OKAY, IT’S CHRISTMAS EVE. I could post a recipe here, I suppose. But even if you were inclined to add it to what you have already planned, would you have the time, energy and open stores to track down ingredients and put it together? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Instead, I’m going to share a holiday story with you. Continue reading “Christmas memory leftovers”
Beef pot roast, a winter comfort food stalwart, gets livened up with sweet potatoes, onions and smoky, spicy chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Recipe below, with tips on adjusting the heat and smoke.
Turkey and I are taking a break. After some intensely enjoyable time together—Thanksgiving dinner, a delectable soup of dandelion greens, white beans and stock made from the turkey carcass, numerous sandwiches, and random pieces of cold turkey eaten with nothing more than a shake of salt—we hit a bit of a wall. So we both agreed I should see other animal proteins for a while. Continue reading “Smoky, savory and sweet: Chipotle Pot Roast with Onions and Sweet Potatoes”
No recipe this week. Just some random thoughts on Thanksgiving, food and family.
We had a full house this Thanksgiving weekend. Both daughters were in town, as was another guest—quite a crowd for our two-bedroom apartment. With an inflatable mattress, the living room was pressed into part-time duty as a bedroom. The five of us shared our apartment’s one bathroom. The more skittish of our two cats often found herself trapped behind closed bedroom doors. Transportation for various needs involved scheduling turns with our one car, walking or taking public transportation. And we all loved it. Continue reading “Plenty to be thankful for on Thanksgiving”
Marinara sauce, a classic Italian red sauce with garlic, onions, herbs and not much more, is easy and weeknight quick to make. Recipe—and variations—below.
This post is about breaking old habits and overcoming fears. In our kitchen, both for the blog and for everyday cooking, we try to work with real ingredients as much as possible, not overly processed foods. (We do count certain canned and frozen goods as ingredients—beans, tomatoes and spinach, for instance.) But for some reason, I’ve resisted making my own marinara sauce. Continue reading “Cooking the basics: Homemade Marinara Sauce”
A half dozen terrific side dishes to serve alongside your Thanksgiving turkey—and some ideas for skipping the turkey altogether.
Other countries and cultures have celebrated thanksgivings at the end of harvest, but Thanksgiving with a capital T has become a uniquely American holiday. Some trace its roots back to 1621 and the Pilgrims and Puritans at Plymouth. George Washington, at the urging of Congress, made it an official national holiday, proclaiming a “Day of Publick Thanksgivin” in 1789. In 1863, Lincoln fixed its date as the last Thursday of November. Continue reading “Everything but the bird: six super Thanksgiving sides (and some turkey alternatives)”
Linguine is topped with a hearty sauce of eggplant, ground lamb, crushed tomatoes, garlic, oregano and half and half. Recipe below.
In the 1939 film Tarzan Finds a Son, when Jane and Tarzan discover a baby in a plane crash, Jane insists that they must name him. The ever practical Tarzan says, “Him strong like elephant. We call him Elephant.” Jane, probably hoping for something more like Colin or Nigel, ultimately has to settle for Boy. Here in the United States, I think the eggplant must have suffered a similarly unimaginative fate: “It shaped like egg. We call it eggplant.” Continue reading “Taming but not extinguishing a powerful flavor: Linguine with Eggplant and Lamb”
This braised chicken dish combines prunes, onions, sage, bay leaf, garlic, apple juice and a little sherry vinegar for a delicious weeknight-quick meal. Recipe below.
Summer’s bounty has disappeared from produce shelves. Berries, apricots, peaches and plums have been supplanted by a sea of apples, pears and more apples. But in another section of the store, you’ll find many of your summer favorites in a long-lasting, shelf stable form: dried. When dried, apricots, grapes, plums and more provide chewy, flavor-intense snacks to be enjoyed as is. Add them to a savory braise, though, and they achieve a whole new level. They plump up and soften. Flavors mellow and blend. Continue reading “Savory with a subtle sweet touch: Braised Chicken with Prunes and Onions”
This simple Banana Pecan Bread is perfect for baking—and sharing—on a chilly fall weekend. Recipe below.
THIS BREAD WASN’T MEANT TO BE FEATURED HERE. We just had some bananas on their way to becoming a science experiment. I’d planned to make my Mango Banana Bread, but balked at spending $1.99 for a mango at the supermarket. At the Mexican produce market in our neighborhood, where we usually find better prices, they’re currently $2.49! So I decided a simple banana bread with pecans would be good. And that got me thinking how good is somehow not good enough these days. Continue reading “Banana Pecan Bread and contemplating why good is apparently no longer good enough”
One-pan simple and weeknight-quick, pork chops are browned, then finished in a braise of mushrooms, spinach, onion, tarragon, garlic and lemon juice. Recipe below.
We’ve been eating a lot of spinach lately. Sometimes in salads, but mostly quickly sautéed until just wilted with butter, olive oil, garlic and salt. Maybe a grind of pepper, if we remember. Eating spinach this way makes me sad that I spent my whole childhood hating it. So when I found myself with spinach, mushrooms and pork chops the other day, I thought they needed to get cooked together. Continue reading “Pork Chops with Mushrooms and Spinach, unstuffed”
We’re big fans of wet food, especially when cool weather settles in for the season. Sauces and broths add warmth and comfort to any meal. Here are six soups, stews and other wet food favorites from the Blue Kitchen archives. Continue reading “Six soups, stews and other fall comfort foods”