When we lived in Bloomington, Indiana in the early 90s, there was an Ethiopian restaurant called Ashenda, that offered me my first taste of Ethiopian food. I was hooked from my very first bite, and I’ve been trying to recreate the experience any way I can since then. From the smell of simmering wat (meat…
Category: Life With Ben
World Food Tour with Chef Ben – First Stop, Vietnam!
Need a cure for the cooped up blues? Follow Chef Ben this week as he cooks and eats his way through five countries. Phil and I love ethnic food, and we exposed the kids to it from an early age. One of my gimmicks when the kids were little was to make them little passports,…
Celebrity Chef Revealed…
Chef Jay Ducote! Ben: “I think it’s clearing up!” The eternal optimist, he begins every day this way, declaring the virus to be over. We tell him it’s not, and he replies with, “Almost over. Soon.” In keeping with Ben’s anticipation of this whole mess clearing up, we have decided to set our sights on…
Weekend Treat from Bullfrog Brewery
Friday is always “weekend treat” day, and we are trying to keep that tradition alive during this strange time. We got carry out from the Bullfrog Brewery, and we’re happy to say that wings, burgers and fries, combined with patio dining on a lovely spring day, made for a great evening. After supper, we went…
The Peanut Butter Falcon Edition
In honor of the movie, The Peanut Butter Falcon, we had a peanut butter themed dinner. We had been wanting to see the movie since it came out, but never seemed to have the time. Thanks to a tip from Melissa, and the universe clearing our calendars, we finally watched it. What a great movie!…
Day 4 – Ben: “Are you going to take a shower, or are you just going to talk about it?”
Today, our focus was tying up loose food ends. I know how lucky we are to have plenty of food, and I want to make sure we are managing our inventory properly before we go out for fresh supplies. Right out of college, I went to teach as a volunteer on the Hopi Reservation in…
Day 3 – Keeping the Glass Half Full
This morning, as I was having my coffee, Ben poured himself some orange juice and said, “I have an idea! Let’s do normal!” Well, while I can’t promise that, I can engineer chicken parm night, and that was all Ben needed to declare, “Chicken parm? I’m a lucky guy!!!!!” My school has not yet gone…
Day 2 – Happy St. Patrick’s Day!
We had another good day of bike riding, basketball, reading (me) and favorite movies (Ben). In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this Ben’s Day Wednesday dinner is dedicated to the humble potato. If you are looking for a simple recipe that is not only nutritious, but warms your soul, look no further. Potato Soup 5…
Day 1 in Semi-Solitary Confinement — You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down
I had two required quick, solo trips outside the house this morning while Sophia was still home. The rest of the day Ben and I had a great time. We have talked about the virus but he can’t really take it in. No problem. That’s my job. His job is to keep being Ben. Done. The…
Pandemic Edition
In a family of educators, we are feeling the stress of the current Coronavirus threat. We are coping the best way we know how, which means we are cooking up a storm! A few years ago, when our kitchen was being redone, we had to make do the best we could. I joked that I…