Cereal

Today reached over 100* F.  We had cold cereal for dinner.  I made raisin bran, rice crispies, and almonds.

Kebab

Pearled couscous served with grilled lamb, mushrooms, and asparagus.

Beer Can Chicken

ground black pepper
BBQ seasoning (Penzey's)
1 (24 ounce) can light-flavored beer (such as Budweiser)
1 (5 pound) whole chicken

Preheat oven to 350* F. Rinse chicken under cold running water. Discard giblets and neck from chicken; drain and pat dry. Rub chicken with seasoning. Get under the skin, too.  Remove the top of the beer can with a can opener.  Pour 12 ounces of beer in your baking dish.  Fit whole chicken, legs to the bottom, over the open beer can.  Bake the chicken about an hour. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the thigh, near the bone should read 180 degrees F (82 degrees C). Remove the chicken from the oven and discard the beer can. Cover the chicken with a doubled sheet of aluminum foil, and allow to rest in a warm area for 10 minutes before slicing.

French Toast

Used 'Texas toast" to make 'French toast' today. Did you know if you say 'toast' enough times, it looses all meaning?

Grape Leaves

Did you know that you can buy grape leaves in a can?! That makes this a 2 minute meal to prepare, and does not require a microwave. It would have been great with a Greek salad.

Fattoush Bowl

skillet steak
oyster mushrooms
yellow zucchini
cherry tomatoes
boiled chick peas (use half a can)
hummus (other half of the can)
pita chips

Served with za'atar and fresh pita bread.

Happy Birthday, David

Neapolitan cake. Chocolate, strawberry, and butter cream icing.

Beef Broccoli Stir Fry

1 package stir fry seasoning

1/2 lb steak	2 heads broccoli, cut
1 can baby corn	1 can bean spouts
sliced onion	soy sauce

Stir fry beef and onions, then broccoli, then add seasoning acording to package directions. When it gets thick, add the corn and spouts. Heat gently and serve over this week's leftover rice. (We had three different kinds)

Chicken Soup

 For this recipe you will need a package of chicken thighs. I like them the best because they only have 1 large bone in them. You can use whole chickens but then you have to pick out back bones, and all sorts of cartilage, and I don't want to spend a lot of time "eating around my bowl" trying to consume my soup.

1 package chicken thighs (figure one thigh per person you want to serve)
1 box of chicken broth
1C. diced carrot
2 inches diced celery or about a 1/2 C. I always use the leafy tops for soups like this,  and use the stalks for veggie trays and lunch boxes
2 green onions, diced
pepper, 1 tsp. rosemary, 1 Tbs garlic, maybe some Lawry seasoned salt

Use your 8qt pot.  Add chicken to pot and only add enough water to cover the pieces. Boil your chicken for about 30 minutes.  Use a tongs to remove the bone and skin.  Add the remaining ingredients and boil for another 30 minutes to tie all the flavors together.  Soup doesn't HAVE to take all day. Sometimes you just want a home cooked lunch. Enjoy.

Chocolate Ice Cream

Makes about 1 quart
2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons Hershey's natural cocoa powder
 4 ounces bar Nestle toll house chocolatier dessert baking bar 53% cacao
1 cup whole milk
¾ cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
½ teaspoon vanilla extract


1. Warm about half the cream with the cocoa powder in a medium saucepan, whisking to thoroughly blend the cocoa. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer at a very low boil for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until smooth. Then stir in the remaining 1 cup cream. Pour the mixture into a large bowl, scraping the saucepan as thoroughly as possible, and set a mesh strainer on top of the bowl.
2. Warm the milk, sugar, and salt in the same saucepan. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolk. (Temper the eggs) Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
3. Stir the mixture constantly over the medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula (170°F on an instant-read thermometer). It should reach this temperature just before boiling.  If you let it boil you wind up with scrambled egg sauce.  Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the chocolate mixture until smooth, then stir in the vanilla. Stir until cool over an ice bath.
4. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions

Ranch Chicken and Potatoes

Ranch Chicken	Potatoes
1 package boneless skinless tenders	1 bag country style potatoes/hash browns
1 envelope Ranch (1oz)	1 can cream of chicken or mushroom soup
3/4 C. Parmesan cheese	4oz sour cream
	2 C. bag of cheese

1 small box of cornflakes, 1 stick of butter, two 9x13 baking pans, garlic, pepper, and 3 mixing bowls

In a mixing bowl combine soup, sour cream, hash brown potatoes, a little garlic and pepper, and 1 C. of cheese.  Spread the mixture into a baking dish. Top your casserole with the other cup of cheese. Set aside.

In a 3qt. mixing bowl, melt your stick of butter. In your third bowl, combine the envelope of ranch, 3/4 C. Parmesan cheese, and 3/4 C. crushed up corn flakes.  Dip your chicken pieces in the melted butter and then roll in the seasoning mix.  Places coated pieces of chicken in baking pan.

Now you have a half a bowl of melted butter that is slightly ranch seasoned. (I know, because you didn't wear gloves!) Fill that mixing bowl full of corn flakes. Gently stir to coat the flakes in butter. Pour the corn flakes on top of the potatoes.

Bake everything at 350* for about 30 minutes.

Sliders

Sliders are mini hamburgers.  Ours were made with tiny cubes of cheese in them and served with sweet potato puffs and home made pickles.

BBQ

We attended the Parma Rib and Rock.We went for a sampler. I got Jack Daniels brisket and D got some hickory smoked ribs from a local vendor.  Also, we got lemonade made by children. It was grains of sugar, suspended in water which got to look at lemons. (Worst lemon party ever!)

Thyme

Know your herb. This is German Thyme. It grows well in an African violet pot. You can keep it next to your sink. It enjoys living in the kitchen. Snip it when you need some, and it just keeps growing. USES:  The condiment za'atar (Arabic for thyme) contains thyme as a vital ingredient. It is a common component of the bouquet garni (parsley, thyme, bay leaf or sage), and of herbes de Provence (thyme, rosemary, and savory).

Dill

Know your herb. This is dill. I dried and chopped it myself.
USES:  Fresh and dried dill leaves are sometimes called "dill weed" to distinguish it from dill seed.  Dill is used to flavor many foods such as cured salmon (gravlax), borscht, other soups, fattoush, fish dishes, cheeses, and pickles.  Dill seeds have spasmolytic properties and they prevent flatulence. They can be used as a herbal tea in the amount of two teaspoons for one glass of boiling water. This herbal tea can be given even to crying infants who cannot sleep because of the colic.

Bowl of Oranges

Went and picked myself up a snack at the grocery store. They are good.

Teddy Bear Waffles

My new job has hot breakfast available for the guests. My favorite item is teddy bear waffles. They are so cute! Also, fluffy, rich, maple flavored, and delicious. Are you jealous?

Split Pea Soup

Leftover ham bone	1/2 lb. diced carrots	3 stalks diced celery
1 lb split peas	1 large diced onions	any leftover ham cubes
5 whole peppercorns	4 allspice	2-3 bay leaves

In your large (8-10qt) stock pot, boil 8 C. water, your ham chunks, diced onion, bay leaves, allspice, and whole peppercorns.  Let your soup base boil for at least 2 hours until it smells of ham, and the meat has fallen off the bone.  Let it cool, then fish out the bones, bay leaves and peppercorns (biting into these is just awful).  If you have more ham, add some cubes now along with chopped carrots, diced celery, and bag of split peas (I always use half a bag of yellow, and half a bag of green, but it doesn't make it taste different, just gives better color).  At this point, you just have to simmer the soup until the peas fall apart and become a thick soup. Stir it now and then to help it along.  This will probably take another 1.5-2 hours. Add more water if it gets to thick, and let it simmer longer if you want it to get thicker.

Spaghetti Bento

Spaghetti with savoy cabbage, orange slices, and sesame ginger dressing. Cookie for dessert, and a juice box.