What's for suppah? (Portland: store, garden, to eat)

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by Fort Lauderdale mermaid

Great thread starter Maineah! What fun, except you've all made me pretty hungry listening to all of your nice meals!

Growing up in my family it was always breakfast, lunch and suppah. Now for some reason we've all become more formal, we now eat dinner.

Have I confessed to all yet that I'm a lousy cook? Seriously, I am. Not just bad, I mean really bad. The dog won't even eat my cooking. The kids used to come home and say "what's for suppah?"- no matter what my response was they always had a previous comittment. My meatloaf? Forget it, they'd run and hide for days.

I'm a good cook and used to do all of the cooking until DW decided we all needed to go on diets. I refuse to cook diet food! She has gotten pretty good at it and I'll have to say I look forward to SOME of her diet cuisine now. I still sneak off for a loaded cheeseburger with fries once in a while!

[Maineah]

Meatball sandwiches from last night's spaghetti dinner! I like those as much as the spaghetti dinner anyway!

[RANGER.101ST]

tonight we are haveing deer steak baked sweet tater's ,peas,home made bread,and for disert cherry chees cake home made.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by RANGER.101ST

tonight we are haveing deer steak baked sweet tater's ,peas,home made bread,and for disert cherry chees cake home made.

That sounds great! You got me thinking I should thaw out some deer steaks for the grill this weekend!

[quiet walker]

Originally Posted by starwalker

The most affordable of the lot is to cook dry beans, and then freeze them in serving batches to "re-fry". My kids called them "free ride" beans...

Thank You! For that recipe, and a laugh "free ride" beans! Serendipity, I put 2 1/2 pounds of beans in a pot to soak yesterday, in preparation for soup. I have a wonderful 8 qt pot - stainless steel with heavy copper/steel laminated bottom, that a friend gave me. She used to live in a hippie commune and cooked for everyone. And more dry beans will be going in my pantry. As is being discussed in another thread here, food and fuel prices are going up alarmingly fast. Last time I went to the store, a 5lb bag of basmati rice was going for $9.95!! I found two of the brand I usually buy, way in the back of the very bottom shelf still priced at $3.89. That 10lbs may be the last I see at that price. Yikes.

I have been known to use whatever beans I have on hand... not just pinto or red beans but sometimes navy or even kidney. Actually I have done the same thing with cooked lentils, when the kids didn't like lentils. They never noticed the difference, and I introduced the lentils again after a few months, in the spring, and called them "Easter Beans." Believe it or not, it worked; they all liked Easter Beans...

"Easter Beans" I love it I have to get back to using lentils. I miss the thick rich lentil soup from the cafeteria at work - I always got a bay leaf (I win - yay!). Plus they are versatile can be used for loafs and patties.

A question, do you discard the soak water from your beans? Rinse and replace with fresh? It's supposed to have all the f*rt stuff in it. But it also supposedly has some good stuff too. My system seems to have gotten used to beans, and there is not that problem.

When I make chili, I use half pinto and half dark red kidneys, or all dark kidneys. The dark kidneys are rather sweet and don't taste good to me in anything else. But they are wonderful in chili. The only complaint I have received at pot lucks or parties is that my old crock pot is too small. And for some reason the inside is always shiney clean afterwards - maybe they wiped it out with a piece of bread

I have a bast*rdized version of Greek Fasoulatha (black eyed pea soup) that I make with large limas and a few tweaks to the spices. The big limas are "meaty" and satisfyingly "al dente" and make wonderful hearty soup. I forget the reason (there was one) why this recipe evolved, but during cold weather, when served with hot crusty bread and natural cider, it is a real friend pleaser. I'll look up the recipe and post it in that old "While we're all thinking..." thread.

Got to get me down to the food coop today or tomorrow to look at all the varieties of dry bulk products they have. Another plus, if you don't have mice, dry goods don't need a lot of energy to store.

Cheers, qw

[KiddinAroundFarm]

Tonight's supper is homemade cheeseburger macaroni. All store-bought ingredients I'm afraid. I have been looking at all kinds of seeds and plants today, and can't wait for the weekend, when I can hopefully get something in the ground!!! Looking forward to summer salads fresh from the garden, etc.

[Asta]

Oh boy I love to cook. I always used to spend hours making homemade bread, soups, casseroles, etc. Winter favs were stuffed peppers, sheperd's pie, pot pie, chicken and dumplings, homemade soups and fresh hot bread. In summer we grilled a lot, and had fresh veggies from the farmer's market. I loved to experiment with different cuisines too, Thai, Korean, classic Italian, Indian. But cooking for one is so hard, and not so enjoyable! I am having leftover supermarket rotisserie chicken from last night and deli potato salad. I love those rotisserie chickens, they are great afterwards for soup!

[starwalker]

Originally Posted by quiet walker

A question, do you discard the soak water from your beans? Rinse and replace with fresh? It's supposed to have all the f*rt stuff in it. But it also supposedly has some good stuff too. My system seems to have gotten used to beans, and there is not that problem.

<snip>
Got to get me down to the food coop today or tomorrow to look at all the varieties of dry bulk products they have. Another plus, if you don't have mice, dry goods don't need a lot of energy to store.

Cheers, qw

I didn't used to change bean water, but I do now; my system is ok with beans, but K has less tolerance. Even with the change of water, he still gets a bit gassy, but I will not add the bit of baking soda to the water that I have heard used, as it does affect nutrients, as well, and adds sodium as well, which he is supposed to watch. Kinda splitting the difference...

I cannot wait to find our real home and settle in, where I can have (or build if need be!) storage space. Not sure a root cellar would work many places here (they did not need sump pump where I have had cellars in the past! LOL) but storage will be found or made. Not a worry here about mice, as the cats will have the run of the storage areas... with Ghost, Agnes, Buster, Harker, Sparky, Sherrie and Kindness on duty -- not to mention our newest feline family member, our own Maine MOOSE (photos will follow after I learn to use my new camera) -- it's definitely open season on rodents here, 24/7.

But here in "the most ghetto trailer park" I am struggling to keep enough staples and stores that I don't have to go to the market daily. I did a Sams/Walmart run last week, stocking up on some of the canned goods, crackers, salad dressings that we use on a regular basis and now I have to go rearrange and hunt for storage so I can install the new microwave.... the cupboards as so inadequate that much of the storage is on the counter (not that there is much of that either!) I say we have a kitchen that was made for someone who neither cooks nor eats. Which does NOT include us...

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by quiet walker

Thanks for this. I remember something like that too from when I was a kid - haven't had it since.



I love tacos and could eat them every day. As far as I know there were no Mexicans in my family Try this: Instead of canned refried beans take a can of pinto beans, put them in a microwave bowl (covered in plastic wrap) and nuke them for 3 - 4 minutes. Then take them out and mash them, leaving some beany bits (don't blender them). I have an old masher which is a slotted flat disk on a shaft with wooden handle. Then they go in mini crock pot for serving. Add a little water if too thick. These beans have a rich, light beany taste without the yukky lard flavor that is in canned refried beans. Plus they're a lot cheaper, and wouldn't you like to eat bean instead of lard? These light beans are a wonderful contrast to the rich corn tortillas, the cool crispy vegetables and the hot sauce and cheese. The beans have enough salt from the can. I add some dried minced onion to the microwave bowl which get mixed up in the cooking and mashing.

Back to the thread subject, I'm not in Maine, but here's what we had this pm. Sausages, coarse grits (not the soupy ones) with margerine and salt, Bush's baked beans, and hot french bread right from the oven. Plus sweet iced tea with lemon. Yum!

I've heard of grits but never had them. I didn't even know they were corn until I googled them. They're definitely a Southern dish. I saw them on the menu at Denney's in Virginia once and was tempted to try them though the waitress told me if I never had them before that the ones at Denney's would not be leave a good first impression. So I ALMOST had them. The recipe I saw said to cook them in milk in a double boiler for 45 minutes to an hour and a half! I guess I'd have to eat them for lunch then! The whole hominy thing was a bit strange to read about. Soaking the corn in home made wood ash lye. Interesting tradition though. Any good instant ones?

[island mermaid]

My closest friends down here are from S. Carolina. They serve grits often, I've had them a few times. I think it's an acquired taste. You look at it and think... cream of wheat... so you expect them to be sweet. They're not. They make the coarse ones too. I've thought that maybe with a little maple syrup or some brown sugar... I might be able to tolerate them. Not wanting to insult my lovely hosts, I've never asked for anything to add to them.

QW- do some people ever add anything to them besides butter and salt?