I have a kid. That means that every recipe I make either comes with a helper (known as the Tiny Kitchen Assistant) or his alter ego, Captain Distracto, who wants me to play baseball or Legos or do anything other than cook as dinnertime approaches.
Most of the meals are kid-friendly and easy enough to make in 30-45 minutes on a weeknight. The rare, time-consuming “weekend recipes” will be noted accordingly. Believe me, if I can make dinner six nights a week, you can, too.
Where do my recipes come from? Many are things that I’ve made for ages. Some are modifications of a single recipe; I link to or reference the original recipe wherever possible. Others are a strange hybrid of recipes that I find online; if I want to find a good stew recipe, for example, I’ll look at half a dozen and pick and choose the elements and techniques that work best for us.
Ready to cook?
Recent Recipes
Two-Tone Potato Salad
Just in time for 4th of July parties! This is a variation on the two-tone potato salad featured in Steven Raichlen’s The Barbecue Bible. If you don’t have a copy of this cookbook, you and your grill are missing out. This recipe is a little bit tangier than his, heavier on the dijon and vinegar. Serves […] Read More
What’s in Season? July
Our produce remains on an odd schedule because of this year’s strange weather in northern California, which of course only points out how utterly spoiled we are during most seasons. The stone fruits are still so-so, our corn still hasn’t appeared at the market (almost a month late!) and our tomatoes look anemic. However, we’ve […] Read More
Try Something New: Cherry Salad
Last year, I posted the recipe for the chicken and stone fruit salad. This year, because of a Spring that never came, our stone fruits are so-so. Our cherries, on the other hand, are quite tasty. Turns out that you can use the same basic recipe and substitute cherries for the peaches and plums. I […] Read More
Lemony Pasta with Spring Vegetables
Lemon Pasta Primavera This is a variation on a Cook’s Illustrated recipe for spaghetti al limone, a great recipe in its own right. I’ve modified it to add spring vegetables, using whatever I had on hand, to create a makeshift primavera. The heavy cream makes the recipe sound daunting and heavy, but 1/4 cup spread […] Read More
Try Something New: Barley Mushroom Risotto
This is a big post for the Try Something New section, because it involves both barley — something I’ve never used for more than an addition to soup — and mushrooms. Yes, I know that it’s weird that I don’t cook with mushrooms. I’ll discuss that later. I was reading the No Meat Athlete blog […] Read More
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