I think that Orzo has to be one of the most fun pastas ever invented.  It looks like big grains of rice,and nothing gets lost in it.  It can be frustrating, to me anyway, to create a pasta dish and have the components on the bottom of the pan when the pasta has all been served.  Orzo allows the other ingredients to cuddle right in.  Got to love that!
Spring is here.  I got fresh asparagus for 99 cents a pound and nothing says spring more than that.  When I bought it I knew that Pasta Primavera was not far behind.

In …read more

Soup is the best food ever.  Really. Think about it.
It is versatile, generally inexpensive, and is there a better way to get rid of the leftovers in the fridge? I think not.  You can toss everything into a slow cooker or cook it in a stock pot on top of the stove and the results will be the same.  Hot steamy goodness that makes the house smell like home.

 
I love alfredo anything! Cheese is probably one of the best things known in the world.  I wanted to do something a little different for this week’s  Presto Pasta Night.  By the way, just to let you know…I get to host Pasta Presto in December..so stay tuned! If you want to join in on the weekly fun check out Presto Pasta .

 
Fresh tomatoes are the best. Maybe you have noticed over the last few days that I love ripe summer tomatoes. No, really?
Caprese salad is so easy. Slice tomatoes and a ball of fresh mozzarella and alternate them on the plate. I like to sprinkle with a little fresh basil, a few greek olives, and a drizzle of olive oil.
When I want it to be really awesome I add cilantro pecan pesto. If you haven’t made your own pesto, you should. It is easy, inexpensive, and there is nothing like it.

One of my favorite cuisines is Thai. I love the spicy-sweet tropical combinations that so many of those recipes have to offer. The versatility of the flavors allows you to substitute as you want and/or need to. To me, this is the mark of a truly perfect cuisine.

This is my entry for the Presto Pasta Night Round-up. Head over there and check out the rest of the pasta dishes. They are always amazing.
I discovered whole foods (not Whole Foods, that came later) sometime in the very early 1980s. Yep. Before it was cool. We were vegan for several years and then vegetarian for several years after that.
We still eat a diet that is not average for Americans. It is very vegetable based with more meat in winter than in summer. We try to eat locally and about 90% of what we eat is either …read more

This is my entry for Ruth’s Presto Pasta night!Hey I am getting good, two weeks in a row.
This was inspired by the fact that I had an eggplant in the fridge that was threatening to grow fuzz, a few leftover mushrooms, and a can of artichoke hearts. Not a very poetic beginning but wait until you try the end result! This lasagne is buttery-creamy and very rich. At the same time it is light because of the lack of meat. You can adjust the cheese however you want but I used a lot. I …read more

 
This is my entry this week in Ruth’s Pasta Presto night.   It goes up every friday and if you want some great pasta ideas THAT is the place to get them!
Over on Kettle and Cup I had gotten started talking about the tea room Marc and I had for awhile.  Some good memories, some bad….
Anyway, one of the favorite items on the menu was this pasta salad.  We used it as a side and often people chose it over our fresh cut french fries or homemade onion rings.  And my onion rings are ROCKIN’.  Seriously. We used to go …read more

If you are looking for a fabulous main course, Italian dish that is easy to make, and freezes great try this Torta Rustica. There are so many ways to make it that the recipe is almost needless.
Add whatever cheese-vegetable-meat combo you want,( this one was vegetarian) and bake in your pizza crust until done. Serve warm, room temp, or cold. Store it well covered for up to two days in the fridge, or seal and freeze.
I love this with black olive bread, a leafy, mixed greens salad, some black olives, and if you want, maybe …read more

I am getting to Baking Delights late today because I have been blog-surfing. I know, I usually do most of that on Saturday. My schedule has been so crazy since December, what with the holidays, my daughter’s family moving in, Marc losing his job, Marc’s surgery… and dealing with the stresses of those things, I have just not been doing much more than cooking and writing. I have missed checking in on my blogging friends, and meeting new ones. By the way, I thought that having my own Victorian Calling Card would be …read more