Tossing a warm component, like the shrimp and asparagus in this salad, with crisp greens softens the greens and brings all the flavors of the salad together. When people hear “stir-fry,” they most often think of a wok. However, on a home stove you will get the best results from a heavy, flat-bottomed skillet. Makes 2 servings (can be easily doubled) 12...
Read MoreQuick White Bean and Red Onion Salad
I think I’m pretty good at passing along restaurant trends that translate easily into home kitchens. Warm salads, for one, Latin seasonings for another. The idea of topping a hearty, hot dish (or even a cold one) with fresh greens, lightly or aggressively dressed is another. I know this is not breakthrough stuff—every neighborhood falafel joint stuffs pita...
Read MoreMy Vote is Cast (Iron)
NOTE: Whether you own cast-iron or not, do not miss the Mozzarella in Carrozza recipe below! When we sold our house and moved back into an apartment with a tiny kitchen with a drastically reduced amount of storage space, I freaked. Then I realized that of all the cookware I own, I use about 10 % of it on a regular basis. So most of the stuff is in an...
Read MoreDIY Pork
It may sound odd, but I have been trying to eat a pork chop for dinner for a month and a half. It all started when we met friends at Park and Orchard, an ordinary looking restaurant with an extraordinary wine list in East Rutherford NJ. I had been there a few times before and once had ordered the pork chops which were everything a pork chop should...
Read MoreNotes on Toast
Here’s how to make toast like my father used to: Take two pieces of white bread, put them in the toaster and press down the thingie on the side. I don’t remember if there was a darkness control on the side of our old toaster, but if there was, it was set to somewhere around 5,000. Walk away from the toaster and get involved in something else. When billows...
Read MoreBeet Greens (and Spaghetti Too!)
Beets make winter almost bearable. Their sweet flavor, sturdy texture, and striking color bring a little life into a mostly bleak–vegetable and weather-wise–season. I like them for another reason- their leaves. I am a fool for any kind of green: chard, kale, collards, broccoli rabe- you name it. But beet green make me feel something I don’t...
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