Ratatouille

Recreational Ratatouille
The recent warm weather has me thinking about summer. This has me thinking about my garden—the garden that I am not planting this year. I am not planting a garden this year because, for the first time in I don’t know how long, there will be no tournaments. This summer will be youth-sports-free which is both fantastic and kinda sad, but mostly fantastic. It also means we are able to do what we want on the weekends.

Our summer will be filled with camping trips and college campus tours as well as family junkets to new and amazing cities. There will be baseball games (played by professionals) and beach days and music concerts. I can’t wait. But, because life can be awesome this way, there will still be fresh home-grown vegetables.

How is this possible without planting a garden you may ask? Because my mother-in-law, who swore she would not be planting a garden this year either, caved and planted everything under the sun. Therefore, I know without question that I will be reaping the benefits of her summer bounty when her produce cup runneth over and she has had it up to here with zucchini.

It’s the best of both worlds. Livin’ my best life while enjoying good food and helping to relieve the burden of overabundance. What can I say? I’m a giver…

Ratatouille
Adapted from Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food and Food 52
Yields 6 to 8 servings

This classic recipe is surprisingly easy to prepare and results in a delicious showcase of summer vegetables and flavors. Read more…

Beef Bourguignon

Bowl of Beef Bourguignon

Bourguignon, Oui ou Non?
There are very few things as satisfying as a well-made Beef Bourguignon. Well, in my mind anyway. Like the scene in Julie and Julia when Judith Jones tastes Julia’s for the first time, a good Bourguignon will make you moan out loud. Of course, since it takes some time to pull together, it may just be from hunger…

The time it takes is worth it, though this is definitely a weekend meal. Patience is the key, but I confess I struggle in this area. For example, it is essential to dry the beef before browning. It is equally essential not to crowd the pan when browning in order to achieve that glorious brown crust. (I tend to want to throw it all in at once.)

The result of your hard work and patience is a meal that will transport you to the banks of the Seine whilst the gentle melody of La Vie En Rose strolls through your mind. Grab a glass of wine and Bon Appetit!

Beef Bourguignon Recipe
Adapted from Julia Child’s The French Chef Cookbook
Yields 6 to 8 servings

In 1961, as a recent graduate of the Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris, Julia Child launched her career of educating Americans in delicious ways with food. In 1963 she began her own cooking show The French Chef. This recipe was published in The French Chef Cookbook.

Julia Child’s beef bourguignon may be an all-day adventure, but being one of the most delicious beef dishes known to man makes it worthwhile. Read more…

Corn Chowder

Summer In The City
One of the perks of living in the Bay Area is that come the summer months, we get some of the best sweet corn from Brentwood—which is right in our backyard. I wait all year for the arrival of fresh local corn and have a tendency to overdo it in the beginning so I need to pace myself.

There is another truth in the Bay Area. Although the calendar might say June or July, there are days when it feels more like November…in Michigan. Mark Twain nailed it. Summer in the city can mean some chilly and foggy days while at the other end of the bridge the locals are melting in one hundred-degree heat. That being said, there have been plenty of evenings when we have been enjoying a lovely time outdoors when “nature’s air-conditioning” rolls in and you go hypothermic.

What I am trying to say here is that it’s not unreasonable for something like a corn chowder to be the perfect answer for a summer dinner. It combines two very Bay Area things, local corn and chilly nights. Plus it tastes good. Pair it with a lovely green salad and a nice chilled white wine from Napa or Sonoma and you have the quintessential California dinner.

Corn Chowder Recipe
Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine
Yields 4 servings

Our simple Corn Chowder recipe combines pureed sweet corn, sautéed kernels for added crunch, and an infusion of bacon. (If you want to make a vegetarian version of this dish, skip the bacon and use vegetable stock.) Read more…

Irish Coddle

Coddling
There I was, minding my own business reading my email when a message popped up in my Inbox that I couldn’t ignore. It was a recipe that made me stop in my tracks (so to speak). I don’t want to say this kind of thing happens all that often. But, occasionally something will appear in my email that makes me stop all other activities and take a look. Nine times out of ten it is because the recipe is for something I have never heard of. And, the rest of the time it is because the picture shows something that just looks so good that I have to just stop and stare. This particular occurrence was a combination of both.

It is mid-March which means there have been plenty of St. Patrick’s Day food ideas being spread around the online food world. And, this message definitely qualifies. I am a big fan of Irish food. I eat it. I cook it. And while I am certainly not an expert on Irish cuisine I would say that I am comfortable enough with it to not be surprised. I was wrong. Until that message arrived in my Inbox, I had never heard of an Irish Coddle. Irish stew? Yes. Irish Soda bread? Certainly, just not an Irish Coddle. Obviously, I had to do some research.

Traditionally, a coddle is a means to use up any leftovers so, more often than not, there is no actual recipe to follow. You just work with what you have. Judging by the recipe in my email, working with what you have will yield a dish that is the epitome of comfort food. How can you go wrong with bacon, sausage, potatoes, and onions? The idea so excites my food nerd self that I have been telling friends about this recipe when talking about St. Patrick’s Day plans at high school baseball games. Needless to say, this is what we’re doing for St. Patty’s Day.

Take a look at the recipe yourself to decide if it is worth bucking your corned beef and cabbage tradition…

Irish Coddle Recipe
Adapted from the Food Network
Yields 6 servings

The traditional recipe for an Irish Coddle varies from family to family. And, also varies according to what is in the fridge. For example, we have included carrots as an option in this recipe. You could opt to use another root vegetable or omit them entirely.

The main components of an Irish Coddle are bacon, sausage, potatoes, onions, and plenty of black pepper and fresh parsley. Finishing it off with some stout yields comfort food perfection. Read more…