Hello there! I am posting every day at A Novel Project for NaBloPoMo, but since I still have to eat dinner slash feed my family, I’m popping back over here to list the meals I plan to make.
Dinners for the Week of November 17-23
- Lemongrass Chicken Stir Fry: I’m in the mood for a stir fry, but I’m not in the mood for one of my normal stir fries. Also, I picked up a tube of squeezable lemongrass the other day and want to see if it… does anything.
- Slow Cooker Carnitas: We have a giant two pack of pork tenderloins in the freezer, and carnitas is the perfect way to turn them into multiple meals.
- Burrito Bowls: The recipe calls for chicken, but this is how I plan to use up some leftover carnitas. Oooh – or maybe I will modify this vegan quinoa bowl recipe (with a chipotle cilantro vinaigrette – YUM) instead.
- Cacio e Pepe Pasta with Peas and Asparagus: This recipe, but with cacio e pepe ravioli from Trader Joe’s.
- Sauteed Shrimp and Garlic Shitake Green Beans: Can you tell I’ve just had another fun shopping expedition to Trader Joe’s? I picked up a bag of frozen garlic shitake green beans and I think they would pair perfectly with some sauteed shrimp… and some leftover quinoa or brown rice from burrito bowl night.
That’s all I’ve got this week! I am also on the hunt for a delicious cheesecake – preferably with a gingersnap or Oreo cookie crust – that I can bring to Thanksgiving dinner next week. Do you have a Thanksgiving-y cheesecake I can try?
I love most any cheesecake; I do love the sound of those crusts. I’m not imaginative, so I’m going to suggest gingersnap crust with pumpkin cheesecake. 😉
Ha – I should have said “I am leaning away from pumpkin,” because that IS an excellent suggestion!
I LOVE turtle cheesecake then. 🙂
By the way, the Novel Project link leads me to Trader Joe’s.
I have never had turtle cheesecake! Thank you for the heads up! I have fixed the link (I think).
I LOVE squeezable lemongrass. I buy fresh lemongrass and then I start peeling it and can’t figure out when to stop and get all stressed about it, and who needs that nonsense?
I cannot imagine trying to extract anything from a lemongrass stalk. I buy them and then sort of bruise them and drop them in a curry or whatever, but I know some recipes want actual pulp and that seems impossible.
Here’s a luscious cheesecake. We use biscoff for the crust. It really enhances the flavor. I also use less butter in the crust than most recipes suggest; it tastes a little more light that way.. YMMV
https://sugarspunrun.com/pumpkin-cheesecake/
This is the second time I’ve heard of biscoff as a crust! (I think that’s what Sarah does?) What a cool idea.
I like the sound of a regular cheesecake with a gingersnap crust.
Please report back on the lemongrass tube! I’ve never had a good experience with trying to use actual lemongrass and I’d love to get that flavor in my kitchen.
I will let you know how the lemongrass goes!!
I don’t have a cheesecake recipe, but I perked up at “gingersnap.” I was planning to make those this weekend, but Suzanne, MY STAND MIXER DIED. What’s next? Catastrophe! (not really, it’s just in time for Black Friday sales, but still)
NOOOOOO!!!!!!
I will admit that this marks the first day I ever heard of lemongrass let alone lemongrass in a squeezable tube. I’m always interested in another crockpot recipe. I don’t have a cheesecake recipe and I just remembered I want to try those brownies made with dates.
Yes… the date brownies are so good!
I am making this one:https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1024588-no-bake-pumpkin-cheesecake
I have never made a no-bake cheesecake before, so we’ll see…
Ooooh I have also never had a no-bake cheesecake… but this one does sound pretty good… Thanks!
I have never heard of (or seen) squeezable lemongrass.
I only make non-baked cheesecakes so I am not much use!
Because of this post I have been inspired to make burrito bowls for supper tomorrow night. Woot, woot! No doubt the kids will hate it because their favourite thing to do lately is complain about the food I make. SIGH.
I did not know lemongrass could come in a tube! Please report back on how it is! For awhile I would buy tomato paste in a tube. Recipes often call for 1T so I don’t need a whole can of it. I freeze the extra in 1 T doses but then I have to remember I have those in the freezer.
I made a rice noodle Asian stir fry on Sunday and yesterday I made a pork pozole which we liked but felt needed a little something else, like some chickpeas maybe? But the flavors was good!
Those crust ideas sound amazing! I should look for some sugar free recipes to make for Thanksgiving!
I love Cacio e pepe! There’s a place downtown that does an excellent job with it. YUM.
My neighbor is a real estate agent and she gives pies to clients and friends for some reason. She’s bringing us a chocolate crème pie, because to hell with pumpkin. (JK, my daughter is making a pumpkin pie.)
I have no cheesecake recipe but I added some leftover lemongrass stalks to a vegetable stock I was making recently and it gave it a nice lemony taste. I hope your lemongrass experiment turned out well.
I’m definitely a fan of a bowl- the burrito bowl recipe looks great. And like other commentators, I’m intrigued by the chicken stir-fry.
For cheesecake, I’m a huge fan of the two layer cheesecake with the “normal” cheesecake cream cheese filling as the larger level, but having a topping layer of sour cream that is amazing. It’s not hard, although there is a double bake required. I have a hand-written recipe card but this link is very close. https://mytherapistcooks.com/gift-idea-cheesecake/
Okay, for years I have wanted to ask you this. How does your pork tenderloin shred, for carnitas? I notice the recipe says “pork shoulder” but you frequently use tenderloin for these types of things. When I make tenderloin I usually slice it. It seems too solid to shred, but I admit I’ve never tried. Do you shred it with the kitchen-aid, like some ppl shred chicken? Or just 2 forks? Or maybe “loin” and “shoulder” are the same thing, or same type of meat/muscle (ew), on the pig?
Tenderloin does NOT shred as nicely as a fattier cut. But I do shred it with either two forks or I use a meat chopper (like this one: https://amzn.to/3LYk32v). Sometimes it takes a little work, and I will do a little shredding, let it cook, do al little more shredding, let it cook, etc.
Everyone here seems to have the cheesecake question answered. Can we talk about beef Wellington? I suspect you’re not a true crime lady or you would have definitely have referenced Erin Patterson, the Australian lady who was found guilty of killing three of her in-laws by serving them a lunch that included poisonous mushrooms in a beef Wellington. BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU EAT, Suzanne. You never know what crazy family members will do.
If, by any chance, anyone wants to talk about the Erin Patterson case, hit me up. I have thoughts! My hot take: I don’t know if the prosecution proved its case and I don’t know if I would have found her guilty.