Weekends are funny things. We spend all week looking forward to having a few days off, only to find that those few days fly by so fast, we’re left wondering what in the world we did with all the extra time. Saturdays are especially rascally that way. It’s typically the one day a week that…
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…
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…
Hi ho, asparagus! ‘Tis the season
Asparagus is one of those vegetables that (prior to this pasta salad escapade) I only knew how to make one way: roasted in the oven with a dot of olive oil and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. It’s a simple method, but it’s always delicious and nearly foolproof. And it’s no secret that I…
Amber’s Magic Salad
Sometimes our love for a particular food isn’t entirely explainable. Maybe it stems from a certain ingredient, the perfect texture or a favorite memory. Whatever the reason, it only takes a single bite to know when something has hit the spot. And once that spot is hit, the food adoration ensues. Amber whipped up this…
Roasted carrots: Simple? Yes. Delicious? Definitely.
There is simple but profound nugget of wisdom I’ve discovered during this long, snowy wintertime of root vegetable eating: All root vegetables (and arguably any vegetable, for that matter) taste better roasted. Something lovely and miraculous happens when those chunks of vegetable goodness take a dive in olive oil, followed by a slight sprinkling of…
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…
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…