The What's for Dinner Thread - August 2014 (recipe index in OP)

[EJ4Disney]

Good morning all. Spring is in the air!!

Alison ~ Doug doesn't like me to change up his favorites either. I can try new, and he is always up for that, but DON'T mess with what he likes.

Kimmar ~ No, I don't give up anything for Lent. I just am really trying to watch what I eat and cookies are my downfall. I can't eat just one.

PIO ~

Today is the dreaded tax day. I was off on Monday for Presidents day and worked all day getting stuff organized and ready. I know it is what it is, but I really get myself worked up over this. I will be VERY glad when it's over.

The Finance committee is in charge of Lenten Dinner tonight and we are having a potato bar. I ran the potatoes through the dishwasher this morning and as soon as they are dry I will wrap them and get them in the oven. Easy peasy - my job is complete. This afternoon is Hospital Auxiliary and we are meeting at the Museum for a fun lesson on "The History of Shoes". Busy busy day but will be fun.

WFDT ~ Jacket potatoes with all the dressings.

Make it a great day!

 

[kimmar067]

....WFDT? Leftovers - sauerbraten with red cabbage, penne with meatballs, and Asian chicken with brown rice.....sorta like a mini trip to World Showcase!

 

[EJ4Disney]

Spring is here.............at least for the next week or so.

Kimmar ~ It really does sound like a walk around the worlds. Love it!!

Well taxes went pretty good yesterday. We are actually getting something back. I guess buying a new tractor has some benefits.

We are to set some records today and see the temps reach into the 70's. Living on the Plains, I know that winter is not over yet, but days like this are nice. Makes you realize that spring WILL come.

WFDT ~ Stuffed peppers, hominy casserole and sliced tomatoes.

Make it a great day!

 

[franandaj]

I'm glad you're getting money back Ellen, we don't get any taken or pay quarterly taxes since there's only one year since her father died that we actually made any money. And it funny because we have refiles that year twice now and received refunds on what we paid to the tune of 20% so far and I think after we file this year we may be entitled to refiles that year again and get some more back! But I need to get Fran working on the taxes it's coming up quick now!

Last night I went out to the park to meet some friends from the DIS. We were supposed to see the parade and fireworks but both were canceled due to the weather. Instead we rode a couple rides and ended up having drinks all night! I made my dinner out if an appetizer at one of the bars. Today I'm exhausted from all the walking in the rain. I didn't wake up until almost 11AM and I'm still not up and atem.

Tonight I get my make up Valentine's dinner. It was supposed to be on Monday but Fran wasn't feeling up to going out so I had to improvise something from the freezer. Tonight I'm hoping that I get Shabu Shabu for dinner!

 

[kimmar067]

Kimmar ~ It really does sound like a walk around the worlds. Love it!!....

....sorta like my very own F&WF....but without the Mickey ears.

 

[kimmar067]

....WFDT? Home-made GF macaroni and cheese....ooey, gooey cheesiness!

 

[PrincessInOz]

Ellen - Glad you're getting taxes back. That's a rarity in any language!

Alison - Hope you had a great Valentine's dinner. Did you end up with Shabu Shabu?

Kimmar - love the sounds of your meals.



WFDT? It's Monday and it'll be homemade burgers tonight.

I pulled an all-night on Saturday. I haven't done that since.....this time last year. It was White Night in Melbourne. We headed in at midnight. DH gave up at 5 am in the morning. I kept going until 7 am, when the night was officially over. I decided to stay up all day on Sunday and was exhausted by the time I got to bed at 8 pm. Just as well White Night is a once a year thing. It'll take me all year to recover from Saturday night! Bwa ha ha ha ha.

Keep well everyone.

 

[EJ4Disney]

Happy Monday,

PIO ~ Aint that the truth. I use to be able to stay up and party all night. Good grief now I am ready for bed at 10. And if I do stay up late it takes me days to recover. Your pictures were beautiful though. I really enjoyed them.

Alison ~ So where did you end up for your Valentines Dinner.

Kimmar ~ Hi!

Ethan had ball games all weekend and Doug was on call, so I went by myself and met the rest there. Saturday morning our first game was at 9 - they won - and I was home by 10:30. I walked in and immediately knew something was up. Doug proceeded to tell me that he had let Cooper out and had gone and gotten dressed and heard Cooper yelping. He went outside and the 3 dogs from up the road were attacking him. They got his shoulder pretty good but nothing to serious. I was furious!!!!!! I have never ever killed anything in my life (besides spiders and flies) but I was ready to get the job done. Here we are out in the country and have to chain OUR dog up, I can't go for walks anymore, or let Cooper out in the yard and these dogs now come into my yard and attack MY dog that is chained up. Enough is enough. We really do need to do something. What if that would have been my grandbabies. I am so frustrated and angry with these people for not doing anything. Anyway...................We had games at 1 - 5 yesterday and the boys got 2nd place. It was a nail bitter down to the last seconds. It could have gone either way. They got a bucket and won the game. But the boys were happy - they did good.

Doug and I are going into Lincoln tonight and stay with Matthew. I have a Dr. appointment in Omaha on Tuesday. This way we only have another hour on Tuesday morning. We'll come home tomorrow night after we have dinner with Matthew and Katlin.

WFDT ~ Ruby Tuesdays on the way.

Make it a great day!

 

[franandaj]

Alison - Hope you had a great Valentine's dinner. Did you end up with Shabu Shabu?

Well my Valentine's remake was Shabu Shabu on Thursday Night.

Alison ~ So where did you end up for your Valentines Dinner.

I made Tri Tip on the grill at home.

WFDT ~ Ruby Tuesdays on the way.

I wish we had those here. I ate one once somewhere in the Midwest and it was really good!

 

[franandaj]

For dinner we are having a recipe that Fran found in one of her food magazines. It's a soup with Keilbasa, Tomatoes, Tortellini and Spinach. It should be interesting and hopefully tasty!

 

[kimmar067]

Kimmar - love the sounds of your meals....

 

[EJ4Disney]

Late check in for me.

Yesterday was a tiring day and now today I am playing catch up. Our Lenten dinner tonight is being prepared by our Trustees. The Chair called about 8:30 this morning to say that his Mother was very ill and she was in the hospital. Would I please get the sloppy joes ready for tonight. Well of course I will - just add it to everything else I have to do today - but I was happy to help him. About 10 he called to say his Mother had passed away. So I was glad he was there and we could all help him. So I am really behind, but I wanted to pop in to say hi.

Alison ~ Ruby Tuesdays was wonderful. I had shrimp 3 ways - YUM!

WFDT ~ Sloppy Joes, salads, and cookies or bars.

Make it a great day!

 

[kimmar067]

....what was for dinner LAST night? Mongolian beef with brown rice.

 

[kimmar067]

....WFDT?


I. have. NO. idea.

 

[franandaj]

So two days ago I hit the last straw. Even though we rarely eat carbs and mostly have a protein and a vegetable for dinner, my weight just kept skyrocketing upwards, so I decided to take drastic measures and follow Brandi's suit. Since Tuesday morning, I have been eating a completely plant based diet, and I'm hoping that it will yield me some quick weight loss results so when I board the Riverboat in less than a month, I don't have to avoid all the good stuff! I may have to do this plant based thing again to take off what I may gain, but at least I won't get higher than my highest weight ever. That's what I hit last Tuesday and it wasn't pretty. This morning I was already 5lbs lower than Tuesday, so that's a good sign. I won't count that it's working until I see 10lbs from Tuesday.

Last night was Lentil Soup and an Artichoke. Fran had some leftover ribs for her meat.

Tonight I'm having spaghetti squash with my Tomato, Basil and Garlic sauce.

Good luck figuring it out @kimmar067 , it's probably already dinnertime in your neck of the woods!

 

[kimmar067]

.....well, I actually DID figure it out....

 

[kimmar067]

....baked [chicken] sausage, peppers, onions, and red potatoes....

 

[EJ4Disney]

Thank Goodness it's Friday.

This time next week my excitement level will be sky high. We are both taking off at noon - we have a 7pm flight. I think that will be enough time to get there. Doug thought getting off of work at 5 would be cutting it too close. So vacation will start at noon next Friday. Oh, did I tell you, that we are on the same flight as Matthew and Katlin. Had no idea, but how exciting. Instead of getting a room and driving to Tucson on Saturday, since Katlin knows the way we are going in Friday night. Oh the fun we will have - I can't wait.

Doug and I love our new hot tub, but I have a funny story for you all. We were sitting in it the other night and my hair froze. It had gotten wet and it was so cold out that it was stiff as a board. Too funny. We love it!! Friends joined us the other night and even brought a bottle of wine. The moon was full and my heart was so happy at that moment. Life just doesn't get much better than that.

Alison ~ Bless your heart. You are doing such a good job. You will get there, I just know it!!

Kimmar ~ Was you Mongolian beef homemade or did you get take out? If you made it, I would love to know how you did it. I love it!!

Ethan has his first wrestling tournament of the year tonight in Kearney. So as soon as Doug gets off we are heading there. I would much rather watch him play basketball than wrestling, but this year he can do both. Next year he has to make a decision as to which one he will do.

WFDT ~ Egg salad sandwiches, carrots & celery and chips on the way. I will NOT eat the pizza they serve at this school. YUCK!!

Make it a great day and a wonderful weekend.

 

[kimmar067]

Kimmar ~ Was you Mongolian beef homemade or did you get take out? If you made it, I would love to know how you did it. I love it...

....homemade....VERY easy. I actually mixed about a lb. of beef and a lb. of chicken together. I used thin-sliced chicken breasts and steak used for bracciole:

[ignore the onion, garlic, whatever that is on top of the beef pictured here]

...and sliced each piece of meat julienne-style. I mixed the raw meat in a large bowl and added 2 oz. [GF, of course] tamari soy sauce, 2T cornstarch, 1t sesame oil, 1 clove chopped garlic, 1/2t ground ginger, and 1T garlic powder and mixed all those into the meat, letting that sit for about 15 minutes. In a frying pan (or wok, if you have one) I heated 1 pat of butter and 1 t sesame oil [very hot] and sauteed half the meat at a time (repeating for the other half) and set the cooked meat aside. In the same pan, I added 2 pats of butter, 3/4 c. brown sugar, a cup of soy sauce (a combo of about 3/4 c. soy sauce and the rest water), 2 t ground ginger, 2 t garlic powder, 1 clove chopped garlic and stirred all ingredients, melting the sugar. Mix 2T carnstarch with some warm water to make a slurry and add to sauce to thicken.

I usually purchase frozen ready-made brown rice and heat that up while I am making the sauce. Pour the sauce into a small bowl and put the meat back into the pan to reheat (with a high flame) to quickly heat up the meat mixture. Serve with chopped green onions (to sprinkle on top of the meat and rice).

 

[franandaj]

That sounds really good @kimmar067 ! When I start eating meat again, I'll have to try making that.

Have you moved out of your house yet?