What's for Dinner, Thurs., Dec. 7, 2023
We went out to a restaurant we've been going to for a long time.
Rhode Island calimari for an appetizer. What I think distinguishes R.I. calimari from any other way of preparing it is the hot red peppers that are breaded and served with the calimari. We shared this appetizer.
Next up was matzoh ball soup.
Autumn salad cranberries, pecans, green apple, pear, bacon lardons, roasted butternut squash, cranberries, buttermilk-poppyseed dressing.
Tuna nicoise salad. (the usual ingredients for that--green beans, tuna, hardboiled egg, black olives, mixed greens.)
Decided to have cheesecake for dessert at home because of screaming children at a nearby table.
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I haven’t had a steak in so long. It was fantastic.
Sautéed onions and mushrooms for a while, removed them from the pan and cranked up the heat. The steak was a lovely, large sirloin, the shape of a filet. I sliced it into four ~1 inch thick pieces and seasoned it with salt pepper and garlic powder. Seared it off nicely, dumped the onions and mushrooms back in the pan, added some fresh minced garlic and then about 1/4 C red wine. Covered, turned down the heat, and simmered for a minute or two while plating up my potatoes.
Diced and boiled a russet potato, then salt, pepper, real bacon bits, parmesan, a splash of milk, and some mozzarella. They were so good with the mushrooms, onion, and steak juices.
For veg, I had a salad from a mediterranean mix kit with a nice, sweet basil-y vinaigrette.
Oh my gosh, this is the best meal I’ve had in ages! I’m so full and happy right now. 
Once my food coma recedes, there is a chocolate muffin for dessert.
This all came from the fantastic food bank I visited on Tuesday. I’m so thankful for them.
And there are leftovers for lunch tomorrow- half of the steak, which I’ll probably make into a quesadilla along with the rest of the mushrooms and onions, on a spinach tortilla.
