I love a BBQ, but especially a BBQ at the end of summer because it’s as if everyone feels the sun setting earlier, the light taking on that fall-ish feeling and so, they savor lingering outside with a beer around a fire pit with a plate of good food.
Ivan is convinced that I put addictive drugs in this pasta, but I assured him that it is only bacon. But then again, maybe bacon could be considered a drug? Crowd pleasing can be made very easy with a hefty dose of pig. This much, I have learned.
For the Recipe, click here:
Pepper and Pea Pasta Salad with Bacon
I get so excited for road trips. My parents will probably find this funny since every time we took one as a family, something disastrous happened. Take, for example, the time we drove all the way to NYC with our French exchange student only to turn around right at the border because our trusty family van decided to start making odd and threatening noises. So instead of stopping to check it out, my dad though it wise to drive the entire way home… at 40 miles per hour. After 12 hours of road trip fun, let’s just say Gregoire got to see our shining colors.
Since moving to Vegas however, I have grown to love the long hours Ivan and I spend in the car heading to Arizona, Utah, or California. There’s something tickling about packing a cooler full of food and zooming through the desert, big sky ahead. So we are off to Mt. Zion National Park this weekend and I’m itching to get on the road!
But right now, I’m making lasagna in June in Vegas. I know that sounds ridiculous, but it’s chilly, windy and rainy so I took the one last opportunity and ran with it. Plus, the extra carbs will fuel us for our hike up Angel’s Landing!
For the Recipe, click here:
Eggplant and Corn Lasagna
I love the Food Network, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t get the channel’s new obsession with monstrously portioned diner fare and the world’s most gigantic steaks. I’m even more turned off by the shows where sweaty men competitively muscle their way through 20 pound hamburgers loaded with drippy toppings. In fact, it makes me ill.
I like my food in moderation. I get really stressed out when a waiter brags about the “super large portions” like they are a wonderful gift. One of Ivan and my favorite places to go for late night fare is the Peppermill. This 24 hour tribute to old time Vegas kitsch is so charming with its neon lights and indoor fake palm trees that you could almost excuse them for the fact that they put ten eggs in their omelets. That’s right TEN! I mean, I love the place, but seriously… are TEN EGGS for ONE PERSON necessary???
I digress.
This pasta salad embodies my theory about food. If you have fresh, simple ingredients, you will usually find that less is more.
For the Recipe, click here:
Asparagus Pasta Salad with Sundried Tomato Pesto
My husband is a Saint. And for any of you running women out there, your boyfriends and husbands are probably Saints as well. This morning, he got up at 7am (after getting home from work at 4) to cheer me on at the Run Away with Cirque Du Soleil annual 5K. Granted, he was half asleep, but photos he took, cheering he did, and water he delivered, so points for Saint Ivan!
In appreciation, I cooked the most non-Bri, manly meal I could think of to show him that with early mornings come even more wonderful afternoons! It was really a fantastic day, despite my raging allergies…apparently the “grasses” are blooming… which confounds me since I live in the desert and people, there is no damn grass…but we will save that for another discussion. In the meantime, enjoy the bright pictures and the hearty food!
For Pictures and the Recipe, click here:
Spicy Chorizo Baked Ziti with Shitake and Asparagus
A lovely little veggie…
Whoever had a vendetta against brussel sprouts and turned them into such a taboo food should be scolded. I’ve got a major thing for these cute little cabbage-ey balls. As a kid, I never knew that I wasn’t supposed to like them. Or maybe it’s because I’ve just always been an eat-my-veggies-first kind of girl, but in any case, I’m on a mission to bring brussel sprouts back in all their glory.
If you have never tried them before, or just have memories of not liking them, don’t freak out. Give this recipe a try. There is enough richness with the orzo and Parmesan and truffle oil to cushion the plunge into brussel land. Your kids might even be surprised by how much this reminds them of mac and cheese! Definitely a little more decadent than I usually cook, but amazing for a special occasion or just a weekday dinner if you’re not worried about a few extra calories!
A quick note about truffle oil. If you can’t find black, white is wonderful as well. It might be a little pricey, but I promise you will find millions of other ways to use it and the flavor is so powerful that you don’t have to use a lot. I promise you will fall in love at first taste.
For the Recipe, click here:
Truffled Orzo “Risotto” with Braised Brussel Sprouts
