November 2019...What's cooking today?

My sister's picc line was in her chest, right between her boob and collar bone. She never had issues with it and her arms were free.

Well, hell's bells, Michelle ~ you're the one who has given away 17 shirts off her back to help people out. Don't you think it's about time YOU let someone feel good about helping you. Don't be so selfish!

OK, so maybe that last comment was mean......

but I got your attention, didn't I ?????

Lyn & I have that special bond that we never feel guilty when helping or asking for help of one another. It always makes me feel good to be able to drop anything to help when needed. Let Linda have the honor of assisting. It's part of that 'paying it forward' thing where she's covered if she needs help from someone at a later date.

You do know you're both always in my prayers (and thoughts).....

Tonight I made the allrecipes.com Chef John's Picadillo recipe, with my adjustments (of course).

I made basmati rice to go with it and tried a package of something I saw at the produce department, sweet potato rice. It was finely minced cooked sweet potato in a bag. The directions said to reheat it in a nonstick skillet without oil over medium high heat.

Well, I used my best nonstick (almost new) skillet and it attached like glue! The flavor was OK, but a real cooked sweet potato would have been just as easy and cheaper, too. So, at least I don't have to worry about buying it again. LOL

I tried a new recipe for chicken pot pie. Before I added the chicken I tasted it and thought it was awful. I was going to toss the mess but then I pulled out a strainer and rinsed off the sauce. I will try again tomorrow with a different base. Hopefully the carrots and peas will be Ok tomorrow.

I had 2 dishes of salad greens. 4 medium size fried italian meatballs that were leftover...
DD is cooking shrimp / calamari / and cod fish in a clam and tomato sauce.

WOO HOO! No cooking for me tonight.

Neighbor, Jim, said it's HIS turn to cook.

We're going to Square 1 Burgers. LOL ((He's a great cook with his wallet!))

Making a rabbit dinner for two special gentlemen in my life. Uncle Ernie (Hubby's uncle) but obviously also mine, and fishing son's father-in-law both of whom love my rabbit. There will be potatoes done in the oven with butter, garlic and parsley, some red cabbage and carrots. A pretty colourful dinner. Maybe some gravy, not sure yet.

Joe wants to go out for a poke bowl. I don't eat raw so I don't know what I will have.

What is a poke bowl?

Cookin Lore wrote:What is a poke bowl?

(Quote Google): Poke means “to slice or cut” in Hawaiian and refers to chunks of raw, marinated fish — usually tuna — which is then tossed over rice and topped with vegetables and umami-packed sauces. “It's the next generation of sushi,” says chef Dakota Weiss of Sweetfin Poké in L.A. “But easier to eat.”

Cookin Lore wrote:Making a rabbit dinner for two special gentlemen in my life.  Uncle Ernie (Hubby's uncle) but obviously also mine, and fishing son's father-in-law both of whom love my rabbit.  There will be  potatoes done in the oven with butter, garlic and parsley, some red cabbage and carrots.   A pretty colourful dinner.  Maybe some gravy, not sure yet.

When we had rabbit at home it was cooked like 'butter fried chicken' ~ just a light dusting of flour & whatever seasonings Mom used (probably just s&p). When it was done there was always a pan gravy. I don't think she ever braised it in the oven. Just pan fried.

And, of course, all of us kids were told it was chicken. Skinless chicken. Just eat! You like chicken......

LOL

Cookin Lore wrote:What is a poke bowl?

It is pronounced po-kay. and here is a pic of one. It is supposed to have an accent mark above the E but I don't know how to do it on a computer.

https://www.jessicagavin.com/spicy-wild-alaskan-sockeye-salmon-poke-bowls/

Neighbor loved the restaurant we took him to (we loved he was buying! LOL)

It was 'Onion Ring Wednesday' so we ordered a HUGE plate of really good onion rings to share. And, as usual, I overate and could only eat half my burger. I ordered the wagu with bacon & onion jam. It normally comes with bleu cheese but you know that wasn't on MINE.

Dane got the 1/2 pound chili cheese hot dog ~ he ended up eating it with a fork without the bun. It's about 15" long, hanging over both sides of a dinner plate.

Jim ordered a 'Jucy Lucy' with melted cheddar and caramelized onions on the inside of two patties. He loved it came on a pretzel bun.

I have a feeling this won't be the last time he goes there to eat! It always surprises me that, for as often as he goes out to eat (he's a widower and doesn't cook) he usually stays really close to our end of The Villages. There must be 200 different restaurants to choose from in a 1/2 hour drive distance. What we don't really have is much diversity in the choices. We recently had a Pho Saigon Restaurant open but we don't have any 'real' Chinese, no Korean, no Thai. There is one Polish and a ton of Italian and burger or steak houses. I guess the other restaurants don't think there's a huge market with the demographics here.

bethk wrote:Neighbor loved the restaurant we took him to (we loved he was buying!  LOL)

It was 'Onion Ring Wednesday' so we ordered a HUGE plate of really good onion rings to share.  And, as usual, I overate and could only eat half my burger.  I ordered the wagu with bacon & onion jam.  It normally comes with bleu cheese but you know that wasn't on MINE.

Dane got the 1/2 pound chili cheese hot dog ~ he ended up eating it with a fork without the bun.  It's about 15" long, hanging over both sides of a dinner plate.

Jim ordered a 'Jucy Lucy' with melted cheddar and caramelized onions on the inside of two patties.  He loved it came on a pretzel bun.  

I have a feeling this won't be the last time he goes there to eat!  It always surprises me that, for as often as he goes out to eat (he's a widower and doesn't cook) he usually stays really close to our end of The Villages.  There must be 200 different restaurants to choose from in a 1/2 hour drive distance.  What we don't really have is much diversity in the choices.  We recently had a Pho Saigon Restaurant open but we don't have any 'real' Chinese, no Korean, no Thai.  There is one Polish and a ton of Italian and burger or steak houses.  I guess the other restaurants don't think there's a huge market with the demographics here.

Joe and Katie stuffed themselves on salmon and tuna belly, fresh wasabi, stuffed muscles, yellow fin, poke bowl. Delicious they said.

bethk wrote:

Cookin Lore wrote:Making a rabbit dinner for two special gentlemen in my life.  Uncle Ernie (Hubby's uncle) but obviously also mine, and fishing son's father-in-law both of whom love my rabbit.  There will be  potatoes done in the oven with butter, garlic and parsley, some red cabbage and carrots.   A pretty colourful dinner.  Maybe some gravy, not sure yet.

When we had rabbit at home it was cooked like 'butter fried chicken' ~ just a light dusting of flour & whatever seasonings Mom used (probably just s&p).  When it was done there was always a pan gravy.  I don't think she ever braised it in the oven.  Just pan fried.

And, of course, all of us kids were told it was chicken.  Skinless chicken.  Just eat!  You like chicken......

LOL

I grew up eating rabbit in Germany. It was after the war, we didn't have much, but Dad could raise rabbits. My mother also only fried rabbit, added some water to the pan to finish cooking it. She didn't have an oven, just I think a two burner type of hotplate.

When I started to make rabbits (still getting them from Dad for a while) I did the same. Then I discovered my OVEN. I think maybe one day I had just cleaned the top of the stove, and didn't want to mess it up, and tried the oven. I just spice the pieces of rabbit liberally with s/p, garlic granules, parsley, some cayenne. Put them in my heavy Dutch oven, add about a cup of water. Stick in the oven at 350 for the first hour, by then the water is pretty well gone, and a bit of browning starts. I turn the oven down to 325, for the next hour or hour and a half. Then take the meat out, deglaze the pan and make a gravy.

There were enough leftovers for both my guests for lunch today. Uncle Ernie is 87, son's father-in-law is 85, both in great shape and have a good appetite. Daughter-in-law texted her Dad to ask him how the gross rabbit dinner was. LOL Other daughter-in-law has requested rabbit for dinner a couple of times. Different strokes, right?

Bugster2 wrote:

Cookin Lore wrote:What is a poke bowl?

It is pronounced po-kay. and here is a pic of one. It is supposed to have an accent mark above the E but I don't know how to do it on a computer.

https://www.jessicagavin.com/spicy-wild-alaskan-sockeye-salmon-poke-bowls/

Thanks for the info. I looked at the picture of the salmon poke bowl. Is the salmon made like a ceviche or just raw? It looks great, but I haven't tried raw salmon. YET!

Cookin Lore wrote:

Bugster2 wrote:

Cookin Lore wrote:What is a poke bowl?

It is pronounced po-kay. and here is a pic of one. It is supposed to have an accent mark above the E but I don't know how to do it on a computer.

https://www.jessicagavin.com/spicy-wild-alaskan-sockeye-salmon-poke-bowls/

 
Thanks for the info.  I looked at the picture of the salmon poke bowl.  Is the salmon made like a ceviche or just raw?  It looks great, but I haven't tried raw salmon.  YET!

Raw. At the restaurant Joe and Katie went to, the chef sliced the fish right in front of them. I don't do raw. One too many articles about the evils of eating raw fish in my father's medical journals. The final straw, if I was even considering eating it, came at a restaurant where my BIL had the misfortune of finding a live worm in his smoked salmon. Raw? No way!

I think I'm with you about raw. I'll have some cevice, but totally raw? Don't think I've been hungry enough for that so far.

Too bad you can't have seen their faces. Where are the parents of these kids? Why are they out at 5AM?

Cookin Lore wrote:I think I'm with you about raw.  I'll have some cevice, but totally raw?  Don't think I've been hungry enough for that so far.  

I recently read an article about poke and the concern over 'raw' and all the possible problems. The article said MOST poke fish is flash frozen by some magnificent new method and the freezing kills anything that would create problems.

But, for me, food texture is a real problem. There's just something about meat or fish that isn't cooked at all. I can't eat raw oysters or clams, either. I do enjoy steamed clams but am not a fan of cevice, either. I know it's 'cooked' with the acid and the texture changes but my mind overtakes my mouth with stuff like that.

Anything you like to eat is fine with me but please don't be unpleasant with me if I decline your offer! LOL

Today I offered to drive Jeanie to Orlando International Airport to pick up her sister-in-law and the sister-in-law's two granddaughters (one out of college, one in her junior year).  Jeanie could have driven the hour + but hates to drive alone and isn't comfortable in traffic.  I have no problem what so ever.  So, I'm 'Morgan Freeman' ...... drivin' Ms. Jeanie!!  LOL

Their plane got in at 12:15 so we picked them up and went to a restaurant for lunch.  I had picked a couple restaurants to choose from, close to the airport and the one we chose was a winner!  Rock & Brew, a gastropub with some sort of ties to a member of the band, KISS.  It was decorated in a lot of rock & roll pics and the music playing was pleasant and not too loud (much to my surprise).  But it didn't matter.  Since Jeanie's guests were from Minnesota (they left SNOW) we ate outside on the patio in the sunshine.  I thought it was a little warm but didn't complain.  I know they loved it!

The menu was varied and good ~ everyone enjoyed their meal.  I had a salad with strawberries and walnuts with mixed greens and it was very tasty.  As requested, the feta was left off.....LOL

I would have great difficulty in trying to eat "dog". But, that would also depend on how hungry I am. And, there are many people who have rabbits for pets, and think that those of us who eat them are terrible. To each his/her own, right?