[tessa]

with a red wine gravy mashed potatoe and peas and extra saute onion and garlic
we didnt cook it , i have been feeling a bit flat with having another stupid cold at the moment so Bruce went down to the local roast hut and picked up dinner, because i sure didnt feel like cooking tonight

[RPMcMurphy]

today I did the weekly "go to Barnes and Noble, get a bunch of books, and copy recipes from" today....

Made a potato "ravioli" out of Jean-Georges book...and Black Pepper Tagliatelle with Parsnips and Pancetta...came out..."eh" but fiance loved it..





the potato raviolis were actually pretty good...the filling was great.....I used some shitaki mushrooms, garlic, shallots, fresh thyme and fresh parsley, sauteed in some butter, then put it in the food processor for a couple of pulses. I realized I need to get a better mandolin, mine is a hand-me-down that doesn't cut "even" thickness, but still managed to get the potatoes thin enough.



Friday for Lunch, I ate at Gramercy Tavern, and I just got depressed as I'll never be able to cook a single plate of food that **** good, ever.

You guys know about my seafood "thing" well, if you've ever eaten at gramercy there isn't really a dish without seafood. I had lemon risotto with clams and with a celery root puree , that was....amazing.....for seconds I had sirloin with short rib ravioli and snap peas....again, pretty simple, but ****....just amazing. dessert was the chocolate bread putting.

[RPMcMurphy]

Oh yeah, on friday night I made some kinda-quesadillas.

I found this japapeno flat bread at the market, cut up and seasoned some chicken, sauteed with peppers onions, put on the flatbread, covered in cheese and grilled, kinda like a quesadilla/panini ?

in any case...it was pretty **** good.










tonight, I need a simple "wow" dish....something along the lines of the roasted chicken i did the other night....I might braise some short-ribs...and give a try at risotto.

[oldschool1982]

Dang RP! We have that exact same fire pit. Although the grilling is done either with a Weber Kettle or a Jenn-Air gas. By the way I had a shirt like that......in 1983. JUST KIDDING. It's the rum and coke talking. Nice quesadillas though!

We lost the fridge over the weekend. Only a frickin year old too and I can't begin to describe what was in there but I will say we just made a trip to Costco was half of the contents. The other half was stuff that will take the better part of a year to replace

Anyhow we raided the shed fridge and we had BBQ'd chicken (legs and thighs was all that was available. Luckily I had to throw the over-flow in it. Good thing I usually keep a back up of frozen stuff just in-case. We did start replacing things and while at the store the local farm was just delivering corn on the cob (10 for 3 bucks) the musk melons just arrived earlier and we had some couscous in the pantry. That was seasoned with curry and some pink lentils added for texture.

Chicken was good. It was from the recent Costco visit placed. Good flavor but unfortunately the Since the "Special BBQ" died with the fridge we had to settle on some doctored up Cattleman's . First time I've bought Q for use at the house in well over 10 years

[oldschool1982]

Because of the school meals when we were in KC, the DD was accustomed to eating those wonderful french toast sticks that are served and we've had the most difficult time getting her to eat the real thing.

So this morning I treated her to some real french toast (or should I say convinced her to try some). Had a very nice French Batard and chopped pecans in the freezer when it broke down so it all became Pecan French toast with maple syrup and breakfast sausages. I cut the bread on a huge bias and she actually ate almost two full pieces.

Dinner tonight is chicken burritos, fresh refrieds and steamed rice.

[sheffy]

W had home made chicken tikka at lunch time and tonight I am using the carcas to make chicken broth which we will eat with crusty bread.

[RPMcMurphy]

Originally Posted by oldschool1982

Dang RP! We have that exact same fire pit. Although the grilling is done either with a Weber Kettle or a Jenn-Air gas. By the way I had a shirt like that......in 1983. JUST KIDDING. It's the rum and coke talking.

Rum and Coke? look down and check for a tampon string will ya?

the fire pit was a "freebie" anniversary gift for working for "the man" for 5 years.....it was that or a cheesy watch or some other B.S. Surprisingly I use it nightly!

[OregonYeti]

Heyyyyyyyyyyyy

I hope this is all in fun. If not, please quit it. My virgin ears!!!

[oldschool1982]

Well??????? It was rum and coke or nuttin cuz I didn't want to have to head out to the shed to refill the pitcher from the keg. After the week I'd had I just wasn't ready to quit. Plus that 100ft hobble (round trip to the shed from my chair) was more than I cared to take for a beer...... no matter how good it tasted.

[RPMcMurphy]

Originally Posted by oldschool1982

Well??????? It was rum and coke or nuttin cuz I didn't want to have to head out to the shed to refill the pitcher from the keg. After the week I'd had I just wasn't ready to quit. Plus that 100ft hobble (round trip to the shed from my chair) was more than I cared to take for a beer...... no matter how good it tasted.

to steer it back on topic....having a huge bbq tomorrow...bout 100ish people.....on the menu is

2 kegs of crap beer (hey, all beer is crap to me, I don't drink the stuff)
burgers, hot dogs
sausage peppers
swedish meatballs
ziti
corn (jersey white is just starting to come out)
baked beans
wings
mac - potato salad
cold pasta salad....

[OregonYeti]

New Jersey corn rocks!! Got any local tomatoes yet? NJ is truly the Garden State despite its reputation among some that's based on the NYC suburbs.

I lived in southern NJ, home of some of the best produce there is.

[RPMcMurphy]

Originally Posted by OregonYeti

New Jersey corn rocks!! Got any local tomatoes yet? NJ is truly the Garden State despite its reputation among some that's based on the NYC suburbs.

I lived in southern NJ, home of some of the best produce there is.

some tomatoes.....and the corn isnt GREAT yet.....

hammonton NJ, blueberry capital of the world.

I live smack in the middle.....new brunswickish.

[oldschool1982]

Tomorrow we have a party at the neighbors. Not sure what we're bringing yet. I did pick up some wings and may do those. Still have a couple slabs of ribs out in the shed and some smoked shoulder as well but all outta sauce so..... It may be the simple out.

Then we have the cousin and his family from the other side of town over on Sat. That'll be a Rollato for apps and then Blackened Chicken on the grill. Their bringing some burgers.

Finally on Sunday, our neighbor from KC is doing some contracted Physician work at a Hospital in DC so he's gonna be by in the afternoon. Got some very nice strip steaks for his visit. Still deciding on the sides for all of the events. Again the KISS theory may be the best theory of all. Corn! Forgot about that. Stuff we picked up yesterday was outstanding. Tomatoes have gotten a bit expensive hereRoma's were 3.80lb, slicers were 4.20 and clusters were 4.80. Not sure the origin but the local stuff has been coming in for about a week. Unless it's a tomato for a sand the prices are gonna keep us from any real side dish until they come down. Didn't realize that about NJ. Like was mentioned it's always a suburb of NYC in most minds, mine included.

Shame about the dislike of beer then again that leaves more for the rest of us. Hehehe For me it's all dictated by the mood. Kinda like to old saying of "Beer is dear and wine is fine but liquors quicker"

Just a humble opinion but there's nothing wrong with a post straying every now and then. Gives it some character and breaks things up. Some of the side comments can be more fun or interesting than the thread is from time to time too. From the dealings I've had with Suzanne (the author of the thread) I'd like to say I'm sure of it but just in case I hope she feels the same way.

Ya'll have a great 4th!

[sheffy]

Today we are having Jersey Royal new potatoes , broad beans, brocoli and macaral fillets with ginger , garlic and lemon followed by fresh fruit salad for lunch and for tea we are having homemade cream of chicken soup, ciabatta bread and for dessert we will have plain yogurt with chopped apricots, raisins, walnuts and honey stirred into it.

[sheffy]

Just to add to the post I did yesterday. The macarel I cooked for us was horrible. I decided to fry in olive oil with garlic and ginger and add lemon juice. Yuk! Never again!