Recession Recipes

As much as I sometimes complain about living in Vegas, there are some definite perks for living here. Right now I’m really appreciating the blue sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-60s while the rest of the country and lots of places in the world are facing record breaking freezes. Have you seen this satellite [...]

I read the book Heat: An Amateur’s Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany, by Bill Buford, recently. Buford is a writer who began working in the kitchen of Mario Batali’s restaurant Babbo in New York City, and ended up staying for a couple of years while [...]

This recipe taunted us from the cover of Food & Wine magazine for a few months before we gave in and finally made it, and it satisfied our craving for a big juicy burger. The homemade Russian dressing was a nice touch and made it extra tasty. This recipe makes enough for 6 burgers at [...]

Last Friday, I spent the day waiting in doctors’ offices while Carlo got tested for an array of ailments, put on oxygen and an IV drip, and had a CAT scan of his abdomen. It was really scary, and even though we don’t definitively know what was wrong with him, Carlo is thankfully doing much [...]

Often times I crave Thai food, and I’ll either make Carlo head across town with me to our favourite Thai restaurant in Vegas, Lotus of Siam, or we will be lazy and order take out from Pin Kaow, which is no where as good as Lotus of Siam, but they deliver.
However this fast and easy [...]

I got this Honey Lime Salmon recipe from our good friends Denise and Mike. Eating this flavourful dish reminds me of Austin summer nights at their house, hanging out in the backyard next to the grill and with a glass of cold wine in my hand. I love how food can transport you to other [...]

I have a tendency to get on these food kicks where I will basically cook an ingredient to death. Carlo still groans about my lentil and chickpea kick when pretty much every meal for a week included either lentils or chickpeas (I think our stomachs are still groaning too ).
Due to our visit [...]

Even though I’ve been around the grill a lot during my many years with Carlo, the extent of my grill participation has been just watching Carlo cook, or at most helping turn meat or veggies over on his request. Somehow the grill has always remained within Carlo’s domain of our cooking adventures, but I wanted [...]

This Tomato, Fennel and Feta Pasta Salad, adapted from the Independent newspaper, feeds 4 people at $2.25 per serving. It made a nice pasta salad that took a little time, because of the roasting of the fennel and onions, but wasn’t too taxing. I didn’t bother peeling the tomatoes because I’m not certain it’s worth [...]

This one’s called Arroz al Horno con “Perdiu,” or Baked Rice with Garlic, Potatoes and Chickpeas from the incredible book Paella!: Spectacular Rice Dishes From Spain by Penelope Casas. I got this book as a part of an awesome birthday present from my brother from La Tienda. If you want to go the whole hog [...]