Sunday, August 5, 2018. What's Cooking?

[redsoxmom]

Good morning!  

[cfniervt]

Good morning friends.

I have lots of laundry to do today. We need to set up the tent and awning to get it all dried out before we put it away for the next trip camping. I am hoping we will go for the Labor Day weekend. Need to vacuum out the Jeep too!

Tammy- Glad to hear that the house is a place you really like and want. Hope you can get a good deal on it.

Elza- Glad you had a goof-off day!

Marlene- So sorry you had to do all that work for someone you were so good to. So sad they treated you like that. Chuck is such a good friend and glad you have a good relationship with him and his family. I bet he loves all the food!

Lori- Sounds like some hot weather for you! We will be int he 90's this week and lots of storms.

Ann- The bad storms went south of us yesterday. WE got to listen to the thunder but no storm hit us. But apparently while we were gitting hit camping it hit here too. Some wind damage in out yard but nothing bad. The brook is really high.

Betsy- Hope your Shower is going well today! Sounds like lots of good food!

Bet- Have you gotten some of the bad storms? Sounds like you need a day off some where along the way! LOL

Nancy- Let us know about the Blue Blood's potatoes. I do not like scalloped potatoes but Dan really does and I would make them for him (maybe) LOL

Welcome Browneyedbaker! I am Chris from Vermont! was cfnierVT on the TOHBB.

Tasty- I am thinking of making some zucchini bread today too. But have lots of laundry and getting the camping stuff put away will take most of my day!

Well I have had my HC this morning and so need to get at all the stuff I just mentioned.

Chris

[wilderness]

Good morning. 62 this morning but the humidity is still at 100%. There was no rain predicted yesterday but about 3 PM strong wind came up Then the thunder and lighting and heavy rain. We ended up getting 1 1/2". It is way to wet to do anything outside this morning and I work this afternoon and evening. I have managed to get the last load of bedding for next door in the washer. I have to have it cleaned by Thursday. I have pulled a package of beef stew and a couple of brown and serve rolls for my dinner when I get home tonight and also a package of mac and cheese for the kids' lunches tomorrow.

I also did something that I haven't done in a long time. I gave myself a manicure. The only time I have nice nails is in the summer. For some reason my nails seem to take nourishment from all the dirt they are in all summer.

I keep forgetting to mention, Monday Addison and Natalie found a monarch cat so we cleaned out the aquarium and started feeding it milkweed. On Thursday

it formed its chrysalis. So we are expecting a butterfly a week from today or tomorrow. I am hoping the girls are here to see it hatch.

Chris, sounds like you had a nice trip.  No I haven't had a bad storms.

Betsy, hope the shower goes well today.

Tammy, hope you can negotiate a good price on the house. 
Sound like you really like it.

Elza Sounds like a nice relaxing day with DH.

Marlene, so sorry you had so much work to do at the folks' house.  Guess you really know people.

I know there are more I should respond to but time to start thinking about getting ready for work.

Welcome browneyedbaker.  Hope you drop by often.  I live in Northeastern NY state in the heart of the Adirondack Mountains.  I am close to Vermont and also the Canadian border south of Montreal.  I live on 9 acres of woodlands on top of what we call a hill but many here might consider it a mountain at 1,400 feet.  I love to cook and garden.  From mid June until Mid October I hostess 1 day and 2 nights at a very busy local restaurant and care for my 9 year old granddaughter and 3 great grand children, ages 9, 7, and 20 months.  Since I am pushing 74 am seriously thinking of retiring again but who knows.

Have a great day.

Bet

[emr]

Another nice sunny afternoon, after a rainy morning. We had Chinese for lunch after church, so I have plenty of leftovers for lunch this week. Always a plus!

Getting ready to bake a pan of brownies for our church fellowship tonight so my kitchen is going to smell good this afternoon! I got the dusting done yesterday after we got home, and I'll clean bathrooms and the kitchen (after I bake the brownies!) today. I'll give the kitchen floor a good sweep tonight.

[nybirder]

Hi, everyone. I am seriously behind on posting. I've tried to read but haven't been online much so I'm sure I'll do my best to catch up. Chris . . . good to hear you had a good camping trip.

Welcome, browneyedbaker. Glad to have you aboard! I was also NYBirder on TOH but it was in Cooking for Two. I live about 2 hours southwest of Bet in the Mohawk Valley part of central NY. Currently, I'm having lots of fun playing with my Instant Pot. 

We did not get the nasty storms that you folks in MA did, Ann. As I have said before, it's like a force field is keeping the rain away from this part of the state. They've had flash flooding to the south and to the east of us but we got barely 1/2 inch in the last few days. I shouldn't complain--I saw on the news today that a tornado in MA killed a woman yesterday. We don't see that kind of storm activity in the northeast very often. Right now, we are looking at 3-4 days of extremely humid and hot weather with heat advisories possible. How I hate that.

Now, cooking split peas in the IP only takes 15 minutes, no soaking required! I've been told that presoaking beans and legumes can increase the chance of "ahem" intestinal consequences. I haven't done split peas but I do know that something like lentils cooks quick and doesn't need to be soaked. From what I've read, a lot of people have gotten IP's primarily to cook beans. As long as you are careful not to overfill it according to directions and add a bit of oil or fat to cut the foaming, it works well. It's not dangerous if it foams up a bit as long as you don't overfill the pot. Besides, the worst that could happen is that it shuts itself off if it detects a problem. That's nothing like what people used to worry about with stovetop pressure cookers.

I have the ingredients to make a low-country shrimp boil in the instant pot later this week. I think I've found a recipe that looks reasonable. The best part is that I don't have to heat up the kitchen boiling everything on the stove. If I actually get around to it, I'll report back on it.

Birdy

[tamaralynn]

Hello !

We just got home from church. I may take a nap since I only slept from 2-4 and from about 5:30-7:30. Not sure why I was awake so much, caffeine affects me but I had not had any more than my normal iced tea during the day.

Betsy, thinking of you and hoping you really enjoy the shower.

Chris, it sounds like you had a wonderful camping trip.

Bet, that is exciting to find a monarch caterpillar. I also hope the kids are around to see it hatch into a butterfly.

Someone brought scalloped potatoes to the pot luck and they were so good.  My salad is nearly gone-I have about 1 serving left. My cobbler is gone also. I tried some and was not very happy with (1) the way it looked. Know what happens when a yellow colored cake mix I spread on top of blueberries? It turns an ugly green! It looked moldy to be honest. And (2) it was way too sweet. It called for 1 c. of sugar to 4 c. of frozen blueberries, but with the sweet cake mix on top is was super sweet-even too sweet for  me! I do not recommend this recipe. It would maybe work with peaches or something not dark colored. I would also leave out the sugar or add just a touch is all.

I think we will be going out this evening to get something to eat, but not for several hours as I am still full.

We did have a chance of rain for today but as of right now it is hot and sunny. I have not watched weather all weekend so not sure if we still have the possibility of rain.

I bought 18 eggs at the store and also bought 2 dozen from the gal at church, so I am thinking of cooking some in the Instant Pot and making deviled eggs next Sunday. It is soup and salad day, so I plan on making hearty beef and barley soup. I already bought some beef on sale.

I think turkey breast sounds great for supper tomorrow so will plan on going to the store and getting one tomorrow.

Waving to everyone , hope it's a great day where you are!

[cfniervt]

You are all making me want to get an Instant pot now!

[marjo]

Been to church and we heard the new pastor and like him. He kept us over 15 minutes longer as was communion so hope he does not do that later. As we like fellowship after church and this fall and winter SS starts at 10:45. So will find out. We will have fellowship next Sunday.

We had a wonderful supper last night at Red Lobster. We all enjoyed what we had. I did have a plate w/deep fried shrimp, a small dish of shrimp scampi a lobster tail and scallops which I gave to Linda and Chuck. I had a Raspberry Margarita on rocks and Linda had a blended margarita and Chuck some kind of beer. Will go there again too. We were home at 7:30 big partiers!!!

Have someone who wants to look at the house today. It is the farm that is for sale not the house!! Probably someone nosey and not in the mood for that!!

Yes, I am so lucky to have good friends and good neighbor's. Chuck and Linda got rid of some of the things he took home. Their friends daughter just went through divorce and needed a table and his folks drop  leaf and 3 leaves, and 4 chairs and she needed a dresser. The Mother,  Linda's friend, took some things to sell at the Egg Crate in Elkhorn, IA. She has booth there. I had 3 large boxes of china all same design and belonged to MIL aunt that she took for herself. Then she took butter churn for her booth and some pictures. Her husband took 3 rod and reels that were old and old bow also.

Well will try to try to bake some peaches as I seen a recipe and looks like easy and will be a good dessert and will take some Chuck and Linda if they turn out. I have to make pies tomorrow. I can smell the peaches so they are ripening.

Marlene

[nancycooksnj]

Hello friends.

Betsy, I wish I was at the shower enjoying the food you made. Have fun!

Marlene, I'm happy to see that you finally got some seafood last night.

Chris, I never did make the scalloped potatoes. We went out of calamari and pizza instead.

Ann, The Blue Bloods cookbook is ok. Just basic recipes but do want to try the scalloped potatoes.

Bet, We once did the butterfly thing. You had to order it and then place it in this enclosed net. I think butterflies are so pretty and have seen quite a few this summer.

Tammy, Thanks for the heads up on the recipe.

I went food shopping early today and then went to the pool with youngest DD and her friend. It was busy today since it's hot and humid. The same weather is expected tomorrow.

I made eggs for youngest DD and oldest DD wants the same for dinner. DH wants linguini and clams so I will make that for him.

Elza, I am so mixed up! I should've seen how far you were from Myrtle and Charleston when I was there. We could have met! There was a woman that the pool that I talk to and she was there the same week we were.

Gotta run.

Nancy

[cfniervt]

Marlene- How do you bake your peaches? My DH would love them. I have never tried it. I have baked apples with raisins and nuts in the middle.

Chris

[annrms]

Good Sunday, friends! It's another beastly hot day...what else is new?
I had another good breakfast with mom. Got downstairs and started prepping today's dinner. Made a batch of broccoli slaw. Poached some cod loins for some fish cakes. Saved the broth in the freezer for chowder later! The fish cakes recipe is one from my market's "magazine". It calls for any cooked white fish, but also states that salmon or tuna would be acceptable. You mix panko, mayo, lemon juice, herbs, Old Bay with the cooked, flaked fish, form them into cakes (I use my Tupperware hamburger press), pan fry in butter (ghee) and broil to brown the tops.
I made the lime-sesame eggplant, but used hot sesame oil instead of red pepper flakes...mistake!!! We were coughing and sputtering from the fumes...that stuff is spicy hot! End result tasted fine, but I won't do that again!!! I cooked the slices on the stovetop; would have liked to cook on the grill outside, but DH has decided to keep it in the garage instead of on the kitchen patio...not convenient for me to use! C'est la vie!
Elza - Those brownies look great! Tomorrow we celebrate two birthdays in the group I sit with at the senior center. I usually bring some sweet small bites, but one is diabetic and the other doesn't "indulge" off of her set daily schedule so I won't this time.
Chris - Next door neighbors went camping this weekend...I think they will come back a tad damp.
Tammy - That's good to know about the cake! I made scrambled eggs for a school breakfast for teachers' meeting...tossed in some oregano...got green eggs!!! Folks loved them, but they looked gross. They kept asking where was the ham?!!!
I'll be back tomorrow; it's time to go upstairs to check on my mom and feed Duchess. Mom said she got up into the attic so have to see if kitty is down!!! Waving!

[nybirder]

About food color . . . When I was a girl scout, one of our leaders made punch for a Halloween party. No recipe . . . She threw  grape and orange juice together. It wasn't until she mixed it at the party that she realized it came out a hideous brown! She had planned to dollop whipped cream on top so went ahead. The cream broke up into a curdled-looking layer. That was the most disgusting mess but, hey, it was Halloween so we drank it anyway. Tasted good but I don't recommend the recipe for the faint of heart.

Birdy

[marjo]

Chris I just took this off of Facebook.

Easy Baked Peaches with Cinnamon and Sugar Topping

3 lg. peaches   1-2 T salted butter  2T light brown sugar  1/4 t cinnamon

Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream and caramel sauce for serving.

Preheat oven 375 *

Slice peaches in 1/2 and remove pit. Place in oven safe pan.( I think a cup cake pan)

Place a small piece(3/4 t) of butter in the middle of each peach.

Combine brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. then sprinkle over the peach.

Bake 8-12 minutes or until golden. Top with cream and caramel if desired.

Can place wrapped in foil and do on grill 8-12 minutes too.

Decided to make these tomorrow. Lazy today!! I am going to peel mine!

Marlene

[cfniervt]

Thanks Marlene! I will try these this week for him. Have a great night!
Chris

[cfniervt]

Just made Blueberry Malts for supper! I know not really healthy but it is with fresh blueberries! LOL. Chris