February 2024 - Spring is coming, soon!

I had a same old/same old stirfry with shrimp.  You've all seen it several times before.  I have given myself a challenge for today.  I probably mentioned that we have a group in the building which meets for tapas on Friday afternoon..  my challenge?  When I was in Morrocco in 2017, I had an amazing salad which I am going to try to replicate (sort of)  I think it's called a composed salad. or possibly a fruit salad plate.  I have done it once before as a lunch for me and my sister.  Sending those two pictures now for comparison.  Hopefully today's presentation will be comparable.  I think for presentation today, I will put it on a footed cake plate that I have and have never used.  
I was going to make a dipping sauce/dressing, but decided to just have two different balsamics available.  Fingers crossed.

bethk wrote:Very nice, Lore!

Thanks, the second one is mine, obviously. Will send picture of today's attempt when done. I think. LOL

Due to a recent bread cooking spree, I have ended up with some day old bread so I made an Italian vegetable soup that uses croutons.

No cooking as such, but I prepared the salad I posted about earlier. So, of course, I was snacking as I worked. Salad was a big hit! and also a lot of work. I had brie cheese, shrimp, smoked salmon; then avocado, pink grapefruit, apple, strawberries, pineapple, forgot the papaya I had in the fridge. I went to a local specialty store for some fabulous balsamics, bought a couple of baguettes for dipping. Parsley and some salad greens as a base. It was really nice. Sending picture!

Still too busy to cook.. too much going on...
Just had cheese and crackers last night..

I feel like making either beef stew, or American chop suey,  for this week. Have to look at my recipes.. It will be a bit warmer.. so no soup..  I have my mom's recipe for traditional beef stew, or my own recipe for beef stew, which has more veggies than beef, and a bit of wine.. thinking of my recipe.

I have a Ceasar salad in the refrigerator. Have to eat that. I may take out a frozen small container of minestrone, for tomorrow. Not sure. Need to use up so things in freezer before I cook.
It is Lent, so no meat on Fridays.

I need to look at my recipes..

Norm, your breads are always delicious looking...

Geoffrey:

I cannot have any fish in here because of him!! Crazy cat!! When I have a can of tuna, I have to buy a large can, to split with him!!

Went out with a friend for lunch/early supper the other day. I was craving salmon!
Got a grilled salmon filet with a balsamic glaze, with grilled asparagus and Cole slaw. It was so good-- I at sit all...

From Lore:


"Dinner Tonght. I stuffed a piece of pork tenderloin with onion mushrooms that needed to be used up. Delish. A nice thick slice of butternut squash and half of a very large sweet potato. We have three different colours of them now. The “flesh” of the one I had today is yellow like a Yukon gold potato. Very tasty."

WOW~  THat looks amazing!  I'm sure your pie is worth a whole bunch more than even $96.  But, I saw several pies go for up to about $1,800 in November.  I went to a fundraiser evening in a local church which had a concert and auction to raise money for a very large expansion.  THere was a dozen fancy cupcakes that went for $2,200!  I couldn't believe the amount that people were paying.  I made sure I sat on my hands so that I didn't accidentally buy something.

I went to the same evening last year where someone paid $2,500 for a lovely cake.  As we were leaving, that man stood at one of those high tables that you see at  cocktail parties,  his cake was on the table, he had a handfull of plastic forks and told everyone to come and have some of his $2,500 cake!  At the beginning of the auction, the MC said that the baked items are considered to be worth $20. at retail, and for any amount of $$$$ bid above that, the purchaser gets a tax receipt.  I still didn't buy! LOL

OH, this is really about cooking, which I didn't do today (again) I bought some lovely sushi at the grocery store. I'll have to try to make some again, soon!

bethk wrote:So we ate about half an hour early ~ and there were NO complaints!

I was happy to see, since I cut the Chicken Pot Pie into 8ths that HE was able to 'choke down' two slices.  We'll see how he fares tonight & tomorrow (I'm hoping the meal doesn't bother him).

I had to take a picture of the beautifully browned bottom crust.  I love when a plan comes together!!!  By putting the egg wash on the entire bottom crust it keeps it from getting soggy.  The egg cooks quicker than the filling and helps to seal the crust.  That, and starting it in a hot oven on the bottom shelf helps a lot.

The first slices were a bit loose ~ still hot after resting for 45 minutes on the stove top.  The second slices I served held together much better.

And I served my Chicken Pot Pie with a simple sliced tomato salad drizzled with some basalmic glaze (not too pretty but very tasty).













When my pie was baking I happened upon an ad for a restaurant on the Atlantic coast.  It made me feel good to think my pie might be worth $96 if I decided to sell it!  LOL

Chicken pot pie is one of our favorites too. Steve is always up for it. Yours looks fabulous.

It’s been a soup kind of weekend. First we had Zappa toscana which for some reason tasted better than usual. Then yesterday I made creamy tomato basil soup that he’s been asking for thr last few weeks. And he was looking for some homemade bread which I didn’t have. So today I made him a loaf of that for dunking.

No photos of the Zappa toscana or bread but here’s his tomato soup

Saturday, I took out my recipe for seasoned beef with vegetables. A 'fancy' name for beef stew. Not my mom's recipe. It is one I got years ago from Cooking Light Magazine. Man, they had some really good recipes.
Made up a shopping list for stuff.
Was going to go either after church on Sunday, or Monday.

Neither is got done.. I came down with what I feel is the Flu... Covid test this morning was negative. Had chills yesterday, Post nasal drip, cough, headache, fever, joint aches.
Did not sleep last night due to coughing from the PND.. dam..

The recipe is hanging up on my door... and the grocery list is just sitting there.. sigh.

I ended up staying on the recliner, dozing, while watching the British version of Antiques Roadshow.

Today got up with a temp of 100.9--- 100.7 after Tylenol.. ugh..
I doubled up on all my asthma meds; per order of pulmonologist. He said, if I feel as if I am coming down with something-- to immediately double up the dose... Also doubled the dose of Flonase.

I hate being sick. I usually end up with bronchitis, sinus infection, and many times pneumonia.
I am vaccinated with everything. Covid, RSV, Prevnar 20 (pneumonia), and Flu.. They better kick in..

Geoffrey wanted to stay with me, on my lap.. but my coughing kept scaring him. Poor baby. He kept jumping down and returning when coughing spell was done.

I did inform my PCP that I am sick. I also told her, I may need another script for codeine cough meds. ... only way, I can get some sleep.. and rest for my lungs..
I have mucinex in the house. Hate to use it cuz it gets me jumpy.. but I will cut down the dose, If I have to... It has been over a year since I was sick with Covid/pneumonia/bronchitis.

It's never fun to get a
bug" of any kind. Sorry to read about it. I have been very lucky this winter, so far! I also tend to end up with bronchitis after a bout of a cold etc. All I can say is, take care of yourself and rest.

It's really smelling good in my kitchen. I have pork hocks in the oven to make some head cheese. Promised 91 year old uncle that I was going to make it soon. And, I went to a 90 year birthday party last week (son's father-in-law), and gave the birthday "boy" a gift card to make some for him. Invitation said best wishes only, but he sure smiled when he saw what my gift was going to be.

While I am on a bread baking spell, I thought I'd try some decorative scoring. This was my third try. I have some ideas for my next attempts. A lot of the examples I saw used a dark bread and a layer of white flour on top for contrast. My bread is white so I mixed a little cocoa with the flour to make a dark top coating. I didn't see anyone doing that but the put cocoa in flour to make marbled rye so it shouldn't taste any different. ( i guess I can always cut off the crust if I don't like it) I have some other ideas to try in the future.

bethk wrote:Lore, giving a gift from the kitchen, especially for someone in their 90's is such a fabulous idea!

They don't need any more socks or ties or 'things' ~ but a tasteful memory is worth so much!

Thanks.  Yes, I know that these two will love the gift.  But, I forgot, I have another place to take some of the headcheese.  My late hubby's best friend Peter has a birthday coming up on Feb. 29.  He's going to be 94, and both he, and his wife Dora love it also.  So, I always have to make a big batch.

I had a lovely friend here in the building, she was older than I, and I remember  she joked about being at university when I was in Diapers.   she died three years ago.  She was from England, and called the headcheese "Potted pig".  And also got some two or three times when I was making it.
She was an amazing artist. And soooo smart.  She taught physics and English.  I asked her how it was, in classes, being a girl, when women who studied physics was pretty rare.  She smiled and said "I thought it was rather nice to be the only girl in a class of young men!"  When her daughter cleaned out her condo she asked me if there was something of her mom's that I would like to have.  She gave me a beautiful water colour painting of pansies.  

Sending a picture of the painting. I see it every time I walk my hallway.