Meal No. 325: Beefy Tomato Mac-N-Cheese

Perhaps it is better as a winter dish, and for a much larger crowd than the three or four at dinner tonight (there were five sizable portions put into leftover containers at the end of the night). But the picture of Tomato Mac and Cheese in an issue of Cook's Country made my mouth water a bit. Below is my version of the dish, from tonight's supper:

I needed a bit more substance to it, so I added some seasoned browned ground beef (about a pound). That way it could be the entree. Since I am unexpectedly home this week, instead of working as I had on my calendar, there was time to do a little more than usual, at least in my mind.

So I pulled up a recipe I'd seen in Food Network Magazine that is supposed to mimic Romano's Macaroni Grill's rosemary bread. (I do not like that restaurant at all, but I do like good bread.) It really was pretty easy to make and resulted in four hearty-sized personal loaves (in the picture below, that's a whole cookie sheet that those four loaves are sitting on, if that gives you some perspective.)

Another new recipe I decided to try came from the Culinary S.O.S. column in the L.A. Times and purports to be the recipe for the famous roasted (or deep-fried) Brussels sprouts to be found at local eatery boon eat + drink. I upped the red pepper flakes more than I should have, but they were still darned good.

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"Tomato Mac and Cheese," from Cook's Country, April/May 2010, p. 20.

"Boon's Brussels Sprouts" from California's boon eat + drink. Published in the Los Angeles Times [author: Noelle Carter] on March 3, 2011.

"Almost-Famous Rosemary Bread," from Food Network Magazine, April 2011, p. 52.

Meal No. 324: Pork Chops with Bourbon-Apple Pan Sauce

Lately, I've been making bone-in blade-cut pork chops using a braising method, and the fall-off-the-bone tenderness and terrific flavor has been a real winner.

Tonight, I wanted pork chops but I was needing a simpler recipe, because I was scheduled to teach all day here in Winston-Salem. What jumped out at me was an idea found on the 30-Minute Supper recipe cards insert in one of last fall's issues of Cook's Country. It meant I needed to add a jar of apple butter to my last shopping list, since it's not one of my staples. And I also had to decide it was going to be all right to make a pan sauce with apple butter.

Turns out it's a great idea. The flavors all merged and melded and it was a sumptious, glazy boost of good flavor to top the tender pan-cooked chops with. I added a squash casserole, using the recipe on the cans of Margaret Holmes's squash and Vidalia onions, and also a batch of cornbread stuffing with onion and sage.

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"Pork Chops with Bourbon-Apple Pan Sauce," from center insert recipe cards in Cook's Country, October/November 2010.

Squash Casserole recipe from Margaret Holmes southern canned vegetables.

Meal No. 323: Baked Salmon with a Park Hill Maple & Spice Mustard Glaze

It's true that there was salmon in the house just a couple of nights ago. But I was up for it again and wanted to finally try a glaze recommended by my good Princeton friends Everett and David. They were even so kind as to send me the Park Hill Maple & Spice mix from the Savory Spice Shop, just so I could make this happen.

And it's darned good. It's a wonderful mix of flavors but it does not overwhelm the salmon. I also tried out an orzo-based risotto with blue cheese and pine nuts that proved to be marvelous. The meal was completed with a batch of lima beans.

For dessert: New York Cheesecake. I made it yesterday intending to have it ready for the large group that was here. But I didn't get it done in time to get good and chilled. I also felt like I cooked it a wee bit too. So far, though, the takers have appeared to be pleased with it.

Meal No. 322: Turkey with Onion-Garlic-Thyme Sauce

Saturday night's gathering at the Roediger House was another occasion for a big meal for a table full of people. I wanted to try out a slow-cooker recipe for turkey breast just to see what I thought of it, and I pulled one from Slow Cooker Revolution.

I am not yet convinced that the slow-cooker recipes in this cookbook are better than other versions (compare this meal to its slow-cooker counterpart, for instance). While tonight's turkey breast was well-cooked and quite good, it still turned out to be a tad dry. Not at all like the moist, flavorful turkey that's been served up as part of the several "Thanksgiving" meals I've made over the last year (not just November, but also December, May and June).

Now, I did not go all out as would be the case when I'm trying to put together the traditional Thanksgiving meal. To go with the turkey, there was buttery mashed potatoes and garden peas. I think the biggest hit of the evening, though, was the sauce made from the liquid used to help the turkey breast simmer and cook. It had garlic, onion, carrot, wine, broth, and thyme in it. I also added the turkey gravy packet that came with the frozen breast, along with some butter and flour.

There was no turkey left over, and it turns out I did not make enough mashed potatoes. But the crew seemed content with how the meal went, and that's always good news to my ears.

Meal No. 321: Poached Salmon & Israeli Couscous

Friday night at the Roediger House, and dinner was delicious yet again.

Had you been here, you could have enjoyed some poached salmon with chilled rosemary dijon cream sauce, Israeli couscous with pine nuts, and steamed broccoli.

Meal No. 320: Curried Chicken Salad

Before heading out of town yesterday evening for a quick overnighter to Winchester, VA, I took the chicken meat from a deboned rotisserie chicken and turned it into a delicious curried chicken salad with toasted almonds and grapes. Served in a thick pile on some fresh potato bread, and washed down with Pepsi Throwback, it was what I needed before packing and turning the car north.

Meal No. 319: Beef Tenderloin

OK. I've been on a bit of a red meat kick here, but I love beef and there have been some good specials on it. Plus, with a short bit of traveling to be done this week, I had to be more strategic about when I would fix which things.

So last night was roasted beef tenderloin in wine sauce, topped with succulent onion and mushroom, and paired with cheddar potato slices and broccoli.

I also tried out yet another new recipe for biscuits, this time from a recent issue of Cook's Country: cream cheese biscuits, and they turned out pretty well.

Meal No. 318: Grilled Filets

After a 15-hour-straight drive home from vacation out in Oklahoma (arriving back at the Roediger House around 7:30 am Monday morning), and a short morning trying to sleep it off a bit, I had trouble imagining a more satisfying meal than steaks on the grill. Simple to make, and always pleasing to the palate.

So earlier tonight (or last night, really) the Phillis boys rounded out the dinner table for grilled filet mignon, steamed asparagus, and baked potatoes (I was the only one who voted for sweet potato). A couple of delicious big bottles of Brooklyn Brewery Local 1 were knocked back slowly and reasonably. No dessert, though: instead, we let our food settle while catching up on a couple more episodes of Doctor Who.

Cyprus, When Agitated

Thanks to a thrift-store find of a Brain Surgery "Operation" game toy, I have learned that Cyprus gets a very red streak of fur from her neck to her tail, when she is highly agitated or preparing to go postal.

In a dog's natural way, I suppose, she is much more accustomed to looking down and low, rather than peering up at things. So it took a while to notice the goofy plastic head for this game, sitting up on the mantle in the master bedroom. Once she saw it, though, she was ready for battle.

Unfortunately, I didn't get a great shot showing her fur color contrast, once that ridge of it stands on end. She was showing it again over the weekend, when she had a chance to be around the small yappy pups of some good friends.

Throwback in Reserve

I'd say I'm well-stocked on my Pepsi Throwback. And yes, that's a case of Mountain Dew 12-ounce longneck bottles as well.

Cyprus in Mid-July

Cyprus managed to corner a bug at the rear glass door off the kitchen's eating area, and it reminds me that I think my pest control is overdue for their next treatment of the house.

She also managed to give a reasonable impression of Brando while knocking out her daily dental chew treat.

LaRoque Has Left Me in Limbo

I guess it has now been around six months since I last had a visit from the general contractor for the 2008-2009 renovation and addition project on the house. Peter LaRoque of Mocksville was last at the house in January, getting the Van Gogh room's bathroom back online after the damage caused by problems in the HVAC system. But as you can see from this picture, he's left me hanging with repair of the drywall, both in that bathroom and in the ceiling above the wetbar.

Ah, but there remains a list of things that he'll have to tackle, and he insists he'll stand behind his work. I just wish he wasn't standing so far away from it.

Cicada Season

Without ignoring how absolutely awful it must have been for my Virginia friends in the last year or so when the 13-year cicada season hit, and they were subjected to unending ear-shattering cicada music for weeks on end...I have to confess that I'm enjoying a more active cicada period this summer. That's just one of the classic sounds of summer, if you ask me.

And yes, I do keep enjoying the small touches of woods and wildlife that still manage to find their way to my humble downtown abode. Like this cicada who was hanging out on the front tire of my VW not so long ago.

Or finding the discarded carapaces clinging to tree trunks or on the ground nearby:

Or hanging onto a small tree branch:

And the tiny ones, that I'd never seen before:

And especially the nearly artistic ones, like this duo:

Early Lessons on Dog Toys

Look: there is an awful lot to like about Cyprus, as I've discovered in these first--oh--six weeks of her being in the Roediger House. She's an awesome dog and there is so little to complain about, it's just mind-boggling.

Here's one of her good points: she does not ever chew on things that she should not chew on. She came to me already clear about some things are hers to play with, and most things are not. How cool is that? So I certainly want to make sure she has some toys, like this fun tennis ball-rope combination.

But something I've learned pretty fast is that she needs toys that are sturdy and substantial, that will stand up to her powerful jaws and intense chewing regimens.

Ropes and tennis balls do not stand up to that test.

Cyprus managed to disintegrate this toy within about 48 hours, max. So out it went.

Cyprus and the Squirrels

Time for more Cyprus updating.

In the morning, when I get Cyprus up, before she'll eat or drink or go outside or even give me a big wet kiss, she has to go patrol at the back glass door and see what the squirrels might be up to.

They drive her a bit nuts, running back and forth checking out what they're doing and pulling out of her a high-pitched unmusical but endearing whine (and, rarely, a bark...but that's not her style).

And, as you can see, the squirrels will occasionally be extra mind-bendingly taunting to her, whether they realize it or not:

Also, before doing outside business, she's got to sniff around the bases of the various trees that the squirrels frequent. The pear tree here that she's checking out is the same one that she has tried several times to actually climb.

Possum #2: Caught in the Act

Last week, on the final morning of the visit by the principals and coaches from New Orleans College Prep, I took Cyprus out for her morning ritual and discovered that another possum had found its way into my Havahart® trap.

Since I was headed out for the second day of instructional coaching training, I had to just put this rascal under the crawl space of the front porch, to get it out of the sun and heat, and would need to tend to it later.

Friday morning, I loaded it up onto the truck and went for another long drive, this time out to the north and west of the city, in search of a good wooded area to deposit it in that would be far enough away so as to avoid any returns. Just this side of the Yadkin River, I found the perfect spot right along a creek and a good distance from houses and such.

Meal No. 317: Martinique's Birthday Dinner

Very good friend and Roediger House regular Jennifer Martin had a birthday recently, and that's another fantastic reason for a big sit-down dinner featuring some beef tenderloin. It always makes me happy when I've got a good excuse for putting this on the table and the crew was willing to oblige me.

I put together some stuffed potatoes but they were not as good as I think they have been in the past, and the heartland sunflower bread from the bread machine was a tempting sideshow. Later in the evening, I put some white chocolate macadamia nut cookies in the oven so we could all enjoy them fresh and hot.

Meal No. 316: Pork Medallions & Fresh Sides

Usually, I do not assign an official Roediger House meal number to leftovers. But last night I decided to make this almost like a new meal, even though the entree it featured was the remainders from Wednesday night's pork medallions with ginger-soy-shiitake cream sauce.

The meal started with more of that good spiced pecan and blue cheese salad with sweet and sour vinaigrette. Then I added Donna Whitley-Smith's gussied-up greens and some fresh-made mashed potatoes. Just right on a Friday night.

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"Pan-Seared Tuna with Ginger-Shiitake Cream Sauce," from The Bon Appétit Cookbook by Barbara Fairchild, 2006, p. 398-399.

Meal No. 315: Penne with Tomato Gorgonzola Cream Sauce

Last night, it was good to have a final visit to the Roediger House by Wake Forest grad Brian Hill, who's been teaching in McDowell County the last five years but who is moving to Vermont. Although Brian was in the English Education track, he ran around in the same circles as some of my grad students in social studies, and back in those days he was a frequent visitor to the house along with others in the program.

Brian is also one of those great teachers who not only pursues a passionate reflection of his craft on his own, but he seeks out helpful feedback and guidance. As a student teacher, he invited me to observe him a couple of times, even though he was not one of my students. While he's been teaching in Marion, NC, he's had me come observe him three or four times over the years. It's always good having him come by the house as well, and last night, in his final North Carolina days, he made time to come hang for a while.

And his vegetarianism was a useful impetus for me last night to put my thinking cap on, and to seek out a good recipe that would not contain objectionable items. This led me to a recipe I'd cut from Cuisine at Home a few years ago, for Tomato-Gorgonzola Sauce with pasta. I also made the fancy-dancy salad inspired by some recipes in Southern Living, and steamed some sugar snap peas as well.

It was pretty good, methinks.

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"Tomato-Gorgonzola Sauce with Pasta Shells," from Cuisine at Home, October 2007.