Made for Another World

this week's meals

nobody@vox.com(Brandy) — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 12:41:47 -0400

I'm one of those people who actually does want to know what you had for lunch (and breakfast and supper too!). It's one way I get new ideas, and it also reminds me of old favorites we haven't had in a while. There's also something very friendly about sharing meals with someone even if it's just through his/her blog.

In that spirit, I thought I'd share what Matt and I have been eating this week, and once I finalize our grocery list, I'll share the plan for next week's suppers too. We'll see how closely it matches what we really end up doing. The focus is on suppers because Matt and I tend to just choose from a variety of staples for lunch, breakfast, and any snacks and/or eat leftovers.

Sunday - I made a huge beef roast with vegetables in the slow cooker. We had a lot of meat left over to use in more suppers during the week, so Matt didn't have to go through red meat withdrawal symptoms. ;)

Monday - I grilled chicken breasts seasoned with lemon pepper. I had one on top of a salad using romaine hearts, crumbled blue cheese, red onions, cucumbers, and balsamic vinaigrette. Matt ate his along with some of the leftover veggies from Sunday's roast and a couple slices of garlic toast.

Tuesday - This was a quick and simple meal with some of that leftover roast used for French dip sandwiches. We had roasted new potatoes and steamed broccoli for the sides.

Wednesday - We had one of Matt's favorite non-beef meals - grilled salmon with a pepper crust. This was a special treat because salmon around here is often not worth the relatively high cost, but Matt's parents sent us some awesome salmon fillets from Alaska for our anniversary. With these we had a very simple salad and broccoli stir-fried with dark sesame oil, sesame seeds, and a few red pepper flakes.

Thursday - After two suppers and a few lunches for Matt from Sunday's roast, we used up the last of it for some enchiladas. Matt is also eating enchiladas for lunch today.

Friday - We usually plan on eating out one night per week, and tonight is the night this week. We've been talking about going to our favorite Chinese restaurant, which most likely means Mongolian beef with fried rice for Matt and tofu and veggies in garlic sauce with brown rice for me.

Saturday - Unless I buy something that sounds better during tomorrow's grocery run, we'll be having chicken sandwiches topped with bacon and sharp cheddar cheese along with some salad to use up our romaine hearts and cucumbers.

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the power of beef

nobody@vox.com(Brandy) — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 10:16:20 -0400

My husband is not a morning person, and he'd never be mistaken for a vegetarian.

After three whole nights of not having red meat as part of our supper (I'm so cruel!), I decided this morning that I'd go ahead and start up the slow cooker with some beef stew ingredients. It would be a nice little surprise for Matt because I feared he was going through red meat withdrawal symptoms.

I typically wake up at least an hour or so before Matt, and then when he does wake up, he takes a really long time to actually make it out of the bedroom. Waking up is quite a process for him, which I don't completely understand, but I do know he's easier to deal with when he wakes up in his own time, so I give him lots of space in the mornings. It's actually nice for me as well because I get my own private time while he's waking up.

So I'm up and about this morning, and I start browning the beef for the stew. Within about 10 minutes, I heard Matt moving around in the bedroom, which is a little early for him. About 5 minutes after that, he was in the kitchen going on and on about how good something smelled. The power of beef drastically reduced his waking-up process.

He looked a little disappointed when he realized he was smelling supper and not breakfast, so I surprised him with steak and eggs for breakfast when he got out of the shower. He practically bounced out the door on his way to work with some steak already in his system and the promise of more beef waiting for him when he comes home.

My grandfather, who raised Angus cattle, died before I met Matt, but I know he is looking down and giving me the thumbs-up for picking a steak-lover. My own bout with vegetarianism as a teenager had him a little concerned that I'd end up with one of those crazy hippies. ;)

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We have achieved mind reading status.

nobody@vox.com(Brandy) — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 20:05:52 -0400

I started craving a tuna sandwich on 7-grain bread with provolone, sprouts, and cucumbers from our local deli around supper time, so I thought I'd give Matt a call to see if he was heading home from work yet. I got his voice mail, which is typical when he's driving because he knows I'd rather him wait until he's somewhere safe than be scrambling for the phone while he's driving. I figured I'd missed my chance to get the sandwich, which wasn't a big deal.

He called a few minutes later to see why I'd called him, and I told him that I'd just been wanting a sandwich and that it wasn't any big deal. We got off the phone, and he walked through the door about 5 minutes later with a tuna sandwich on 7-grain bread with provolone, sprouts, and cucumbers. He'd actually been in the deli ordering sandwiches when I called. He had a feeling that I'd be in the mood for a sandwich, and he even picked the right one out of a selection of likely possibilities.

Being married long enough that you develop super powers is a really good thing! Maybe we'll get some more powers when we celebrate our anniversary next month. :D

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Granola Recipe

nobody@vox.com(Brandy) — Mon, 07 Aug 2006 14:23:26 -0400

Gina asked about granola recipes, and I thought I'd share mine here even though it's a very basic recipe.

rolled oats - 4 cups
nuts - 2 cups
dried fruit - 1 cup
safflower oil - 1/3 cup
honey - 1/3 cup
vanilla extract - 1 tsp
ground cinnamon - 1 Tbsp

Stir together the oats, nuts and dried fruit in a large bowl. In a second bowl, mix together the honey, oil, vanilla, and cinnamon. Pour the honey mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until the honey mixture evenly coats the other ingredients. Spread the mixture in a thin layer on 2 baking sheets and bake at 275 degrees for 1 hour, stirring the mixture every 10-15 minutes. Cool completely before storing in an air-tight container.

The recipe allows for a lot of variations, especially in the nut and fruit combination. Matt really likes pistachios and dried cherries, and one of my favorites uses molasses instead of honey, walnuts, and dried pears. For a variation that was a hit at a recent baby shower, I used 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut, 1 cup chopped macadamia nuts, 1/2 cup dried mango, 1/2 cup dried pineapple, and 1 tablespoon key lime juice instead of the vanilla extract and cinnamon.

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Vegan Lunch Box

nobody@vox.com(Brandy) — Fri, 10 Mar 2006 08:23:22 -0500

I wanted to try an email post. :)

While I'm doing that, I'll share Vegan Lunch Box with you. Jennifer is vegan and packs awesome vegan lunches for her 7-year-old son to take to school. They sound yummy, and the pictures of the lunches are cool too because she packs everything in Laptop Lunches, which are modeled after bento boxes.

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