January 2012
4 posts
A Tale of 2 Pizzas
Pizza making is one of those endeavors that once you get it down, is so easy and delicious to do at home, you are reluctant to ever order out again.
Don’t get me wrong. Between Zio’s, and Santucci’s, and Rustica, we have got some dang fine shops in Philly that will bring it to your door and sometimes that is just the thing. Like after your third 12-hour day in a row, for...
A Better Salad
Morocco, and indeed other parts of North Africa are on my to-do list for life, though I have yet to travel to that part of the world. The closest I ever got to proper couscous was a journey to Paris several years ago. Then, I tried to do something similar at home.
The dish that follows is even less like delicious stew I had at Omar’s but no matter. It’s fast, healthy, economical,...
Favorite Book of 2011
One of my resolutions for 2011 was to get to the library at least once per month. I probably averaged that over the past 12 months, and have read some amazing books, old and new. Perhaps the best part of having books due, and books on hold, and just so many waiting for me in general, is the way the library has forced to me to take lunch. I usually just eat at my desk, never breaking away,...
December 2011
6 posts
Tacos de Invierno: Hongos y Patatas en Adobo
Tacos! My go-to when there are odds and ends of veggies and other tasty things in the fridge. In the case of tonight, I had a pint of cremini mushrooms on hand, leftover steamed fingerling potatoes, avocados, and feta. Try to choose whole corn tortillas free from preservatives and additives. Good corn tortillas’ ingredients include ground corn, water, traces of lime, and nothing else.
...
Season's Greetings
There are no shortage of mushroom stews, bourguignons (this one is excellent), and soups in this world. But the one below is something extra special. Maybe it’s the dried porcini and in my adaptation, making and using my own mushroom stock. Maybe it’s the acidic tomatoes. Or maybe it’s because it was made for me by a good friend on a cold winter’s night in DC when there...
A Pretty Table
I intended to post this adaptation of Ina Garten’s cauliflower gratin when I made it nearly two months ago. But as it goes, time got away from me. Then, I found this photo:
And it got me thinking about how much I needed to slow down, to stage the day, to take it in, to feel gratitude, to set the table and breathe.
My adaptation to this recipe was simply to swap out half of the...
The McDermott Apple Cake
I come from a long line of cooks who don’t rely on recipes- they just DO. While it has its moments of being frustrating— “No really, Mom, how much milk in your creamed onions? Wait, how many pounds of onions?”— it’s become a fact that I find encouraging and familiar, as more and more I rely less on recipes and more on instinct. And on skills. On the basic...
Simple Celeriac Soup with Lemon & Gruyere
Winter weather has begun to settle into Philly. I can’t help but love it. I’d rather wear long running tights, hat and gloves, than try to escape unrelenting 100 degree summer days by running at strange hours and still feeling miserably overheated. Crisp air! Wood smoke! The Delaware gone icy! Festive city streets!
Soups like the one below are meant to be the kind for quick,...
On the virtues of the sunchoke.
Every December it begins. The rather sad end of the bounty. I end up feeling torn over my dedication to eating as much healthy, sustainably, locally grown and produced foods as I can, while allowing myself to…. mix it up. I’m not uber-dogmatic about my food, though I do the best I can because it tastes better, is better for me and my region, and really, what kind of foot soldier...
November 2011
2 posts
Scones in a Sea of Recipes
I’ve been cooking and cooking and loving bringing fall flavors back, along with warming, nourishing dishes that keep well, and get me through the long, busy weeks of work I’ve had lately.
I’ve got a number of recipes to get up here, but will start with a quick, easy round of scones I made this morning. Errrr, almost afternoon. So with a scone holding me over, I’ve got...
Rice Krispies for Breakfast
…..in treat form. Don’t judge. They are the 3 ingredient miracle dessert. Tossing together a huge batch for the office this morning was the best part of my day. Which is perhaps a bit sad, very much true, but just goes to show I’m at my best in the kitchen.
Life is short. Melt some marshmallows:
...
On a roll.
My kitchen has been humming and it’s a really good feeling. Had a busy day today and what better than a quick stir fry? Bok choy and shiitake in the fridge, half pound of spaghetti in the pantry. Throw them together with your favorite sauce— for me, it was some tamari, Lee Kum Kim vegetarian stir fry sauce, sesame oil, rice vinegar, and red pepper flake. But you must, must, must...
October 2011
4 posts
Spaghetti Squash Gratin
It’s snowing. In October. In Philly. Now, see during all those long-wintered years I lived in Boston, snow by Halloween was a given. The norm, even. But here? Nah-ah. Nope. It was 72 degrees this past Tuesday, just for context. I am still running in shorts and tee shirts, people.
Anyway, this a simple baked dish using sweet spaghetti squash strands as a medium for a savory and...
Cabbage Saffron Soup / The Best Broth
So much to say about this soup. This broth. This soup. This broth. Okay, look— cabbage heads are enormous and are taking me at least 2 recipes to use up. Meanwhile, the best part of this soup is the broth— so good you can strain off the veg to either eat on the side or toss with whatever. The broth, my goodness. You can’t lose with this fragrant, buttery, healthy...
August 2011
1 post
Summer in a Tart Pan
Like so many before me, I’ve recreated David Lebovitz’ tomato tart.
http://www.davidlebovitz.com/2010/05/french-tomato-tart-recipe/
Arguably the best combination of goat cheese and tomatoes I’ve ever bothered assembling.
My only adjustment was bringing the goat cheese down to about 5 oz. Five ounces was still a very generous portion of creamy tangy cheese.
Endlessly...
July 2011
3 posts
Eggplant Tofu Thai Curry
I made an adaptation on this tonight. Get all ingredients ready to go except do the following:
1. Omit the peas. Substitute with another medium-sized eggplant. Peas in a thai curry? Methinks NO. Eggplant is as sweet and is in season, so do that instead.
2. We’re going to heat the curry paste on it’s own and saute some veg before adding our liquids. This will ensure no rubbery...
June 2011
4 posts
Yogurt Blueberry Pancakes
Paradise Hill Farms blueberries. Seven Stars yogurt. Old City coffee, and warm, strong sunshine.
Yogurt Blueberry Pancakes
Adapted from Mark Bittman’s Everyday Pancakes
Written for our Farmstand e-newsletter, thus the farm brands.
2 c. Daisy all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon Maine sea salt
1 tablespoon sugar
2 Meadow Run Farm eggs
1 cup Seven Stars low-fat plain yogurt
1...
Thank you, Heidi Swanson.
I’ve been a seriously committed reader of Heidi Swanson’s natural foods cooking blog, 101cookbooks for years. Since the beginning, really. And while I’d always been a healthy vegetarian (able to rely on more than pasta for sustenance) with a strong propensity towards whole foods cooking and using fresh local produce, Heidi and her site, over the years, has solidified my style...
Braised leeks on the fly!
Oh man. Raise your hand if you like caramelized onions. Yes? You? Good. Now, go to your nearest farmers market or green grocer, pick up leeks and proceed as follows. Because what follows are silky leeks that are at once savory, candy-sweet and endlessly usable in things like pasta, rice dishes, on toast…. or, just eat them as a side dish, as I did. Go on, do it. Now.
Preheat oven to...
Swiss Chard Barlotto & Wee Cabbages
I did not do a good job of writing down how I made this dish. But here’s what I recommend: take your basic risotto recipe. Toast your dry barley on a sheet pan in the oven at 350F for 15 minutes till toasty and nutty smelling, cool, and then treat barley as your would rice— toast in skillet with a little fat, then make tasty with some allium, and hydrate with stock, ladleful at a...
May 2011
1 post
Oh, you. Oh, spring.
Things to eat:
Sauteed asparagus with a wee bit of olive oil and finished with your fanciest sea salt and lemon zest. Topped with a wonderfully golden poached egg and a piece of your favorite toasted bread. I really could eat this every day and not tire of it.
And then of course, there are strawberry-based sweets this time of year. Allow me to advocate for the much-celebrated, uber-cliched...
April 2011
2 posts
Power Salad
Early Spring Red Kale, Eggs, White Beans, and Mustard Croutons This is one of those salads where all of the components can be prepped and ready a day or two ahead of time. Just toss together the morning before you plan to have it for lunch, or several hours before dinner (or honestly, I’d eat this for breakfast because kale is appropriate any time of day in my home), and go. I prefer...
February 2011
4 posts
Just beet it.
I can only say that while the Christmas borscht at Veselka was truly a thing of beauty, never to be truly replicated, this more simple vegetal version (my own brainchild) was insanely good, reminded me of that cold night in the East Village and how eager I am to return. Eat your beets. And you will gain some serious superpowers.
Souperman Borscht! (Because soup like this makes you feel like...
Go-to, quick, weeknight awesomeness.
For some, comfort is a cup of tea, or a cozy blanket, or meatloaf with mashed potatoes. This? This is my comfort. Because it involves off-season, bright, acidic, non-local (hello, crisis of conscience!) tomatoes, but also the mighty chickpea, the latter of which pretty much always makes me feel like a superhero. On the other hand, it also involves staple pantry / fridge items like whole grain...
Tangy Tasty Split Pea Soup
Split pea soup has a bit of a bad rap. You either hate split pea soup because it’s mushy and bland, or, if you’re a vegetarian, you’re like, “Dude, nary a ham hock in sight. This will be mushy and bland.”
Behold: Split pea that warms and fills the belly, but is zippy and special and will convert any split pea naysayer to a yaysayer. Yogurt in split pea soup? ...
January 2011
1 post
Bitty's Seitan
Mark Bittman has the sort of reverence for decent seitan that I do. In “How to Cook Everything Vegetarian,” he lays out a truly simple homemade seitan recipe with instructions on how to make it savory and how to apply it to…well….everything. Because seitan is so versatile, you see.
Since mid-year 2010, I’ve had an ongoing list of culinary challenges I’ve...
December 2010
1 post
Fettucine (homemade, not quite handmade).
For Christmas I received a long-coveted pasta roller / cutter set for my KitchenAid stand mixer. I do believe I have begun a new Sunday night tradition in my little home with my sweetheart and my little cat.
Basic egg pasta dough:
1 large egg :: 100 g flour :: 1/4 teas salt
Mix by hand or start with paddle on mixer for 30 seconds, then switch to dough hook for 2 min. If you’re my...
November 2010
1 post
Cauliflower Mash. No photo, but trust me.
I love chou-fleur, I do. But already, taking advantage of its availability has resulted in one too many tangles with soup, roasts florets, and raw bits dipped in olive oil.
Then I thought, hey all those low-carb crazies often mash the stuff, let’s give that a try. WELL. Let me tell you about how I did that.
Ingredients:
1 med-lg head cauliflower, cut into medium sized florets
1 Tbsp...
October 2010
2 posts
June 2010
1 post
7 tags
Summer Grub.
It’s been damn hot in Philadelphia since Memorial Day weekend. And I don’t mean like, “oh, it’s 85 and humid and I’m dyyyyyiinnnng.” I mean, 97, 98, heat indexes of well over 100 for days now. It’s supposed to finally end tomorrow, and while it’s gross that I have sweat through every piece of clothing I’ve worn for the past 2-3 weeks I will...
November 2009
1 post
Hello. I'm back. And I still cook.
It’s not been a good week. On the other hand, the fall harvest is plentiful and savory. After having been subjected to terrible, carb-heavy conference food for 2 days, this dinner, my own recipe (thankyouverymuch) is just what I needed. Plenty of protein, spicy, smoky, veg-heavy, and all around, pretty effing perfect.
Chorizo (soy for veg-heads like me)-stuffed Spaghetti Squash
...
May 2009
1 post
The Minimalist - Out of the Wok, Tofu Stars in... →
Wow. Super fast, easy, and totally amazing. I’m not a pudding person but this was light and really almost mousse-like. I used 70% bittersweet and added a teeny dash of cayenne. Oh, yes.
April 2009
3 posts
“I’ve been on a pilsner jag recently, enjoying them in both their American form –...”
– Good With Peanuts and Cracker Jack - The Pour Blog - NYTimes.com
Peas in Earth: A Haiku - Bitten Blog - NYTimes.com →
March 2009
2 posts
Fresh, hot cookies for freshmen, sophs . . . |... →
Ha! I’ve seen this truck near Mitten Hall a few times now. One wonders about the opportunities lurking out there…
January 2009
3 posts
Winter Cabbage with Pasta
This is a variation on the “straw & hay” recipes I’ve seen. I had a really nice head of cabbage on hand from the farmstand and, I’ll tell you it’s not my first this season and it won’t be my last. Fresh local cabbage is so tasty there’s just nothing like it. For the people who hate cabbage, I encourage you to get to your nearest farmer’s...
December 2008
3 posts
Leftovers for breakfast.
Last week I prepped a bunch of ingredients one evening in order to put together vegetarian nicoise-style salads for lunches. This included par-cooking string beans, boiling small red potatoes, chopping parsley, hard-cooking eggs, making dressing, and getting olives, tomatoes, capers, etc to the ready.
While the salad was tasty and nutritionally complete (with a hunk of whole-grain bread on the...
