Dinner tonight - or last night.

Where're you going? Or where did you go? Did you make that?

LIAR! You ate a whole quart of pork fried rice!

I took a menu from a place I stayed. The cusine was tops.,....so I thought I share and post meals from the menu every now and then. First few days back, I sat at the dinner table and just stared at my meager dinner plate. How did today find Mismi?

Ohwee Alex...I am dandy. My three little boys are in naughty moods and seem to be enjoying annoying each other though. Been quite a bit of fussing and crying around here. I keep looking at the clock to see if I can down a glass of wine yet without making myself sleepy!

That sounds like an amazing place Alex....made me want to go eat there.

We are doing Mexican tonight. Woohoo. Margarita. Thinking I am upping my dinner time to 5:30pm

Fried rice. Yummy!

Appetizer: Wild mushroom and eggplant wellington
Soup:Chilled strawberry and banana bisque
Salad: Yellow heirloom tomatoes and celeric herb salad with creamy meyer lemon vinaigrette
Entree:Grilled breast of Muscovy duck and leg confit, with five spice carrot honey cake with key lime cherry gastrique

Kara is a good cook, says Osso. She doesn't post routinely but is sharp. Look up!!!

<bowing deeply>

I don't know much about food or cooking but I tried a little innovation tonight which went well.

I was frying some (good quality, pork & apple) sausages with some sliced onion. When they were done I added a chopped orange and its juice to the mix in the pan, and reduced it a little by simmering.

This was served with steamed new potatoes and some broccoli. Very nice.

I like your creative attitude to cooking, McTag! Wish I was a bit more that way inclined.

Last night I cooked my first slow cooked chicken, along with some roasted potatoes, onions, parsnip & sweet potatoes. It was a very good dinner!

I made broccoli casserole...it is that ol' recipe with rice and broccoli and chicken and cream sauce with ritz crackers and butter on top...so fattening...but so comforting. Man...it was like having my blankie back. And my salad of course...I have to have my salad....spinach and romaine with almond slivers, nice big chunks of pumpernickel and french bread croutons, buttery and crunchy, and dried cranberries, with this spicy, sweet mustard dressing.

ah.

I want the recipe Mismi.....I love that casserole and haven't found the 'old blankie' recipe anywhere.

We're having leftover spaghetti with meat sauce, cantaloupe, and homemade French bread for dinner tonight.

It's easy Foxy - I cook rice in chicken broth 2 -1 ratio - about a cup and a half to two cups of rice.

I boil my chicken (4 split breasts usually), in water (salt, pepper, garlic, onion, carots to season) cool the chicken in the broth and then chop into chunks (I strain the broth and freeze it for another dish another time).

I steam my broccoli while I am doing all the other in the large pot I cook my chicken in.

I put the rice, chicken chunks and the broccoli in the pot and I usually make a cream sauce from flour, milk and butter, garlic and salt and pepper...but I have just gone to using one can of cream of muchroom and one can of cream of chicken...I stir it all together in the pot then pour into a 9x13 dish. I pour about a quarter cup of broth over the top.

I crush a can of ritz crackers and melt a stick of butter in the microwave - I pour the crackers over the top of the rice, chicken, broccoli mixture then pour the melted butter over the top. I bake it in a 350 over until bubbly.

It is by memory of a recipe I had long ago. You can cook the broccoli how you want - just make sure if you don't like it too mushy to under-cook it since it will cook to a softer consistency in the oven. I do not cover it.

As you can see it is full of fattening stuff...but - every once in a while it is a wonderful dish to make. My kids and husband can eat that whole pan in one sitting.

I am cooking my Amberjack tonight. I am going to have queen corn and lady peas with it. My husband caught the fish last Saturday and I got the peas and the corn at the farmers market this morning. I am SO looking forward to it. I found an amazing recipe I thought I would share with you all...

Silver Crowders in Light Tomato Sauce
3 cups shelled crowder peas (or lady peas in my case)
Salt
1 tbsp. olive oil
3 slices good-quality bacon
1 cup onion, finely diced
1/3 cup celery, finely, freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp. garlic, finely chopped
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 cups fresh tomato, peeled, seeded and finely diced
1 cup chicken stock
Carefully wash and pick over the crowders. Put them in a large saucepan and cover well with water. Season the water with a teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil. Reduce to a low simmer and cook, partially covered, skimming and stirring often until tender but not mushy, 25 to 45 minutes. When ready, remove from heat and set aside.
While the peas are cooking, pour the oil in a heavy, nonreactive skillet. Place the bacon slices in the pan and cook over medium-low heat, turning as needed, until the bacon is well browned and very crisp. Remove the bacon from the pan and set aside.
Add the onion and celery to the skillet, sprinkle generously with salt and a few grinds of black pepper and stir well. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, until the onion and celery are just tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the garlic and dried thyme and cook 5 minutes longer. Stir in the diced tomato and sprinkle generously with salt. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, and add 3/4 cup of the chicken stock. Partially cover and simmer very gently for 20 minutes, stirring as needed and adding more stock if the sauce becomes too thick. Taste carefully for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Drain the cooked crowders, reserving the cooking liquid. Add crowders to the simmering tomato sauce and stir well. Simmer gently for 5 to 10 minutes, adding a bit more stock or some of the reserved cooking liquid if the sauce becomes too dry. Taste carefully for seasoning and serve hot with the reserved bacon crumbled over. 6-8 servings
Note: Peas cooked this way are light and flavorful enough to accompany a piece of grilled or sauteed fish or chicken, but substantial enough to play a starring role in the vegetable plate of summer. If you like a slightly more energetic sauce, finely chop a jalapeno or fingerling pepper and add it to the onions when making the sauce. A pinch of crushed red pepper flakes will do the trick, too.
Per serving (based on 6): 131 calories (percent of calories from fat, 29), 8 grams protein, 17 grams carbohydrates, 5 grams fiber, 4 grams fat (1 gram saturated), 3 milligrams cholesterol, 153 milligrams sodium

Sounds great Mismi. With just El Stud & me at home now, I'll probably wait until I've got a crowd to feed--that usually isn't long--or a potluck luncheon, but I can't wait to try it. Thanks so much.

I just bought a new, larger George Foreman. I think cheddar smokies will be grilled. A couple of salads on the side. Eventually.

A repeat of chicken-potato- carrot-peas curry, with a scrounge for other vegetables in fridge. (Wondering the the fennel is still alive, and if so, how it would work.) For a change, I'm not in the mood for onion sauteeing. I've a movie to watch before Netflix comes to my door and demands it back, not that they actually would, but time is passing and today is the day to see it.

By the way, Alex, I love your menu quotes - fabulous. Not a word I use often, but..

I love Alex'a menu quotes as well....

Dinner was great. The Amberjack was tender and tasty and my boy childs even liked it. The peas turned out great - I have that recipe filed in my rotation...silver queen corn, there is just no way to screw it up...so good. And my husband found a nice spicey Riesling that went so well with it. yum, we also picked up a nice crusty french baguette from the farmers market today that was awesome.

Love meals like this

Bacon and lentil soup. I believe a handfull of small shell pasta will be added.