{baked} honeycrisp apples

Happily, honeycrisp apples are back in season. I sliced one up and baked it at 225F for about an hour and a half (turning them once 1/2 way through). Their delicious fragrance filled our home - it was the lovely smell of early fall.  

just fruit - perfectly sweet and crisp!

from the kitchen: {gluten free} blt's

We enjoyed another simple dinner using key ingredients straight from the garden. With juicy sliced tomatoes, arugula and basil in lieu of plain lettuce, and gluten free toast for me, our BLTs were delicious! It's one of the tastiest, most simple dinners. 

taste: spicy thai chicken and noodles

With the warm weather, we've been able to take advantage some early season grilling. We made spicy Thai chicken with sweet and spicy rice noodles and grilled pineapple. For the chicken, just throw together red curry paste, minced garlic, chopped cilantro, Sriracha sauce, a little brown sugar, soy sauce and a little Thai fish sauce. Then after a few hours of marinating the chicken, grill the chicken. With a side of sweet and spicy rice noodles and grilled pineapple, it makes for a delicious dinner.  

from the kitchen: gluten free pasta with kale

Looking for more gluten free dinner options? Here's an easy pasta with kale dish we tried a few evenings ago - it was quite tasty, and despite the lack of meat, it was very hearty. I started by cooking the kale in olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes and once the kale wilted a bit, I added a few dashes of balsamic vinegar. After this cooked down I simply tossed the kale with black bean pasta. This gluten free pasta has 20 grams of protein per serving, and I thought the taste was quite good - much better than some gluten free pastas I've tried before - making it a great substitute for "regular" pasta.

roasted chicken

Roasting a chicken seems like the perfect Sunday cold-weather dinner. It's delicious, easy, and provides for leftovers for a few nights - the ideal combo! My most recently roasted chicken didn't disappoint both in its original state or as any of its several incarnations - we enjoyed chicken soup made from the leftovers today. 

roasted with lots of
fall vegetables and herbs

my breakfast of champions - egg quesadilla

Without a doubt, I'm a breakfast person, though I really can't stand anything sweet in the morning, and in full disclosure most sweets anytime of day make me a little sick in my stomach. But I make up for my dislike of sugary sweets (caveats: I do like fruity desserts like sorbet, I love honey and once in awhile will crave very dark chocolate) by adoring savory flavors! Recently, I've been thoroughly enjoying "breakfast quesadillas" made with soft corn tortillas - I find the "Food Life's Sprouted Corn" to be the best - 1 egg, a little shredded cheddar, and some of my homemade salsa. It's been a filling breakfast that sticks with me throughout the morning and because I significantly reduced gluten from my diet for health reasons, the corn tortillas satisfy my taste for something starchy, plus they're just delicious!  

Making these quesadillas really couldn't be easier. Over medium heat, I add the egg in a pan, toss in a few spoonfuls of salsa and stir, then I throw in a pinch of cheese and let that all scramble. Meanwhile in another pan I heat up one tortilla then once the eggs are cooked, I top the tortilla with the eggs add a little bit more cheese and then top that with the other tortilla, letting it all cook so that the bottom tortilla is nicely toasted. Once it's a little firm, I flip it over and let the other side cook. After slicing it up, I dollop more salsa on top and devour my new favorite breakfast! I don't really count calories or think too much about fat - moderation is more my mantra - but I can't imagine that this breakfast is anything but healthy with 1 egg, 2 small corn tortillas, lots of salsa, and just a few pinches of cheese. Healthy and delicious equals my version of a breakfast of champions. Give it a try!

fresh sardines - the perfect catch

At the grocery about a week ago I walked past the seafood section and out of the corner of my eyes I spotted fresh sardines. Both my husband and I were delighted with this find and couldn't wait to grill them up for dinner. Served along side grilled rosemary flatbread and a tomato salad with lots and lots of fresh herbs, it made for a simple and completely delicious dinner. We are both hoping to see more fresh sardines at the market soon. They're so good for you, easy to fix, so tasty, and plentiful on both coasts - making fresh sardines the perfect catch.

grilled with olive and coarse sea salt

a variety of sliced tomatoes
(from the garden, of course!)
with lots of herbs, a pinch of salt,
and a dash of olive oil

and dinner is served!

putting the ham in hamburger

A few years back I stumbled across a recipe in either Gourmet or Bon Appetit for pork burgers. They were served with sliced red onion, bbq sauce, and cole slaw - all right on the bun - and they were delicious! My husband and I recently recreated the recipe, and the end result was just as good as what we remembered.

grilled pork burgers with red onion, bbq sauce,
red cabbage slaw and a side of fruit
salad with lots of fresh mint - yum!

warm weather dinner - shrimp tacos

Grilled shrimp tacos are one of my favorite summertime dishes. I use shell on shrimp - so much more flavor! - and marinate them in lots of garlic, minced hot chili peppers (any type will do), olive oil, cilantro, salt and pepper and then a little bit before they hit the grill I add fresh lime juice to the mixture.

the shrimp all lined up on skewers

The shrimp get even better when there are 2 types of salsa - chunky & spicy tomato and lime & mango to dollop on top. But perhaps most importantly, fresh guacamole is a must. I like my guac citrusy, bright from lots of lime, cilantro and balanced with garlic and a heaping of heat from fresh chili peppers.

chunky tomato salsa, straight from the garden,
cool and tangy mango salsa,
and bright and creamy guacamole...yum!

All plated up with toasted corn tortillas, the perfect summertime dinner is served.

shrimp tacos - the perfect warm weather dinner

grilled eggplant pasta

Another summer night, another delicious pasta dish! Tonight we had grilled eggplant with spaghetti, and it didn't disappoint. The eggplant was cubed, tossed with olive oil, salt and pepper and thrown into a grilling basket and taken outside to cook on the grill. Meanwhile the pasta was cooking and in a large bowl, I threw together minced garlic, lots of chopped basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Once the eggplant and pasta were finished I tossed everything together and topped the dishes with toasted bread crumbs, which added a nice crunch. With a little Sauvignon Blanc, we had a perfect little dinner in no time at all!

grilled eggplant pasta - delicious!

summer pasta

In the summer, I try not to do much in the kitchen that will heat the house up unnecessarily. That usually means we grill out a lot, but there is one pasta dish that I make inside because it is so simple and easy to fix, oh, and it's delicious! The only "cooking" it requires is boiling water - all of the other ingredients are used raw. 

I combine halved grape tomatoes, diced garlic, lots of chopped basil, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper in a large bowl, and I let that sit while the water bowls and when the pasta cooks.  

the simplest of ingredients

I like using either farfalle or rigatoni in this dish. Once the pasta is cooked al dente, I drain it, toss it in the same bowl with the tomato mixture, and combine it until the pasta is fully coated in tasty deliciousness. Topped with a little parmesan cheese and voila, you'll have the easiest yet fresh and savory pasta dish ever!

the finished product -
here we tossed in some
leftover spicy Italian sausage...yum!

green beans, Thai style

Both my husband and I love spicy food, and having a Thai mom, I grew up eating Thai food very regularly. I inherited many traits from my mom, one is a preference to not cook from recipes. I think we do much better cooking with our senses. For this green bean stir fry, I pulled together some very basic Thai ingredients I keep on hand. The only ingredient I wish I had had in the fridge was fresh ginger. Regardless, the stir fry was delicious - with all of those well balanced Thai flavors so many of us love - spicy, sweet, salty and of course fresh.

the assembled ingredients: green beans, Sriricha,
Thai vinegar, Thai fish sauce, chopped cilantro,
red pepper flakes (use fresh chili if you have it),
minced garlic, brown sugar, and cashews
(use peanuts if you prefer)

everything cooking up nicely in my wok

the finished dish, with chopped
cashews on top -
delicious!

our go-to no cook dinner

Many nights I love to cook dinner. There are those nights, though, when maybe neither of us are very hungry or neither of us feel like cooking, so a light, easy dinner is perfect. Those are the nights we often pull out our got-to no-cook dinner. It's ridiculously easy and is more about having the right items on hand than just about anything else. Case in point, the photo below shows our go-to no-cook dinner - missing only is a small toasted baguette drizzled with a little olive oil (I don't consider toasting bread cooking therefore, this - in my book - is a no-cook dinner) and some perhaps some red wine.  On this plate you'll find salami, creamy brie, a little pungent blue cheese, crisp apple slices, anchovies, a mix of briny Spanish and Greek olives, and savory little bread twists. Fancy? Not really. Tasty? Absolutely. Easy? Yes - couldn't be any easier and I'm getting hungry just writing this...

et voila, dinner is served

our Easter celebration

We hosted Easter lunch at our house today. The culinary highlight, for me, was roasting leg of lamb for the first time. For the lamb, I tweaked a Mark Bittman recipe I read in the New York Times recently. I am so happy with how it turned out! Here are a few snapshots of our feast. Happy Easter!

pink carnations & dyed blue
Easter eggs - pretty spring colors!

the carved lamb - delicious!

mashed potatoes made by my husband -
so yummy

petit-fours for dessert

pastel candied almonds

our big Easter bunny - isn't he cute?

southwest inspired breakfast

Lately, we've really been reining in going out for weekend breakfasts and brunches. And to our delight, we've created a few breakfast dishes that have been kind of awesome! Last weekend we made the most flavorful Southwestern inspired hash-brown and egg bake. With the addition of black beans, salsa, a little bit of cheddar, cayenne & chipotle peppers and lots of fresh cilantro on top, a breakfast was born that is hearty, delicious, and actually quite economical. A glass of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, to me, is like the icing on the cake!

bold flavors, bright colors -
what a way to start of the day!

a Sunday night dinner

What a dinner we had tonight! Oh, how I wish you could have been here to join us. The "menu" was braised chicken thighs, Spanish yellow rice with peas, and roasted parsnips and red peppers.

The chicken dish starts with olive oil, onion, minced anchovies, chopped Spanish and kalamata olives, bay leafs, paprika, a few cloves of garlic, and a just a little bit of chicken broth. Once the onion is sauteed the other ingredients are added and the scents begin to sing! And, it gets better. Wait until some of the chicken broth cooks out and then add the chicken thighs - I seasoned them with black pepper, dried parley, paprika, and just a littlest amount of salt (the olives and anchovies provide most of the salt in the dish) - then wait for them to get a nice medium brown on one side then turn and wait for the other side to brown a bit too.  Lastly, add in about a 1/2 cup of dry white wine (of course save the rest of the wine to sip while finishing cooking and to enjoy with dinner!) and the aromas reach a crescendo.

The Spanish rice we fixed is a pretty standard - butter, onion, broth, saffron, salt and pepper. We added some frozen peas at the end. I love how something with such a simple preparation becomes so utterly savory and completely delicious.

While the chicken and the rice were busily cooking away on the stop-top, in a very hot oven parsnips and sliced red bell peppers were roasting. Before being put in the oven, they had been tossed in olive oil, paprika, salt and pepper - it never ceases to impress me how sweet & savory roasted veggies turn out!

chicken braising in wine -
the scents are singing!

parsnips & bell peppers - cooked to
perfect veggie sweetness

a colorful plate, full of flavor

so good & enough for leftovers!

wine braised beef

One of our favorite winter dinners is braised beef with creamy polenta. This dinner defines comfort food in our house. The beef takes awhile to cook, but there's actually very little "hands-on" time, and the polenta cooks up in just a few minutes, so it's actually a super simple dinner to put together. The great thing about using a large cut of beef is that we have delicious leftovers for a few nights or some to throw into the freezer and pull out on one of those nights that anything more than reheating doesn't seem like a viable option. The beef is slowly braised with carrots, onion, garlic, thyme, bay and 1 full bottle of red wine! Sure, it's a lot of wine, but it makes for the most tender, the most deliciously amazing braised beef. Bon appetite!

the most savory of dishes
to warm you up on a cold winter night

something new for dinner

In my mind, enough praise can't be said about sitting down to a home cooked meal. Don't get me wrong, there are those nights when I'm too worn out to even think about cooking, and there those times when I love going out to try a new restaurant, and there are also those nights when only an old, cherished stand-by will do, but there's such a lofty feeling of putting together a good meal for yourself and maybe some loved ones to enjoy. It's an accomplishment we should all take pride in!

Isn't it nice to learn a new dish or two to incorporate into your regular dinner "repertoire?" We tried a new fish dish for dinner a few nights ago and much to our delight it was so tasty - not to mention so incredibly easy. As much as I enjoy reading cookbooks and magazines like Bon Appetit, I'm not one to actually follow recipes. I think recipes can be really helpful to learn about flavor combinations and to get ideas & inspiration, but I much prefer to cook with my senses rather than following a list someone else made!

At the grocery they had some really nice looking sole fillets on special, so we picked up some. And, I thought I'd put together some kind of spicy fruit salsa to jazz up a very simple fish preparation. The rest just came together from what we had in the kitchen, making for a delicious dinner that was full of bright and savory flavors.

thin sole fillets baked with
olive oil and lime slices 

with the most delicious spicy salsa -
kiwi, clementines, red pepper flakes,
lime juice, garlic and cilantro
so flavorful!

and a simple salad with
balsamic vinegar & olive oil

and don't forget the
baked, crispy potato wedges

making for a most flavorful dinner!

popcorn perfected

This popcorn is nothing less than amazing.  It's my rendition of the popcorn served in lieu of bread at Graham Elliot: http://www.grahamelliot.com/.  Chicago is full of incredible restaurants, and this is one of my favorites - super creative and delicious food without an ounce of pretension.  Every time I've eaten there I was able to experience something completely new.  Graham Elliot's popcorn was so delectable, and I knew pretty much immediately after tasting it the first time that I would have to try my hand at making it at home.  My version turned out to be so close to the real deal - I couldn't be more pleased with the delicious results!

Here's what you'll need:
good popcorn (I like making mine on the stove top)
just a little canola oil to pop the corn with
chopped chives
grated Parmesan cheese
truffle oil
Kosher salt
coarsely ground black pepper

Basically, all you need to do is make your popcorn, add your dry ingredients and then drizzle with the truffle oil.  The end result is the most flavorful popcorn you can imagine.  Give it a try - I promise you won't be disappointed!

the ingredients

amazingly delicious truffle oil

the end product...
this picture doesn't do it justice!

roasted chicken plus 3

One of my favorite dinners to cook, especially in the winter is roasted chicken.  It never ceases to amaze me just how tender, juicy, and flavorful the meat is - so much better than boring chicken breasts!  I bought a 7lb. bird for the two of us, and we thought we'd see just how many dinners we could make from 1 chicken. 

Dinner #1 - Roasted chicken - a lemon half in the cavity for extra juiciness, garlic inside and underneath the skin, and thyme throughout.  So delicious!

juicy chicken full of flavor

Dinner #2 - Grilled panini wrap with chicken breast, cayenne black beans, Wisconsin cheddar and a cucumber yogurt sauce - a really great contrast between hot and cool.

spicy black beans with cool cucumber sauce

Dinner #3 - Rigatoni with chicken, grilled asparagus, Greek olives, and parmesan cheese.  A simple dinner with a nice glass of wine is almost always my favorite.

chicken, asparagus, olives
and rigatoni = a perfect combo!

Dinner #4 - Carrot and ginger soup made with chicken stock.  I used 1 potato and 1 sweet potato to give the soup some thickness, and to my surprise, no cream was needed.  Sprinkled with chives for the perfect topping.

savory and sweet - so nice a cold night

Kind of hard to believe that at the core of each of these meals is one $7 chicken!