Indeed, Ben. Indeed. Sometimes, when he is tucking into an outrageously generous helping of something, or going for fourths, I give Ben the raised eyebrows. He always shrugs his shoulders and answers, “What? I gotta eat!” This week’s porterhouse steak was the culmination of Ben’s dreams, and the result of my seeing this new cooking…
Category: Chef Ben Cooks!
Bones or No Bones
All of you social media-savvy readers will know that Noodle the pug is a Tik Tok sensation. When his owner holds him up in a standing position and lets go, sometimes he just flops over, as if he has no bones. That’s a no bones day. Sometimes, he stays standing. That’s a bones day. A…
ABC Pasta
A is for artichoke, B is for bacon, C is for cannellini beans. Ben and I were inspired by something we saw on a cooking show, but honestly, they had us at bacon. We kind of stopped listening after that. What we can tell you is that this dish worked out. It fills your belly…
The Zen of Ben (and Uptown Funk Sauce!)
At our house, we’ve been going a mile a minute. It seems that events and obligations came roaring back to life after lying dormant for over a year, and I’m not keeping up. My pandemic school day is a STRUGGLE, like walking under water all the time. Everything is just so much harder than it…
“Recorded Live at an Italian Party: Chao Chao”
This week we returned to an old favorite – chicken parm. The new twist was that we broke out the record player to enjoy “Recorded Live at an Italian Party: Chao Chao,” while cooking up a storm. In all fairness, not everyone was equally thrilled with the music selection. For some reason, “Uptown Funk” was…
Grandma’s Chicken and Dumplings
If you found last week’s chicken and dumplings bait and switch disappointing, we hope that this week’s recipe makes up for it. With pointers from my mom that I added to the margins of my Betty Crocker Cookbook in 1987, Ben and I recreated one of my favorite comfort foods from childhood. Chicken and Dumplings…
(Not Your Mama’s) Chicken and Dumplings
Calm down, all you central Pennsylvania friends. We are not providing a recipe for the “Pennsylvania Dutch” floating pie crust square version of chicken and dumplings that is very popular in this region. We went a different direction and made Asian chicken fingers, fried rice, pear cucumber salad, and Chinese dumplings we pulled from the…
Going to the Hukilau
In lieu (luau?) of a vacation of any kind for the past two years, Ben and I planned a Hawaiian day at home. None of us have ever been to Hawaii, but we imagine a tropical pig-centric paradise. If you have been there, and you were not feted with a pig roasting on a spit…
Peter Piper
True, we neither picked nor pickled them, but a peck of peppers presents a particularly puzzling planning predicament! This week, Ben said he wanted Mexican food, which he asks for nearly every week (after he pitches steak and gets rejected). Can’t blame him. Mexican food is awesome. I knew it was the time of year…
Home is Where the Pierogies are (and “You gotta see this.”)
Disclaimer: We are not Polish, and I had never heard of pierogies before moving to Pennsylvania. This week, we needed something fast, nutritious, and satisfying for supper, so we turned to this recipe: https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/food-network-kitchen/20-minute-crispy-pierogies-with-broccoli-and-sausage-3363184 This pierogie sausage broccoli dish comes together in no time, and (bonus) it was really tasty. Phil is given to making…