What's for Dinner #245 - the Harvest Moon Edition [Sept. 24, 2013]

Question

Cool at night, warm and dry by day, with bright blue skies and lots of sunshine. This is New England's best season and my favorite time of year. :-)

Look up tonight for that big Harvest moon as well. 

So, are you going apple and pumpkin picking? Or are you still slogging through (or enjoying, for that matter!) heat and humidity? Would love to know what's on your table.

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Tonight it's grilled beefburgers because it is cool enough outside for me to grill.

Yesterday my wife got creative. There was left over roast chicken in the fridge along with a tube of Pillsbury biscuits that she said need to be used due to expiration date. She whipped up chicken pot pie filling with aromatic vegetables. Poured the filling into a high sided pie dish, placed the biscuits on top of the filling and baked the concoction. I told her that I hope she prepares that combo again sometime.

My wife is a good cook, but she doesn't like to cook anymore. She had enough while we were raising kids. We've had an empty nest for 23 years.

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we're right in the middle somewhere - blue skies, temps in the low to mid-70s, lovely. not quite summer, but not fall yet.

no cooking again for me - i'll be overindulging in happy hour bar food - including this debauchery - Totchos (tater tots slathered in the usual nachos yummery.) I. Can't. Wait.

Tomorrow night we'll be having some thin-cut porterhouse steaks - here's hoping the BF doesn't overcook them. my new favorite salad/side is olive oil and lemon-rubbed kale, with garbanzos and marinated artichoke hearts. soooo good, and healthy!

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A co-worker brought in a bucket of ripe Romas yesterday and I scored enough to make another batch of shakshuka. Which will make hubby very happy, especially with our CSA eggs and toasted sesame semolina bread from our Co-op.

Althought in my heart of hearts (and stomach!) I am very jealous of mc's Totchos.

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Tonight I'm going to try out a stuffed pork tenderloin. I got the idea from fldhkybnva. I'm going to use my mixture I usually use for chicken that I got from Kalyn's Kitchen... sour cream, some shredded mozzarella, and pesto. Might roll the pork in some breadcrumbs too, we'll see. Some sauteed zucchini on the side.

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Looks like pork tenderloin is popular tonight. The one here is going into Shanghai noodles.

*Love the idea of roasted green beans. Why on earth haven't I tried them that way yet?

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I went apple picking at Costco, and got some fabulous Pink Lady apples, though I know that doesn't count!

Anyway, more leftovers for tonight. As last night, I will have osso buco (tough life, I know), though I will have it with some pasta tonight. The hubs is out, and will forage when he gets home, and my son is visiting a college, so it will be a solo dinner. You know what that means? That means I get to eat when I'm hungry!

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Tonight is a ginger sesame stir fry with chicken breast, broccoli, red peppers from the garden(last ones, we pulled them), onion, baby carrots, mirliton, mini cabbage and rehydrated wood ear mushrooms. Chicken and veggie potstickers to go with the stir fry. I am making a ponzu and garlic and sambal oelek dipping sauce for the potstickers.

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Hi, dinner companions! I've been out of the loop and missed an entire thread due to a shitstorm of things going on. I'll read back and get some some good ideas as always over the next day. 
Biggest shit in the storm? My uncle and his wife from Utah are arriving tomorrow for a visit (I abhor this man), and they eat very blandly, so some boring dinners will be coming. 
Dinners of the past week have not been so noteworthy, as I've been hit with a cold, but tonight will be grilled pizza with black peppered salami and very thinly sliced brussels sprouts, loosely based on a Martha Stewart recipe. It's sauceless, with just an olive oil base, and mozz as the cheese. Lemon zest and red chili flakes are also involved. I haven't had it in a while and it sounded tasty. 
Now I need to go back and review. Hope you've all had a great week!

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Mr. Speak is having a "Frisco" patty melt, cooked by me in the panini grill.

I'm having the following soup:

Crushed tomatoes and sauce
Garlic, onion sofrito
Swiss chard, stems chopped and sauteed with the onion, leaves in a gigantic chiffonade and stirred in
Rice
Chickpeas

Plus a grilled cheese (again in the press) with Jarlsberg and cheddar. Mmmm.

And a long island iced tea, because my WoW raid is almost certainly going to require one.

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I ran errands late this afternoon so while out I stopped & had a crispy chicken sandwich with lettuce, mayo, and spicy buffalo wing sauce with a side of fries so wasn't hungry for dinner, but did have a banana later. My appetite has been off for the past couple of months. The BF had leftover chicken & pastry with veggies from last night. 

Tomorrow, I'm planning on making potstickers....

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Tonight was spiced "mushed peas" topped with a fish fillet and lemon butter sauce. The peas were great but the fish sucked. I was just trying to do a quick dinner and used a frozen fish fillet and texture was weird and it had no flavor. Booooo.

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Hi all!

Another busy week got me a little sidetracked from y'all again.

Admire you are all able to manage life, work, dinner AND posting here:).

2 nights ago a nice jumbo prawn pasta with roasted peppers, spinach and lots of garlic and lemon.

last night was a couple of quesadillas, inspired by the wonderful verde salsa I picked up from a new mexi-convenience store I discovered. One with leftover steak, sharp cheddar and green sauce, another with leftover grilled garlicky shrimp, spinach, roasted pepper and feta - more green sauce. Toasted up crispy, and a side of homemade leftover refried beans. Hit the spot.

Today I am baking up 3 kinds of cocktail savory shortbread for a client's husband's artist open house over the weekend, and starting a pot of mixed fruit syrup ala my mom Jeannie, who used to make that each fall with all kinds of bruised discounted fruit; pears, peaches, plums, apples and lots of warm spices. Won't can it till tomorrow or Sunday... just starting the pot while I bake all this dough up and make labels and packaging for the cookies. Pics to come:)

Happy Friday - WFD here will probably be another round of those stuffed hatch chilies with bacon. Will post that recipe later as I make notes while I make 'em!

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OUT. That's where I'm going. Tapas and sangria. 

::::clink!:::: Salut! Sláinte! A votre santé! Prost! Skål! Kampai!

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Tonights dinner is meatball subs!! Woot!

A friend just had her 5th (yes 5th!) kid so I decided to make a big batch of meatballs and sauce along with focaccia, salad and brownies to drop over their house tomorrow. 

Inspired by all the talk in the last WFD thread I decided to pick up some sub rolls, sharp provolone and frozen steak fries for us. While making the regular meatballs I made some big oversized ones for the subs and they should be ready to go in the next twenty minutes. Looking forward to dinner tonight!

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Whoa. Could it be? Did I not cook a single meal since Sunday?

Why.... that's just wrrrrrongggg! But true.

And to round it all up, me thinks a cheezborger club is in order at the local watering hole while listening to my boys play, maybe even sit in for a few....

Happy weekend, y'all!

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Hey all my fellow diners. Tonight is my anniversary. So as far as dinner goes we will be having chicken cordon bleu, roasted brussel sprouts with bacon and a balsamic reduction and cheddar horseradish mashed red potatoes. And bubbly, of course. Cheers everyone.

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My plan tonight is th eusual Friday steak and mushrooms with a hint of a variation. I planned tri tip but alas the top sirloin was defrosted already so just used it and will save the tri tip for another day or perhaps the summer for grilling. I usually do crimini and shiitake but tonight I splurged on a bundle of oyster and King Trumpet as well to be sauteed in lots of garlic with sherry wine. 

My hoarding has continued. I roasted up a big batch of tomatoes this afternoon which made it into the food processor for a chunky sauce to be used later this weekend or just to eat right out of the jar like those TJs marinated mushrooms and my chili garlic sauce which has mysteriously disappeared.

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Well, we planned on bar food but ended up inside a police perimeter with a foot search for someone (they blocked off a BIG area so we're stuck.) Such is life in the big city...

Fortunately the fridge is well stocked, I think I'll make a plate of cheeses, olives, pickled things, some kind of cracker/ bread for the man, and we'll open a bottle of wine and turn the music up and it'll be better than the bar. It won't be tatchos but we'll get by. :)

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I came home to the tantalizing aroma of mesquite wood... emanating from our apartment! the BF rigged up his own "bbq", ON THE STOVE-TOP. Breaking who knows how many fire codes in the process. i was skeptical, but MAN was it DELISH. thin-cut porterhouse steaks came out perfectly cooked, nicely grilled, with that wonderfully smokey aroma that just screams summer. there was far less smoke than times when i've seared a pork shoulder, and there was actually no open flames. he ingeniously "lit" a few pieces of mesquite at a time until they turned white, then let them all heat each other up. i can't believe he got it hot enough. 

on the side were potatoes topped with a compound butter made of butter blended with sour cream, scallions, parsley, garlic, s&p, which of course i slathered all over my steak too. he also made a little chimichurri, some sauteed kale, and a green salad with shaved goat cheese. Perfect Friday night steakhouse dinner.

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Tonight was "fusion". Italian soft polenta, topped with leftover Chinese spicy oxtail,a Bayless recipe of roasted cactus salsa and fresh farmer cheese from my Eastern European mart. 

Wow, it all blended seamlessly and reminded me of a kind of tamale/mole thing. I just had no idea what to call it! :)

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Today felt like fall here...with sunshine but a cool breeze, and supposedly a storm coming in tomorrow.

I had a huge late lunch and was still full at dinner time. This annoyed DH, who had not eaten and "reminded" me about five times that I hadn't cooked all week. Finally I got up and made a big salad for us both. There are some carrots in our garden that had big greens, so I was sure they were ready to be picked and would make a nice addition to the salad (along with our tomatoes, which have done beautifully all summer). Well, the greens might have been big, but they were tiny babies when I pulled up those carrots. But tasty!

So we ate a salad of lettuce, red pepper, baby carrots, tomato, avocado, and almonds...with a vinaigrette dressing. And DH had lots of bread to go with it. And he reminded me that I was NOT off the hook for making the chilaquiles I had promised him before I overate earlier. But chilaquiles are good Sunday brunch food, no?

Going apple picking tomorrow, actually:-)

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No real cooking going on here yesterday or today. Thursday night's stuffed pork tenderloin went over well, although it wasn't pretty at all. 

Last night we went to the first Avalanche hockey game of the season (well it was the 2nd but I didn't go on Wednesday). It's still just pre-season so it was a pretty blah game. I had a hot dog there. Afterwards we went to the Grizzly Rose (think Gilly's from Urban Cowboy) for a show. Had a slice of pizza there. Gourmet eatin' right there. 

Tonight we are going down to Colorado Springs to watch University of Wyoming play Air Force. I'm guessing I'll just be eating stadium food again unless we stop somewhere before the game.

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No cheezborger club for us yesterday after all. After sitting in for a few tunes with my boys and some bar hopping, we ended up at our sushi/cocktail joint for some sashimi & hibachi fried rice, and the perfect gimlet.

The 7.5 lbs pork shoulder went into the smoker at 2 AM last night, after being given a massage with mustard and a dry rub, and my sweetie got up early to wrap it in foil. We'll likely unwrap it in a bit and finish it in the smoker -- it'll obviously be done well before our friends show up tonight, but it heats up nicely.

Side is cole slaw, unspecified veggies and a tater dish brought by our friends. Hoping there will be some key lime π somewhere in there, too.

Weather's horrific today, which means I might get some work done for a change. Gah.

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Tonights dinner is pot luck. Its for my sons school and should be a fun night. Its a "harvest" theme and while the big things were assigned there should be some fun surprises. Its adults only so it will be nice to have a night out too.

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The kitchen clean out is going well and with no other options because I wouldn't let myself buy anything at the store today and didn't want to defrost another chicken breast I had a flashback to tuna spaghetti so tonight will be an old school favorite. I always forget about this classic. 

Dinner will be canned tuna sauteed in olive oil with garlic, bacon and mushrooms. I do have some of the recently discovered caramelized onion cheese so that will be throw in at the end and the whole thing served over shredded zucchini. (cheese and seafood..oops!)

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It has been gorgeous here until just now. We've been enjoying our new town's fall festival and had drinks and street food last night and a coffee and hot dog for lunch today but the party's over weather wise. So WFD is a meat loaf to Mr. Berheenia's delight. Not that he minds a charcoal grill and a bounty of vegetables from the Farmers Market to grill but that's on hold for now- hopefully tomorrow the rain will clear out. Our neighbor brought over the rest of his basil- what a great neighbor! I think a final pesto will be the base of a quiche for lunches next week. Thanks to you all on WFD I have pork tenderloin on the brain. I think I need to hunt one down next week.

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This was breakfast but would work for dinner--just replace the coffee with a cold beer.

Pork barbecue tacos with fried eggs, scallions & hot sauce.

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Last night's brats went over well. 
But, much to my dismay, tonight we shall dine at the Garden of Olives. After giving their menu a glance, I'll probably just go the chicken parm direction. Y'know, that dish that weighs more than a sack of flour. 
Says mangator: "I can't believe you're related to these cretins". I think it's a compliment. 
I'm already plotting my first meal for when they're gone. Salmon will be had...

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Who went apple picking today at Smolak Farm expecting to get to try antique apples I've never tried much less even heard of, such as Sops of Wine, Fameuse Snow, Pink Pearl, James Grieve, Pound Sweet, and Sheepnose? Only to find that the orchard at the farm that houses the antique apple trees isn't going to open up until next weekend?

This girl. :-/ Oh well. Still went picking with a 1/2 peck bag and chose some Cortlands, Braeburns, Cameos, Macouns, and Mutsu apples. We'll see if I go back next weekend to get some of the antique apples.

Picked up some sweet Italian sausage at Butcher Boy Marketplace for soup tonight. I've *got* to use up some of the kale in my fridge or freeze more of it, so I'm doing both. A Sausage, Kale and White Bean Soup is on the menu for tonight, along with a crusty roll and some salad alongside.

A lb. of sausage was squoze out of their casings and browned in a large stockpot with some olive oil and 1 medium-sized onion that was roughly chopped. Let that cook for about 5 minutes, then added a quart of chicken stock and 4 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped, a can of cannellini beans, undrained, and 1 cup of diced CSA tomatoes that I had frozen (just added them in frozen). Brought it to a boil, then turned the heat to simmer and let it go for about 15 minutes.

Added a colander full of kale - I think about 5 or 6 large leaves? - that were stemmed and chopped, then washed. Also added about a tsp. of freshly ground pepper. No salt was needed - guess the cannellini beans and sausage had enough. Will let that simmer for awhile.

Picked up some crusty baby baguettes at Butcher Boy as well, so I'll heat one up in the convection oven. And the wine was just poured. :-)

I'll deal with those apples tomorrow, said Scarlett!

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no cooking, once again. It's the Oldster's 85th birthday, and i brought him homemade (not ours) Salteñas, his favorite Bolivian treat. We're taking him out to good steakhouse tonight, where he can indulge in a fat prime rib, and also show him the first glimpse of the new span of the Bay Bridge, all lit up at night.

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I got lucky at the butcher today, they over ordered so it was one of those unannounced/ lucky enough to be there sales. Ribeye at half price (I bought 12, half thick, half thin,) grass fed roasts and strips 30% off (I bought a few of each.) BISO Chx thighs at some stupid low price (bought many pounds....) I played with my new favorite kitchen toy (vac sealer,) and packaged everything when I got home... the freezer is fat and happy.

We'll be splitting one of the huge ribeyes for dinner, grilled asparagus on the side and I'm betting I need to pick eggplant again so a batch of grilled caponata sounds in order. It'll be nice, all I'll have to do inside is prep, chop the grilled veggies and make cocktails (TBD.) The night's are cooling into the 60s so we'll probably be found on the porch tonight.

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Tonight's dinner was brought to us by the COTM - Bourbon-Coke Meatloaf with Pepper Gravy. DH had his as suggested in the book, as an open-faced sandwich with a sunnyside-up egg on top. I ate mine straight up. Either way, it was FABULOUS. Tater tots on the side. Brown butter chocolate chip cookies are coming up next.

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Tonight is porterhouse steaks on the grill, sauted spinach and leftover cheddar horseradish mashed made into potato cakes. And i am cooking a a huge peach and a banana that is to brown to eat out of hand and cooking them with a squirt of maple syrup and cinnamon and serving it warm over vanilla ice cream.

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Saucisson de fruits de mer au beurre blanc followed by poulet a la crapaude, haricots verts & Brabant potatoes with Parmigiano, black pepper & truffle oil.

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I'm home so seldom these days (business travel 75-80% of time between now and end of Dec!!). I have little time to cook and even less time to indulge in my CH addiction!

That said, it's nice to be home this weekend. Tonight it's likely no surprise that mr bc wanted Italian. A trip to the market inspired the meal.

To start, I made a fig/fennel jam that was spread atop pecorino topped crostini I'd baked off 'til golden. On top, a slice of Mutsu apple and two kinds of Pecorino. A Pecorino Romano and a Peppercorn Pecorino Toscano. I preferred the latter but mr bc is a traditionalist and he was all about the PR version. 

To follow we're having Gnocchi in a Roasted Baby Pumpkin and Caramelized Leek Sauce. I love roasting those beautiful baby pie pumpkins and our Golden Retriever Chowhound loves when I do so. He parks himself right in front of the oven in anxious anticipation of licking the roasting pan!! 

Though it likely goes without saying, mr bc has us well covered w wine...and more wine!! ; )

Here's the app...gnocchi to follow.

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Life is pretty good at my temporary Left Coast lodgings. WFD last night was omakase at my favorite sushi joint. Unbelievably good. Tonight I cooked in. Two small lamb chops were marinated in lemon juice, olive oil and lots of very pungent fresh local garlic and grilled on the very nice gas grills provided for guests' use. Sides were wonderful local organic small potatoes and a salad of local lettuce and local red grapefruit. (It was supposed to have avocado too but it was past its prime.) I also found a half bottle of yummy velvety Zinfandel to take the dinner over the top. You Californians have the most wonderful local ingredients to work with!

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Dinner tonight is a popular choice around here this week-pork tenderloin. I haven't made my favorite stuffed piggy in a whole and was inspired by the twisty twirly pesto tenderloin. I roasted plum tomatoes Friday and puréed then into a thick sauce. The tenderloins will be filleted and stuffed with fresh basil, spicy Italian sausage mixed with some of the sauce and aged provolone and served with extra sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan.

I have a few a baby zucchini j found at TJs and couldn't resist so the plan is to roast quickly with olive oil and red pepper flakes. I rarely cook zucchini because I make it a mushy mess. Any tips for these little guys?

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I'll be back in the kitchen after my short break. I'm craving something lighter after my weekend of hockey arena/stadium food, and a very late dinner last night that may or may not have included a 12:30am trip to McDonald's on the way home from the football game (Wyoming won, yay!). 

So, tonight I'm making the Asian Turkey meatballs from skinnytaste.com. I'll also make an asian-style BBQ sauce to top the meatballs with, and then serve with brown rice, and some snap peas in a sriracha ginger sauce (courtesy of Kalyn's Kitchen).

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I have a seasoned London Broil steak in the fridge chilling uncovered on a rack. That will be seared, sliced against the grain, and served over mixed greens and tomatoes. We'll probably have that carnival squash I skipped earlier this week, roasted with warm spices.

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Well, the butt came out quite nicely! Despite my thermometer's usual mind-fuck (pretending that the inside temp keeps going down when that's impossible), the pork was pull apart tender -- I took the bone out before serving, and nice & smoky.

Served it with a selection of bbq and hot sauces & cole slaw. Our friends brought wonderful roasted vegetables, a potato gratin with gruyere and bleu cheese, and for our pescatarian, we had some baked salmon with lots of lemon juice, s&p.

I gotta say, tho -- next thing I smoke better take less than 12 hours. That's a PITA to coordinate timewise.

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Well we aren't going to waste this beautiful day watching the NFL. Stupid cable has the Giants game on. This is New England not New York. What idiots programmed this game for western Mass and Conn? So off to find something better to do- I think a drive somewhere to pick up some protein for WFD and cook out. Too steamed to stay in.

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Feels like fall in our part of Ohio today so soup is on the menu. Beef and mushroom barley is simmering happily on the stove and there is a loaf of sourdough in the oven. I'm sure wine will be had as well but for now a boulevardier is calling....

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HUGE downpour early this morning woke me up at 5:15....and I woke up to a headache as well, one of those :::pulse, pulse, pulse::: ones. Closed the 2nd bedroom windows, took some Advil, and went back to sleep.

Woke up again at 8:15 - no rain, but still had a headache, although the pulsing was mostly gone. Cawfee and a fried egg breakfast helped, but still a dull ache 6+ hours later. Water and Advil have been my friend. Geez - I only had 1 glass of wine last night! LOL

I peeled, cored and sliced up about 30 assorted apples from yesterday's apple picking to make my Triple Apple Applesauce - Cortlands, Braeburns, Granny Smiths, Cameos, Macouns, and Mutsu apples. Interestingly, the Macouns have the least flavor.

Added 2 cups of unpasteurized apple cider (from last season and defrosted), 3 Tbsp. of Calvados apple brandy, and 1 cup of dark brown sugar. It was brought to a boil, then turned down to a simmer and stirred on occasion for about an hour until it got to the right consistency. I like chunky applesauce - the stirring should break down the apples well enough, but if you *must* have smooth applesauce, take a stick blender to the whole lot of it. I ended up using my potato masher a couple of times to get it to the consistency that I wanted.

Made my decision on tonight's dinner yesterday at Butcher Boy Marketplace - picked a 1-1/2" thick slice of maple-honey baked ham for mac & ham & cheese. I'll be making 4 small foil containers for the freezer for Mom as well as some for myself.

Will use Cabot's white extra-sharp, Tillamook yellow sharp cheddar, and some Gruyere. Also remembered that I have some buttermilk to use up, so I'll split the amount of liquid - some buttermilk, some 1% milk - for the sauce. A simple Panko crumb topping (with extra grated cheese). 

A salad alongside.

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Last night's dinner out for the Oldster's birthday was fab. he ended up getting a super tender short rib dish instead of prime rib, which he loved. came with a wonderfully creamy and buttery cauli puree - super silky smooth. my sister and i split a giant aged rib-eye that came with chanterelles and a choice of toppings - we chose miso truffle butter and a bernaise sauce. the sauce came on the side, the butter came on the steak. both were completely unnecessary and actually a distraction from the melting deliciousness of the steak - even the chanterelles. for the table, we shared creamed spinach, mashed potatoes (which my father could not stop eating) and mac-n-cheese. All wonderful. All with an amazing view of the Bay Bridge and its newish twinkley lights. The Oldster enjoyed.

tonight, the BF wants me to make the two rib-eyes, which i purchased yesterday with his new indoor grilling technique in mind, but he says he's not prepared, so they'll go into the CI grill pan and finish in the oven, as they're nice and thick. alongside i think i'm doing something sauteed with kale and bacon, and lentils, since i have them cooked already, and a splash of sherry vinegar. not sure what else, but maybe spuds of some sort. and the BF's composed butter to slather on the steaks.

also going to brine some thick-cut pork chops in buttermilk and some combo of spices for tomorrow night's dinner.

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Leftover pork that I will actually pull in order to mix the fattier with the drier parts. Some 'cue sauce (mixed with scotch bonnet sauce) all over it & cole slaw on the side.

Super-sore from 2 hours of our pickup softball game. 3 teams with 4 players each. My team won. Woot.

We old.

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Well - again I have been a crazy-maker of work and tastyness for fellow local chowhounds....

Cooked up 15 dozen cocktail cookies (read; savory cookies that go good with wine) for a gal I met at the farmer's market who's husband is a sculptor, and was having an open house this weekend. Read; my cookie project with their wine, and fine refined guests, to get the word out about my newest retail possible project.

Went well! Got a call today that the Smoked Parika/Rosemary (slightly sweet) with smoked salt on top was the big hit. The Lemon-Thyme parmesan was second in command, and dragging in third was the Cabernet/Cocoa Fleur de Sel de Guerande .... 

I am tired, but excited that my rainy Sunday, and attempt at Boeuf bourguignon smells delish! from the oven. 

Lot's of browning on top of the stove, and now I smell smells from the oven, and wait for final results.

Hope your all having a fine Sunday, as the true Fall rolls in...

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My bf has had a hankering for fried chicken and i don't feel like stinking up the house. So, Popeye's chicken, red beans and rice, green beans and biscuits. Maybe mashed potatoes and gravy, if he feels the need to order extras. Here's to hoping.

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I'll offer commentary on all your wonderful dinners tomorrow. But wanted to say that we've reached a suitable agreement tonight and will Hit the Hut. Extra cheez, pep, ham, onions and green pepper for moi!

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Tonight was comfort food! Arepa's! Arepas made with cotija cheese, stuffed with pulled pork and melty cheddar, with roasted cactus salsa, traditional salsa and guac. Mmmmm......

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I'm actually back (for real this time). While we have a couple more weekends on the vineyard and a trip down to Miami, I'm only traveling two places during the week between now and New Year's. I could not be more excited - fall is my favorite season and I hope to cook to make up for the last 5 weeks.

Tonight:
baked mahi mahi (meh - not a super flavorful fish - I really need to stop buying stuff on sale just 'cause it's cheap)
some delicious braised bok choy with mushrooms, garlic, ginger
sesame snap peas

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Dinner tonight for the BF was a pan seared, mesquite seasoned rib eye finished in the oven. I had a slab of lasagna hiding in the freezer that I thawed in the microwave. Steamed broccoli and leftover corn nibblets to go with as well as a garden salad for both of us. His mother's pound cake for dessert.

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Tomorrow night is brisket tacos. I also have some acorn squash that I am thinking of making a side with, but it's not something I work with often so I'm not sure what to make.

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the BF tried to do the rib-eyes in the broiler, super close to the flame, but it was not happening, so we quickly pulled them out and threw them on the hot CI pan. not overcooked, thank god. i also made the BF's composed butter but added a little red wine. i could have eaten just that out of a bowl, like ice cream.

the kale/bacon/lentil dish was good, with sherry and also a splash of sherry vinegar. crash hot potatoes liberally seasoned with herbes de provence, granulated garlic & onion, a little cayenne, and a bit of powdered sage. they may have been the best thing on the plate. also, an iceberg lettuce and black olive salad with the realtor's garlicky buttermilk dressing.

chops are in a bag marinating in buttermilk, smoked paprika, crushed garlic, aleppo, s&p, and i think that's it. parboiled some farfalle and tomorrow night will finish cooking he noodles, then drizzle with butter and sour cream, and mix it all up with dill.

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It rained yesterday. I wanted Noodles and Co. tomato bisque, but then at the last minute I decided to cook instead, I searched for cauliflower soup on the web. I found a roasted cauliflower soup w/cheddar cheese recipe. It was bowl licking good. My only change was to sub sage for the rosemary and chicken stock for veggie stock. I had some cheap garlic croutons as a topping and accompanied it with a crispy chardonnay, cider would be a good pairing too. Tonight I bought a loaf of pugliese bread for sopping up the remaining soup my spoon can't get to. This soup can be made vegan if you use veggie broth and omit the cheese. BTW, I loved the sage in it.

http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/roasted-cauliflower-cheddar-soup/

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hmmm. pic didn't post.

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Last night was a lamb casserole using the spicing recipe from Nigella Lawson's lamb shanks recipe, with extra tomatoes to use up the tomato mountain. Served with cauliflower blanched and then fried in a mix of garlic, parsley, anchovies and chilli (based on an Ottolenghi recipe). Stewed mirabelle plums and creme fraiche for pudding. All yum although I say so myself.

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We're back on the pork tenderloin lovers team thanks to many of you. Last winter the ones we bought were too big and came in packs of two tenderloins in a nasty liquid. And then there was the silver skin to deal with. Yesterday we learned the new pricey butcher had individual, less than a pound, perfectly cleaned (!) tenderloins for sale. So we sauteed our 14 oz. darling in grape seed oil and popped it in a 350 oven with some sliced apple, shallots and garlic until it reached 120 F and let it rest while we made up an simple wine and butter sauce in the pan drippings. Oven roasted skin on red and purple potatoes and mashed butternut squash were the sides. I need to work on a dessert other than Blue Bunny mini ice cream cones but I think this meal will be a popular Sunday supper this fall.

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I have a small whole chicken air-chilling in the fridge. I separated the skin from the meat as much as I could and seasoned everything with salt, pepper, and lemon pepper. That will be dinner, together with some wilted garlic spinach and probably some adorable rainbow baby carrots, which I'll roast in the pan with the bird.

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I guess the residents @casa lingua are just highly suggestible, simple folk.....but while watching that idiotic show on FN, Cutthroat Kitchen, yesterday, it made us both crave grilled cheese and tomato soup. 

So, grilled cheese (sharp cheddar plus TBD, haven't been to the store yet) and tomato soup (homemade, of course) it is.

I'm also thinking a salad with bitter greens, quartered figs, a little feta and a nice nutty vinaigrette on the side. Gotta have some green, after all '-)

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This weekend's random dinner creations were quite surprisingly tasty.

Saturday night was a rendition on old-school tuna and pasta - tuna, sardines, anchovies sauteed with olive oil, garlic and pancetta served over a mix of shredded zucchini and crimini mushrooms.

Last night I finally had my first taste of my first homemade tomato sauce - roasted tomatoes pureed in the processor. For the sauce, I sauteed shallots and garlic in olive oil, added a splash of red wine and a chunk of Parmesan rind finished with fresh basil. The sauce the was poured over a spicy Italian sausage, basil and aged Provolone stuffed pork tenderloin. I finally figured out what to do with the zucchini and I reminded myself that simple is often best and seasoned with some Cavendar's Greek seasoning and broiled in the oven, they were delicious! I think I'm back on the non-mushy zucchini train.

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Baked coho salmon with a dijon butter glaze, toasted pecans and thyme.

Steamed asparagus and wild rice. Some of the dijon butter found its way onto the asparagus. :)

I made this during lunch as tonight will be too busy to cook; club meeting at 7 and WoW raid right after that. Mr. Speak will reheat the leftovers. :)

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Really feels like fall today! Took a mental health day so I have had a tomato sauce simmering on the stove all day. Tomatoes, garlic, onion, fresh basil, lots of dried oregano and some healthy pinches of red pepper flakes. This will be served with penne pasta a grilled italian sausages. Not sure on a veggie, I might throw some zucchini on the grill with the sausages or steam up some broccoli.

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I have a pot of black beans simmering on the stove, which will become a black bean soup later today. I plan on making it fairly spicy with some very good farmer's market serrano peppers. We have some chicken chorizo in the freezer, which were bought when we had some Muslim guests, and those will make an appearance sauteed, sliced and put into the soup. A green salad along side will do it for dinner tonight.

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Trying out a new pork chop recipe tonight... found it on Kalyn's Kitchen. My little boneless chop is marinating in mayonnaise, lime juice, chipotle chile powder, and garlic. As long as the weather cooperates, I'll grill it, along with some zucchini. If the weather doesn't cooperate, I'll just pan cook it.

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Sooooooo disappointed in yesterday's dinner! Picked up two fresh young chickens from my CSA Saturday, got up early yesterday and made a jerk inspired rub, which tasted great by itself. Added some of the rub to some orange champagne vinegar and injected the breasts, legs and thighs - then rubbed the chickens with the remainder. They sat until about 3:00, when we put them on the smoker. Smelled delicious, good smoke, but when we were ready to eat? Bland. Just bland. The corn macque choux and the roasted green beens were good, but the chicken? Bleah. And now we have one and a half bland chickens to figure out how to repurpose.

Tonight will be easy - cleaning-out-the-veggie-drawer pasta. Will saute some japanese eggplant and Roma tomatoes with onion and garlic, toss it with pesto and serve over fusilli. Maybe some cannellini beans for protein. Green salad and our cheat version of garlic bread on the side. At least it won't be bland. Harrummpf.

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Supper tonight could be mac & cheese with ham (porkette!), homemade pea soup with ham, homemade Bolognese sauce over Deb's pappardelle. Tough choices. The young lady was busy over the weekend.

I'm voting for the mac & cheese with ham. It's a heart attack in a bowl: lots of butter; milk/cream; cheeese. And a wine to be named later.

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Well. With a 20-month-old and a 2-week-old - I somehow managed to turn the stale bread on the counter into stuffing this afternoon and I think I'll be making pan grilled pork medallions - I have a freezer full of pork tenderloin as it was on sale for $2.99/lb this week! If the family is lucky, they'll get some canned green beans w/ butter and nutmeg on the side ;)

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I had quite the stunner of the day as soon as I woke up. I couldn't sleep...go figure...and decided to chop up some veggies this morning with the kitten. He loves to play with balls of string so we leave one on the floor for him. Well he was playing and noshing away and it seemed like it was quite preoccupied with the string, but I didn't think much of it. When it was time for breakfast, I went to steal his favorite toy and to my shock the poor thing had been noshing on it for so long because several feet of it had made it's way down his throat. I freaked out of course though realized all was well when he inhaled the plate of food I put next to him.

Anyway, with that trauma of a 1st time mother, I was looking forward to a nice relaxing evening and dinner. I am still in conservation mode, but my favorite swordfish was on sale at a pretty big price cut so I figured it was reasonable. Last week I made my first batch of homemade mustard so used the opportunity to let it be the star of the show - I seasoned the swordfish with Blackened Old Bay seasoning, coated with the mustard and popped it in the broiler. Since I enjoyed my first taste of dandelion greens the other day so much, we had them again - sauteed in olive oil with garlic, splash of sherry and malt vinegars and finished with bacon. Dinner was delicious, Take is cozily sleeping on my shoulder as I type snoring and I'm calling this a successful day of firsts - curious children-induced mom freak outs, dandelion greens, mustard...

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Ever since christinamason recommended sage and gin cocktails to me several WFDs ago, I've always had a pot of sage growing on my windowsill. The trouble is I cook it less than I drink it (and how!) so I tried to remedy the imbalance tonight.

Chicken cutlets were on sale at the market so I pounded them evenly and dressed them with sage leaves before wrapping them in prosciutto. All they required was a quick sear in the pan before finishing off with a white wine deglazing, shallots, parsley, more sage, lemon juice and chicken stock for sauce. Sauteed dandelion greens with Sriracha shrimp paste sauce on the side. 3/4 of a bottle of white wine await me for dessert... though not all tonight. I still have some sage to drink.

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Yesterday I made a huge chopped salad (romaine, carrots, celery, tomatoes, cucumber, bacon, hardboiled egg, blue cheese, avocado), marinara sauce, meatballs, and chicken cacciatore. 

Tonight I'm heating up baked ziti that I assembled on Friday but never actually cooked and a few meatballs in sauce to go with. My husband doesn't consider baked ziti a complete meal. We will bring the leftovers to work for lunch tomorrow.

I have a late game tomorrow so his job will be to cook some cavatappi pasta and heat up some cacciatore for dinner. The rest will be frozen in 2-3 portion sizes for future use on late game days. The next night's dinner will likely involve some of the meatballs and sauce.... Probably in sandwich/sub form. 

It's a good thing that we both love Italian-American food because that is what's for dinner for at least the next 3 meals!

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It was a meat and potatoes kind of night:
mashed potatoes
grilled grass fed rib eye
spinach sauteed with garlic and shallot

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Turkey wings seasoned with cumin, garlic powder, hot paprika, kosher salt, pepper and topped with sliced onion was baked. Served with mixed green & yellow wax beans from my garden simmered in veggie stock. Also sautéed rice in olive oil and cooked in tomato broth as the second side.

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my first really juicy home-made porkchop! marinated overnight in buttermilk and above-mentioned spices, drained, patted dry, then cooked in a blazing hot CI pan for 4 minutes, into a 450 degree oven for another three - the recipe called for another SEVEN minutes - i'm so glad i pulled it out when i did. they came out a tiny bit pink inside and just super juicy and tender. oh, and i brushed them with a little molasses as they went into the oven.

alongside was a haluski-like dish - my first time trying it. sauteed some chopped red cabbage (it's what we had) in butter, then stirred the reheated farfalle into the pan, added sour cream, salt, and a ton of dill. and a splosh of dry sherry. such a comforting dish. next time i'll saute onions with the cabbage to, as most of the recipes i saw called for that.

the BF was on salad duty and made a rather funky (but in a good way) creamy dressing with a bit of leftover fromager d'affinois. he didn't realize i was putting sour cream in the pasta; something a bit more citrusy probably would have gone better with it. but it was fine.

i'm so happy i learned how to not dry out a pork chop! i think the key is thickness, and the marinade. i've brined before and didn't turn out as well as this did.

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Tonight is a Donna Hay night. I'm trying out her simmered red curry chicken from Instant Cook. Sides will be some jasmine rice and fresh green beans. Really feeling in a food rut these days, wish I had more energy to put out some more exciting meals on weeknights :(

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So I was just talking to hubby abour our dinner plan and that large pile of bland chicken. We've decided to attempt a buffalo chicken pizza! Will come home and start the dough and simmer the bland chicken in some Frank's and minced garlic. Blend some ranch dressing with more Frank's to taste for the sauce. Spread that on the partially baked crust (rolled as thin as I can) then add the chicken, some colby jack and mozzarella, and some thinly sliced green onion. Would it be gilding the lily to add blue cheese crumbles? That chicken WON'T be bland!

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Last night was a simple kielbasa with red peppers, onions and potatoes. Sliced tomatoes on the side. I wanted salad, one of my favorites, but lettuce and i have been fighting lately so its off the list. Tonight is TBD at the butcher shop when the downpour stops and I can get out of here safely. It has been pouring like crazy still. Its late in the year for this weather. C'est la vie.

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Last night was Striper sauteed in compound butter with Jasmin rice cooked in lobster stock and a side of dressed field greens.

It's nice enough to grill chicken today - maybe pick up some corn from the farm.

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I've been really busy recently so meals have mainly been old favourites that don't require much thinking. We're experiencing stormy weather today so a soup is in order. I'm thinking of a cabbage and bean combo with some of my homemade bacon to give it a flavour boost.

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Sent out my man to buy paprika, since we're out. He came home with smoked paprika (sigh). We're out of that, too, but I barely ever use it.

I also left it to him to choose between steak, salmon or chicken (in the latter case mentioning thighs). Now we have kosher breasts. I had plans to roast BISO thighs, but no dice.

O.o

So it looks like we're having piccata. Side will be roasted green beans and that salad I never made yesterday.

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Finally, it stopped raining enough to get to the butcher. He had just come out with a fresh tray of ground beef. So, meatballs in a button mushroom and onion brown gravy, butter and parsley curly elbow pasta and asparagus. A hoagie roll from steak sammies will be made into herbed garlic bread for dipping in the gravy.

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We made a trip to several grocery stores and we now have a very inexpensive cut up chicken for soup. Mr. Berheenia has been wanting to make chicken noodle soup. I found some Kate's "real buttermilk" and we picked up two expensive bone-in Berkshire pork chops for later in the week. Tonight will be pasta- can't wait until Wednesday for Prince Spaghetti Day. Got a couple of roasted red chicken sausages and some long and lovely sweet red peppers to play with in red sauce on penne. Good baguette and some spinach and red wine. 
We also scoped out a brand new upscale Sports Bar that shows our team's games on their many TV's. Bonus- they are owned by the same family that has the pricey butcher shop so a great burger is a given and they have some decent wine by the glass. Looking forward to the next Sunday afternoon Patriots game!

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Tonight's dinner was a welcome to fall simple baked chicken inspired by the bright orange Cava Mezze roasted pepper hummus I picked up. I sprinkled a good hefty dose of TJs Salute 21 Seasoning (obsessed much?) on the chicken, baked it, topped with Greek Feta and served with the hummus on the side. The hummus was great, very prominent pepper flavor, less so on the Tahini so a nice change from other versions. I have a tub of that renowned TJs Mediterranean hummus in the fridge, so it's next on the hummus docket.

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All the talk of pork chops made me want them again. Tonights were oven baked with just a simple rub of chipotle chili, smoked paprika and S&P. Seared in a really hot skillet then transferred to the oven for about 8 minutes. Served them with wild rice and a steamed carrot/broccoli medley. Of course my husband added some apple sauce to his plate!

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Split pea soup with ham is on the menu tonight. Deb made it on Sunday and it's just the ticket for a chilly night in Southern Connecticut. There will be a warmed baguette on the side with lots of creamery butter available if needed. Wine TBD.

NCIS will be on the plasma. Deb insists.

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Tonight is a BLT, salt and vinegar chips and some olives. Salmon leftovers from last night was consumed for lunch.

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Let's continue here:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/918031

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While there has been a lot going on in the kitchen today, none of it is for dinner tonight, really. I put up another jar of preserved lemons, vac sealed a bunch of dehydrated tomatoes I did over night, poached 2 whole chickens, pulled the meat and am making a gigantic batch of super rich stock ( the 2 chicken carcasses and other assorted chx bones from the freezer,) doro wat for tomorrow night, a big grass fed chuck steak is being turned into Czech gulas and a batch of chicken salad with red onions, baby red peppers, some Trader Joe's Omega Trek Mix chopped up, fresh mayo, fresh tarragon, capers, seasonings, etc. I've been nibbling on the chicken salad since I made it so that's probably dinner tonight. The man was treated to a seafood dinner out by the instructor of the training he had today.

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I've been super busy and haven't been able to post in some time, but I've still been following all of your delicious doings!

Monday night I was craving pork chops, so I did a panko, parm, and herb coating and shallow fried them. Came out nice a crispy on the outside, yet still tender on the inside. Sides were mashed sweet potato to which I added a bit of curry and garam masala, and sauteed spinach with garlic and a splash of raspberry balsamic vinegar.

Last night I had a friend over and I made my hubby's favorite dish, stuffed acorn squash. It's super simple and versatile. I par cook the acorn squash in the microwave so that it's easier to cut in half, spray with some olive oil and par roast it in the oven for a bit. Meanwhile, I cook some wild grain and rice mix and saute some sausage. Then I mix the rice and sausage, add some shredded zucchini (in the winter I use defrosted frozen spinach), parm, maple syrup and an egg to bind. I take the squash out of the oven, stuff, then stick back into the oven. It's wonderful and the stuffing comes out a little crispy on top, which is our favorite part!

I think I'm taking the easy road tonight and just defrosting some chili and eating that with some of leftover baguette from last night.

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Tonight was pork Paprikash with sweet paprika from Penzeys and hot paprika I purchased during a trip to Budapest. I was worried the hot would have lost its kick (it's rather old) but apparently storing it in the freezer has prolonged its life a bit because the sauce had just enough heat. Subbed Greek yogurt for the sour cream and served over egg noodles. Added a nice Oregon Pinot Gris to accompany the meal - I love fall dinners!

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