It’s soup season.  On Tuesday, I revived an old favorite of Cheddar, Corn and Potato Chowder.  Last night, it was New Year Noodle Soup.  I know I’m about nine months late on making New Year soup, but whatever.  It sounded good.  With three kinds of legumes, noodles, and a flavorful broth, it turned out just like I had hoped.  Very filling without being heavy and full of cream.  Just don’t let the noodles sit in the broth too long or you won’t have any broth left (my leftovers look more like a noodle salad than soup.)  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 onion, thinly sliced
• 1 long red chili OR green serrano, finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Continue reading »

Next year John and I will be traveling the world for several months.  We’re saving up money, and most of our international dream destinations, for that larger trip.  So this year, in lieu of our regular international jaunt, we decided to take a more low-key vacation – camping in Wyoming.

Before this summer, I had never camped (at least not since I was old enough to remember.)  But for some reason, we decided a week-long camping trip in Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks would be a fun adventure.  In preparation, we took a single overnight camping trip with a few friends a few weeks ago, and then set off for seven days on our own.

As it turns out, car camping is very similar to backpacking/hosteling, with the exception that while camping you can actually pay $2 to get a hot shower (unlike many third world countries we’ve visited.)  The bed is more comfortable, too.  So despite having little to no direct camping experience, our trip went off without a hitch.  We enjoyed the fresh mountain air, took a long 75 mile bike ride, floated on the lake in a canoe, and wandered the geological sights of Yellowstone.  It was a great, relaxing trip.

Here are a few images of the rocky Tetons and explosive Yellowstone.  (The last one was taken on my iPhone, so the image quality is a little lower than usual.)  I hope everyone had a happy Labor Day Weekend!

Year of the Noodle: Week 33

I know.  Tomato and peach?  What are you thinking?

But then think about it.  It’s August.  What’s exceptionally delicious in August?  Tomatoes and peaches.  And they only get yummier when roasted in the oven for an hour.  Add chickpeas and feta and you have a really diverse flavor combo.  Surprisingly tasty.  Go make it.

Ingredients

• 4 cups coarsely chopped tomatoes
• 2 large peaches, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder Continue reading »

Year of the Noodle: Week 32

Thud.

That’s how this dish lands in your stomach.  With a thud.  Cream and cheese and beans and ugh.  So thick and rich.  A bit of a tummy ache in the making.

When I first saw this recipe, I mistakenly thought it didn’t have cream or cheese in it.  I thought it used the beans to make a creamy sauce.  As I was making it, I realized the last few ingredients were in fact cream and Parmesan cheese.  Before I added those, this sauce seemed like it was going in a good direction.  Afterward, it was like eating alfredo sauce with an extra thickness.

Serious thud.  Unless you like that sort of feeling for hours after a meal, I’d skip this one.

Ingredients

Year of the Noodle: Week 31

A friend of ours has a recent obsession with bow ties.  He likes to wear them out, particularly to bars and places they don’t really belong.  Apparently, people call him dapper.  So I am going to call this dish dapper.  It’s a bow tie thing.

It may be dapper, but unfortunately it is less delicious than I would have liked.  For all the fresh ingredients that go into this sauce, none of the flavors really shine.  It lacks something to make it punch.  The marinara I made last week received better reviews than this one.

Oh well.  At least it has the bow tie thing going for it.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ripe tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 oregano sprig
• Pinch chili flakes
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 pound dried angel hair pasta
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for garnish
• 1/4 cup chiffonade basil, plus whole sprigs for garnish Continue reading »