why do you cook?

(Inspired by this post at Ruhlman gone meme via Raccoon and Lobster) I cook because I love to feed people. I cook to control what does and does not go into my food. I cook because I like to eat delicious, healthy food, but I’m cheap. I cook because I love the alchemy of transforming […]

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invasion of the veggie-snatchers: february garden update

Isn’t it strange to have an actual garden update in February? Bizarre. But according to the current survey results, possibly from snow-bound readers, there is actual demand for garden posts. Vicarious? Maybe, but I will oblige. Yesterday I made a quick trip to the garden center. Normally I wouldn’t run errands on a Saturday since […]

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roasted squash salad, a CSA grand slam!

I know, I know, I promised to branch out and stop posting recipes from the same four food blogs. And honestly, the next few posts are (per your requests) “everyday” dinners that I have been eating, or magazine recipes that leaped off the page at me. But holy crap, this was too delicious not to […]

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homemade harissa

Have you ever had harissa? It’s a spicy condiment made from chilis ground into a paste. Like most condiments, there is a basic idea with a multitude of variations by region, brand, family, etc. I’ve seen harissa listed as an ingredient many times, but never had any on hand. Either I would skip the recipe, […]

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sicilian citrus cupcakes

When Angela originally planned her trip to San Diego, her roommate was planning to come along. Unfortunately, the timing didn’t work out quite right and she wasn’t able to join us, but she did offer to send along a Tupperware container so that Angela could bring home cake for her. I have no idea why […]

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would you like to take a survey?

Currently, I have a decent back log of photos and recipes and adventures to post! Amazing! But looking past that, I’m curious as to what is most interesting to you, my reader base. I know what’s interesting to new traffic (pretty photos), but I appreciate my core of regular readers, even the ones who aren’t […]

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second quarter vegetables

Despite his good sportsmanship in trying new vegetables (or trying disliked vegetables new ways), I was nervous when I mentioned to the Veggie Hating Husband that we had received our last share of CSA vegetables at the beginning of this month. I was nervous that he would say it was too many vegetables for us, […]

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classic genoise cake with orange curd filling and grand marnier buttercream

When my dear darling spouse got me Baking for Christmas, I was excited to get baking. Though I am fairly confident in my grasp of baking principles, I wanted to have a reference book that allowed me to really solidify and master the basics. The first recipe I made was coconut cream pie at my […]

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saturday pastoral at suzie’s farm

Friday morning, my friend, Angela, flew in to San Diego to spend the long weekend. We’ve known each other since junior high and have stayed close all these years. We had a busy weekend of seeing the sights, so this will be spread out over several posts to avoid having a million photos all at […]

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so easy a caveman could do it

My day needs to start with some fuel in the form of starch, protein, and coffee. My husband knows to stay out of my way until I have had breakfast, or at least my first cup of coffee. I have even witnessed him trying to sneak a bowl of cereal but fleeing the kitchen when […]

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