta, bacon, lots of fresh herbs. It was a fun meal....I just wish Carter could have come.
Thursday, July 20, 2023
Wednesday, 7/19/23
Cheese and crackers, along with watermelon and potato salad for Jason and me. We also had caramel milkshakes, which had a sad ending when I noticed that our blender has a crack in it. Of course it was literally 3 days past the warrantee. At least they sold us a half price replacement canister.
Tuesday, 7/18/23
We tried out the chicken tenders from Aldi, after the big success with the Target brand. Not quite as cood, in my opinion, but not bad. We also had rice, and Jason and I finished up a cherry salad I had made (more like a relish but calling it a salad seems more nutritious).
Tuesday, July 18, 2023
Monday, 7/17/23
Still living off the largesse of the weekend, we had sandwiches with cold cuts, plus potato salad (and cole slaw for Jason). Jason and Carter were scared of the ciabatta rolls, but they were perfect after a little trip to the toaster oven.
Sunday, 7/16/23
Rice noodle bowls, with sautéed pork (with ginger, garlic and scallions). I thought we had chicken in the freezer, but no. Ground pork is tastier anyway. For garnished we had: carrots, cucumbers, mint, cilantro, basic, peanuts and nuoc cham, plus hoisin and chili crisp. A nice cool dinner on a hot night! Actually it was better than I hoped so that was a nice surprise.
And all done on the porch (you are welcome, Jason).
Sunday, July 16, 2023
Saturday. 7/15/23
Burgers and potato salad and regular salad for dinner (thanks for overbuying, aunties!). Carter was full of praise for my burger, but sadly there was only enough ground beef for one burger each, so he had to have beans and franks for second dinner. Poor hungry boy.
Friday, 7/14/23
More family dinner! I was sad that Corrina still wasn't feeling great, but she was able to join us for a while. Lots of tasty sandwiches and whatnot, but the best part is seeing everyone. I was also happy to hear from my dad the next day that he had really enjoyed it.
Hard to say goodbye, but we consoled ourselves with a LOT of leftovers.
Wednesday, 7/12/23
We had a lot of leftover homemade bagels, so Jason and I had bagels and watermelon for dinner. Jason was tired of smoked salmon, so we tried prosciutto instead. It was nice, but felt a little bit like a waste of prosciutto.
ps we are allowed to use the toaster oven indoors
Wednesday, July 12, 2023
Tuesday, 7/11/23
Since Carter was having dinner with his grandparents, I made pasta with zucchini (from SK) for Jason and myself. Honestly, though, it just tastes like garlic, parm and butter by the time it's done. We broke out our new electric skillet to use on the porch and it was very successful, except that we can't use it at the same time as the hot plate, so I had to cook the pasta first and this really prolonged dinner making. It is getting ridiculous and I bet the neighbors think I am very eccentric. If this is my future for every summer, I will pay for splits myself.
Monday, 7/10/23
As a treat for Carter I made burritos with hamburger and refried beans, how he likes them. He gratifyingly ate 3. That taco seasoning from Aldi may not scream "authentic" but it really gives the beef that cheap Mexican restaurant flavor we secretly love. Raspberry shortcake for dessert (now THAT heated up the house) with drop biscuits from SK and the last of our berries. It was a prolific year and I am sad to see the season end.
Sunday, 7/9/23
Leftover peanut sauce with rice and grilled tofu. Grilling the tofu worked fine, which is good since Jason won't let me cook in the house. I fear he is going to install some kind of outdoor oven and make me wash up with the hose, too. He says it is so we don't heat up the kitchen, but I think he just doesn't want me using his nice clean stove.
Sunday, July 9, 2023
Saturday, 7/8/23
I read an article somewhere that said that Target had the best frozen chicken tenders. I love a chicken tender, and knew that we could also cook them in the air fryer (outside!) so we picked some up and had them for dinner with a salad. They were so good! Better and easier than making my own. But at $8 for a bag that barely fed the three of us, it will probably not be a regular occurrence.
Friday, 7/7/23
Giant breakfast of bacon, eggs and bagels, all done up in the Ooni. I was dubious but everything turned out really well! Then another hike, lunch (bread and cheese, mostly) in Shelburne and home for a LOT of showering. We weren't hungry for dinner so just had some S'mores.
Thursday, 7/6/23
Camping and hiking in Savoy with Jen and John! John bought a fancy little Ooni pizza oven and was determined to use it. The good: sausage and steak grilled up beautifully (the NY strip from Pekarski's was just so flavorful and tender. It didn't need anything). The pizza was not what I would call a success. The dough was maybe too warm, and there should have been a lot more fuel prepped for the oven. Also, Jason maybe should not have had the bourbon before cooking. Anyway, a couple of the pizzas were edible, but not amazing. I think another trial while not camping is warranted. S'mores for dessert. The grill came in handy when the power went out (we had been feeling so smug for having the only cabin with electricity!) and John was able to boil water for coffee the next morning.
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The view of Adams |
Wednesday, 7/5/23
Jason and I had the leftover chicken and peanut sauce, but with rice instead of noodles. We agreed that rice was an improvement.
ps: raspberry fool does NOT hold up well and cannot be re-whipped.
Tuesday, 7/4/23
Grilled chicken (with a soy/fish sauce/lime marinade from the NYT), plus noodles with peanut sauce (no recipe). Served with some quick cucumber pickled and sugar snap peas. Carter is still indifferent to peanut sauce. I made raspberry fool for dessert (roughly from a Pioneer Woman recipe) but the boys weren't very impressed. I liked it but agreed that it could have used more sugar.
Monday, July 3, 2023
Sunday, 7/2/23
Jason is so paranoid about cooking in the heat and overheating the kitchen that we set up a whole crazy situation on the porch. Pinto beans going in the Instant Pot (45 minutes, 20 minutes natural release---perfectly done; 3:1 water to beans), rice in the rice cooker, and zucchini fritters (SK: skipped scallions, added feta) in the deep fryer. I find all of this fairly contrived, but if he is willing to stand out there (in the heat, I might add) then OK. So, rice and beans for dinner plus the fritters which were quite good. Actually less greasy than pan-frying! Our only note is to make them a bit smaller so that they cook through more thoroughly. I think I am seeing an electric skillet in our future; we are going to need a bigger porch.
Sunday, July 2, 2023
Saturday, 7/1/23
Dinner with Jay and Jodi. We brought bread and some zucchini from the farm; Jodi made a pasta with the zucchini, onions, and tempeh. I wasn't sure how Carter would feel about that but he was a fan. I don't bother bringing a dessert since Jodi never eats any. Instead we came home and finished off the shortcakes (with raspberries from the yard).
Thursday, 6/29/23
I knew Carter would be home for dinner so I went with a surefire winner of sushi bowl. No surprises: tuna, surimi, avocado, edamame, mango.
Wednesday, 6/28/23
Leftover pizza, salad, and strawberry shortcake. I used the drop biscuit recipe from SK and they were very easy and good if a little flat.