Asparagus and Friends Part 1: Asparagus and Smoked Salmon

Asparagus and Friends Part 1: Asparagus and Smoked Salmon

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The past few weeks here in Seattle have been the glory days of asparagus. With little else in season yet (besides rhubarb), it is very difficult to pass up the tender, green asparagus spears appearing everywhere from the grocery store to the market to the produce bin. As the asparagus season winds down, or rather, everything else heats up, I thought I’d share some of the asparagus adventures we’ve had. Asparagus with Smoked Salmon Ravioli in a Rose Sauce Really,…

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Baked Pasta Part 2

Baked Pasta Part 2

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Maybe it’s the fact that its summer and we’re all craving tomatoes, or maybe it’s that biking 10 miles a day without collapsing requires some serious carbo-loading, or maybe its just the result of acquiring 2 new Italian cookbooks within a few weeks of one another, but as of late we seem to be spending an awful lot of time in pasta-territory. Be it drunken pasta, or old favorites, tonight was no exception. Having tried Jamie Oliver’s baked pasta, last…

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Sunday Night Salad: One Day Early

Sunday Night Salad: One Day Early

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There are certain food combinations that never occur to you until you begin cooking with the male of the species. Pasta with a side of potato salad is one of them. However, after a day of biking and a serious potato surplus, and a killer potato salad recipe, it seemed acceptable. I have never been a big potato salad person. Potatoes, unless they’re really nice fresh potatoes, have always tasted dull and starchy to me, and the idea of dousing…

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Wheels, more wheels, fenders…food therapy

Wheels, more wheels, fenders…food therapy

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Some ailments can only be treated by copious amounts of theraputic food. Used car shopping is one of them. So is putting fenders on bikes. We did both this weekend and exhausted, sore and exasperated, found ourselves in need of some major food therapy. For my money, there’s nothing more theraputic than tomato-based pasta sauces. Plop the whole lot in a baking dish with alternating layers of basil, freshly grated parmesean and gorgeous, salty fresh mozzarella and chuck it in…

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Bikes and Beer in Portland OR

Bikes and Beer in Portland OR

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We decided to take a break from cooking this weekend and instead go on an adventure in Portland, Oregon. Rather than driving everywhere, or dealing with Portland’s better-than-Seattle-but-still-far-from-optimal trolley system, we decided to explore the city by bike (which has the added advantage of working up quite an appetite). We rented our bikes first thing sunday morning, and rode off to begin our day at Doug Fir Lounge, one of Portland’s best brunches according to ChowHound. We were not disappointed….

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Excuses, Excuses

Excuses, Excuses

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This is why I haven’t been writing much lately: My bike of 15+ years finally bit it a couple weeks ago, and what I had hoped to be a *recovery week* after a conference and a visit in T.O. was instead a week spent madly chasing anything with wheels. As luck would have it, this was also the week that the weather finally turned nice–and *everyone* was looking for bikes. After some fairly intense Craigslist-ing, I finally found a bike…

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Sunday Night Salad: the one where I come clean about my sources

Sunday Night Salad: the one where I come clean about my sources

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I’m afraid I can’t take any credit for this one recipe-wise. This one came direct from my mother’s recipe files (even the addition of the radish). However, I will say that it makes a darn fine salad for 15 minutes work. I like to make it up right before bed and let it sit in the fridge overnight so the onion flavors soften and the vinegar makes the celery and broccoli a tad less crunchy. Anyways, without further ado: Broccoli…

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A box and a burrito

A box and a burrito

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First the box. I actually remembered to take a pic this week. We got lettuce, pears, oranges, lemons, apples, strawberries, turnips, fennel, rainbow chard, and broccoli. Here it is in all its glory–Have you ever seen fennel with that many greens on it? So far we haven’t done much exciting with it, besides mussels with the fennel (I’ll post the recipe in a later post) and broccoli salad with the broccoli. Rumour has it there is rhubarb in next weeks…

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Wine and Cheese

Wine and Cheese

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If we were still living in Montreal, there is no doubt in my mind that last Saturday would have found us at Dieu De Ciel (our favorite local pub, known for excellent beer and a killer cheese tray) at 3pm on the dot (when they opened). The weather was gorgeous, and we had been out running errands and grocery shopping all morning–it was just the sort of day that called for a pint and a few good cheeses for lunch….

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Sunday Night Salad: Double Feature

Sunday Night Salad: Double Feature

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As promised, last Sunday’s salad: Roasted Vegetable Couscous Salad with Harissa-style Dressing This one is a Delia Smith special, so it’s a little involved (lots of chopping), but believe me, it’s worth it, and is excellent as leftovers, so don’t be timid about quantities (I usually make about a metric ton, and then live on it for a week). Delia’s version involves sweating eggplants and blanching cherry tomatoes–I do no such thing. I just chop, roast and assemble. Servngs: Delia…

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