Simple to make, not too sinful: Mixed Berries Olive Oil Cake

Mixed fresh berries and olive oil keep this cake deliciously light—for weekend guests or a treat for yourself. Recipe below.

Mixed Berries Olive Oil Cake

Our Thanksgiving desserts, as ever, ranged from the delicious reliables (pumpkin pie!) to the wild and crazy throwbacks (tiny chocolate bottles filled with liqueur!) to the outrageous (chocolate tres leches cake!). But when the guests had gone, and the last loads of bedsheets and dishes were stacked and put away, and the idiot cats had emerged from their hiding places blinking into the light, I found myself wanting something easy, something simple and sweet—and something I could knock together in a few minutes, without having to go to the store or particularly think. Continue reading “Simple to make, not too sinful: Mixed Berries Olive Oil Cake”

Breakfast for dinner: Breakfast Pasta with Bacon and Kale

Bacon, kale and a freshly beaten egg give this weeknight-quick pasta a satisfyingly breakfasty flavor. Recipe below.

Breakfast Pasta with Bacon and Kale

Our younger daughter just moved to a new city and started a rewarding, but demanding, job. To her credit, she is still managing to cook at home more often than not. Sunday evenings will often find her cooking a batch of something that will serve as at least a few lunches. For dinners, she frequently improvises something like this quick pasta. Continue reading “Breakfast for dinner: Breakfast Pasta with Bacon and Kale”

Fried Green Tomato Soup, inspired by Toledo

Green tomatoes make this creamy soup less tomato-y, more vegetal. Leeks, garlic, thyme and bacon add to its savoriness. Recipe below.

Fried Green Tomato Soup

We seem to have a natural affinity for the Rust Belt. Marion grew up in Detroit, me in St. Louis. And while our ultimate destination on our recent road trip was Washington, DC and the Virginias, stops in Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Toledo moved us every bit as much. Continue reading “Fried Green Tomato Soup, inspired by Toledo”

The Anniversary Edition: 11 Years, 11 Recipes

Endive Salad with Blue Cheese and Walnuts

Eleven years ago this month, we started Blue Kitchen. We really had no idea exactly what we were doing or any clue we’d still be publishing it now. But our love of food—eating it, making it, thinking, talking and writing about it—has kept us going. Today, we launch into year 12 with a look back at the first 11 years, one recipe per. Continue reading “The Anniversary Edition: 11 Years, 11 Recipes”

Sipping autumn: Apple Cider Old Fashioned

A seasonal spin on the classic old fashioned, made with bourbon, apple cider, maple syrup and rosemary. Recipe below.

Apple Cider Old Fashioned

Our recent road trip had a definite autumnal feel, everywhere we traveled. Crisp, chilly mornings followed by warm, sunny afternoons with deep blue fall skies. Followed later by rainy, misty gray weather the last two days on the road. Continue reading “Sipping autumn: Apple Cider Old Fashioned”