Here you’ll find everything I’m preparing in my kitchen - from veggies, to leftovers and pasta. I eat simply, and I cook for one, but love cooking for others. And no matter what, I always pause to plate pretty.
Most of my meals are often times the result of freestyle recipe free ingredient riffing and a trip to the vegetable market. Produce is my passion, and I hope that you won’t simply come here for a recipe - but that you’ll read, cook and create a new story of your own.
I believe there’s power in a stocked pantry and freezer. From traditional Italian dishes to alternative sweets, vegan and vegetarian swaps - there’s something for everyone.
Let this serve as inspiration and let’s eat!
The last time I attempted to write was on May 3rd. On May 3rd I started to log all of my fire escape meals and then stopped, it was sudden. The onset likely spurred from an online dating burn, I can tend to get lost in my thoughts and in my mind. I’ll cook, create and eat - there’s always eating -
Read MoreDear Fettuccine with Mushroom Ragout, Every time I pick up my fork your long twirls make my heart skip a beat. Covered in thick heaps of mushrooms, flecked with various shades of brown, I can only imagine that if you were a woman - you’d be that long legged, wild, brunette
Read MoreAre you home in the quarantine and hankering for pasta? Don’t want to socially distance from carbs? I don’t, and I’ve been watching a lot of old Nigella Bites episodes on YouTube - a suggestion from my friend Channon who introduced me to the domestic goddess many moons ago.
Read MoreBefore the quarantine and an NYC food frenzy went down my pantry was lined with beans, while the bottom shelf of my storage closet had a large bowl filled with sweet potatoes for roasting. These are and always will be two of my main cooking staples. Beans were always a staple in our home,
Read MoreLately I’m dropping beans into bowls like they’re hot …
1) ’Cause they’re easy to cook (hello, can opener!) and prepare well ahead of time.
2) They’re inexpensive, while also being filling. See more on #3
3) Finally, they add a meatless, high fiber protein pop to mealtime.
If you know my cooking and weight loss story, you know I love lentils. Lentil soup was the first meal I prepared in the summer of 2001 as I was forced to cook for myself while I was living on a small working farm in Ashford, CT. Recalling meals of my childhood, I remade my grandmas lentils until I got the pot of soup just right. Packed with fiber and protein they’re one of my favorite meal bases
Read MoreWeeknights leave little room for making any sort of gourmet dinner, you and I both know that. But dinner also doesn’t have to be gourmet or recipe based. With work, busy schedules, the compounded effects of technology and the need to be “always on,” it’s getting harder and harder to find a work life balance … let alone get in the kitchen.
Read MoreInspired by an epic Friday night meal of branzino, eggplant, zucchini, salad and wine I planned to relive it at home. A kingdom for grilled branzino every day, deboning and picking pins like a professional - but it gets costly … sometimes a lady has to get her wild flounder on because the price is right at the fish market.
Read MoreMaking salsa is simple. It requires little prep, minimal tools and ingredients that are easy to come by in your grocery store. A certified crowd pleaser, great for vegetarians, vegans and even your meaty buddies (scoop this fruit salsa on a burger, shrimp or salmon) and delight everyone around your table.
Read MoreWhile everyone else is eating warm potato and macaroni salad (gulp) this July 4th, perhaps you can choose to make a side that can double as a salad or a salsa. With interchangeable ways to use these two salsa/sides, you’re guaranteed to please guests and yourself with nutrition, hydration and leftovers.
Read MoreAs a champion for grocery shopping, real food, cooking and caring for my home (mind, body, the actual space I live in) - when the weather gets beautiful and the weekend rolls around … The last thing I want to do is roll my food suitcase from store to store. Sure, I love Astoria, long walks, exploring, and saying hi to my local produce people … but …
Read MoreCooking can seem daunting some days, even to someone who loves it. Trust me. After a day of substitute teaching, then coming home to write, coach, teach health workshops and build a business I often come home hungry and semi-exhausted from the day.
Read MoreLately, I feel like it’s a miracle I’m even cooking. My spirits have been struggling, my energy low, although I’m working to wear smiles on the outside. After a day of substitute teaching, I sometimes want to close my eyes and nap, but most days I confront the light, my kitchen and make peace with myself.
Read MoreIn a celebration of food and friendship, which if you ask me is the me is the main reason to revel in every day we’re blessed to be on this earth, last night I made soup for dinner. Not just any soup, but a soup that harkens the fondest of childhood memories alongside my mother and father in an old world Brooklyn that no longer exists.
Read MoreToday I had my favorite kind of day; a day spent cooking with a kind hearted, hard working and beautifully spirited client I can call my friend. My clients aren’t people I work for, they’re people I consider friends and those I teach and learn from through shared experiences. Julie and I spent 4 hours in the kitchen making soup, sauce,
Read MoreThere are few things I find as warming as a bowl of soup and as comforting as pasta. I love foods that make me feel satisfied, a lot of texture, hearty and that stick to my insides. I need to stay padded for winter, you see. Grains are up on my list of foods I try to fit in a few days a week into at least one meal. From buckwheat to quinoa, cous
Read MoreI’ve just now realized it’s Halloween weekend and I’m home on a Saturday night in a solo soup slurping contest with myself. I like to keep it really real.
3 reasons to stay in, stay safe and Saturday night soup when you’re 38:
Read MoreToday it was 65 degrees and gloomy all day in NYC. A slight chill was in the air, a slight chill only soup could solve. I’ve been on somewhat of a grind to find work, so I’m a little slow in body and mind these days, but still feel happy and pretty hopeful overall. It’s when I step into my kitchen to cook that the most hope fills me up.
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