What's For Dinner?

While I pretty much know about salad, the rest of your fare raises question marks over my head.
Mushroom toast (Croute aux Champignon) is onions and mushrooms with herbs, fried up until tender, deglazed with some white wine, then a splash of heavy cream. Pour this over slices of good bread, top with grated Swiss cheese, black pepper, and grated nutmeg, then broil until bubbly..
Oat soup is something that, as far as I can tell, my Grandmother invented. I have never found it in a cookbook or on-line. It is one of the most simple and delicious soups I know (that view might be influenced by nostalgia). You melt a good bit of butter in a pan then add oat meal flakes. Stir them around constantly until they are nice and toasty. Watch closely and stir constantly because they can go from lightly toasted to burnt in a few seconds. Add a bunch of crushed garlic and stir for another 10 seconds, then add chicken stock. Ratio is 1 part oats to 3 parts stock. Bring to a boil, then let simmer until the oats are al dente, around 5-10 minutes. Just before serving, add a good handful of finely chopped flat leaf parsley. Added bonus: the left overs will thicken up over night and you can have a nice bowl of garlicky porridge for breakfast the next day, as I am doing right now.

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Is that at a restaurant or is that how your home table looks?
If it’s the latter, you have a separate toast pan (or is that a soufflé)?
Feeling placesetting inadequacy
It's our coffee table in the living room. We watched a movie with dinner. The little red thing is a raclette cheese melter with four little tea light candles under the pan. That's melted cheese with spices in the top, not toast or a souffle.
 
I made a soup yesterday: butternut squash, parsnip, apple, onion, and coconut milk with poached meatballs flavored with goat's milk cream cheese and red Thai chili paste. It was absolutely delicious. The mild sweetness of the soup was perfect against the tangy and slightly spicy meatballs. Definitely making this one again. :nickyboy:

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I made a soup yesterday: butternut squash, parsnip, apple, onion, and coconut milk with poached meatballs flavored with goat's milk cream cheese and red Thai chili paste. It was absolutely delicious. The mild sweetness of the soup was perfect against the tangy and slightly spicy meatballs. Definitely making this one again. :nickyboy:

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Isn't there a Food Network competition we can get Nickyboy on to show off his stuff...bravo!
 
I'm just a simple, home cook. Not a tv figure.

And George Washington was just a simple land-owner :)

I've been addicted lately to the Great British Baking Show - it's wonderfully nerve-wracking in a way one would not think a baking show would be. The British version has none of the cattiness one would expect from a US reality show. And these people are often regular "simple, home cooks" who love baking, often not professionals. And you get the impression this is one of the greatest moments, honors of their lives

Plus the challenges are wonderfully sadistic - for the first time in 6 seasons, they decided to subject the bakers to Vegan Week - they had to make meringues with aquafaba (cooked chickpea liquid) instead of eggs. Oof - it separated the proverbial baking boys from baking men
 
And George Washington was just a simple land-owner :)

I've been addicted lately to the Great British Baking Show - it's wonderfully nerve-wracking in a way one would not think a baking show would be. The British version has none of the cattiness one would expect from a US reality show. And these people are often regular "simple, home cooks" who love baking, often not professionals. And you get the impression this is one of the greatest moments, honors of their lives

Plus the challenges are wonderfully sadistic - for the first time in 6 seasons, they decided to subject the bakers to Vegan Week - they had to make meringues with aquafaba (cooked chickpea liquid) instead of eggs. Oof - it separated the proverbial baking boys from baking men
I like that show a lot. It inspires me to bake more than just bread. Paul Hollywood is a bit of a twat, however.
 
Dinner tonight is Tartiflette, which has become our NYD dinner tradition. It's a dish from the Savoy region of France. It is a baked dish of sliced potatoes, bacon, onions, garlic, white wine, Beaufort cheese, and heavy cream. Real Beaufort cheese from France will run you around $50/lb. Lucky for us, an American cheese maker started making it for far, far less and it really is almost indistinguishable from the original.
 
Creamed chestnut soup with sage and bacon with Muenster Croque Messieurs with apple-jalapeno jelly on the side. Bottle of pinot noir to wash it down. Winter dining at its finest!
 
Individual sized chicken pot pies fresh out of the oven.

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I love chicken pot pie.

I've only made it a couple of times. Help me with this, please. If I'm not mistaken, most recipes call for heavy cream and chicken broth to make the gravy. I never have heavy cream on hand, but I generally have 2% milk in the fridge. How much trouble will I cause myself if I use that and try to thicken it with extra flour or cornstarch instead?
 
I love chicken pot pie.

I've only made it a couple of times. Help me with this, please. If I'm not mistaken, most recipes call for heavy cream and chicken broth to make the gravy. I never have heavy cream on hand, but I generally have 2% milk in the fridge. How much trouble will I cause myself if I use that and try to thicken it with extra flour or cornstarch instead?
You'll be fine with that, but won't have the slick mouth-feel of heavy cream. I would add some extra butter in that case.
 
So for dinner last night I made lasagne. I actually did take a picture, but it's not as pretty as all of yours. It was more to show my sweetheart why I didn't call her last night.

The recipe had me make four cups of bechamel, add a cup and a half of tomato sauce -- and then a pinch of nutmeg. Only a pinch? I've heard a little nutmeg goes a long way, so I added a big pinch but that was as brave as I got. I don't think I can taste that spice, but then my palate is not that discerning. Maybe it just augments the onions, garlic and tomatoes.

What's your take on a pinch of nutmeg in a quart and a half of sauce? Just right? An oddly small amount? Ok for fresh ground but not from a jar? Skip the nutmeg and go with basil next time?

Thanks.
 
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