This is one of those recipes from the old-country, dating back – literally – over a thousand years. But that doesn’t make it a relic, some phonograph gathering dust in the attic, that’s brought down once a year so that grandchildren can marvel at the sound-machines of yesteryear. This recipe is nothing more than last year’s iPod, ready to figure into the regular rotation of modern life.
This recipe has all the attributes of a modern meal. Continue reading
Posted in Entrees
Tagged Buckwheat, Cooking, Grains, Jewish, Pasta, Quick and Easy, Vegetarian
Caitlin celebrated her birthday last week. And in preparation of the big day, I scanned my collection of recipes and cookbooks, searching for the perfect layer cake. Last year I made her the pumpkin crepe cake. The year before that, the butternut squash layer cake.
This year, I decided, it was time to stray from the harvest theme. I was looking through my cookbooks, feeling uninspired, when I resolved to make my own cake. No recipe. No guide. I would just with it. Continue reading
This meal answers that important, incessant, weekday question.
After braving our respective routes — Caitlin, the Red Line, I, the Beltway — we arrive home around 7:00 p.m., tired from the day’s activities. After a quick moment of reprieve, we often head down to the apartment gym to get some much-needed exercise.
Once we’re back upstairs, the question rears its head. The question that creeps into our minds every night, demanding an immediate answer. The question is bandied about Continue reading
Posted in Entrees
Tagged Butternut Squash, Quick and Easy, Roasting, Spaghetti, Vegetarian
Cornbread is a so-called quick bread, because it doesn’t contain yeast and doesn’t require any rising or kneading. All of which makes it ready to bake in a flash!
Another great thing about cornbread is that no two recipes need be alike. You can mix and match ingredients as you see fit. Play with the type of cornmeal (coarse or medium), the flour (whole wheat or not), the cheese (cheddar or monterey) and the acid (buttermilk, sour cream, or yogurt). Add corn or jalapeno slices . . . or both . . . or neither.
I made this particular recipe twice, Continue reading
Chickpeas are a complicated bunch. The first time Caitlin and I cooked with chickpeas, we opened a can, drained them, and prepared a mixture to make falafel. It was a total disaster. The canned chickpeas disintegrated the minute they hit the frying oil. Fortunately, dried chickpeas, soaked overnight, worked like a charm.
With that lesson in mind, Continue reading
If you’ve seen my camera after I’ve been in the kitchen, you might think that it doubles as my sous chef. The shutter button is a little greasy and there’s flour dusted along the hand grip and on the aperture dial. There may even be a little sugar along the shoulder strap. Even the tripod may bear some semblance of kitchen work. Cinnamon or nutmeg may be sliding down its leg.
One of my favorite parts about creating my blog entries is assembling the collage, putting together the step-by-step tasks that create the final product. But to do so requires shuffling my floured hands back and forth, from the cutting board to the shutter, and then, possibly, to the white balance meter and the focus arrows.
Once the shot looks good, it’s back to the board, Continue reading
Posted in Appetizers, Breakfast
Tagged Baking, Cinnamon, Puff Pastry, Quick and Easy, Snacks
A savory alternative to cinnamon twists is cheese straws. The preparation and process is much the same, but instead of cinnamon and sugar, try gruyere, parmesan, Continue reading
Two years ago, Caitlin and I designed the Grim Peeper, our submission for the Washington Post’s annual Peep Contest. Unfortunately, we haven’t had the time to collaborate on any recent peep project.
And yet, I still had a bag or two of those yellow marshmallows sitting around the kitchen, chirping to be used. Around Easter, I noticed a few food blogs featuring bird’s nests, combining chow mein noodles with some of the ubiquitous bagged candy.
Though I liked the concept, the idea of chow mein noodles and chocolate did not sound appealing. Continue reading
After work and a trip to the gym, it may be 8:00 by the time I get home. And despite a liberal, daytime-snacking policy, I’m hungry for dinner by that time.
Even though I enjoy cooking, a Wednesday evening — with only a few hours left before bedtime beckons — is not the best time to launch into an hour-long culinary experience. Quick, easy, and delicious are the weekday watchwords.
Sloppy Joe fits the bill. This meal Continue reading
Posted in Entrees
Tagged BBQ Sauce, Cast Iron, Comfort Food, Ground Beef, Quick and Easy, Sandwich
Quinoa is a pseudocereal – a plant that looks like a grain and behaves like a grain – but that, in fact, is more closely related to spinach and beets, than any wheat or oat. Gluten-free and packed with protein, quinoa has seen its popularity surge in recent years.
Unfortunately, this sudden rise in popularity has produced unintended consequences in the global market.
As the demand for quinoa has surged, so has its price, commensurate with the laws of supply and demand. Bolivian farmers have responded to the demand by shipping their quinoa harvest abroad, reaping Continue reading
