Annie, I think the problem is your diet. A good diet isn't one where you can't have foods that you love. Nor is it giving up "white" foods, like pasta, and bread, and rice, sugar, etc. The way to lose weight is just to eat fewer calories. Which just means less food, which means less calories.

I saw your comment on the cauliflower rice and my first thought was cauliflower isn't rice. And I agree with you on the spaghetti squash and the zucchini. Spaghetti squash is not spaghetti and spiralled zucchini is still just zucchini. And as much as I love vegetables, you couldn't pay me to eat a "veggie" burger. Not my idea of a burger.

Life is too short to be eating fat free mayo and bread that tastes like cardboard. I got a bad attitude just reading about the tuna and fat free mayo. You make wonderful breads. Just cut a thinner slice than you normally would. It will reduce the calories but at least it will taste great and you won't feel deprived.

AnnT, in theory I agree, but Elery's doctor told him that it would be easier on his artificial joints if he lost some weight and he decided to joint Weight Watchers on line. I agreed to join with him, so we are eating the same food and the same meals. He's not really good at just eating less of favorite foods, if he opens a bag of chips he's going to eat a whole bag of chips, so I got rid of the chips, crackers, baked goods, and replaced them with lettuce, fruit, fat free popcorn. So, technically I can have anything I want. If I want to burn those 23 points a day with a stack of pancakes or a bag of Hershey's Kisses, I can. As long as I eat only fruit and vegetables the rest of the day. I can have all the fresh fruit and boneless skinless chicken breast I want, which is exactly none, I don't like them. I did cut up an apple last night, looked at it for an hour and then tossed it in the chicken bucket. I'm just not going to eat things I don't like, like mounds of lettuce or anything called "crisp-tender", or foods that masquerade as other foods.

But, if I bake bread, Elery will eat it, and so I promised I wouldn't. It's the low cal stuff until he's done with Weight Watchers, and so it's cardboard or nothing. And no, a lettuce leaf in place of bread is not an option. (grin) I did throw out the "light butter", which turned the cardboard toast into floppy cardboard toast due to the water content whipped into it, which is what makes it "light". I won't be baking much of anything for a while though, or at least not until Easter dinner, and I've gotten rid of anything in the pantry that might be a temptation.

It's mostly frustrating to try to cook because every single Weight Watcher recipe I've tried is average at best, abysmal at worst. The trend right now is apparently "make it so hot you can't tell that it tastes horrible". (sigh) If I make something familiar either it contains an ingredient that runs the points up too high or doesn't convert well and I'm not familiar enough yet with the "point system" so I have to look up every ingredient in a recipe and every bite that goes on a plate.

So, tonight I just gave up and didn't even try, found some ingredients that didn't have a bunch of points and might be edible, although barely. Tomorrow I'll try harder. Maybe. (shrug) Elery doesn't really care what it tastes like, he covers it with copious amounts of sriracha and then it just tastes like sriracha, which has no points.

Annie

Annie - hang in there. It's a question of time before Elery develops a royal aversion to sriracha and both of you can switch to a tenable regime such as eating anything you like while cutting portions in half.

Of course he can stop at half a bag of chips - the minute he gets the motivation for it, and he will.

Annie, you don't like apples?

Wow, been away too long and so many great-looking meals!

Annie1992, that peach salsa… Oh. My. Goodness! I can only imagine it! I love cauliflower rice/couscous. It does make a healthy alternative for rice, but it’s the texture/taste I like. I find I can get more flavor infused due to the size, and like it on its own rather than as a substitute, so I agree with shambo. Your steak looks perfect. It’s your Asian wonton plate that has me drooling… everything on it! Yep, that salad looks so good - sorry it wasn’t!

DH can eat a party-size bag of chips in 2 sittings… (between meals). If I don’t buy them, he picks some up. Bought some the other day and he still picked up some cheese puff things (taste like cardboard to me). I wish I could get him to stop his chip habit : ( Have tried making him eat raw veggies with dip, but alas, he still strays…

Mentioned earlier I made your choc chip cookies and froze for later… wishing I’d made 4 batches instead of only 1!

I wish your Elery the best in losing weight – my best friend is having gastric bypass surgery next week as she lost her food battles… I’m hoping she will be able to change her food choices. I have struggled with a weight gain issue much of my life – it’s hard to put on pounds (I know, sounds easy and great… it’s not, and organ failure is a serious threat.) I’m not anorexic or bulimic – I have incredibly slow metabolism that adjusts as I eat more. Took me 10 years to put on and keep on enough weight to be healthy – I worry I will lose it with no real kitchen.

Neely, you’ve been busy! Everything looks great – your Thai chicken and noodle salad looks amazing and the fish cakes are a thing of beauty – I love sweet chilli sauce! I wish I would stop looking at your cinn apple muffins… life without breads is gonna be tough! Prawn pizza – haven’t tried that, but it looks delicious. I’ve never made or heard of Guinness pie, but any meat pie with a puff pastry top must be good!

Pat_T, I’ve got a rum cake that’s almost identical! I make it every winter holiday, and the longer it sits, the better the flavor.

ann_t, Moe is a lucky man. That beef (cooked to perfection), potatoes and peas for breakfast.. yum! Your biscuits are beyond belief.

sleevendog, been waiting for you to fill that pie crust you made – that’s the best looking blueberry pie I’ve seen to date, anywhere. Hands down. I’d give my left hand for that recipe. Did you drizzle it with choc over ice cream? Decadent, divine.

Hi shambo! Your ‘haphazard’ dinner doesn’t look haphazard to me! It looks great! The gravy looks rich and good.

Last weekend to cook with the oven and cooktop… I’ve got all cooking items packed and DH and I will demo the kitchen next weekend if we don’t plant trees. Killing me!

Thursday we grilled rib eyes on the new grill – they were good, but not great. We aren’t proficient at steak grilling… corn was awful as it was old or something, but the homemade chips were a hit. Simple salad of tomatoes, mozz, leeks, and a mustard dressing.

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Neither of us could eat all our rib eyes so Friday I thin-sliced the leftover, and made rib eye alla puttanesca with crème fraiche and horseradish – DH hates olives, but I couldn’t leave out capers and kalamata’s – love both. Last pasta we’ll have for a year as I can’t see myself standing over the grill side burner in the heat, waiting for water to boil.

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Corned beef and cabbage Saturday

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Made some copy-cat TBQ BBQ, but gosh it was too spicy for me, so added molasses, brown sugar, a few other ingredients to slow the burn, and only put a tiny bit on the ribs toward the end…

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Annie, Elery must be like Moe. He says he can resist everything but temptation. (Oscar Wilde). Put a bag of potato chips in front of him, and he will eat the whole bag. So now when he wants potato chips I just buy the really small bags. He is okay with that.

You could cut a slice of bread so that the calories were in the 35 to 40 range, and you would enjoy a thin slice of good bread, so much more than a thick slice of crappy bread.

I also found a way to lose weight without even thinking about it. Last spring I started to make dinner for breakfast on a more regular basis. Mostly because I'm up so early. Got to find something to do when you are wide awake before 4:00 AM.

Moe loves dinner for breakfast and since I'm not much of a breakfast eater, I like it better too. Come dinner time neither of us was hungry for another big meal so dinner often is something really simple. And sometimes I'm not hungry enough to bother even eating. I dropped 10 pounds before I realized that I was losing weight and another five after. And have kept it off. I still drink soft drinks, and eat chocolate and anything else that I want.

Bought a couple of NY Strips Saturday, froze one and presalted the other and grilled it this morning for Moe's breakfast.

These steaks were not as thick as I prefer but I thought that would be perfect for a breakfast steak.

Would have liked it a little more rare, but hard to do that with thinner steaks.

Served with my favourite potatoes roasted in the CSO on the Bake Steam setting. And fried mushrooms.

Last night's dinner.

Honey Garlic Chicken.

St. Patrick's Day dinner. Something simple on a work night.

Put a pot of Potato Leek soup on to simmer as soon as I got home from work

and baked two small Soda Breads.

A Bacon, Cheddar and Green Onion version for Moe and I and the same for Matt minus the bacon.

Wintercat, that's how I've always lost weight before, I just ate whatever I wanted but only ate half of it. It worked great for me. For Elery, not so much, he's better with a defined "regime" and having fattening snacks unavailable. I can eat a single potato chip and be fine with it, but he was sitting down in the evening and eating an entire bag of chips, it's his weakness. And he did that pretty much every evening, which is very unhealthy and will pack on pounds. Especially now, when the weather isn't great, and so we aren't fixing fences or gardening or doing yard work or barn cleaning or any of the activities we do when the weather is better. I have a Pilates video that I use regularly and last year we both joined a local gym, but he doesn't want to do that this year, for some reason.

As for the sriracha, he'll never get tired of it. We always have a bottle in the fridge and another in the pantry, plus I can hot sauce and make hot pepper mustard and he eats it all. He even puts some kind of hot sauce on his breakfast. I think he's burned his taste buds off!

So, I'm trying to be as helpful as I can, and I can stand to lose a few pounds anyway. I'm five foot nothing, so it doesn't take much for me to gain weight.

Cindy, I don't really care for fruit in general, unless it's baked into a pie or cobbler or something. I love vegetables, but I like them cooked. Well, except celery, which I like with peanut butter, so that's not a solution, LOL. I don't hate fruit, I just don't really like it, I can take it or leave it. So I'll eat an apple, sometimes, but I don't want to and I don't enjoy it, except for Waldorf salad, which is, of course, coated with mayonnaise. (grin)

2many, those ribs look delicious and we just put a whole pig in the freezer. It's not going to happen right away, but it'll happen. The steak looks perfectly cooked, I'm sorry it wasn't amazing. That happens, sometimes. (sigh)

As for your cooking during the remodel, could you get a Nesco roaster plugged in outside? I've even baked brownies in the Nesco, and it's handy here when it's hot outside and I can just stick in a roast chicken or something. Or a freestanding convection burner or something similar, just to use in conjunction with the grill?

My oldest daughter is like you, as is my mother, neither seem to gain weight. As a result, I feed them every chance I get. I definitely do NOT have that problem, as evidenced by my whining about Weight Watchers, LOL.

So, what's for dinner? I don't know, I was hoping to get some inspiration here. Maybe burgers, or salisbury steak. Definitely not boneless/skinless chicken breast, but maybe I can figure out a "not so unhealthy" Waldorf salad. And I'm thinking that hummus would be OK, if I kept the olive oil and tahini under control. Beans are "free", but probably not the tahini and definitely not the olive oil...

Annie

Annie, I'm embarrassed to say, I had to look up a Nesco Roaster! I just ordered an electric skillet (I'd rather have had the Roaster though, darn it), and we are trying to keep our spending down. I do have a very old toaster oven... it doesn't work well enough to bake desserts or breads (and honestly, I will be too busy, too tired for that). I can re-heat in it, and do very small baking that isn't terribly involved. I plan to get a new toaster oven (this one was a hand-me-down) after the reno (we are creating a lot of dirt, everything has to be covered all the time, and I don't want to kill the new toaster oven!).

I'll have a crock pot (and I don't like crock pot recipes, or at least the ones I have), the grill for non-rainy days, my awful toaster oven, a microwave, and the electric skillet.

Man, I'm really regretting that skillet (same price) and wished I'd known about the roasters. : ( I did have a coleman cookstove, but again, that would be time-consuming for cooking... time I don't have. We packed it.

At some point, my cooking will have to be altered. DH has gained weight since we married, as have I but not the same. Good for me, bad for him. He has no control, and has grown a huge appetite. It's so hard to cook to feed my needs, but cook low-fat for him. We are married just 1-1/2 years now, and I feel bad when he asks for seconds and I don't have them. I want him to be healthy, of course. He does love salads, but his favorite food is "Taters" as he calls them. The green bean fries I made were not a hit with him. I'll be watching your food posts now, trying to get ideas!

2many, don't regret that electric skillet. When I was a single mom and wanted to travel with my 2 girls, we'd load everything into our big conversion van and stick an electric skillet under the back seat. That skillet made everything from grill cheese and pancakes to chili and spanish rice. We couldn't afford to eat out, and we usually found a campground where we'd pull the back seat of the van down into a bed and sleep there, 3 of us and The WeinerDog, LOL. I made pizza in that skillet, and chocolate chip cookies and cobbler and fish and burgers, if the girls wanted it, I figured out how to make a version of it in the electric skillet. It was probably against the rules whenever we stayed in motels, but it got used there too!

Does your husband like vegetables? WW is very vegetable oriented, which is good for me, plus eggs and beans are both "free" foods, although I'm not so sure how healthy it is to eat multiple eggs per day. Other "free" foods include water packed tuna, turkey breast, baked fish and pretty much any vegetable or fruit you can think of, even corn. Avocados do have points but that's an exception. My peach salsa is free, thank goodness. My challenge to to take those free or low point foods and make them into an edible meal. I'm shooting for enjoyable, but that might be a stretch...

Good luck on the reno, though, I'm looking forward to seeing the progress. My new kitchen is a place that I love, and it's a joy to cook in.

Oh, and AnnT's salisbury steak can be made in the electric skillet!

Annie

Annie, I intend to post a thread on grilling questions, and another on electric skillet recipes here, for help. I just found ann_t's Salisbury steak and sent the link to myself - thank you! But I can't believe you made choc chip cookies in an electric skillet! I'd read it wasn't possible! I may have to try that, with perhaps some guidance?

Your trips remind me of the camper trips with my folks (one of those old pop-up campers) and the little cook stoves, gas lanterns, and amazing breakfasts cooked over fires! Hard work, but so much fun! Though I know my Mom never got as creative as you!

Yes, DH loves veggies...now. I have 'groomed' him a bit! Steamed are his fav, and I think I can kind of steam them in the skillet? He loves eggs too. He hates baked fish, though I force it on him occasionally (the only baked fish he really likes is salmon, and it's my impression that's rather fatty?). He's not a dessert guy, but loves anything sweet (eats candy all the time) and potatoes in any form to excess. I thought I could find some chicken recipes for the skillet and grill.

"My challenge to to take those free or low point foods and make them into an edible meal. I'm shooting for enjoyable, but that might be a stretch..." And therein lies the (my) problem!!!!

Annie, I agree with you about the zoodles/spaghetti squash smothered in marinara sauce. I don't like that combo one bit. I do like both with butter or olive oil, some garlic, and a generous sprinkle of both Parmesan cheese and freshly ground black pepper. Although I like cauliflower rice, I like it by itself as a vegetable side dish, not covered in gravy or in a stir fry.

And I'm with you on fruit. I'd much rather eat cooked vegetables than a lettuce salad or fruit. And I'm not a fan of "crisp-tender" veggies either. It's my Greek upbringing, I'm afraid.

Speaking of diets, I found some good tasting lower sodium hot dogs a while back and read about a super quick dough to make phony bagels. In my twisted brain, I immediately thought of using the dough with the hot dogs.

It turned out to be a winning combination. The dough used up some plain Greek yogurt I had in the fridge, and it could be made with the sodium free baking powder I keep on hand. Everything was low enough in sodium for my husband to have two hot dogs. Dipped in sodium free mustard and served with salt free potato chips, he almost felt normal.

haha, pigs in a bagel blanket.

We found great dogs last Spring. Humus split pea dipping sauce, big salad helps.

We have been having January soups for the last few years. No bread baking...just some freezer boule croutons sometimes and maybe a garnish of a prosciutto bacon chip. We are total carnivores but have cut that back to 10%. 20% split portions of seafood...70% meaty salads. A good follow-up after holiday Nov-NewYears meals. With so many Fall stocks it is a good cleansing and I try new hearty soups.

Crustless veggie pot pies and 'falafel' veg grain seed nut burgers. Had them three times during the last storms that seemed to never end. I don't call them 'burgers' or make 'zoodles'. Or Cauliflower rice. Quick pickles, veg chips instead of tortilla chips. DH loves it all and does not miss the packaged stuff at all.

Entire cultures rarely or never eat meat. Good spices do not need to be spicy hot. Just good flavor.

These are all sprouted grain, seed and nuts. Love them.

Ann, your dinner for breakfast makes so much sense! They say not eating after 6 is one of the best ways to lose weight. Unfortunately, not only am I not a morning person, but eating is the last thing I'm interested in when I first wake up.

When Mike was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes a few years ago he changed his eating habits and I changed my cooking habits. We both started walking. He lost 25 lbs. in the first few months. Me, not as many, but I did drop a few. When his numbers leveled out and stayed good he started reintroducing white bread (something he missed the most) and other culprits from his previous diet. Some of the pounds crept back on, but he's gotten better at regulating what he eats. He still indulges, but with moderation.

sleevendog, if I went without meat for a month I'm sure I'd live, but not happily - same with greens/salads. My body just wants them : ) I think that's a great thing to do though, especially after such heavy winter meals and holiday food sprees. Next year I hope to get DH to enjoy soups (that's my next 'grooming'!).

CindyMac, I always serve dinner before 6:00pm... but we go to bed sooo early! And get up so early, which is why. I agree, I believe in the saying that breakfast is the most important meal. Wish I could get hungry at breakfast time, but I can't. Perhaps brunch? Always loved that as my biggest meal, but not possible now. When looking at ann_t's dinner for breakfasts, in my mind I think "when we retire..." : )

(we did steak or burger Fridays). : )... Seafood weekends. A favorite braised chicken thigh dish or whole roasted chicken Sunday. No loss or missed meats.

The pie BTW is garden frozen blueberries. I have currants and strawberries, lots of raspberries and apples/pears but those are more compote with caramelized onions for pork. Forgot to cook some down bit for fruit tarts. Lots of rhubarb still. The cream is clotted cream that I thinned with plain yogurt since it thickened in the fridge overnight. Chocolate only tucked along the crust. The drizzle is pomegranate molasses from a Lebanese friend and I send her pics as appreciation when I think to use it, : )

I thaw a pint of blueberries and muddle it, then heat and add a tbsp of tapioca. Add to the formed then frozen crust, 1/2 hour quick frozen, hot oven with the berries. After a 1/5 hour I add another 1/2 pint of frozen berries and cook another 1/2 hour.

I don't blind bake. Hack pie baker. Always works and not soggy.

I'm guessing the first layer seals the bottom crust.

Thank you sleevendog, wow that's pretty creative, doing a frozen then baked smaller layer first. Clearly not soggy!

Goodness, all this talk about diets is making me nervous...one day, one day... maybe tomorrow Hah!!!

All dinners and breakfasts looking delicious.

Soup, carrot, tiny pieces of onion, grated raw Ginger chicken stock and a pinch of cumin, simmered then all blended till creamy smooth.

2many, I hope you can succeed in getting your husband to enjoy soup. Would you start with creamy or chunky? I would think a chunky goulash type soup might appeal to a meat lover... you could add potatoes. Sorry I don't have a recipe. Just my imagination. My DH often says "where did you get this recipe" and I reply " from inside my head"

The older I get, the more I cook from inside my head.

Neely, lots of times I cook "from inside my head" too, sometimes it's really good, sometimes....well, I won't do that again, LOL.

I'm also not a breakfast eater, I would prefer to eat a couple of hours after I get up. Brunch is good for me, but Elery wants breakfast and he makes it. So, every day I have the same thing: One egg, over easy, one slice of toast, black coffee. It works for me.

So, what's for dinner? I took my recipe for shrimp and grits and "revamped" it a little. No cheese and no butter, I cooked the grits with my homecanned chicken broth. Sweet pepper strips, onions and garlic, sauteed and added the shrimp to that, served over the grits for Elery. No mush for me, thanks. Sides were Waldorf salad with that fat free mayo (not great, but tolerable) and a salad that Elery made with chick peas, hard boiled eggs and a light vinagrette dressing. It's supposed to be "egg salad", but it's not. Elery loves beans so it made him happy.

Annie

Annie "sometimes it's really good, sometimes... well I won't do that again" Yes I know what you mean " you win some you lose some" but it's fun trying. That's a good looking diet type meal in anyone's estimation.

We had Hoisin sauce pork that I over cooked in the oven but was OK dipped in the sauce that went with the stir fry vegetables. .. pickled ginger on top.

Annie - I'm less than 5.2 so I know what you mean.

Elery is one lucky guy!

neely, I think you're right about the soup... I love acorn squash soup, anything really that's veggie-related - your carrot soup is right up my ally, but DH would far prefer meat and potatoes. That would be the best way to start him on soups! I used to cook from my head, but for some reason I prefer recipes, and love new recipes. Your veggies and pork look good, even if you say it was a bit dry - aren't sauces wonderful ; ) Reminds me, I need to order more Hoisin from Amazon - my favorite is Koon Chun

annie1992, it that's healthy and low-fat, count me in! And I'm with Elery, grits are wonderful! DH on the other hand, agrees with you on the grits.

Annie, I'm not a breakfast eater either. Unless of course is something like a cinnamon roll or something equally as sweet to have with my coffee. And then I'm happy to have that even at 4:00 AM. But just not a regular bacon and eggs breakfast kind of person.

I've always loved non breakfast food for breakfast, but later in the morning. On my days off I tend to make dinner for breakfast so that we eat after 9:00 and Moe is okay with that. On days that I work I will cook breakfast early for Moe. I like cooking dinner for breakfast on the days I work too so that Moe can have it early and I'll take it for lunch. And then I'm definitely not hungry for a big dinner.

Neely, your dinner looks way better than just OK. Way better.

2ManyDiversions, I grilled breakfast this morning.

Greek Chicken with grilled green beans. The chicken breasts had been presalted early yesterday and this morning, I rubbed them with a paste of fresh garlic, fresh oregano, salt, pepper, lemon zest, and the juice from a small lemon and a splash of olive oil. Rubbed some of the paste under the skin too.

I have a six burner grill so I turned on just the three burners to the right on high. Place the breasts skin side down and immediately turned the burner directly under the chicken down to low and cooked for a few minutes and then turned and cooked another couple of minutes before turning over, skin side up. At that point I turned the burner under the chicken breasts off and left the other two on high. With the lid closed, the temperature maintained an even 450°F. As you can see, even on the grill I prefer to cook on high heat. You do need to be careful with chicken because if you aren't aware, chicken burns very easily. Which is why I prefer once it is browned to cook it over indirect heat.

When the chicken was almost done, I place the grill pan over the left three burners, and set the burners to low. The beans were tossed with olive oil and a Greek seasoning and left to cook for about 15 minutes, turning them three or four times.

Served with buttered rice.

Wow! I've been busy and haven't been here in a couple of weeks. Look at all those fantastic meals! I want to take more time and look at them all in more detail. Chicken, salisbury steak, even some cool looking hot-dogs!

I made this twice in the past 3 weeks, hubby just loves it. It's sausage egg roll in a bowl. I used hamburger and sliced my own cabbage, carrots and onions instead of buying the bagged mix. I also put water chestnuts in and also threw in some mixed veggies to get more veggies. They were real tasty.

Another pizza as well, since I was last here.

Jasdip, I wondered where you have been. Miss your meals. Egg roll in a bowl sounds interesting.

I made Asparagus Ravioli for dinner tonight. This is a recipe I have had for years and is made using wonton skins. I adapted the filling tonight adding Parmesan and ricotta to the mix.

Served with browned butter with fresh basil and the asparagus tips.

Jasdip, I also made an eggroll bowl a couple of weeks ago, thanks for the reminder, and welcome back!

Neely, that pork looks good to me, a good sauce is a wonderful thing, isn't it?

AnnT, like you, I'd be happy with a cinnamon roll and coffee when I get up, or even a lemon bar and coffee, but I just don't want a big breakfast right away. I'd be happy with dinner for breakfast and often make breakfast for dinner, so it doesn't relaly make a difference to me about the time, as long as it's something I like.

Here I'm still trying. I managed to figure out a 3 ounce burger, added lettuce and tomato, sliced onion and sweet relish. My homegrown beef is so lean, it sticks to the pan, so I usually add olive oil. I didn't do that and this was the result:

The burgers were still good, though, in spite of the "light" commercially purchased bun.

I served the burgers with a side of home canned beets glazed with a teaspoonful of Habanero Gold jelly mixed with pineapple juice, and it was not bad at all.

I've been experimenting, and made this chicken/lentil mixture that is supposed to be a "sloppy joe". It does kind of taste like sloppy joe mixture, but the texture of lentils just isn't right. Probably a baked potato topping, or just on its own as a thick soup, if I add a jar of tomatoes or some stock.

Tomorrow will be a challenge, my Mother and I are meeting my Aunt (her sister) and cousin for a birthday lunch. Wouldn't you know, a test two weeks into the diet, LOL.

Annie

ann_t, again, I’m in your debt… thank you for the detailed information on grilling the chicken – I know it took time and effort, but that kind of detail is exactly what I needed to read/hear (I've copy-pasted every word!). I suspect you knew this is what I needed, and after I get a few grilling experiences under my belt, I’ll be able to adapt more for the grill. Seeing what you grill – and so beautifully, gives me confidence! That chicken looks delicious and will be the first thing I try next.

I’m also looking forward to grilled, cast iron-roasted chicken!

Your ravioli looks great – I love ricotta in my ravioli’s but have never tried asparagus-filled. I won’t even plant basil here until mid-May : (

Jasdip, your egg roll in a bowl looks great – DH loves water chestnuts, and anything that resembles a stir fry, as do I – (I’d love to try that on a grill, also!)

Your burgers look good annie, even with the store-bought buns : ) I’m running low on sandwich bread, so this this weekend I’ll have to buy ours, first time in… can’t even remember! Won’t be the last time!

We got a surprise snow last night, pretty, and will melt quickly. Glad we have ribs left over to eat tonight!

Keep forgetting I have won-ton wrappers in the freezer. yum.

2MD, I make a great hoisin using fermented miso.

Another storm today. They are saying it might be the worst of the season. So I stocked up on MEAT, lol. Fridge and freezer filling up. So many choices after weeks playing the creative game using what we had. I have so much asparagus I may have to freeze some of it.

Fresh ground burgers. Avocado, caramelized red onion slices.

Looks good, sleevendog! Love the cheese and onions - but how the heck did you keep the onions so perfectly formed and caramelize them?? Beyond my ability : ) Microgreens still looking great to me... I've not forgotten them. I hope I can get somewhat organized and have a 'resting' period so you can help me set something up. Until then, just continue to torture me with photos ; ) DH dislikes avocados, so I don't buy them often. I need to stop that. He could just do without while I enjoyed them.

I hope you keep your power, though I know you're prepared. Stay safe.

Jasdip, have you shared that egg roll bowl recipe before? It looks like something I might enjoy for lunch. I think I spied some bean sprouts in it too. Was that just my imagination?

Annie and Sleevendog, your burgers look good, and I've been craving one. I've got to perfect the art of pan-fried burgers since I don't grill very much.

I made revithia, Greek garbanzo bean soup. It was one of my dad's signature dishes. Every weekend he'd make a giant pot of some sort of bean soup and package it up for lunches throughout the week. So our fridge was always full of jars of soup. My husband learned to love it too.

I also made a bread recipe from King Arthur Flour that has become a favorite: In Search of the Perfect Rustic Loaf . I modified it to be lower sodium and added more whole wheat flour. It makes great sandwiches and toast and was perfect with the soup the next day.

sleevendog, your burger looks better than mine, and I love the caramelized onions, yum. I hope your power stayed on, and that your snow is letting up.

2many, I buy avocados when they are in season, mash them and freeze them in ziplock bags, just take out enough for me when I want it. They don't oxidize, because the mashed up avocado takes up the space in the bag and it can be sealed and frozen flat. I just mix it with some salsa for a very quick guacamole, or thaw enough to spread on toast. So, if I want avocado, I don't have to go shopping, I just go the freezer. They aren't the same as slicing them on salad or similar uses, but they're fine for toast or dip.

Shambo, your soup looks good, but your bread looks even better.

I've not been too far off today, I went to lunch with Mom and Aunt Roni and had a bowl of chicken noodle soup, no crackers. My cousin, Michelle, is celiac also, and so she had a bowl of their gluten free chili. Mother had chicken and sweet potato fries, Aunt Roni had a grilled cheese and root beer. Yes indeed, we lived it up, LOL.

I'm not hungry yet, but if I am later, I'll have some of that lentil concoction that I pictured above.

Annie

Jasdip, lovely to see your food here again... love the pizza.

Those ravioli look great AnnT and relatively easy to do I guess. Must try one day.

Annie and sleevendog, you are making me look forward to my next burger. And shambo both the soup and the bread look yum.

We went to the city (Melbourne) where I think I've mentioned before that we have a little what we call a unit/apartment. We are the reverse of a lot of people whereby we live in the country and have our little holiday home in the city. Works for us. Anyway, I 'poofed' a beef curry and had it with broccolini. Jasmine rice worked out nice and fluffy.

I agree with Annie, Sue, your soup looks delicious as does your loaf.

Neely, this is probably a dumb question but what is the white thing on your plate? Oh and the curry has my mouth watering. I need to make a curry one of these days soon.

Cantonese style pan fried noodles.
We always order these noodles when we go for Dim Sum. Decided to make them last night for dinner.

shambo, cold and raining with some snow the next several days here, so your soup and artisan bread look mighty good to me!

annie, I thought I remembered you doing that with avocado, and I need to as well. It'd make a nice sandwich spread I think, also.

neely, what does 'poof' mean? Your beef curry looks good, and like ann_t, I too am very curious about that "white thing on your plate"! My vote is bread of some sort? A flat bread that's not flat?

ann_t, those noodles look great - but what do you post that doesn't ever look delicious! That's not a question : )

Tonight it's just a simple toasted ham and gruyere sandwich on a store-bought croissant. I think.

Oh does that look good. I need to add that style noodle to my pantry. Recently added mung and fava bean to my indoor garden.

Just froze some avocados and asparagus last night. (storms stress me out) Woke to about 10inches so not so bad. Roads are clear. NYC has 600 sand/salt spreaders and 1600 plows so they keep up with it. They did an amazing job all night long.

I also want to know what those white things are. BeefCurry, broccolini, yum. Have to put that on the list.

Just got my re-stock order of chick peas and lentils from Palouse. Made a lentil salad for lunches and roasted some chick peas so added to a shrimp noodle bowl...our go-to easy meal. White miso and lots of fresh ginger. Baby spinach and kales....

Oh LOL... when I look properly at my plate photo I can see it does look a little weird.

They are poppadoms... those little round ones you buy in a packet. Hubby always cooks them for us in the microwave...3 at a time for 1 minute. I know you supposed to fry them in oil but we don't like that oiliness so eat them this very crunchy way. These couple on my plate turned out to be sort of puckered into little odd brain shaped forms, no wonder you were curious. I laughed.

Your noodles AnnT looked really yummy as does your dinner sleevendog.

2many "POOF" means PULLED OUT OF FREEZER. I learned that expression from this forum many years ago. Still see it used occasionally though not so much.

Yes, we had POOF, "pulled out of freezer" and POOP, which meant "pulled out of pantry", LOL.

sleevendog, I think you are the only other person I know who freezes avocado, but I don't know why more people don't do it when they are in season, it's so easy and I can always just break off a chunk when I don't want a whole package, it's convenient for a quick Green Goddess dressing or guacamole.

Your shrimp looks nice and fresh and delicious, by the way.

AnnT, those noodles would make me happy, Asian food sounds really good for some reason.

Neely, I think I'd be like you. If I had a vacation place it would be in the city, while I lived on the farm.

So what's for dinner? Chicken tacos. They were not bad, chicken breast cooked with my homecanned peach salsa, then shredded and folded into a tortilla with some lettuce, tomato and more salsa. No cheese, which didn't hurt my feelings at all, and Elery used some Greek yogurt on his. Tortillas were low fat/low carb, but with all the stuff in there it wasn't really too noticeable. Elery was very happy with it. I do have a picture, which I haven't loaded on the computer, so I'll probably update this with a picture tomorrow.

Annie

Poppadoms. I should have guessed that.

Sleevendog, your meals always seem so healthy.

Wings and a Wedge salad with Gorgonzola and buttermilk dressing.

Another easy work night meal.

Is a poppadom a flat bread? I thought it looked like a 'puffed' flatbread, which is why I ask. Glad you cleared up the mystery Neely!

Well, clearly I poof a lot - just didn't know it!

Annie, you sure are doing well at sticking to low-cal foods. I admire you for that! Your chicken tacos with the peach salsa sounds really good, and I can't imagine you are feeling deprived at all!

Ann, your chicken always looks amazing... always. We've got a ton of rain in our forecast, so no grilling for a while (got chicken, pizza dough just waiting!).

Didn't have the toasted sandwiches last night (between desk-work and grooming our little dog, who's picked up every bit of dust we've created) I ran out of steam and we ate... Krystal chili cheese dogs. Yes, that's right {making ugly face}. Tonight it's the toasted ham sandwiches as the ham was Poofed from the freezer (so if I say poofed from the freezer, that's redundant, right?) and we need to eat it. Tomorrow will be a chicken slow cooker dish (I've read I can cook rice in the electric skillet, so will give it a shot). Though I know the Instant Pot and my grilling skills will take time, I'm sure anxious to get going on those! ...wishing I'd left more cooking utensils unpacked, but no room. I'm feeling food deprived and hungry, especially after looking at these amazing meals!

Papad. Just put that on my Amazon order. The lentil ones. Did not know they could be microwaved or toasted on the gas flame of the cooktop. Cool. We need something with a 'crisp' since we no longer buy any type of bagged chip.

Also getting some dried shiitake to try some more Momofuku recipes. : )

Made seared salmon avocado BLT's last night. Nice treat after all the snow shoveling. The onions are just caramelized low and slow with a lid on. I do flip them halfway before they get too soft. Sometimes I melt cheese on top for burgers towards the end of cooking but blue cheese we like cool/room temp. The third onion went into tonights lentil/chick pea salad.

I've been weaving my bacon the past couple years. Many reasons. I can prep ahead by an hour or so. Starting in the microwave on triple p-towel to soak up the oil. Then finish in the oven without grease splatter just before serving. Gets crispy and still a bit chewy. Just takes a minute with strips cut in half. Like Velcro in the BLT keeping all the tomato and and avocado in place.

The first time I did this with family over the holidays I had a mutiny, lol. 10 people sneaking bacon while trying to prep, grrr. Then needing to start another tray. Mom appreciated the less mess in her oven.

Forgot pics of the BLT's completed but made shoestring sweet potato fries. High 450º heat and just a bit of tossed oil and corn starch. Once roasting I did toss a bit with tongs a couple times. Cooked fast and crispy! (one small white potato I needed to use up)

sleevendog, Thanks for all those great photos! Aaaaaw, so that's how you keep the onions formed (gotta try that!) - and I see your clever wine cork hack! I need do that, as I've collected (for some odd reason) all our corks.

You know, I weave bacon around my skinless chicken thighs (above) and had never thought of weaving them for BLT's but I know a man (DH) who'd think me a genius if I did : ) Clever! I also cook mine in the microwave when I'm not needing the 'grease' for anything. Placed on a paper plate with PP towels. We like our bacon crisp, so no need to finish off in oven. Bacon and avocado sounds like perfect makings for a salmon BLT.

Those shoestrings look nice and crispy and I think mixing a white potato with the sweet might add to them. What, no rice flour like you told me?! : ) I've got a mandolin I didn't pack up, so may give that a shot (but looks like you used a spiralizer!)

I do use rice flour usually but it was downstairs and I had to hurry this one. Yup, that spiralizer is getting lots of use and the salad, no pic, had spiraled daikon radish. I really like the texture with the salads.

I make one big salad we split and eat with our hands. DH loves them and often eats salad first so that is a win-win.

I need to keep a jar of rice flour in my spice rack!

ps, if you hit 'comment' after the very first post, it jumps you down to the last posting, zip-zing...for anyone new to 'what's for dinner'. No scrolling needed.

When I lived In Italy, my 'home stay' family, out in the countryside of Umbria, similar to an exchange student, had corks in all the handles of their pots. No pot holder needed....good memories and do it for that reason.

These threads are so informative and hunger-inducing, lol.

Those sweet potato fries look so good, usually I oven bake in large-ish fry shapes. Will try cutting them skinny, don't have a spiralizer and gave my mandoline away. Luckily, I have an age 13 sous who is pretty good with minimal direction! Looks like I must try the starch/flour technique.

Everything really looks so good, but AnnT, those noodles look perfect, just like our faves from a local spot. I've tried making them at home with some success, but not in awhile, avoiding pasta :( Must do cheat day soon :)

For what it's worth, I bought a few of these and use them for dusting rice flour, cornstarch, and AP flour - they are pretty handy : ) I need another for cinnamon when I make cinn rolls. The screen doesn't get clogged but is very fine mesh.

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Those papads are yummy ! Reminds me of Summer nites when growing up and the temp would hit 110 regularly, too hot to cook or eat regular food and mom would serve us salted yogurt with rice and papads .

You can get them with black pepper and cumin if you want a little bit of a spice kick.

Also, here’s one way to make them even tastier- add 1-2 drops of ghee on the papads , spread it and then microwave. All the aroma and taste of a fried papad without the fat overload.

Thanks CurryUp I will try that with the poppadoms or papads as you say. We also have the black pepper and cummin and also garlic, but I like the plain ones.

I want the plain and season once toasted. Or season with a bit of oil and maybe my homemade spice blends like tza'atar.

Hey, 100 posts. Nice to have it go so quick and be seasonal....next one will be on point for the Easter holiday, then Spring....soon I hope.

BTW, the new houzz format does allow more than 100 posts per thread. The problem is the plethora of pix we post take a while to load, unless you go on a beverage quest whilst loading.

here is a thread with nearly 250 posts ...

Since the very first WFD thread, we have always started a new thread when it reaches 100.