What's for Dinner? Tax Day, 2011 Edition

[yellerpup]

We will be having leftovers, which is all we can afford after paying our taxes. Luckily, I can't wait to have the leftovers waiting in my refrigerator.

Yesterday, I made a braised lamb and prune dish spiced with cinnamon, ginger, tumeric, fresh cilantro, and pepper. The recipe called for saffron as well, but I passed on that as it prices the results out of our category. The lamb was fork tender and the gravy worked miracles on the couscous served under it. Another accompaniment was a lemony, shaved asparagus slaw that tasted green and fresh with just a suggestion of bitterness on the back bite, a nice counterbalance to the sweetness of the prunes and a drizzle of honey added at the last minute to the braise. SO good!

What's on the table for dinner at your house tonight? :hi:

On Edit: A link to the recipe: http://moroccanfood.about.com/od/maindishes/r/Meat_and_prunes.htm

[Warpy]

1. I'm eating vegetarian flautas right now

and supper will be a pear.

I did my taxes on April Fool's Day and mailed them last Thursday.

[yellerpup]

3. Mexican food is always on my wish list.

Flautas sound good, and a pear is a great way to top off the day. Congratulations on getting your taxes in early! I hate that last minute rush, too.

[Phentex]

2. Was just coming here to ask the same thing! ...

Well, I have gotten myself into a theme for the next 49 days. My husband will be turning 50 and we are doing a countdown. Somehow I thought it would be fun to look up each day in history and have a meal or treat or fill-in-the-blank based on that for the fifty days counting down to his birthday. Yesterday was The Bay of Pigs (too late for pork because he wanted to grill meat) so we had a Cuban dessert of grilled pineapple. Today is an anniversary of a SF earthquake so I could make a rice-a-roni dish. It's also the warning day for Paul Revere and the Am Rev so I could do salmon (two if by sea, river). I should probably start a new thread and get HELP from you guys! :)

That asparagus sounds good!

I am in desperate need of a big grocery shop. I'm out of many of the basics needed for throwing meals together. *sigh*

[yellerpup]

4. How creative to do a countdown through history

with your meals for 50 days! If Mr. P doesn't already know what lengths you are willing to go for him, he will certainly appreciate it by the time his birthday rolls around. What a fun project! The asparagus slaw couldn't be simpler, it's just the veg, S&P, lemon juice and EVOO (to taste). I thought I read a recipe for it, but couldn't find it when I searched. You just keep paring the stalks thinner and thinner until the head pops off and then that gets tossed in, too. You should start a new thread explaining your countdown to 50 and see what happens. I :loveya: that idea!

[yellerpup]

5. Too late to edit, but thought you should know...

I didn't make the sugary "gravy" from the prunes. I did cook the prunes until soft and added them to the pan drippings. After a taste, I drizzled a scant tsp. of honey into the pot to burnish the spices a bit. The idea of loading it with sugar at the last minute just didn't appeal to me. Turns out, it wasn't necessary after all!

[WhiteTara]

6. Tonight, our leftovers were (un)frozen pizza dough

made from fresh ground wheat berries with left over sausage and fresh mushrooms with the usual cheeses and a tomato sauce base.

[yellerpup]

8. Your description of that dough is intriguing.

Did you grind and make it yourself? Does it come out like whole wheat pizza crust? Sausage, mushroom, tomato sauce and cheese are no fail toppings. Sounds delish all around!

[WhiteTara]

10. I didn't grind...we have someone at the Farmer's Market

who does. (he also sells grass fed beef, yum) It was whole wheat, but very light. It was a fine grind, I guess pastry, and the crust was light and crunchy. I used white flour to knead (I don't know why) and I first used half the dough last week and froze this part. This was my first freezing before cooking attempt and it worked great! I got stopped in the middle of the process of cooking last night so I threw it back into the fridge so I wouldn't have to keep punching it down and pulled it back out to bring it back to room temp. Pizza dough is very forgiving!

[yellerpup]

11. Very resourceful!

Mr. Pup is a big fan of (mostly) whole wheat pizza crust. How lucky you are to have access to a Farmer's Market with organic beef and wheat berries that can be ground on premises. I do love the versatility of pizza dough and it's forgiving properties.

[WhiteTara]

12. I am becoming a real fan! n/t

[Lugnut]

7. Leftovers here too.

I made a pot of bean soup but that will be supper tomorrow. Today was clean out the fridge day.

[yellerpup]

9. Bean soup always satisfies.

Cleaning out the fridge produces a lot of satisfaction, but a pot of delicious bean soup that's been put away to meld for a day will make a hearty, healthy supper for tonight.