Spring Cooking: What Are Your Go-To Meals Right Now?

This time of year can sometimes be tough for home cooks. We're tired of winter braises and roasts, but fresh spring veggies are still pretty scarce. Let's take some inspiration from each other - what are you cooking and loving right now?

In my house, we've been eating eggs, eggs, and more eggs. We make them slowly scrambled with caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, and cheese. We poach eggs to go on top of quick salads or a bowl of warm noodles. Sometimes we just fry them to put on toast. Whatever the mood, eggs really seem to satisfy right now.

It might sound a little strange, but we've also been eating a lot of pulled pork. I'll cook a pork shoulder in the slow cooker over the weekend, shred it, and then add to dishes during the week for a little extra protein. It's good on pizza, quesadillas, and of course, our egg scrambles!

What about you?

(Image: Emma Christensen)

Comments (34)

I am on a fusili pasta dish with lemon, pancetta bits, shrimp and oregano. It tastes very fresh to me. I want some now.

My latest go to recipe is this Chickpea, Potato, and Kale Curry. It is really easy to make, tasty, healthy, and can be modified in numerous ways to clean out whatever you have in the fridge.

http://recessionrecip.es/2010/03/23/chickpea-potato-and-kale-curry/

We've been making a lot of springy entree salads lately! My favorite is our most recent one with watercress, pea shoots, cucumbers, avocado, bacon and cotija, but we've really enjoyed all of them.
http://theweekendgourmande.wordpress.com/tag/salads/

We also tried a new one last night and have another two on the docket for later this week!

What is the recipe for that fabulous-looking picture? YUM!

My CSA box has a hybrid of winter and spring. I've been making a lot of gratins--from potato to turnip to sweet potato and chard. Still making some soups, but they're slowly giving way to salads.

lots of roasted asparagus and arugula salads!

abeen adding arugula, lemon and chickpeas in with pasta - the arugula wilts with the warm pasta and is nice and peppery!

was making a white bean and kale soup practically weekly. oh, and raw kale salads too with avocado and red onion! yumm.

That's so weird. I've definitely been on an egg kick too. It's like I can get enough of them. I slowly scramble mine with either cheddar or cream cheese, and usually eat them with toast as an open-faced sandwich. Also, a good drippy-dippy egg over couscous or a whole wheat biscuit. Mmm Still warming on the days while it is still a bit cooler, but also a change from the usual winter meals.

I am with you on the eggs! Will probably have some tonight, after looking at this picture...

I have been doing a lot of beans mixed with vegetables, on top of some sort of base. Last night it was Trader Joe's artichoke ravioli (in their refrigerated section, not frozen), topped with small red beans and roasted butternut squash, sprinkled with feta cheese. I cook a pot of dry beans every week or so, enough to eat two or three nights during the week. I also have been roasting squash and sweet potatoes (I peel and dice them and roast with olive oil), and then keeping them in the fridge to add to things, or just eat as a snack.

www.vegrun.blogspot.com

Recipe for the poached egg on polenta (?) please!

We've had that thin-crust pizza a few times now. Made with a few cheeses and lots of spices.

I've been doing more sauteed greens, though. Spring foods aren't really here yet. sad.

Eggs here too! Pasta with eggs for me, and omelets.

I've been craving meaty main dish salads lately. I roasted some chicken last night and will use the leftovers tonight tossed with baby greens and vinaigrette, with some homemade flatbread on the side.

I'm still going strong with various chickpea dishes for our lunches--soups, salads, felafel--and probably will for a while. Definitely feeling like lighter fare; I've got miso soup and grilled lamb with flatbread on the menu for later in the week. It's still very gray here, but it's getting warmer!

The hens in my CSA are really laying -- I am getting 24 eggs this week instead of the usual dozen so these egg ideas are great! I'm also using up spring greens and asparagus -- over quinoa or brown rice, with pasta, with chickpeas, in salads, etc. I also made a split pea soup with spring peas added when it was cold and rainy last week.

Super spicy shrimp, super spicy chicken and... spinach.

Thirding the request for the recipe in this picture. It looks AMAZING.

The man and I have been on a major mexican kick lately.

Mahi-mahi Fish tacos with cabbage, white onion, cilantro and a little lime-creme fraiche-cayenne drizzle

TJ's Nachos: Refried black beans in a Corningware, black olives, pickled jalapenos, carnitas and cheese- bake til bubbly and serve with tortilla chips

We've had luck with our avocados lately so there have been many 'chips and guac' dinner nights lately....throw in a cold beer and a basketball game and it definitely feels like spring!

Awesome suggestions, guys. Thanks!

The recipe in the picture above is poached egg over sauteed chard and onions on polenta. It's essentially this recipe, except with chard and no bacon:

Fried Eggs and Collard Greens over Polenta

I love soft eggs over toasted cornbread with butter salt and pepper. It's greater than the sum of its parts!

I've been dreaming of fried/poached eggs with runny yolks over pasta. Does this sound weird?

I come home with a bunch of asparagus every week! Also, I've been loving beets, radishes, strawberries and I can't wait to bring some artichokes home this week.

Eggs in Purgatory.

Though... The Husband and I are making French onion soup tonight...

Risotto with Asparagus and mint (sometimes I add peas) is my spring staple recipe.

Risotto with the first spring carrots and leeks, from Martha Rose Shulman's Recipes for Health column in the NYTimes. I discovered this recipe last spring and I've been looking forward to the first carrots all winter. They're finally here!

After the 'What's fennel for' post recently, I decided to try making the recommended roasted fennel. Oh man, so easy, so yum, and I'm spreading the gospel of fennel. YUM! (I sliced the bulb into 1/4" slices, spread on a roasting pan with olive oil, salt and pepper, and roast till caramalized. Yay!

ive been obsessed with yakisoba, summer rolls, bahn mi, and tacos lately

Polenta pizza, Spicy Miso Chicken Thighs, & pork tenderloin (any preparation, but especially an "island-style" with cumin, chili powder, cinnamon, and a brown sugar/Tabasco glaze), and anything with fresh asparagus!

I've been eating asparagus absolutely nonstop! I hope to find some nice rhubarb at the farmers' market this week, for a compote with some sugar and a pinch of cardamom.

http://operagirlcooks.com

I love eggs and eat them basically daily.

We've been eating a lot of chicken -- served simply over salads, baked chicken parmesan, chicken with a pineapple-brown sugar glaze and pineapple salsa. And roasted asparagus with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

I've been obsessed with peas. I steam them or sautee them with onions and add a few shrimp for a delicious quick meal. Think I'll have that tonight too!

Spinach, which I can get local hothouse versions of now! Also, bean salads, which somehow seem like a good transitional way to use root veggies up. My current favorite is a white bean and carrot one I adapted from the brilliant Heidi at 101 Cookbooks: http://aseasontotaste.wordpress.com/2010/03/25/carrot-and-white-bean-salad/

I also like lentils with feta, chopped up tomatoes, and vinaigrette. I even found hothouse tomatoes grown in Maine the other day at my local market! Of course, even thinking about tomatoes makes me long for August and the glory days of produce...mmm!

we are definately an egg family, but I have been making ocra gumbo a lot. I finally found some fresh ocra in the produce isle. So we have had shrimp, chicken, and tried sausage, but not a huge fan of it. Over steamed rice, which I also seem to be making with every other meal.

i am soo stoked for asparagus now!

i threw this together on Sunday-
http://www.shutterbean.com/asparagus-goat-cheese-sandwiches/

and can't wait to make this again:

http://www.shutterbean.com/lemony-asparagus-tart/

also, for those of you who are on an egg kick right now, lately my favorite thing to do with eggs is make tacos! zing up the scrambled eggs with some creamy avocado and tangy feta and they are delicious! so easy and so cheap and so fast.
http://theweekendgourmande.wordpress.com/2010/02/23/tacos-de-huevos/

Roasted veggies -- asparagus, broccoli, could try cauliflower but haven't yet. On a baking sheet with olive oil, sea salt and a little red pepper for 20-30 minutes at 400 degress or mroe. Delicious.