When I bought the pork chops from Costco, I thought they were stacked two deep in the package. What I found when I opened the package was beautiful, impossibly thick chops that were begging to be stuffed.
QUICK TIP: StoveTop Stuffing is boring and salty on its own, but bulk it up with carrots, pears or [...]

CONFESSION: Risotto has long been one of the dishes that’s eluded me. Now that I’ve nailed it I’m in shock at how easy it is to make.
I had a lot of smoked salmon that I wanted to try to use, and when I saw smoked salmon risotto as an option for using it I [...]

QUICK TIP: Just Say No to LaChoy. Look, I’m sorry; I know there are plenty of wonderful people out there who work for LaChoy and all, but if you want real Asian, Chop Suey ain’t it. (I feel the same way about American-brand Mexican food). Now, bear in mind that this is coming from a [...]

CONFESSION: By stereotypical “Mom’s home cooking” standards, I overseason everything. At least, that’s what it seems like when I read recipes in church and family cookbooks. I need a lot of flavor in my food and I don’t use much salt at all, so I compensate for [...]

The Food4Less near our house has the most amazing seafood section. Almost every time we go they have piles of great seafood that’s marked for half-price, and it’s always excellent. With our FoodSaver we can stock up!
These enormous shrimp were so cheap it was amazing they were still fresh and delicious, but their seafood’s never [...]

CONFESSION: I love cookbooks. Like LOVE cookbooks, even though I rarely use the recipes as described. I like browsing through for fun, getting ideas, learning new techniques I can apply elsewhere. Sure, I use the internet to find recipes on occasion, but my first stop is almost always my shelf of cookbooks. And that’s where [...]

The Bandai Futomaki Maker has arrived, and as expected it’s kind of fun, kind of a pain in the ass, and going to feature quite the learning curve, but it was a start. We made the “it’s almost a heart” sushi (the purple in the picture) and figured out how to make it actually a [...]

CONFESSION: I just can’t keep anything simple. Even something as basic as sloppy joes I have to play around with, find a way to make it more interesting, usually by adding more vegetables and some herbs to a prepared sauce.
That said, I also make the best sloppy joes on the planet. My secrets?

Sauté an onion, [...]

More than a few people have asked me to post the recipe secrets for my sushi. My maki rolls have been known on many occasions to make sushi lovers out of both fearful sushi virgins and those who’ve had bad sushi experiences, but for the most part my secret is “practice” and a couple [...]

You should’ve seen the size of the eggplant I got at the Farmer’s Market. Easily a foot long, as big as my niece’s head, and all for one crisp dollar bill. I couldn’t pass it up!I spent the day at work truly looking forward to dinner. It’s a pain in the butt to make and [...]

CONFESSION: I kind of love Hamburger Helper. Yes I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating. It’s a great starter for an interesting weeknight meal if you get creative enough.
Tonight I made the Cheesy Ranch Burger Hamburger Helper, but of course I added my own special touches to make it my own. I sautéed sliced [...]

Artichokes are a giant pain in the ass. This did not come as a surprise. I mean, look at them. Even from the outside they look intimidating, and once you find out about their fluffy “choke”, it’s even scarier. But darn if they’re not pretty and delicious. So when they were 40¢ apiece at the [...]