Last week, I saw an episode of America’s Test Kitchen (registration required, but it’s free) where they took on an all time favorite of mine, baked potatoes. They showed a couple of different ways that people salt bake potatoes, one with egg whites and salt, one where they entirely cover the potato in salt, and then the winning recipe, where you simply put the potato on a bed of salt, and then bake it, covered in foil. They purpose of the salt is that it makes the potato light and fluffy inside, with lots of potato flavor. I was intrigued and knew I had to try it. Happily, Ted’s brother…

This last week I was trying to think of a nice side dish to serve with a lovely grilled lemon chicken recipe, and for some reason, I thought, ‘rice salad’. Rice salad isn’t an idea that I come up with too often. Generally we have straight rice, or potatoes, that sort of thing. A few weeks ago I took some leftover salmon and made a lunch out of it, tossing it with a few other ingredients, and I decided to throw some leftover rice in there, and it was delicious…so I thought I’d give it a try. Did a quick internet search, and found a Lentil and Rice Salad from…

Way back in 2007, a friend of mine mailed me a newspaper clipping with a recipe for fresh tomato sauce, knowing (from my blog) of my love of tomatoes and pasta and cooking, via this very blog. It was fun getting a recipe in the mail, but the butter scared me, so I never tried it. Since then, I found a very similar recipe on Smitten Kitchen, and was intrigued. But again, never tried it. On Sunday, I went to our local farmers’ market, and picked up maybe 5 lbs of slightly overripe tomatoes. My favorite thing to do with overripe tomatoes is to make tomato sauce. My only problem…

Yesterday was one of those days when I found myself thinking, “What in the heck are we going to have for dinner? I have no ideas.” So I clicked on over to Yahoo Shine Foods, which has been known in the past to give me an idea or two. They had a recipe for chicken braised in tomato which sounded pretty interesting, but the link didn’t go anywhere. So I did a little google search for chicken braised in tomato, and I found this recipe, from Food Network. I liked the idea of cumin and cinnamon in the sauce, and it looked fairly simple, so I decided we’d try it.…

Everyone has their preferences when it comes to meal time.  I don’t like bok choy much, Ted does.  I don’t like mangoes, Ted and Maya do.   I like raisins, Ted doesn’t, Maya’s undecided.  That sort of thing.  When it comes to meal planning, I try to take everyone’s likes and dislikes into consideration, though sometimes someone has to suck it up and eat the green beans.  Often, if either Ted or Maya isn’t home for dinner, I’ll try to make something that the absent family member doesn’t enjoy, but the others do.  When Maya was in L.A. a few weeks ago, we had linguine and clams one night, steak and…

I saw this recipe on Yahoo Shine a few weeks ago, and I was compelled to try it. (They got the recipe here, which is also where I got the drool worthy photo.)  It just seemed like the perfect meal for a hot summer day, when you don’t want anything too heavy, and you don’t want to heat up your house. You do use the broiler, but for such a short time, it doesn’t heat the kitchen up very much. Provençal Tuna Melt Serves 2 1 6-ounce can tuna packed in olive oil* 1/4 of a red bell pepper, 1/4″ dice Green parts of 2 scallions, 1/4″ dice 2 teaspoons…

This Sunday’s Chronicle had an article about ‘you pick’ farms in our area, highlighting the wonderful fresh produce and excellent prices to be had by picking your own fruits and vegetables.  It also included recipes from the farmers that highlight their offerings.  There was a delicious looking recipe for a hot tomato and bread salad. They had me at the word tomato, but add a baguette, some basil, garlic, olive oil, and Parmesan, and I’m in love. Happily, Monday, the weather decided to cool down enough (It was 103 (or 108 if you believe the newspaper, which I don’t) on Saturday, and 90 on Sunday….only 74 on Monday) to let…

For Maya’s 16th birthday back in March, she wanted to hang out with her friends. We have a tiny tiny living room, and we wanted her birthday to be special, so we decided to rent rooms at a nearby hotel. We got the girls a suite, and we had the adjoining room next door. I decided to go against my prior training (which is open box of mix, follow directions) and make a homemade birthday cake. I was inspired by Mel, who is friend with my real-life friend Stacey, and has a blog called Cupcake Friday Project. One cake that caught my eye was a chocolate cupcake with Nutella frosting.…

This is a recipe I found on Yahoo Shine, which they got from Better Homes and Gardens.  It’s sort of like a lasagna in that it’s baked, and sort of like a spaghetti in the taste.  Like lasagna, there is some layering involved.  Unlike lasagna, there’s no ricotta type cheese involved.  Maya’s not a fan of lasagna, never liked it much and then had it when sick with stomach flu, and has never recovered.   She likes this dish, though, and Ted and I love it.  It’s yummy, warm and gooey and still pretty full of nutrition. I found the recipe here. Baked Spaghetti Squash Ingredients 1 medium spaghetti squash (2-1/4…

Years ago, we received a cookbook from the Sargento cheese company, and there are a few recipes that are fall backs for us.  One is the Soft Shell Chicken Tacos, and another is the Speedy Black Bean ‘n’ Cheese Burritos.  The only thing I mind about the burritos is that, because they’re baked, sometimes the tortillas get kind of dried out.  So I decided to make a quick and easy version of my favorite Black Bean Enchilada recipe.  First, I started with the Burrito recipe, for the filling. Speedy Black Bean ‘n’ Cheese Burritos Ingredients 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil 1/2 cup sliced green onions 1 clove garlic, minced 1 can…