September 2016, Whats for Dinner??

Charlie ordered carry out Chinese. At least it was a Chinese restaurant but we didn't recognize any of the food we ordered.

Ooh, Beth, just loved your pics from The Breakers. And the three-store Publix was mind blowing! What a hoot!

Glad you're having a good time!

Bugster2 wrote:My page doesn't say that.

I should've NEVER have gotten involved with this anyway, Debbie. So sorry. I just log in and THEN go to the messages that are new since my last log in. Please forgive me as I don't know what the heck you guys do, but just know mine is not as complicated (grin)!!

Uncle Jimmy wrote:The neighbor got a bunch of bacon, and gave us like two pounds.
I made egg salad....my way finely chopped with no egg chunks.
Then I fried 1/2 lb of the bacon, and we nibbled on that till it disappeared.
Then, I made Italian fried meatballs.... and during that, I drank a 1/2 bottle of red wine.
What a relaxing moment, and what a great appetite it gave to me.

Your meatballs were so pretty, Jimmy -- such nice perfectly shaped ovals! Nothing like a little wine while you're cooking. Unless, of course, it's some wine after you've finished cooking, and then some wine to enjoy with your meal.

I saw a nice dish on The Kitchen the other day using pork shanks -- but they weren't smoked pork shanks, which is all I usually see at the store. Does your store sell pork shanks that aren't smoked? Just curious. Here's the recipe I want to try...

Pork Shanks with Creamy Polenta and Gremolata
Serves 4 / Recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro, FoodNetwork.com, The Kitchen, 2016.

Four 8-ounce pork shanks, tied with twine
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 yellow onions, diced
1 Tablespoon tomato paste
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups dry white wine
2 cups warm chicken stock
One 14.5-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 bay leaves
Creamy Polenta, recipe follows
Gremolata, recipe follows

Creamy Polenta:
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper
1-1/2 cups medium-grind stone-ground cornmeal
1/3 cup heavy cream
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Gremolata:
1 cup fresh parsley, minced
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 cloves garlic, grated on a rasp grater
Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Heat a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Liberally season all sides of the shanks with salt and. Add 2 Tablespoons of the oil to the pan and sear the shanks until golden brown on all sides, about 5 minutes a side. Transfer to a plate.
Add the remaining Tablespoon of oil to the Dutch oven, then add the carrots, celery and onions. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until the vegetables are slightly soft and browned, about 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste and garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the wine to deglaze, scraping all the bits off the bottom. Add the shanks, any accumulated juices, the warm stock, tomatoes and bay leaves. Cover, transfer to the oven and cook until the shanks are extremely fork-tender, about 2 hours. Remove the shanks and tent with foil on a plate.
If the braising liquid is a bit thin, right before serving, simmer the remaining liquid until thickened slightly, 5 to 10 minutes. Add additional salt and pepper if necessary.
For each serving, put a ladle of Creamy Polenta in a shallow bowl, followed by a warm shank with a ladle of rich braising liquid, then top with the fresh Gremolata.

Creamy Polenta:
Bring 6 cups water to a rolling boil in a heavy-bottomed 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting, add 1-1/2 teaspoons salt and pour the cornmeal into the water in a very slow stream from a measuring cup, all the while whisking in a circular motion to prevent lumps.
Cover and cook, vigorously stirring the polenta with a wooden spoon for about 10 seconds once every 5 minutes and making sure to scrape clean the bottom and corners of the pot, until the polenta has lost its raw cornmeal taste and becomes soft and smooth, about 30 minutes. Stir in the cream, butter, cheese and salt and pepper to taste.

Gremolata:
Mix the parsley, lemon zest, orange zest and garlic together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.

I got an email notification about a new post. When I clicked the link and it sent me to the post, I noticed that I was no longer logged in. I logged in, so now I will watch and see if I get any notifications in the mail.

UNCLE JIMMY wrote:

Bugster2 wrote:I got an email notification about a new post. When I clicked the link and it sent me to the post, I noticed that I was no longer logged in. I logged in, so now I will watch and see if I get any notifications in the mail.

I'm getting them now Bugs.
BTW ... I never log out.

The kids are coming over tonight. Tina is going to buy a store roasted chicken.
For them. Not me.

I never log out either, but occasionally my computer does it for me without my permission.

I made taco salads for the 5 of us tonight.  We went to a 'gourmet market' this afternoon (still trying to get my pics to download to my PB account....don't know what the problem is) and picked up some peach/mango salsa, fresh tomato salsa & 'homemade' tortilla chips.  Everyone is stuffed (big surprise there, huh?) and the kitchen is cleaned up.

Went to a FABULOUS Italian Gourmet Grocery / Deli.....A * M * A * Z * I * N * G

Here are some of the pics I took before the manager politely informed me I could not take pics.....

Your Italian deli puts mine to shame.

Tuesday was my son's 50th b-day............. Ykes! We went to a new, local winery restaurant for dinner. It was unusual to say the least. Tuesdays they don't have a full menu, but call it "Family friendly" which was strange, because to me the items available are not what most children would eat. I ended up with a really great grilled cheese sandwich, but done with a strong cheese, and on fabulous crusty bread, and caramalized onions on it.

What was unusual about the place is the way they printed the menu. I asked to look at the regular menu, and the first item was tuna, lemon, spices.............It did not occur to me that it would be a ceviche.

For all of the menu they print the main ingredients but nothing to indicate how something is done. They had two places in which octopus was the first ingredient. I love octopus, but couldn't tell how it was prepared. So, I had to ask the waitress, one was marinated, one grilled. The waitress was very good at explaining everything, but that is soooo wasteful of her time. Now, eating out and cooking unusual things are both not new to me, so I find it actually intrusive if the server has to explain everything.

Have any of you found this in a restaurant? Very high end.

I only eat low end so I don't expect anything.LOL.

Bugster2 wrote:I only eat low end so I don't expect anything.LOL.

That's funny. The whole thing made me feel like they feel that we need to be educated, not really friendly. The place is gorgeous and it was quite possibly the best grilled cheese sandwich I've ever had. I won't be back if I'm paying the bill!

Lore, we go to an old fashioned 'luncheonette' and they bring the 'menu' to you....a chalk board with the day's offerings listed. Then the waitress explains everything that goes into a dish. I remember her explaining their shrimp salad and she explained it was shrimp with onion, celery and dill, and you had to REALLY like dill if you ordered it. I think they do that so people are aware of how/what is in a dish so customers don't order something and then not like it and send it back.

We went to a different place, an English 'tea room' and the owner 'explained' their signature chicken salad as being in a light curry sauce. When it came it was ORANGE with the strongest curry I've ever smelled. I ordered the 'shepard's pie' and he said they could leave the cheese off the top. What he failed to mention was the fact there was cheese throughout the mashed potatoes on top as well as covering the creamed vegetable filling. Needless to say, we never returned to that place again.

I understand that, but why not say grilled octopus or marinated octopus. The grilled cheese sandwich I had said "Upper Canada cheese, onions, bread." I thought it would be like a crustini.

Niagara Visitor wrote:

Bugster2 wrote:I only eat low end so I don't expect anything.LOL.

That's funny.  The whole thing made me feel like they feel that we need to be educated, not really friendly.  The place is gorgeous and it was quite possibly the best grilled cheese sandwich I've ever had.  I won't be back if I'm paying the bill!

There is nothing more annoying than to have the wait staff talk down to you.

Niagara Visitor wrote:I understand that, but why not say grilled octopus or marinated octopus.  The grilled cheese sandwich I had said "Upper Canada cheese, onions, bread."  I thought it would be like a crustini.  

Hmm, have never encountered anything like this, Lore. Hope it never "takes off" as it sounds really annoying, not to mention time consuming if everything being served has to be explained. And I'd probably ask again later prior to ordering, especially if I've got to remember the details of everything on the menu!

I sometimes even get annoyed at the detailed "specials" a restaurant have, as if it's four or more, it's a lot of info. I usually ask the waitstaff to go over the specials a second time after everyone has time to look over the menu, as one almost always needs another "retelling" of the specials prior to ordering, especially if they're quite detailed. Though we're not on a tight budget personally, I always think it's rude if the specials were pricey and not one mention of price has been made. I think they should recite the price of the specials as well.

Brian and I ate lunch at a popular place about six months ago (not a chain) and I had a delicious lunch, a special the waitress told us about, one of about three or four specials. I always glance over the receipt prior to paying the bill if I'm the one paying and not Brian, just to make sure we weren't charged for something we ordered and then they might have been out of it, etc. (Later on, I sometimes look at it again, especially if he paid the bill.) Whereas the lunch entrée prices averaged about $15 to $16, the special I ordered was $23 or $24. I didn't mind, as if money were important, I would've asked but I thought about how embarrassing that could've been for say, a young guy buying his date lunch, or a bunch of women out for a work lunch and someone got stuck paying more than she assumed she'd pay. Someone might assume a special would cost a bit less, too, if it's something the chef is trying to move (I used to work as a cocktail waitress and for a while, a lunch waitress prior to cocktail time, and often the special was made a special so the chef could move some product he had too much of or needed to cook and get rid of). I'm smiling now, as if money to pay the bill is tight at the table, you know darn well the tip is going to suffer first (that's the waitress in me thinking of it from THAT direction).

What do you guys think about specials? Order them? Never order them? Know the price prior to ordering, or do you ask? Just curious...

bethk wrote:Went to a FABULOUS Italian Gourmet Grocery / Deli.....A * M * A * Z * I * N * G

Here are some of the pics I took before the manager politely informed me I could not take pics.....

Beth, normally I try not to "replay" people's pictures but these photos were SOOOOO freaking impressive that I just had to give them another run! Am so glad you got to snap so many prior to the manager telling you no pics. The food looks fantastic and the layout is beyond belief! What did you get there, if anything?

So glad you're having fun! We miss you!