What We Ate

Thought about not posting...but I'm kind of on a roll with this, and I like to have a written record for when people say "but what do you EAT?"  You'd be surprised how many people ask me that, and it kind of makes me giggle.

Onward!

Monday: Grilled cheese sandwiches.  You can tell this is going to be a fancy week.
Tuesday:  A quick-ish lentil dish.  I won't bother with a recipe, because it lacked depth, and it made Ernie cry.  No joke, I've never seen her break into tears after closing her mouth around a spoon.  When I try it again with a few different flavors, I'll post a recipe.
Wednesday:  Beef-Vegetable-Barley soup from the freezer.  Yay for eating down the stash!
Thursday:  Joy School graduation!  Hotdogs, chips, fruit, and potato salad for everyone!
Friday: Spaghetti with a quick chunky sauce- sauteed ground beef, onions, and celery, and our last jar of purchased spaghetti sauce.  (Note to my summer garden: I'm counting on you to produce tomatoes.  The end.)
Saturday:  BBQ at Grandma and Grandpa's- it's not every day hubby's grandpa turns 80!  Steaks, hot dogs, salads- very good.
Sunday:  Another big family meal at Grandma and Grandpa's, because 2 sets of aunts/uncles/cousins are in town for the weekend.  Lots of ham, and leftover salads.

OK, so obviously dinner time was kind of a bust this week.  BUT, we had house guests for the weekend (yay!!) and we had some pretty great breakfasts so maybe that could compensate?

***On a side note, both my husband and I were sick the first half of Sunday, although no one else was.  My husband thinks it might be all the meat we ate- hot dogs on Thursday, meat sauce on Friday, steaks on Saturday.  We ate more meat in those three days than we normally eat in a month, I think.  I don't know, because it isn't uncommon for me to be sick quite often.  But my Dad often says that animal fats upset his stomach, so maybe??***

Saturday: Marion Cunningham's overnight yeasted waffles.  Great freaking crispy goodness.  Thank you Molly for pointing out the way. Make them.  And cut the butter in half...or less.  I used half as what was called for, and they were amazing still.  (Aunt S said they were like scones, I'm assuming she meant fried bread, because otherwise she would have said scohns, right?)  So, yeah- these are like fried bread: crispy on the outside, steamed on the inside.  Slight bite from the yeast, and all the sweet comes from the syrup you pour on top (or lemon juice and powdered sugar in my case.)  ALSO, you mix them up the night before.  The only thing you have to do in the morning is whisk together 2 eggs and a bit of baking soda to stir into the mix before you cook them up.  Any morning that doesn't involve measuring cups is easier than a morning that DOES.  (And now I'm wondering how similar these are to sourdough waffles?)  Recipe here.  And all over the internet actually, these are getting to be quite famous.  (If you follow that link, there are two recipes.  I tried the "WIG" or Waffles of Insane Greatness.  They're good, and you wouldn't regret making them.  But if you have time and remember to get ready the night before...these are better.)

Sunday:  Early morning, with our guests scrambling for showers before their church meetings.  Followed Mary Ostyn's advice and made a big batch of oatmeal in the rice cooker- no stirring, no adjusting of temperature, no waiting for the water to boil, AND it keeps itself warm for stragglers.  Sold.  (Just follow the regular oats recipe- 1 cup water, 1/2 cup oats, pinch of salt, if you're making quick oats.  A friend said you can melt a bit of butter in there, saute your steel cut oats for a few minutes, then add the water and turn it on.  The rice cooker will turn off when the water is gone.)  And when you've made your oatmeal, please stir in peanut butter and brown sugar.  Your tummy will thank you.

Monday: Our guests left this day, and J's uncle had mentioned he'd had a soft spot for grits ever since his mission in the Southern states of the US.  Wish granted.  Plus biscuits, fried eggs, toast, juice, milk, and fried ham (from our Sunday dinner.)  Never let it be said that a guest left my kitchen hungry!

Saturday morning was busy, and this is the second weekend in a row I missed the farmer's market.  If the kids and I can snag the car, we'll try and hit another local market- there's one almost every day of the week within half an hour of here now.  If we don't...well, there are onions, carrots, celery, avocados, strawberries, burger patties, potato salad, mozz cheese, blue cheese, sour cream, and lettuce....all screaming to be used up.  It all sounds a bit heavy, but with all the rain we've been having, heavy is pretty good right now.  We can make it another week without greens.  In fact, I'm sure the kids don't mind at all.  (My mind is drawing a blank...do farmers markets around here ever sell anything BUT greens and onions?  I mean, besides the $5/lb tomatoes that I can't afford.  Because a $10 tomato is not going to grace my table, sorry farmer with a fancy greenhouse that sells tomatoes in April.)