Tag: 30-minute meal

A few weeks ago, as one of my officemates, who shall remain nameless, glanced at my column, he remarked, “You’re really on a pasta kick right now, aren’t you?” “Yeah,” I told him. “I’m always on a pasta kick.” I mean, it’s kind of a silly question. Pasta is amazing. So, despite the judgement from …

Continue reading “‘Tuscan’ play at this shrimp pasta game”

I am always amazed at how many different kinds of pumpkins and gourds you can find this time of year. In my mind, a lot of the stranger ones are merely for decoration, but after some recent research, I discovered that many of them are actually supposed to be pretty tasty. It was that research …

Continue reading “This pasta will give ’em ‘pumpkin’ to talk about”

While watching random cooking shows over the years, I picked up the advice from several chefs that if you’re cooking with wine, you should choose a bottle you would actually want to drink, or it isn’t worth using in your recipe. I have never heard the same advice for beer. I have used some of …

Continue reading “Everyone will polish off their plates with this sheet pan meal”

I recently watched a video that explained why there are so many different shapes of pasta out there. I always assumed it probably had a practical purpose and it wasn’t just because of ancient pasta makers’ boredom and creativity. And it does. If you’re wondering, it all comes down to the sauce. Have a thinner …

Continue reading “Cajun pasta shapes up to be an excellent, quick dinner”

One of the downsides of spending as much time on food blogs and looking through recipe books as I do is I often discover that the photos are not a good representation of every recipe. That was definitely true with this week’s recipe. This was one Joey shared with me after finding it on social …

Continue reading “There’s barely a shred of evidence of veggies in this dish”

Just when I think I have explored every part of the produce section, I find something new to try. This time, it was bok choy. Bok choy, according to the Food Literacy Center website, is considered the oldest green in China, harkening back to the fifth century. It is sometimes referred to as “Chinese cabbage,” …

Continue reading “Easy potsticker soup will have you shouting for ‘choy’”

As soon as the weather forecast called for snow this past week, I immediately began reviewing soup recipes I saved over the past year. It was time. Joey and I prepared our “get ready to be snowed in” list for the grocery store, and I was thoroughly ready to make some awesome, hearty meals while …

Continue reading “There’s ‘snow’ excuse for waiting to try this great soup”

In an interview with the Food Network, Chinese food expert Nadia Liu Spellman explained hoisin sauce, a condiment that is new to my refrigerator as of this week. “I would call it the ketchup of Chinese cuisine, because it’s used as an ingredient but also as a finishing sauce and condiment,” Liu Spellman said in …

Continue reading “‘Hoi’ can’t recommend these Mongolian noodles enough”

Some wonderful friends of ours hosted Joey and me this past weekend while we were on a trip to speak to some college students. We were treated to a great time, fabulous food and amazing company, getting to break bread with a lot of their friends while we were there. Of course, we had to …

Continue reading “This flavorful vegetable pasta doesn’t ‘shrimp’ on flavor”

I was listening to a podcast this week about a scammer who managed to get millions of dollars out of his marks by pretending to be a Saudi Arabian prince. In one case, he was found out because he ordered a dish with pancetta in it at a restaurant, and since his dining companion knew …

Continue reading “Chop, chop! It’s time for a fabulous pork dinner”