Merle’s Chinese Chicken Salad in Red Cabbage Leaf Bowl served Garden Party Style.

Ramen Noodles:  those super long noodles I first discovered in college.  The affordable, yet tasty meal in a colorful package.  My go-to dinner in a hot pot when the spending money that needed to last all month had dwindled far too low.  Some might consider them a salty lesson in budgeting, but for the foodie they were an inspiration.  This 10-cent find, with a little imagination, was transformed into a secret ingredient hidden in the next Chopped champion’s wicker basket.  Quietly awaiting successful incorporation into a winning appetizer, entrée or dessert.

When deciding which recipe to post next, it occurred to me those very same noodles had a front row seat at some very joyful events in my life.  That’s because they can be found broken in a salad that has become a family food tradition when women in my family shower a Bride-to-Be or a new Mom-in-Waiting with joyful, new beginning wishes.  For me, this blog is in part about sharing JOY.  So posting this recipe is a joyful must.  Plus it is a recipe that my sister, on more than one occasion, specifically requested for her “keeper box”.  So in here, it will be. Read the rest of this entry »

Doug’s White Chicken Chili with Fresh Cilantro and Jalapeno Garnishes

My next recipe was given to me by my sister, yes the very same sister who doesn’t really cook.  The one to whom I have dedicated this blog, Lori Anne.  You might wonder how it came to be that she gave me a recipe, a recipe so good and well-received that it has ended up in my keeper box filed under the letter “C”, for “Chili”.  Well, this is not your average chili. It is spectacular.  There is always a story, right?  Well here it is.

My little sister invited my husband, son and I over for a quick dinner before trick-or-treating with our kids.  Lori’s favorite holiday is Halloween.  She always goes all out.  That year she told me she’d found a recipe she wanted to try.  She saw it in a cookbook that she had picked up while on vacation.  She was going to make it for dinner. Hmmm, Lori was going to make us something for dinner.  I have to admit, I was intrigued the moment she said “I found a recipe in a cookbook”.  It is not that Lori can’t cook.   Rather, it isn’t her thing.  She’d prefer to have someone else do the cooking while she kept them company.  She just isn’t the type to peruse cookbooks, much less do it for leisure while on vacation.  Or, so I thought.

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Traditional.  “Old School”, my husband might say.  These adjectives are some of those that might be chosen to describe me, by family and friends.  Maybe they know how much I relish preserving the past, when it is the right thing to do. Perhaps they understand my desire to save things that are well-made, but are at risk of getting discarded or lost, simply because they are not new.  Or could it be my deep respect of history?  Not so much history in the textbook sense, but rather looking back at the evolution of things over time.  Specifically, noting when we got things exactly right or when things just got off course.  I guess you might say, I’m more of a “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme” kind-of-gal.  Read More>