Everyone love a good dip, especially when it's accompanied by a good cracker. For our "Inaugural Ball," we made an assortment of dips - hummus, sundried tomato, black bean, and roasted red pepper.

This is a great dish that is perfect for cold weather. Country ham provides a ton of flavor and the lentils help this dish stick to your ribs. Country ham is similar to prosciutto; it is a ham that is salted, then washed and hung to age. It may not be as delicate or nuanced [...]

One of our favorite after work snacks is hummus and crackers. (I’m partial to Wheat Thins.) Or, whip some some homemade pita bread, for a true treat! After eating store bought hummus for years, it amazing how different and tastier homemade hummus is. One downside to homemade hummus, however, is that it doesn’t last as [...]

I will be the first to admit that pickling radishes sounds a little weird. Zucchini is one thing, it at least looks like a cucumber. Radishes are a whole different story though; they’re small, weird and funky. I am game to try any dish once though, and luckily I had a small bag of radishes [...]

I am not sure if it is a good thing to see pickling get a big spread in the main stream media. This story in the LA Times does a great job of the basics behind pickling. I am all for bringing pickling to the masses by making it accessible. I get a little nervous [...]

I picked up some Swiss chard at the farmers’ market last week without any real good idea of what to do with it. I guess I’m attracted to colorful, peculiar vegetables that I’ve never tried. Sometimes this is a good thing, other times it leads to disaster. Luckily for the chard, I found a great, [...]

Carolyn is a big fan of Devon and Blakely, a lunch spot in Washington, DC that serves lots of different soups and salads. One of her favorite side salads is Channa – chickpeas baked with olive oil, curry, cilantro and caramelized onions. So, me being the good person I am, set out to try and recreate [...]

I grew up in Western Massachusetts where spring is synonymous with asparagus. Hadley, MA at one time claimed to be the “Asparagus Capital of the World.” A virus decimated the crop, however,  in the 1970s and a lot of farms switched crops or sold their land. It made a bit of a come back though, [...]

Fava beans are a pain in the ass. Fresh favas are over-priced and not worth the trouble. I only got them because I thought they would make me cool. There, I said it. Wait, aren’t they trendy? How could trendy things be over-rated? Well because after you spend $2.50 for a pound of fresh beans and [...]

Ramps are a trendy seasonal delight. They are a miniature version of a leek and taste like the cross between garlic and an onion. What makes them unique (and therefore trendy) is they can not be cultivated and instead have to be found in the wild. Unlike leeks, the green part is tender and can [...]

Our local Spanish restaurant, Jaleo, has a great octopus tapa. It is octopus with olive oil and smoked paprika. I have managed to create a version of it that might not be quite as good, but is still darn tasty. My version is shockingly easy (and cheap!). The secret to my version is that it [...]

When I came across this recipe on CookThink, I thought it looked a little weird. Miso, egg and lemon don’t really seem like a natural combo. I had everything needed lying around, however, so I thought I would give it a try–and since I am posting here, it clearly was tasty. Miso and lemon [...]

This is the recipe that confirmed for me that Brussels sprouts are a tasty treat that have gotten a bad reputation. When I tried braising them they turned out good, roasting makes them great! Not only is this a tasty recipe, but it couldn’t be simpler. Roasted Brussels sprouts are completely different from soggy boiled [...]

It is cold outside, you have 1 pounds of carrots and parsnip, what do you do? Why, you steam them and then toss them in butter, of course! This is one of those basic master recipes that works with just about anything, but works particularly well with root vegetables like carrots and parsnips. I was lucky [...]

I am not going to be one of those food bloggers who sings the praises of some less fashionable vegetable just to be seem cool and winning. Truth is, Brussels sprout aren’t as naturally tasty as a lot of the other vegetables out there. Give me a tomato, carrot or green bean over a sprout [...]

Making Oven Fries is a quick and easy way to cook up tasty root veggies. I have tried this basic recipe with carrots, potatoes and sweet potatoes – with great results every time! The cook times with very based upon the veggie, and the size of the cut, but the basics are the same. The [...]

There are two kinds of pickles in this world: pickles that get most of their flavor from the seasonings and pickles that get there flavoring from fermenting. Most of the pickles out there get their flavor from the seasonings. The pickles are either refrigerated or canned right away in order to prevent bacteria from growing. [...]

Last weekend we couldn’t help but pick-up a carton of these adorable baby squash. They were tiny, about the size of a finger. To cook them, I cut off the stem and then halved them. We heated up a pan over medium heat with olive oil and then cooked them, cut side down, until they [...]

So truth be told, heirloom tomatoes would probably be wasted on a salsa, and not worth the extra cost of a regular plum tomato. Of course this is only true if you don’t live next door to a farmers market where they sell a 3 pound bag of slightly bruise tomatoes for $2. If you [...]

Nothing taste more like summer that fresh tomatoes. We picked up a couple huge, not so pretty, but pretty tasty, heirloom tomatoes at the farmer’s market. These tomatoes are so good that it only takes a little salt and oil to make them shine. I add some balsamic and chives just for a little extra [...]

Last summer Carolyn and I grew a bumper crop of cherry tomatoes off of our balcony. Unfortunately this year we were not able to plant any because our new condo (yea!) does not have any growing space (boo!). Anyhow I was reminded of this great crop of tomatoes while I was combing through my photo [...]

Cold grain salads are a perfect side dish in the summer. They are light and refreshing. Quinoa is a grain grown in the Andes and is a staple there. It is packed with good stuff! You can add it plain, but it taste great dressed up in this salad. It would be perfect side for [...]

You know summer is just around the corner when the quality of tomatoes picks up. We have been getting and eating lots of tomatoes from the farmers market that is right around the corner from us. We have done some complicated things with them… but if you have good tomatoes, you just can’t beat a [...]

A lot of risottos end up being being heavy and better suited for winter or the fall, but the lemon and parsley make this one perfect for spring. Carolyn had clipped this out of Real Simple and been wanting to make it for a while. It came out great, and tasted even better the next [...]

Sauteed frozen green beans has become our favorite dish. Frozen green beans you might ask, can they be any good? Well the truth is frozen vegetables are often just as flavorful, if not more, than “fresh” vegetables. Frozen vegetables are a quick, cheap and tasty way to get vegetables on your table.

Each time the summer rolls around and BBQing starts I make my favorite side dish, Spicy Green Beans. The dish balances the sweetness of the beans with a smoky, spicy sauce. It is best made with fresh green beans, they are nice and crisp, but frozen green beans can be used too. Frozen might [...]

This is a great recipe for baby zucchini, which starts appearing at the very beginning of summer. It is a great way to highlight the flavor of the zucchini. The recipe is very simple, and not really specific to zucchini. Basically you cook it with butter, salt and olive oil. It is done over a medium [...]