Goodbye dinner

We had a little goodbye dinner for
Mom & Jack. We ate outside on the patio,
the weather was perfect.

Made Lasagna for dinner - it was delish.
~
Lasagna Recipe:
9-12 Lasagna Noodles
1 lb. ground beef
salt & pepper
1 (16 oz) pkg. cottage cheese
8 oz. of ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
1 1/4 cup shredded sharp cheddar
1 jar of your favorite sauce
1 med. diced onion
~
Boil water and cook noodles.
Brown ground beef, add onion and s & p.
In separate bowl, combine cottage cheese,
ricotta, parm, and 1/2 cup shredded cheese.
add egg and mix well.
Drain noodles.
Add sauce to the ground beef.
Spread a big spoonful of the sauce
in the bottom of pan. Layer 1/2 noodles,
1/2 sauce, 1/2 cheese, then repeat.
Cover with a bit more sauce and
the rest of the shredded cheese.
Bake at 350 for about 30-40 min.
till hot and bubbly and
lightly brown.
~
*Sorry, no photo of us having dinner
or anything.....don't know where my
head was....duh!?

Garden patch

We planted our little garden on Sunday.

Three kinds of tomato, yellow pear,

Mr. Stripey (our favorite) and a

better boy red tomato. Several kinds

of peppers, red, green, jalapeno,

and hot red chili - great for stir fry.

Two zucchini plants, some mixed salad

greens, italian parsley, basil,

dill, and chives.

Later, mom, mike & debbie joined us for
dinner. On the menu:
tomato mozzarella salad
shrimp scampi from Costo, over linguini
fresh steamed green beans
and french bread.
~
We ate outside on the patio,
the weather was perfect!
~

Pink grapefruit

Made this delicious
Pink Grapefruit
salad the other night.
Arugula, shaved fennel,
pink grapefruit, sliced avocado,
salt & pepper
Drizzled with a light vinaigrette
4 T. olive oil
2 T. white wine vinegar
1 t. Dijon mustard
salt & pepper
Yum!
(will definetly make again)
~

Comfort food

Pot roast for dinner tonight.
Recipe here. Serving with mashed
potatoes of course.
~

Dinner last night

I made a delicious salad for dinner last night.
Herb spring mix with fresh avocado and mango,
drizzled with a white balsamic vinaigrette.

Served with grilled steaks, garlic and
herb fingerling potatoes.
Yum!

I love crab cakes
** ** ** *** **

Made crab cakes last night for dinner.

They were scrumptious! I got the recipe from

my "I Love Crab Cakes" book that I picked

up in Seattle while on our Grizwald RV trip.

Darryl and I were in Crab cake heaven!

Here is the recipe that I used.

~

Steve's Perfect Crab Cakes

1 lb. crab meat, drained, and picked

of shell and lightly squeezed if wet

1/2 cup mayonnaise

2 Tbl. grated lemon zest

2 Tbl. fresh dill, minced

2 Tbl. chives, diced

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup panko, plus 1 cup more

for dredging

5 Tbls. butter

~

Put crab, mayo, lemon zest, dill, chives, salt

and pepper in a large bowl. Mix everything

together gently. Add 1/2 cup panko and mix again.

Pour remaining panko into a shallow bowl.

Form the crab mixture into approx. 8 patties.

Pat them gently into shape without pressing them

too much. Drop the patties into the panko and turn

them to coat both sides, patting to shake off the

excess. If you have time, cover them with plastic

wrap and chill in the fridge for 1 hour or more..

I did not...

In a large saute pan, heat butter (I added a bit

of olive oil too) cook crab for approx. 6 min. on

ea. side, till golden brown and crispy.

I served with a squeeze of lemon and a bit of

tarter sauce - and a side spring mix salad.

~

Enjoy!

Fun Weekend

Friday night dinner out on the patio,

complete with warm, crackling fire.

The weather was gorgeous, and wait till

you see what we had to eat below...

wait for it...

wait

for

it.....

BAM!

Look at that baby!!
Darryl's boss, caught 35 of these
beauties on a diving trip to Catalina, and
gave us one. We happily accepted and cooked
him up over mesquite wood. Can I say
DE-LIC-IOUS!
I forgot just how much I love lobster!
Served with butter and lemon,
roasted red potatoes, sauteed in butter,
garlic and rosemary & a spinach
salad with green apple, red onion,
Gorgonzola, & toasted pecans - yum yum!
*
Saturday we headed north to Alcantara Winery
for a wine tasting and then on to Page Springs
winery for a few sips.
The weather was just beautiful!
* Chocolate fountain - yum!

Saturday night - Halloween party

at Dan & Melissa's. I found the authentic,

oriental, silk dress at Goodwill for $12.00!

Gotta love that Goodwill!

It matched perfectly with Darryl's silk robe.
*

Voted best costume of the night!

Zombie prom king & queen.

Awesome right?!

Girls night out

Sister-in-law Cathy and I went to Postino

for wine and bruschetta.

We had the tomato w/ fresh mozzarella & basil,

smoked salmon w/ cream cheese & capers,

prosciutto w/ figs & mascarpone,

and brie w/ apples & fig jam - YUM!

I forgot just how much I love that place.

Great ambiance, delicious food &

wine, and (of course) great company!

They have a Mon. & Tues. night special:

Bottle of house wine, and a bruschetta board

for $20.00 - D and I will be heading back

there soon!

Dinner with Mom

Love this table cloth. Purchased at

Domestic Bliss last summer.

Dinner Menu:
Shrimp scampi over linguine,
Salad with sliced apple, sugared pecans,
and goat cheese (made by Mom) and garlic
bread. No pictures - too busy getting the food
on the table. The shrimp scampi was from Costco, in
the freezer section - really good!
*
Super simple appetizer - block of cream cheese
with raspberry chipotle sauce poured on top,
served with wheat thins.
*
Raspberry tart from Trader Joe's,
with vanilla ice cream on top.
We had the blueberry tart a few weeks ago,
the raspberry one is delicious too.
Perfect for the summer
when you don't want to heat up the
house by baking.

Easy and delicious

*

The kids loved this - me too!

Super easy and very affordable.

I served it with steamed sugar snap peas,

and pickled cucumbers - yum!

*

Korean Beef

1 lb. lean ground beef

1/4-1/2 C. brown sugar

1/4 C. soy sauce

1 Tbl. sesame oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. fresh ginger, minced

1/2-1 tsp. red pepper flakes

Salt & pepper

1 bunch green onions, diced

*

Heat large skillet over medium heat.

Brown beef with garlic in the sesame oil.

Drain the fat. Add brown sugar, soy, ginger,

red pepper and salt & pepper.

Let simmer for a few min. to

combine the flavors. Serve over steamed

rice and top with green onions.

*

Pickled Cucumbers

1 English cucumber, thinly sliced

3 Tbl. Rice vinegar

3 Tbl. Honey

*
Place cucumber slices into a colander in the sink

and lightly sprinkle with salt, tossing to coat.

Allow cucumber to drain for 30 minutes.

Gently shake the colander to remove any excess liquid

and transfer cucumber to a large bowl.

Stir in rice vinegar and honey, making sure to coat each

cucumber slice evenly. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Toss cucumber and return to the refrigerator

for an additional hour.

Serve chilled.

Dinner last night

Spicy Peanut Noodles

8 oz. whole wheat or whole grain pasta

(I used whole grain spaghetti)

1/4 cup crunchy peanut butter

1/4 cup seasoned rice vinegar

1 Tbl. soy sauce

2-3 tsp. sriracha

2 tsp. honey

Cook noodles. Mix together the rest of the

ingredients. and pour over hot noodles.

Eat hot or cold. Top with cilantro,

green onions, red pepper, seasame seeds,

or even shredded chicken if you like.

Dinner last night

Delicious Turkey Burgers

1 1/2 lb. ground turkey

1/2 C. grated Gruyere

4 sliced scallions

1/4 C. breadcrumbs

1/4 C. Dijon mustard

1 clove garlic, minced

Salt & pepper

4-5 buns

Gently mix all of the ingred. together.

Form mixture into 4-5 patties and grill.

Very good!

Dinner last night

Chicken lettuce wraps

Fill iceberg lettuce cups with the above
ingredients - pour over your favorite Asian
sauce. We like spicy peanut sauce and a sweet
chili sauce that I get at Trader Joe's.
Light, fresh and healthy.

Dinner last night

Made a batch of pesto with

basil from our garden.

Then made grilled sandwiches with pesto,
fresh mozzarella, sliced tomatoes,
and more basil - yum!