Food and Recipes while under Coronavirus quarantine #8

[Curious Me]

...By the way, is it a ‘Curious Me trade secret’ how you insert tiny pics in posts? I like how you did that, and wish I could, too. Is it built into the WS posting format, or do you have to use some app or something? I’m not that tech savvy.

Thank You @slowpoke for your reply. I use the Microsoft's "Windows Snip & Sketch" to take screen shots, copy, then paste them. Gosh, I rely on that so much because I'm very visual and like to supply a pic with my posts. I'll try to explain, but please don't think I'm showing off as I just want to share something helpful. I'd put this in a spoiler as to not take up page space, but I want to make it available for anyone here.

If you use Windows, @slowpoke, I think you can download the app from the Microsoft Store for free. I can resize images here on WS, in an open unposted reply box as I'm typing my post. Say I pasted my image in my reply box, then if I press on the image I get the blue corners to adjust the size and just resize smaller if I want.
​

Go to the Microsoft Store for this if you use
Windows, but I don't know what you'd use on
an Apple computer, or some phones.

I'm on a desktop and using a mouse which makes it really easy to highlight, copy, then paste. I haven't figured out hardly how to do anything on my phone though. Another thing I can do that saves space if I want to quote a specific spot in someone's post rather than post the whole post's quote. I highlight the sentences I want to quote, and this box shows up asking quote or reply, that must be part of the WS software, but I'm not sure. Anyways, I use it, but don't know if other people here have that. Try it please and let me know. Highlight and choose quote, then on the bottom of your reply box you'll see insert quote.

We shop at H Mart semi-regularly. Very clean store, great produce, and the pre-marinated meats are very convenient.

Specific parts of your quote now show up. Does anyone else have that? Hope this helped.

 

[slowpoke]

Thank You @slowpoke for your reply. I use the Microsoft's "Windows Snip & Sketch" to take screen shots, copy, then paste them. Gosh, I rely on that so much because I'm very visual and like to supply a pic with my posts. I'll try to explain, but please don't think I'm showing off as I just want to share something helpful. I'd put this in a spoiler as to not take up page space, but I want to make it available for anyone here.

If you use Windows, @slowpoke, I think you can download the app from the Microsoft Store for free. I can resize images here on WS, in an open unposted reply box as I'm typing my post. Say I pasted my image in my reply box, then if I press on the image I get the blue corners to adjust the size and just resize smaller if I want.
​

View attachment 648744

Go to the Microsoft Store for this if you use
Windows, but I don't know what you'd use on
an Apple computer, or some phones.
View attachment 648741
View attachment 648743

I'm on a desktop and using a mouse which makes it really easy to highlight, copy, then paste. I haven't figured out hardly how to do anything on my phone though. Another thing I can do that saves space if I want to quote a specific spot in someone's post rather than post the whole post's quote. I highlight the sentences I want to quote, and this box shows up asking quote or reply, that must be part of the WS software, but I'm not sure. Anyways, I use it, but don't know if other people here have that. Try it please and let me know. Highlight and choose quote, then on the bottom of your reply box you'll see insert quote.

View attachment 648745​

View attachment 648746


Specific parts of your quote now show up. Does anyone else have that? Hope this helped.

Thanks for the detailed info, @Curious Me!

I googled “snipping tool for iPad (which is what I use), and the AI overview said this :

So, I know how to screen-capture, crop, add it to a post then resize it within the WS posting box, so maybe I was already sort of capable but didn’t know it.

Trying out a pic, after doing a screenshot, cropping it in my iPad’s Photos, pasting it here, then shrinking it in the WS reply box:

It must be part of WS tools because I get the quote/reply options, too:

If this is what you do—wow, I appreciate your assistance, but also appreciate your posts all the more for the time and care you put into each one. Thank you so much!

And, like @Curious Me said, sorry, everyone, for the non-food interlude. Hopefully, there may be others besides me who might have been interested in learning how our fabulous Curious Me composes her informative posts!

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

I learn the coolest things here. It's such a joy on a site that's so grim otherwise. Intensity needs relief. This thread is perfect for that.

Absolutely agree! "Smiles Cafe" and this "foodie" thread are my first two stops when I log onto Websleuths each day. I've appreciated and enjoyed all of the posts in this discussion since it began during Covid. I'm glad that it has continued as I would truly miss it. Part of the reason that I ordered biscuits & gravy for brunch yesterday was due to discussion here earlier in the week! I used to have a set of round metal biscuit/cookie cutters but have no idea what happened to them. Guess I should get another set so I can make Bisquick biscuits again.

Next time we go to Shine Cafe I'm going to order French toast that is their specialty. There are several varieties, and I would probably go for the Monte Cristo. I've thus far avoided the French Toast because of the rich eggy/creamy coating, but I was fine with the Biscuits & Gravy and a couple of Lactaid chewies. I had my first Monte Cristo sandwich at Disney World in the '70s and thought it was amazing!

 

[PayrollNerd]

Today’s menu: quiche with eggs, cheese, zucchini, spinach, tomato, onion, garlic. I spread mustard on the crust before I add the zucchini. I sautéed the onion, garlic, zucchini in butter with salt & pepper first. Then mixed 12 eggs, 2 cups grated cheeses, diced tomatoes, some from the garden, and fresh spinach.

Layered the zucchini in the crusts, poured the egg mixture over top. Baked at 350 Deg for about 40 min.

I bought a double pack of Wholly wholesome organic frozen pie crusts at Detwilers and they are so much better than what I found at Publix!

 

[BetteDavisEyes]

Today’s menu: quiche with eggs, cheese, zucchini, spinach, tomato, onion, garlic. I spread mustard on the crust before I add the zucchini. I sautéed the onion, garlic, zucchini in butter with salt & pepper first. Then mixed 12 eggs, 2 cups grated cheeses, diced tomatoes, some from the garden, and fresh spinach.

Layered the zucchini in the crusts, poured the egg mixture over top. Baked at 350 Deg for about 40 min.

I bought a double pack of Wholly wholesome organic frozen pie crusts at Detwilers and they are so much better than what I found at Publix!

Those quiches look tasty! Will you freeze one?

I have to get a document notarized at the bank this afternoon after which we will go to Nino's for some groceries. Several good specials this week for easy meal planning. I haven't made beef stew this winter and will take advantage of the beef stew meat sale.
Nino's is also featuring strawberries on National Strawberry Day, so we'll get two cartons. Nino's garlic bread is featured, too, and will be a nice accompaniment to the pasta fagioli - I made a boatload, so we'll be enjoying it for a while. I put a container in the freezer, too. Fish & Chips from New York Burger * Grill tonight. New York Burgers And Grill

 

[Curious Me]

I cooked the salmon fillets in a skillet.
Boiled spaghetti noodles. (Wheat for me, regular for others)
Heated the Rao’s in the skillet I had cooked the fish in. Added: some freshly grated.....snipped to reply

@slowpoke, I'm wondering why the difference in the noodles. Can you only eat wheat noodles? Everything you cook sounds yummy, and a good balance. There's a lot of great home chefs on this thread. Always fun to read here, and learn.
​

Nino's garlic bread is featured, too, and will be a nice accompaniment to the pasta fagioli - I made a boatload, so we'll be enjoying it for a while. I put a container in the freezer, too.

Oh, @BetteDavisEyes, I've been drooling everytime I hear of your pasta fagioli. Wish I could have some. Yes, with the bread.

ETA-- I'm notorious for constant editing.​

 

[slowpoke]

@slowpoke, I'm wondering why the difference in the noodles. Can you only eat wheat noodles?

I have recently been told to be more careful what I eat for blood sugar reasons. So, wheat pasta has slightly fewer carbs than regular pasta and is supposedly better for blood sugar control. It, like brown rice, is digested slower, so may help prevent spikes.

It was actually the first time I tried it. I was surprised how good it was in the recipe. The Barilla one I bought had kind of skinnier noodles, but even my husband (I gave him a taste) thought, tastewise, it was just about the same as the regular kind. So, at least for Alfredo sauce, it worked.

Not the healthiest dish with all that fat (need to watch my cholesterol, too ), but I try to do a smaller portion size in that case. sigh

 

[PayrollNerd]

Those quiches look tasty! Will you freeze one?

I have to get a document notarized at the bank this afternoon after which we will go to Nino's for some groceries. Several good specials this week for easy meal planning. I haven't made beef stew this winter and will take advantage of the beef stew meat sale.
Nino's is also featuring strawberries on National Strawberry Day, so we'll get two cartons. Nino's garlic bread is featured, too, and will be a nice accompaniment to the pasta fagioli - I made a boatload, so we'll be enjoying it for a while. I put a container in the freezer, too. Fish & Chips from New York Burger * Grill tonight. New York Burgers And Grill

Oh yes I’ve already wrapped it in double heavy duty foil and popped it in the freezer, right next to my dish of chicken and dumplings I made last week.

Detwilers had monster sized strawberries by the flat. They smelled so good and were tempting. But I’d just end up freezing them because I can’t eat that many. I still have a quart in the freezer.

I bought a spaghetti squash and feta cheese agin. My yellow grape tomatoes are really orange and coming in now. The yellow cherry tomatoes are too. They look like a branch of grapes when they grow.

I have another yellow tomato plant that has medium size yellow tomatoes too. They are splitting from the infrequent watering. We have a terrible drought and burn ban here. I’m hoping I can get a few to ripen well.

 

[ilovewings]

Absolutely agree! "Smiles Cafe" and this "foodie" thread are my first two stops when I log onto Websleuths each day. I've appreciated and enjoyed all of the posts in this discussion since it began during Covid. I'm glad that it has continued as I would truly miss it. Part of the reason that I ordered biscuits & gravy for brunch yesterday was due to discussion here earlier in the week! I used to have a set of round metal biscuit/cookie cutters but have no idea what happened to them. Guess I should get another set so I can make Bisquick biscuits again.

Next time we go to Shine Cafe I'm going to order French toast that is their specialty. There are several varieties, and I would probably go for the Monte Cristo. I've thus far avoided the French Toast because of the rich eggy/creamy coating, but I was fine with the Biscuits & Gravy and a couple of Lactaid chewies. I had my first Monte Cristo sandwich at Disney World in the '70s and thought it was amazing!

This is a refreshing delightful thread!!!

 

[iamshadow21]

I have recently been told to be more careful what I eat for blood sugar reasons. So, wheat pasta has slightly fewer carbs than regular pasta and is supposedly better for blood sugar control. It, like brown rice, is digested slower, so may help prevent spikes.

It was actually the first time I tried it. I was surprised how good it was in the recipe. The Barilla one I bought had kind of skinnier noodles, but even my husband (I gave him a taste) thought, tastewise, it was just about the same as the regular kind. So, at least for Alfredo sauce, it worked.
View attachment 648868

Not the healthiest dish with all that fat (need to watch my cholesterol, too ), but I try to do a smaller portion size in that case. sigh

Barilla does good quality gluten free pasta, too. We get it sometimes. We generally get Buontempo, that's awesome and completely FODMAP free, but sometimes get Barilla or Pasta Roma, especially if we want a shape that we can't get otherwise. Latina Fresh for fresh pasta. Don't know how many of these are Australian only.

 

[Catmommy]

I use whole wheat pasta and, after years of always making my own sauce, now splurge on Rao's. It's more expensive than other jar sauces but it's basically low carb and has a really great flavor. I do brown ground turkey first with garlic and then add the sauce. Husband like it very much and that's always a plus even though he NEVER complains about anything I've ever made for him. He's pretty clever that way.

Quiche is kinda like one of my 'things' and something one of my brothers requests fairly regularly - not that he gets it - like cornbread (which I don't fix him often either.) You said, PayrollNerd, that you spread the crust with mustard first and I was intrigued. I like mustard. Is this for flavor or some kind of kitchen magic I don't know yet?

Strawberries, I really like but can't eat them all before they grow hair. Can I just wash them, pull the green off and throw them in a freezer bag before I freeze them? Can I simply slice them and thrown them in a freezer bag?

Yes, I am basically a lazy lima bean but I get soooo inspired reading the posts here. I know it's a lot of questions, what can I say? I'm nosy. It's part of the reason I'm on Websleuths in the first place.

 

[slowpoke]

Barilla does good quality gluten free pasta, too. We get it sometimes. We generally get Buontempo, that's awesome and completely FODMAP free, but sometimes get Barilla or Pasta Roma, especially if we want a shape that we can't get otherwise. Latina Fresh for fresh pasta. Don't know how many of these are Australian only.

Looking them up, Buontempo, Pasta Roma, and Latina Fresh are all Australian brands! Nice you have all those options.

 

[iamshadow21]

Looking them up, Buontempo, Pasta Roma, and Latina Fresh are all Australian brands! Nice you have all those options.

View attachment 648939

View attachment 648940

View attachment 648941

Yeah, we're lucky. They're not ridiculously expensive, either, not like GF bread tends to be.

 

[PayrollNerd]

I use whole wheat pasta and, after years of always making my own sauce, now splurge on Rao's. It's more expensive than other jar sauces but it's basically low carb and has a really great flavor. I do brown ground turkey first with garlic and then add the sauce. Husband like it very much and that's always a plus even though he NEVER complains about anything I've ever made for him. He's pretty clever that way.

Quiche is kinda like one of my 'things' and something one of my brothers requests fairly regularly - not that he gets it - like cornbread (which I don't fix him often either.) You said, PayrollNerd, that you spread the crust with mustard first and I was intrigued. I like mustard. Is this for flavor or some kind of kitchen magic I don't know yet?

Strawberries, I really like but can't eat them all before they grow hair. Can I just wash them, pull the green off and throw them in a freezer bag before I freeze them? Can I simply slice them and thrown them in a freezer bag?

Yes, I am basically a lazy lima bean but I get soooo inspired reading the posts here. I know it's a lot of questions, what can I say? I'm nosy. It's part of the reason I'm on Websleuths in the first place.

The mustard on the crust prevents it from being soggy and adds extra zip to the dish, particularly when there’s tomato.

I wash strawberries, pick off the green and lay them on a paper towel to dry. Then put them in freezer bags. Try to get as much air out as possible. We dice them from frozen for pancakes, waffles, mini bread loaves. My girls like to put them in their yogurts, overnight oats, etc.

 

[PayrollNerd]

The big monthly food pick up was this morning. It starts at 9am and I didn’t feel like sitting in line for an hour. So I went about 9:45am and there was nobody in line!! The check in lady said once they started, it moved really fast.

The box of Cajun crab dip is going to my friend as I’m allergic to shellfish. I’m hoping she’ll take the 2 packs of ground pork also. I can’t think of anything I will make that I’d use it for. I know people make sausage with it but I’m not big on sausage anyway.

The frozen yogurt cups are in the freezer. They gave me some, like 2 dozen, of those a few weeks ago too. So now I must have close to 40 cups!! At first I thought it was like ice cream, and we know I didn’t get the ice cream gene, so I haven’t touched them. But now I think they were just trying to preserve regular vanilla yogurt. I didn’t even know you could freeze yogurt!

I need a 5 gallons bucket for the 8 bunches of flowers! I have a box of foods I don’t eat or can’t eat started to set out at the curb.

I can make tacos with the ground beef. I’ve been craving them for weeks! I’ll blanch the cabbage for homemade veggie soup later. I love little frozen cheese pizzas because I can add veggies and it’s the perfect size.

 

[iamshadow21]

The big monthly food pick up was this morning. It starts at 9am and I didn’t feel like sitting in line for an hour. So I went about 9:45am and there was nobody in line!! The check in lady said once they started, it moved really fast.

The box of Cajun crab dip is going to my friend as I’m allergic to shellfish. I’m hoping she’ll take the 2 packs of ground pork also. I can’t think of anything I will make that I’d use it for. I know people make sausage with it but I’m not big on sausage anyway.

The frozen yogurt cups are in the freezer. They gave me some, like 2 dozen, of those a few weeks ago too. So now I must have close to 40 cups!! At first I thought it was like ice cream, and we know I didn’t get the ice cream gene, so I haven’t touched them. But now I think they were just trying to preserve regular vanilla yogurt. I didn’t even know you could freeze yogurt!

I need a 5 gallons bucket for the 8 bunches of flowers! I have a box of foods I don’t eat or can’t eat started to set out at the curb.

I can make tacos with the ground beef. I’ve been craving them for weeks! I’ll blanch the cabbage for homemade veggie soup later. I love little frozen cheese pizzas because I can add veggies and it’s the perfect size.

If those are lilies, keep any pets well away from them. They're toxic to animals.

 

[Knox]

Today’s menu: quiche with eggs, cheese, zucchini, spinach, tomato, onion, garlic. I spread mustard on the crust before I add the zucchini. I sautéed the onion, garlic, zucchini in butter with salt & pepper first. Then mixed 12 eggs, 2 cups grated cheeses, diced tomatoes, some from the garden, and fresh spinach.

Layered the zucchini in the crusts, poured the egg mixture over top. Baked at 350 Deg for about 40 min.

I bought a double pack of Wholly wholesome organic frozen pie crusts at Detwilers and they are so much better than what I found at Publix!

Spreading mustard on the crust sounds good, I love different kinds of mustard. I've never heard of doing that before, thanks for the tip!

 

[303gmf]

I have recently been told to be more careful what I eat for blood sugar reasons. So, wheat pasta has slightly fewer carbs than regular pasta and is supposedly better for blood sugar control. It, like brown rice, is digested slower, so may help prevent spikes.

It was actually the first time I tried it. I was surprised how good it was in the recipe. The Barilla one I bought had kind of skinnier noodles, but even my husband (I gave him a taste) thought, tastewise, it was just about the same as the regular kind. So, at least for Alfredo sauce, it worked.
View attachment 648868

Not the healthiest dish with all that fat (need to watch my cholesterol, too ), but I try to do a smaller portion size in that case. sigh

Recently read an article about freezing pasta, of course I have no idea where I read it but the gist of it was the fiber increases and the glucose decreases

 

[Curious Me]

Recently read an article about freezing pasta, of course I have no idea where I read it but the gist of it was the fiber increases and the glucose decreases

Wow, you're right. I didn't know that. Thank You, @303gmf. I guess just be sure to freeze it soon after it cools. I do know you have to be careful with leftover rice and pasta as it can develop a bacteria, some call it "Fried Rice Syndrome", but it can make you seriously ill.​

____________________________________________

Don't keep your rice or pasta out cooling for too long. Make sure you cook and store leftover rice & pasta properly or it can make you sick.

How To Prevent Fried Rice Syndrome

Fried rice syndrome is food poisoning caused by a bacterium known as Bacillus cereus. This microscopic germ likes to live on starchy foods like rice and pasta. Here’s how you can avoid it.

health.clevelandclinic.org

“Like most food poisoning, fried rice syndrome can occur when you don’t cook or store food at the right temperatures,” says Dr. Lee. “People call it ‘fried rice syndrome’ because the process of cooking rice, leaving it out and then reheating it creates a perfect environment for this germ.”​

 

[Auntie Cipation]

The box of Cajun crab dip is going to my friend as I’m allergic to shellfish. I’m hoping she’ll take the 2 packs of ground pork also. I can’t think of anything I will make that I’d use it for. I know people make sausage with it but I’m not big on sausage anyway.

Do you like things like egg rolls? I learned to make them this winter. Here's the recipe I used:

I used plain ground pork and skipped the lemon zest. I don't know if there are gluten-free egg roll wrappers, but I also made some with spring roll wrappers which are made of rice. They were stickier to work with but equally tasty. I used coconut oil to "fry" the rolls. They were really yummy! I even froze and then reheated some and that was fine too.