Eggplants are inherently funny little guys. They grow in the garden along with all the other squash-like things — think zucchinis, summer squash, cucumbers and the like — but they’re slightly stranger, quite a bit tougher and decidedly less popular because they look a bit too different. Actually they remind me of little Rudolph at…
Tales from a 40-year-old plant: Rhubarb raspberry jam
Every summer, my family road trips about 11 hours north from our home in Missouri to visit my grandma in a teeny town in Wisconsin, on the farm where my dad grew up. It’s one of those trips that we all look forward to every year, not just because it’s a chance to get away…
For those who love the ‘shrooms
Mushrooms. They’re another one of those divisive little devils that can turn a dinner party on its head if you’re not careful. You might love them, fill your pastas with them and think they’re the cat’s pajamas. Or maybe, instead, you think of them as an all-too-close cousin of some sort of inedible invertebrate. If…
Magic in the guesswork: Grandpa’s potato salad
When it comes to cooking, I’m pretty by-the-book. I like to follow recipes (at least the first time around). I like specific measurements and planned ingredients. I like to know what I’m getting into. If I come by this genetically, it doesn’t come from my mom. She’s much more of an in-the-moment kind of cook,…
You’re never too old for mac and cheese
Comfort foods are comfort foods for a reason. They warm you up, fill you up and make you all sorts of happy at the same time. With the weather getting warmer and the days getting busier, we haven’t been doing a lot of comfort-food making lately, but every once in a while, the tummy wants…
I made meatloaf. Call in the parade!
On Earth Day (April 22, for those of you who don’t have your planet-saving plans in order yet), Jared and I will have been married for exactly three years and 10 months. During that time, which accounts for roughly 1,400 dinners, I have made exactly two meatloaves. I suppose that means that around our house,…
Horseradish, I think we can be friends now.
What in the world did we do before Google? Remember in the olden days, when we’d have a question about something and had to dig around in the encyclopedia (or Encarta on the computer, for the high-tech folks), the dictionary or our own noggins to find the information we were looking for? Now when I’m…
Pasta and bean soup with kale
In my rather brief stint as a kale eater, I’ve learned one very important fact about this greeny, leafy vegetable: Kale is a divisive little food. It seems like one of those love-it-or-hate-it things. You love it for its vitamins and overall good-for-you-ness but wish it tasted more like lettuce or spinach than it’s noticeably…
It’s the lazy (wo)man’s risotto: Creamy orzo
There’s a lot of new-recipe trying going on at our place these days. With everything from desserts to soups to entrees, my pre-grocery-shopping routine usually involves a good hour of cookbook and computer diving to the find a slew of new dishes we can take for a test drive. Some are great, some are so-so,…
Project NYT: Mark Bittman’s Real Ranch Dressing
Five or so years ago, I was having a conversation with my brother about salad dressing nationality when I made the observation that our U.S.A.-made salads were in need of a little patriotism. Italy, France and Russia all have dressings bearing their names. “What about America?” I wondered out loud. “Why isn’t there an American…