chili baked potato

chicken noodle soup

A family favorite even though it has been awhile.

tortellini

tofu veggie stir fry

pizza

I've been making my own lately. It doesn't take much more time than the pizzeti I was making before and the end result is MUCH better.

Pilau

and Churros from Christmas in the Park.

Duck, duck, goose

Not the kids game, we really ate two ducks and a goose as well as fantastic red cabbage made by my brother in law's German God mother, a little sweet, a little savory, a lot of bacon. The red cabbage confit recipe at epicurious.com comes is a good start, but not the same. For dessert there was a fabulous pudding of some sort with yummy ice cream.

I love Christmas dinner and I like it even more when I don't have to cook it.

Cioppino and crab

The Christmas Eve tradition. Yum yum yum.

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

This is actually the mandarin chicken salad from Wendy's. It is pretty good for fast food.

Pilau

and pork chops sliced very thin and seasoned with the spices of the pilau. Very tasty.

chicken and rice

Kiddies and I had dinner with GrandDad while Hubby is out camping with his friends. Hubby and friends had pilau and red cabbage salad that I made last night. (What do you make for a vegan and a diabetic?) I made a big batch so it looks like I will also be having pilau for lunch for the next few days.

random leftovers

Every once in awhile you just need to eat up all the little bits that accumulate and start fresh.

pizza

home made tonight

sandwiches

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

and fresh home made breadsticks. Yum yum.

lo mein

Very tasty for the fist try of a new recipe. Buddy boy loves chow mein from the Chinese restaurant so I thought I would try this. It was a hit.

Chinese takeout

Yummy, hot and sour soup, braised bean curd, moo shoo pork

pork chops & rice

Especially grubbin' tonight. Maybe it's because the chops cooked for an extra 30 minutes while we waited for Dad to get home and almost burned. The dark almost burned part was the best. Maybe I should almost burn things more often.

black bean and cheese burrito

teriyaki chicken

Beef stew

rainy day food

chicken and stuffing

BBQ pork sandwiches

random leftovers

A bit of this and that with fresh home made bread hot from the oven.

chicken and stuffing

moo shoo pork

pizza

I really like my home made pizza. I put balsamic vinegar in the sauce tonight and it was good.

sausages and rice

and birthday cake! Happy Birthday Baby Girl.

beef and bean burritos

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

Stuffing

No, I didn't get enough last week. I also made yam'n apples because I didn't get any at all last week. It has been years.

Beef w/ mushroom gravy

pumpkin soup

and something featuring eggplant. I didn't do the cooking so I'm not exactly sure what I ate. It tasted good.

pizza

repeat

I love leftovers. Pie for breakfast and turkey for dinner.

Happy Thanksgiving

Turkey, potatoes, gravy, stuffing, creamed onions, brussel sprouts, cranberries, rolls, pies, (pumpkin, mincemeat, berry), whipped cream
YUMM!

Chili

Slightly different recipe, much better.

chicken tamales

I really need to learn to make tamales. So yummy.

Cashew curry, peanut chicken, bamboo stir fry

Thai food without the kids. Delicious and fantastic. Happy anniversary to me (and my hubby of course).

tortellini

mac & cheese

When Dad is off studying we go for the quick fix. The kids like it andn I like that there is only one pot to clean.

Beef stroganoff

beef and bean burritos

roasted sweet potatoes and herb chicken

BBQ pork sandwiches

I love left overs after a busy day. Easy dinner.

BBQ pork sandwiches

Beef stew

roast beef sandwiches

chicken w/ sweet mustard glaze

BBQ pork sandwiches

mac & cheese

beef and bean burritos

stir fried pork and veggies

Same veggies, but a new sauce recipe. The hoisin sauce made it a little to sweet. It could have used the ginger I left out. I'll try it again after some modification.

Chili

Not just any Chili, but a truly delectible version thanks to the Santa Cruzians.

pasta

pork chops & rice

Chicken kabobs

pasta w/ tomato meat sauce

sausages and rice

pizza

Happy Halloween!

roasted chicken & potatoes

Chili

Yup, it's fall.

Chicken kabobs

polenta lasagna

BBQ pork sandwiches

We have this a lot it seems, mostly on days I bake bread. Then we have fresh rolls as well.

grilled steak

roast mini potatoes and green beans. We obviously weren't at home. Thanks, GrandDad.

pasta w/ tomato meat sauce

stir fried tofu & veggies

BBQ pork sandwiches

split pea soup & biscuits

pork chops & rice

left overs. I never seem to include the veggies etc. in the title. Oh well. We do have them.

French Dip sandwiches

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

pork chops

braised and served with my favorite rice. Don't forget the fresh home made cinnamon rolls. YUM. I haven't made them for a long time.

pasta

Braised tofu & mushrooms

chili baked potato

Beef stew

random leftovers

turkey sandwich

roasted cauliflower, potatoes, carrots, and sausages

Cool weather = roasted veggies. Yum.

pork chops

I used bulger instead of rice tonight. Quite tasty. I don't think the kids noticed much of a difference.

Chicken kabobs

sausages, green beans, and rice

beef and bean burritos

pork roast, roasted veggies, and cream puffs

beef & mushrooms

or more accurately super thin sliced beef (to make a cheap cut edible) marinated and stir fried with sauteed mushrooms and onions, brown rice, green beans, artichokes, and balsamic dijon vinegrette.

Not bad for a Saturday night. Sure beats pizzetti.

meatloaf & roasted potatoes

Fallis officially here. Let the cold weather cooking beging.

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

BBQ pork sandwiches

stir fried tofu & veggies

mac & cheese

salads

dinner at the church for the RS broadcast.

turkey sandwich

We went to Zanotto's for dinner. A local grocery store with a great deli. They have a fun little pasta/wine grotto where we like to sit.

sausages & stuffing

BBQ pork sandwiches

Chicken kabobs and tabouleh

I liked the bulger for a hot day. You don't need to cook it, just add hot water and wait for 30 minutes. It is kind of like cous cous. Only it takes a little longer.

Turkey burgers

Pizzeti

pizza

BBQ pork sandwiches

black bean and cheese burritos

roasted cauliflower, pork chops, rice

I really like the roasted cauliflower. Olive oil, S&P, onion powder, 400 degrees, 25 min or nicely carmelized.

black bean and cheese burritos

Pizzeti

curry chicken

polenta lasagna

Chicken kabobs

chicken pilau

Buffalo burgers

Grass fed buffalo burgers with the Santa Cruzians

Pizzeti

ham, rice, broccoli

Turkey burgers

Way to mix it up. They were actually OK. Not as dry and flavorless as I was expecting.

BBQ pork sandwiches

Braised tofu & mushrooms

BBQ pork sandwiches

burgers

grilled chicken

grilled steak

BBQ with friends. Good food, good fun.

pizza again

Pizza from Upper Crust Pizza is our default meal out in Santa Cruz. This afternoon we headed to the beach and then pizza. Fun and yum.

sausages and tomato salad

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

honey mustard pork chops

pasta

pizza

I'm not being very creative here. Better next week.

pasta

pizza

feeling better but not up to cooking.

toast

I hate being sick.

Chicken kabobs

lemon pepper fish, rice, cucumbers

Hamburgers

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

black bean and cheese burrito

from the airport in Las Vegas, surprisingly good for airport food

pancakes w/ raspberry jam and whipped cream

chicken fajitas

Cafe Sabor in Garden City, Utah. Surprisingly good.

roast pork w/ rice

ham & roasted potatoes

grilled chicken & veggies

Yummy yummy chicken. I need to find out what my sister in law uses for her marinade.
Let the reunioning begin!

pasta

stir fried tofu & veggies

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

pizza

grilled chicken & bruscetta

Happy 150th birthday party for GrandDad and his brother.

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

Backyard burgers

Summer summer summer!

Zanotto's sandwiches

One of our favorite grocery store delis.

Hamburgers

Backyard grillin' yumm

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

French Dip sandwiches

grilled chicken & bruscetta

Home grown tomatoes. YUM!

salmon, tortellini, salad

stuffing, ham, cucumbers

baked ham, rice, green beans

corned beef au jus sandwich

like a french dip, but with corned beef instead. Salty savory goodness.

beef and bean burritos

BBQ pork sandwiches

Stuffing

It isn't Thanksgiving, but we like it anyway.

beef and bean burritos

chicken veggie stir fry

pizza

Spaghetti

Braised tofu & mushrooms

pizza

BBQ pork sandwiches

chicken veggie stir fry

teriyaki chicken sandwiches

polenta lasagna

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

Chicken kabobs

tortellini with zuccini ragu

It's summer. The zuccini are coming in full force.

Pizzeti

Beef stew

BBQ pork sandwiches

Hamburgers

grilled tilapia with filet mignon kabobs

No, I didn't do this at home. We met Dad at our favorite fish place, Race Street Fish and Poultry, for dinner between his meetings. Can you believe it grilled fish with fillet mignon kabobs for only $10.99. You can pay that much for a fast food meal.

beef and bean burritos

pizza again

pizza

We were in Santa Cruz escaping the hot weather and had pizza at the cousins house.

Polenta and pasta sauce

beef and bean burritos

penne w/ meat(loaf) sauce

I had a bit of meatloaf left in the freezer. Too small for a meal and not really snack material. It went in to the pasta sauce with sauteed zuccini (yes the summer harvest has begun) and diced tomatoes etc. Not the usual flavors, but quite tasty.

grilled pork loin, grill roasted potatoes, green beans

The idea was good. The execution was poor. I should probably look at a recipe.

Pizzeti

Spaghetti

BBQ pork sandwiches

tofu veggiie stir fry

Same idea new veggies, lots of broccoli and no bok choy.

Gatorade

Not feeling well today. A migraine that went to my stomach.

tortellini

French Dip sandwiches

BBQ pork sandwiches

An easy Sunday meal.

Spaghetti

chili baked potato

sausages & stuffing

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

Hamburgers

Chili

chicken veggie stir fry

sandwiches

Chinese takeout and birthday cake

Happy birthday to me! Chocolate cake, strawberries, and whipped cream. Yum

Beef-less stroganoff

Just mushrooms and onions, no beef tonight. Still good.

more BBQ sandwiches

Still good the second day

BBQ pork sandwiches

Hamburgers

meatloaf

Not exciting, but we haven't had it for quite awhile.

polenta lasagna

Pizzeti & cantaloupe

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

Sam's BBQ

pizza

Stuffing

Stuffing or dressing or bread pudding, whatever you want to call it. Dry bread milk, broth, sage, onion, celery, thyme, and a few other things.

Out

grilled teriyaki chicken

Beef stroganoff

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

Pizzeti

Chinese takeout

French Dip sandwiches

Fresh hot rolls just scream for a hot sandwich of some sort. I did the beef in the crock pot and seasoned it with Lowery's Steak and Chop sauce instead of my usual crock pot fixings. It is a great flavor for sandwiches. Since this is a marinade the flavor is pretty strong so I used 1/2 a bottle and beef broth (water and bullion) for the rest of the liquid.

Chicken soup & watermelon ice

Summer's comin'. The watermelon ice is in the freezer.

Chicken kabobs

I do make these at home, but these were from the House of Falafel on Steven's Creek Blvd. Very good food there at a reasonable price.

Hamburgers

The first grilling of the season. We could probably grill year round but for some reason I don't do it as much during the winter when it is dark and windy.

Chili

Quick, easy, tasty

tortellini

more pasta

pasta with tomato mushroom sauce

Spaghetti dogs

for the kids anyway. Dad and I had Chinese takeout.

BBQ pork sandwiches, salad, & strawberries

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

stir fried chicken and veggies

Sole w/butter & capers

It was dinner at Grammie's house. I don't really know how to fix fish.

Hamburgers

Hamburgers for big people. Hot dogs for little people.

glazed tofu, rice, salad

the glazed tofu is from the start of the recipe for a stir fry recipe I like. I found that I was nibbling on the tofu while the other stuff cooked so I decided that for tonight we would just stop at the nibbling stage.

sweet & sour orange pork & fresh garden peas

I picked our crop of sugar snap peas. Super yummy. The pork was left from the roast earlier this week.

chicken salad w/ mandarin oranges

OK we went to Wendy's again, but Dad likes to eat out and I choose to have eat out day on park day so that I don't have to get a meal together in 10 minutes.

roast pork w/ rice & broccoli

veggie stir fry

same recipe with the garlic, ginger and oyster sauce. Still yummy without the tofu or meat.

Shrimp burritos and chocolate madness

It was back in Santa Cruz for dinner again and more birthday fun.

hamburgers

We were in Santa Cruz with the cousins. They put herbed butter in the middle of the patties before cooking them on the grill. Tasty and juicy.

more sandwiches

just as good the second time

french dip sandwiches

I put part of a bottle of Lowery's garlic and pepper steak and chop sauce in the crock pot with the meat along with the usually things, carrots, onion, water, bullion. It was really good. perfect for sandwiches.

Chicken salad

OK so it was Wendy's again. We were at the park until 5:00 and we were all hungry and Dad likes to get out.

Broiled ham & cheese sandwiches

Still to hot to cook but did a little anyway. 85+ degrees inside. Hotter outside. Hopefully better tomorrow.

Out - Wendy's

It was Wendy's for dinner tonight. To hot to cook in the kitchen today.

Pizzeti

Chicken shwarma

Take out at GrandDad's house from Mediteranian House on Stevens Creek.

pork roast, asparagus

Pork loin was on sale at Safeway for 1.99/#, but only if you bought a whole loin, all 12 pounds of it. I cut it in to 2# chunks and put it in the freezer.

BBQ beef sandwich

Yummy, from Sam's barbeque on Bascom. Cute model train running around the room near the ceiling.

sausages, rice

Chicken noodle soup

It won't be long before it will be to hot for soups.

cheese tortellini

sausages and rice

A quick dinner. I used a new chicken broth in the rice, "infused with herbs". It was delicious.

Sloppy Joes

I needed something other than the usual BBQ pork sandwiches to go with the uber-yummy home made rolls I make when I bake bread for the weekend.

Beef stew

It was a cold rainy day. Definitely stew weather. Hopefully some of the last.

out

We often eat out on Wednesdays since we are at the park until late in the afternoon.

sausages, rice, broccoli, and birthday cake

cornbread and more chili

pasta and cucumber salad

PB & J

PB & J or left over chili whichever.

Chili

curry chicken, rice, asparagus

out - ff, cn, l

That's short for French fries, chicken nuggets, and lemonade. Buddy boy's favorite meal. I had a salad.

tofu veggie stir fry

This is becoming a regular in the line up. I bought a new button of garlic and you could really tell. A little strong.

beef and black bean burritos

more BBQ pork sandwiches

left overs but still yummy even though the rolls are a little less fresh

Sandwiches

From Zanotto's

BBQ pork sandwiches

Fresh home made rolls. Yumm.

Pizza

full sized, not the mini pizzas of our typical Sunday.

lasagna

I had one in the freezer from when we made pasta a little while back. It was an experiment that worked out well.

pork chops and rice

Pizzeti

aka pita pizzas

more corned beef and cabbage

We eat it in celebration once a year and other times because we like it.

PB&J

It had just been that kind of day. I also had fresh homemade bread and this seemed the easiest.

tamales

Thanks to Andale

Chicken & sauteed mushrooms w/ couscous

Chicken salad

Corn Beef & Cabbage of course

Pasta

sausages and rice

more chicken noodle soup

tofu veggie stir fry

chicken noodle soup

hamburgers

cheese tortellini

french dip sandwiches

beef goulash

Thanks to Dirk and common meals at CoHo

pot roast

roast chicken

a la Costco

chili

stir fried veggies & pork

pork chops

beef stew

pizzeti

pizza

stir fried vegetables with pork

I used the left over chops and the recipe for tofu vege stir fry. Still yummy.

pork chops, rice, asparagus

Lasagna with home made noodles

Chinese take out

home made noodles and marinara sauce

Check out Living the Good Life for pictures of the pasta making festivities.

Burritos

GrandDad's 17 bean soup

Chili

Tofu stir fry with ginger oyster sauce

A new recipe - very good, a definite keeper
look it up at www.americastestkitchen.com

leftover chicken soup

Even good the second time around

chicken noodle soup

A family favorite and a crowd pleaser

pizzeti again

It was a holiday, what can i say.

Pizzeti

lemon pepper fish

fish
rice
Brussel sprouts

beef stew

ginger chicken

ginger chicken - a new recipe. I really liked it though hubby wasn't a huge fan of the chicken thighs.
brown rice
spiniach

leftover chili

dinner out

Wendy's salad for me chicken nuggets for the kids and chili for hubby.

chili & corn bread

pizzeti

Pizzeti = pita pizzas. What can I say. It's Sunday.

Chinese takeout

from our favorite neighborhood place

BBQ pork sandwiches

GrandDad's lentil soup

Dinner at GrandDad's with the cousins
Lentil soup
parmesean cheese crackers - NY times recipe, tasty buttery tidbits

teriyaki chicken

Teriyaki chicken
rice
green beans - I think I liked the beans the best

Pita pizzas

It was Sunday so we had our usual quick dinner.

fish & roasted potatoes

Frozen fish - I really need to learn some good, easy fish recipes
roasted potatoes
cucumber salad

sweet mustard glazed pork chops

Yummy chops, broccoli, rice
I was trying to make up for the bad tortellini.

cheese tortellini

I put olives in the sauce. I forgot that Dad doesn't like olives. OOPS!

Out

Combo meal #1
We were at the park late and I have a cold and didn't feel like cooking.

curried chicken & roasted sweet potatoes & brussel sprouts

Curried chicken & onions - TJ thai yellow curry simmering sauce
roasted sweet potatoes
roasted brussel sprouts - it is an entirely different vegetable roasted, sweet, almost nutty, not bitter at all

Pita pizzas

Pita pizzas
oranges

Parmasean chicken fingers

Parmesean chicken fingers - Chicken strips, seasoned flour (s&p, sage, italian seasoning, paprika), egg, parmasean cheese
Zuccini
Rice - brown rice mix

leftovers & chocolate cake

Chili
corn bread
chocolate cake with sprinkles

Chili & corn bread

It was a chilly rainy day so Chili seemed like just the right thing.  I added smoked paprika this time and I really like what it added.  I might add a little less next time, a little goes a long way.

Chili

Corn bread

penne with meat & mushroom sauce

Penne pasta with meat (hamburger) and mushroom sauce

Cucumber salad – cucumbers & seasoned rice vinegar, pretty yummy.  I tried to convince Buddy boy that they were pickles but he didn’t buy it.

beef stroganoff

Beef stroganoff - I like to use left over pot roast for beef stroganoff. It is fall apart tender and perfect for a saucy dish
Rice
Broccoli

pot roast, biscuits

Pot roast beef - 6+ hours in the crock pot does wonders for a cheap cut of beef.
Carrots - from the same crock pot
biscuits & gravy
salad

mac & cheese

Chicken apple sausages
Mac & cheese - yup the stuff from a box.
Broccoli
Apple slices
A 3 year old neighbor was visiting for dinner so we had kid food. What can I say.

Lemon pepper fish

Lemon pepper fish - Well the fish came from the freezer section of the grocery store. I don't really know how to cook fish well and I like this.
Brown rice
Carrots
Salad

Chinese takeout

Dad called home from work and said that he would pick up Chinese food on his way home since it is next to where he was going to get his hair cut. How could I refuse hot and sour soup and braised bean curd?

pizza

Since Grammie & Granddad took Buddy Boy for the afternoon I took the afternoon "off" and Dad picked up pizza on the way home.

roasted sweet potatoes, zuccini, leftovers

left over pork chops
roasted sweet potatoes
zuccini
strawberries - the first of the season. YUM

Pork chops & rice

Pork chops - really sliced pork loin from Costco. Brown chops well in a heavy bottom frying pan (not non stick) over high heat. When chops are nice and brown top with sliced onions and add 1 to 1 1/2 cups liquid. Tonight I used 1/2 c spiced cider and 1 c chicken broth. Reduce heat and cook 45 min or more until chops are tender and liquid reduces to a thick almost sticky sauce.
Brown rice
Broccoli

Pita pizza

Pita pizzas - onion pitas, sauce, cheese
Apple slices
The pita pizzas, or pizzeti as Dad calls them, are our favorite after church meal. I can have them ready in less than 10 minutes, a key when you have a hungry family. Now that we have afternoon church the pizzeti are dinner instead of lunch.

leftover soup & chocolate cake

Left over chicken noodle soup - still good the next day
Chocolate birthday cake shaped like a fire engine thanks to the Duplo fire truck parts. It isn't anyone's birthday, but I have been getting requests for a fire truck birthday cake for weeks so I finally gave in.

Roasting chestnuts

Each fall I try to remember how long it takes to roast the chestnuts.  It always takes longer than I anticipate.  Last night we roasted them at 300 degrees for 2 ½ hours.  The small ones were perfect, the bigger ones needed a little more time to reach their golden brown goodness.  Next time, 3 hours.

chicken soup and chestnuts

Homemade chicken noodle soup

Chestnuts roasted on an open fire (if you count the gas flame in the oven)  This was our snack after the kiddies were in bed.

Chili

Chili
Cornbread
Mandarin oranges

Chinese takeout

Hot and sour soup

Moo shu pork

Braised bean curd

Fortune cookies of course

We were at Grammie and Grandad’s house helping to take down the Christmas tree and Dad brought dinner home for all of us from our favorite little Chinese restaurant at Grandad’s request.

Out

Between a late book club and an evening meeting for Dad we squeezed in a quick dinner together. Buddy Boy's favorite:
French fries, Chicken nuggets, Lemonade
I had mandarin chicken salad and french fries.

cheese tortellini

Cheese tortellini

Broccoli

BBQ pork sandwiches

BBQ pork sandwiches - 2# pork loin roast sliced in 1 inch pieces. Add BBQ sauce. I use roughly equal parts BBQ sauce, ketchup, and teriyaki sauce. Crock pot on high for about 4 hours.

Green beans

sausages & veggies

Chicken apple sausages
Rice - leftovers from the curry chicken night
Baby carrots & ranch dressing
Buddy boy also had a lot of pistachios and a cup of applesauce through a straw

french dip sandwiches

French dip sandwiches – I made the bread yesterday and the beef cooked in the crock pot all afternoon

Carrots – also from the crock pot with the beef

Broccoli

curry chicken

Curry chicken – chicken sautéed with onions and Trader Joe’s Thai Yellow Curry Simmer Sauce.

Brown rice – cooked with chicken broth and dried minced onion

Snow peas – fresh picked from the back yard.  Yes it is Jan 1.  I love it.

Apple slices