I love when improvising in the kitchen leads to the discovery of a great recipe. And I love it even more when it isn't even me doing the improvising but I still get to enjoy the great recipe that resulted from it. This recipe comes from our friend Ben, who is a wonderful cook. He had made a batch of some English muffin bread and only had one loaf pan available to cook it in. He decided to cook the second half of the bread in an 8" springform pan. That happy accident made the perfect base for a brie boat, which is basically a hollowed out bread bowl with melted brie inside. If any of you have had melted brie before, you know it's up...
Heat Oven To 350
Answering the question, "What's for dinner?" (and breakfast, and dessert, and mid-afternoon snack . . .)
Latest Food Blogs from Heat Oven To 350
Zucchini and Pasta
When it comes to technology, I'm always a little bit behind the times.I own a first generation iPhone. Yes, the ones that don't even use 3G. It would be almost cool if I was one of the first people to buy one, but I bought mine used from my sister's father-in-law when he upgraded about three years ago. My husband used to bug me to upgrade for the love of Pete but after I explained to him several times that my phone still works and iPhones are...
Jicama Slaw
My 5 year-old nephew came to a sad realization this weekend: just about everything in our modern lives runs on electricity. And of course, being in Vermont in the wake of Irene, there was a good portion of the day yesterday when his family had no power. The poor guy would ask for permission to do things and always get the answer that he couldn't because the electricity was out. "No TV?" Frown. "No movies?" Frown....
Apple Tarragon Granita
Granitas, where have you been all my life? I can't believe I've lived through so many summers thinking that Fla-Vor-Ice (or Otter Pops, to you Westerners) was the best, light, fruit refreshment my freezer could offer. (Even though the purple flavor makes my throat itch. Does this happen to anyone else?)I think I had heard of you, though. You sounded so exotic, like something I'd eat in a cafe on a warm summer afternoon in Italy. I assumed you...
Skillet Cheesy Chicken and Broccoli
?It's been a busy few weeks. Thankfully, it's been mostly full of fun and spending time with family, but still, I haven't grocery shopped in a week and a half, my husband is on his last pair of clean underwear, and during slow moments at work I daydream about sleep. In fact, I'm writing this post on the way to work, squeezed between two other people on a bus that looks like this: I work at a cancer research center at a big state...
Parmesan Zucchini Quick Bread
"You know, they say that you can tell how many friends you have by whether you have to buy zucchini or not." That's what the lady at the farm stand said to me as I picking out zucchini the other day. I'm assuming she was just trying to make conversation, but since I had loaded my arms with about 10 zucchini, I couldn't help feeling that it must look like I didn't have a friend in the world. There are always a couple options for how to...
Grilled Chicken Sausages with Apple Salsa
The thought crossed my mind before I could even register how wrong it was. I wished it was fall yesterday.There I was, stopping on my way home from work at the little outdoor market in my town and reveling in the beautiful colors the eggplants. Happily picking out a few zucchini to finally make zucchini bread for my husband. Trying decide which tomato variety I wanted to eat with my salad for dinner. Wondering if I really needed those...
Quinoa Patties
When you hear about something all the time on the news, the internet, or from friends, you start to wonder if it can really live up to the hype.Like The Jersey Shore. We have the most basic of cable at our house so I've never seen the show, but I hear about it all the time. Does that really live up to the hype around it? Judging from the "Situation Workout" I tried this morning courtesy of Hulu Plus, I'd say no. But I could be wrong. Is it just...
Cinnamon Roll Cookies
In my family, there is story about my sister and her husband that has become legendary.It has to do with a shared Cinnabon, my sister getting distracted and my brother-in-law eating the whole heart of the Cinnabon. Yes, the whole ooey, gooey, sweetest, most cinnamony part of the Cinnabon. The very fact that this story has become legend should tell you just how seriously we take our food in my family, especially our favorite foods....
Pasta with Tomato and Almond Pesto
Have you heard that they are remaking Dirty Dancing? I know. How can you improve on it? What could be better than Patrick Swayze dancing? Is the new "Baby" going to carry a watermelon? Please tell me if someone is going to put her in a corner. This is the movie that always seemed special to me because I couldn't see it until I was "older." The movie I remember my mom watching the end of over and over again. I even remember her...
Deep Dish Blueberry Pie
The same diner-type restaurant in New York that had the incredible cheese blintzes I wrote about here also serves just about every other type of comfort food you can imagine. Grilled cheese sandwiches, soups, burgers, cheesecake, and of course, pie. This pie didn't come from an attempt to re-create some wonderful pie I ate at that restaurant, though. In fact, I never ate pie there. This pie comes from finding a cookbook for said restaurant...
