i'm thinking i'm going to cook some pasta in stock and toss it with sauteed rainbow chard and some goat cheese. what else does it need? lemon? vinegar? an herb? a complementary vegetable? i have some italian turkey sausage, but i wonder if that might be overkill.

I am baking that no knead bread(mark bitman) for the second time, this time with whole wheat flour...the white flour version was amazing!

I'm going to make this lentil soup:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/09/dining/091arex.html?ex=1357534800&en=7e3288ae1d72556f&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss&pagewanted=all

I also want to make the popovers from the other day:
http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/breakfast/recipe-easy-ethereal-popovers-043019

How would it be if I substituted oil for the 1 tablespoon of butter? I don't want to have butter around, because I'll eat it all (even if it's in the freezer, I'll know it's there.) I just don't keep it in the house.

i am smoking some chicken thighs with my stovetop smoker and caramelizing onions to make filling for some phyllo bundles for a catering gig this weekend. then some empanaditas with black beans and plantains. again, more catering prep. i rarely cook for myself anymore!! well, other than omelets & lots of salads, i don't cook. oh yes--i do cook a lot of bacon. one can never have enough :)

thinkingwoman---what shape pasta? orecchiette with sausage is delish and classic. maybe add some lemon juice/zest to brighten things up a bit. and a whole bunch of flat leaf parsley. yum.

pixie--oil will work just fine, the popovers just won't have the rich taste of butter.

We've made the classic beef stew from Joy of Cooking.

A love-at-first-taste aside: Bar Tartine in SF is serving up this amazing blue cheese:
http://www.cheesestoresl.com/cheese/blue_cheese/rogue_river_review.html
It is insanely good when matched with Tartine's bread, honey and Marcona almonds.

beckaroo - thanks! I'm making them tonight, with olive oil.