When four people get sick, one person needs a Nano.

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At least that's what I told myself when I was on my 22nd load of laundry MUSIC-FREE during the height of the puking. Concerned readers, you can stop emailing wails of concern. We are alive and well. Gastroenteritis laid us low over Christmas, heck, Christmas laid us low over Christmas, so low in fact that I had to buy a new Nano to snap out of it. And a new coffee table and console table. And Wii. And weekend in Pittsburgh. And soon we'll all be in Manhattan.

There might have been a new pair of running shoes and a new cookbook or four, two new bookshelves, a trip to Ikea, and perhaps I'm contemplating major appliance purchases.

My new Nano has made me so fulsomely food productive! My old iPod died about six months ago. Streaming Pandora is awesome, but it's not like girating in the kitchen, singing at the top of my lungs while chopping onions to old friends from my musical past. This is an excellent development because instead of lollygagging around all day on vacation trying to decide what to make for dinner then taking everybody out I'm back to running at full steam with work, kids in school, workaholic husband, vacations to plan, and new furniture to arrange.

Why just this weekend alone, thanks in no small part to a snow day on Friday with the kids, I had time to dance and whip out three pans of this:

The best lasagna. Ever. (via the Pioneer Woman)

It might not the best, because my palate demands bechamel in the best lasagna, but it's darn good, holds up well in the freezer, and my kids suck it down, which means for us, for now, it's the damn best. And we're having it for dinner the night we get back from Manhattan. Don't be too jealous. You can do it too. It's easy. BTW, I never boil noodles. I just do the no-boil variety. They are beautiful.

I also have a big pot of this braising right now, via The Barefoot Contessa:

Parker's Beef Stew

I mostly sorta kinda followed the directions. It smells heavenly, and really, can you go wrong with wine, bay leaf, salt, onions, garlic, and BEEF? I think not. We'll be having that with potatoes this week and frozen leftovers next week with fresh potatoes or noodles. Whatever I have around.

This is what we're having for dinner tonight, and the leftovers will sustain me no doubt for lunch a few days this week, along with coffee, Diet Coke, pretzels, and chocolate:

Jamie Oliver's Very Fantastic Fish Pie via Slashfood

I jitterbugged around the kitchen listening to my British favorites while I threw together Jamie's very British fish pie. I didn't use cream, but cooked down a little extra half & half. I also didn't use the juice of a whole lemon. A tablespoon was plenty, thanks. If I put spinach in a fish pie it's a slam dunk the kids won't get the food near enough to their mouths to even spit it out in disgust, so I stuck with peas. Always safe there.

We'll be rounding out a week a food with a simple pasta dish, some sausages and beans, and a stir fried rice with lovely Asian pork from Donna Hay.

Meanwhile, I leave you with this. I read this post this week from my neighbor (okay, two hours north), Michael Ruhlman:

America: Too Stupid to Took.

I've been thinking hard about what he wrote while I was killing drones on Star Wars: The Complete Saga, or pounding mushrooms in Super Mario Brothers. I feel a little guilty, 'cause certainly I should have been roasting a chicken whilst I Wii-ed my heart out. I'm not sure America is told it's too stupid to cook; I certainly feel like I'm told that I'm busy to cook as I wander around my grocery store aisles with coupons for boxed au gratin potatoes and cake mixes shooting out at me and my cart as I try desperately to find unbleached white flour before I weaken and reach for the canned butterscotch pudding. And Oreos. Anyway, interesting mildly pithy post (my favorite combination) worth a read whilst you wait for your chicken to finish roasting.

Gotta go check my fish pie and stir my stew.

Coming up, one of my best menus for entertaining, pulled together for Christmas Eve this year.

Feel free, dear readers, as you always do, to email me ideas for family friendly places to chow in Manhattan, keeping a four year old squarely in the forefront of one's recommending mind.

Love--Iced

Leftover Paella, Green Bean Casserole, Yakitori, and a Barn

Leftover paella is tasty. I would know because I just nibbled some, standing at the counter, reading the NYTimes food section, which I picked up at work today while I was sucking on a mint and some Sprite but didn't read at the time because I felt like death warmed over and didn't want to eat much or read about food because, in fact, I spent the first several hours on the job puking between patients. And no, I am not pregnant. A Sprite, said mints, an egg, and some toast later, I felt up to nibbling leftover delicious paella. But just a little. Me and my tummy aren't sure if we are friends yet.

Whilst nibbling paella, I was reading a recipe for homemade green bean casserole. I am not generally a green bean fan, but for this I might make an exception:

Green Bean Casserole @ the New York Times

What sounds better right now, though, is this:

Butterscotch 's Whiskey Cookie Bars

And hello, at the end of the recipe, note the picture of Jello pudding! And a little teaser:

I should add that JELL-O pudding mix is NOT in the recipe but the first picture is just a picture of my groceries. Cookie dough pictures aren’t very interesting anyways…the pudding is for another recipe though: Rum Cupcakes! I shall await with scotched-laced breath.

Did I mention that my Brudda, the Pork Master, got a slow cooker? And guess what? I found a slow cooker brined pork recipe with Alton Brown's fingerprints all over it. Possibly worth a try:

Slow cooker pork chops, apples, and sweet potatoes via Cheap Healthy Good

Two from Simply Recipes recently:

Cauliflower pasta with anchovies (I'll probably be eating this alone but oh, how I love anchovies and cauliflower, united at last in this recipe)
Scambled eggs with tomatillos (Green Eggs & Ham!)

THESE are going to be here at this house this weekend. I am going to need them:

Salted brown butter crispy treats from Smitten Kitchen

(Note the cute baby picture above the recipe and know that my friend Dr. Fabuloso's new baby is 20 times cuter and I have the pictures to prove it.)

Have a bit of beef hanging around and the urge to eat Vietnamese? Try this:

Vietnamese-styled sauteed beef

Thinking ahead to that turkey you're going to have left over? Grind it and try:

Turkey Yakitori Burgers

(Shout out to Columbus Foodie for the tips.)

Roger. Over and out.

Can you tell I'm hungry?

Vegetable tacos: Look divine. These are on the menu next week. Thanks to Simply Recipes.

Whilst you are visiting Simply recipes, you might want to check this out, especially the sauce, which I think I want to put in a mug and drink:

Porkchops with Mustard-Bourbon Cream Sauce

We don't use nuts in our house 'cause my boy has a raaaaah-ther nahsty reaction to cashews and peanuts. So I chanced upon a granola bar recipe at Smitten Kitchen which looks terrific and doesn't have nuts:

Granola Bars

They will be on the menu for breakfast next week, too.

Have I Got a Line Up for You!

Are you ready? Got your grocery list handy? Here is this week's line up for my family. Some new, some tried and true, but they all look really delicious.

Monday: I confess, oh mighty readers, we are going out for pizza tonight.

Tuesday: Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon. "PassYouBy", my moniker here, could easily (but doesn't) refer to what I do to the fish at the grocery store. Seafood so seldom figures into my menu planning you'd think we were allergic. But no, I just don't really like the taste, nor the smell in my house. But I have a houseguest this week who really likes it so I will make it. Here's how: In a small saucepan over medium heat, cook and stir 1 T brown sugar, 2 t butter and 1 t honey until melted. Remove from heat; whisk in 1 T olive oil, 1 T Dijon mustard, 1 T soy sauce, 1/2 t salt and 1/4 t pepper. Cool for five minutes. Place 1 salmon filet (2 1/2 pounds) in a large foil-lined baking pan; brush with brown sugar mixture. Bake, uncovered, at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork.

Wednesday: Spicy Thai-Thai Burritos with Orange Coconut Rice. This is Dr. Latte's recipe. If she says it's good, it's good.

Thursday: Honey Lemon Chicken. I first made this in August of 2008. I know this because of my complicated, if not obsessive and joke-worthy, method of marking my recipes so I know who I served it to, when, and with what as well as any helpful remarks. This one just says, "We all loved this!" Combine the following in a large bowl: 1/2 cup lemon juice, 1/3 cup honey, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 2 T finely chopped onion, 4 garlic cloves-minced, 2 t dried parsley, 2 t dried basil, 1 t salt-free seasoning blend, 1 t white pepper, and 1 t lime juice. Pour 2/3 cup of the marinade into a large zip-top bag with 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves and marinate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Cover and refrigerate remaining marinade. Grill chicken until juices run clear turning once and basting occasionally with reserved marinade.

Friday: Probably leftovers, served with a lovely tossed salad with My Favorite Dressing: 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 1/4 cup honey, 2 heaping T Dijon mustard, 1/4 cup oil. Sometimes I mix honey and sugar to make 1/4 cup instead of all honey.

That's the plan, what is yours?

*Knock*Your*Socks*Off* Thai Chicken Curry

Every once in a while I try a recipe and everyone at the table eats in silence; pure eating delight. After some time, someone will raise his head and say, "This is better than XXXX restaurant!" or "This is the best XXXXXX I've ever eaten!" (and it is usually my younger son; I love cooking for people who love to eat!)

I excuse myself from the table and carefully mount the recipe on a 4x6 index card, write "DO NOT LOSE THIS RECIPE" atop and place in The Wooden Box. Here is one such recipe.

KYSO Thai Chicken Curry

2 medium onions, thinly sliced
1 medium red bell pepper, thinly sliced
3 cans (14 oz) unsweetened coconut milk
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
6+ tsp red curry paste (less if you need less heat)
1 1/2 tsp. salt
6 cups sliced cooked chicken
2 cups torn basil leaves

Coat a large nonstick skillet with nonstick spray. Saute onion over medium-high heat 3 minutes or until golden.

Add bell pepper, cover and cook 4 mnutes, stirring occasionally, until onion and pepper are almost tender.

Stir in coconut milk, peas, curry paste and salt; bring to a boil. Add chicken; simmer uncovered for a few minutes until sauce is slightly thinckened and vegetables are tender. Remove from heat; stir in basil.

Serve over hot cooked rice.

Note: you could also add some roasted sweet potaotes and/or carrots too. I've modified the recipe somewhat to accomodate our tastes (less bell pepper, more curry paste). This recipe will serve a hungry family of four with leftovers for lunches the next day.