Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

Roe isn’t about choice, it’s about freedom.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

Too often we confuse noise with substance. too often we confuse setbacks with defeat.

A consequence of cucumbers

There are some who say that there are too many strawmen arguments on this blog.

There are a lot more evil idiots than evil geniuses.

… gradually, and then suddenly.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

Somebody needs to explain to DeSantis that nobody needs to do anything to make him look bad.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

Chutkan laughs. Lauro sits back down.

Jack Smith: “Why did you start campaigning in the middle of my investigation?!”

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

… riddled with inexplicable and elementary errors of law and fact

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

We cannot abandon the truth and remain a free nation.

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

Every day Vance writes another chapter in the book called “Worst VP Pick Ever”.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

You are here: Home / Food & Recipes / Cooking / Open Thread: Thursday Night Menu

Open Thread: Thursday Night Menu

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From our Food Goddess, TaMara:

I know many of you are snowed under and I’m sorry about that. I’m wishing for spring as hard as you. Meanwhile we’ve had a suspicious 60 degree day with the promise of an ugly storm soon to follow. Can I just say, “yippee.” (I’d say more, but I try to keep it PG). One other note: our intrepid blogger/photographer JeffW is on crutches after knee surgery, so everyone please wish him well.
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Tonight’s menu is pretty simple, for those lazy nights when you don’t want to cook an elaborate meal. I usually let everyone assemble their own sandwich at the counter – less cleanup. I didn’t put chips on the menu, but they would probably show up last minute at my house anyway. The walnut pear salad is a nice treat this time of year, when you can usually find fresh pears at a good price. Pears and bleu cheese are a winning combo, and spinach seems to be on sale everywhere this week. If you can find it, drinking chocolate is like hot cocoa on steroids. We have a local coffee roaster who also makes drinking chocolate. It’s as if someone melted a chocolate bar in your cup and added some cream. A little goes a very long way.
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On the board tonight:
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1. Beef & Pepper Subs
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2. Walnut Pear Salad
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3. Hot cocoa, marshmallows and graham crackers

Recipes and shopping list, as ever, at the link.

******

PS from Anne Laurie: Speaking (longingly) of the prospect of Spring, am I the only one getting twice as many seed catalogs as usual, some from companies who dropped me from their mailing lists years ago?

Reader Interactions

53Comments

  2. 2.

    hamletta

    Speaking (longingly) of the prospect of Spring, am I the only one getting twice as many seed catalogs as usual, some from companies who dropped me from their mailing lists years ago?

    I’m not on any such lists, but it seems like a good idea, from a marketing standpoint.

    This has been one of the more awful winters on record in a lot of places, and seed catalogs are like the Sears Wish Book when you’re buried under Snowpocalypse Number Whatever and freezing your butt off.

  4. 4.

    Svensker

    OK, so I click over there and I see a very nice sandwich recipe, which maybe would be nice for Soopah Bowl Sunday, and am looking around and I DON’T SEE ANY RECIPE FOR DRINKING CHOCOLATE. What the hell IS drinking chocolate? And why don’t I have any right now? ! ? !

  6. 6.

    Gina

    We went out tonight to the wildly overrated Dinosaur BBQ in Troy. Technically, the ribs were nice and meaty, and cooked correctly insofar as they were falling off the bone, etc., but the seasoning was bland, and that “sauce” they have, bleah. Boring and vinegary. So, now I have to figure out where the hell I can find wood charcoal so I can make some proper BBQ, despite the cold, and exorcise this memory. The white “reggae” band from Boston playing didn’t help matters either.

    On a MUCH better note, we went to RPI’s EMPAC and saw onedotzero’s compilation of short animation films wow + flutter 10. My 9 & 12 year old kids loved it. I would have liked to stay for the second feature, wavelength 10, but that would have pushed the boundaries of kid patience more than I dared.

  7. 7.

    MikeJ

    @Svensker: In Seattle, Metropolitan Market sells drinking chocolate. $12-$15 for a 12oz can, but it is tasty. You really shouldn’t pollute it with anything less than homemade marshmallows.

  11. 11.

    Svensker

    @MikeJ:

    Metropolitan Market sells drinking chocolate. $12-$15 for a 12oz can,

    What, was it hand harvested by fairy children dipped in gold who are executed afterward so they won’t give away the location of the pods? Good grief. You could feed a child in Africa for that. Or buy a decent bottle of wine.

  12. 12.

    Comrade Luke

    @MikeJ: Ha. OK, that makes perfect sense then :)

    That chicken breast couldn’t have been easier to make, and just a little salt, pepper and herbs make all the difference.

    Who cares though – pass the sloppy joes!

  14. 14.

    J. Michael Neal

    @asiangrrlMN:

    Just a general beg: Anyone who doesn’t want his/her snow can send it to me. kthxbai.

    If you do, make sure to drop it all in her front doorway. Whatever you do, do not put any of it on my sidewalk or driveway. And sure as hell don’t put any on the streets of Minneapolis; snow has already made them too narrow to really be safe.

  16. 16.

    sfinny

    @asiangrrlMN: I would happily send you my snow. While digging my car out this morning, I had daydreams about a garage. There is just a limited amount of space to put the snow and if I could teleport a significant amount to another place it would help things alot.

  18. 18.

    4jkb4ia

    An evil eye, the evil inclination, and hatred of other people remove a person from the world. (Pirkei Avot) (A sort of charm. The passage from Tanya was too long)

  23. 23.

    WarMunchkin

    So, I’ve been thinking about issues regarding mental health care. Most people who know that there’s something wrong with them (and are invisible to the system) probably view themselves as being difficult patients for mental health service providers or feel that they’re condescended to when they visit psychologists. At the same time, it’s not like they have money to get treated for basic mental health care, much less care from top quality places. How much does it cost to pay for someone you know to receive mental care? According to a quick google search, it’s on the order of 20,000 dollars. So. Just saying – good mental care for people you know who may need it or want it isn’t really accessible.

  24. 24.

    Ailuridae

    @Gina:

    I ate at the one in Rochester when I was there in the fall. I expected to be disappointed in the food and it was pretty below average especially given the raves I had heard. And the atmosphere was completely forced.

  29. 29.

    Ailuridae

    @Yutsano:

    That’s not a very vegetarian recipe though. Gelatin is derived from the collagen in animal bones and skin.

    In my experience, when people become vegan the two biggest head shakers are that marshmallows and Guiness (fish oil) aren’t either remotely vegan

  30. 30.

    Yutsano

    @Ailuridae: Thanks to teh Google, there are indeed alternatives out there. Caveat: I have no idea how effective this is. I do know that agar-agar, which can be found in any Asian grocery store, works just as well.

  31. 31.

    Martin

    PS from Anne Laurie: Speaking (longingly) of the prospect of Spring, am I the only one getting twice as many seed catalogs as usual, some from companies who dropped me from their mailing lists years ago?

    Last spring was when the Glenn Beck Armageddon Seed Bank ads started running. There’s money out there to be made now.

    I too am longing for spring. It was only 75 today. Anything under 78 is just intolerable.

  32. 32.

    Ailuridae

    @Martin:

    I too am longing for spring. It was only 75 today. Anything under 78 is just intolerable

    That was mean spirited. And it also seems warm even fr SD – where are you in CA?

  33. 33.

    Martin

    @Ailuridae: Coastal Orange County. It’s been unusually warm lately, to be honest. My mom is visiting from Iowa and enjoying not being bundled up. Glad the weather cooperated.

  34. 34.

    Yutsano

    Couple of PS notes for BHF:

    1) I absolutely DETEST green peppers. Any other color under the rainbow I’ll scarf, but green ones just make me ill.

    2) You probably aren’t a shrimp fan because you don’t live on a coast, and things like seafood are truly the best freshly plucked from the water. But FWIW my sister-in-law agrees with you. We’re working on her too. :)

  35. 35.

    JGabriel

    Martin:

    I too am longing for spring. It was only 75 today. Anything under 78 is just intolerable.

    Then you are longing for summer. Anything over 77 is summer weather, says I.

    .

  36. 36.

    Southern Beale

    PS from Anne Laurie: Speaking (longingly) of the prospect of Spring, am I the only one getting twice as many seed catalogs as usual, some from companies who dropped me from their mailing lists years ago?

    I haven’t noticed getting catalogs from people who dropped me but since I order from Arbico Organics for organic pest control, I’ve started getting more organic catalogs which I’m actually happy about. One of my favorites is Seeds Of Change, which is all hippie-dippie-hey-everybody-let’s-start-a-community-garden. Totally love it. Cheers me up when I think the bastards have won.

  37. 37.

    Phyllis

    I’m off to to the Tampa Bay Area tomorrow for most of the week, where the highs are forecast at about 72. Ima take my camp chair and spend my free day Sunday sitting on the beach.

    Topic: I’ll be supping at the Columbia and Bern’s Steakhouse. Updates will be posted as they warrant.

  41. 41.

    stuckinred

    John’s Co has a nice piece here.

    “Like concentric security barriers arrayed around the Pentagon, these four factors — institutional self-interest, strategic inertia, cultural dissonance, and misremembered history — insulate the military budget from serious scrutiny. For advocates of a militarized approach to policy, they provide invaluable assets, to be defended at all costs.”

  50. 50.

    joe from Lowell

    PS from Anne Laurie: Speaking (longingly) of the prospect of Spring…

    I was flipping through channels last night, and I stopped on a fishing show, just because the weather looked really nice on that lake.

    Sigh. My feet are cold.

  51. 51.

    jeffreyw

    @asiangrrlMN: Torn cartilage in a knee, repaired Tuesday by arthroscopy. No clue how the injury occurred, one morning the knee was painful and by evening the pain had me fearing the next step.

  52. 52.

    TaMara (BHF)

    Morning everyone. Someone at work gave me the flu. I am not pleased. But Svensker made me laugh, so I’m feeling better. Glad to see there were no other complaints about the menu. Cheers.

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