donna's daily dish

"happiness is a state of mind."

6/28/2024

The title of this week’s blog post is credited to Aristotle. I am most happy when I have a list of things to do each day and can cross them off when accomplished. Sitting still isn’t something that comes easy to me. I find cooking relaxing and very enjoyable. From the search for the right recipe, sourcing needed ingredients and a review of how the dish came out is satisfaction for me.

Such was the case with Melissa Clark’s recipe for Roasted Asparagus with Crispy Leeks and Capers. In all honesty, I did adjust Ms. Clark’s recipe by using spring onions from my CSA box in place of leeks. Besides the ingredients named in the recipe title you’ll also need extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt, black pepper, drained capers, lemon wedges, fresh parsley, Dijon mustard and fresh garlic.

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challenges

6/20/2024

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Each week when I receive my share of Dreyer Farms CSA box, it presents a new challenge as what new recipe can I find to create a memorable meal for my husband and I. The downside of this is that my poor husband very rarely gets the same meal twice. Occasionally he reminds of something we had last year or a few months ago, then I have to sort through my memory, or even my website, to see what he’s talking about.

Recently in the CSA box was fresh spinach, garlic scapes and Napa cabbage. Patty at Dreyers Farms does an excellent job of providing storage information and recipes. Sometimes I’ll use her suggestions or find some on my own.

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the heat is on

6/18/2024

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In week 2, kohlrabi was part of our CSA box. Kohlrabi, though sometimes known as German turnip, actually belongs to the mustard family and is related to cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower. It’s texture and taste is similar to broccoli stems, but I find the taste to be rather bland, not like broccoli.

I also had some radishes from a prior box and decided to combine the two veggies into a Kohlrabi-Radish Slaw a recipe listed in our CSA newsletter. The recipe is from the website “Fix Me a Little Lunch.” Besides the two vegetables, you’ll also need juice from 1/2 a lime, white wine vinegar, olive oil, pinch of sugar, pinch of salt, celery seeds and fresh chopped parsley.

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sweet and savory

6/13/2024

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My husband loves both stir fry meals and meatloaf. I have made my fair share of meatloaves and shared the results on this website. I recently started listening to a podcast called “The Recipe,” hosted by recipe developers/food bloggers/cookbook writers Deb Perelman and J. Kenji Alt-Lopez. Ms. Perelman has a blog called “Smitten Kitchen” and you can find Mr. Alt-Lopez’s recipes on the website “Serious Eats,” his YouTube channel and The New York Times/NYT Cooking (both are paid subscriptions).

In a podcast posted in March of this year, Deb and Kenji had a discussion about meat loaf. In the podcast notes, a link was given for her recipe for Turkey Meat Loaf for Skeptics. Two things that drew me to this recipe was the fact that it used ground turkey and vegetables that infuse both flavor and moisture to the meat. For the recipe you’ll need a yellow onion, a garlic clove, a carrot, olive oil, kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper, panko-style bread crumbs, chicken broth, tomato paste, Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, fresh flat-leaf parsley, an egg and one pound ground turkey (light and dark meat or just dark meat). There’s also a glaze for the turkey that consists of ketchup, molasses, apple-cider vinegar, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, kosher salt and freshly ground pepper.

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I thought flu season was over

6/7/2024

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Following the Memorial holiday weekend, I came down with a nasty stomach bug. It was so bad that I lost my desire for coffee, which I need to start my day, and my chocolate sugar cookie craving. As we had booked an upcoming weekend trip to Boston, I needed to get well before our departure. Fortunately, by Thursday I was starting to feel better and on Friday, when we left, I was just about back to normal. Now this week, my right hip is acting up and I’m hobbling as I walk.

Prior to these issues minor, I found some really interesting and tasty recipes. For vegetarians, and those trying to eat less meat, Creamy, Spicy Tomato Beans with Greens by Alexa Weibel from The New York Times/NYT Cooking may be your answer. This 40-minute meal uses olive oil, panko bread crumbs, salt, pepper, yellow onion, fresh garlic, crushed red pepper, tomato paste, canned cannellini beans, heavy cream, sun dried tomatoes in oil, pecorino or Parmesan cheese, baby arugula, lemon zest and juice.

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"happiness is a state of mind."

challenges

the heat is on

sweet and savory

I thought flu season was over

meet donna

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"happiness is a state of mind."

challenges

the heat is on

sweet and savory

I thought flu season was over

​meet donna

Archives

meet donna