Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Baked Sweet Potatoes

with scrambled eggs and pan-roasted okra. Every time I have a truly delicious sweet potato I can't believe I don't eat them every day. The best ones (I've learned) are small and fresh from the dirt. They bake into a velvety, not at all watery or stringy, paste. I know eating paste sounds awful, but in this one case it isn't.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Crawfish Cakes

with fried grits, salad, and some delicious whole roasted little red, yellow, and orange peppers.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Lamb Chops

Grilled, with pan-roasted okra and corn on the cob.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

A Surprise Winner

Sometimes you get home and think: "dinner has to happen. How can it happen with the absolute minimum of work on my part yet still be something I want to eat?" Last night I answered that question by dumping leftover roasted vegetables (eggplant, onion, tomato, red pepper, olive, garlic) into a pan with fresh arugula and half a can of tuna; when it was hot I put it on whole wheat spaghetti and called it dinner. And it was fantastic! Truly, a great meal! It's so nice when things happen that way.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Short Ribs Again

which, following the law of all things long-cooked, were twice as good on the second day. It helped that we had them with out-of-this-world cornbread (thank you, McEwen & Sons cornmeal!), pan-roasted okra, and a friend's delicious kale salad.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Braised Short Ribs

There are times when Smell-O-Vision is called for and nothing else will do; this is one of them. This (not great) photograph doesn't do justice to the rich, complex scent the pictured dish filled our house with all afternoon as it braised. I followed the recipe for Braised Barbecue Short Ribs in the Hot and Hot Fish Club Cookbook. To the standard broth and mirepoix braising liquid it adds some barbecue sauce, and it's an excellent marriage. I used sauce made by my semi-uncle Loy. Delicious! With brown rice and pan-roasted okra.

Roasted Vegetables

over brown rice: eggplant, red peppers, garlic, onions, olives.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Simplicity 2406


This is actually a dress patern, but I had fabric (and a life) better suited to a tunic, so that's what I made. I sewed with abandon, which means a real seamstress would blanch and grow faint at the sight of the garment's inside. I'm ok with it though; I decided it was more important to finish a bunch of stuff than to worry too long over any one piece (at least until I'm a better sewer than I am now).

Friday, August 19, 2011

Sockeye Salmon

with quinoa and pan-fried okra. Very hard to beat that.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Whole Wheat Spaghetti

with pesto (half basil, half parsley), and a big mess of edamame (fresh CSA soybeans!) Cherries for dessert.

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Frittata

with chives, shiitakes, arugula, and nicoise olives. With brown rice.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Crab Cakes

with brown rice and okra. More than one brownie for dessert.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Sockeye Salmon

with buttered whole wheat spaghetti with parmesan and tarragon, and roasted cauliflower, shiitakes, and red peppers. The peppers were the little ones we get from our CSA; when roasted they concentrate into something closer to jam than pepper. I could have eaten my body weight in them.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Long Hiatus

Bad blogger! But here I am, full of tonight's dinner: lamb chops, okra, and brown rice. For dessert cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcakes. Have you seen their TLC show, "DC Cupcakes"? It's a pretty grating show, but lordy, the cupcakes are all they are cracked up to be.