EVENTS SEASONAL AND OTHERWISE CONSPIRED to keep us busy in the kitchen this weekend. First, our friends and fabulous block party throwers Al and Kelly were coming for dinner. On-again, off-again cool weather got Marion thinking of serving a hearty beef and pork ragù she’d made long ago. Continue reading “A weekend of seasonal cooking: a hearty ragù and heaps of pesto”
WE’VE BEEN COOKING BRUSSELS SPROUTS A LOT LATELY, even for us. This was supposed to be a post about our most recent method of cooking this mighty winter vegetable that’s so simple, it’s almost a non-recipe. Unfortunately, a mighty winter cold had other ideas and pretty much knocked us out. So watch for the new recipe soon—and in the meantime, enjoy Linguine with Brussels Sprouts, Feta and Bacon from our archives.
Mushroom Chicken Stroganoff is wonderfully complex, layered and lighter take on the beef classic. Recipe below.
STROGANOFF WITHOUT BEEF? We recently came across a recipe that had us asking just that. We’re happy to report that umami-rich mushrooms and leftover chicken offer a quick, simple—and richly flavored—take on this old school comfort food dish. Continue reading “Where’s the Beef? Mushroom Chicken Stroganoff”
Mushrooms, Italian sausage and balsamic vinegar create an umami-rich, weeknight-quick meal. Recipe below.
WHEN YOU HEAR MUSHROOM PASTA, YOU EXPECT TO SEE MUSHROOMS IN THE DISH. That’s one of the charms of most mushroom dishes, the distinctive shapes of sliced, halved or even whole mushrooms. As you can see above, that’s not the case here. Continue reading “Simple ingredients, big flavor: Balsamic Mushroom Sausage Pasta”
This simple vegetarian pasta dish is creamy and flavorful, really good for you and—bonus—quick and easy to make. Recipe below.
TO BE HONEST, THIS RECIPE IS SOMETHING I INVENTED A LONG TIME AGO, I don’t even remember how or why, and I always kind of kept it secret. To be completely honest, for a very long time it was kind of my weeknight-easy secret shame. I mean, pasta with cottage cheese. Continue reading “Your delicious little secret: Weeknight Pasta with Cottage Cheese and Chives”
Basil, Parmesan, garlic, pecans and olive oil create a fresh, lively summer meal without heating up the kitchen.
SUMMER HEAT HAS US ALL COOKING LESS. Or at least trying to not heat up the kitchen. Pesto in its various forms is an ideal compromise. It’s essentially a salsa cruda—a raw, uncooked sauce. And besides quickly pan roasting the pecans, the only thing you cook is the pasta. Continue reading “For an almost no-cook dinner, just boil water: Pasta with Pecan Pesto”
JARRED PASTA SAUCES ARE HAVING A MOMENT. Once something that many home cooks publicly looked down on (and maybe secretly used), they’re increasingly being seen as smart time savers for, well, all of us. Continue reading “Making jarred pasta sauce deliciously your own”
THE LAST TIME WE MADE PENNE ALLA VODKA, we had just come from a four-day final push of helping our Detroit daughter move. So it seems somehow fitting that we made it again after being in Michigan, albeit purely for recreation this time. Marion and I took a little day trip to Kalamazoo. Continue reading “A Michigan road trip and simple Penne Alla Vodka”
Pasta tossed with tangy labneh, lemon juice, peas and bacon is a creamy, weeknight-quick meal that tastes like spring. Recipe below.
LABNEH FIRST APPEARED ON THE BLUE KITCHEN MENU TWO WEEKS AGO, as the main ingredient of our Ramadan-inspired vegetarian Labneh Sandwiches. Having leftover labneh inspired us to make this creamy, tangy pasta dish—and we’re ready to make it again. Continue reading “Quick, easy and deliciously springlike: Labneh Pasta with Peas and Bacon”
A couple of our favorite recipes turn into an informal Sunday dinner when family drops in.
IF BLUE KITCHEN WERE A PRINTED COOKBOOK, some pages would be more dogeared and food-speckled than others. Often, Marion or I will be in the kitchen, a laptop open to a recipe on the blog as we cook. Last Sunday, we were both in the kitchen armed with laptops. We were cooking two of our favorite recipes. Continue reading “Sunday in the kitchen with family”