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Tip: Bring Homemade Pancake Mix on Your Next Trip
I rarely make pancakes at home, but for some reason I always crave them during the long, leisurely mornings of a vacation. And I like to keep those mornings leisurely by bringing along my own DIY pancake mix.I simply mix together the dry ingredients for my favorite pancake recipe and write the wet ingredients needed on the outside of the bag.
Jun 21, 2013
Summer Recipe: Brown Butter Peaches & Chantilly Cream
There are plenty of outstanding dessert recipes that make good use of bountiful summer peaches. Some are as simple as drizzling a few halves with olive oil and throwing them on the grill, while others, like a cobbler or freshly-churned ice cream, require just a smidge more effort. This easy recipe — a grownup take on a childhood classic — falls on the delightfully relaxed end of things.
Jun 20, 2013
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Cooking while traveling can be a tough endeavor. You lose most of the control you usually have at home: who knows how the oven will work, who knows where the local grocery store is… and on. And on. These egg bakes are a good solution to a healthy, delicious breakfast while traveling. The ingredients are basic and easy to track down, and they’re infinitely adaptable so you can toss in a little of whatever vegetables or cheese you have on hand.
Jun 19, 2013
Grill Recipe: Grilled Chicken Legs with Dijon & White Wine Glaze
Grilling can seem like a lot of hard work if you are not in-the-know. Growing up in the South, I spent most of my youth presuming it was a man’s activity — all of those ‘secrets’ and ‘rituals’ seemed best left alone by the ladies. And while, yes, when it comes to charcoal grills, smokers, and Big Green Eggs, there can be a certain amount of finesse involved, the actual act of cooking over fire doesn’t have to be engulfed in a shroud of mystery.
Jun 13, 2013
Summer Cocktail Recipe: Sweet & Sour Cherry Sparkler
This week I was all set to share a spicy cocktail recipe, but then I came upon the sweetest bunch of cherries at the market. You know the saying, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” So when life gave me cherries I made a cherry-infused cocktail for this week’s 10-Minute Happy Hour! I love cherry pie, but making pie dough was no where near my to-do list this week. Instead, I went to the shaker, or shall I say jam jars, for some drink inspiration.
May 31, 2013
Recipe: Tortilla Espanola with Rainbow Chard
This week at The Forest Feast, I needed to use up some chard from the nearby farmers market, so I cooked up a big skillet tortilla Espanola. This dish is usually made with just potatoes and onions, but I like to add some greens — it becomes almost like a crustless quiche. The addition of the colorful chard lightens the dish a bit, but is still quite filling. I like that this meal is made in a single pan and works well for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
May 21, 2013
Easy Appetizer Recipe: Baked Ricotta with Lemon, Garlic & Chives
Last month Megan declared baked ricotta “the best appetizer you haven’t met yet.” Intrigued (who wouldn’t be?), I gave it a try and suddenly baked ricotta is the best appetizer I’ve only recently met. It’s the new thing, the current crush, the little bite that perfectly straddles the divide between old-fashioned, stodgy hot appetizers and fresher, more modern tastes.
May 3, 2013
Cinco de Mayo Brunch Cocktail Recipe: The Bloody Maria
Where there’s brunch, there are Bloody Marys. So at today’s Cinco de Mayo brunch celebration, it just makes sense that we’ll be happily sipping Mary’s Mexican cousin: the Bloody Maria. The Bloody Maria is the same as a Bloody Mary, but tequila takes the place of vodka, giving this brunch favorite a simple and delicious makeover.
May 3, 2013
A Cooling Cocktail for a Spicy Meal: Coconut, Ginger & Cilantro Cocktail
At our house we entertain — a lot. Asian-inspired dishes like Thai curry, Vietnamese Bahn Mi sandwiches, and sushi are often on the menu. Sriracha is our condiment of choice, and while we enjoy cold beer to tame its heat, the search for the perfect cocktail to pair with it has finally come to a very happy ending with this week’s drink. Cilantro is one of those flavors you either love or you vehemently despise. I happen to love it.
Apr 26, 2013
What’s Your Best 3-Ingredient Cocktail?
The art of the 3-ingredient cocktail is perhaps the best way for a budding home mixologist to get into the act. We love our complicated cocktails, infused and smoked and shaken within an inch of their icy little lives, but we leave them to the bar experts; the simplest drinks are the best ones to make with a limited home liquor cabinet, especially on a casual Friday night at home.
Apr 15, 2013
Recipe: Creamy Chicken Salad with Parsley Walnut Pesto & Sun-Dried Tomatoes
You can never have too many chicken salad recipes in your arsenal, especially with engagement party and bridal shower season upon us — it’s the quintessential dish for casual entertaining. I guarantee this version, with its delicious parsley walnut pesto, will be your favorite for years to come. I decided to create a solid pesto recipe for the base, but I also wanted to switch things up a bit.
Apr 11, 2013
Recipe: Chocolate Wafer Icebox Stacks
A few years ago my friend Haley requested an “icebox cake” as his birthday dessert of choice. He (yes, he) described a towering black and white confection of stacks upon stacks of chocolate layers nestled between blankets of snowy-white whipped cream. I was excited at the very thought of mastering this mysteriously named “icebox cake.” And then I Googled it… “Seriously, dude?
Apr 4, 2013
Holiday Recipe: Brown Sugar & Dijon Mustard Glazed Ham
For me — and for many Southerners, I presume — Easter is the first real mark of spring. We dress our houses and tables (and even ourselves) to impress, pulling out all the stops from the freshest flowers to the fanciest flatware. We join together to celebrate a time of joy, renewal, and life. And then we eat! Here’s a look back at my own Easter weekend celebration, with a recipe for a classic Southern ham, warm and glossy with a mustard glaze.
Apr 1, 2013
Tip: The Best & Quickest Way to Warm Up Pita Bread
I always keep a bag of whole wheat pita rounds in the freezer for last minute lunches; they can be stuffed with salad, eaten with hummus and vegetables, or even topped with avocado and egg. But how to transform a rock-hard piece of frozen pita into a soft, warm pocket? Here’s a method that is fast and foolproof. On a gas stove, turn the flame on medium-low and place the frozen pita directly on the burner.
Mar 15, 2013
Recipe: Crunchy Spring Salad with Dill Dressing
Here in Southern California, winter is on its way out and I have never felt more ready to give kale salads a rest. Right now I am craving all that is crunchy, fresh and pale green — like this salad, which mixes a dill-flecked dressing with sweet sugar snap peas, crisp celery, chopped romaine and pretty, pink-edged radish slices that remind me of spring’s first blossoms winking to life. The crunchiness of this salad makes it a great candidate for lunch.
Mar 13, 2013
Recipe: Late-Winter Salad with Strawberry Poppy Seed Dressing
I don’t know what screams winter more than bright, juicy citrus fruit and what shouts spring more than a sweet, tart poppy seed dressing. When tossed together they become the quintessential March salad and a perfect weekday lunch!Poppy seeds in condiments, casseroles, and baked goods are huge in the South, but it wasn’t until I received a bottle of homemade poppy seed dressing as a hostess gift recently that I was hooked on them in salads.
Mar 11, 2013
Recipe: Baked Za’atar Eggplant Fries with Lemon Tahini Dip
Eggplants were on sale at the market this week, so I picked one up and challenged myself to do something other than fry it. Since fried eggplant is so delicious in dishes like Eggplant Parmesan, I think it tends to be my easy go-to answer. I had something else in mind this time: an afternoon snack with a quick, delicious tahini dip that would carry us through until dinner.
Feb 27, 2013
Recipe: Roasted Winter Vegetables with Miso-Lime Dressing
You probably already know that roasting winter vegetables turns them soft, caramelized and irresistible. But what you might not know is that tossing them with a three-ingredient dressing of miso paste, lime juice and walnut oil gives them a savory, bright and beguiling flavor that will make people wonder why the roasted vegetables you make are so much better than the roasted vegetables they make. What makes a recipe a keeper?
Feb 26, 2013
Easy Dinner Recipe: Viking Chicken
I’ve been doing a lot of cooking this week, and it’s been really nice. When my marriage ended a year ago, I was suddenly thrown back into cooking by myself again, and at first I was lost at sea. I had forgotten everything I’d known — the touch and the feel of cooking — that I’d had ten years earlier when I was single.
Jan 8, 2013
Recipe: Fresh Grape Cake with Luscious Lemon Sauce
I came up with this recipe after one of my trips to Italy during which I discovered the appeal of cooked grapes. In this cake, the grapes stay whole, but soften into juicy, ruby orbs. And with the cake: A simple sauce. But don’t let the simplicity fool you. This is seriously good sauce. People will think you have pulled out a double boiler (and all the stops) to make custard. Not true: The sauce consists only of mascarpone and lemon curd, whipped together.
Dec 31, 2012
Dinner-for-Two Recipe: Sage-Brined Pork Chops with Brown Sugar Glaze
Whether you’re planning a low-key holiday meal or sneaking in a midweek dinner date amid other holiday plans, put these tender pork chops glazed with brown sugar on your list. It’s one of those dishes that is so easy and so simple, and yet feels like a special feast all its own. A quick brine is one of my favorite ways to add flavor to thin cuts of meat like pork chops and also ensure that they stay juicy and tender during cooking.
Nov 19, 2012
Quick Recipe: Maple Pecan Blondies with Maple Butter Glaze
These bars were baked with a very specific person in mind: My father-in-law, Jim. He and my mother-in-law keep to a gloriously healthy diet. They have a bountiful garden behind their small urban home, and they eat two modest home-cooked meals a day, one after a vigorous early morning swim. However, on special occasions, restraint vanishes and I find a lot of pleasure in offering Jim his two favorite foods in the whole world: Butter and maple syrup.
Nov 13, 2012
Recipe: Roasted Grape Granita & Red Wine
One of my favorite simple snacks to make is roasted grapes. The roasting process really brings out all the natural sweetness and the warmth and tenderness of the red orbs just melt in your mouth. I usually set them out with a charcuterie or a cheese plate, but this time around I decided to do something else with them. What if I made a granita with this roasted goodness? What if I enjoyed that granita with a bottle of red wine?
Oct 25, 2012
Recipe: Fettuccine with Roasted Butternut Squash, Brown Butter & Sage
Here’s a simple little fall-time pasta dish with sweet roasted butternut squash and nutty brown butter. It’s one of those dishes that makes even a weeknight meal feel special, especially if you splurge for fresh fettuccine noodles and a nice bottle of wine. Serve it with a salad of bitter greens, apples, and walnuts on the side, and dinner is ready.
Oct 22, 2012
9 Delicious Ways to Enhance Boxed Soup
While I would like to live in a world where I eat homemade soup all the time, the truth is I usually keep a few of those aseptic boxed soups in the pantry for when homemade is just not going to happen. In general, boxed soups aren’t that bad but here are nine little tricks I use to improve their flavor.1. A Dash of DairyCreamed soups such as tomato, squash or red pepper really benefit from a swirl of dairy.
Oct 19, 2012
Easy Dessert Recipe: Peach Yogurt Cake with Cinnamon Glaze
Peaches? In October? Yes, I nabbed a handful of extra-soft, very late season peaches at the market last week, and after I ate a couple I decided to sink the rest into an easy cake for a dinner party. And this turned out to be just the right decision. This is a yogurt cake — just about the easiest cake of them all. It’s a one-bowl cake, with yogurt, oil, and eggs whipped up into a batter and the flour and leavening dropped right on top of the liquid ingredients.
Oct 18, 2012
Wholesome Recipe: Roasted Vegetable Soup with Herb Dumplings
The dish I’m about to share is really two recipes in one – heavenly together but also good building blocks for many other meals this fall and winter. First up is a creamy, yet dairy-free, soup with roasted fall vegetables like butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and parsnips. Then come the dumplings. Roasting the vegetables amplifies and deepens their flavors. Pureed with vegetable stock, they form a velvety, comforting soup.
Oct 17, 2012
Make a Quick, Flavorful Vegetable Stock in Just 10 Minutes
We’ve all been there: You want to throw together a quick soup but you don’t have any stock on hand. The first question that pops up is whether stock is necessary. The answer depends on what kind of soup you are making. A stock is more important with a simple broth-based soup, whereas a more complex pureed or cream-based soup might be OK with just water. Ideally, though, you will always use stock, as it is the foundation of your soup and really adds flavor.
Oct 17, 2012
Recipe: Balsamic-Glazed Pearl Onions
It’s funny how precisely the weather seems to adhere to the calendar year; the first day of fall immediately brought vibrant leaves and cooler breezes to Georgia. My appetite also succumbs to these changes and my urge for comfort food grows strong—out with vine-ripe tomatoes and grilled summer corn, bring on the hearty braises and savory stews.
Oct 1, 2012
Hot Breakfast Recipe: Baked Pumpkin Steel Cut Oatmeal
Eating a hot breakfast is a challenge in the fall as mornings get darker and colder and we snuggle into warm beds until the last possible second. But eating a hot breakfast just makes the whole day better, don’t you think? The answer is to make your evenings work for you, and to prepare a hot breakfast the night before. I have found that one of the best ways to do this is oatmeal. But oatmeal is mushy, you say! Reheated oatmeal for breakfast? No thanks. Well, hold on a minute.
Sep 13, 2012
Drink Your Oats: 5 Nourishing Whole-Grain Smoothie Recipes
In the early fall as the mornings get just a touch cooler, the breakfast options can get all the more hectic. There are often new school schedules to contend with, or at the very least, new school traffic to contend with. While granola bars or quick oatmeal are easy options, the substantial smoothie is a great way to mix things up this time of year. In the summer, smoothies so often consist mainly of seasonal berries or stone fruit with a good dollop of yogurt and maybe a dash of honey.
Sep 10, 2012
Recipe: Strawberries with Chimayó Chile
Invented by my stepfather, this fiery red concoction consists of strawberries, balsamic vinegar, and Chimayó chile. Strawberries served with vinegar is nothing new, but the addition of chile powder adds a whole new dimension. It might sound a little strange at first, but the combination of sweet, tart, and spice is marvelous.
Aug 31, 2012
Recipe: Chicken & Artichokes in Wine Sauce
When I was a kid, my mother took a cooking class with Giuliano Bugialli and learned how to make this dish. It tastes so rich and divine that you’d never suspect it’s so economical and quick to make! She’d let me request a special meal for my birthday, and I often requested this dish. Tester’s Notes: Kathryn published this recipe way back in 2009, and I’ve had it on my to-make list since then. I finally got around to it and wow was that overdue.
Aug 17, 2012
To Soak or Not to Soak: How Do You Enjoy Your Muesli?
In my mind, summertime is prime museli time. It’s a cool breakfast that gives me loads of energy without feeling sluggish or overly full. And it’s so simple to throw together at home. Some folks treat it much like cereal or granola, adding a splash of milk or a dollop of yogurt right before serving. Others soak it overnight. There are, indeed, benefits to both.So first, and I’d argue most importantly, there’s the issue of taste. Either you like soaked muesli or not.
Aug 13, 2012
Lime Jell-O Salad Recipe for Grown-Ups! Fresh Lime & Pineapple Fluff
We have been talking about family recipes all week — and not just family recipes, but classic, old-school, full-blast nostalgic recipes too. So, to cap things off, I thought I would tackle that archetype of family picnics and church cookbooks: Lime Jell-O Salad. It’s a recipe that most of us have given up as grown-ups, but do you ever have just the faintest wisp of nostalgic craving for it? So sweet and marshmallowy?
Aug 3, 2012
A Single Jar of Refrigerator Jam
We’ve posted a fair amount about small-batch canning here at The Kitchn, but I’d like to take this concept one step further and encourage the tiny-batch, refrigerator method of jam making, especially for the solo cook. The approach is simple: make a single jar of refrigerator jam every couple of weeks, or whenever you are inspired by what you find in the market.
Aug 1, 2012
Recipe: California BLT with Avocado and Basil Mayonnaise
I’m a Los Angeles native, which means I have never owned a decent umbrella, I describe distances not in miles but in the number of minutes it takes to drive, and I believe sliced avocado belongs on a BLT. My first BLTA was probably at a diner — any Southern California diner worth its salt has at least an add-on avocado option for its BLT — and it was probably fine. It’s hard to go wrong with the combination of crisp lettuce, salty bacon, ripe tomato and avocado.
Jul 12, 2012
A Farmers’ Market Solution to the Bagged Lettuce Dilemma
Many people, myself included, will tell you that buying bagged, pre-washed lettuce mixes makes it easier to eat more salad. More organized folks will point out that washing and drying your own lettuce isn’t that difficult and that bagged lettuce isn’t always that safe. What’s the best way to go? Well, the answer is complicated.I picked up the bag of lettuce pictured above at Happy Boy Farms, one of my favorite stalls at my local farmers’ market.
Jul 10, 2012
Drink Recipe: Cappuccino-Chip Frappe
Southern temperatures have been breaking records right and left—this past week it reached 106 degrees in Atlanta almost every single day! The heat and humidity combo have been leaving me physically drained, but just because it’s so hot doesn’t mean I can’t get my daily caffeine fix.Usually I follow a rigid morning coffee routine: I whip up a homemade mocha using Valrhona cocoa powder and frothy 2% milk every. single. day.
Jul 9, 2012
Recipe: Spicy Korean Cucumber Salad
Do you enjoy eating spicy food in hot weather? I love the refreshing combination of cool cucumbers and hot chile peppers, as in the case of Korean oi muchim. This quick and easy salad makes a great potluck dish, or a fiery alternative to kosher dill or bread and butter pickles alongside sandwiches. And, of course, it’s excellent alongside Korean BBQ (meat or tofu).
Jun 29, 2012
Recipe: Thai Grilled Steak Salad
Call me crazy, but when the weather heats up, I don’t feel like eating big hunks of meat. Slow and sluggish might work for winter when everyone is half-hibernating anyway, but in the summer, salads like this are what I want to eat — full of freshness and crunch, with a salty-tart lime dressing and just the right amount of juicy grilled steak.
Jun 14, 2012
5 Tips for Hosting a Summer Crêpe Party
I have two extraordinary, culinary–minded friends who always invite me over for impromptu meals of homemade ricotta and roasted tomato galettes, a tasting of new cheese purchases, or lemon–caper berry egg salad on freshly baked bread and citrus cornmeal cake topped with creme fraiche. (You get the idea. I’m a lucky friend.) I had to put a stop to all of their hospitality and extend some of my own, with a big pile of fresh crêpes and fruity toppings bien sur.
Jun 6, 2012
My Favorite Way to Heat Up Tortillas
There are many ways to heat a tortilla: my friends of Mexican heritage wrap them in a damp cloth and pop them in the microwave. Other people use the oven (but that can feel wasteful unless the oven is already being used for another dish) or pan fry them in a skillet. But I have another strategy which I believe is the most fun and flavorful way to accomplish this task. Hint: see picture above! That’s right!
May 29, 2012
Quick Dessert Recipe: Toasted Oat & Walnut Whisky Trifle (Cranachan)
I have been deeply enamored recently of desserts that involve Scotch. First there was this Scotch affogato sundae I shared with you, and then, for my forthcoming book, I created a boozy Scotch marshmallow pie with a cornflake crust. But perhaps the simplest way to enjoy Scotch in a dessert is the oldest: The classic Scottish dessert cranachan, toasted oats with Scotch-spiked whipped cream and the fruit of late spring.
May 9, 2012
Soda Fountain Recipe: Banana Cream Pie Milkshake
Something happens when you’re sick for many days. You lose your appetite, you watch a few bad movies, you entertain thoughts that you may never be well again. And then one morning, like magic, you wake up and have an appetite. The first thing that sounds delicious: a banana milkshake! This is a true story.
May 2, 2012
Recipe: Pork Stir-Fry with Asparagus and Sugar Snap Peas
Stir-fries aren’t usually the well-edited dishes you think about and shop for in advance. They are frequently renegade, use-up-what’s-in-the-fridge meals, which is part of their charm. But not so with this recipe. I chose these particular ingredients deliberately, picking up pork tenderloin for a mid-week treat and adding lots of fresh spring vegetables for crunch.
Apr 30, 2012
Ruth Reichl’s Secret to a Sexy PB&J
When I read the headline to Ruth Reichl’s piece on Gilt Taste earlier this week, I chuckled: How to Make a Better Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich. What could there possibly be to learn that we don’t know already?Now I should take a step back and mention that when I used to teach high school English, one of the assignments I’d give my students was to write detailed instructions on a task that seemed easy or mundane.
Apr 27, 2012
Market Recipe: Spring Quiche with Leeks and Sorrel
The days when you allow the farmers market to dictate what you make for dinner are kind of awesome days. To be quite honest, they’ve become rarer and rarer around our house as we’ve become busier during the weekends. But there’s something quite sweet about ambling around the market and chatting about what you could make with certain ingredients. This weekend, we had time to visit our local farmers market and found some beautiful looking sorrel, leeks, and farm eggs.
Apr 25, 2012
Recipe: Creamy Tofu and Green Pea Dip
Silken tofu makes an excellent base for creamy dips without the use of sour cream or other dairy. In this bright and zesty green dip, we combined tofu with peas and Mexican-inspired ingredients like cilantro, jalapeño, and lime.Unlike dairy-based dips that can weigh heavy on the palate, the creaminess from the soft tofu is satisfying yet light. (Warning: this may cause you to eat more than you possibly should! We speak from experience.
Apr 20, 2012
Spring Dessert Recipe: Strawberry and Honey Sorbet
It’s been an interesting few weeks in my house, to say the least. My fiance, in an effort to get back to “fighting weight,” gave up beer and refined sugar for Lent. (As for me, I gave up French fries. It’s been tough. I really really like French fries.) His abstinence has been hard on the both of us: I lost my number one recipe tester and he’s forced to watch me eat sweets from the sideline.
Mar 29, 2012
Cooking with Leftovers: Risotto Cakes
One of my favorite things about making a batch of risotto is anticipating the crispy risotto cakes I’ll make with the leftovers. They are, if possible, even better than the risotto itself. Especially if one happens to sneak a slice of cheese in the middle.As it cools, risotto gradually loses its creamy sauce-like consistency and firms up. We can take scoops of this leftover risotto and actually shape it into patties that hold their shape when pan-fried.
Mar 22, 2012
Lunch in a Hurry: 10 Ways to Dress Up Canned Soup
Canned soups are a quick, budget-friendly lunch when there is no time to cook, but they can often be salty, bland, or just boring. Adding just an ingredient or two from your own pantry or fridge can turn a ho-hum canned soup into a satisfying meal. Here are our 10 favorite additions: • 1 Greens: A handful of leafy greens like frozen spinach, thinly sliced chopped kale or bagged arugula add color, nutrition and a fresh flavor.
Mar 13, 2012
How To Make Coconut Butter
I’ll admit it, I’m a coconut fiend. I eat or drink from this luscious fruit daily. I sip on coconut water and sprinkle generous handfuls of the unsweetened, dried variety all over my morning bowl of oatmeal. But all that is kiddie stuff compared to this coconut butter. It’s a sure-fire way to get the maximum concentration of rich, velvety coconut flavor and texture in each bite. Coconut butter is unlike coconut oil; it’s an entirely different animal.
Feb 29, 2012
Easy Dessert Recipe: Blood Orange Syllabub
Sweet blood oranges are some of our favorite members of the citrus family. During the season we use them in everything from drinks to desserts, like this cloud of syllabub. A syllabub is a traditional English dessert made with cream and wine or other spirits. Here we added blood orange for a sweet citrus note – enhanced by the addition of orange-flavored liqueur such as Cointreau. A splash of rose water adds fragrance without tasting too floral.
Feb 17, 2012
Recipe to Feed a Crowd: Slow Cooker Barbacoa Beef
There are very few foods that feed a large crowd with little effort. Tacos may be the simplest option for feeding a lot of people, and today we are bringing you one of our favorite taco stuffings: barbacoa beef, tender and full of rich, complex flavors. Yes, did you know you can make that tasty stuff you buy at Chipotle in your own kitchen — and in your slow cooker, no less? I have a serious thing for barbacoa.
Jan 31, 2012
Recipe: Roasted Beets with Cumin, Lime, and Mint
Sweet, jewel-toned beets are a staple in our winter kitchen. About once a week, we roast up a batch to eat in salads and quick side dishes, such as this brightly flavored – and colored! – dish with cumin, lime, and mint. This week we were lucky to have three different varieties of beets to play with: red, golden, and chioggia, so we came up with a composed dish highlighting all their gorgeous colors.
Jan 11, 2012
Breakfast Recipe: Slow Cooker Spiced Porridge for a Crowd
I love lazy holiday weekends, emphasis on the lazy. This creamy slow-cooker porridge of steel-cut oats, dried fruits, and spices cooks overnight and is ready when we wake up. Perfect for when I have family visiting and want an easy breakfast that makes everyone happy. Make another pot of coffee and bring on the lazy morning! Cooking steel-cut oats and dried fruit in a slow-cooker does something amazing to both.
Dec 15, 2011
Recipe: No-Bake Nutella Peanut Butter Cookies
This past weekend was a big football game for my boyfriend and me. Our respective colleges happen to be old rivals, and once a year our love for each other is compromised only by our love for the game. We surround those four treacherous quarters with friends, family, and good food. It just makes the tension seem a little bit more bearable. It just so happens that my boyfriend’s family is famous for their tailgating skills. I’m not joking here; these guys are pros.
Nov 14, 2011
Recipe: Couscous With Chickpeas, Fennel, and Citrus
Have you ever caramelized fennel? Browning this vegetable in a skillet transforms it into something completely different from its crisp, raw state; all but a trace of the anise flavor melts away and the fennel becomes tender, mellow, and sweet. Caramelized fennel melds perfectly with the textures and flavors of nutty chickpeas, succulent olives, orange, and lemon – and spooned over couscous, it makes a quick-cooking, bright yet hearty dish.
Nov 2, 2011
How to Make Fettuccine Alfredo
Fettuccine alfredo is one of those dishes that is somehow more than the sum of its parts. Of course, when those parts are primarily butter, cream, cheese, and pasta, it’s extremely hard to go wrong. There are dozens of slightly different ways to make this dish. Parmesan and butter all on their own are traditional, but a splash of cream does have the advantage of making the alfredo extra delicious (not to mention indulgent).
Oct 13, 2011
DIY Maple Vinegar from Popular Science Magazine
Good cooks understand the importance of acid in cooking, how it adds brightness and balance and can make flavors ‘pop.’ Sometimes all it takes is a simple squeeze of lemon or a splash of vinegar to move a dish from pretty good to spectacular, so having a few great vinegars on hand is an essential pantry item.
Oct 11, 2011
Quick Recipe: Creamy Lemon Pasta with Spinach & Peas
This light creamy pasta comes together in fewer than 15 minutes and you’ll be amazed at its flavor. Bright lemon combines with deep garlic and a hint of heat to transform spinach, peas, and, of course, pasta. The key in this dish lies in simmering cream with garlic and red pepper flakes. It infuses the cream with deep flavor which cooks into the spinach as well. And what could be easier than throwing in a few frozen peas to add a little something extra?
Oct 11, 2011
Recipe: Cream of Tomato Soup
Nothing is simpler or more classic than opening up a can of cream of tomato soup for lunch. So if you’re going to make a homemade version, it had better be worth the extra bother. This recipe most decidedly is, although it’s really not that much more work. Just chop up an onion, maybe a rib of celery, and open up a few cans of tomatoes. Splash in some milk and buzz it with a blender until smooth. That’s it!
Sep 23, 2011
Recipe: Autumn Udon with Vegetables
Earlier this week we posted about about Tara Austen Weaver’s new ebookTales from a High MountainLike much of Japanese cooking, the beauty and taste lies in the simplicity of the recipe. Udon is a perfect dish for a light supper on a cool night, as the first of the autumn leaves gently rattle in the trees.
Sep 15, 2011
A Twist on the Usual: Sliced & Seasoned Baked Potatoes
Tired of the usual baked or roasted potatoes? For a pretty and flavorful twist, try slicing and seasoning your potatoes before popping them in the oven. Lemon and thyme, rosemary and garlic: the flavor combinations are endless.The idea for these potatoes came from the always-inspiring blog Ideas in Food. They stuffed their potatoes with lemon and oregano, and roasted them on a bed of sliced Vidalia onions. I used lemon, thyme and garlic cloves, and skipped the onions.
Sep 13, 2011
Recipe: Honey Ginger Balsamic Glazed Beets
Like many people, I spent my childhood arms-crossed, head-shaking, floor-stomping vehemently hating beets. They were weird, and slimy, and tasted of dirt. They made people’s mouths look bloody (also kind of cool.) Yuck. But then, like many people, I grew up and discovered that beets are absolutely delicious. Today they are one of my top five most favorite vegetables. So how did I get from stomping my feet to eating beets twice a week? This recipe for glazed beets played a big part.
Sep 9, 2011
Fany Gerson’s Lime Pie Ice Pops
Did you know that the very first Mexican ice treats were made with snow carried from the tops of local volcanoes? What this says to me is that, by now, the people of Mexico must be the authority when it comes to icy treats like paletas. To support my theory, we have Fany Gerson and her latest book Paletas: Authentic Recipes for Mexican Ice Pops, Shaved Iced, & Aguas Frescas.
Jul 5, 2011
Street Fair Food at Home: How to Make Frozen Lemonade
My first stop at any street fair during the summer is the frozen lemonade stand. Imagine lemonade, already a refreshing beverage, but frozen and shaved into a soft snowy mound directly in your glass. When the sun is beating down and there are funnel cakes and corn dogs yet to be found, there’s nothing better.Frozen lemonade is a bit different than its cousin, the Lemon Shake-Up. This is more like a granita, and in fact, it technically is a granita.
Jun 30, 2011
Easy Dessert Recipe: Crisp Meringues with Whipped Cream
When I was in Switzerland last autumn, our hosts served us a very simple dessert that nevertheless made me sit up and take notice. They told us that it is a favorite dessert in that region: Large, crisp meringues purchased from the grocery store, served with barely-sweetened whipped cream. Together the crisp meringue and soft cream melted together into one sweet yet simple, rich yet light dessert. This is just about the simplest dessert imaginable.
May 13, 2011
Brunch Recipe: Lemon Brioche French Toast & Raspberries
My ideal Mother’s Day brunch includes one my very favorite breakfast casseroles: A simple strata of brioche bread, layered with lemon zest and custard, and baked until puffy, golden, and silky smooth inside. This recipe is lightly adapted from one in my recent book, Not Your Mother’s Casseroles. • Not Your Mother’s Casseroles, Harvard Common Press. $11.15 at Amazon. It is so incredibly simple. Just slice any rich, eggy bread, such as brioche or challah.
May 5, 2011
Sunset Magazine’s Strawberry Crème Fraîche Sherbet Cookbook Review + Recipe from The One Block Feast
your own yogurtOur shelves are filled with DIY books, gardening manuals, and yes, plenty of cookbooks. Each holds a little piece of the puzzle for a healthy, happy, self-sustaining lifestyle. The One-Block Feast by Margo True and Sunset Magazine brings it all together.When I first looked at the cover of The One-Block Feast, my first thought was, “Yeah, right.
May 4, 2011
Quick Recipe: Ricotta Dumplings with Chèvre & Herbs
Last night I made one of my favorite dinner-in-a-flash recipes: Ricotta dumplings. This is a lightning-quick recipe, easy to mix up, and easy to make for a crowd, too. I tossed these pillowy, chewy little dumpling squares with a bit of butter, soft goat cheese, and herbs fresh from the garden. They were ready in 15 minutes!This recipe is based on my earlier recipe for ricotta spaetzle. I love these so much; they are ready almost instantly.
May 4, 2011