What is/was for dinner?

[Clix Pix]

I love regular hummus, too, but the lemon dill hummus quickly became a favorite once I discovered it one day at the grocery store. Delightful and delicious! Probably it wouldn't be hard to make it oneself, although I have not tried that, no need since I can buy it at the store.

Yes, I enjoy being able to eat when I'm ready, not on anyone else's schedule. Usually I don't even begin thinking about dinner until about 4:30 or 5:00 and then I don't do anything about it until later unless it is something which requires a certain amount of time such as boiling the water for pasta or beginning to cook pomodoro from scratch. Sometimes it is 7:00 or even 8:00 PM before I get around to actually consuming my meal.

 

[MBAir2010]

has anyone tried "PLANT BASED FOODs"?

the concept its great, eat what you are eating eat.
my info problem is that I live in a moronic place as
those people hired, won't or can't talk about the product they sell.

thanks in advance.

 

[anika200]

has anyone tried "PLANT BASED FOODs"?

the concept its great, eat what you are eating eat.
my info problem is that I live in a moronic place as
those people hired, won't or can't talk about the product they sell.

thanks in advance.

If you are talking about this organization? https://www.plantbasedfoods.org/

Then it looks like a great idea.

 

[Herdfan]

Perhaps you could share the recipe you plan to use.

For this batch I am just going to use a pre-made mix. This is my favorite:

https://carrollshelbyschili.com/products - The Texas Chili.

Too much going on in the next few weeks to do this one:

This is from what used to be my favorite Mexican restaurant. It started out as a small place with about 10 tables, then he expanded into the place next door and it was perfect. There was a wait every night. So he figured bigger was better and built a new building several blocks out of downtown and it lasted a couple more years until it closed.

But he has been putting some of his old recipes on youtube (slowly) and the first one was his Texas Red. I made it once and it was close, but I cheated a bit and used store bought chorizo instead of how he did it. Had to order the peppers online because no place locally had them. Now I am in AZ, their are Mexican stores that have them all. Best served with tortillas and butter. Warning, this is scratch cooking at its best.

Funny story about this place. When I was working on my Masters, it was all in the evening starting at 6:30. So one day a couple of friends from class, we all went to Chili Willis before class. One thing about the place, when you ate there, you smelled like it. So the three of us would stink up the entire classroom. Before long we had a group of 6-8 of us eating there before every class. And stinking it up.

The last day of class rolls around and all he has to do it return our final projects. But the week before, the Prof asked us NOT to go there before class as class was going to be short and we could go after. So we agreed. Get to class and he hands back our project and then tells us he reserved a large table at Chili Willis and everyone who wanted to go was welcome. Professor and all. Really enjoyed that class.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Dinner this evening took the form of broccoli and pasta; horribly healthy, one might say.

However, it was a lot tastier than the main ingredients might imply.

Method: Olive oil and butter in an Italian sauté pan; then, one very finely diced onion, and, around eight cloves of finely chopped, sliced and diced garlic were added to the pan, and cooked over a low heat until well softened.

Next, around eight anchovies (the sort you buy in jars or tins in olive oil, Portugal and Spain produce excellent jarred, canned, tinned, anchovies) were added to the pan, and allowed to dissolve and melt into the garlicky goodness.

Pasta water was put to boil, salted, (sometimes, I add a stock cube, and did so today), and the pasta added to cook.

While the pasta was cooking, the broccoli was cut into manageable sized bits, much - if not most - of the stem discarded, and placed in a large dish - the kind that withstand heat, and can be used for roasting - and covered with boiling water, and let stand for three to five minutes - to blanch - then drained into a colander and returned to its dish, then added to the sauté pan where the garlicky goodness awaited it.

Before adding the (almost) cooked pasta to the broccoli, I seasoned the broccoli with black pepper (it didn't need salt; the dissolved anchovies had already seen to that, as does the pasta cooking liquid when a few ladles or tablespoons of that has been added to the pan), mixed and married and melded this lot, and also added a few ladles of starchy pasta cooking liquid.

The final step was to add the pasta, stir, mix, meld and serve. And then, simply, seat yourself at the table, and set about the business of devouring dinner.

Rather tasty.

 

[Clix Pix]

That sounds really good, SS!!! Something even I might be able and inclined to make! I know I would enjoy it -- all of those ingredients are favorites here!

Earlier today I realized that I've still got leftover pomodoro sauce from the other night, so that's on tonight's menu..... Just a matter of boiling up water for the spaghetti and then heating up the sauce, plus preparing a small salad. Easy and delicious!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Sometimes, (I didn't feel the need to do so this evening), I will also add some chilli flakes - to taste, depending on personal preference - to the broccoli, garlic, onion and anchovy mix, before adding the pasta and a few tablespoons, or ladles, or the pasta cooking liquid to the mix.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

That sounds really good, SS!!! Something even I might be able and inclined to make! I know I would enjoy it -- all of those ingredients are favorites here!

It is easy to prepare and tasty to consume, and feels incredibly healthy, and it is a great way with broccoli.

Blanching the broccoli in a dish that simply sits there, into which you can pour boiling water - rather than steaming it - saved on saucepans and washing up, and was a trick I read in some recipe, and was pleased with, as it works.

However, be generous with garlic and with the anchovies; these are what gives the dish its flavour.

Some recipes suggest two cloves of garlic - today, I used around eight, fine, fat cloves of garlic, which were thinly - very thinly - sliced and diced; likewise, I used at least eight, if not ten, anchovies (which I roughly chopped before adding to the pan); roughly, an Ortiz tin of anchovies, which were then allowed to dissolve into the olive oil (and butter) and onion and garlic mix. You can also add (some of) the olive oil from the jar or tin of anchovies to the mix in the sauté pan, rather than wasting it; I did so, today.

Don't skip the anchovies. They go wonderfully well with broccoli, and they are what gives the finished dish a fantastic umami flavour.

And, also, chilli flakes also go very well with this dish, though I didn't feel the need to use them this evening.

Earlier today I realized that I've still got leftover pomodoro sauce from the other night, so that's on tonight's menu..... Just a matter of boiling up water for the spaghetti and then heating up the sauce, plus preparing a small salad. Easy and delicious!

Sounds very tasty.

 

[Clix Pix]

I definitely will be preparing your recipe for pasta/broccoli/anchovies/garlic etc very soon, even if not tonight. Wintertime is when I eat a lot of pasta! I probably will add in a few Kalamata olives, too, just for the heck of it..... In the past but not recently I have made pasta and broccoli a couple of times, but on reflection realize that I probably didn't add enough garlic and it never occurred to me to toss in some anchovies, so I always considered this to be a rather bland meal. Now I know how to remedy that!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I definitely will be preparing your recipe for pasta/broccoli/anchovies/garlic etc very soon, even if not tonight. wintertime is when I eat a lot of pasta! I probably will add in a few Kalamata olives, too, just for the heck of it..... In the past but not recently I have made pasta and broccoli a couple of times, but on reflection realize that I probably didn't add enough garlic and it never occurred to me to toss in some anchovies, so I always considered this to be a rather bland meal. Now I know how to remedy that!

Exactly.

I had always thought that broccoli was bland, as well; this is how to remedy that.

Garlic, anchovies, (plenty of both, be very generous, this dish needs it), and chilli flakes will take care of the potential risk of blandness.

And use the olive oil in the jar or tin of anchovies, as well; add it - or, some of it - to the pan.

That olive oil is wonderfully flavoured with anchovies; even if I don't use it all, I will keep the olive oil (put it in a small glass, or keep it in its jar) once the anchovies have had their date with destiny in the sauté pan, as that anchovy flavoured olive oil will add a glorious sort of umami hint to the sauce of any pasta dish.

 

[Clix Pix]

Tonight's dinner is in the making..... As I was reaching into the cabinet for a can of crushed tomatoes to add to the D.O..P. San Marzano tomatoes (since I had no more of those at the moment and there really wouldn't have been enough sauce for a meal without adding something) with which I started a couple of days ago and enjoyed, I figured, hey, since I'm already changing things around a bit anyway, moving beyond a pure Pomodoro sauce now, why not throw in some anchovies and some more garlic, a splash of white wine, a handful of Kalamata olives and a light sprinkling of lemon/olive oil? So I have done so and the results are now presumably happily melding together in a largish microwavable covered dish circling around in the microwave oven in the kitchen even as I type.... Smells delightful already, so something good is happening!

Decided to skip the broccoli tonight, that will be for another pasta dish and type of flavor experience another time (with many of the same ingredients, though!). Adding both anchovies and garlic to the grocery list now since I've now gotten rather low in both, having used generous helpings of both of them for this evening's meal.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Some people fear to use anchovies (especially in generous quantities, which is what I prefer) when preparing a sauce (melted into olive oil with softened garlic, and, perhaps, a finely diced onion, also softened, which adds a little sweetness), or, as I also sometimes do, melted into olive oil, then adding, perhaps, a tin of San Marzano tomatoes, or - even - cream, or crème fraîche - because they think that the sauce will be somehow then, have a pronounced "fishy" taste.

Anchovies melted this way into a sauce aren't "fishy" (though they do form a brilliant base for any kind of fish soup), instead, they serve to intensify the umami sensation of the dish which makes them a superb store cupboard staple.

 

[Clix Pix]

One thing which I suspect concerns some people about anchovies, olives, etc., is not so much the flavor benefits they may add to a dish, but rather the amount of salt used in the preparation of a meal. From what I've read, it can be problematic, not only salt sprinkled in and added to the food, but salt which already may be inherent in the various components of the intended dish.... It's hard to strike a good balance between just the right amount of salt for flavoring and inadvertently serving and ingesting too much salt overall, which I think can be a problem in some health situations.

In the US, salt or too much or not enough of it for various reasons is definitely considered an issue. With certain health conditions some people are warned by their physician to go easy on the salt, others may even have the physician strongly emphasize that they should not consume much or any (additional) salt at all. It IS, however, a necessary ingredient which we all need to some extent on a daily or frequent basis in order to keep electrolyte balance on an even keel.

Definitely by preparing fresh meals with natural, fresh ingredients at home rather than relying on potentially over-processed commercially prepared meals, that is one way for a lot of people to have some control over their salt intake.

My spaghetti water is boiling, time to attend to my own dinner!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

One thing which I suspect concerns some people about anchovies, olives, etc., is not so much the flavor benefits they may add to a dish, but rather the amount of salt used in the preparation of a meal. From what I've read, it can be problematic, not only salt sprinkled in and added to the food, but salt which already may be inherent in the various components of the intended dish.... It's hard to strike a good balance between just the right amount of salt for flavoring and inadvertently serving and ingesting too much salt overall, which I think can be a problem in some health situations.

In the US, salt or too much or not enough of it for various reasons is definitely considered an issue. With certain health conditions some people are warned by their physician to go easy on the salt, others may even have the physician strongly emphasize that they should not consume much or any (additional) salt at all. It IS, however, a necessary ingredient which we all need to some extent on a daily or frequent basis in order to keep electrolyte balance on an even keel.

Definitely by preparing fresh meals with natural, fresh ingredients at home rather than relying on potentially over-processed commercially prepared meals, that is one way for a lot of people to have some control over their salt intake.

My spaghetti water is boiling, time to attend to my own dinner!

Personally, I must say that I quite like salt - and, aside from necessary electrolytes - I find that it adds enormously to the taste of a meal.

However, what I find is that if you cook a meal from scratch - in other words, prepare your own sauces (with, for example, a can or tin of San Marzano tomatoes), rather than open a jar, (though, I will readily grant the convenience and time saving elements of the latter), you can decide and determine exactly how much salt you may need to (or wish to) add to your sauce (and meal).

And some ingredients (among them, eggs, tomatoes, potatoes) just cry out for the addition of salt.

 

[Clix Pix]

Lovely, quite delicious meal enjoyed tonight -- definitely happy that I decided to add in anchovies and lots more garlic plus some Kalamata olives along with the extra tomatoes, as that definitely did make a difference and it tasted like an entirely different meal from the simpler Pomodoro I'd had the other night, equally enjoyable and then some! SS, thanks for the mention of anchovies and extra garlic! Came just at the right time before I'd begun preparing tonight's meal....

 

[Herdfan]

Some people fear to use anchovies (especially in generous quantities, which is what I prefer)

Back in HS when going to get pizza after a ballgame, I always ordered one with light anchovies. I didn't mind them, but no one ever wanted any of my pizza. 😂

 

[Clix Pix]

Yep! I remember when I was in college, one night during freshman year a group of us decided to order pizza and of course I immediately mentioned anchovies for one of the toppings -- and was genuinely surprised when most of the group said, "NOOOOOO!!!" and one girl referred to them as "a cake of salt with a bit of fish attached"...... Well, gee......Sheeeeesh!!!! One of the many times during that first year I began to grasp reality beyond my own upbringing about how other people did things and that it wasn't necessarily how my family did things. As an only child, my college education definitely went well beyond the academics.

I learned very quickly just to do without my beloved anchovies on pizza when ordering with a group. Gee, how could anyone not love anchovies??!!!! One of the first things I did each time after that freshman year first non-anchovies-on-pizza event when returning home for breaks from school was to suggest to my parents that we order pizza one night for dinner -- "and don't forget the anchovies!"

And, yes, when I was dating, an acid test of a potential suitor was if he accepted or rejected anchovies on pizza..... The man I married, bless his heart, definitely was an anchovy fan!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Poached eggs (organic, free range), with rye bread.

Simple yet tasty.

 

[Clix Pix]

Grocery shopping today, noticed a nice little Spinach Quiche in the Deli section, decided to have that for tonight's supper.....

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Grocery shopping today, noticed a nice little Spinach Quiche in the Deli section, decided to have that for tonight's supper.....

And I assume that anchovies, garlic, and more tins (cans) of San Marzano tomatoes made their way into your basket, as well.

Anyway, enjoy the spinach quiche.

 

[Clix Pix]

Anchovies and garlic indeed made their way to the grocery cart! Unfortunately the store seemed to be out of cans of D.O.P. San Marzano tomatoes so I guess I'm not the only fan of those! This store only offers one or two brands anyway. Some brands are not D.O.P. and maybe not even San Marzano tomatoes at all, as I've seen cans which when one looks closely say, "San Marzano style...." Eh, no thanks, I want and insist upon the real thing!

I've written the San Marzano tomatoes on my grocery list for next time, as this is probably just a temporary shortage, or in the meantime I may make an excursion to another store which is more likely to have a sufficient supply on the shelves. There are a couple of other items which I love that are only available at that other store anyway, too, so it would be well worth the trip.....but I'm waiting until after the New Year's Eve and New Year's Day celebrations have come and gone, and then some afternoon in a week or so I'll go spend some time in that store browsing and picking up favorites and then some extras, probably coming home with much more than I had intended, which usually happens!

In the meantime, looking forward to tucking into that spinach quiche in a little while.... Haven't had any in a long time and the minute I saw it I thought, "ah, perfect dinner for tonight!"

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Anchovies and garlic indeed made their way to the grocery cart! Unfortunately the store seemed to be out of cans of D.O.P. San Marzano tomatoes so I guess I'm not the only fan of those! This store only offers one or two brands anyway. Some brands are not D.O.P. and maybe not even San Marzano tomatoes at all, as I've seen cans which when one looks closely say, "San Marzano style...." Eh, no thanks, I want and insist upon the real thing!

I've written the San Marzano tomatoes on my grocery list for next time, as this is probably just a temporary shortage, or in the meantime I may make an excursion to another store which is more likely to have a sufficient supply on the shelves. There are a couple of other items which I love that are only available at that other store anyway, too, so it would be well worth the trip.....but I'm waiting until after the New Year's Eve and New Year's Day celebrations have come and gone, and then some afternoon in a week or so I'll go spend some time in that store browsing and picking up favorites and then some extras, probably coming home with much more than I had intended, which usually happens!

Yes, nothing compares - for quality - to San Marzano DOP (tinned/canned) tomatoes, and it is always best, in my experience, to try to seek them out.

In the meantime, looking forward to tucking into that spinach quiche in a little while.... Haven't had any in a long time and the minute I saw it I thought, "ah, perfect dinner for tonight!"

The Afghans have a dish - a sort of pancake - actually, a stuffed flatbread - stuffed (filled) with (cooked) spinach, - called Bolani, that I absolutely loved, and strongly recommend, should you ever encounter it (in, for example, an Afghan restaurant).

 

[splifingate]

I froze the remaining pieces of Prime Rib from Christmas. On a cold rainy day (yes we still get those in the desert), I will be using it to make chili. Without beans!

As the default (right now) is usually USD16/lb (or more) where I am, I try to stock my freezer.

Unfortunately, I passed on the opportunity to grab a few more 8lb+ chunks of standing-rib when it was on sale for USD7 last week . . . kicking myself, now *grr*

"That's life" I suppose

 

[splifingate]

My sense is that it - a combination of pork and beef - would serve to render the final dish more tasty (and more moist, and tender).

Interesting assessment, that . . .

I was raised with the assumption that 'chili' was just a "beef+beans" thing.

Having walked a few times around the Big Block, seasoning and tomato(e)s have become my cusp-point.

I've used beef, pork, beef&pork, chicken, and Chili sin carne in so many variations.

I am appreciative that there are plant-based options readily available, now, but the application to "Chili" just doesn't rhyme, with me.

Using (and cooking-with) bog-standard "ground beef"--I find--just doesn't last more than a day, or so (in my exp.).

If I hold the leftovers for repeated consumption, it logorithmically tastes "bad" after two days.

If I prepare, freeze, (then later) thaw/re-heat; the same.

Pork seems to hold more staying-power.

All that being said, legumes seem quite important to my personal health&satisfaction.

A simple equation whose statistic seems best left to n=1

 

[splifingate]

Since my mother's death, I have been in a somewhat similar situation.

I really, really (really) miss cooking with Mom (and Mom's-Mom) 🤷‍♂️

Those were some--truly--heady days