Simple and simply delicious: Coffee Cumin Lamb Chops

Ground coffee, whole cumin seeds, chili powder and cinnamon create an easy, amazing spice rub for pan-seared lamb chops. Recipe below.

Lamb Chops with Coffee Cumin Rub

I have really tried to like coffee. There was almost always a pot brewing in my house when I was growing up, and over the years, starting as a teenager, I tried many times to acquire a taste for it. Never happened. I’m not proud of the fact—I consider it a major social shortcoming on my part. But even though I don’t drink coffee, I’m intrigued by what it does to food. Continue reading “Simple and simply delicious: Coffee Cumin Lamb Chops” →

Happy holidays—and happy tenth to us

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This has been a year. After almost two years of planning, working and hand wringing, we finally moved into our new old house. And even though literally anywhere I look in the house, I can still see something that needs doing, we love being here. Love it. But what with the gazillion projects we’ve tackled (or avoided), the finally getting around to taking road trips again, reconnecting with friends and just generally living our overbooked lives, we forgot to mark Blue Kitchen’s tenth anniversary last month. Continue reading “Happy holidays—and happy tenth to us” →

Comfort food with a side of memory: Fresh Spinach and Bacon Quiche

Fresh spinach gives this classic quiche a bigger flavor than frozen—and a frozen crust simplifies preparation. Recipe below.

Fresh Spinach and Bacon Quiche

I DON’T REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME I ATE QUICHE, but I do remember the most memorable slice. Marion and I were in Paris several years ago, searching for the modest hotel where my brother and I had stayed many years before. It was walking distance from the Eiffel Tower, and even though the bathrooms and showers were down the hall, the rooms were clean and charming, and we paid $7.50 a night. In the intervening years, the neighborhood I’d remembered as working class—Rue de Passy—had become a fashionable shopping destination. Continue reading “Comfort food with a side of memory: Fresh Spinach and Bacon Quiche” →

Six recipes for eating, drinking merrier

This week, we’re featuring six recipes/ideas from the Blue Kitchen archives for entertaining, celebrating and just feeling festive.

Affordable Spanish Cavas

The holidays are upon us. Time for parties, family get-togethers, intimate dinners and even being indulgent on your own. Food—and drink—play a big part in all of it. Let’s start with something to drink. Continue reading “Six recipes for eating, drinking merrier” →

Winter memories and frugal goodness: Mushroom Barley Soup

Fresh and dried mushrooms add earthy deliciousness to this filling, satisfying winter soup. Recipe below.

Mushroom Barley Soup

Wintertime when I was a kid in Detroit meant big, hearty, warming dishes—things simmered for a long time over low heat, calming and filling. Pot roasts perfuming the whole house with beefy oniony aromas, braising chickens and, of course, a battery of soups.  Borscht, potato and dill, and my personal favorite, my mother’s mushroom barley soup. For our little careful working class Detroit home, it hit all the necessary markers—aromatic, tasty, filling and, of course, thrifty. Continue reading “Winter memories and frugal goodness: Mushroom Barley Soup” →

A winter root vegetable gets a holiday-rich creamy makeover: Puréed Parsnips

Naturally sweet parsnips turn lusciously silky when cooked in cream, milk and butter. Perfect for holiday dinners—or everyday indulgence. Recipe below.

Puréed Parsnips

A few weeks ago, Terry wrote about his duck-filled dinners in Omaha. Well, while he was eating all sorts of duck, I was delving into some of my own favorites—not least, wonderful offal. My first Omaha dinner at La Buvette? Lamb kidneys on a bed of puréed parsnips. I just loved the whole thing—the intense, meaty chunks of kidney, the fluffy bed of parsnips. The dark sauce pooling around the white purée and a hearty big red wine alongside. It was a great meal for an autumn evening after a day on the road. And the parsnips were a marvel: at once sweet and savory and silky and faintly earthy. They were just wonderful, and we knew that when we got home, we would have to make some. Continue reading “A winter root vegetable gets a holiday-rich creamy makeover: Puréed Parsnips” →

Korean-Italian comfort food: Pork Chops with Kimchi and Cannellini Beans

An international ingredient list produces a hearty, one-pan dinner big on flavor and comfort. Recipe below.

Pork Chops with Kimchi and Cannellini

With a headline like that, you’re probably expecting a decent backstory. Most of the recipes here at Blue Kitchen come with one. A new cookbook. An old family tradition. A restaurant discovery. Not this one. This recipe came from two simple questions. Continue reading “Korean-Italian comfort food: Pork Chops with Kimchi and Cannellini Beans” →

French cuisine, by way of Nebraska: Red Wine-braised Duck Legs

Reducing red wine adds depth to these duck legs oven-braised with shallots, carrots, parsnip, garlic and thyme. Recipe below.

Red Wine-braised Duck Legs

I ATE A LOT OF DUCK IN OMAHA. When we told friends about our plans to spend several days in Nebraska on our recent road trip, everyone told us to be prepared to eat a lot of beef. Nobody mentioned duck. The first night, I ate a duck leg in red wine that inspired this week’s recipe. Continue reading “French cuisine, by way of Nebraska: Red Wine-braised Duck Legs” →

To boldly go without a recipe: Chicken Thighs with Potatoes, Lemon and Capers

Weeknight-quick and one-pan simple, braised chicken thighs and potatoes are brightened with lemon juice and capers. Recipe below.

Future Birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk

An impromptu stop on our recent road trip got me thinking about my journey to learning to cook. It was the final day of our trip. The day before, we had driven more than 550 miles, and now we were rocketing across Iowa on I-80, on the last 480-mile leg of our journey. Suddenly, Marion announced that we were not far from the “future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk.” Of course, we were going to stop. Continue reading “To boldly go without a recipe: Chicken Thighs with Potatoes, Lemon and Capers” →