At 5:30 this morning, I was torn from a nightmare by a low discordant keening. I might describe it as “toddler impersonating whale calls,” but my husband said it was more “cat meets blender.” We watched Longlegs last night, so the noise quite easily could have been the moaning of Nic Cage at his most grotesque and terrifying. (Even though I enjoyed it, I am not recommending the movie; it was Weird AF.)
We confirmined that the noise was, somehow, our neighbor’s snowplow – which means that it persisted for quite some time, as their driveway is not short. I did not fall back to sleep.
On the positive side, we got a ton of snow over the weekend. Oh, how I adore snow. I love the trees lacquered in white, how everything – shadows, blue skies, bare trees – assumes an extra vibrancy against the snow. I love sunshine caught in billions of ice crystals and winked back at me as I walk. Grey skies seem more dramatic and moody; sunny days have an extra sheen of cheer. I love it I love it I love it.
Soup is on the menu tonight, and therefore takes one of three spots for dinners this week. But before we get into that, I want to report on dinners past because they were YUM.
Dinners Last Week
- Sheet Pan Veggie Shawarma: This was easy (aside from the veggie chopping, which is easy but time consuming) (I listen to an audiobook while chopping) and SO good. Few things are better than a big pile of roasted veggies. The seasoning/marinade was delicious, although I ended up doubling it because I added some chicken tenders to the mix. They were a good addition, especially for my husband. Also, because I was on a Green Sauce High from the previous week’s Birchie-recommended meal, I made the cilantro yogurt sauce from this recipe and slapped it on top of my veggie shawarma. One of the best decisions I made all week.
- Salmon Burgers: For some reason, I dillied and dallied and delayed in making these, but then finally I did make them, and they were easy and yummy as usual. The recipe is from Cook’s Illustrated, and I’ve got a photo of the recipe here in case you want to try them too. Oh! The remarkable thing about this meal is that I forced Carla to eat it, too. She loves salmon and eats it regularly. This is the closest thing to salmon possible. She DID eat it, even though she didn’t particularly like it (it has teeny tiny shallots minced in it).
- Beef Birria Tacos: The first time I ate beef birria was in Phoenix at a taco place, and I fell instantly, irrevocably in love. (By the way, I learned from my recipe search that birria is traditionally made with goat, but I’m not big on goat so I used chuck roast.) The need to eat beef birria again has been growing stronger and stronger with each passing week. However, I could not for the life of me find a recipe that I wanted to follow. Too many ingredients or too few; equipment I didn’t want to use; too many steps. What I ended up doing was cobbling together a recipe out of a bunch of recipes online… and it was SO GOOD. The recipe made enough for at least three generous meals, and we immediately froze the remaining beef and consommé, and I cannot stop thinking about it. So rich and spicy and omg perfection. My husband took over the actual taco making, which involves dipping a corn tortilla in the consommé, frying it, adding cheese and beef, and then putting on my plate for immediate consumption. This one is a keeper from a taste standpoint, but from a work standpoint, I think it’s something I would make maybe once a year.
There’s really no way I can top last week’s meals, so I’m not even going to try. This week is not about flash and romance, but instead about solid, reliable faves. Also, chicken was on sale, so it’s all about the chicken. (Luckily, these are veggie-heavy meals so I can limit or completely ignore the chicken in my own servings.)
Dinners for the Week of February 17-25
- Mulligatawny Soup: It is so very soup weather.
- Chicken and Zucchini Stir Fry: I am more in the mood for this Szechuan Stir Fry, but the bell pepper quality was very poor today, so I pivoted to chicken and zucchini stir fry instead. Of course, I have to go back to the grocery store to buy things I forgot to buy (namely: the two key ingredients of Ham Sandwich: the ham and the sandwich rolls), so perhaps I will peruse the peppers to see if the prospects are more perky.
- Sheet Pan Chicken Fajitas: The bell peppers may not have been crisp enough for stir fry, but they were of acceptable quality for fajitas.
Here’s hoping that tonight I dream of swimming in a sea of birria consommé.
“The Ham and the Sandwich” lol, so me. Remember when I forgot to buy staples At Staples?
All three of the last week’s recipes are going in my rotation immediately.
I love snow too – but do you have to shovel it? Because we got like 70 centimetres in the last three days and my husband is away, and it is pretty but also stressed me the fuck out.
I thought the first two thirds of Longlegs was good and the last third was profoundly disappointing. But if you do like scary yet weird af movies, check out Cuckoo.
Yes, I feel very similarly about Longlegs. Great premise, lackluster fulfillment.
Well, I shovel SOME of it. Or sometimes, like today, I DON’T shovel it, and then feel horrifically guilty until I do shovel it.
I feel you should know that I am reading your post instead of trying to figure out what to have for dinner for the two of us here. I am having trouble being motivated to cook anything. These recipes sound/look delicious!
Dinner truly is SO hard! And we have to do it daily?!?! Unfair.
I don’t understand why people want to eat EVERY DAMN DAY. It’s exhausting. Your meals sound great though! I think I’m going to make a soup one night this week, but not sure what to do after that…sigh.
Life would be a lot simpler if we only had to eat like once a week or something. I don’t love cooking and so I’m not very adventurous, but I feel stuck in a bit of a cooking/eating rut. When can you move next door and help me out!?
ooh! Maybe I’ll make that veggie shawarma again and make the cilantro sauce- the only thing my daughter didn’t like about it last time was the tahini sauce. She’s obviously insane because that sauce was so good, but whatever. I’d be willing to try the cilantro.
Nom! I’m definitely in sauce mode right now. Not enough to actually make a sauce, so I’m getting by on a collection of store bought sauces that have been hiding in the back of the fridge.
We’re operating on the Ham Sandwich plan for dinner this week.
I might try that sheet pan recipe.
I am considerably less anti-snow than I was when I had kids in a very cancellation-prone public school system. We have a corner lot and a big backyard, though, so the shoveling can take a long time. Mostly Beth and Noah do it, but it sometimes makes me feel guilty I’m not doing my fair share. But Beth absolutely loves snow, so I’m glad for her that we’ve had a snowier than average winter here.
I need to make that Shawarma recipe! That is right up our alley! But I will wait and make it when I can use a knife again as I don’t think Phil would be up for alllll that chopping!!
We made chicken wild rice soup on Sunday night which was perfect for this terribly cold weather we’ve had (which canceled school today). We also made ground turkey tacos. The boys didn’t eat the soup, only Taco ate the tacos with meat; Paul had a cheese quesadilla. Besides pizza, it seems like there are no meals that everyone happily eats. Sigh.
I tried beef birria for the first time at a local Mexican restaurant in December, and oh my gosh, it was amazing.
I saw the trailer for Longlegs—it looks so creepy. I’m not sure I can watch it.
I think I will skip watching Longlegs! It sounds too scary for me. Your meals all look so amazing. Today, I am making a pot roast with potatoes and carrots. That’s a perfect winter meal for me! The leftovers will become soup.
I want to eat at your house! You have such interesting and delicious sounding meals. I don’t do anything hard since it’s just me but perhaps when my boyfriend visits.
We are dangerously low on strawberries, and I might be regretting drawing a line in the sand and refusing to go to the grocery store more than once a week, because groceries aren’t until Sat? And how will I breakfast without strawberries in my oatmeal? (that’s where my brain went after reading about you forgetting your ham and rolls).
The tacos do look amazing. Why must the best recipes be so complicated that we only want to make them once a year? We are that way with dirty rice. So so yummy, but it’s time consuming. Or I never think to get the ingredients in advance? Something like that. I dreamt that I forgot to feed a toddler I sit for breakfast. It was unsettling. I hope you sleep better tonight.
Mulligatawny Soup! I’d forgotten all about it, haven’t made it in years. Thanks for mentioning it. Guess I know what we’re going to have for dinner tonight.
I’ve not heard of that movie, and I’m kinda laughing at you NOT recommending it and it’s weird AF. I, myself, can generally enjoy weird AF.
The Veggie Shawarma sounds delightful (AF)!