Friday
Short version: Baked beans, garlic bread, cucumbers with ranch dip, chocolate pudding with cream
Long version: I woke up in the morning to 61 degrees in the kitchen, which is why I decided to simmer beans. Might as well use propane to heat the house and cook something at the same time.
I cooked a pot of pinto beans, which I then made into baked beans, mostly because I had some bacon left over from breakfast and the oven was already on to cook brisket.
I also baked bread this day, so I made garlic bread to go with the beans. I made the pudding because I had some cream that was starting to get just a bit sour. This whole meal was very popular with the three children at home.
Saturday
Short version: Brisket, fried potatoes, raw tomatoes, leftover pudding
Long version: The brisket I had cooked the day before, and some boiled potato slices left from making camp food for A. and the boy who were gone hunting.
I had my brisket in a very good salad.
Very large, too.
Sunday
Short version: Fried leftover Spanish omelet, raw green beans, strawberries and cream layer cake
Long version: A. was still hunting with one boy. I had made a Spanish tortilla for them to take with them that I forgot to put in the cooler. One of the children at home with me is not much of a fan of Spanish tortilla, but he does like fried potatoes a lot. So I decided to chunk up the Spanish tortilla and fry it.
This was very popular, particularly with the one who doesn't like Spanish tortilla. Win.
The cake was experimental. I had a pint of cream that was starting to sour and a box of yellow cake mix my mother had sent home with me from Colorado.
The cake was supposed to be "extra moist," and I'm guessing it's because the instructions called for three eggs. That seemed like a lot of eggs to me.
The box assured me that Betty's got my back, though, so I went with it.
I did not, however, use the canola oil called for, instead substituting butter. I also used some of that cream with the water to be added.
I overbaked the cakes, so they definitely were not "super moist," but then I added strawberry/rhubarb jam on each layer and completely covered the whole thing with whipped cream, so it was good.
Cake layers.
I actually thought I over-sweetened the whipped cream, so that the cake as a whole was too sweet, but no one else seemed to mind it. They were just pleased that I actually made a layer cake. I rarely bother with layers.
Monday
Short version: Lamb and chickpeas, rice, cucumbers, leftover cake
Long version: I had mostly made the main part of this the day before, simmering a big pot of chickpeas and a bag of lamb stew meat and a shank to make both stock and meat. Those two things, plus tomatoes, onions, garlic, paprika, thyme, oregano, lemon juice, yogurt, and cornstarch, made the lamb that went over the rice.
Tuesday
Short version: Lamb chops, leftovers, mashed potatoes, carrot sticks with ranch dip
Long version: The chops were the marinated ones I had sent along with A. for their hunting trip. He had never cooked them, so I did. A couple of kids had the leftover lamb and chickpeas, because they prefer their meat off the bone and I didn't have enough lamb chops for everyone, anyway.
Wednesday
Short version: Creamy chicken and sausage, leftover rice or mashed potatoes
Long version: I did not have a solid plan for dinner, except that I knew there was a rotisserie chicken in the refrigerator from my trip to the store the day before. Minus the drumsticks, of course, because that's what I eat as I drive home.
Some of the chicken had been eaten, unbeknownst to me, but there was just enough left for dinner. I shredded that, added a diced link of smoked sausage that had come back from A.'s hunting trip, frozen diced onion, frozen peas, the rest of someone's milk that didn't get finished at breakfast, and cream.
Steamy.
Everyone got to choose either mashed potatoes or rice, and that was dinner.
Thursday
Short version: Pork chunks and milk gravy, porky rice, cucumbers with ranch dip, apple crisp with cream
Long version: Yet another pork loin--actually a half loin this time, but I bought two--cut into steaks and chunks, pan fried, and then gravy made with milk and cornstarch.
Erma Bombeck used to claim that in her childhood home, they ate so much gravy it was a beverage. I'm beginning to feel like that, although I don't hear anyone complaining about it.
I had saved the liquid from cooking the pork shoulder awhile ago, freezing it when I had used all the lard on top of it. That's what I used to cook the rice.
Someone had given me about a dozen elderly apples. They were mostly something like Yellow Delicious, which are a bit too sweet for a crisp, but they needed to be cooked, so crisp it was.
Refrigerator check:
As always, Daisy dairy is well represented.
Okay, your turn! What'd you eat this week?
4 comments:
Fri- tacos
Sat- a long day, so whatever.
Sun- beef stew meat from freezer, oatmeal bread, carrots, mashed potatoes, scones for dessert.
Mon- busy afternoon, so boys suggested grilled cheese. Done! And chips, fruit, and bacon to elevate it to less pathetic.
Tues- baked chicken breast, rice, broccoli, ramen.
Wed- a meeting Ean late and one kid came home from school with a fever, so I defaulted to chicken strips and fries. One had leftover chicken breast instead, I. Had ramen with chicken. Sick child had scrambled eggs and toast.
Thurs- I helped out at school cafeteria, and the lunch lady sent me home with leftover taco meat from taco in a bag. So my menu was determined-tacos- we use tortillas and not gard shells. Also banana muffins.
Gravy and butter always make things better. With gravy, a little leftover meat gets stretched, and pour it over a friendly starch like rice or potatoes, and the meal is complete!
Most cake mixes just need some sort of liquid. I will use eggs but add no oil- egg yolks have enough fat. I got a book once called "cake mix doctor" which gave recipes for dressing up cake mixes- mostly adding extra eggs and sour cream. That would certainly make any cake taste better.
Have a great weekend!
These food posts often bring back memories. This time it's layer cakes, which my mother made almost exclusively. There were five kids and two parents, so we got layer cakes at least 7 times a year. She had a chocolate cake recipe that used sour milk. I have that around here somewhere.
PS - Full disclosure: I did not eat tacos last night, as I do not like them. I just had some ice cream late in the evening. My picky eaters come by it honestly.
Friday-poached eggs on toast, corn on the cob, stewed peaches (I had to stew them, they were getting old)
Saturday-baked chicken thighs, baked potatoes, broccoli
Sunday-lasagna from the freezer. Will it ever be empty? and the rest of the broccoli
Monday-grilled cheese sandwiches. I cooked turnips which I love but everybody else hates. So I ate them and nobody else did.
Tuesday-pot roast, potatoes and carrots
Wednesday-tuna in cheese sauce over rice, turnips for me and carrot sticks for everybody else
Thursday-spaghetti and cheese, broccoli, tapioca pudding
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