Today was doctoring up left overs from Labor Day menus.I started at lunch with the Wheat bun hotdogs where I added Guacamole to the bun. Fresh potato salad from the Large baked potatoes was created using Hellmann's mayo and French's yellow mustard. For dinner I ressurected the Apple soda marinated Pork ribs baking them at 350 F for 20 min. in a dish with 6 oz. of carbonated soda pop. We also finished the potato salad and I opened a can of corn that I sauteed with bacon and finished with the juice from the re-heated ribs. The wife was full with only half her plate consumed, leaving no corn.

We will always remember these first Labor day Festivities. With no children. Only my parents and brother with his wife at Canyon Lake. No trips to the marina for a picnic on the water. Only to check to see how far the wild fire spread. And then finding our way back to Houston driving around fires and through dense smoke that burned our lungs. My brother's daughter does not know the condition of her apartment in Bastrop TX.They have not allowed her back in so she stays sequestered at Canyon Lake where she took refuge yesterday. My own daughter is safe along I-45 south of Conroe. And the wife and  continue to monitor our area for smokeless skies. Y'All stay safe as your young'uns return to school.

Today was a unique day coming home from our pleasant Day at the Lake. We had to re-route ourselves around 16,000 acres of Texas State Park burning near Bastrop TX. The wife and I chose a southern route via I-10 between San Antonio and Houston. As we passed mile marker 640 we were in a 15 mile stretch of highway of dense eye burning smoke. I could see the patches of black grass along the interstate and the smoke billowing from 2 Bastrop fires 60 miles to the north. Before we left Canyon Lake there were fires down by the marina at the lake. And after getting past the Bastrop fires there was another fire along the interstate. And a fire near Conroe along I-45. Even though we did not BBQ out doors this weekend for safety reasons. The wife and I smelled like we had been doing it all weekend when we arrived home this afternoon.  Now that we are at home I have picked up the necessary ingredients for SamM salsa. And I added Bell peppers and diced Peaches to the basic recipe. The wife's Roasted Rosemary potato salad was a big hit with the extended family. We added Miracal whip and Hellmann's Mayo plus hard boiled eggs to the items I spoke about earlier this week.

It is Tuesday and fires continue to devastate our area. My niece in Bastrop had to flee her apartment today. In a few days we may find out if the fires missed her complex. Last night my daughter had a wild fire about 5 miles from her apartment. The wife and I were on alert last night.With all the excitement around here I managed to make Guacamole from the Avocado I picked up at market on Saturday. After blending the ripe avocado meat in the food processor with Lemon flesh. I added my current SamM salsa { Tomato , Red onion , Balsamic vinegar, diced Peaches, mixed Bell peppers} Earlier today I purchased 2 one dollar Chicken Sandwiches at McD's. I put 2 TBsp. of Guacamole on each sandwich. The side dish was Rice pilaf and peeled Orange sections. It is two hours since dinner and I am still full.

It was a beautiful day in Conroe for the first September Farmer's Market. I arrived early to find a windy day and temperatures that stayed under 100 F. The wind helped keep TS Lee 50 miles to the east. While at market today I spoke with Elvis from Peas Farm about sun tea and realized I should throw away the tea bags I used last Sunday because they may have bacteria, even though I refrigerated them. I picked up an Avocado and Large bake potatoes.Elvis said I needed to let the Avocado sit out and ripen before making Guacamole.

In the meantime I will visit family near Canyon Lake for a Labor day celebration. The wife and I will take Roasted Rosemary potatoes to add to the family spread. We will pack Hellmann's mayo in case we decide to make Potato salad. We were told not to bring anything; that never sits right with me. I am only  encouraged to bring  something that will WOW the family when they say," Just show up"" We have plenty" TS LEE is headed north east so we will head due west for a pleasant day at the Lake.

I visited a Penzy Spice store earlier this week in The Heights neighborhood in Houston TX. I was making valuable use of my time while waiting to interview for a job nearby. While at the store I saw many meat first soup bases. Several spice pakage combinations.California mixes , Florida mixes, Chinese mixes Etc. Unique alphebatized spices. Gift boxes. I searched around excited for an hour. I finally settled in on Rosemary. And today I used the spice  as I started to prepare a Labor day weekend menu for the family. After boiling 1 inch diced potatoes with onion, celery seed, salt and Black pepper; I placed the half cooked potatoes in a 400 F oven for 30 min. The potatoes were oiled and the Rosemary spice was liberally sprinkled on top. The potatoes will cool and on Monday Hellmans Mayonaise will be mixed in. Today though I had to verify I had a wonderful start to a Labor day potato salad.

Here's what I did. I retrieved 1/2 cup of the cooling roasted Rosemary potatoes and added them to a heated egg pan. I then whipped 2 eggs an poured them over the potatoes.Before flipping the half cooked eggs over I added Parmesan cheese. I placed a Whole Wheat hotdog bun in a bowl and placed the open face omelot on the open bun. The oil from the pan soaked into the bun. I topped off my creation with the current SamM salsa. I then waited for ten minutes so everything could cool and folded the bun so I could eat my breakfast like a sandwich. As I was finishing the last bite I made sure I wiped the bowl clean of any thing that had dropped back into the bowl. I will likely repeat this breakfast sometime before Monday.  Once I turn the potatoes into salad I will not have option of enjoying today's fabulous creation.

The Woodlands La Madeleine  Visit

On Wednesday Aug. 31, 2011 the wife and I visited The

Woodlands La Madeleine Cafe between 7:30 and 8:15 pm. It

was a pleasant visit. My wife knowing that we were Secret

Shopping chose to be the difficult customer to see how

the staff would handle it.

Allow me to start from my first impressions. As we

approached the Cafe I noticed retail food jars neatly

displayed in the window. And the Cafe had WiFi. Upon

entering we were greeted by a friendly fella in a red

shirt and fancy French hat. We explained it was our first

visit and needed someone to walk us through the ordering

process.( that was not totally honest b'cause our

daughter had previously been employed at La Madeleine's

and we had visited her in the past as guests) Our red

shirted greeter explained the Rosemary Rotisserie Chicken

Dinner to my wife. My wife settled in on the mid range

price item but thought she was getting a side of

vegetable also. The youngest of the servers told her "Our

greeter doesn't know how the pricing works, I will not be

giving you Broccoli" After we paid and sat down my wife

returned to the cashier and fussed that she was given two

different stories at the door about how to order her

food. And the orange haired lady offered a dish of

Broccoli that my wife readily accepted.I found the Men's

restroom acceptable clean and organized. The wife comment

on the Women's restroom was. " Did you see dirty pipes

under the sink ? We had dirty pipes."

Now that we have the difficult customer handled let me

share my observations. I chose the Savory Sampler, I had

Spinach Pochette with a Caeser salad, Tomato basil soup

and I added a $1.79 cent version of Tiramisu. Upon going

to the self serve bar I chose Lemon ice water Several

pieces of 7 Grain bread, Honey and Berry Jam. Balancing

all of this on my tray I headed for the the dining room

that would allow me to observe the staff while we

visited. I started to lose my balance as I stepped from a

tile floor to a wooden floor. I caught myself and and

dinner was saved. I did agree with my wife that her 1/2

chicken was a little dry, yet at the same time my wife

prefers her food cooked med well. My wife and I enjoyed

each others company. Made plans to see a movie after

dinner and reminisced over past meals we had enjoyed

while visiting as guests when our daughter was employed

at La Madeleine's.

Other observations I made had to do with staff

attentiveness to the 20 customers that were in the cafe

while we visited. Mr. redshirt and gal with orange hair

visited continuously clearing tables and making sure our

needs and those of the other guests were being taken care

of. Servers behind the line would visit and when the

older of the two servers(dark hair) noticed a customer

they would both react to take care of customers needs.

Cook/chef in kitchen was the only  employee in a

different hat (baseball cap). And the only comment to

make about the cooking area were the clutter of loose

life binders in the back corner on the top shelf.

Otherwise the area appeared to be organized. The serving

line also was well maintained. I would find it rewarding

to be part of this establishment. Especially as it

pertains to Fresh baked 7Grain bread every day and the

dining room staff attentiveness.

I made more than enough Spaghetti and Meat sauce for Family group at my house on Sunday night. So tonight it was time to make a pasta salad with half of the left over spaghetti noodles. Into this mystery salad I started with SamM salsa being sure to add lots of the vinegar and juice from the container. I then seperated the cooked sauasage from the meat sauce and added it in. As I searched the fridge I found shredded Carrots, and Green grapes. I located Cranberries that were soaking in Apple soda. And after tasting my creation I decided I needed a sweet dressing. My homemade 1000 Island dressing did the trick. Sea salt and Olive oil were already a part of the spaghetti noodles.

I am happy with tonights outcome because I like sweet fruit flavored salads. I would have done the same type of salad if I had rice as a base or beans. My experience in matching flavors when I worked for Central Market in Houston Texas taught how to create imaginative salads like this one.

 

This morning when the wife and I arrived at church we learned that Pastor Dan woke up at 4 am fo tell his wife he was too ill to preach. So his very capable wife gave a spirit filled message on the Holy Spirit. At the end of the worship service I suggested to my wife that we have family group at our house so our Pastor could have the privacy he needed to rest. Every one in family group agreed. Now be it known  all the men from our family group bailed on me and went to Huntsville TX to hear a Randy Stone preach. I entertained 8 ladies tonight. But here is how I was successful at that. Tonights menu was to center on Italian;

I prepared Spaghetti noodles seasoned with Sea salt and Olive oil.        The meat sauce started with sauteed Fresh sausage, Onions, Market green bell peppers, Garlic, Corn juice from the fridge, Canned tomato sauce, and Fresh market Tomato.

Shredded Mozzarella was mixed with Romano Parmesan on the side 

I thinly sliced half a loaf of Italian Bread with Margerine on the side.

And I made Herbed Sun Tea,

They other ladies provided Italian sandwiches, Salads , Lasagna, & Desserts

Sun Tea

Coming home this afternoon I could visualize 4 boxes of Macaroni and Cheese in the pantry. S0, I decided one needed to be cooked off. I started with cooking liquid from the fridge. Brought it to a boil and added the macaroni noodles. Thawed out 2 hotdogs under running water and 1/2 inch sliced them into the hot pasta. Opened the cheese packet into a jar and added 1/2 cup of cooking liquid. Stirred, and added it into the hot pot. Separated 2 raw eggs and incorporated the egg yolks. Then whipped the egg whites until frothy, seasoning with Sea salt ,sage, and nutmeg. The Seasoned egg whites were added back in to the hot pot with the fire now turned off. After it cooled for 10 min. I portioned the pasta dish into bowls. And topped with the current SamM salsa { Tomato, Onion, Balsamic vinegar Yellow sweet pepper, & Spinach}

While I was creating this pasta dish the wife was eating nine of twelve mini cinnamon rolls.  When I received her bowl back from her , She ate the SamM salsa off the top and told me that is all she was Hungry for. I ate all of my pasta bowl and then some of hers. Say La Vie

Dinner tonight was started 3 hours early in anticipation of a 4pm dinner. The wife loves her Large baked Potatoes. And I did not want that to hold up dinner. So into the oven at 1pm on a 1 hour timer at 350F went the Large baker. When that came out it was time to bake the 4 Chicken thighs in Broccoli rice that had Parmesan tomato soup added to it. That baked at 350 F as did the potato with the sea salt, black pepper and canola oil.One more comment about the Chicken thighs, When I purchased and divided the Chicken thighs into manageable packages, I marinated them in Allegro smoke marinade. I also prepared Corn on the cob by boiling water with margarine and fresh guajillo pepper seeds {from a dish in the kitchen window}. At 4pm when the wife walked in the door, Dinner was ready to be served. As I anticipated she chose the Potato, one Smoked chicken thigh and the largest piece of Cobbed corn. I had 2 of the three thighs, Tomato parmesan broccoli rice, and the smaller cobbed corn. The meal was filled with lively conversation as we shared our accomplishments for the day. And now the wife has asked me to enjoy a TV program on 'Fit and Health' channel with her. I will oblige.

Dinner tonight was Steak fajita. I had it leftover from a Sunday potluck at church. So what do I add to tortillia, Steak strips, Shredded colby cheese and shredded Lettuce that the wife packaged up and brought home. Simple, I add Mondays Rice and Broccoli minus the chicken. And then I take my SamM salsa, being sure to pour some of the Balsamic vinegar on top of the finished fajita.

 I did change the SamM salsa a little tonight by adding diced Yellow sweet peppers, Fresh chopped Baby spinach, Tbsp. of Balsamic vinegar and 4 more variety Tomato. I now have 2 cups of a fabulous salsa to season food the rest of this week.

SamM salsa is such a versatile seasoning agent. I picked up a Fresh loaf of Italian Bread today. Problably before I hit the pillow tonight I will cut off the ends of the loaf, dip them in the salsa juice. And have sweet italian dreams.

Today I had stood with the fridge door open. Wondering what would be exciting to create. I saw SamM salsa , homemade 1000's Island dressing, Blue cheese dressing, dill pickles, Fresh spinach, Rice and Broccoli casserole. After scouring the landscape and not wanting to repeat last nights dinner yet,here is what I decided. I went to the pantry and found Starkist tuna, opened the can and drained off the juice. In a small mixing bowl I mixed:

6 oz drained tuna

2Tbsp. Blue cheese dressing

1Tbsp. 1000 island dressing

1/4 cup SamM salsa {tomato, spanish onion, balsamic vinegar}

I took the tuna mixture added it between 2 slices of wheat bread with Fresh baby spinach, sliced baby dill, and 3 sliced Fresh tomatoes. I wanted to make 3 of these sandwiches. I decided to stretch this wonderful creation over the next few days. I will make another one tomorrow.

Back to Fresh veggies bought at Market. This week when I arrived home from Market I had Fresh Tomatoes for SamM salsa. Tomatoes , spanish Onions, and Balsamic vinegar are in the salsa so far.

Fresh green beans, broccoli, Strawberries, and Red, Yellow and Green pepper. Tonight for dinner I made a childhood classic.Chicken rice broccoli casserole. Understand when my mother made this dish, the rice is overcooked. The fifth taste Umami also plays an important role in this dish. {Taking its name from Japanese, umami is a pleasant savoury taste imparted by glutamate, a type of amino acid, and ribonucleotides, including inosinate and guanylate, which occur naturally in many foods including meat, fish, vegetables and dairy products. As the taste of umami itself is subtle and blends well with other tastes to expand and round out flavors, most people don't recognize umami when they encounter it, but it plays an important role making food taste delicious }

Blanch 2 heads of Broccoli in 4 cups of savory juices from the fridge.        Take the blanched Broccoli out of the hot liquid and add chicken thighs or legs. Add 2 cups of rice.Bring to a boil                                                   Add milk or cream,

Pour the chicken, rice, milk, and add back the broccoli to a casserole dish.

Season to taste with Thyme, Sage, Sea salt, Black pepper. Fresh Herbs when possible. 

Bake the casserole in 350 F for 1 hour.Cover with tin foil if you do not want crispy broccoli.

The only thing missing from my fridge was grated Parmesean.

 When I try this dish in restaurants they do not normally overcook the rice. It only taste correct if the rice is overcooked.

I waited to share the results because I had to show my salsa infused sliced Pickles to Chef Michael and Elvis at Market today.                   Here's what I told them:

1) When I opened the jar on Friday the pickle juice was bubbling.

2) I threw away the Fresh Spices that were on top saving the Garlic     cloves.

3) When I pulled out the 1/8 inch thick slices the cucumber flesh disintegrated and I was holding on to the skin only.

4) I was not able to detect a foul smell. It was my first attempt at trying to create pickles.

5) I lied; I tasted one and was not sure if I was tasting something unique.

Elvis had half a smile as he explained, "Because of the bubbling effect a bacteria had been somehow been introduced to my final product." It was time to say goodbye to my Salsa / Pickle experiment.                          What could the cause had been?

1) I may not have used a sterile canning jar.

2) I skimped on the vinegar because I added salsa when I was making them.

3) The acidity from the tomatoes in the salsa, suggested Chef Michael, May have had a factor in encouraging bacteria growth.

I have decide to give the thin slice pickle experiment one last shot. Elvis suggested I re-sterilize the lid and Mason jar. Before I add in my thin sliced cukes I should shock them in an ice bath.This will retain their crunchiness. Chef Michael added,"And leave out the Tomatoes until after the 5 day curing process." It will be later this week before I try again. I will share the results, good or bad, in a few weeks.

Also, This weeks find at Market were Fresh Green Beans and several different varities of Tomatoes for the SamM salsa. I am still wanting to play with making Fresh mozzarella. The thermometer that reads 88 F and 102 F has to still be purchased.  

 

I just received word from a brother that has been helping us try to resolve our Internet issue. He will give us a internet ready machine. Praise God! Our internet troubles started when we took our computer to our son a few weeks back. He tore into the guts of our PC and rebuilt it. Selling us on the fact that he installed a better video card, gave us more Ram, The wife and I are computer tech dummies. So we did not know that when he traded out our motherboard that he gave us back a non working internet computer. Well my brother who travels the World for his company installing systems and writing programs came over to the house diagnose. And called today to say. 'I have an extra computer. Let's replace your son's gift with a computer that has a working Ethernet'    When I pick up the wife this afternoon we will head to his house and accept his gift. From our new computer I will send the results of the Baby Dill  vs  Sliced infused salsa pickle.

And just for the record, I made an omelot that had Bacon, corn, SamM Salsa , Baby spinach , shredded carrots, and plastic swiss cheese. Served it over 2 pieces of wheat toast in a bowl. Splitting it with the wife while she was waking up this morning.

 Group Hug "We have a internet ready computer"

And now for the results:

I apologize, I posted this one a day early. Tomorrow , Thursday Aug. 18 is the night when I open my mason jar to see how the Sliced infused salsa pickles came out . Pat from Peas Farm said I had to flip my pickles for 5 days.

Well as long as I made this mistake I wil tell you how the rest of this weeks meal are going. Last night I cooked 2 Large Bakers. I had some grilled chicken fajita meat that I sauteed Fresh julienne green peppers and spanish onions into. And then I took this weeks SamM salsa and finished off the Fajita creation.  Recipe for this weeks SamM Salsa:

4 Roma Tomatoes diced 1/4 inch

1/3 peeled Spanish onion diced 1/4 inch

1/2 Green pepper diced 1/4 inch

2 Tbsp. Balsamic vinegar

I then added my fajita creation to split open cooked baked potatoes and finished them in a 400 F oven with shredded Mozzarella. Wife ate all except the skin that I had coated with Olive Oil and Sea Salt.

Tonight I chopped up all the left overs and added it to boiling Chicken stock with  a little more SamM Salsa and called it hearty Fajita Potato Soup. YUM!!

Almost forgot; I had the soup with Saltines, and the wife prefers Cheese crackers.

I am marinating sliced roast Pork in dill juice tonight with Tarragon. And I will open the mason jar to try the sliced infused salsa pickle with that tomorrow or Friday. And then I will share the results of:

Baby Dill  or sliced infused salsa Pickles.

With my lovely assistant { the Wife } being the judge.

Saturday's visit to Market was very educational , creative , hands-on and engaging. In that order. Thanks in part to Pat from Peas Farm and Chef Michael Fleshner and his father. I understand their are photos on Facebook from the 'Pickle Shake' we did while learning to can pickles. Chef Michael's father was in his father's words" The first Dummy to learn how to can Pickles" from Pat. Several of us stood around laughing and watching as Michael's, father, shared his humor while learning something new. Pat started by having her students pick a pickle that suited their preferences. By the way, next week , Pat will be back in public school with a classroom full of 25 - 10 year olds. She commented that if she can teach Michael's father to can his pickles she will be ready for whatever the new school  year brings. After picking his cuke he was instructed to cut it in half, so it would fit into the mason jar. Then cutting each half lengthwise into eight spears stuff them into the mason jar. Take one Garlic clove chop it up and stuff it in around the spears. Add 1/2 Tbsp. Kosher salt, 1/2 tsp of dill seed and a shot of white vinegar.Tighten the Ball lid on the jar and do the Pickle Shake. Open the lid and  top off with water. And every day for the next 5 days flip over the jar of marinating spears. Open on the sixth day and start enjoying.

And now the rest of the story: I had heard also if I waited ; Brandy, with Tupperware was going to do a Salsa using the equipment from her tent. So I stuck around for her demonstration. And then I was in a quandary. Did I want to take home a jar of pickles or a jar of salsa. I thought about it ; spoke openly with Chef Michael about my indecision. And here was his solution.  Go buy the jar from Pat. Put 1/4 cup of salsa in the bottom and make the pickles on top of that and finish it with another 1/4 cup salsa. So now I had a plan. When I cut up my pickles though , I changed how I wanted to prep them. I sliced my cuke lengthwise 1/4 inch thick. I like pickles to lie flat on sandwiches. I also did not want dill seed so I skipped that step , waited till I returned home and added Fresh Tarragon. And finally added Balsamic vinegar to top off the ingredients in my pickle jar. The wife is not happy with the recipe I created for my pickles.I bought a jar of Baby dills for her at the supermarket this afternoon while grocery shopping.

My wife will start enjoying her store bought pickle, now. I have to wait till Friday. And you know what. I will do a blind taste test on Friday. We shall see who's pickle wins.

Baby Dill    or     Sliced infused salsa pickle     

We arrived home from the days activities and the wife saw a neighbor outside , on her covered porch. "I have something to share with her. You make dinner I will see you soon", She said. We have been married over 25 years I should have known what to expect tonight. I made a wonderfully smelling Pork dinner. Sat down to wait. And read 3 chapters of 'Into the Wild' by John Krakauer. Ninety min. later I realized I will be eating alone.

So here's what I had waiting. Seasoned mash potatoes from the last of the Large baked potato. Quartered sliced Zucchini sauteed in Bacon pieces, with Green peppers. For a sauce I added Milk, Poppy seed dressing,rendered fat from corned beef drippings and brown gravy. This sauce was made from fridge cleanout containers. 2-3 oz of each item. And then to disguise its brown color I put it in a metal bowl with the Zuc and Bacon and melted Mozzarella cheese on top in a 350 F oven for 10 min. It was the highlight of the meal. Now, the Pork roast slices that have been marinating in old coffee and tarragon  for the last few days were my next challenge. So here's what I did, I put them in a hot saute pan , browned the three pieces on both sides. I then poured the coffee / tarragon marinade on top. Brought it to a simmer and added yellow Mustard, Tasted. It was bitter , so I added 1/4c Honey to balance the bitter and make it acceptable to my pallette. Covered it and waited; reading the three chapters, before realizing it was time to eat alone. When she wandered home I was writing this blog and she said, "It looks lovely , Honey"  I am not going to coax a remark from here about how it tasted. But , I was very pleased with the flavors from the meal I created.

Oh No! just a second, I just remembered the Garlic bread in the oven. Be right Back........ I am hollering down stairs to the wife...............OK , I am back. She said,"Don't worry, I do not smell anything, I'll take care of it"  Now I remember, I placed the bread in an off oven so it would warm while I was waiting for her. It may just be dried out. Wait till she finds out it was her Garlic bread from Little Ceaser's  Dinner was a bitter sweet adventure this evening 'cause I ate alone tonight

On the way home tonight the wife said,"Can we please go and get a $5 dollar Little Ceaser" I agreed and off we went. Upon returning home I split the Pizza in half. Half of the Pizza stayed a Pepperoni and cheese. The other half went through a facelift. I sauteed chopped up Bacon pieces, added quartered Zucchini slices, diced green Peppers, diced Guajillos and mixed in country gravy from a chicken tender meal. I poured this over half of the pizza and melted more stringy Mozzarella on top in a 350 F oven. I offered both halves of the pizza to the wife and she chose the half that I had given the facelift to.I am ba-a-ad like that always trying to improve what sells in the mainstream fast food joints. Maybe tomorrow we will have my marinating pork tender slices. And finish the Large bake potato.

Before I leave for Market every Saturday morning part of my routine is to check the fridge crisper for Large bake potatoes. If there is 2 or more in the crisper I do not have to buy anymore. So the house rule is to always have Peas Farm potatoes in the fridge. My wife's favorite. Dinner was started late last night so I needed to prepare the potato quickly. I Julienned the potato by cutting it into eights, then I tossed them in Olive Oil and Fresh Thyme. Baked them at 400 F for 30 min. along with Baby Carrots. I tossed the Carrots in Olive oil and Fresh Tarragon. And finished it with drizzled Honey. This was a perfect meal for her.