eat make read

Some days just require a little more comfort than others. Something comfy like good old-fashioned grilled cheese. I’ve had plenty of those day, but recently I got the urge to mix it up and add some apple slices into the mix. Ummm, so delicious!

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I’ve always felt like there are some things that, while they could be made at home, should just be purchased at the store. Pasta is one of those things. I came to this conclusion a few years ago after a few pasta making experiences that took loads of time, caused a few gray hairs and left me hanging pasta from any surface I could find. For some reason, I started to get an itch to try my hand at again. I figured I’d just make a small batch of lasagna noodles (the easiest to make) and since I had a pasta machine it would be easier that I remember. Turns out my pasta machine did not make the move to New York with us (5 years ago), but the good news is even without it my pasta was a success.

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Last Friday I had the pleasure of guest posting over at the lovely Food Loves Writing. Check out my rendition of Mark Bittman’s recipe for arepas.

It always surprised me when people are adverse to ground turkey. I love using it because it’s so versatile while also being pretty good for you. I’ll often make turkey burgers or pasta sauce with it, but this week I picked up some peppers that I thought would be perfect for stuffing. The peppers hit the spot and left enough leftovers to create a whole other meal.

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Gnocchi and I have a love/hate relationship. I love it, but more times than not when I try to make it things get a little crazy. When I saw this recipe in Gourmet, one that made Ruth Reichl’s top 10 list, I just couldn’t let the disasters of my past hold me back from trying this one out. So I pulled out the ricer, gave myself some encouragement and got down to business. I’m proud to say that not only did this gnocchi look like gnocchi (well, basically it didn’t dissolve on contact with water) but I can also see why Ms. Reichl chose it… this is good stuff.

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Yesterday I wrote about how all I want to do is cool off. There are only a few things that tempt me to turn that oven knob in an unair-conditioned kitchen in August. Pizza is one of them (sweets are another, but that’s a whole other story). This pizza is the perfect way to use all the delicious vegetables that are in their prime. Although it means turning the oven on, if there’s only two of you (like in my apartment) it also means leftovers so you don’t even have to think about dinner the next night.

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Let me introduce you to my new favorite meal. On our trip to the country this weekend we stopped at a farmers market where they were giving away free grilled corn. Free grilled corn?! Sign me up. Their little ploy worked quite well because as soon as I took a bite I wanted to fill the car with corn and bring it home. Fortunately for Aaron, I have a little restraint and walked away with only two ears. But that got the wheels turning about what to do with it. Sure I could make corn on the cob, but that just seemed a little hum drum. Somehow I decided on corn cakes and it snowballed into the most delicious, corny meal that has me so excited. You’re going to want to pick up some fresh corn on the cob, because spicy corn cakes with fresh salsa is calling your name.

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I had grandiose ideas about what the last market week meal would be. They started out with vegetable gratin, transitioned to a quiche and finally ended up at a concoction thrown together with what’s left from my market excursion. I caramelized some zucchini and onions to act as a bit of a crust, added some eggs and cream as a base and tossed in my remaining tomato, the last bit of goat cheese and a little thyme. The result is a delicious concoction of fresh items coming together to celebrate awesome flavors.

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How do you make a cheeseburger better? Stuff it with a treasure chest of goat cheese rolled in garlic and rosemary. I’ve made a habit of buying most of my meat from the same vendor at the market, partly because they’re awesome, partly because they have samples of maple sausage that lure me from a block away. In the booth next to them, a woman sells these amazing little goat cheese logs that come either plain or rolled in something awesome like cinnamon and cranberry or rosemary and garlic. Last week when I purchased my ground beef for burgers, a light went on upstairs and it seemed like a match made in heaven, a little coin of goat cheese stuffed inside a delicious burger.

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I’m redeeming myself today on the beet front. From the get-go I knew I wanted to make bbq sandwiches with leftovers for one of my meals. I mean, it’s rare that leftovers can be so delicious, but something magical happens when you combine leftover meat and bbq. Many of the recipes for bbq sauce call for ketchup, but I wanted to start from scratch and use whole tomatoes. In the midst of making my sauce, I saw some beets on the counter and I thought, hmm, why not toss those in too. The result is a sweet and tangy sauce with a little zip at the end.

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