Apricot, Walnut, and Lavender Cake

Today was a day for baking a cake and there is one that I have been meaning to make for a good time. It comes from a Yotam Ottolenghi cookbook called Plenty More. I have been waiting for the fruit to come into our markets, though. They have finally arrived !

Giada's Hearty Italian Stew - IHCC's Potluck and Projects

So often, these days, my life revolves around my current sewing project. For whatever reason, sewing has begun to take a more important role in my creative life. I've been sewing to complete a quilting legacy project that I've had in mind for my children and nieces and nephews, but also for different charitable projects that I wish to support. Sewing takes a lot of time, folks ... so I have found myself looking for easy dinner recipes that give SB and I some leftovers for lunches. I've also been using simpler one dish meals that can be knoshed at our spots on the couch or in front of a baseball game or out at the table on the back porch. I'm not sure how SB feels about this departure from our usual formal dining table/candle light experience. He's pretty supportive, though, when I spread a new quilt out before him and ask his opinion or gush at the results.

Pork (or Chicken) and Pumpkin (or Butternut) with Soy and Star Anise

This is a Diana Henry recipe ... and you KNOW how I feel about her! So just take a moment to really look at the photo above and as you do, I want you to imagine the smell of this dish doing a finish in the oven ... a kind of braise in that juice tucked down below the butternut squash and the pork fillets. Do you see the star anise? The red chile bits? The bits of ginger root? The colors alone are enough to recommend this dish, but the sauce flavors really sell it.

Two Words ...

Quick Chop

Pepin's Crepes With a Savory Take ...

Savory French Crepes for Dinner

Crack an egg and add some milk, water, parsley, flour, melted butter, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Whisk it together and let it sit for a bit.

Channel your inner Frenchman by heating a crepe pan until it's good and hot.

Carrot and Apple Panini ...

Sprout Sara made me this sandwich last weekend when I visited her in Boston. She said she'd gotten the idea from a sandwich she'd grabbed in a small bar somewhere in Beantown on one of her nights out with friends. Whoever came up with this sammy combo is a genius! I loved it so much that I made them for SB and I last evening for light supper ... so good!

IHCC - A Riff on Jacques Pepin's Stuffed Pork Tenderloin

This is the first major meal that I have cooked this week. Really. You see, life's been crazy busy of late.