My summer vegetable garden was put to rest over a month ago. A few green onions, some herbs and berry plants are left. It looks barren and dormant, because it is. Continue reading
Side dishes
mustard mint potato and green bean salad
When I was a little girl, I equated certain foods with my different sets of grandparents. I could count on my Grandma Jeffress to have things like Chuck Wagon casserole and pigs-in-a-blanket made with Vienna sausages or tacos with the lettuce wilted in the sauce and heaped with shreds of cheddar cheese. Continue reading
fennel + apple salad
Distinctively dark and aromatic black licorice or ropey, chewy Red Vines, which leathery candy do you fancy? Mine was always Red Vines. I couldn’t bear the thought of “real” licorice; that was until I was introduced to divinely light, crisp fennel. Continue reading
corned beef, cabbage and root vegetable hash
A container of last weekend’s St. Paddy’s day leftovers sat in the fridge. It wasn’t quite enough for a whole meal, but too much for one person’s lunch. Seriously, I hate to toss things out so that wasn’t even an option. Continue reading
time to reset what’s on my plate
I feel like I’m coming off of a food high.
Come on, you all are feeling the exact same thing. There’s been more than enough cheese platters, gorgeously delicious cookies, mounds of roast beast and glasses of luscious red wine to wash it all down. Continue reading
so long vegetable garden
So long vegetable garden. You were new. You provided produce, but October has arrived with nippy temperatures. These were the coursing thoughts as I pulled cucumber and tomato vines, the last of the pepper plants and cut back the kale which had turned into small creatures. It’s always bittersweet, deciding to toss stuff into the compost bin. Continue reading
tonight: orzo with sun-dried tomatoes and grilled marinated artichokes
If lamb is on the menu, and an invitation to dinner is extended, I’m there. Tempting, slightly gamey lamb studded with garlic and rubbed with rosemary is pretty darn close to heavenly fare. Continue reading
radishes are more than crudité
For way too long the common red radish has been relegated to the crudité platter as the token rosy color in a sea of green and orange. My friends, don’t sell the Cherry Bell, Easter Egg or Burpee White short! There’s so much more to this ordinary orb. Continue reading
chanterelles, a wild harvest
“If you go out in the woods today you’re sure of a big surprise,” goes the vintage children’s song Teddy Bear’s Picnic by American composer John Bratton with lyrics by Irish songwriter Jimmy Kennedy. Continue reading
foray into the world of turned vegetables
My foray into the world of vegetables turned into noodles has been slow. There’s the whole textural thing happening that has given me pause. They may be shaped like a noodle, but clearly are not pasta, just like riced cauliflower and broccoli are not rice. Don’t get me wrong, I love them both, and I do adore vegetables. I guess I’m being contrary in the naming process. Continue reading