What's For Dinner?

As a general rule I do the cooking around this joint.  And it's usually just the two of us. So it's not like I'm up to my elbows in pots and pans.  

I was chatting with someone on a private FB page last week about how our dietary choice fit (or didn't fit) with HHS's new inverted food pyramid.  We eat red meat with venison at the top of the list followed by chicken, pork and fish (typically salmon) as proteins.  Beef is at the very bottom and is usually a ground chuck burger sourced from our butcher.  We eat a  pile of veggies and this time of year I eat Irish porridge (with blueberries) nearly daily.  I also can and freeze produce from our garden, fresh-caught fish, venison in all forms and plenty of homemade soups. 

We drink milk, use butter and cheese and have incorporated duck fat in frying potatoes for as long as I can remember.  Having gotten air popper for making popcorn I picked-up some coconut oil to flavor the product with a little fat along with salt.  I'm told it's a movie theater hack.  I'll report on results later.  

This time of year the weather conditions can be so unpredictable or inhumane that grilling outdoors or firing-up the brick oven isn't worth the trouble.  Consequently, the new GE range with an expansive cook top, traditional oven/broiler and a second oven/broiler with convection and air frying settings allows for quite a bit of versatility. 

In any event here's a few dinners from the last month in case you're nosy.  And because we keep our own schedules for outside interests and activities we're not averse to leftovers in case someone needs to pack a meal or is eating alone.

It all works out in terms of variety and division of labor.

And for a couple of old farts our metabolic labs are in good working order.

You are what you eat.

Pork chop plate

Pan-seared salmon

Cheese and mushroom omelet - breakfast for dinner

Winner, winner, chicken dinner   

Repurpose

If you are on the receiving end of several inches of overnight snow and have a leftover stale baguette laying around; here's a tip for a snow day breakfast.  

 

Cut your baguette in half inch slices and soak in a batter of two beaten eggs, a splash of milk, and a couple dashes of cinnamon and nutmeg.

 

Fry in butter to make miniature French toasts.

 

 

I like mine with a drizzle of maple syrup and it occurred to me I should have added a dash of vanilla extract.  A FB friend suggested almond extract.  

 

If I hadn't done this that baguette might have gone to the birds. 

 

Either way it was repurposed..... 

Breakfast For Dinner

Breakfast for dinner.  A couple nights ago.

Homemade, sourdough buttermilk pancakes accompanied by Marchant’s breakfast porkies and local maple syrup. 

BTW - the sourdough starter I’m using is from France, via a Michelin-starred chef in NYC, to Michigan, then Algoma to finally land in my kitchen. It’s about 20+ years old and enjoys pedigree and provenance. 

It’s primarily used for pizza dough but leavens a terrific loaf of bread and the best pancakes on the planet.  

Pretty good chow if you can get it. 

Raising a toast to Lactobacillus fermentation…

You are What You Eat - Part 1

I'm a lifetime oatmeal guy and developed a hankering for Irish porridge oats on our visit to Ireland immediately before the COVID shitshow. 

Flahavan's Irish Porridge Oats are a cherished staple in Ireland, renowned for their creamy texture and wholesome flavor. Milled by the Flahavan family in Kilmacthomas, County Waterford, for over 200 years, these oats are produced using a unique double-steaming process that enhances their natural creaminess and quick cooking time.

My favorite porridge.  Polished-off an entire case last winter.

Microwave Method:

• Ingredients: ½ cup oats, 1 cup cold milk

• Instructions:

  1. Combine oats and liquid in a deep microwave-safe bowl, allowing a couple of inches at the top for expansion.

  2. Microwave on high 3 to 6 minutes (appliance wattage may vary)

  3. Stir-in a fistful of frozen blueberries and let stand for 1 minute before serving.