<p>The joys of an empty nest. Casual in choices and times. No need to think of ways to be sure of nutrition and likes/dislikes. Lunch may be the veggies…</p>
<p>Last night I cooked for both of us- cottage fries (spiced plus onions) with the egg white omelets spiced and with some veggies and cheese from the refrigerator. Protein, carbs and veggies. I may have had orange juice as well. Filling.</p>
<p>We had rice and beans tonight- H had a part can of lentil soup and I drained and added molasses to vegetarian baked beans to the basmati rice he cooked (that will last several meals). He cooked some peas, tomatoes, et al with spices, I had some green beans. I cooked a formal meal a few days back and will again. Leftovers often get frozen. Choose and cook your own /catch as catch can seems to be most common. I like to cook but if I made new meals every day the freezer would overflow with leftovers!</p>
<p>zoosermom: I cracked up at your comment that you are sick and would sell your H for a bowl of hot vegetable soup! I have been sick for a week, not much appetite, and made homemade vegetable lentil soup today. I used the smaller French lentils today, and they are much better than the cheaper, larger variety. My soup was good today, but will be better tomorrow! I love having homemade soup in the freezer. Great if you get home late and there are no dinner plans.</p>
<p>We have dinner plans only on Sunday. Other days, “just grab something from fridge and eat whenever you wish” plan has been working very well for us for many years.</p>
<p>I never understood the “dessert right after dinner” routine. I wouldn’t enjoy it on a full stomach! </p>
<p>And in my book, fruit is NOT dessert! (unless it’s in the form of an apple pie…) We do sometimes have fruit with dinner, but for me, dessert is dessert! Most nights I will have a little dessert - a modest scoop of ice cream, a homemade cookie or two. We like to bake and chances are, there is some sweet around. But it’s well after dinner and not too big of a serving.</p>
<p>Tonight we are having PA Dutch Chicken Pot Pie. This is different from the Chicken Pot Pie that most people are familiar with, in that it is not a pie. It is made with square noodles, potatoes, and chicken. It is really yummy, but very high in starch, hence it qualifies as a PA Dutch dish. It was on sale at our local grocery store last week, but only if you purchased 5 pounds. We rose to the challenge and had half of it for a meal last week and the other half tonight. Just heat and serve, which is perfect on a tennis match night when we don’t get home until 7:30 PM.</p>
<p>wis75 – I hear you. Empty nesters here and enjoying the freedom to eat sort of hippy again after all these years. Lots of beans and rice. Very little meat. Scrambled eggs a lot. It’s great.</p>
<p>Lately, I’ve been enjoying a couple handfuls of the dark chocolate covered pomegranate from Costco in the evening. I also love a coconut popsicle for dessert. Or pie. </p>
<p>I rarely go to bed without having had something sweet.</p>
<p>Sewhappy, have you seen the mini packets of the dark chocolate blueberries/pomegranate that Costco has now? Bought a box of them (I think 40 in a box - 20 of each). Just a little chocolate to take the sweet edge off at home or work!</p>
<p>We don’t keep sweets around because I really have no self control; I would eat the entire box of CostCo treats in 2 or 3 days. Desserts are for special occasions but DH has a small bowl of homemade granola mixed with almond butter every evening.</p>
<p>Dinner tonight will be last night’s as our power failed and I couldn’t cook.</p>
<p>Actually, I missed the onion and bay leaves. And I like it with pork shoulder with a bone and a lot of fat so that the meat is ultra tender. It works out really well – they think I’m a genius when I make it. :)</p>
<p>Uhmmm… Tonight’s dinner plans are “sketchy”, as DD would say. We are going to the U, and with Mr B’s schedule it looks like we will have to munch on something in the car en route… Oh, well, there goes my plan for chicken and veggies. I will have to make us some sandwiches instead - easier to eat while driving/riding.</p>
<p>Pasta (so delicious, from CSA)
Sauce made from onions, tomatoes and capers
Salad greens with feta and olive oil</p>
<p>As it gets cooler I am especially interested in slow cooker recipes. Will definitely try sewhappy’s pork. Last week I made delicious pulled pork in the slow cooker…recipe from Tyler Florence at the Food Network. Also made the cole slaw that goes with it. A hit here. </p>
<p>Now that my two vegetarian daughters are at college, my meat loving son is getting more meat!</p>
<p>When my sister lived in Japan, she was castigated for sending 2 fruits in with her son for lunch. It was suggested that “two desserts” were not a healthy option.</p>
<p>Today I had chicken with mole sauce (restaurant leftovers) with some sort of bizarre CSA summer squash with the same sauce I’d put on the chard with yogurt and pomegranate seeds and zahtar. And a salad with lots of tomatoes. I’ll be so sad when I can’t get farmer’s market tomatoes even though my purse will be happy.</p>
<p>My poor mans short ribs were out of this world. I cut a pot roast into big fist sized chunks. Browned them well on all sides. Sauteed two vidalia onions, four carrots, a red bell pepper, four stalks of celery, and a head of whole garlic cloves (peeled). Added 3 TBS of flour and 2 TBS of tomato paste and continued sauteeing to cook. Added a bottle of merlot and then boiled it to reduce by half (boiling off all the alcohol). Seasoned with salt, pepper, thyme, oregano, a couple bay leaves, and five or six sprigs of fresh rosemary. Added the meat back in and cooked it covered in a 300 degree oven for 3 hours. Removed the meat and simmered on the stove to reduce and thicken the sauce. Which by then was a deep red-black brick color and crazy concentrated (unlike my usual pot roast with tomatoes).</p>
<p>Awesome. And, from past experience, freezes well in individual serving containers with a hunk of meat and corresponding sauce for easy “frozen dinner in the microwave” type meals down the road.</p>
<p>You could serve it with potatoes or rice or pasta, but I did the lower carb version with roasted brussel sprouts.</p>