Day #210 - Five Guys

I am on vacation.   The blog is not.    For the next week, my blog will be featuring the meals I eat out here in sunny California!   My parents and I arrived in CA tonight, and our first meal was at the Five Guys Burgers & Fries joint here in San Jose.    If you have never been to a Five Guys, you basically choose your burger size (little or regular), and then name your toppings.  Tonight I had the little cheeseburger (1 burger patty) with BBQ sauce, sauteed onions, and sauteed mushrooms.    We all ordered a large fries to share.
While you wait for your Five Guys burgers to be cooked to order, they also have roasted peanuts in the shells  available to nibble on.   They were salty and addicting!!  I had dozens of them before and after my meal.

Day #209 - BBQ Ribs

Tonight I went to my parents' house for dinner.   Mom cooked up a very colorful dinner for us: BBQ ribs, corn on the cob, sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumbers seasoned with dried dill, and chopped cantaloupe.    Dessert was vanilla frozen yogurt with diced peaches.  A perfect summertime meal!

Day #208 - Ham Steak

Tonight's dinner was pretty basic.  I cooked (well, preheated) a ham steak in a large skillet on the stovetop, and then added a glaze of apricot preserves and spicy mustard.  I also heated up some frozen corn kernels as my vegetable side for dinner.

Day #207 - Ham & Cheese Quesadilla

After work today, I got so involved in running errands and other tasks around the apartment, it was almost 7pm before I realized I hadn't eaten dinner yet.  So I made something quick and simple: a ham & cheese quesadilla.  A whole grain tortilla, a little honey mustard spread, several slices of deli ham, and sliced colby jack cheese.   Zapped in the microwave for a minute, until the cheese was melty, then cut into wedges. 

Day #206 - Burgers & Corn-on-the-cob

I went over to my parents' house for dinner tonight.    Mom cooked dinner.    We had stovetop-grilled hamburgers, corn on the cob, and spinach salad.

My hamburger was topped with American cheese, bacon, bread & butter pickles, and BBQ sauce on a toasted sesame bun.
The spinach salad was leafy green lettuce with crumbled bacon and a sugar-vinegar dressing.

Day #205 - Italian Pot Roast

 
I know this probably looks like a nice, fancy, slow-cooked pot roast, and I wish it was.  Instead, it came from a microwave container.  One of the Hormel microwavable meals - Italian Pot Roast.   I simply cooked it in the microwave for 5 minutes.   I also took some of the extra quinoa from last night, and reheated it with a little parmesean cheese and dried Italian herbs.

Day #204 - Chipotle Corn Chicken

 This is a mixture that I sort of made up as I went along.


I started by bringing 2 cups of water to a boil in a small skillet, and then cooking 1 cup of quinoa for 15 minutes (per package instructions) over medium heat.

While the quinoa was cooking, I prepped the rest of my ingredients:  1 cup of frozen corn kernel, 1/2 apple (peeled and diced), and 1 large boneless skinless chicken breast (cut into 1-inch cubes).   I put the chicken cubes in a tupperware bowl, seasoned with salt, pepper, and chipotle seasoning, and added a few drizzles of lime juice.  I put the lid on the tupperware and shook to fully coat the chicken cubes.  

Once the quinoa was cooked, I removed it from the heat and let it rest.    During this time, I heated up a little olive oil in my skillet, and cooked the chicken cubes until no longer pink, about 6 minutes.  I then dumped in the corn kernels, and sauteed with the chicken for another 3-4 minutes.   I seasoned the chicken & corn mixture with a little more chipotle seasoning, and a palmful of dried herbs (parsley, oregano, and chive).  I then added the diced apple, and let it all sautee for another couple minutes.


The apple & corn added a little bit of sweetness to cut the spice of the chipotle seasoning on the chicken.  And the lime juice that was added to the chicken added a nice little twist of flavor in the background.