Book Notes: Christine Marciniak’s Ali Series. I interviewed the author of a series of books for teen girls that doesn’t include vampires, the occult or a desolate post-apocalyptic future.
Roasted Asparagus. Cookie sheets are not just for cookies anymore! They’re just the right size to roast vegetables in the oven. Here’s an easy recipe for oven-roasted asparagus.
On the Grill: Greek-Seasoned Steak. One of the best steak marinades we’ve tried so far. This works in pita sandwiches or (if you’re not as lazy as I am) for shish kebabs.
THURSDAY: The dinner plan went right out the window when TheKid walked around the corner to get a haircut (we’re less than half a mile from a shopping center with Target, Panera, Taco Hell, cheap haircut place and more. I’ve hit on the important stuff.)–anyway, a little dog followed him home. We put him (the dog, not TheKid) in our yard and checked his license tag, which only had a license number, no phone number or anything else, and then called the township who forwarded the whole thing to animal control. Meanwhile TheKid called a friend who has a dog to get some kibble for him. And then we were afraid that the dog might just be put down, and he was a friendly little fellow, so I tied a rope to his collar and started walking down the street asking people if they knew the dog. One neighbor drove around the block to ask someone he thought might know who owned it. We finally tracked him down to the house right near where he’d joined TheKid on his way home from the haircut. Apparently they have a doggie door, and the dog knows how to open the gate. No one was home, so I left a note with my phone number and took Louie home with me again. By this time, there was no time to cook dinner before TheKid’s rehearsal, so I put him and the dog in the van, got Chick-Fil-A drive-thru for TheKid, and made the rehearsal run with a rather smelly dog panting behind me in the back seat. 5 minutes after I got back home, his owners called. They only live around the corner, but it took almost 15 minutes after that call before someone drove around to get him, and then all she did was talk to the dog, not to me. TheDad met Big Brother for wings, so that was his dinner, and I got mac & cheese from Panera and returned to rehearsal, where I ate my dinner behind the wheel, in the parking lot. Then I came home for some Benadryl for my itchy eye. There’s a reason we don’t have pets.
A lot of writing happened in this space last week–not so much in the others.
At CatholicMom.com
Tech Talk: All the Catholic News, All in One Place. I reviewed the new free app from the USCCB. The Catholic Church app is packed full of national and international Catholic news and many other resources.
At Cook and Count
Sausage and Pepper Pasta Bake. We are all about the sausage and pepper sandwiches around here, so it wasn’t too much of a stretch to take the best of that meal and turn it into a baked-pasta dish.
THURSDAY 8: We tried a new recipe for Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas that I found somewhere on Facebook and saved to try. General concensus: the chicken was good, but the vegetables weren’t. I won’t be making it again. It was edible, but no one really liked it.
TheKid insisted on photographing this dish for the blog. He took photos from crazy angles until I rescued my camera. Then he photobombed my shot.
TUESDAY 29: Sally’s Magic Chicken, baked potatoes, and a salad that was served, but nobody took any.
WEDNESDAY 30: With 2 of the 3 of us down for the count with a stomach bug that’s just bad enough to make you feel really nauseous (and fortunately, nothing worse than that) we had chicken soup with pastina. Hubs, the Last Man Standing, had leftover chicken from Tuesday’s dinner.
THURSDAY 1: There was takeout, since I was still under the weather. Hubs picked up some Egg Drop Soup for me. That’s my go-to soup when I’m not feeling good. I think everyone’s on the mend now.
SATURDAY 19: It was Family Weekend at LaSalle University, so we met Middle Sister for the Mass and then, at her request, went to dinner at the Trolley Car Diner in Chestnut Hill. There was a family meal at the school, but she wanted a break from dining-hall food!
WEDNESDAY 23: Skillet Chicken Parmesan. Because Wednesday night is Pasta Night around these parts.
THURSDAY 24: Fund-raising dinner for TheKid’s theater program. It was at a local diner, and I had the best hot open-faced roast beef sandwich ever, hands down. The only improvement I’d have made would have been MORE gravy, so I could put it on the fries! (Next time I’ll know to ask for that right up front.)
What was on your dinner menu this week? I’m planning ahead for next week, so I could use some great ideas!
SATURDAY 12: Grilled chicken, yellow rice (from a mix), salad.
SUNDAY 13: “Fend for yourself” once again; I had a picnic at a church event. TheDad and TheKid made do.
MONDAY 14: Beef fajitas with leftover steak (which I freeze immediately after the meal to deter poachers). Just warm up the steak in the last few minutes of cooking the fajita vegetables.
TUESDAY 15: Skillet Chicken and Noodles. This can be on the table in about 35 minutes, it’s satisfying, and if there are any leftovers, it makes a great lunch!
Friday: Shimp Pad Thai. This was a new recipe and it was definitely a big hit. It’s a very light, fresh-tasting dish.
Saturday: Roast chicken, roasted asparagus, mashed potatoes, beer rolls using Danielle Bean’s recipe. TheKid thought he’d get away with this lovely combination. I sent him back for the vegetable.
Tuesday: Hawaiian Chicken over Jasmine rice with green beans and carrots.
