Food and Recipes while under Coronavirus quarantine #5

[BetteDavisEyes]

DH and I went out for breakfast after my haircut this morning. Shine Cafe is just a few steps from the salon, and we hadn't been out for breakfast in months. I had Florentine Benedict with sliced tomatoes; DH had a Western Omelet with potatoes. Leftovers for late lunch. Shine Cafe in Troy Michigan

For two consecutive weeks, Nino's was featuring Ricotta cheese which reminded me that I haven't made stuffed shells for quite a while. I forgot to put it on a list and missed the sale. This week, Aunt Mid's Baby Spinach is featured, so I'm going to make stuffed shells tonight: A bag of roughly chopped baby spinach, 15 oz. carton of Ricotta, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, an egg, salt, pepper, freshly ground nutmeg, jumbo pasta shells, a jar of Marinara, Parmesan cheese on top. The hardest part is stuffing the shells, but DH offered to do it

 

[IceIce9]

Has anyone tried Costco’s new chocolate cream peanut butter pie? Pictures of this pie kept popping up on my Insta feed, and Twitter, and a couple of food bloggers I wrote about it, complete with photos.

It weighs 4 1/2 pounds! It is huge!

I wanted to get one to take to a get together this weekend, and I finally scored one today after 5 visits to two different Costco locations. Which isn’t really that impressive, as I live between two different Costco locations. One is 7 miles east of my house, the other is 7 miles west of my house.

Costco Is Selling a 5-Pound Peanut Butter Chocolate Pie

The Internet is losing its mind over this delectable Americana classic.

www.tasteofhome.com

 

[IceIce9]

@BetteDavisEyes I hope you aren’t a Burger King fan, just heard they are closing 26 BK locations in Michigan.

I seldom eat fast food, and BK would be at the bottom of my list anyway. I don’t know how other locations are, but the BKs in the area where I live precook everything and microwave it when people order.

My dad used to like BK coffee so I would go there with him sometimes. They have a long row of microwave ovens and they just pop the food in and warm it up before serving.

The one closest to my house often only had one employee working. And usually no customers when we would go inside to get coffee. I have always wondered how this location stays in business.

 

[Eli9]

DH and I went out for breakfast after my haircut this morning. Shine Cafe is just a few steps from the salon, and we hadn't been out for breakfast in months. I had Florentine Benedict with sliced tomatoes; DH had a Western Omelet with potatoes. Leftovers for late lunch. Shine Cafe in Troy Michigan

For two consecutive weeks, Nino's was featuring Ricotta cheese which reminded me that I haven't made stuffed shells for quite a while. I forgot to put it on a list and missed the sale. This week, Aunt Mid's Baby Spinach is featured, so I'm going to make stuffed shells tonight: A bag of roughly chopped baby spinach, 15 oz. carton of Ricotta, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, an egg, salt, pepper, freshly ground nutmeg, jumbo pasta shells, a jar of Marinara, Parmesan cheese on top. The hardest part is stuffing the shells, but DH offered to do it

There are lots of tricks to eliminate boiling the shells first. Do a search for no boil stuffed shells
here is one

No-Boil Stuffed Shells

Seriously. You don't have to boil a single noodle.

12tomatoes.com

 

[anneg]

DH and I went out for breakfast after my haircut this morning. Shine Cafe is just a few steps from the salon, and we hadn't been out for breakfast in months. I had Florentine Benedict with sliced tomatoes; DH had a Western Omelet with potatoes. Leftovers for late lunch. Shine Cafe in Troy Michigan

For two consecutive weeks, Nino's was featuring Ricotta cheese which reminded me that I haven't made stuffed shells for quite a while. I forgot to put it on a list and missed the sale. This week, Aunt Mid's Baby Spinach is featured, so I'm going to make stuffed shells tonight: A bag of roughly chopped baby spinach, 15 oz. carton of Ricotta, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, an egg, salt, pepper, freshly ground nutmeg, jumbo pasta shells, a jar of Marinara, Parmesan cheese on top. The hardest part is stuffing the shells, but DH offered to do it

Having to stuff the shells is why I don't make that dish anymore! I usually just do a sort of layered casserole with pasta, pasta sauce, ricotta, spinach, and mozz/parm. However, tonight we got a takeout take-and-bake lasagna from our local Italian restaurant. We ate half of it tonight and will have another meal tomorrow or Sunday.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Having to stuff the shells is why I don't make that dish anymore! I usually just do a sort of layered casserole with pasta, pasta sauce, ricotta, spinach, and mozz/parm. However, tonight we got a takeout take-and-bake lasagna from our local Italian restaurant. We ate half of it tonight and will have another meal tomorrow or Sunday.

I've done a layered pasta dish like that, as well. Yesterday, I prepped the spinach/cheese mixture and let it sit in the fridge while DH was out for a few hours. He cooked the shells and stuffed them - the part that I don't like. We spread a layer of marinara on the bottom of a lasagna pan, layered the shells, topped with marinara, and sprinkled shredded Parm on top. There are plenty of leftover shells, so no cooking for the rest of the weekend.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

There are lots of tricks to eliminate boiling the shells first. Do a search for no boil stuffed shells
here is one

No-Boil Stuffed Shells

Seriously. You don't have to boil a single noodle.

12tomatoes.com

Interesting. I don't have piping equipment, nor have I ever "piped" anything. I would probably become overly anxious while trying this method and end up becoming as frustrated as I get when stuffing par-cooked shells

 

[RusselSprout]

I've made the chilli paste with the dried Mexican chillis! I stuck almost to the recipe exactly that I posted earlier, I just added two wee extra chillis as I've lots of them! First time I've ever spatchcocked a chilli ha lots of them too I'm a whizz now at that. Toasting them was smokey, not even smokey but there was something, an aroma or something, my eyes were watering, I was sneezing, I had to open a window! They are strong! Going to add the paste to enchiladas tomorrow, I think it will take them up a notch, looking forward to it. I'll need to suss out how long I can store it in fridge or whether I should freeze it, but I'd only be wanting to freeze small amounts, which is a bit fiddly, not sure.i really enjoyed making the paste, doing something new, it was fun.

 

[elliefant]

Could you freeze it in ice cube trays, if you want small amounts? I do that with pumpkin so I can give my dog a small amount if he gets an upset stomach, without wasting any.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

@BetteDavisEyes I hope you aren’t a Burger King fan, just heard they are closing 26 BK locations in Michigan.

I seldom eat fast food, and BK would be at the bottom of my list anyway. I don’t know how other locations are, but the BKs in the area where I live precook everything and microwave it when people order.

My dad used to like BK coffee so I would go there with him sometimes. They have a long row of microwave ovens and they just pop the food in and warm it up before serving.

The one closest to my house often only had one employee working. And usually no customers when we would go inside to get coffee. I have always wondered how this location stays in business.

I haven't been to Burger King since high school and never had a "Whopper". Junior and senior year in high school, I was part of a group of students who ushered at the Hilberry Theatre at Wayne State University. Our group ushered on Friday nights, and since we attended a Catholic school, we did not eat meat on Fridays. There was a BK near campus at WSU where we stopped after the performance. We were pretty much limited to the "Whaler" fish sandwich, fries, and Cokes.

I've never been a fan of fast-food establishments, but if I had to go in a pinch, I'd choose Wendy's. Haven't been there in over 20 years, but I do recall that they had pretty good chicken and fish sandwiches.

I looked at the list of the BKs that are closing, and none are anywhere near me. I don't even know if or where there is a BK nearby.

 

[RusselSprout]

Could you freeze it in ice cube trays, if you want small amounts? I do that with pumpkin so I can give my dog a small amount if he gets an upset stomach, without wasting any.

I thought about that, and an ice cube tray would be perfect portion size. The thing I was wondering though was that, I can't remember the name, is it freeze dry? When something isn't covered in the freezer. But I guess what I could do it find a freezer bag I could put the ice cube tray inside!!! That's the plan, thanks

 

[Tbone144]

I've done a layered pasta dish like that, as well. Yesterday, I prepped the spinach/cheese mixture and let it sit in the fridge while DH was out for a few hours. He cooked the shells and stuffed them - the part that I don't like. We spread a layer of marinara on the bottom of a lasagna pan, layered the shells, topped with marinara, and sprinkled shredded Parm on top. There are plenty of leftover shells, so no cooking for the rest of the weekend.

When I make manicotti I use the oven ready lasagna noodles, soak them in hot water until pliable and then roll the filling in the noodle. It works pretty well. Soaking them just until pliable is the key too much and they stick together, not enough and they won’t roll.

Yesterday’s freeze dryer run had cucumber slices, cauliflower, carrots and cherry juice. Cherry juice might be my new favorite. It’s like an intense thin jolly rancher that melts in your mouth. When it goes on sale I will make more. Need to do more eggs this week. Think I’ll take food processor to freeze dryer and save me a bunch of trips. I think I’ll do the goose eggs. They are supposed to make wonderful pasta and I have a pasta maker attachment for my KitchenAid. If I do the eggs raw I can reconstitute them later once I have a real kitchen. The donuts were a big hit at work, especially the donut holes. Not gluten free so I’ll take their word for it.

My husband wants Lodge pie, ham and sautéed cabbage, and sauerkraut soup this week. He’ll actually be home. I’m making San Bei Ji for MIL and I for the week and maybe steak and kimchi stir fry. I tried eating stir fry out at a local place that makes it gluten free but it wasn’t very good. I’m getting my stir fry fix.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Waffle Night here! I like mine with blueberry jam from the Mennonite store, Detwilers. It’s not too sweet either. We’re not syrup fans.

I made the 3 cup basic mix, added 4 eggs, 2 sticks of melted real butter and whole milk. I never have buttermilk on hand. They aren’t sweet and they’re fluffy. I will pop them in the freezer for the week.

One of the clients from the vet office gave them 2 1/2 doz farm fresh eggs. Nobody took them so kiddo, being the smart girl she is, said “I’m taking these home!” I used a green one, tan one, speckled one and a brown one. I choose the ones that looked like a large size.

Detwiler's Farm Market - More than a Grocery Store in Sarasota, FL

Get the best deals in Sarasota, FL at Detwiler's Farm Market - groceries, butcher, produce, seafood, ice cream, deli, fresh food for less.

detwilermarket.com

 

[RusselSprout]

Chicken and spring onion omelette for lunch, really tasty.

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Waffle Night here! I like mine with blueberry jam from the Mennonite store, Detwilers. It’s not too sweet either. We’re not syrup fans.

I made the 3 cup basic mix, added 4 eggs, 2 sticks of melted real butter and whole milk. I never have buttermilk on hand. They aren’t sweet and they’re fluffy. I will pop them in the freezer for the week.

One of the clients from the vet office gave them 2 1/2 doz farm fresh eggs. Nobody took them so kiddo, being the smart girl she is, said “I’m taking these home!” I used a green one, tan one, speckled one and a brown one. I choose the ones that looked like a large size.

Detwiler's Farm Market - More than a Grocery Store in Sarasota, FL

Get the best deals in Sarasota, FL at Detwiler's Farm Market - groceries, butcher, produce, seafood, ice cream, deli, fresh food for less.

detwilermarket.com

I know that there are many foods that you can't eat due to allergies, but it's nice that you are able to enjoy eggs and dairy. When DH and I went to breakfast at Shine Cafe last week, I wanted so much to try one of their sweet menu items like French toast, pancakes, or waffles. Even if I skipped the whipped cream, I would still have to deal with milk, buttermilk, butter, cream, etc. that would likely be in these sweet breakfast items. I always have Lactaid with me, but I can never be sure that it will work, so I play it safe and order items that I know won't mess with my digestive system. In the case of the Benedicts, I always order the Hollandaise on the side and use only a little on top the poached eggs. If I order eggs, I order them over easy or poached because restaurants frequently add milk, cream, or butter to scrambled eggs to keep them moist and fluffy, and I always order dry toast.

Blue cheese is among my dairy must-haves. An ounce or two on a steak or burger, or with a glass of red wine, and I'm a happy girl. I order blue cheese dressing on the side with a salad and drizzle a small amount over the salad or dip the greens, etc. in the dressing. Thankfully, I never have issues with small amounts of blue cheese.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

Blue cheese is among my dairy must-haves. An ounce or two on a steak or burger, or with a glass of red wine, and I'm a happy girl. I order blue cheese dressing on the side with a salad and drizzle a small amount over the salad or dip the greens, etc. in the dressing. Thankfully, I never have issues with small amounts of blue cheese.

A friend of mine who avoids nearly all dairy due to digestive upset, finds she can eat parmesan cheese without problem. She thinks it is related to the aging/curing of the cheese. Perhaps this apples to blue cheese as well?

(if I had to limit myself to only two cheeses, those two would be the ones. Yum!)

 

[killarney rose]

Those with LI(me) can usually eat hard cheeses with little to no issues. I can. But the supplement/ preventative that I take and have linked here in the past , allows me to eat most dairy with no problems. I can’t on an empty stomach but with food and I’m good. It’s truly a miracle pill for me. My LI is severe without it. And Lactaid rarely worked well.

 

[iamshadow21]

A friend of mine who avoids nearly all dairy due to digestive upset, finds she can eat parmesan cheese without problem. She thinks it is related to the aging/curing of the cheese. Perhaps this apples to blue cheese as well?

(if I had to limit myself to only two cheeses, those two would be the ones. Yum!)

There is far less lactose in hard cheeses.

 

[Tbone144]

After an exciting week involving a western diamondback rattlesnake, a black widow spider and a possibly rabid (definitely sick) skunk I’m hoping for a much milder upcoming week. Rattlesnake and spider were released unharmed, skunk was put out of its misery.

We are smoking meat today for Easter. We will have ham, country ribs, Cornish game hens and baby back ribs. For side we are making Waldorf salad, funeral potatoes and sweet coleslaw. I can’t imagine I’ll need to cook any more for a bit. Oh and key lime pie with graham cracker crust for dessert.

Happy Easter everyone.

 

[killarney rose]

No way would I have let a black widow loose. I was bitten by one. By far the most painful experience I’ve had. I was hospitalized. I’ve had 4 natural, unmedicated childbirths and it topped them all.