Ok, so first of all I cannot believe the quality of these pics. What a progression from back in the late 90's for those of you who have been here that long.

And although EVERYONE does a great job, the photos of Sol's soups just bowled me over. Amazing stuff Sol...and Thumper...my goodness, doesn't time fly??!! He is getting to be such a big boy!!

No photos but I have been cooking. Have altered my diet somewhat and trying to minimize protein and carbs (needed to level out sugar dips)and maximize my veggie intake. It's amazing how a little protein can go a long way.

Had my new favorite meal earlier in the week....roasted (or grilled) eggplant slices (length-wise) that get layered with marinara sauce and thin slices of mozzarella before going in the oven for a melting session. I love this for lunch with a little bit of my super high-fiber pasta.

For dinner I do 3 oz of mozzarella, for lunch only 2 oz.

Another favorite is pork loin chops that have been pounded thin (anyone else like the dark side of pork) dipped in fine flour and egg, then into a light coating of panko before being baked at 375° for 15 minutes. Last night we accompanied the pork with sauteed artichoke hearts.

Sue

Sol:
Thank You !!!

I don't know how you have time for all the thing you do.

Great Photo's, I think about all these things but somehow I get side tracked and they never materialize.

Remember telling you a while back to keep at it and you will be as good as me one day. LOL!!!

I heard that !!!
LOU XXXXXXXXX

*****************
Jim:
I saw on the Weather Channel, they caught a Lobster,
over 9 LBS. and over 3 feet long, up near you.

I think there is a limit on size that you can keep, 10lbs?

Someone once said, the Weather Channel is never right, use NBC News.
So you better check it out.
But I think NBC owns the Weather Channel ???

Did you try Shipping them yet ?
Lou, Lou

sol, I surely do recall that pic of Thumper. I can imagine he is drop dead gorgeous now! I have the same leaf plate as the one in your pic. Ellen (compumom)sent it to me in a swap moons ago.

Well we are on our road trip. Last night we were in Greenfield Mass and had a wonderful casual dinner. The restaurant was a little left of centre on how they served everything, it was wonderful! I had their pure,local beef, burger with fresh ground mustard and homemade mayo, rosemary roasted potatoes on the side.....I wanted fries but they don't "do" fried foods! Clive had a burrito made with a homemade spice mixture. He was a bit taken aback by the amount of cumin but he got over it.

Unfortunately a lovely meal was spoiled when the bill came with a note that they did not accept credit cards but , if we didn't have enough cash there was an ATM around the corner! I'm OK with them not taking credit cards but they should say so up front. Clive was livid.......

Tonight we are in Mystic and having dinner down by the water. I'm thinking about Lobster linguine! Will let you know!

I am drooling over some of these great dinners! Crab cakes, steaks, shrimp, soup...all yummy!

It has been cold and rainy all day so I made a big pot of Ribollita. One of my favorite soups and perfect for taking the chill off! Well, that and a roaring fire. Hard to believe summer is coming to a close!

I also have a Chocolate Turtle Torte chilling. Will try to post pix of it on the chocolate cookalong thread tomorrow.

Linda

Sol, Thanks. No. The black stuff is not fermented black bean sauce. I will explain what that is in another thread when I have a little more time .

I crown you queen of Gazpacho. :-)

You have a very good eye for composition. Those are very pleasing pictures. That's also a very good portrait picture of Thumper. Oh! those eyes!

dcarch

Dcarch:
Looks like some kind of thick Blueberry Sauce or Preserves.

Sol:
Did you ever plug a Baby Watermelon and pour Annisette into it.
Let it soak in for an hour and get to know what goooood is.
Lou

Sol,

What incredible food and photos! I am amazed and overwhelmed by the pics some of out members post here. I like to make photos but, seeing those, I am quite intimidated. Thanks for your kind remark about mine. More will be posted soon if I get organized. I suffer from the same condition as Lou re getting sidetracked -- probably worse. My friends around here have the same condition. They tell me it happens when you get old.

Today I got sidetracked trying (unsuccessfully) to catch some snapper blues. Those are the little, young of the year blue fish which show up in the fall. They are a good panfish which are sometimes easy to catch. Not today. I ended up going out for dinner, which has been happening a lot lately.

The black stuff sure looks like fermented black beans. However, even with darch's wild imagination, they didn't seem to be a likely ingredient in that salad.

When an Italian guy gives you a tip on what to do with fruit, pay attention. He knows what's good. One of my Italian friends taught me to sprinkle powdered ginger on a dead ripe cantaloupe. Great combination!

Lou, I seem to recall something about an upper size limit on lobsters as well as a lower limit. Can't exactly remember. Don't rush me on the NY strip steak, shipping lobsters, etc. All of that will materialize some day...maybe. :-)

Chase, sounds like you are having a wonderful trip in southern New England. You couldn't have picked a nicer time for it. Calm and quiet with perfect weather. Mystic Seaport is the kind of museum I like. I hope you spent some time there.

Jim

As my need to cook has mostly disappeared I have little to contribute here but I do look out of an aesthetic interest. It is lovely to see Sol posting again. Sol, your photos are beautifully light and thoughtfully composed. They look to be as tasty as they are pretty.

I am reminded of Maren Caruso.

Sol, the only thing that looks more wonderful than your food is that handsome boy of yours. Give him a couple of extra "romeos" and a hug from me.

Everything looks delicious, and I'll see if I can just even catch up with everyone. I had cornbread over the weekend, now I want more, go figure.

Along with some crab cakes, scallops, a piece of Sol's cake and a ride on that boat, those photos are just beautiful, Magothyrivergirl.

OK, let's see if I even remember. One night Elery and I had a seafood mixture and beet chips. I sliced the beets thinly on the mandoline and deep fried them after we batter dipped the seafood. Now I read that I should have dusted the beets with cornstarch, but they were still good:

One night Elery made soup, he called it pasta fagioli. He loves the stuff, I thought it was OK. It was pasta and tomatoes, along with some beans. (shrug) I did like the greens and mostly picked those out and ate them.

I've been pretty caught up doing Amanda's bridal shower, I'll make that a separate thread because there's a lot there...

Supper tonight was potato and leek soup. I won't do that again, the leeks were cooked in a bit of butter, then chicken broth was added, some diced potatoes, salt and pepper. When the potatoes are tender, mash them a bit to thicken the soup, add salt/pepper/thyme/parsley. Hot sauce to taste.

Well, I'm not putting hot sauce on ANYTHING, I don't care for the stuff, but that soup tasted like nothing except thyme. What a waste of produce!

Annie

Everything you have been cooking sounds good to me, Annie. I share Elery's liking for pasta fagioli. And I put hot sauce on just about anything but ice cream.

Tonight was another garden veggie meal. Sliced tomatoes (Early Girl) with basil, Southern Peas (Calico Crowder) with lemon butter over rice and stir fried Long Beans (Chinese Red Noodle).

Jim

My father is a (very-very) retired Professional Photographer. I was a hateful daughter / teenager when he wanted to teach me how to take good pictures. I did get the creative genes, expressed in different ways, but I was never interested in Photography. I have said before, the pictures on this site are beautiful. Food photography requires a different skill / eye than other photography, and I really appreciate all the effort and sharing on this WFD.
I feel bad, I don't have the time to remark on everyone's dinners-please forgive me, and know that I look everyday, only sometimes contribute, but I enjoy and appreciate the lovely pictures.

Sol~Thumper's picture is perfect! Those eyes are probably breaking little girls' hearts in middle school. Who can resist commenting on that face??

Last night I made a tweeked Rachael Ray recipe for mussels with Mexican beer and some colossal shrimp I threw together because the shrimp looked so good at the store. We ate late, the lighting was poor, but the meal was delicious.
We sopped up every bit with some Bakery Vienna bread.

Everything looks great.

All I had was Chicken Wedding Soup , that I had to test.

Made it for my DD who is coming up tommorrow.

But I had a large dessert.
A 6 in. " Apple Dumpling ", with Banana Pudding spooned over the top.

All I did was take some Biscuit Dough, rolled out to make a cross, with rounded edges.
Cooked Apple Slices slightly, then when cooled a little, placed them in the center,
stacked with sugar and Cinnamon, in between the slices.

Folded the cross over the Apples, brushed on some milk and
sprinkled on Powdered Sugar.
Baked in a hot oven til browned.

The Apples shrunk slightly, left a hollow under the crust.
The pudding took care of this.
LOU

Great pictures of some delightful meals! Sol - you are an inspiration behind the lens as well as in the kitchen. Annie - I would happily eat both the fried seafood and beet chips AND the Pasta Fagioli. I am craving soup and will make some today (Sweet Potatoe Chipotle Bisque I think) but it is going beack to the 90's next week so autumn is on hold.

Let me apologize in advance for thequality of these photos, I couldn't find my camera(I think it may still be packed from the trip to DC) and I seem to have forgotten how to use the ancient one. What makes this meal so special to me and worthy of posting even the crappy out of focus yellow photos is that my 12 yo made it with only a tiny bit of help. When he asked if he could make dinner, I told him he had to serve a protein, a starch and either 2 veg or a veg and a salad. He rose to the occassion beautifully!I will say he was a little intimidated about searing off the lamb on high heat, so he got me to do the first rack and he did the second.

Then Menu:

Spinach salad with pears, pecans and gorgonzola

Herbed Rack of Lamb
Cardamom Carrots
White Rice

Pumpkin Whoopie Pies and Banana Ice Cream for dessert

Making the herbed crumbs

A mix of Dijon/Evo for the crumbs to stick to

Before they are carved

Plating

Service!

Oh caliloo those pictures are priceless! You must be very proud. Dinner looks delicious.
I have never cooked a rack of lamb, may I borrow your son for some cooking lessons?

Di

Alexa! That is SO impressive! And it looks delicious!

Sol, I'll have one of everything. Glad you are back. I remember that picture of Thumper. I bet the girls are hanging around.

Sharon, sounds like you are enjoying your current road trip.

Jim, that is a vegetarian meal I would eat, especially if the beans were cooked first in chicken broth. LOL!

Magothyrivergirl, I love mussels. Your dinner looks delicious.

Alexa, I'm so impressed. On top of everything else, the lamb is perfectly cooked.

I stopped at the fish shop on the way home from work and picked up the makings for Cioppino -

live Dungeness Crab,

Spot Prawns, Clams, and halibut. I would have liked to have added mussels but they were sold out.

I'm hung up on the 12 year old cook.....and loving that "Ta-dah" pose with his hands!

Sounds and looks like many are eating well! Some beautiful pictures. But I say the kids stole the show on this WFD thread.

Sol - That face! Those eyes!

Alexa - I'm beyond blown away by your son's cooking. I'd be impressed with decent grilled burgers from a 12 year old. But spinach/pear/gorganzola salad? Rack of lamb?? Not what I'd expect him to come up with, let alone execute. You must be proud.

Kids are capable of doing so much more than is expected of them. I think it's because they are constantly outgrowing our expectations. I have to admit though, that young man has exceeded even my expectations of a 12 year old. It's great that he had the opportunity to stretch his skills that way.

Jim

Alexa, what a great job he did, taking after Mama for sure!! I'm thinking this must be the one that loved the Ice Wine?

Jim, yes we did visit the Mystic Seaport and we loved it. Also loved my Lobster Fettuccine!

So many wonderful suppers. I have been disciplined about the amount of lobster I eat but I swear I could have it every day.

Today we visited Provincetown and had lobster rolls at Arnold's as suggested by a CF'er. I wasn't sure I'd like them becasue of the "mayo" but it was lightly dressed and delicious. Clive had fried clams and was very happy!

Tonight we are off to a seafood restaurant in Hyannis Port, a casual place on the harbour that is suppose to be really good, Spanky's. They have a lazy man's lobster, with sherry and a seafood stuffing that is suppose to delicious.

Tomorrow is Martha's Vineyard......not sure WFD tomorrow but not lobster!

Alexa - what a superstar!! I am so impressed. D is the same age (we have got to get these 2 boys together to hang out one of these days), but far, far less inspired. He'll make sushi with me, but that's as far as it goes.

Gorgeous!!

The holiday just ended, so I'm waiting for DH and kids to return from synagogue for break fast. Scrambled eggs, toast and cereal are our typical break fast fare. They never want to go to anyone's house because they won't get their Froot Loops and it's the only time of the year that I allow them!

AM

Oh my gosh, Ann, that looks absolutely delicious, I love seafood, and then I read about Chase's lobster. Sigh.

Alexa, your guy is so cute I'd eat the lamb, and I don't even LIKE lamb, LOL.

the best I can do is a picture of the potato leek soup, which is a little better than it was when first made, but still not spectacular:

The fingerling potatoes are great, although once in a while I find one that doesn't really look "right", LOL.

and, it's that time of year, so I'll be eating a lot of vegetables, all from the garden

Yes, it's fall. The Maple tree at mother's is already starting to change color:

Annie

Sol, I've been wanting to ask you to show us a picture of you son now, but I thought better of it since they say don't post pictures of your children on the internet anymore. I bet he's far better looking than that beautiful food you posted.

Alexa, do you hire the kid out??? That is one great-looking dinner! I'm sure you're very proud of your son - I would be!

Sol, gorgeous, gorgeous, GORGEOUS photos. And Thumper... O - M - G. What a looker!

Annie, you've got me hungry for soups now. Great dinners!

This weekend, I made Ann's Baked Scallops she posted about earlier. They were really good (though fresh bread crumbs are really the way to go... and as you can see, I didn't...):

I also made individual peach cobblers:

Lori

Tough acts to follow! Very delicious looking and sounding meals. Nonetheless, I'll try. I had, very late at night last night, crab and asparagus risotto.

Sorry I don't live up to the photo "standard", but I gotta start somewhere! (((smiles)))

Sharon the first time I ever had lobster was back in 1974 and it was in Cape Cod - Wellfleet. That trip was also the first time I ever had Swordfish.

Rob, I'll have your risotto and for dessert I'll have Lori's cobbler.

I did a new twist on an old favourite. Took Carol's Spicy Chicken Cakes and made an Asian version.

These were so good, I might never make the original version again.

Served with a salad with an Asian vinaigrette.

Ann

Your picture is great! There is some amazing talent on this forum. I enjoy all the pictures posted, and am trying to pay a bit more attention to my presentation (notice the parsley in my picture)!

I grilled marinated 1" thick pork chops on Saturday. The sides were the usual for us, sweet potatoes, corn on the cob and sauted tomatoes with basil.

Di

Di, I like your garnish. But heck I'd like your pork chop with or without the parsley. Looks perfectly cooked. Still moist.

Back to baking bread today. I have one batch in the fridge to be baked later this week and I baked three baguettes this afternoon. Two regular and one filled with roasted garlic and cheddar.

I hardly ever post here since my dinners aren't too exciting. But I have found some inspiration for some meals for BF. I would like to try the scallops with the bread crumbs for a special dinner some time. I was craving Indian style lentil soup like Gina and will make it as soon as the fridge clears out. I might try Lou's dumpling only with peaches, since BF told me he likes peach dumplings.

Sol, would you mind posting your oatmeal cake recipe? Oatmeal cake is one of my favorites and I don't have a recipe for it that I really like, I usually have to improvise.

I have been playing with my new bread machine cookbook. So far I only made banana which was OK, not something I would make regularly but I have bananas to use up. Good as toast and for PB&J's. I've been busy canning so not much cooking. I made tuscan style canelinni beans, made some into soup. Next up on the bread machine is a recipe for some italian peasant bread with olives. Uses a sponge. Should go good with the bean soup. Book is "Bread Machine Bible" by Beth Hensberger or some such spelling.

The big news is I FINALLY managed to get dinner on the table for BF before 6:30!! Of course I started at 4:30! I made turkey spinach feta burgers which were AWESOME. Just mix lean ground turkey, feta and thawed chopped frozen spinach. I seasoned with salt and Penzey's Adobo seasoning, about 1 tsp. for a pound. Fried in a lightly greased frying pan. Sides were green salad with cukes and homegrowns, with a dressing of mint, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, a dab of sour cream, and a sprinkle of ground toasted sesame seeds. Other side was a last minute POOF of sweet potato salad. I made it with peach salsa for the dressing--awesome use of this condiment. I got the recipe for the salsa from KatieC. Also added thawed frozen corn, some celery, scallions and green pepper that I had languishing in the fridge, along with a little more olive oil and cider vinegar and some salt. I gotta hurry and make some more of that salsa before the peaches are all done, I can see that it is going to be a favorite condiment of mine. I highly recommend the turkey burgers for the health conscious! BF is now trained to set the table so I can focus on getting the food done without burning, lol!

Alexa those pics of your son making dinner are priceless! You've raised him with a good set of skills that will put him in good stead when he's older! I love to hear about young foodies!!

LPink, you seem so excited to be cooking for the BF - that's wonderful!
I haven't cooked much this week as I was out of town. But this thread shows that we are heading into fall with these gorgeous soups. I love bouillabase. I love pasta fagioli (and Annie I would explode if DH cooked for me like that!)

And Alexa, those pix are classic! I was just challenged by my friend's 6 year-old to a chess match - he is the only first-grader in chess club. I politely declined - I could just see "Are you smarter than a first-grader" in my head if I got beaten!

I need to clean the house and shop for staples and get cooking soon.

Gina, welcome back. Ashley was in chess club in high school, no way would I play chess with her. I could kick her butt, though, in Scrabble or Trivial Pursuit!

Ann T, as always that bread looks delicious. I like the chewy, crusty stuff but my kids and the rest of the family like the soft and squishy kind so you know what I've been making for the wedding, don't you? Yup, the soft and squishy kind, I'd like a chunk of yours instead...

Di, that pork looks perfectly done.

Rob, your pictures are absolutely fine, haven't you seen some of mine? (grin)

L, you DO sound excited, I like it! Something to get you all excited about cooking again, he was just what you needed, I think. And a good eater too.

I've been busy here, canning the last of the apple butter for wedding favors, altering the wedding dress, baking rolls for the freezer, trying to figure out the wedding cake details. Still, I was hungry for biscuits this weekend, so I made some, along with some sauteed apples left from Saturday's half bushel that went into the roaster for apple butter:

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Elery grilled a turkey breast on Sunday, he rubbed it with Penzey's new Arizona seasoning, there's a free coupon on the lastest catalog. It's SPICY. Way too spicy for me, Elery will get the second jar too and take them both back to his house! That's OK, I ate the inside part of the turkey, along with some roasted fingerling potatoes and turnips from the garden and what's probably the last of the green beans:

We also got half a bushel of Mutsu apples to dehydrate, his sister uses them for apple stack cake and apples aren't as good in Tennessee as they are here, I guess. These were giant apples, this one is as big as a regular sized soup can!

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I also made an apple galette for Elery to take to work, believe it or not, no one in my family really likes apple pie, not even me or Bud and neither of my girls. Yeah, we're weird:

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A half bushel of MacIntosh apples will make this much apple butter, LOL.

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And I have a little bowl of prune type plums in the fridge, I haven't decided what to do with them yet, maybe Readinglady's plum strusel pie.....

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I've also got a dozen Bosc pears in the fridge, I'm wanting maple pear cobbler but just pears are so much healthier. You do know what's going to win out, don't you?

Annie

It's absolutely more fun to cook for someone else other than yourself, IF they are a good eater, and BF fits the bill. He's not a foodie but he does clean his plate and doesn't turn up his nose at healthy stuff with veggies, so he's a keeper. But most importantly, I can make certain dishes that I would never make on my own because I wouldn't be able to use up the leftovers fast enough. Homeade bread is one example of something I usually don't bother to make for myself. Even so, between the two of us we can't use up desserts such as pies and cakes fast enough since neither of us eats many sweets. I eat one sweet thing per day, and so one small 8x8 cake or batch of muffins lasts me two weeks!! A batch of soup becomes "revenge" after a couple of days. Even with my freezer I end up eating leftovers for days. Another great thing we eat together now is salads. I would seldom bother with a salad for just me, but now I make them almost every dinner we have together!

This is such a great thread! So many wonderful dinner ideas and food photos. Good to see you here again Sol with your beautiful pics, as well as everyone.

I've been away from here for some time due to a couple of medical emergencies with my husband. He was twice in the hospital and is now back home recuperating. So my food while he was away was tomato or ham & cheese sandwiches, with an occasional trip to a restaurant just to cheer me up.
His food was....consome and vegetable puree with salt free toast... twice a day ....for a whole week. (Poor man!)

Now he can eat anything so he's requesting highly spiced dishes but they will have to wait a little. At the moment I'm making fish or chicken breast and lots of vegetables. Then I'll get into a curry or two. He's discovered he loves guacamole...spread on his vegetables, so after buying a small tub, I will be making more at home.

Here's a sample of his hospital food, along with my decadent tortellini a la gorgonzola followed by an even more decadent tiramisu....both from a new little Italian restaurant in our neighbourhood where I went one evening when I was feeling low. The calories sure made me feel better.:-) And Wolf is on the mend, with the help of a visiting German nurse every other day and plenty of TLC from me.

I'll try and make some photogenic food as soon as things get back to a more normal state.

Love,

SharonCb xx

Ann - question: how did you change those chicken cakes to have an Asian slant? Inquiring minds...

Sharon, I've missed your dinner photos. Glad to hear that Wolf is on the mend.

Here you go Pat.

Home Cookin Chapter: Recipes From Thibeault's Table

Asian Chicken Patties with Salad
================================
1 pound chicken breasts
3/4 cup fresh grated bread crumbs
1 egg
1 large clove of garlc
Fresh ginger
Asian chili pepper paste
Splash of rice wine vinegar
Green onions
Cilantro
Salt

Grind chicken breasts in Food processor until it looks like ground chicken. Do not over process. Empty in to large bowl. Add fresh grated bread crumbs.

Add egg, minced garlic clove and minced ginger to food processor and pulse. Add green onion, cilantro and splash of rice wine vinegar and chili pepper paste. Pulse to coarsely puree.

Add to chicken and bread crumbs. Mix by hand. Fry a taste test piece and adjust seasoning as needed.

Shape in to patties. Heat skillet, add peanut oil and saute until cooked. Patties should be lightly browned on both sides. Place in oven to keep warm while cooking remaining patties. (I used a cast iron skillet).

Serve with Asian Salad.

Mixed lettuce greens
Red pepper cut into strips
White onion sliced
Sliced green onion
Bean sprouts
Shredded carrot
Chopped cilantro
Toasted sesame seeds

Add all salad ingredients together in a large bowl except for toasted sesame seeds.

Dressing
Rice Wine Vinegar
Peanut Oil
Cups or two of Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
Minced/grated ginger
Minced/grated garlic
Sesame oil

Mix ingredients for salad dressing together in a small bowl. Pour over salad mix. Top with toasted sesame seeds.

)

Thanks Ann! I've noted your changes and may give it a go this weekend. Got everything on hand except cilantro and will pick it up tomorrow on my weekly grocery trip.

Is it just me, or does Annie's fingerling potato look exactly like Homer Simpson?

Needless to say Annie, everything you make looks delicious�the kind of food you want to dive right into.
Btw, I also loaded up on Italian plums the last time I was at Horrock's. They're particularly sweet and wonderful this year.

Rob, your beautifully-presented Crab and Asparagus Risotto knocked it out of the ballpark!
In regards to Middle School, I couldn't agree more. It is a whole other world from Elementary School. And like your boy, Thumper also felt overwhelmed. So much so, that he faked being sick a couple of times. What gave it away was the way he held his tummy while muttering something about a headache.
I know our boys will adjust. Give yours a big, reassuring hug for me.

Jo, I never said a word to Thumper. But he took a peek, and blushed [G]

Speaking of blushing, Sue, you made me blush. And yes, that boy has grown over the summer. But I'm not worried...yet. I'm still ahead of him by 3 inches.

Chase, the pretty leaf plate was a gift from our own Jessica, way back when we played the Iron Chef challenge. I love my sweet prize.

Linda, Ribollita sounds good to me. Almost as good as the chocolate torte. Hope to see pictures of both.

Dcarch, I'm honored by the title, but I really don't see how I can be queen of gazpacho, and queen of chocolate. Something's gotta give. So, it is with a heavy heart that I relinquish the royal crown. But proudly appoint you king of vegetables and their presentation.

Luigi, I like the looks of your apple dumplings. Just right for the season. Btw, I haven't tried spiking a watermelon. I would have to wait until Thumper is of drinking age, because we usually share the fruit. But it sounds fine to me.

Jim, you're a kind and gentle soul.
I'm glad you're back to sharing your wonderful creations from your very own garden. What a delicious late summer meal! This year the only things growing in my "garden" were herbs. And one can only eat so many herb salads.

Eileen, wow. I've been a fan of your work, as well as Maren Caruso's for a long time. So for my name to be situated ANYWHERE in your post makes me want to cry. I doubt I'll ever come close to having that kind of talent, but I certainly can dream.

Magothyrivergirl, I could be very happy with your lovely dinner; colossal shrimp indeed! They're as big as my fist!

Alexa, did you know you have a 12 yr. old culinary prodigy living in your house? If that handsome boy can make a rack of lamb look that good, he deserves a spot on the Food Network!

Ann, the colors and textures of your Cioppino are a treat for the eyes. And I'm willing to bet Moe has never been late for dinner a day in his life.

Thank you Beverly. And as I've said before, any time you'd like to see a recent, close-up photo of Thumper, I'll be glad to provide it.

Lori, your wonderful Peach Cobbler is making me very hungry. I lost track of all the peaches I brought home over the summer, and every one of them were consumed au naturel�the fruit, not me.

Lpink, I'll make sure to type up the recipe for you.

Sharon, it's good to know Wolf's health is improving. Thank you for keeping us posted. And thank you for finding the time to share your inspiring photos.

Today I was craving something Cuban, but I'm spoken for, so I'll head into the kitchen and cook something instead.

Sol

LOL, Sol, that potato DOES look like Homer Simpson, but it's too late to sell it on Ebay, I ate it. (grin)

Sharon, I'm sure glad to hear that Wolf is on the mend. If I had to eat THAT twice a day for a week, I'd get better just for revenge! I'm sure you are taking very good care of him now.

And what's for dinner? Hmmmm. Last night it was eggs and potatoes. The night before it was a sandwich from leftover turkey. Before that, I just don't remember. No pictures!

Annie

Last night I roasted a small Pork Tenderloin, just rubbed on some olive oil and seasoned it with minced garlic, salt and pepper. We had Baked Sweet Potatoes and some leftover French Green Beans. I also made a Spinach Salad with Gala Apples, Red Onions, Glazed Pecans and made a Maple Cider Vinegarette to go on it. Recipe called for Goat Cheese but we skipped it.

Tonight I am making Cuban Sandwiches with the leftover Pork and Black Beans and Rice. Probably will have some kind of fruit - probably watermelon. We always have fruit with dinner, either in a salad or as a dessert.

LOL Sol!

Hey Annie, can you post your galette recipe? Can I make them into individual little galettes?

Sharon, I'm sorry to hear about Wolf. Glad he's on the mend now - and no more hospital food.

I think I'm going to try Aaarti's red lentils along with rice pullao and some salmon tonight.

Sure, Gina. Make a batch of Nathan's No Fail Pastry. Hack off a chunk, and roll it out into a circle. Slice some apples, mix in flour, sugar and cinnamon, dump it on the middle of the crust and fold the edges up. Bake it at 375 until it's done. (grin)

Well, that's how I did it, but this is the recipe I kind of followed, sort of. I did add a couple of tablespoons of flour to the apples because they were so juicy and I used cinnamon instead of nutmeg and I made my own pastry. Elery said the guys at work liked it but I didn't bother to taste it so I can't guarantee anything!

Apple Galette

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1/4 lb.) plus 2 tablespoons cold butter
1 large egg yolk, lightly beaten
1/2 cup walnuts
2 pounds tart apples (3 to 5), such as Pink Lady or Granny Smith
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 large egg, beaten to blend with 1 tablespoon water
Preparation
1. In a food processor or large bowl, combine flour, granulated sugar, and salt. Cut 1/2 cup butter into pieces and add to flour mixture; pulse motor, cut in with a pastry blender, or rub in with your fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. With motor running (or stirring with a fork after each addition), add egg yolk and 3 to 4 tablespoons cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time; process or stir just until mixture comes together in a ball. Form dough into a flat disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and chill until firm but still pliable, about 1 hour.

2. Meanwhile, spread walnuts in a baking pan and bake in a 375� oven until barely golden under skins, 6 to 8 minutes (leave oven on). Coarsely chop nuts.

3. Peel and core apples; cut each into eight wedges. In a 10- to 12-inch nonstick frying pan over medium heat, melt remaining 2 tablespoons butter. When it's foamy, add apples and stir often until slightly softened and brown at edges, 10 to 12 minutes. Sprinkle brown sugar and nutmeg over fruit and stir until liquid is syrupy and bubbling, about 5 minutes. Stir in walnuts. Remove from heat.

4. Unwrap dough. On a lightly floured surface, with a lightly floured rolling pin, roll into a round about 15 inches in diameter. Line a 12- by 15-inch baking sheet with cooking parchment (or butter the sheet well) and carefully transfer dough round to sheet (edges will hang over sheet).

5. Pour apple mixture onto center of pastry, mounding wedges in a circle about 8 inches wide and 2 inches high. Gently fold edges of dough over apples, pleating as you go, leaving an opening about 4 inches wide in the center. Brush pastry all over with beaten egg.

6. Bake in 375� oven until pastry is golden brown and apples are tender when pierced, 40 to 45 minutes (35 to 40 in a convection oven). Transfer galette (with parchment, if using) to a wire rack to cool. Transfer to a large plate, gently pulling parchment from under tart. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature, cut into wedges.

Annie

Sharon, so glad Wolf is doing better. I know he must have hated hospital food, especially since he really seems to be a meat and potatoes kind of guy.

So many beautiful pictures of food on this thread. Normally I don't need a picture of something at all in order for me to want to cook and eat. They do not entice me in the least. I have a very good imagination. That said Ann, your photo of the chicken cakes and salad have my mouth really watering.

Sol, I'm ready for you to post a recent picture of Thumper just any ole time.

Beverly

It's been ages since I posted on this thread. I've read and loved all your meals though.

Sharon, I hope Wolf is better every day, I'm sure some of your cooking will help a lot and I know both you and he are happy he's home again.

Cooking has been pretty simple here, last night fettuccine with some of the Wild Porcini sauce, almost straight from the can just added a little red wine and cooked down to its original thickness, grilled Italian sausage and steamed fresh green beans on the side. Tonight I made the simple and quick tarragon chicken breast recipe from Wm. Sonoma - just seasoned boneless chix breasts browned in a little butter and olive oil, then removed and a some minced shallots added and sauteed, then added some tarragon, a little cream (OK 1/2 and 1/2) and some white wine and reduced. About ten minutes total time. Sides were peas and a blend of brown rice and quinoa. A little later we had cantaloupe wedges.

Tomorrow Max will be gone and I'll do something simple again, maybe really simple like take out. But over the weekend I am planning a pork tenderloin with some sort of an orange glaze using the marmalade that Eileen gave me in SF. And I need to start having big salads again so I'm watching the chopped salad thread too.

I'd love to see Thumper now too. Time does fly by.

Lee

Lee, your "simple" dinners sound delicious! I'd take any of them any time!

Mboston, I often season pork tenderloins exactly like you do, brown in a skillet on the stove, then throw it into the oven to finish cooking. THEN, I like to deglaze the pan with red wine - makes for a nice finishing sauce. Your dinner has me hungry for pork tenderloin!!

I'm still chuckling at Annie's Homer tater - LOL, Sol!

I've been hungry for a steamed artichoke with Hollandaise ever since Julie and Julia. Finally sated my craving:

Also tried a recipe I found on another blog, Technicolor Kitchen for Olive-Rosemary Breads. They're really wonderful!

Lori

Last night we had an all vegetable supper. I was wanting some fried green tomatoes while I could still get my hands on fresh green tomatoes. They were crisp and kind of tart, very good. I don't like them soft and soggy, I want them to crunch:

with those we had a mixture of roasted vegetables, cauliflower, onion, butternut squash and some turnip, all from the garden except the cauliflower.

The night before we had a late supper of ham and cheese waffles and eggs:

this morning we had more waffles, thanks to Deb (Momto4kids), who kindly sent me her smaller Krups waffle iron. I have a big heavy one that makes farm animals but I seldom drag it out unless the grandkids are here, this one is small enough to keep it easily accessible.

Anyway, this morning we had pumpkin gingerbread waffles with maple syrup. They were good and spicy and dark with molasses and brown sugar. Cooper liked them too!

{{gwi:2065897}}

I went to the farm today and had some fence mending to do, picked hot peppers and took some cupcakes out to Savannah for her 11th birthday:

Yeah, she liked them.

Annie

Yea Wolf! You get better. Sharon, you better hide those yummy pictures or he might be jealous.

Sol, that's just too cute. Oh my aching, head, oh I mean my tummy. They'll get over it, they're troopers. I noticed the Homerhead too.

Lori, I can't seem to get artichokes served with hollaindaise here. I have to make it myself. But that's ok, it gives me an excuse to make eggs benedict (the "leftover" sauce). Which I did, Saturday night.

Annie, pumpkin gingerbread!? It must be autumn. Love monkey heads!

We had a harried weekend and never ate dinner, just grabbed and ate when we could. Saturday though, we had make-your-own sundaes.

His, with all the trimmings, including icky sour gummie worms

I tend for the simpler, muy bananas and hot fudge sauce

Wow. No one? Ok. I had sherried chicken on whole wheat biscuits. It's from the Mayo Clinic's cookbook. Pretty good, but it needs salt! Or, more likley, I need to adjust to less salt in my diet

;)

We ate too, Rob!

I haven't made clam chowder in a long time because clams and bottled clam juice have skyrocketed here. But I recently bought a 2 pack of two huge cans of chopped clams at Costco, I think they are 52 oz cans. The price was reasonable and I thought,if they are not good, I will only buy them once. They were deliciously tender and no grit. There was enough juice that I only had to add milk and half and half. Didn't use a recipe, just lots of chopped onion, some chopped celery, cubed potatoes, a little cayenne and thyme.

The next time I go to Costco, I'll get another two pack even though I have a can left. We had a Romaine and orange salad and rolls with the soup.

Lee

Lori, I keep coming back to look at your Artichoke. I very seldom cook artichokes and yet I really do love them. Especially with a wonderful dip.

Rob, your dinner sounds good. I know I would like Sherried chicken over biscuits.

Annie, I'll have your dessert. I'm not a fan of bananas except when they are covered in chocolate or caramel sauce.

Lee, Clam Chowder sounds good. Haven't made that myself in a long time. I haven't noticed canned clams at our Costco. I'll look next time I'm there.

Ann

Ann T, I agree, the only way I can eat a banana is if it's very firm, sliced very thinly and covered with copious amounts of Hershey's syrup.

for supper here I had leftover fried green tomatoes with eggs and potatoes. No pictures, you've seen it all before.

Rob, that chicken looks good. I am also trying to adjust to less salt in my diet, which is difficult because I really LIKE salt. Nearly as much as I like butter...

Annie