QUICK MEAL – STIR-FRIED PORK CHOP

Yes, I finally did a little cooking this week, but it was out of necessity…Ms. Mushy refused to cook!

I found two leftover pork chops, a bag of frozen vegetables, some peanuts, and an onion – no problem!

Stir-frying makes anything taste good, even leftovers!

I simply cubed up the pork chops, and sat them aside.

I opened a Yuengling, poured it into a frosty glass, and continued to slave hard over a hot stove.

I put on two servings of brown rice, cooked it until all the water was soaked up, and sat that aside.

I cut up the sweet onion and turned on the heat under a skillet that had a little olive oil, some chopped garlic and some hot sauce in it. When the garlic began to dance I dumped in the bag of frozen vegetables, added salt and pepper, and tossed them until they began to thaw. I then dumped in the fresh onion, the peanuts, and the pork chop cubes.

In about 8 minutes, I had a wonderful meal ready to eat!

Cooking is not hard…it is fun and half the pleasure in it is the freedom of creativity you have. Most anything you can imagine will taste good cooked in olive oil and garlic! Even a man can do it!

101 LIP SMACKING POSTS

I did not realize until just now that I have posted 101 of the most lip-smacking food recipes and food shots ever! I don't mean to brag, but even having just finished a wonderful grilled hamburger, looking back over the posts made my mouth water!

Folks, there is not one of the recipes or places I've eaten that isn't good tasting and easily prepared. Like I say, "EVEN A MAN CAN COOK LIKE THIS!"

I may not post often here, but I just can't kill it...too many good things here to pass on and remember.

MUSHY LOVES HIS FOOD!

BRINGING YOU GOOD STUFF SINCE 2006!

FAMILY DINNING AT CARRABBA'S

Nope, I haven’t been spending much time here anymore and I suppose I’m sorry, but the time away has been well spent and I wouldn’t change a thing.

I have been completing my physical therapy for my second shoulder operation, had almost a weeklong visit from my blogging buddy FatHairyBastard, and it’s been so hot that I haven't cooked much.

Now, if you visited Mushy’s Moochings, you know that I have been eating well – lots of food shots there from last week’s visit, but cooking inside, and especially outside on the grill, is just out of the question right now.

Tonight the eight of us dinned at Carrabba’s Italian Grill!

Here is a shot of their bar, which, to me, gives the place an overall rating of a B+. There are only weak, light colored domestics on tap, and the only “pale ale” they had in bottles was New Castle, and of course there was Guinness! I have to admit I enjoyed all three I had, but the super frosty mugs made all the difference!

I started with an order of Calamari, which is lightly battered then fried to tender, crisp, golden brown, and served with a marinara sauce.

The other end of the table ordered Cozze In Bianco, which is fresh Canadian Cove mussels from Prince Edward Island that are steamed in white wine, basil, lemon butter and Pernod. I didn’t like them as much as the ones at Bone Fish, so I stuck primarily with the Calamari!

Three of the outstanding dishes were:

CHICKEN BRYAN

Grilled chicken breast topped with goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes and a basil lemon butter sauce.

CHICKEN MARSALA

Grilled chicken breast topped with mushrooms, prosciutto and our Lombardo Marsala wine sauce.

SPIEDINO DI MARE

Shrimp and sea scallops coated with Italian breadcrumbs, grilled and topped with lemon butter sauce.

I would post some of the family shots, but you would not believe some of the weird faces I caught tonight – one eye open one closed, wrinkled noses, and squinted eyes…too much for the blog to handle.

Well, that’s it for this visit…maybe I’ll stick with it…we’ll see. I know, this seems to be a running theme of a couple of my blogs, but I need to spend more time at Mushy’s. Oh, have you seen my new header…I need feedback…thus far it’s a split decision!

SMOKY MOUNTAIN BREWERY

After a very exhausting hike yesterday on the Appalachian Trail, we recuperated at the Smoky Mountain Brewery in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

To see the details of the hike click here!

STEAK AND CORN ON THE COB

Wow! We just finished a fantastic meal of ribeye steak, corn on the cob, and sautéed mushrooms and onions!

The steak, was salted, peppered, and sprinkled with garlic powder and placed on a hot grill – turned once – and taken off in about 20 minutes.

I placed three ears of fresh corn inside a sheet of aluminum foil and placed them on the same grill for the same 20 minutes, turning the package once after 10 minutes!

Inside, while I enjoyed one Yuengling and one Old Scratch beer, I sautéed fresh mushrooms and onions in a little olive oil, Smart butter, with salt and pepper.

Once I removed the steak, I cut it in half, to share with my wife, sprayed Parkay Fat Free butter on the corn, and salted the ears.

Together, the taste combination was simply wonderful!

SERIOUS BACK SLIDING!

Saturday was family day with dinner out in Knoxville. This week the Dragons chose Bonefish Grill. It’s a wonderful place on Parkside Drive, in the Turkey Creek shopping area. They seem to have a handle on fresh fish and always have at least 7 selections.

The appetizer choices for the six of us were:
Bang Bang Shrimp - Tender, crispy shrimp tossed in a creamy, spicy sauce.
Mussels Josephine - Prince Edward Island Mussels sautéed with tomatoes, garlic, basil and lemon wine sauce.
Saucy Shrimp - Sautéed in a lime tomato garlic sauce with Kalamata olives and feta cheese.

This probably sounds like a lot, but there was nothing left!

The crew settled on these entrees:
Alaskan Halibut with pasta and vegetables
Cedar Plank Salmon with vegetables
Scallops and Shrimp with Oscar* sauce and rice

*(Oscar Sauce is lump crab meat, asparagus, and a lemon butter sauce)

The wine choice was Beringer White Zinfandel, while the men settled for Miller Lite (btl), Sierra Nevada (btl), and New Castle draft. The draft choices at Bonefish are very limited. To us Knights, this drops the overall rating to an A-!

For more action, see Mushy's Moochings!

BACK SLIDING – AGAIN

The wife and I met one of her sisters and brother-in-law at Puleo’s Grille for a delicious late lunch today. Puleo’s is located at the corner of Cedar Bluff and North Peters Road in Knoxville, Tennessee. While the only dark beer on draft is Killian, their menu is varied and full of delicious entrées!

Here we are about to enjoy four different dishes – ain’t we nothing!

Neena chose the FIESTA CHICKEN TENDER SALAD - Golden fried chicken tenders glazed with a sweet chili sauce served over mixed greens and tossed with roasted corn, black beans, tortilla strips, vegetables, and creamy ranch dressing.

Ron chose the CHICKEN PICCATA - A sautéed breast of chicken topped with artichokes, capers, and tomatoes simmered in a lemon wine sauce served over linguini.

Judy had the FILET MIGNON PASTA - Marinated beef tenderloin tips, mushrooms, shallots, garlic, peperonata, and Penne pasta tossed in a fresh basil and tomato cream sauce.

And Mushy had the GULF SHRIMP - A generous portion of Gulf Shrimp hand breaded and fried, with two of my favorite sides: Stone Ground Cheese Grits and NAPA Slaw!

WEIGHT WATCHERS – THE NEW PROGRAM 7

Remember the 3 large chicken breast I cooked in item #6, well, my wife cut up the last two and made this quick and easy dish. In no time she had a delicious meal for between 7 and 8 points!

All she did was add Uncle Ben’s long grain brown rice, some yellow peppers, and some onions! That’s it!

Season to taste and serve.

BACKSLIDING…

Yeah, only 5 pounds to date, but going out with friends makes staying on Weight Watchers difficult. I would rather be fat, happy, and with family than skinny, unhappy, and lonely!

I will remain true to the WW way of eating, but occasionally I will slip up. Mostly it was the 3 beers I had!

This is Aubrey’s Restaurant in Lenoir City, Tennessee. Aubrey’s is a local chain and there are 3 or 4 restaurants in the Knoxville area.

Today I chose the Asian Chicken Salad – Grilled chicken, wontons, mandarin oranges, peanuts, and sesame seeds, served over spring greens with a sweet Thai Vinaigrette! So yummy!

Sitting across from me was my nephew Chandler, a handsome devil, who tempted me through the whole meal with his pizza selection – a thin crust with cheese over creamed spinach, and sprinkled with tomatoes and chicken!

When I’m with the other Knights, we usually sit in the cozy bar area. Plenty of drafts to chose from here!

WEIGHT WATCHERS – THE NEW PROGRAM 6

I cooked 3 large chicken breasts on the grill yesterday, all of which had been marinated in Italian Salad Dressing over night.

Today, we found that one breast weighed 6 ounces. So, we cubed up the meat, halved it, and added it to the following canned vegetables that had been mixed and heated:

1 – Can of Mexicorn
1 – Can of Lima Beans
1 – Can of cubed tomatoes with spices and garlic

All this makes a wonderful taste combination and only scores 6 points on the Weight Watcher’s scale!

WEIGHT WATCHERS – NEW PROGRAM 5

Eating well on Weight Watchers is really quite easy, such as this quick and easy salad.

Experiment with different greens besides the same old iceberg lettuce you are used to. We have begun buying Fresh Express salad mixings like Sweet Butter (Contains - Green Butter Lettuce and Red Butter Lettuce) and Riviera (Contains - Butter Lettuce and Raddichio).

Wonderful new taste was opened up to us!

We add some onion, carrots, cucumber, squash, tomato, and 2 to 3 ounces of thin sliced deli turkey, beef, or ham.

Lightly add either a low calorie blackberry vinaigrette, or fat free ranch! You will be surprised how filling and satisfying these salads are.

WEIGHT WATCHERS – THE NEW PROGRAM 4

Hungry? How about a great sandwich and a cup of soup?

Whole wheat bread with only 50 calories, a little swipe of light salad dressing and spicy mustard, covered in 4 ounces of thin sliced deli beef, turkey, or ham (or a combination of each), and topped with a slice cheese (only for the man of the house for extra points), a slice of onion, and halved grape tomatoes!

A wonderful sandwich goes great with a full cup of Healthy Request Chunky Soup from Campbell’s! Wash it down with a Diet Lipton Green Tea!

It’s all within my daily point count of 34…or, at least my wife says so. So, I’ll take it!

WEIGHT WATCHERS - THE NEW PROGRAM 3

Man, last night’s meal was a whopper and totally within the points limits of the Weight Watcher’s program.

Four chicken strips cooked in light olive oil and chopped garlic, and seasoned with salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper until golden brown.

All this meat plus two full cups of whole grain rice and peas on the side! I was completely full when I finished this meal. If I could have had dessert, I would not have had room!

Of course, when I say points, I am referring to the male portions, which is typically 34, while my wife is limited to 19 per day, at least at this time.

If you are interested in the program, check out Weight Watchers today.

WEIGHT WATCHERS - THE NEW PROGRAM 2

Fixing a quick meal that’s tasty, within points, and is good for you does not have to take long or be elaborate.

Plop a few chicken strips, some sliced turnips and squash, and a few tiny asparagus sprouts onto a baking sheet, spray everything with olive oil, and sprinkle everything with salt and pepper, and maybe a little garlic powder on the chicken and your almost done.

Pop it all into the oven for about 30 minutes on 450, turn everything once, and BAM…it’s done!

This loosing weight and watching points is a breeze.

During the final episode of The Soprano’s this evening, we split a bag of “light” popcorn. I hated the ending, but alas, they are just everyday folks trying to get along in this world the best they know how!

WEIGHT WATCHERS – THE NEW PROGRAM

Well, some of you have been poking fun at me about the “Caveman” falling off the wagon, and it’s true. I have wondered to the wrong side of the forest for a time. No one noticed it more than Ms. Mushy did, so she has me on a new program – Weight Watchers!

I love the idea of the Caveman Diet, because I love nuts and fruits, but alas I’m too weak to last on anything. The only thing I ever did right was quit smoking. However, I do puff a stogie on occasion, but like Bill Clinton I do not inhale. Tried it once and got deathly sick!

Anyway, thought you might like to see last night’s meal and get build on the idea that you can eat pretty well on Weight Watchers.

Being a man, a manly man, I get about 10 more points per day than does she, and that seems to make me happy. I really haven’t been hungry, and if I do I still have fruit or popcorn (which is free if in the light version).

Last night my wife baked a beautiful pork chop, sweet potato, and side salad for me. Look at it! It was so good.

Sitting to my right was my granddaughter who insisted on macaroni and cheese with her chop…and yes, I stole 2 bites!

Here’s hoping I do better on this and have to buy all new clothes! Nah, I don’t want to go that far.

KINGSTON ALLEY GRILL & ALE HOUSE

Ron and I stopped in for lunch at the Kingston Alley Grill & Ale House today, our first trip. Bailey’s has been disappointing us of late, so we’ve decided to do a little scouting for us and the other Knights!

Since Ms. Mushy has me on the Weight Watchers diet, I held myself to one tall Killian (3 or 4 points), and ordered The Roosevelt – a 10 oz. marinated sirloin topped with Worcestershire butter. It comes with a house salad and I added steamed broccoli. Everything was delicious and I think I stayed under points, especially since I brought home at least half the steak.

Ron took on the 22 oz. Sierra Nevada and the Grilled Chicken Sandwich – an 8 oz. chicken breast grilled and topped with honey mustard! The sandwich comes with a huge pile of thick sliced fries. There was none left, so I think they must have been good!

There were 3 TVs visible, not quite “sports bar” coverage, but adequate. There are plenty of games along one wall with lots of tables, plus outdoor seating. There are also quieter area seating along the opposite wall from the game machines.

Of course, there is live music on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, & Saturday evenings, beginning at 6 PM on Wed., while the other evening’s entertainment begins at 10 PM.

BIG ED'S PIZZA - THE LEGEND LIVES

Ms. Mushy and I saw “Spidyman” Friday, and we were the only 2 people in the theater! This is another perk of being retired…the 12:05 during the week is usually sparsely attended. We then topped off a lovely day together by visiting Bid Ed’s Pizza.

Since 1970 Big Ed Neusel’s Pizza, at Number 1 Broadway in Jackson Square, has been an institution, a one of a kind place to go and have old Italian style pizza and a beer. That’s all they have, so it has been perfected over the years to a succinct taste. Thin chewy crust with a fat fluffy rim that comes from dough made on site daily and a hot juicy middle available with 10 all natural ingredients!

Besides the sauce, you begin with cheese and then add up to 5 additional items, or get the “Special” and get 6! That’s my favorite…the works!

There are four draft beers, no bottles, to choose from by the glass or pitcher.

Big Ed’s has been mentioned on many national sports shows and many sports stars, and other celebrities have visited there and left banners and photos that adorn the 18-foot walls. There is an eclectic mix of autographed footballs, baseballs, and military memorabilia hanging there or in locked showcases. You could spend an hour just reading the graffiti on the stairs down to the restrooms, or looking at the signatures and dedications local schools and universities have made to Big Ed.

Some of the most important items hanging around are the paraphernalia from military units -- Blue Angels, Marines, Navy -- decorate the walls. Big Ed served in Vietnam as a Marine himself!

Big Ed’s is actually internationally famous (Google and see) and is one the “must visits” when coming to the Knoxville/Oak Ridge, Tennessee area.

High school kids have always worked “behind the glass” making the fresh pizzas for Big Ed. Many have earned their way on to college with a job tossing pizzas in the air at Big Ed’s.

Big Ed died in 1998, but the traditions continue with son David.

Big Ed crafted the cost of operating his business by providing only the barest of amenities – pizza comes hot on an aluminum tray, but you have to pulled the molten pieces off onto 6” paper (thin) plates and saw off bites (until it cools) with a plastic fork! Nothing fancy here except the taste of the pizza!

Going into Big Ed’s is like going back in time for me. I used to go to this same place (called something else then) with my parents when they went out dancing around 1949-51. I was 3 or 4 years old and I remember them holding me up between them as they danced. Gees, I wish I could remember the music – one was probably "Good Night Irene" – and get more of a visual recollection, but I only see the three-headed dancers!