WEEKLY MENU 02.18.24
The Weekly Menu 02.18.24 is paying tribute to a hockey star~
Why are we having a hockey themed dinner during the Weekly Menu 02.18.24? The Pittsburgh Penguins (our team) are retiring the jersey of one of their star players on Sunday night. I’ve talked about it before, but I came late to the party for hockey and specifically The Pittsburgh Penguins. Bert might have mentioned that it was lucky I didn’t break an ankle jumping on the bandwagon of Penguins Stanley Cup hockey.
I grew up with four brothers, but we weren’t a huge sports family. Mostly because we were allowed to play a sport only if we could get ourselves to and from practices and games. Plus we weren’t to expect the parents to attend said games. It wasn’t their thing, and they didn’t feel the need to see us flailing about. (Those were the days for the parents, huh?) Sure, we watched the Wide World of Sports Saturday afternoons, but that was about the extent of it. The first time I met Bert he was wearing a Pittsburgh Penguins t-shirt. What did I ask?
IS THAT A… FOOTBALL TEAM?
It’s a wonder we ever went on a date, because Bert is a diehard hockey player and fan that even played on his college team. Watching him skate is a thing of beauty. I quickly learned that the shirt represented a hockey team from his hometown, the Pittsburgh Penguins. They had just recently won their first Stanley Cup (the holy grail of hockey awards) so I became a fan, and fast. It took years to understand what icing was, but I finally got there.
Sure, I do complain occasionally about the sheer number of games: there are 82 regular season games – and a whole lot more if they get into the playoffs. (Which is looking mighty iffy at this point.) The pre-season starts in October, and the final Stanley Cup game in a normal year is about mid-June. So yeah. That’s a lot of hockey, and that’s if the Pittsburgh Penguins are the only team you’re watching. Sometimes (always) I’m on my Kindle while the games are on TV. (Affiliate links precede and follow – see Disclaimer Page for Details.)
WHEN I JUMPED ON THE BAND WAGON, ONE OF THE STARS WAS JAROMIR JAGR.
My sister-in-law to be had a wild crush on him, along with every other teen girl in the tri-state area. The mullet didn’t do much for me. He is still playing (at 50 some years old) with a team he owns in the Czech Republic. And his hair is gray and long, but the mullet is gone, sadly. He’s in Pittsburgh this week for the retirement of his Penguin’s Jersey Sunday night, so the Weekly Menu 02.18.24 is starting out with a tribute of sorts: hockey and Czech inspired food.
WEEKLY MENU 02.18.24
Our appetizer is absolutely darling:
We don’t usually go sweet for an appetizer, but I felt I had no choice when presented with the puck via Pinterest. This one would have worked too, but nobody here really likes black olives all that much:
How cute is that? After our appetizer, we’re moving on to Hungarian Beef Goulash! Is it definitely from the Czech Republic? NO. But it is from that region, and we can eat it while we watch the ceremony/game. The Babovka IS a classic Czech Bundt Cake, so there’s that.
The week is rolling from there with creamy and cheesy Chicken Enchiladas, healthy(ish) Cheeseburger Salad and easy Sauteed Pork Medallions with “fried” rice. Italian is Friday night with a meat-free classic soup: Pasta Fagiole. I make my own very thick cut noodles to attempt to replicate a favorite from a no longer open Italian restaurant here in Erieland. I’ve been told my soup is very a close facsimile of Hector’s classic. My plan is to document it and post it after Friday. (Fingers crossed!)
WEEKLY MENU 02.18.24
