Unexpected good mood and menu dilemma

[selenay]

Today I am in an unexpectedly good mood. I say this because my shoulder was bothering me all night so I didn't sleep well and my pain levels are up.

Yet despite this, I feel really very happy and bright today :-) In fact, I felt so good this morning that I absolutely had to play 'The Proclaimers' on my iPod (love having an iPod jack in the car *g*) on the way to work and findng my first non-weather-related traffic jam in four months couldn't dent the mood. I have no idea where it's coming from, but I'm going to enjoy my good mood and take advantage of all the energy and happiness today.

I've been considering supper on Saturday. This is the day that I invite my aunt over for our weekly food and gossip session and I like to do stuff that's a little bit more creative than what I'd cook during the week. I've found a really quite amazing-sounding stuffed mushroom recipe here: http://foodiefarmgirl.blogspot.com/2008/04/how-to-cook-lamb-easy-ground-lamb-feta.html

I've also been planning to try Ginger Beef with Brocolli in my slowcooker for around two weeks - I even have the beef in my freezer.

I'm torn because they both sound fantastic, they're both new recipes and I think my aunt would really enjoy both. So the big question is, which do I do? Because I can always do the other one the following week...

[Poll #1376259]

Comments

[catseatsocks.livejournal.com]

It's too bad you're not a vegetarian because I could just copy your weekly menu.

[selenay]

Heh, yeah, I'm definitely not veggie :-)

[fahrenheit-f430.livejournal.com]

Sorry, but the lamb & feta combination sounds terribly greasy... Says the woman who can't make lentil & split pea cheese loaf without a pound of butter-fried onions.

[selenay]

Hmm, now the greasy aspect hadn't occurred to me. Not that it's necessarily going to kill my enthusiasm for making this at some stage, but it's something to consider when I'm hunting down ingredients.

[fahrenheit-f430.livejournal.com]

Lamb mince is unbelievably greasy - imo, anyway. Whenever I do lamb couscous I cook the lamb first and drain the fat off before I add anything else.

[selenay]

I've also been having thoughts about maybe replacing the feta with stilton.

Mostly because I was considering doing a cauliflower cheese with stilton instead of cheddar next week and then I'd not have left-over silton lurking around waiting for me to think of ways to eat it that don't involve me eating the lot in one sitting with water crackers.

[fahrenheit-f430.livejournal.com]

Got any beef mince hanging around? Beef + stilton + mushroom = classic.

Oh you have that problem with stilton too? I limit myself to Xmas Only or I'd end up eating 1/2lb melted on toast. With bacon. *looks guilty*

[selenay]

Beef mince stored in individual portions is one of my freezer stables :-) The extra lean stuff, so that I feel a little healthier. This could be rather excellent.

The other option is to brown to lamb to get as much of the fat out, then drain it, mix it all up and stuff the mushrooms. I suspect that I'm going to have to experiment. Perhaps more than once :-)

Hmmm, stilton melted on toast has potential...

With the bacon really crispy. I have gorgeous maple cured bacon that I'm rather addicted to. I force myself to seperate the package up into three rasher portions for the freezer as soon as I get home so that I don't accidentally cook and eat the entire lot all at once.

[fahrenheit-f430.livejournal.com]

Oh you're sorted then! :-D

Fiddly way is to put a little bit of water in the pan; bring it to the boil; throw the lamb mince in and give it a couple of mins of constant stirring before fishing it out and mixing. The boiling water should wash most of the fat out without overcooking the meat.

Dude, it's porn. Especially if you use crusty bread. *faints*

Bacon very crispy! The bacon goes on the grill before I start toasting the bread, that way the bacon is UNDER the cheese. You have bacon problems too? Oh god. I don't buy bacon at all because it goes in the space of 3 sandwiches. BUT... I've got a joint of boiling bacon in the freezer. *cracks knuckles* When I get my ceramic hob and Le Creuset pans GUESS what I'm having for dinner?

[selenay]

Hmm, thank you for the tip on fat extraction! I suspect that I may be doing that :-) Although it looks from the poll as though I'm going to be doing the ginger beef this weekend and the stuffed mushrooms next weekend.

Unless I do an trial run during the week :-) Perhaps with some beef mince and stilton instead of lamb and feta...

No, I am not addicted to the thought of beef and stilton stuffed mushrooms now. Not at all.

I have no decent grill in this house (it is a bug bear, yes, as is my lack of decent large oven so that I do all cooking in my toaster oven and hope that I never need to cook anything larger because my oven is not working properly) so I am bad and fry my bacon.

*hangs head*

And it's so good crispy :-)

So I shall need to get my oven fixed before I can do any grill-type treats. Stupid oven.

I am promised a ceramic hob when the kitchen gets replaced next year. Hopefully there will also be a decent fan oven with a grill. I am resisting the temptation to research ovens (too much).

When did I turn into a cook?

My bacon problems would be epic if I didn't force myself to freeze most of the package as soon as I enter the house. I'd happily cook the lot and eat it, without bothering to add bread, if I weren't firm about this freezing thing.