Basilgirl

I don't recall if there's a specific reason for peeling the chickpeas - I guess to make the soup smoother? Anyway, it is a very simple and delicious soup - the only ingredients are chickpeas, leeks, water, a bouillon cube, pepper I think - and parmesan. Half gets pureed and put back in, so it also has a nice texture.

Marcella Hazan's Simplest Chickpea and Leek Soup from Marcella Cucina. Not really that simple, since she tells you to peel each chickpea - next time I think I'll skip that step (more fiber).

It is my understanding that salted butter may be a little "off" and that the salt helps mask any off flavors and that unsalted is more "pure." Also, unsalted butter makes it easier for you to control the salt level of the dish or cookie or whatever.

Crock potted "Mexican" shredded beef (chipotles, salsa, garlic, beef broth, green chiles, olives & raisins) in yummy Trader Joe's "homestyle" flour tortillas with sour cream, green onions, jalapenos, jalapeno-cheddar-jack.

Well, you need at least a pound of butter - melt it and add your celery and onions and herbs and let them cook until they're all soft and buttery. Also, Jimmy Dean sausage with sage is great in stuffing/dressing.

Chicken in the Set It and Forget It, with Stubbs' Rosemary & Ginger rub. Sardinian Old Bread Casserole from Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen book - what a great way to use up stale bread.

I've got La Cucina di Lidia, sharing recipes from wher she grew up in Istria. Lots of very different recipes in there. She's definitely in my Pantheon, that's for sure. ← I have all three of her books and am anxiously awaiting her next one, due out in November I think. My favorite is Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, which while not authentically Italian has some fantastic recipes. Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking is...essential.

Lidia's Cappelini Capricciosi, because it is quick and easy & I was in a hurry plus it's GOOD. Bacon, onions, I used fresh hot peppers instead of pepperoncini, crushed tomatoes, Pecorino on Barilla's linguini fini.

Trader Joe's lentil soup (good stuff) doctored up with slow sauteed onions, garlic, a little jalapeno, some white wine & balsamic. A handful of alphabet pasta near the end. Genoa salami & provolone paninis made in the sandwich maker. Then at 10:30 or so, my boyfriend made brownies from a mix.

Seth: Made the pot roast "crudo" on Sunday. AWESOME. And easy. Try it!

Outrageously good & simple pot roast from Marcella's new book, "Marcella Says" - Dijon, garlic, red wine vinegar, anchovies and a little water, braised for 3 or so hours. Garlic mashed potatoes with scallions sauteed in butter & Pecorino, fennel braised in chicken stock. Yum.

Roasted a big-ass (for me) turkey on Monday. Made outrageous stock from it. Last night, turkey soup with homemade stuffing "matzoh balls." (OK, I got the idea from one of the first Rachael Ray shows I ever saw.) The stuffing recipe from the old Betty Crocker "Red Book" called for a cup of butter, but I only used one stick. It was still awfully buttery, in a good way. Tonight - turkey sandwiches with bacon and blue cheese. Tomorrow, turkey-white bean chili.

Yeah, I think Marcella Cucina was supposed to be her last book...is Marcella the Cher of the cooking world?

Supposedly, sadly, Marcella Hazan's last book. I just got my copy yesterday and haven't had time to sit down and read it cover to cover yet. Anybody out there made anything from it yet? I glanced at a butternut squash & parmesan thing that looked really good.

I have the book; saw the first episode; the Web site is amazing. I also read The Apprentice and love his mom's cheese souffle recipe that's in there.

At what temperature and for how long do you roast sausages? I've been wanting to try this.

Another amazing meal at China Star in Fairfax last night. Finally tried the Crystal Shrimp - delicious lightly cooked shrimp in a light ginger and scallion sauce. Also tried the Salt & Pepper Eggplant - Oh. My. God. I told my sister it tasted like meat and sure enough there was some ground up pork encased with the eggplant in a crispy fried shell with a yummy mix of cilantro, hot peppers, ginger & garlic sprinkled on top. My new favorite thing at China Star. My mom had their delicious hot & sour soup and ordered the house special pan fried noodles with shrimp, chicken, beef, pork & very fresh veggies. She asked for no shrimp (allergic) and the waitress came back and said would she mind substituting lobster for the shrimp? Duh. Get to China Star and get that eggplant!

White bean chili with lots of green chiles and roasted turkey chunks; cornbread with 4-cheese Mexican blend and jalapeno slices layered in the middle before baking. Boyfriend said it was "world class" and "award winning." He is easy to please.

Well, it's been awhile but I seem to remember great barbeque and sweet potato fries. A nice beer selection too. My sister liked the Whiskers on Kittens soup

Yes, I plan ahead for leftovers. There's only two of us so a pork loin cooked on a Sunday is made with leftovers in mind...I'm not sure where I got the frittata idea - probably on Food TV or something. I also like to make a lot of roasted vegetables so I'll have them left over for pizza, frittatas, etc. Like most people I like to make stuff on the weekends that we will use up during the upcoming week. Sometimes I'll make an extra steak so we can have steak sandwiches or steak and eggs. I also cook enormous amounts of pasta at once. And my Crockpot has become a favorite to make cheap chuck roasts into "Italian Beef" (since you're in Chicago I had to use quotes on that one) for sandwiches and a Mexican type thing for tacos or burritos. Hmmm. Looks like we eat a lot of sandwiches, doesn't it? I don't usually get home from work until 7:00 and the last thing I feel like doing is cooking something from scratch. I love to cook and consider it my hobby but there are some nights when...well, you know. When I was little my mom always got excited when we got to start a "new meat."

I look at leftovers as a great excuse to make frittatas. The other night I had some yummy baked tomatoes & onions and some roasted potatoes left over from the night before, so I just threw them in an ovenproof skillet, beat up some eggs, poured over and cooked a little then threw it in the oven. It was delicious. The leftover pork loin from that same night became an awesome giant pork sandwich the next night. Leftovers - good leftovers, that is, are your best friend for quick weeknight cooking.

Tyler Florence's pan roasted chicken with prosciutto, rosemary and lemon (from "How to Boil Water" on Food Network). I added provolone on top which then disappeared when I dumped in Barilla ricotta/asparagus tortelloni and some of the pasta water. Oh well. If you haven't tried the Barilla tortellonis you are really missing out. They are light as a feather.

I'm going to try these this weekend. I'm assuming that the salt is kosher salt??

Me Me Me!!! Time to hit the Farmers Market for some Kirbys. These are the easiest pickle in the world to make and everyone loves them.

A little stock in the sauce is also a good thing...