Beef and Pork Ragú: Hearty, rustic, meaty

Seasonably frigid temperatures inspired Marion to remake this delicious, hearty pasta dish from the Blue Kitchen archives. It originally appeared in unseasonably cold May 2011.

It is flat-out refusing to stay warm here. We have these occasional days that are, frankly, just hot, where after days of unseasonable cold it suddenly, spitefully, turns 85 for like one day. The warm weather comes on too abruptly to be any fun at all. We are inevitably at the office wearing too much, too thick clothing. We get home and the apartment is stuffy and hot. The cats stagger around, collapsing randomly here and there and glaring at us: I can go no farther—you did this to me. Then within a few hours huge storms wash through and the weather turns crazy cold again and just. stays. that. way. Tomato planting? Forget it.[Read more here…]

Not a TV dinner, but television-inspired: Chicken Fennel Soup

Fennel bulb, onion, celery, carrots, garlic, chicken, cannellini beans, pasta and lemon. What else do you need to know? Recipe below.

I’ve been not cooking lately. Yes, we’ve been crazy busy at times, with long hours away from home and non-meshing schedules. But it’s been more than that or simple midwinter malaise. I just didn’t seem to be in the mood to get in the kitchen, even when all the ingredients for a particular dish were in the house. I needed a kick in the pants to get over myself. It came in the form of a PBS show. Continue reading “Not a TV dinner, but television-inspired: Chicken Fennel Soup” →

Coleslaw gets a lively makeover with giardiniera and bacon

Giardiniera Slaw with Bacon packs some heat and some surprises, including olive brine. Recipe below.

Johnny’s Grill, an old school diner in our Logan Square neighborhood, closed some time ago. In our nine or so years of living here, it had never seemed to be what you’d call hopping. For that matter, it had never enticed us in. Recently, it has reopened with a gently hipsterish makeover. Same formica counter and red vinyl stools, but the menu, still diner-ish and still reasonably priced, has gotten some cheflike loving. Continue reading “Coleslaw gets a lively makeover with giardiniera and bacon” →

What we’ve been doing instead of cooking

THESE ARE VICTORIAN DOOR BACK PLATES. Until very recently, they were buried under 120+ years of paint, so thickly coated that their exquisite patterns were completely obscured. Not any more. We got them off the doors, and Marion went at them with dangerous chemicals, brass brushes, rags and fierce determination. Continue reading “What we’ve been doing instead of cooking” →