A delicious break from holiday excess: Curried Lentils with Poached Eggs

Lentils cooked with an international mix of spices and aromatics and topped with poached eggs make a satisfying vegetarian lunch, light supper or, as served by April Bloomfield, robust breakfast. Recipe below.

WE WENT ALL OUT FOR THE HOLIDAY FOOD EXTRAVAGANZAS this year at our house. At one point, our in-house supplies included chocolate mascarpone brownies, a pound cake baked by Laurel, moon cakes from our favorite Chinatown bakery, a cheerful assortment of donuts from Stan’s, Rum Ball ice cream and Lime Cardamom frozen yogurt from Jeni’s, butterfly cookies, chocolate chip cookies, strawberry-flavored “French cookies” from Japan, a box of truffles from Moonstruck, some violet-scented chocolate my sister brought back from France, plus an unclear number of other chocolates, plus several luscious cheeses, plus a pie—I am so jaded by all this that I don’t remember what sort of pie. Continue reading “A delicious break from holiday excess: Curried Lentils with Poached Eggs” →

Christmas memory leftovers

OKAY, IT’S CHRISTMAS EVE. I could post a recipe here, I suppose. But even if you were inclined to add it to what you have already planned, would you have the time, energy and open stores to track down ingredients and put it together? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Instead, I’m going to share a holiday story with you. Continue reading “Christmas memory leftovers” →

Using flavored pasta to add depth: Mushroom Pasta with Duck

Mushroom pasta, porcini mushrooms, leftover duck and duck stock combine to create an earthy, peasanty meal. Recipe below.

Weeks ago I promised you a recipe using the carcass of the roasted duck and leftover duck meat. I hope you put that duck in the freezer, because this week, in the lull between Thanksgiving and the next round of holiday frenzy, I got a bright idea. Continue reading “Using flavored pasta to add depth: Mushroom Pasta with Duck” →

Smoky, savory and sweet: Chipotle Pot Roast with Onions and Sweet Potatoes

Beef pot roast, a winter comfort food stalwart, gets livened up with sweet potatoes, onions and smoky, spicy chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. Recipe below, with tips on adjusting the heat and smoke.

Turkey and I are taking a break. After some intensely enjoyable time together—Thanksgiving dinner, a delectable soup of dandelion greens, white beans and stock made from the turkey carcass, numerous sandwiches, and random pieces of cold turkey eaten with nothing more than a shake of salt—we hit a bit of a wall. So we both agreed I should see other animal proteins for a while. Continue reading “Smoky, savory and sweet: Chipotle Pot Roast with Onions and Sweet Potatoes” →

Plenty to be thankful for on Thanksgiving

No recipe this week. Just some random thoughts on Thanksgiving, food and family.

We had a full house this Thanksgiving weekend. Both daughters were in town, as was another guest—quite a crowd for our two-bedroom apartment. With an inflatable mattress, the living room was pressed into part-time duty as a bedroom. The five of us shared our apartment’s one bathroom. The more skittish of our two cats often found herself trapped behind closed bedroom doors. Transportation for various needs involved scheduling turns with our one car, walking or taking public transportation. And we all loved it. Continue reading “Plenty to be thankful for on Thanksgiving” →