December 2017, What's for Dinner ?

I've been prepping everything for tomorrow's Christmas dinner most of the day.

I just told Dane I wanted to go out to Metro Diner for supper. He didn't give me 'the look' or complain so that sounds like a plan!

Last night they shot off a rocket from Vandenburg AFB and the contrails in the sky were awesome.

I had to go to the grocery store for some things I forgot and it took 15 minutes to find a parking space. The whole lot was filled. The inside of the store was a zoo. You couldn't stop and park your basket it was so crowded.

Somehow, I managed to sit on a piece of chocolate candy on the couch and it melted and I smeared it everywhere. I had to strip everything down, including myself and do a few washes. What a mess.

Speaking of chocolate, my niece spent $81 on one box of chocolates to give to her boss for Christmas. My sister said the champagne truffles were to die for. IDK, I can't imagine chocolates that are worth $80, but then again, I have never tasted any.

My sister's next door neighbor has to let her child spend Christmas with her father, so she is celebrating Christmas today with her. She had a snow-making truck come and coat her whole yard with snow. Then they made a snow hill in the driveway so she could slide down it. That is one of the things you can do when you are rich.

Tonight I am making a copycat recipe for The Olive garden's minestrone. We will have garlic cheese bread to go with it.

I grew up in Pasadena and when I was old enough my friends and I would cruise Colorado Blvd. on New Years eve and then camp out and watch the parade in the morning. Everyone who had a hot rod within 100 miles would be there. It was quite a show. Now I just read that they are shutting down Colorado at 10PM to traffic. Too bad but with all of the crazies out there it is a wise thing to do. You never know if someone has plans to drive a car into the crowd.

NormM wrote:Charlie really liked this when I made a version of it a month or so ago so I made it again.. sort of.

Norm, these pics made my mouth water. That's a pork chop, right? It looked like chicken to me at first but I figure greens would go better under a pork chop. Regardless, looks divine!

bethk wrote:Yes.  It's top round or top sirloin.....can't remember.

But if it's thick enough to grill rare or medium rare and you slice it thin across the grain it's really good.

It's a favorite of ours, too, Beth. Rarely does it even have any silverskin, too. Cooks up in 10 minutes to medium rare on the stovetop grill, let it rest for a bit prior to slicing and I usually whip up a side dish during its resting period. Makes good sandwiches the next day, especially if I make a bit of au jus sauce from Better Than Bouillon to put the cold slices in prior to putting them on a nice bun. Love it 'cause it's quick, not too pricey, super beef flavor and nothing but meat, no waste in other words. Brian loves it, too. No matter how bad I'm feeling or how tired I am, I can always manage to get that on the table!

UNCLE JIMMY wrote:Speaking of Cajun, ...... haven't heard from Crybaby in a couple weeks. Maybe they went to a hotel temporarily while the construction phase is going on on their house?
Any clues??

Here I am Jimmy -- so go get a cup of coffee and a drink as I've got another story for you!

Laughed, Jimmy, but no, we're still here even though Al is still bumbling around the house and WISHES we would leave and he didn't have to work around us. He's had some personal problems with his 10-year landlord trying to evict him one day and then befriending him the next so I helped him get ready for eviction court. We went to eviction court a week ago yesterday and I acted as his agent and did all the talking as he was all over the place when we went over everything and he jumped at the chance when I offered to do the talking in court. His landlady is in her 80s and we both think she's suffering from a bit of dementia. She gets nice when she wants something done for free to her house, something he's been doing for 10 years for free not only to his own home he rents but to the double she lives in. Like when Hurricane Irma came a calling she got nice again and kept texting him to come get her house ready for the storm. I've read hundreds of texts from the old lady sent during the duration of this stuff and have concluded her cheese is slowly sliding off her cracker; it's sad but Al is paying the price for it.

Anyway, I nearly died when an attorney showed up in court instead of the old lady but we beat him and his client! I got the judge to throw it out for improper service (I showed her Al was prematurely served with the second document in an eviction instead of the first), and the attorney (the old lady's second one) told the judge the first attorney's letter of 9.28.17 served as the required first document. I agreed IF the old lady hadn't signed a lease with him on 10.5.17; the atty. said Al used "elder abuse" to get the old lady to sign a new lease. I showed her the former atty's letter dated the same day as the lease amending it to show he was to send rent check to the old lady made payable to the old lady (she transferred ownership to her son back in May, told Al nothing about that, and then her son told the first atty. he'd never gotten a dime of rent from Al since he owned the house; they're both liars and I got so furious I just HAD to get involved!). The last line in the atty's letter said for Al to attach his letter to his lease, which I pointed out to the judge acknowledged existence of the lease as he was month to month prior to this lease. Al didn't trust the old lady so he made an audio recording of the conversation they had prior to, during and after the new lease was signed; but I didn't want to produce that as I want to surprise him next time! Plus the lease says the rent is $1700/month whereas Al agreed on the tape to pay her $1800, which she can't require as if you have a written contract in LA, any amendments have to be in writing and not verbal; but he WANTS to pay the amount he agreed to so I will show that as a sign of his doing the right thing to the judge the next time they file an eviction, which will probably be the first week of January.

So the judge looked at the attorney and ruled he did indeed have a lease. Then he said Al hadn't paid rent in months so I showed her how the old lady kept refusing to take the rent, and did so 4 days after the new lease was signed. I showed her the receipt he got from the 1st atty's secretary as I told him back in October to deliver the rent check to the atty. so they couldn't claim he didn't pay the rent. The atty. mailed it back certified mail to Al and then QUIT! I told the judge we were prepared to argue the matter but I didn't think we should because again, he wasn't served with the first document, which was required by state law. I also told her nowhere on the prematurely served document was it asserted that he was behind on the rent; the other atty. said I was not telling the truth and handed over his copy of the document. I saw it as it was being walked over to the judge and it was DIFFERENT from the one served on Al -- the old lady had tons of big X's all over Al's like she kept changing her mind, and the one I caught a glance of was neat as a pin. I told the judge they were different; honey, she got the constable who served it on Al right up to her desk and he said the old lady TOLD him to serve the second one on Al and not the first. She fussed at him and said, "They have to match!"

Anyway, I told her we were prepared to argue the rest of the case but I didn't think we should be forced to do so because of improper service. She looked at the attorney and told him he had to "start all over." Then while looking at him, she pointed at me and said, "She's goooooooood!" Al and I were over the moon! And we were thanking the judge when the attorney SLAMMED down his binder full of papers on the table we were standing behind during the hearing, picked it up and quickly left the courtroom. We drove home to tell Brian and I even popped a bottle of Champagne (well, Al and Brian had beers but I had the bubbly!). I haven't worked since 2010 and the Answer we filed on his behalf took me a lot longer than it should have but I was so proud of myself that I had a hard time wiping the smile off my face.

Like I told Beth, some days I feel pretty worthless when I'm in pain and can't even do much at all. I try not to complain to anyone, even Brian, when I hurt really badly and I don't often let on how lousy it makes me feel not to be able to do whatever you want whenever you want. So winning that case meant the world to me -- made me feel like a valuable working paralegal again. Heck, it made me feel like a valuable PERSON again.

Back to the house: The French doors we had to have built finally were finished and Al installed them. They needed to be tweaked but he did so and they're fine now. We had to wait for rain to tweek them, as remember that's where the leaks ruining the sheetrocked walls and ceiling downstairs emanated from, but all is good now. I know, we could have blasted them with a hose but we wanted to make sure they didn't leak in a soft rain, too. Couldn't begin the downstairs sheetrock, floor repair and lighting replacement (removal of old ceiling lighting and installation of LED swivel cans) work until we knew it all wouldn't be ruined by the upstairs leaks. So we're not that far off really, though we're taking a break for the holidays at my insistence. He has a couple of huge jobs he's taking on in January and February but has promised he will make time to finish our house and I know he will. After the living room, which needs painting, too, the deck of the balcony needs staining, the shutters have to be remade, and then everything except the deck needs final painting -- French doors, shutters, balusters, railing, etc. Then we're done!

But I get nothing but compliments on the floor and the lighting in the kitchen and lots of people who've seen it have asked if the cabinets are new (they're not but just look better in this kitchen), and everyone loves the half bath. So we're more than pleased so far. We've gotten quite close to Al, though, and he helps us out with all kind of things around the house we need done.

Plus, I've been having some problems with pain and am now getting pain in new places for which I have to go see an orthopedist again -- they boot you right out to a pain doctor if there's no surgery needed or wanted. So pain has occupied a lot of my time, too, which explains my absense. I'll probably drive you crazy with my too long messages again now that I'm back around, Jimmy!!

My sister sent us a package from Omaha steaks. One of the boxes had 4 chicken fried steaks. I cooked two for dinner and we had them with mashed potatoes, gravy and peas. We also had Hawaiian rolls and dessert was vanilla ice cream with toffee and chocolate shell. At least I had chocolate shell. I think Charlie had a chocolate caramel sauce on his.

Michelle, yes, it's a butterfly loin pork chop.

UNCLE JIMMY wrote:We like the brussels sprouts just boiled and buttered lightly.
Tina eats them by peeling leaf by leaf. It's a funny sight!

I love 'em! When I clean them and slice them in half prior to cooking them, I keep all the little leaves that all off, as they turn into little crunchy bits when you cook the others. I used to always make them in the oven with olive oil, finely chopped shallots and bacon -- spread out on a sheet pan cut-side down until they get brown and crispy, then flipped and roasted some more.

On Thanksgiving, I didn't have the oven time to spare so I did them in a cast iron pan, first cooking the chopped shallots, then adding about six slices of bacon I'd chopped up as small as possible, and then threw in the halved sprouts. I let them sit for a bit to brown, stirred periodically until tasting one proved they were tender and served them. Everyone who was here went gaga over them, with several saying they were the best Brussels sprouts they ever had. So from now on, I'll probably do them on the stove -- easier than taking the time to lay them all out on the sheet pan cut side down. They got just as brown with the occasional stirring.

My father and I were the only ones who ate them when I grew up -- when everyone made them just by boiling them. They weren't one of my favorite veggies but I ate them. Everyone but Pop and me hated them and wouldn't touch them. I love 'em now as I find them so much tastier when they're not boiled and just cooked with shallots and bacon, whether in the oven or on the stove. Brian loves them, too. The first time I made them like that a couple of years ago, he took a bite of one like Tom Hanks did portraying the "grown up kid" in Big -- so small and bitten just like a kid does on his front teeth so it doesn't even touch his tongue! I doubted he had even had enough to actually taste anything. He was stunned, and looked at me and said, "I can't believe it, they're delicious!" Trust me, he wasn't the only one in the room shocked.

bethk wrote:I think over cooking allows the Brussels sprouts become bitter.  My mother did the typical boiling, like everyone did in the 1950's and 60's.  She covered them with water and boiled until they were falling apart tender.  It was more like Brussels Mush.  And none of us kids liked them.  Of course, we each had our obligitory ONE on our plate.  It's amazing how creative kids can get when trying to hide something on their plate!

Laughed, as it sounds like my house as a kid. My mother only asked that we take a bit on our plate of everything -- you should've seen the teeny tiny portions of vegetables my brother could dish out. Looked like a spoon from a dollhouse served him! I laughed at the picture of one Brussels sprout on a plate -- funny stuff, Beth!

bethk wrote:Small pork tenderloin ready for serving:




Pork tenderloin with grape/shallot sauce, baked sweet potatoes and creamed corn:

Looks beautiful, too, Beth. It would be good with fresh cranberries just like that too, along with some citrus added in. Yummy!

Bugster2 wrote:Here is another video that is a hoot! You go girl!

http://myconnection.cox.com/article/trending/7a73e096-e648-11e7-8197-7b42a2c5c94c/

That was amazing, as was that woman. Man, she sure keeps a nice house, too. Bless her heart for making this video for herself and for all women who "stay home" and work at the house and take care of a kid or kids. I never doubted they worked harder than I ever did -- and some of them have a paying job as well, even full time! Loved this clip!!!

bethk wrote:So, Boston Market is cooking tonight.  I picked up one of the Boston Market Chicken Pot Pies that have been so highly recommended and I will eat THE WHOLE THING!  ((Who ever heard of a 2-serving chicken pot pie????))

I literally laughed out loud when I read this -- you slay me Beth when you quote my words right back to me. No lie. I rolled.

bethk wrote:I'll let you know what I think ~ already I'm thinking I'll pick out the chicken because I really only like the vegetables, sauce and crust.  I'm really not the best person to give a review of a chicken pot pie!  LOL

Well, it's all white meat 'cause they brag on that right on the cover. You and I both like dark meat, too. But yeah, if you're planning on picking out the darn chicken before you even sit down with it in front of you, I think the deck is stacked against me! Go, go, go, huge Boston Market Chicken Pot Pie! Impress Beth, will you please?!

Can't wait to hear your verdict, er, I mean impression....

bethk wrote:OK, so I heated the Boston Market Chicken Pot Pie in the microwave. The instructions say "10-11 minutes on high".  I opted for 10 - 1/2 minutes, just to be fair.  Here's what it looked like when I opened the microwave:

The gravy had bubbled over in and out of the box ~ glad I had put the glass microwave liner in the dishwasher last night!

**********

Picture #2 ~ I felt the bottom of the paper pie plate when I took it out of the microwave oven and thought it needed to be heated longer as it was still cool to the touch (even though it had bubbled over and out when heated) so I put it in a dish and heated it for another 2 minutes.

Picture #3 ~ When I tried to remove the pot pie from the paper pan, it stuck and had to be scraped off with my fork.  Now, this isn't such a bad thing....the crust is pretty darn tasty.

I ate about half (one serving size according to the nutrition information....) and then decided I really didn't want any more.  It had good taste, LOTS of square chunks of chicken and sufficient vegetables and gravy.  However, after eating that much I had an unpleasant 'mouth-feel' coating in my mouth.  The only way I could describe it to Dane was it felt like my mouth was coated in Crisco shortening.....So I offered him the rest of it to try!  (Just like when I think the milk is sour and I say, "here, try this!" Hahahahaha)  After a couple bites, and with my words echoing in his ears, he said, "No thanks....I see what you mean."

So, even though I was starving, this was not for me.  I ended up having the leftover creamed corn from last night's supper to fill me up.  All in all, it was better than most but still not good enough for me to purchase again.

Now wait just a minute, Missy!  You cook every night because Dane doesn't like leftovers and you had a night off so you're going to give my terrific addictive Boston Market Chicken Pot Pies a try, right? And you think COOKING THEM IN A MICROWAVE is the way to go?  Could you not have turned on the oven?  Too much labor, Missy?  You turn oven on, wait for "ding" which tells you it's preheated, put in pie, set time and remove? What's so stinking hard about that, Miss Take the Time to Put Foil on Your
Grill so you don't have to clean the grill.  You do ALL that to make grilled chicken and you can't turn the oven on for my BELOVED Pot Pies?!  You knew you were stabbing me in the heart as you put that damn box in the nuker, didn't you?  I'll bet you were smiling, too, right?  Thinking about me and giggling, weren't you?  If you tell me you were thinking about spoiled milk as you slid my no-chance-in-the-world pot pie into that thing that no one with a right mind actually COOKS in, I'm going to fly right over there and steal the remaining Meyer lemons off your bush!

Darn it, Beth, if you'd have cooked ME like that in the nuker, I would've stuck to the top of the darn box you cooked me in too just to tick you off.  Why the heck didn't you cook it in the oven?  Who makes something with a pie crust in the microwave REGARDLESS of what the directions say you CAN do?  Lord almighty, woman.  And then you TAINT IT by talking bad about it like spoiled milk and give it to Dane to "try"? Some fair trial, Missy!  You should be ashamed for your half-hearted effort!!

No wonder you only ate half!  So I'm not going to feel bad for LOVING that pot pie and you're not going to shame me either for EATING THE WHOLE THING even though you had had enough halfway through.  And I'll bet the calories in that cream corn more than surpassed the second half of that dejected pot pie, rejected during the Christmas season no less.  Shame on you, Missy!!!   I hope Santa puts Crisco toothpaste in your stocking and signs it "Boston Market"...  

bethk wrote:Today I pulled a half a pork tenderloin out of the freezer....one of the 'single-pack' ones.  It looked to be about 10-12 oz. in total, more than enough for the two of us.  I thawed it out and blotted it dry with paper towels.  I had to trim off the silver skin ~ that stuff is so nasty if you don't cut it off before cooking.  It's like eating rubber bands.

I seasoned it with the Hungarian Steak Seasoning (which is a very nice blend of multiple spices) and seared it on all sides and ends in some oil in my little cast iron skillet.  When it was seared and browned I removed it and added some chopped shallots and fresh thyme and then about a cup and a half of halved red grapes.  When the shallots and grapes were soft and the grapes were giving up some juice I nestled the pork tenderloin back in the skillet and put it in a 450° oven for about 15 minutes ~ let it get to an internal temperature of 130°.  Then I removed it to a plate, covered lightly, to rest and started to reduce the juices in the skillet.  When most of the juice was evaporated I mounted it with a few pats of butter to use as a sauce over the sliced meat.

I had small sweet potatoes that I baked and I had purchased some fresh sweet corn to cut off the cob and turn into some Southern Creamed Corn with my Dixie Dust seasoning and a bit of heavy cream and butter.

Small pork tenderloin ready for serving:




Pork tenderloin with grape/shallot sauce, baked sweet potatoes and creamed corn:

I tried this in the microwave. Wasn't for me. Funny roof of the mouth feel. Told Brian it smelled funny and he should try it. He called me an idiot, smelled it, said it smelled like sour grapes (you've gotta give me credit for THAT line!), and said he understood what I meant. The roof of my mouth tasted like Wesson Oil. Like wine with Wesson Oil maybe, mostly good ol' Wesson Oil.  Found out this must've been a plot from Barbara to get me to try it and go out clutching my throat...

On the subject of Pot Pies... I did try the Boston Market pot pie, cooked in my toaster/convection oven.. not a fan of it... sorry...  Guess I am spoiled by the local chicken pot pie local store: Harrows

But, I did try a beef pot pie from Trader Joes.. OMG...delish... It is called a: Steak and Ale pot pie... the crust is to die for... It was so good, I ate both of the ones in the package!!  The plan was to save one for today, but I was a little piggy....They are small, but so filling..

I am going to have to pick up another package of them.. so good...

Aw. man, I think I've offended you......

and I didn't even mean to. If it'll make you feel better I'll try it one more time......

And it wasn't put into the oven because I was cleaning it (which did not come out very clean at all, I might add) and I didn't even think of the toaster oven. I saw the directions for microwaving and just went with it.

So sue me.

Well, no, don't sue me. Knowing YOUR talent you'd WIN!

Hahahahahahaha

cookingirl wrote:On the subject of Pot Pies... I did try the Boston Market pot pie, cooked in my toaster/convection oven.. not a fan of it... sorry...  Guess I am spoiled by the local chicken pot pie local store: Harrows

But, I did try a beef pot pie from Trader Joes.. OMG...delish... It is called a: Steak and Ale pot pie... the crust is to die for... It was so good, I ate both of the ones in the package!!  The plan was to save one for today, but I was a little piggy....They are small, but so filling..

I am going to have to pick up another package of them.. so good...

I will have to give those a try. Do you know if they also have a chicken pot pie?

I am not much of a candy maker because I usually fail. I want to try making peanut brittle and saw a recipe from Trisha Yearwood that got all positive reviews. The trouble is that she uses 1 tablespoon salt in the recipe. One T?? Sounds like a huge amount. Most of the recipes I saw used only 1/2 teaspoon. Anyone out there ever made peanut brittle?

cookingirl wrote:On the subject of Pot Pies... I did try the Boston Market pot pie, cooked in my toaster/convection oven.. not a fan of it... sorry...  Guess I am spoiled by the local chicken pot pie local store: Harrows

Sure! Another one, three for three. Comparing it to one made by one of your favorite local stores isn't fair either! My homemade one is a lot better, too.

I'm starting to think this is a pot pie conspiracy. If the Pot Pie Papers show up tomorrow in either the New York Times or the Washington Post, I'm gunning for you three!

Bugster2 wrote:Must have had too much shortening in the crust. Sounds icky.

Don't listen to the three of them! The crust is delicious. Beth had spoiled milk on her tongue when she tasted it!

UNCLE JIMMY wrote:We tried ours for the first time, in the regular oven. Perfect crust.
Tina likes more veggies, and I like dark meat cut small cubes / pieces .....

Bless you, Jimmy!  I know you're not a chicken fan to begin with, and they do have big chunks of white meat only but thanks for rescuing me and saying the crust was perfect.  You a friend indeed when i needed one the most!  And thanks for giving it a decent chance in the oven, too. Tell Tina I'll mail her a cup of extra veggies just to cotton up to her!

Pot Pie Killer wrote:Picture #3 ~ When I tried to remove the pot pie from the paper pan, it stuck and had to be scraped off with my fork. Now, this isn't such a bad thing....the crust is pretty darn tasty.

Mine comes right out of the paper pan into a bowl, but you have to cook it in the oven!

Liam sure looks cute in those photos, Jimmy. So does grandma, in fact. I can tell he doesn't get me attention, right?

It's so nice he's a happy baby. I'm with you, though, you sure have to run after 'em once they're walking. Phew! I'm tired just thinking of it....

NormM wrote:Michelle, yes, it's a butterfly loin pork chop.

That explains why it looked so large, not to mention delicious. You sure do set a pretty table every night, Norm. Most nights unless there's someone here, I serve each of our dinners from the stove. For holidays, I put everything in serving dishes on the island and let people serve themselves from there, as the table is usually too crowded when I put all the dishes on it.

But I'm always impressed at how nice your table looks -- every night, too, just for the two of you. Charlie is a lucky man!

Niagara Visitor wrote:Dinner tonight was at Cracker Jack's restaurant.  I was out getting the last of the groceries for my Christmas Eve crowd (15 people in my condo)  good thing we're all friendly, it will be crowded.  Restaurant had one of my very favourite meals.  Lasagna!  

Christmas Eve will see chicken wings, chicken breast, oven roasted potatoes.  Daughter-in-law's mother was Hungarian, so I am making a Hungarian goulash which is normally served over noodles.  There will be cheese and crackers, shrimp, pate, veggies and dip, a coleslaw.  Sweets for dessert.  No turkey in my house!

I think everyone will have enough to eat.  

How sweet of you, Lore, to do that for your neighbors.  It's so nice that you've fit in like a glove over there -- nice for you and for your neighbors, too!  I guess one son will be there since you mentioned your DIL.  What about the other son -- is he able to come, too?  

Yeah, I think you all will have plenty to eat! Let us know how it goes, as I presume it's tonight and you're busy getting ready.