Category Archives: pasta, rice, and grains

Cherry-vanilla oatmeal

Posted on April 17, 2013 by

A number of my friends have changed their eating habits lately. Some want to lose weight; others, with an eye on their family trees, are warding off potential genetic threats such as diabetes and heart disease. They’re all doing really … Continue reading →

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Rice pilaf with toasted soba noodles

Posted on March 1, 2013 by

There’s a pasta cooking technique that involves breaking thin noodles (usually spaghetti or linguine) in small pieces, frying them until golden in copious amounts of oil, then boiling them as usual. The result is tender pasta with lots of flavor … Continue reading →

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Pasta with kale and walnuts: lunch in 20 minutes

Posted on November 18, 2012 by

Sandwiches are perfectly fine. I have nothing against them, and do partake now and then. But give me a nice bowl of soup or pasta for lunch any day. After a few days of less-than-healthy eating (fast food, way too … Continue reading →

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Mac & cheese with a panko crust

Posted on September 5, 2012 by

Today’s post will be fast and dirty, because my brother-in-law Steve requested this recipe and I leave tomorrow morning for Portland, Oregon. We served this mac and cheese to Steve and his family a few days ago. I made a … Continue reading →

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Pasta with spicy peanut sauce

Posted on June 18, 2012 by

Our house does not have air conditioning. (Yes, Wisconsin does get hot —sometimes downright steamy — in the summer.) Most of the time this is manageable, since we are shaded by the many trees on our property, but keeping the … Continue reading →

Posted in main courses, pasta, rice, and grains, salads, sauces, sides | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Chickpea-olive pasta: dinner in 20 minutes

Posted on March 21, 2012 by

We’ve been enjoying the warm summer breezes for two weeks. This is worth mentioning because 1) we live in Wisconsin, and 2) this is March, when normally we’re still shoveling snow on a regular basis. My workload is heavy right … Continue reading →

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Scrambled egg pasta: looks aren’t everything

Posted on January 15, 2012 by

As you can tell from the photo, you don’t make this dish for its looks. It’s not pretty. (I served it alongside some sautéed spinach for color and nutrients. That, and we like spinach with just about everything.) Despite the … Continue reading →

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BLT risotto

Posted on November 22, 2011 by

I confess I was not riding the bacon bandwagon. It wasn’t that I disliked bacon; I just didn’t think it was a necessity of life. But my experience had been limited to preservative-laden, shrink-wrapped supermarket bacon. I hadn’t had locally … Continue reading →

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Classic chicken noodle soup

Posted on November 20, 2011 by

Our wonderful friend Joe came over recently, bearing goodwill and the largest organic chicken I’d ever seen. He roasted it in our oven with an onion, a pile of tiny red potatoes, and not nearly enough carrots. (Few things on … Continue reading →

Posted in meat, poultry,and fish, pasta, rice, and grains, soups | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Tom’s best-ever lasagna

Posted on September 11, 2011 by

I was in the Twin Cities this weekend, having a lovely visit with Tom’s twin brother, his wife and girls. On Saturday I drove into St. Paul for a picnic sponsored by the Minnesota Historical Society Press (one of my … Continue reading →

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