A Few Dishes I've Made Lately

I ended the Remler Menu just in time. The month of April always kicks my behind, with the end of the academic year upon me, students needing advisement, and my kids' extracurricular activities coming to a head. I always take a breather when May 1st comes around.

But I did cook some good meals in April. At least, I think they were good dishes. Lawson didn't always agree, but I've learned that I'm seldom going to please him at the dinner table.

One dinner I made was beef stronganoff, my mom's recipe. I love that creamy, oniony, beefy flavor. I used to make it all the time right after Stephen and I married. But then he said he didn't really like it, so I stopped making it. But then a few weeks ago, fifteen years later, I thought, Why should I never have beef stroganoff again, just because Stephen doesn't like it? I eat steak and grits all the time when he cooks them. So off I went to the Publix to get the necessary ingredients. My mistake was that I tried to make it a little healthier than usual, so I used fat free sour cream instead of the regular kind. The sauce isn't as creamy that way. The texture was just a wee bit pasty. I won't do that again. I thought Lawson would like beef stroganoff because it has mushrooms in it, but he took one bite and asked if he could have cereal for dinner (to which I replied no because we don't play that game at our house). Davis ate his with no comment. That's how he rolls. Stephen ate his too, and I was surprised when he said, "I enjoyed dinner." Now he says he likes beef stroganoff. Maybe his taste buds have changed.

Another dinner I made recently was a thai chicken in peanut sauce dish I got in the most recent Weight Watchers recipe magazine I bought at the Publix (Weight Watchers comes out with this magazine twice a year, and I love it). It includes lo mein noodles, broccoli, baby corn, snow peas, water chestnuts and sugar snap peas with cut up chicken breast stir fried and served in a peanut sauce. The recipe calls for two tablespoons of low fat peanut butter, but again, to make it even healthier, I used my now favorite peanut butter product: PB2.

Made in Tifton, Georgia, at Bell Plantation, PB2 is dehydrated peanut butter. The makers remove all the oil and sell it in powder form. When I want a peanut butter sandwich, I simply mix the PB2 with water. It tastes exactly like peanut butter, but it has none of the fat! It's great! And I can use it in any recipe that calls for regular peanut butter. It tastes exactly the same. Unfortunately, PB2 is not sold in stores in my area, but I can order it directly from Bell Plantation. To save money, though, I usually buy it at my Weight Watchers meetings. My WW leader will order a case, to save money on shipping, and then I buy a jar or two from her. I strongly recommend PB2, whether you're trying to lose weight or just want to eat a healthier diet.

Another recipe from the Weight Watchers magazine was chicken schnitzel. Because Lawson is playing the role of Max in The Sound of Music tonight and tomorrow night, I thought schnitzel would be appropriate. I served it with--you guessed it--noodles (as well as peas and asparagus). Stephen and the boys liked it a lot, so we'll be having that for dinner again. I guess you can say it's now one of our favorite things! Ha!

Because I wrote about three dishes in one blog posting, I did not include the recipes. But I'll be happy to share them with you if you'd like. Just leave a comment and I'll get back to you.