Conceptually speaking, one of my favorite things to do for dinner is to embellish something I already have. Creative embellishing is an ideal way to translate leftovers into new dishes. (Although there’s a lot to be said for the whole idea of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” — i.e., if you loved a [...]
Continue reading about How Your Kitchen Budget and Fresh Herbs Are Connected
I think creamy veggie soups are the perfect fall dish — they’re thickly hearty and warming, but all the vegetables remind me of summertime. (Ah, my poor garden! But hopefully the winter months will give the freshly laid compost some time to sink in…) And the fact that there are lots of ways to make [...]
Continue reading about A Mediterranean Take on Cold-Weather Comfort Food
As long as you’re not planning on stuffing them, when you go for potatoes, give the smallest ones a try. They have a higher skin-to-inner-flesh ratio than the big boys do (which gives them a nutritional edge), they cook much faster thanks to their diminutive stature, and all you have to do to make them [...]
Continue reading about Potatoes Any Way You Want Them: Plain, Sautéed or Herbed
Sweet corn, savory herbs, juicy tomatoes — what more could you want? Summer brings out the best on our plates. (Summer also means that my refrigerator tends to be a bit bare since a lot of my future meals are anchored to my garden dirt.) And now that we’re — sniff! — at the tail [...]
Continue reading about Guaranteed Summer Hits: Sweet Corn & Fresh Herbs
It’s official: summertime just ain’t summertime unless I have a pesto posting. Or two or three, seeing as I can’t think of a yummier dish to make with my favorite herb! (Although non-classic herbs like cilantro and dill also make great pesto; try pairing the former with almonds and the latter with walnuts.) At this [...]
My basilophilic nature (yep, just made up that word) has spurred me to figure out yet another way to use my favorite summer herb: in ice cream. Freezing basil is pretty much only way you can chop, slice, or otherwise cut basil and still have it be green rather than chop, slice, or otherwise cut [...]
The time has come again for that quintessential summer dish, the one I could relish eating every day, the reason I have scads of basil in my garden every year: Insalata Caprese, or salad made in the style of the isle of Capri (off Italy’s southwestern coast). I get even more excited about making this [...]
Continue reading about How Milking Buffaloes and the Island of Capri Are Connected
Savory dips are just about the most versatile thing you can make, because not only can a neverending variety of items be considered dippables, the dip itself can become a sauce if you thin it a little bit and then toss it with pasta, whole grains, meat, you name it. Or you could thin it [...]
Continue reading about Celebrating Summer with a Cool Green Dip
Seeing as Thanksgiving is just around the corner, I thought I’d share a deliciously easy treat that will compliment any Turkey Day table: buttermilk biscuits. I say “easy” because these are drop biscuits rather than rolled biscuits, which means you can simply drop large spoonfuls of batter on a baking sheet and pop them in [...]
Continue reading about Biscuits & Buttermilk: Treats for Your Holiday Table
