When four people get sick, one person needs a Nano.

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At least that's what I told myself when I was on my 22nd load of laundry MUSIC-FREE during the height of the puking. Concerned readers, you can stop emailing wails of concern. We are alive and well. Gastroenteritis laid us low over Christmas, heck, Christmas laid us low over Christmas, so low in fact that I had to buy a new Nano to snap out of it. And a new coffee table and console table. And Wii. And weekend in Pittsburgh. And soon we'll all be in Manhattan.

There might have been a new pair of running shoes and a new cookbook or four, two new bookshelves, a trip to Ikea, and perhaps I'm contemplating major appliance purchases.

My new Nano has made me so fulsomely food productive! My old iPod died about six months ago. Streaming Pandora is awesome, but it's not like girating in the kitchen, singing at the top of my lungs while chopping onions to old friends from my musical past. This is an excellent development because instead of lollygagging around all day on vacation trying to decide what to make for dinner then taking everybody out I'm back to running at full steam with work, kids in school, workaholic husband, vacations to plan, and new furniture to arrange.

Why just this weekend alone, thanks in no small part to a snow day on Friday with the kids, I had time to dance and whip out three pans of this:

The best lasagna. Ever. (via the Pioneer Woman)

It might not the best, because my palate demands bechamel in the best lasagna, but it's darn good, holds up well in the freezer, and my kids suck it down, which means for us, for now, it's the damn best. And we're having it for dinner the night we get back from Manhattan. Don't be too jealous. You can do it too. It's easy. BTW, I never boil noodles. I just do the no-boil variety. They are beautiful.

I also have a big pot of this braising right now, via The Barefoot Contessa:

Parker's Beef Stew

I mostly sorta kinda followed the directions. It smells heavenly, and really, can you go wrong with wine, bay leaf, salt, onions, garlic, and BEEF? I think not. We'll be having that with potatoes this week and frozen leftovers next week with fresh potatoes or noodles. Whatever I have around.

This is what we're having for dinner tonight, and the leftovers will sustain me no doubt for lunch a few days this week, along with coffee, Diet Coke, pretzels, and chocolate:

Jamie Oliver's Very Fantastic Fish Pie via Slashfood

I jitterbugged around the kitchen listening to my British favorites while I threw together Jamie's very British fish pie. I didn't use cream, but cooked down a little extra half & half. I also didn't use the juice of a whole lemon. A tablespoon was plenty, thanks. If I put spinach in a fish pie it's a slam dunk the kids won't get the food near enough to their mouths to even spit it out in disgust, so I stuck with peas. Always safe there.

We'll be rounding out a week a food with a simple pasta dish, some sausages and beans, and a stir fried rice with lovely Asian pork from Donna Hay.

Meanwhile, I leave you with this. I read this post this week from my neighbor (okay, two hours north), Michael Ruhlman:

America: Too Stupid to Took.

I've been thinking hard about what he wrote while I was killing drones on Star Wars: The Complete Saga, or pounding mushrooms in Super Mario Brothers. I feel a little guilty, 'cause certainly I should have been roasting a chicken whilst I Wii-ed my heart out. I'm not sure America is told it's too stupid to cook; I certainly feel like I'm told that I'm busy to cook as I wander around my grocery store aisles with coupons for boxed au gratin potatoes and cake mixes shooting out at me and my cart as I try desperately to find unbleached white flour before I weaken and reach for the canned butterscotch pudding. And Oreos. Anyway, interesting mildly pithy post (my favorite combination) worth a read whilst you wait for your chicken to finish roasting.

Gotta go check my fish pie and stir my stew.

Coming up, one of my best menus for entertaining, pulled together for Christmas Eve this year.

Feel free, dear readers, as you always do, to email me ideas for family friendly places to chow in Manhattan, keeping a four year old squarely in the forefront of one's recommending mind.

Love--Iced

Scarpetta's Spaghetti with Fresh Tomato Sauce and Garlic Basil Oil

This sounds fabulous, and well worth a trip to Steamy Kitchen where you can get the recipe from the fabulous Jaden. You'll save the trip to NYC and the $24 per plate at Scarpetta's. You can make it for your entire family, with a salad, and a decent bottle of wine for $24. You might be able to find 4 cute plates on clearance at Target and still come in under $24, too.

Scarpetta's Spaghetti with Fresh Tomato Sauce and Garlic Basil Oil, recipe and picture via Steamy Kitchen

Drats. I have six slices of leftover bacon. What to do?

I know! Combine it with butternut squash and pasta. Not sure how I stumbled on this recipe, as it's buried fairly deep in a post about something totally unrelated to food, but whatever. Can't wait to try it.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Pasta picture and post via the Daily Struggles of the Domestic Un-Goddess

Leftover Paella, Green Bean Casserole, Yakitori, and a Barn

Leftover paella is tasty. I would know because I just nibbled some, standing at the counter, reading the NYTimes food section, which I picked up at work today while I was sucking on a mint and some Sprite but didn't read at the time because I felt like death warmed over and didn't want to eat much or read about food because, in fact, I spent the first several hours on the job puking between patients. And no, I am not pregnant. A Sprite, said mints, an egg, and some toast later, I felt up to nibbling leftover delicious paella. But just a little. Me and my tummy aren't sure if we are friends yet.

Whilst nibbling paella, I was reading a recipe for homemade green bean casserole. I am not generally a green bean fan, but for this I might make an exception:

Green Bean Casserole @ the New York Times

What sounds better right now, though, is this:

Butterscotch 's Whiskey Cookie Bars

And hello, at the end of the recipe, note the picture of Jello pudding! And a little teaser:

I should add that JELL-O pudding mix is NOT in the recipe but the first picture is just a picture of my groceries. Cookie dough pictures aren’t very interesting anyways…the pudding is for another recipe though: Rum Cupcakes! I shall await with scotched-laced breath.

Did I mention that my Brudda, the Pork Master, got a slow cooker? And guess what? I found a slow cooker brined pork recipe with Alton Brown's fingerprints all over it. Possibly worth a try:

Slow cooker pork chops, apples, and sweet potatoes via Cheap Healthy Good

Two from Simply Recipes recently:

Cauliflower pasta with anchovies (I'll probably be eating this alone but oh, how I love anchovies and cauliflower, united at last in this recipe)
Scambled eggs with tomatillos (Green Eggs & Ham!)

THESE are going to be here at this house this weekend. I am going to need them:

Salted brown butter crispy treats from Smitten Kitchen

(Note the cute baby picture above the recipe and know that my friend Dr. Fabuloso's new baby is 20 times cuter and I have the pictures to prove it.)

Have a bit of beef hanging around and the urge to eat Vietnamese? Try this:

Vietnamese-styled sauteed beef

Thinking ahead to that turkey you're going to have left over? Grind it and try:

Turkey Yakitori Burgers

(Shout out to Columbus Foodie for the tips.)

Roger. Over and out.

"Bit of Ingenuity and a Can Do Attitude"

I'll say. This has been making the rounds. Next time you're in a hotel looking for something to eat, refer back to this, then let me know how it goes:

Red Pesto Ravioli a la 101 Cookbooks and IcedLatte Strolls in her Garden

Holy Toledo, but this looks fabulous:

Red Pesto Ravioli Recipe


I was going to stop at the grocery on my way home from academic medicine job and get the ingedients which I can do courtesy of my new crackberry because 101 Cookbooks has a mobile site, so I'm never far from Heidi's splendid, if somewhat colon-blowing recipes. Instead, I decided to be lazy and go straight home, which took me 23 minutes, just in case you're keeping score.

I whipped up a mixed pesto tonight that was absolutely scrumptuous. I used about oh, 1/3 cup mascarpone I had in the fridge leftover from a Nigella recipe I never quite got to despite the fact that I had quite a number of visitors over the last week or so. Ricotta cheese would also have work, as would a little bit of half and half, heavy cream, or even lowfat cream cheese:

IcedLatte's Stroll Into the Garden and See What'cha Got Pesto

1. Stand in the backyard and look at your herbs. Sigh deeply and contemplate how you'll never be skinny or a movie star but at least the parsley looks good.

2. Grap some of that parsley. Grab it and cut it and shake the bugs off. Grab, oh, I don't know, some basil, rosemary, oregano, whatever you've got. Bring it inside and enjoy the 5 more minutes of peace you have before the kids get home.

3. Five minutes are over. Take a break and hug the kids and let them talk excitedly about their day while you're waiting for your pasta water to boil.

4. Say, "Uh-Huh, wow! Gosh, then what?" to your husband while he talks about a really exciting meeting he had. While he's talking throw the pasta in the boiling water.

5. Throw your herbs into your food processor with, oh, I don't know, a giant handful of almonds, pine nuts, walnuts, whatever you've got nuts, plus some salt and a big squidge of olive oil. If you feel like it, lemon zest would be good but whatever. You don't need it.

6. After the pasta is done, drain it, then throw it back in the pot. You could sure add some peas now, even frozen, and they'll thaw right out, and wham, you've added a vege with a ton of fiber. Once you're good and ready, add the dairy--mascarpone, ricotta, etc.--then the pesto from the food processor and stir, stir, stir.

7. Adjust seasoning and liquid. Need a little more olive oil? Pasta water? Salt? Fix your dish and serve. Thank me later.

This is a FABULOUS 15 minute meals. I promise. Love, Iced.

Green Cathartic Pasta with Peas, Bacon, and Ricotta

My dear friend Dragon gave me a Giada de Laurentiis cookbook for my birthday. There's nothing I love more than a new unsullied cookbook to peruse at the counter, after a long day of work, sipping a glass of wine while the kids play.

I wanted to give my new Giada a whirl. Instead of the hominy stew I had planned for tonight (from my dear cookbook friend Jacques Pepin) (he's not a real friend, but I feel like he is as I trace the pages and write out ingredients for his recipes on my shopping list) I whipped up a Giada. Well, it's kind of a Giada, as I was missing several key ingredients. The title of the recipe is Tagliatelle with Smashed Peas, Sausage, and Ricotta Cheese. I had peas and ricotta, but not the full-fat, whole milk version she calls for. I also somehow lacked garlic. I was missing a lotta basil, too, as I am presently between plants.

But still, okay. Of the nine ingredients she called for I had 1.5. That's enough to give it a whirl.

My version was good, very good. Perfect for a weeknight dinner in a bowl. Although I limited it to peas tonight, the finished product is a little primavera-like. Any green, fresh veges (nothing too watery, I don't think, although maybe zucchini if drained well) would work, smashed or not. In fact, I think it would be splendid with lima beans. If I were really organized I would have grated a little lemon zest into the pan as well.

Vicki's Penne with Smashed Peas, Bacon, and Lowfat Ricotta Cheese
serves 4-6 (four easily with enough left over for somebody for lunch)

1 pound dried penne
1/2 pound bacon, chopped
1 pound frozen peas
1 cup low fat ricotta cheese
1 bunch of herby anything: basil, parsley, some rosemary (probably not ALL rosemary), oregano, or your favorite combination
1/4 cup freshly grated Pecorino
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Walk in the door from work and put on a big pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. When it's ready, throw in the pasta and put a measuring cup nearby so you remember to save a cup or so of the finished pasta water before you drain it.

Change your clothes and get a cold drink.

Put a large pot on the stove, heat it up, and throw in your bacon. Take your peas out of the freezer and thaw them in the microwave (it took me 2 minutes on each side on 60% power). Cook the until it's crispy, then take it out to drain on some paper towels. Get rid of that fat, unless, that is, you feel like having a heart attack later. Once the pot is ready and semi-bacon fat-free, throw in the peas and heat them up.

Think of somebody who made you really mad today. Take out your potato masher and imagine their face in green, cooking in your pan. Smash it! Smash those peas. Smoosh, sploosh, splat goes your anger. As you enact vegetable slaughter your hostility will melt away. Turn to your herbs. Chop them up. Not too fine! You want them to know who is boss, but you don't want to humiliate them into shreds. Green catharsis.

Now, check your pasta. If it's done, scoop out a cup of water and set it aside, then drain the rest. If it's not done, go back to your peas. Add your ricotta off the heat and stir. Once you finally have some drained pasta, throw that in, too. Add water in 2T increments until you have a lovely, creamy sauce. Then throw in your cheese and chopped herbs. Stir, add a little more water if need be, and serve.

Thanks, Dragon!