Menu for the Week…

• Eggs Benedict with miscellaneous breakfast fare – this will be tonight.
• Black Bean Burritos – Probably black beans and rice, onion, maybe mushrooms, in a burrito and served with salsa and sour cream. Cheese in there too, of course.
• Ham – If I can find one at the grocery store, D. has dibs on a ham dinner.
• Tortellini with an Alfredo Sauce.
• Hawaiian Ginger Chicken Soup – I just saw this recipe in a magazine this morning, and it looks pretty darn good, so I think I’ll try it this week (or tomorrow).

That’s about it then. Five planned meals usually work out well for us, since we usually work in leftovers or have some room if the mood for something else strikes us. I’ll be headed out to the grocery store in a bit… Will also be looking for an egg poaching pan. We have it on authority that several restaurants will actually use the Knorr mix for their hollandaise sauce… Who knew? So I’m going to look for some of those packets to try them. I once, years ago and before I thoroughly enjoyed playing in the kitchen, tried to make a hollandaise sauce on a whim. It looked easy and I was in the mood for it… I can safely say that it sucked. Tasted completely yucky and I threw it away. Since then, I’ve not tried to make my own hollandaise again. Until now, because time is up and I’ve got to try again. I’ll let you know how it comes out when I do it… Still, I’m not making any promises.

UPDATE: Turns out we will have a young visitor for the day tomorrow…
Bacon Cheeseburgers and Fries have now been added to the menu for tomorrow. Along with another round of making fudge.

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Menu for the Week…

Well, as is usual, I didn’t get to everything on the menu for last week. So, the Moroccan Chickpea Chili will carry over into the beginning of this coming week. We were going to order a pizza for Valentine’s Day dinner tonight, but decided instead to make something fun here. So we’re going with Blue Cheese and Bacon Burgers. Should be very yummy and I’m getting kind of hungry. We’ll also be making some Fudge to bring over to Granny’s house for dinner there tomorrow.

Without further ado, here’s the upcoming menu. Nothing too exciting… well, nothing too new really. Some new, some old, and some just plain yummy (that’d be the Mac and Cheese from last weekend again)…

• Blue Cheese and Bacon Burgers, with Chips and a Ranch Dip
• Gourmet Macaroni and Cheese
• Moroccan Chickpea Chili
• Chicken, possibly cubed and cooked with Mushrooms, Mashed Potatoes and Corn
• Homemade Pizza

That, along with leftovers and unplanned nibbles, should get us through the week pretty nicely. I’m thinking of some black bean burritos for the following week… It’s a growing hankering I’ve been feeling.

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Menu for the Week…

As we know, it doesn’t always work out the way it’s planned, but at least it’s planned.

• Salmon, Couscous & Asparagus – If I can find the ingredients, and because D. is out tonight… He doesn’t do fish, but it’s a perfect time for me to do it.
• Chicken with Bacon and Mashed Potatoes – D. in the kitchen tomorrow.
• Moroccan Chickpea Chili – I found this recipe today & would like to try it.
• Salad – Because the weather will be much (a lot) warmer next week, so it seems a good meal for then.
• Stir Fry – Will have veggies on hand and rice cooked beforehand.
• Macaroni and Cheese – Although it would be more of a deep cold weather dish, it’s also something I’ve been wanting to make again, and I can have it ready in the fridge for one night after work.

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The Food Groove’s General Kitchen Rules… Post One

Tee-Hee… I just found this post on another blog of mine, from about a year and a half ago.  It all still holds true today.  I was looking for a Turkey Meatball recipe that I haven’t made in way too long…  I still have to find it, but I do know where my paper copy is stored.  Paper, what’s that?    It’s a spotted and splatter-stained piece of paper, which, when it’s a recipe on there, usually means that it’s been well-used and well-received/eaten.    That could be another rule in itself…

• I do not use black pepper. Never. Except maybe a pinhead’s worth in a clam chowder, but I’ve never made that myself, so it really doesn’t count. I think this all stems from an incident in my youth, whereupon (OK, I just had a deja vu as I was editing that word. Odd.) I climbed onto a kitchen chair, and got the black pepper out of the cabinet. I proceeded to exhale greatly, and then inhale the pepper, in an attempt to see if it really would make me sneeze. It did not. But it did make my nose all tingley and itchy and basically yucky. My eyes were watering, my nose was running, and it wasn’t pretty. Then I heard Mom from down the hall, “What are you doing?”. “Nothing, Mom.” Needless to say, I have a strong dislike for pepper.
• I rarely use mayonnaise. If a recipe calls for mayo, I will use plain yogurt instead. When I make tuna fish, I use the yogurt instead of the mayo. I did use vanilla yogurt once, which I had inadvertently purchased, but it wasn’t quite the same. I recommend only plain yogurt in one’s tuna.
• I do not generally like ricotta cheese. I use a lil bit of it in my lasagna primivera recipe, which I will share here one day. I’ll replace the ricotta with plain cottage cheese instead. It’s probably better for you that way too.  (Ed. Note: This is one recipe that I definitely have to make soon… It’s most certainly a weekend meal!)
• When I cook, I typically need to use a recipe. I am not good at ‘winging it’. I can wing it a lil bit, but not a lot. I’m adjust foods to my own tastes, for example, but I need the basic structure of a recipe to get going. It’s like music. I can only play the piano by reading sheet music. I cannot play by ear, or by just starting to play. I’m a very visional person. I think that’s why.
• I love garlic. I will put garlic in most everything. I really think there is a health benefit to that. And I do love cheese too, and will put that in just about everything too. Almost…

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Not a Lot of Cooking, per se…

Although last night I did throw together some pasta. Even if it was a standard pasta dish for us. Whole wheat rotini with mushrooms, garlic, artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatoes and some brick cheese, with a light cheese sauce. It was pretty tasty, and the leftovers will make for some lunches today. That’s always a plus, in my book.

I actually saved the pasta water, and let it cool down. Then I put it in my watering container for watering my veggies and flowers. I read that suggestion, somewhere… The first time I planned on doing that, I out of habit drained the pasta right into the sink, as usual. Whoops! This time, I did remember to save it. Every lil bit helps, and the plants do need watering…

I lost about five pounds over the past two weeks. I’m not a strict weigher, by any means. More curious how my eating habits affect me overall. I think that with it being summer, we’re eating less pasta and heavier foods, and opting for more veggies and lighter fare, such as sandwiches, wraps and spreads. I’ve also been faithfully having cottage cheese for breakfast at work, and that seems to fill me up in the mornings quite nicely. Now, I’ve just got to get back to doing some Pilates…

I didn’t get to baking the bread yet. Hopefully this weekend. We’ve got a company picnic tomorrow, and it’s supposed to be a great day for it. I doubt I’ll take pictures of the food there, but one never knows…

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List o’ Meals…

• Lentil Tomato Feta on Pitas (tonight, most likely)
• Grilled Chicken, Rice with Mushrooms and Broccoli (take chicken out of freezer.)
• Salad, with leftover chicken from above
• Variations on the BLT
• Pesto (See how much this batch ends up making… use and freeze.)
• Grilled Eggplant, maybe in an angel hair pasta, maybe just added along the way…

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