The What's For Dinner Tonight Chat

[notme]

Doesn't sound weird to me at all! Bacon has an affinity for sweet things such as caramel, ice cream, brownies, maple syrup, jam... It's that salty sweet thing that has people drooling!

i made peanut butter and bacon fudge at Christmastime - it was delish everybody loved it!

[notme]

I did not make it with lobster this time - that is the ultimate. This is not for the faint of heart or those who are worrying about calories at this moment. (There's always tomorrow! )

Caramelize 2 onions until like candy (about 30 minutes).

Make bechamel*. Heat the milk and cream and add half an onion with a couple of cloves stuck in it as well as a bay leaf. Let sit about 10 minutes.

Now comes the pancetta but you can use plain old bacon. Saute and crumble into bechamel sauce along with 1/2 cup fontina, 1/2 cup gruyere, 1/2 cup aged cheddar, 1/4 cup parmesan or asiago (none of that icky fake stuff!) and a bit of goat's cheese. Stir in most of the caramelized onions (save some for the top). Add a touch of either Dijon mustard or powdered mustard and grate a touch of nutmeg into the bechamel. Layer half the pasta into a buttered pan and pour over half the bechamel. Add the rest of the pasta and cover with the remaining bechamel and sprinkle with 1/2 cup cheddar and a bit of parmesan and remaining caramelized onion. You can add a breadcrumb topping but I did not. No need. Bake at 350 until golden and bubbly.

*Use about 1 cup of milk and cream in the sauce (or half and half) for about 8 oz of dry pasta.

For those interested in making mac and cheese outside the box (get it?) you may be interested in some of these yummy ideas...

http://blog.springpadit.com/2010/02/20-ways-to-get-creative-with-mac-n-cheese%C2%A0/

that sounds FANTASTIC and thank you for a good meal idea! i am making my menu/grocery list right now what about the lobster did you say lobster i love lobster what do you do with the lobster???

[notme]

not cooking tonight the minions are eating glutenous frozen pizzas and "glee-king out" watching glee lolz

made:

gyros w/greek salad & tziki <cant spell it = cucumber/yogurt sauce

'bang-bang' shrimp (bonefish copycat)

green salad

mei fun rice noodles

battered cod w/steak fries (FISH N CHIPS!! YAY!!)

steamed broccoli w/cider vinegar

stuffed (with ham, provolone & prosciutto) meatloaf

potato & zucchini pancakes <those turned out so yummy (and the kids ate them like they were going out of style - we even admitted that they had veggies in them and they didn't care lolz)

'ny/nj style' chicken chow mein

white lice

crispy fried rice noodles

meat lovers mac & cheese (beef, bacon, pepperoni)

carrots

venison chili

georgia spoon bread

chinese roast pork

sesame onion pancakes

rice noodles

steak fajitas

mexican rice

refried beans

soy marmalade chicken thighs

asain salad w/mandarin oranges

pad thai noodles

thank you, everybody, for great meal ideas - i am making my shopping list

[Adalaide]

i made peanut butter and bacon fudge at Christmastime - it was delish everybody loved it!

OMG that sounds amazing! Do share the recipe please.

[sa1937]

If you like bacon, how about Bacon Jam?

[JoyfulGF]

How about Baconnaise? They sell this at the grocery store I shop at most often.

Thinking about trying it...I love mayo though!

[love2travel]

It was a hunting episode - he went out and shot them himself (pretty good shot too, uless they faked it )

I think he is actually quite a good shot on the wild boar hunting episode he mentioned shooting rabbits.

When I was 12 I took Firearm safety and was a very good shot at clay pigeons, etc. However, I have not shot anything for food and as I grow older, I do not think I could actually do it. My heart is just too tender.

[love2travel]

If you like bacon, how about Bacon Jam?

Sylvia, I LOVE bacon jam. It is superb.

[love2travel]

i made peanut butter and bacon fudge at Christmastime - it was delish everybody loved it!

That is another classic combination. Has anyone else tried bacon popcorn? Salted caramel bacon ice cream? Wonderful. Or how about candied bacon? All you do is brush bacon with maple syrup and roast in the oven until crispy.

[Marilyn R]

That sounds great! I love goose. And duck. And pheasant. And quail...

My brother's a hunter/fisher and lives in Michigan. We're going to meet in September in NC. I told him how expensive duck and geese are here. I know he'll bring me frozen blue gill, trout and perch, maybe some Walleye Pike, definitely venison, and maybe he'll take the hint and get some duck and goose. Pheasant became nearly extinct in Michigan from over hunting, so it's been a number of years since I've tasted pheasant. They're feathers are beautiful. (And they're really tasty.) My apologies to all vegetarians reading this.

[love2travel]

My brother's a hunter/fisher and lives in Michigan. We're going to meet in September in NC. I told him how expensive duck and geese are here. I know he'll bring me frozen blue gill, trout and perch, maybe some Walleye Pike, definitely venison, and maybe he'll take the hint and get some duck and goose. Pheasant became nearly extinct in Michigan from over hunting, so it's been a number of years since I've tasted pheasant. They're feathers are beautiful. (And they're really tasty.) My apologies to all vegetarians reading this.

How wonderful! My husband used to hunt but he hasn't for awhile. We don't have pheasant here (but I get it when I see it on menus elsewhere) and LOVE it. We have a resident pheasant we call Phil at our Croatia house, though. He is gorgeous.

[notme]

OMG that sounds amazing! Do share the recipe please.

adalaide: i just googled it and found that there were a million pb fudge recipes with basically the same ingredients (marshmallow fluff, sugar, etc) and just added cooked, finely chopped, lean bacon. the batch i tried without any chocolate wouldn't set up (ate it anyway LOL) so i recommend keeping at least some chocolate. also, add the bacon when you are done cooking the fudge.

[JoyfulGF]

Lunch: salad with cranberries, feta, turkey, walnuts, and raspberry vinaigrette...I eat this a lot. And some slices of red pepper dipped in ranch.

Dinner: I don't know yet, hubby is still out of the country and I'm leaving tomorrow to go get him. House is spotless right now, don't want to make a mess. haha!

[love2travel]

I've been breaking down chicken today. Roasting bones for stock and tonight am making:

Parmesan Chicken

Roasted Butternut Squash Risotto

Nigel Slater's Braised Peas

Black plums for dessert

[alex11602]

We're having a simple chicken risotto for dinner tonight.

[Jestgar]

Welp, when I woke up this morning I had every intention of going for a long walk, hitting the shower before heading to the grocery store to restock the veggies and fruit, and making some fabulous dinner.

Instead I'm sitting here unwashed, with a cat on my lap, eating peanut butter cookies.

tomorrow.

tomorrow I'll do all that.

[love2travel]

Welp, when I woke up this morning I had every intention of going for a long walk, hitting the shower before heading to the grocery store to restock the veggies and fruit, and making some fabulous dinner.

Instead I'm sitting here unwashed, with a cat on my lap, eating peanut butter cookies.

tomorrow.

tomorrow I'll do all that.

Brilliant! Love it.

[pricklypear1971]

Leftover steak converted into quesadillas, with avocado and salsa and cheese.

Making cheesecake for hubby's birthday celebration tomorrow...

Just made Nutella fudge with the help of a visiting neighbor's wall-scaling Labradoodle and 3 nine year-old boys. One of which tried to handcuff the dog.

And did I mention I'll be hitting the vodka later??

[JNBunnie1]

Leftover steak converted into quesadillas, with avocado and salsa and cheese.

Making cheesecake for hubby's birthday celebration tomorrow...

Just made Nutella fudge with the help of a visiting neighbor's wall-scaling Labradoodle and 3 nine year-old boys. One of which tried to handcuff the dog.

And did I mention I'll be hitting the vodka later??

You deserve the whole bottle, baby!

[Adalaide]

I had some BBQ chicken. I had high hopes for that chicken, it was supposed to be orange ginger chicken. Then I decided on a whim to make jam and didn't have the energy to do more than slap it on a grill. All that can be hanged though, I saw someone mention pavlova in another thread which I'd never heard of before. That was my dessert, it'll probably make a midnight snack too. I doubt there will be any left to see Saturday. I may need to let my belt out a notch.

[mushroom]

I had some BBQ chicken. I had high hopes for that chicken, it was supposed to be orange ginger chicken. Then I decided on a whim to make jam and didn't have the energy to do more than slap it on a grill. All that can be hanged though, I saw someone mention pavlova in another thread which I'd never heard of before. That was my dessert, it'll probably make a midnight snack too. I doubt there will be any left to see Saturday. I may need to let my belt out a notch.

Ah, Pavlova, the quintessential Kiwi dessert which the Aussies keep trying to claim as their own. Any time something good comes out of New Zealand, since it is "from Down Under" after all, the Aussies claim it as their own. It is good though, isn't it? Especially with shaved dark chocolate among the strawberries on top

[love2travel]

I had some BBQ chicken. I had high hopes for that chicken, it was supposed to be orange ginger chicken. Then I decided on a whim to make jam and didn't have the energy to do more than slap it on a grill. All that can be hanged though, I saw someone mention pavlova in another thread which I'd never heard of before. That was my dessert, it'll probably make a midnight snack too. I doubt there will be any left to see Saturday. I may need to let my belt out a notch.

Pavlova has been one of my favourites since I was a child. You can make individual pavlovas, too. I like to fill them with lemon curd, vanilla bean buttercream and stack high with lots of fruit. Blackberries and blueberries have an afinity with lemon. I suddenly have a craving!

[love2travel]

Tonight is Korean. I am making:

Korean Chicken Tacos

Daikon, Jicama and Cucumber Salt and Sugar Pickles

Korean Scallion Pancakes with homemade nuoc cham

[notme]

hey love2:

made that macaroni & cheese last night - everybody loved it! (and i put lobster in it - lobster tails on sale, paid full price when i checked my reciept, went back & they gave me $ back = free lobster lol ) i might put mushrooms in it next time. the onions give it a wonderful sweetness combined with the cheeses and pancetta it is divine! thanx!

[love2travel]

hey love2:

made that macaroni & cheese last night - everybody loved it! (and i put lobster in it - lobster tails on sale, paid full price when i checked my reciept, went back & they gave me $ back = free lobster lol ) i might put mushrooms in it next time. the onions give it a wonderful sweetness combined with the cheeses and pancetta it is divine! thanx!

That is AWESOME! I'm so glad you did it with lobster. Once you've had fabulous macaroni and cheese there is no way you'd want to go back to packaged stuff. Mushrooms are a great idea - I have not done that.

When cooking my goal is to make every single dish taste as good as it possibly can. I inject everything with as much flavour as I can. I do not settle for mediocre or even decent. There is nothing with aspiring to GREAT! And it is possible. Why not??