If it were up to Ben, we would frequently serve BBQ sauce as a main dish, with a side of ranch dressing. This week’s cooking adventure (like everything in life) was a compromise, but it did capitalize on our current condiment holdings. I wanted to try replicating a splendid chickpea dish we sampled at a…
Category: Chef Ben Cooks!
Clark Mast, Wide Open!!!
My mother grew up as the youngest of ten children in an Old Order Amish household. Though my maternal grandparents lived well into their nineties, I, being nearly the youngest of my zillion first cousins, and living a distance away, never developed a very close relationship with my grandparents, and mostly know them through my…
Pair and Ink
Wait. What? That makes no sense! If you don’t speak Benglish, you will need this quick tutorial. Hand washing before eating is a basic principle that we still have to monitor and enforce. Once, when Ben had been doing an artject (art project) at school, and I was making him scrub up before dinner, I…
Pollo Pot Pie – ¡Olé!
This week we came up with a Mexican version of chicken pot pie, and we may never go back to our standard chicken pot pie! Not only was it delicious, the meal came together in a snap, thanks to items from the freezer and a prepared rotisserie chicken. Aside from the seasoning, the twist in…
Ooh La La!!!
If you could be anywhere right now, other than on your couch in your stretchy pants, like us, where would you be? Well, Paris, right? Since you probably can’t actually get there now (pandemic) we offer you the next best thing: charcuterie salad and French onion soup. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll…
R2 Chili Chip – Going Old School
If you are from Rocky Ford, Colorado, you will know exactly what R2 Chili Chip is. If not, you’ll need to read on. When I say we’re going old school, I literally mean we are revisiting my favorite school lunch. If it was Thursday in the R2 district, R2 Chili Chip was likely on the…
Some Like It Hot!
Hoochy Mama! This week we made a very spicy noodle dish from Christopher Kimball that nearly blew our lids off! The 1/4 cup of chili garlic sauce was the culprit, but the flavors were great! We (or at least I) intend to make it again, but with the spice toned down. Ben hasn’t quite forgiven…
Naughty or Nice?
This week Ben and I made not one lasagna, not even two, but three lasagnas. Why? Who makes three lasagnas when the Christmas noose is beginning to tighten and time is at a premium? Well, I was really craving lasagna (the naughty meaty version we all know and love), but I wanted to see if…
No Sweat(ing)!
Recently, Ben picked up the phrase, “No Sweat!” But his version is, “No Sweating!” I’m not sure what makes it so amusing to take it from an affirmation that everything’s cool to the imperative, but it makes me giggle. We made Thai Shrimp Swoodles (Sweet Potato “Noodles”) this week. The recipe was super easy (No…
It’s Not Easy Being Green
Though it is probably hard to tell from the giant slabs of beef we sometimes post, we have been trying very hard to healthify our menus. This approach is met with a certain amount of skepticism from Ben, but he loves spicy greens ravioli, so this week’s plan was an easy sell. We have made…