Catching up...

I haven't been blogging much lately because I've had a little mania going on, so I'll catch up on the two main things that I've cooked lately.  Two nights ago I made salmon patties, and last night I made chicken noodle soup.  Tonight will be leftovers from a pork sirloin I cooked a little while back and froze in slices.  I think we'll have cabbage and mashed potatoes to go with it.

I haven't started cooking from the book yet because I haven't been able to, but that day is coming soon.

Update......

I haven't been blogging much lately, so here's an update.  I recently made Lentil Soup for Ray and me.  I got the recipe from allrecipes.com.  It was a good recipe, as I followed it exactly, but I'd make it with less lentils next time and add some curry powder.  Otherwise, like I said, it was fine.

The other night I cooked a pork sirloin roast and put fresh vegetables in the casserole as it cooked in the oven and warmed up the cornbread muffins we had with the Lentil soup.

The next big recipe I'm going to try is Beef Stroganoff - the real way.  I'm also going to make some banana bread with some very ripe bananas I have.  I've made the banana bread before and it's really good.

Ray's Meal...3/24/2011

Last night, Ray made Potato Soup for us.  He made it mostly from scratch, but he did add a couple cans of Campbell's Potato Soup to it.  It was very good, but not the homemade soup I'd expected him to make.

After he quizzed me on how he got it so thick (I had to guess because he wouldn't tell me), he asked me how I'd make it.  Here's the recipe I'd use:

boiling potatoes, peeled, roughly diced
onion, diced
broccoli florets
flour
butter
milk
chicken broth
salt and pepper, to taste

Boil the potatoes and broccoli, drain, reserve some of the potatoes to the side.  Sautee the onion.  Make a roux with equal parts flour and butter, add the milk.  Add the most of the potatoes, broccoli, onions, and chicken broth to the milk mixture. Puree the milk mixture with a stick blender.  Add the reserved potatoes and stir them into the soup.  Bring soup back to a high simmer.  Season with salt and pepper.  Serve.  Optional: garnish with crumbled bacon and grated cheese.

Tonight.....

Tonight is the evening of the 14th; Ray is out of town; I have leftovers to eat up, so I've been pretty lazy in the kitchen, but that's going to change tomorrow.  I've decided that tomorrow, with the ingredients I have on hand, I'm going to cook something - hopefully something new.  I think I want something with lentils.  It's going to be a bean kind of week because we're having a pot of pintos on Wed., and Hoppin' John on Friday.  It's a great way for me to use up these beans I have and the potatoes that Michael just bought me.

Today...3/12/2011

Today was pretty subdued.  I had a bowl of cereal for breakfast, and some ramen noodles for lunch.  Dinner, however made up for all that.  Ray invited me down to share some leftovers he had that his sister had cooked, and, as usual, they were delicious.  His sister is a very good Southern cook - the food I was brought up on.  We had beef roast, fresh turnip greens, some sweet potatoes, some blackeyed peas, some fresh carrots, and I made cornbread muffins.  It was a good ol' fashioned Southern feast.  There's still some beef left, so Ray is going to make his hash when he gets back from the country.  His hash is excellent.  It has mashed up beef and stewed potatoes with some onion thrown in.  Yum!  We won't have it until Wednesday, but it will be worth the wait.

Tonight's meal: 3/11/2011

I made this tonight for Ray and myself.  Here's the recipe:

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Curried Chicken Salad

1 1/2 small boneless skinless chicken breasts, boiled and cubed

2/3 cup sliced baby carrots

2/3 cup diced green bell pepper

2 tbsp. mayonnaise

1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard

1 tsp. mild Curry powder

a palm full of pecans or walnuts halved, toasted and coarsely chopped

salt and pepper, to taste

Mix well all the ingredients in a medium bowl until a smooth texture is reached.  Serve.

Note: I usually add halved or quartered grapes, but I didn't have any on hand.  Mango and coconut are also excellent with it.  It's better if it has a little while to sit covered in the refrigerator to let all the flavors meld.

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I ate my first helping on a small bed of salad greens with some sliced Roma tomatoes.  Ray's first helping was on a sandwich with lettuce tomatoe and mayo.  Both of us had seconds, but they were eaten just on the plate, as is.  Ray got involved with the meal, too.  He prepared some oven fried potatoes with cajun seasoning on them and steamed some fresh broccoli and grated some cheddar over it.  All in all, very satisfying.