Last updated on July 15th, 2012 Remember my mushroom craving last week? Well, I finally got my mushroom fix. Thursday night was an exploration in hen of the woods and black trumpet mushrooms; I discovered that both types are rich and flavorful, and their aroma is rather pleasant and innocuous. Beyond the basic fungi (cremini, portabella, shiitake,…
Savory
Chicken and artichoke pesto quesadillas
Last updated on June 8th, 2014 Grad school productivity is inversely related to cooking and blogging; as I become more immersed in reading and writing theories on math education, my kitchen becomes less used and my blogging less frequent. I start rummaging through my freezer to find something to eat because going to the store…
Lasagna bolognese with béchamel
Last updated on April 2nd, 2018 I love lasagna – layers upon layers of rich, decadent sauce, cheese, and pasta that offer up different flavors with each bite. What I don’t love about most lasagna is cooked ricotta cheese. It tastes like chalk when baked and is a colossal mistake when layered into one of…
Eggplant and leek gratin
Last updated on November 4th, 2018 After my calzone night cravings, I rebelled against Chuy’s anti-vegetable crusade and cooked a dish made up entirely of veggies. Oh, and cheese too (obviously). I suggested this idea to Chuy when planning the menu for his visit, but he turned nose up at me and remarked in disgust,…
Calzones with hot Italian chicken sausage, asparagus, and spinach
Last updated on June 23rd, 2014 Like I said, I make pizza often. Since a dessert pizza was already in the works, I decided to mix it up a bit for dinner and flip pizza over on itself to make calzones. Let’s be honest, calzone is just a fancy word for “hot pocket.” And since…
Lemon and garlic vegetable quinoa (vegan and gluten-free!)
Last updated on June 8th, 2014 Quinoa has been on my to-do list for a while now, but every time I get ready to make it, I chicken out, worrying that it’ll end up flavorless. I don’t know why I’m such a wuss, it’s not like I’ve never cooked quinoa before…just not without a recipe,…
Vegetable Thai curry with fresh crab
Last updated on June 6th, 2014 Another fun fact that I learned at my cousin’s farm is that kaffir lime leaves are the key ingredient to making authentic Thai food. He so casually asked me if I wanted some kaffir lime leaves, and I responded with a blank stare, “some what?” He went on to tell us how one…
Creamy tomato basil soup
Last updated on June 8th, 2014 Is there one dish that you regularly crave? Tomato soup is one of those things that I get a sudden onset appetite for about once a month and must find some within the hour or something catastrophic will happen. I then go on a mad search calling every restaurant…
Lemony kale, pear, and pepitas salad
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 At first glance, it appears that I cook with kale all the time. This assumption isn’t all that accurate since I’ve only cooked with it a total of three times – they just all happen to be within the past month. What is true is that I’ve been trying to…
Seared swiss chard and leeks topped with crispy bacon
Last updated on January 30th, 2014 This chard lasted less than an hour from being picked to being served in a deliciously fresh dish. On Sunday, Lucas and I visited my cousin Scott’s urban farm down in Hayward and came home with a bag bursting with freshly harvested citrus and greens. We first made a…
Trio of non-traditional bruschetta
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 My absolute favorite restaurant in Philly that has a frequent diner’s card – for every $500 spend, you receive a $50 gift card. Whenever I eat there with friends, the entire bill gets tallied on my card, and let’s just say, I’ve earned multiple $50 gift cards. My Philadelphia…
Crispy smashed potatoes
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 When deciding on the sides for the Texas style beef brisket, I thought back to our BBQ experiences on our trip to Texas. Baked beans, mac and cheese, coleslaw, and potato salad. I couldn’t make baked beans or mac and cheese in such a short amount of prep time…
Texas style oven-roasted beef brisket
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 My acupuncturist told me that I needed to eat some beef yesterday because my blood seemed weak. I’m not exactly sure what that means, but I will do just about anything that might potentially relieve my reoccurring headaches. I thought a steak would be nice – after all, it was…
Gourmet BLT: Pancetta, sun-dried tomatoes, arugula, artichoke hearts, and fresh mozzarella
Last updated on June 23rd, 2014 I’m not much of a sandwich person, but when you go skiing, that’s the most portable lunch. At the last minute, we wound up not going skiing this weekend, but I had already bought a loaf of fresh sour batard for our sandwiches. To use up this bread, I…
Playing with food: Beet orange salad
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 I went to Sur La Table to find a heart-shaped cookie cutter today and would you believe it – they’re sold out! They were even totally all out of the sets that included a heart cookie cutter. I figured that if I’m going to be making cutesy Valentine’s Day…
Baked broccoli mac and cheese
Last updated on June 8th, 2014 Remember how I wasn’t cooking this week? Well, I accidentally made two gigantic vats of mac and cheese last night. Okay, so it wasn’t really an accident – I intended to make mac and cheese for four people (plus some extra for our intended trip to Tahoe), but somehow…
Spicy heart paprika tortilla chips
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 I don’t really care to celebrate Valentine’s Day, but I’m all about having a reason to make food – especially adorable themed food (anyone who has spent Halloween with me knows that I’m talking about). As far as I’m concerned, the next week should be dedicated to all food…
Lemon and parmesan baked artichoke hearts
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 I’m sure it’s clear by now just how much I love artichokes (and I’m fortunate to live so close to where they’re farmed). Whenever I see them for less than a dollar, I can’t pass by without adding a couple to my cart – even if I already have…
Lucas’s anniversary chocolate stout-braised short ribs
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 For the second course of our two-part anniversary dinner, Lucas was concocting something special. I’ll narrate my perspective first and he’ll chime in with his side of the story after. We each walked to the produce market separately Saturday afternoon to keep the mystery of each of our dishes alive…
Citrus tuna tartare with pear chips
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 While most people are prepping their finger foods for the Super Bowl, Lucas and I are celebrating our two year anniversary (with food) today. Last year, we mixed up the date of our anniversary and didn’t realize until we were done wining and dining, so this year, we’ve arbitrarily…
Healthy chicken tortilla soup for cilantro-haters
Last updated on June 23rd, 2014 As a serious cilantrophobe, I’ve never been a fan of tortilla soup. Actually, to be fair, I’d only ever tried it once when my friends took me to “tortilla soup Tuesdays” at Houston’s Restaurant, but when the bowl came served with a heaping glob of that detestable herb, I’d…
Chicken chronicles part III: chicken and vegetable burritos (& a spice rack fiasco)
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 Prior to meeting Lucas, my experience with cooking flavorful Mexican food was limited to Lawry’s Taco Seasoning packets. When I first made tacos for Lucas, he was appalled at my affinity for the mysterious mix, but agreed to let me do my thing when I insisted it was the way…
Juicy whole roasted chicken with oranges and onions
Last updated on July 1st, 2012 It’s hard to get motivated to cook elaborate meals for one when your boyfriend is out of town. Lucas had planned to be in Taiwan this week when I made my ambitious plan to roast a whole chicken to use in all my dishes throughout the week. His work…
Whole wheat pizza with sweet potato sauce, kale, and shallots
Last updated on March 30th, 2014 Since I’ve tried my hand at a raw kale dish, tonight was part two in this experiment: cooked kale. Not only because I’ll never truly know how much I like kale until I try it with both preparation methods, but mostly because I had half a bunch of kale…
