Jenn Dolari @dolari@driveinsaturday.org

1990 or 2025, still the one image from Ranma 1/2 that makes me smile every time....

AI IS GREAT EVERYONE SHOULD USE IT

So...I have a last minute two weeks off due to me needing to burn some PTO of before the end of the year. I have a full paycheck that hasn't been stolen by credit card companies or prescriptions. Let's start it off right....a

This Week's Meals - McDonald's Arch Deluxe!

This is the best burger McDonald's ever made, and it died a horrible death from Marketing (did they fire the guy who thought "Show kids not liking the burger to prove it's for adults!" was a good idea?).

I ate a billion of these for the two years they were available and was sad they're gone. I found a copy-cat menu that had it decades ago and i promised I would make it one day. I decided this was the week cause it was cheap.

Did this make the Arch Deluxe I remember? Not really. The bun on the original was pillowy-er. The somehow circular bacon was thicker and peppery-er. But as burgers go? This is amazing.

Probably the best burger I've ever made, including my Whataburger copy-cat. The McDonald's Seasoning really pops the flavor of everything, and I think it's what makes it so good. If there's anything I'd change is that I'd probably saute the onions a little more.

"THIS IS A TASTY BURGER!" --Jules Winnfield, Pulp Fiction

Title: Arch Deluxe
Yield: 1 sandwiches
Category: Entree
Cuisine: American
Source: McMenu - Do-It-Yourself McDonald’s Restaurant Recipes

---
Ingredients
---
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1/2 tsp peppercorn mustard
1 slices tomatoes
1 sesame seed potato hamburger buns
1/4 pound beef patty
1 slice American Cheese
2 leaves lettuce (chopped)
1 tbsp ketchup
1 tbsp onion (chopped)
McDonald's hamburger seasoning
1 strip peppered bacon

---
Instructions
---

1 - In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise and the Dijon
mustard. Set aside. This is the secret sauce.
2 - Lay the buns face down on a pre-heated 375° electric griddle. You
need to apply light pressure to the buns in order to achieve uniform,
even toasting. This toasting process only takes about a minute.
3 - Set the electric grill to 400 degrees.
4 - Cook some thick sliced Hormel® pepper bacon, breaking one slice
per burger in half. Remove from the grill.
5 - Lay the beef frozen patty on the grill
6 - After about 20 seconds, "sear" it. You should apply heavy pressure
for 6-8 seconds. Sprinkle liberally with McDonald's Hamburger
7 - About 2-3 minutes after searing, turn. Be careful not to tear the
sear you just created. Add another dash Seasoning.
8 - About 2-3 more minutes after turning Smash the beef patty with the
spatula to "squeeze" out excess fat, and then remove. Smash it again
between the spatula and your free hand to additionally drain the fat.
9 - Dress your BUN in the following order: On the crown (top bun)

special sauce
ketchup
onions
lettuce
tomato
cheese
bacon

10 - Add the cooked beef patty then the toasted heel.

---
Notes
---

Makes 1 sandwich
Calories: 627
Fat: 39.23g
Carbs: 35.42g
Protein: 33.73g

Title: McDonald's Hamburger Seasoning
Category: Seasoning
Cuisine: American
Source: McMenu - Do-It-Yourself McDonald’s Restaurant Recipes

---
Ingredients
---
4 tbsp salt
2 tbsp Ac'cent MSG
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp onion powder

---
Instructions
---

1 - Mix all ingredients well.
2- Use in a spice shaker with big enough holes for the pepper to
flow. This seasoning is used liberally on all McDonald's hamburgers
during the COOKING process.

#thisweeksmeals #cooking

Spent some time tonight with some old friends.

Just a reminder, I'll be on Wizards of the Coast Twitch channel at 2PM PST/5PM PST! Check it out at https://www.twitch.tv/magic !

Wizards of the Coast is hosting a Twitch stream to support Trans Lifeline, a hotline and non-profit organization offering direct support to trans people in crisis – for the trans community, by the trans community.

I'll be a part of this from 2PM PST/5PM EST! Come on over and join us for a QA Panel!

Tune in to twitch.tv/magic on Oct 4th at 10am PT to play games with us and support!

Hey, Dr Pepper?

I'm gonna need you to keep making this. In fact, I REALLY need you to keep making the Zero version of this. Dr Pepper Blackberry Zero Sugar is GOOD.

I'm thinking this will be next weeks meals....

This Week's Meals: Carbon Creek Tavern Chili.

All the Texans are about to yell at me cause the Chili has beans in it, but I decided to remain true to the recipe because it's kind of special.

While I couldn't find it in the episode, this same chili is served at the Carbon Creek Tavern in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode "Carbon Creek" as made by the late Dorothy Duder for the show. Doug Drexler shared the recipe, along with a few others from the show, and I decided it was time to make it as the weather gets cooler.

The chili is really tasty. Mine's a little spicy because I put in a bit more hot sauce than I should have, but that's on me. The recipe, however, does not mention seasoning with salt and pepper, and I would absolutely suggest that before ladleing the chili out. It's really good with a bit of salt, so I've added that step to the recipe.

Title: Carbon Creek Tavern Chili
Yield: 9 servings
Category: Entree
Cuisine: Mexican
Source: Dorothy Duder

---
Ingredients
---
olive oil
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
28 ounces tomatoes (diced) (peeled) (canned)
20 ounces kidney beans (canned)
4 stalks celery (diced)
1 large onion (diced)
6 cloves garlic (peeled) (minced)
2 whole bay leaves
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
cayenne pepper (to taste)
tabasco sauce (to taste)
chopped onion (garnish)
grated cheese (garnish)
salt (to taste)
pepper (to taste)

---
Instructions
---

1 - In a large soup pot over medium heat, heat a small amount of olive
oil.
2 - Add celery, onion and garlic. Saute and stir for about 3 minutes.
3 - Add beef and continue to stir.
4 - When meat has browned, add seasonings and stir well.
5 - Add tomatoes and kidney beans and stir well.
6 - Turn heat down and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
7 - Season with salt and pepper to taste.
8 - Ladle into bowls and garnish with onion and cheese.

---
Notes
---

Makes 9 servings at ~50g carbs per serving.

Calories 405
Total Fat 9g
Total Carbohydrate 46g
Protein 31g

Normally makes 4-6 main course servings.

#thisweeksmeals #cooking #StarTrek

The new job is having a gourmet popcorn lunch. So I'm bringing out the big guns.

I have moon cakes! I haven't had a moon cake since high school.

Which means I'm probably done digesting that last moon cake. They're... dense.

Breakfast with the fam.

This Week's Meals: Curried Beef Stew

I'm not the biggest fan of Far Wastern curry dishes, as I prefer the more spicy savry dishes to the sweeter ones you find in China and Japan. But this is a nice middle ground, serving an excellent curry flavor, without it being too sweet, or too spicy. And your kitchen smells great as it cooks.

Mine needed a touch more salt but otherwise, awesome.

Title: Curried Beef Stew
Yield: 4 servings
Cooking Time: 35 minutes
Category: Entree
Cuisine: Asian/Chinese
Source: Personal Trainer: Cooking

---
Ingredients
---
1 5/16 pounds flank steak
1 tbsp cooking oil
2 medium onions
1 1/2 small green peppers
3/4 small red pepper
3 cloves garlic
2 tbsp cooking oil
2 tbsp curry powder
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
2/3 cups milk
2 tbsp potato starch
3 tbsp water
5 cups chicken stock

---
Instructions
---

1 - First, peel the onion.
2 - Chop the peeled onion into uneven equally sized pieces.
3 - Remove the stems and seeds from the red and green bell pappers.
4 - Chop the red and green peppers into uneven bite-sized pieces.
5 - Next, peel the garlic.
6 - Thinky slice the peeled garlic.
7 - Cut the beef into 1/4"-think slices.
8 - Put the potato starch in the small bowl and dissolve it in the
water.
9 - Heat 1/3 of the cooking oil in the frying pan over moderate heat.
10 - Put the beed in the frying pan and cook until both sides are
browned.
11 - Once the beef is browned, remove it from the frying pan and
transfer it to a dish.
12 - Put the onion and peppers in the same frying pan and saute them.
13 - Once the vegetables are fully coated in oil, turn off the heat
and transfer them to the other dish.
14 - Put the remaining cooking oil into the same frying pan and place
it over low heat.
15 - Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.
16 - Next, add the curry powder and saute until fragrant.
17 - Now add the Chinese chicken stock.
18 - Mix in the salt and sugar, while bringing the stock to a boil
over moderate heat.
20 - Return the beef to the frying pan.
21 - Once the stock come to a strong boil, reduce to low heat, cover
with the lid, and simmer for ten minutes.
22 - Return the sauteed vegetables to the pan and then add the milk.
23 - Bring to a boil over moderate heat, and simmer until the
vegetables become soft.
24 - Stir the starch mixture thoroughly. Gradually add it to the
curry, stirring with a ladle to thicken the sauce.
25 - Transfer the curry to serving dishes. It's ready to eat!

---
Notes
---

Makes 4 servings at ~533 calories per meal.
Calories 530
Total Fat 23g
Total Carbohydrates 30g
Protein 41g

#thisweeksmeals #cooking

Might be time to break out the air filter. Dense smoke coming in the morning.

When you need to pray while you eat pizza....

Last Week's Meals: Ginger Pork

This was absolutely fantastic. A nice sweet glaze with salty pork, it just worked great. Well, it would have been great if I'd let the glaze reduce a lot more. I suck at judging when a sauce is ready. It was too liquidy. Still, it was tasty!

Title: Ginger Pork
Yield: 3 servings
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Category: Entree
Cuisine: Asian/Japanese
Rating: 5/5 stars
Source: Personal Trainer: Cooking

---
Ingredients
---
18 oz pork loin
1 tbsp cooking oil
4 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp mirin
1 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp sake
1 2/3 tbsp ginger juice
12 leaves butter lettuce
6 wedges tomatoes

---
Instructions
---

1 - Peel off the green lettuce leaves, wash them, and then dry off the
water with paper towels.
2 - Put the soy sauce in a deep dish.
3 - Add the mirin and sugar to the soy sauce.
4 - Next add the sake and the ginger juice, then mix.
5 - Using the tip of the kitchen knife, make incisions in the pork to
cut through the fat and into the lean meat.
6 - Soak the pork in the sauce for 5 minutes, occasionally turning it
over.
7 - Heat the cooking oil in the frying pan over moderate heat.
8 - Dry the pork off with paper towels, then saute it in the pan until
browned on the underside.
9 - Turn the pork over and cook the other side in the same way.
10 - Transfer the cooked pork to a dish.
11 - Quickly clean the frying pan, then heat the sauce left in the
deep dish over high heat.
12 - Bring to a brief boil, then reduce to low heat.
13 - Return the pork to the frying pan, coat it with the sauce, then
turn off the heat.
14 - Place some green lettuce leaves on serving dishes, then place the
pork on top and add a wedge of tomator. It's ready to eat!

---
Notes
---

Makes 2 servings at ~50g carbs per meal.

Calories 523
Total Fat 28g
Total Carbohydrates 47g
Protein 19g

#thisweeksmeals #cooking

Oh hey. Some fan art from @electropict ! Don't get a lot of that these days!

Well, there is one thing that these insane medication prices are helping with.

I spent a little rare down time visitng some old friend in the 1990s via VR. I'm up WAY later than I should be, on a three day holiday weekend, so I can spend a few minutes enjoying a quick fighting game here and there.