jmcquown wrote:
> It's two weeks until the trip and I've had a couple more thoughts.
>
> It was mentioned, and I'm leaning towards pan-fried steaks. He loves filet
> minon; I'd go with either that or pan-fried NY strip. Heck, I even told him
> I'd nuke "baked potatoes" LOL
>
> Last year we did use leftover pasta after I used the first two chicken
> breast halves to make stuffed chicken parmesan in a tomato sauce. The
> remaining two chicken breast halves were used with artichoke hearts, etc. to
> prepare a second meal a couple of nights later with the leftover pasta. It
> worked out very well.
>
> Anyway, last night I had a dream about this. You fish nay-sayers may
> criticize all you wish, but I would think a hotel room that has a kitchen
> provides some sort of relief from cooking scents. Besides, this isn't a
> hermetically sealed suite; the windows actually open. And now I'm not
> talking about fish, I'm talking about already cooked frozen shrimp. Not
> like I'll be boiling cabbage. So I'd like your opinion, given I dreamt
> about this last night:
>
> Saute some broccoli florets in olive oil until tender-crisp. Throw in lots
> of garlic (I'm picturing 4-6 cloves, slivered) and maybe some sliced
> mushrooms. Continue to saute until garlic is lightly browned and mushrooms
> are tender. Deglaze the pan with a splash of white wine or squeeze a small
> lemon into the pan. Add medium-sized cooked frozen peeled deveined shrimp.
> Add half & half and simmer until the shrimp are heated through and the sauce
> has reduced. Season with salt & pepper, perhaps some Italian flat-leaf
> parsley (I don't want to go heavy on or buy a lot of herbs). Serve on a bed
> of pasta.
>
> And there's always hamburgers. He and I both love mushroom swiss burgers.
>
> The whole point of this is not to impress but to save money. We could go
> out for a steak dinner and spend $75, or we could make use of the kitchen in
> the room and spend about $15-20 for the same dinner. He's bringing the wine
> We could go to an Italian restaurant and spent $50 on a shrimp and pasta
> dinner, or (again) make a similar dinner in our room.
>
> NOTE: I'm not trying to nay-say any ideas but I *will* say I'm not carrying
> cooked food with me on the plane LOL I'm just trying to get a little
> creative without having to spend a fortune eating out for six days, four of
> which we'll be tired from working at the art show.

I can sympathize. I'm married to a Scout leader who loves outdoor
cooking. Last year when we were forced to spend more days in a motel
than we had anticipated while waiting for a ferry, I bemoaned the fact
that we hadn't rented a housekeeping unit since it would be nice to
have a home-cooked meal instead of blowing more of our budget on
restaurants. I was reading a good book so didn't pay much attention
when DH said he was going for a drive.

I heard him return but he didn't come in to the room. After a while,
getting curious, I looked out to see him sitting on a folding chair by
the car. He had his one burner stove going and was cooking us supper:
Salmon poached in a court bouillon, new potatoes, fresh green & yellow
beans. It was delicious and a heck of a lot cheaper than we could have
purchased in a restaurant.

Gabby