Creamy Polenta

Slice any tomatoes and onions you’d like to roast and preheat your oven to 320. Lay in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Spray or drizzle olive oil over the top of your veggies and add a sprinkle of salt. You’ll roast these about 45 minutes. I’ll admit to you all that I don’t…

Bottled Sunshine

Lemon curd goes well with lavender shortbread cookies and is a good way to use up a dozen lemons when life hands you a barrel full. Zest and juice about 12 small-medium lemons. You’re looking for 1/2 cup of lemon juice and I like to use however much zest accompanies that much juice. It should…

German Dumplings

It took me far too long to figure out how to spell fleisch knoephla. I’d only ever heard the words so I didn’t entirely know what to search for. For the dough: Mix together 2 cups of flour, 2 eggs, a pinch of kosher salt, and 1/4 cup of water. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for…

Salty Focaccia

In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together 1 3/4 cup warm water, 1 tablespoon of sugar, and 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast. Let sit approximately 15 minutes, or until frothy. Attach the dough hook, then mix in 5 cups of all-purpose flour, 2 teaspoons kosher salt and 1/2 cup olive oil. Knead approximately…

Easy Crepes

During my summer study abroad, I will confess to eating more than my fair share of Nutella crepes. It’s a delightful dessert, breakfast, or farmer’s market snack. There, they would serve them piping hot and ready to eat without any utensils. There are more complicated ways to make crepes, but you should probably go with…

Faux Pho Empanadas

I’d been toying with the idea of pho and empanadas for a while before finally getting around to finding the star anise and testing them out. I’d predicted correctly that they’d be delicious! For the dough: Mix together 2 1/4 cups flour, 2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1 stick cold unsalted butter cut into cubes, 1…

Farro Salad

Bring two cups of chicken stock to a boil, add one cup of rinsed farro. Reduce to simmer, cover. Cook 25 minutes until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat. Let cool. Once cool, add 1/4 cup feta, 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds, four diced green onions, 1/2 an English cucumber, diced, 4 pepperoncini, diced, 3 tablespoons…

Frenched Southern Biscuits

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, stir together 3 3/4 cups flour, 1/8 cup of herbes de provence, 1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper. Add 1/2 cup of butter, cubed, and mix with hands until pea sized crumbles form. In a…

Irish Stew

Pair with cream cheese gnocchi in lieu of mashed potatoes for a twist. In a heavy skillet cook 4 slices of diced bacon until crisp. Remove bacon to a stewpot, reserving the bacon fat. Do not put the stewpot over heat just yet. Season 2 1/2 pounds cubed boneless beef chuck with salt and pepper,…

Gooey Gnocchi

Put 2 unpeeled large Russet potatoes in a large pot. Fill the pot with enough water to cover the potatoes by at least two inches and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, partially cover the pot and simmer the potatoes until they are completely tender and easily pierced, about…