Green Garlic Meatballs
One of my favorite spring garden treats is young, tender green garlic. I always pull up some of it to enjoy – I add it to rubs, sauces, salads and more. Green garlic has a more mild taste than mature garlic and can be used …
My journey of cooking, gardening, preserving and more
pasta
Pasta with Shrimp, Fresh Tomatoes and Basil
Hallelujah, spring is upon us! Even though it’s hardly been a brutal winter here in Northern Illinois, I’m still excited for longer and warmer days. This weekend was a much-needed stay at home treat for me, as there’ve been many personal issues that have had me …
Homemade Gnocchi
I have a lot of fun making homemade pasta. It may not always look perfect but it’s always more delicious than the boxed, refrigerated or frozen stuff. That’s not to say I don’t ever cook with dried or refrigerated pasta, but it’s fun to play …
Orecchiette with Pancetta and Asparagus
Oh, pasta how I love thee. When I followed a vegetarian diet for a few years, I really learned how to have fun with pasta and man, I ate a lot of it. These days, I’m back to eating meat but my love for the …
Drunken Round Steak
In case you haven’t noticed, I’m on a real comfort food kick lately and this weekend was no exception. We’re getting bombarded with snow right now, so what better way to spend time inside than cooking up a warm and comforting dish of round steak and …
Homemade Tomato Sauce with Fresh Tomatoes
Let’s talk about homemade tomato sauce. Somehow, in this world of amplified food awareness, it’s become this complicated, convoluted dish and it really doesn’t have to be. I like to make this sauce in the fall when I have an abundance of tomatoes from my garden. Actually, …
Oven Roasted Cherry Tomatoes with Fresh Herbs
It was not a stellar year for my tomato plants this season. Though I harvested quite a few, it was certainly not a typical year. Cool nights, flooding rains and cooler-than-average daytime temps do not make for happy, bountiful tomato plants. The exception to all …