What's for dinner?

Most of the time I am watching TV, it is the Food Network. My hubby is always saying, “You watch all those Food Network shows but I never get anything good!” I’ve also been in a rut of not being able to come up with new dinner ideas. Rachael Ray’s book, I hope, will be perfect, so I won’t have to think about “what’s for dinner.” It’ll be whatever is the next recipe in the book!

Some of the Food Network recipes seem labor intensive and nothing is more disappointing to me than spending time in the kitchen, $$ in ingredients, only to have a mediocre, ho hum, or worse yet, just plain bad meal. The 30 Minute time frame is really appealing to me because of that.

Over the weekend I bought a microplane, to get started. (I had a 20% off coupon for one of the chain stores.) I’ve noticed Rachael uses it a lot for nutmeg, parmigiano-reggiano, lemon zest, etc. My pantry is pretty well stocked but I need to get some spices used regularly in the recipes like the grill seasoning and smoked paprika. I might as well do an overhaul of my spice rack since a lot of my collection has gone dull since moving to Texas, where the humidity has zapped them of their zing. (Side note: my favorite spice catalog is Penzeys, their catalog is fun to read and I learn about what spices go well with what foods. I also buy small quantities of spices, like cayenne, that I find in the Mexican aisle of the supermarket.) I plan to go through the pantry list in Rachael Ray’s new magazine and add things like chicken stock to my regular stash.

Like Debbie, I’m usually a stickler for following recipes to the letter, particularly if it is the first time I’m making it. I like to get a sense of what the cook wanted the dish to be like, vs. the way I like things. You never know when you will learn something new. But...I can see that I won’t be able to find some of the items required for these recipes. I think Rachael’s grocery stores in the Adirondacks have more of a selection than mine in East Texas. I doubt I will be able to find turkey cutlets, arugula or watercress, for example, so I might have to substitute chicken for turkey, or a few dried herbs for fresh.

Looking at Debbie’s Week One Shopping List, I notice that Rachael’s recipes are centered heavily in meat. I guess my family is in for a change too, since we tend not to eat a lot of meat, or if we do, it’s “diluted” in a casserole.

I can’t wait to get into the kitchen!