THE LADY OF SHALLOTS

It is Sunday. I spent the day working at my actual workplace, getting some good work done because...Sunday. My very sweet spouse offered to pick me up, and as we drove home, I realized I hadn't really thought about what to make for dinner. A quick mental inventory of the fridge: bell peppers, chicken, mushrooms. Next, Google. The last thing I wanted to do was cook, so honestly I picked the first recipe I could find for which I had ingredients. I could have done a stir fry without a recipe, of course, but I needed some sort of inspiration. Enter " Easy Pepper Chicken Stir Fry " from Holly at Spend with Pennies .   On Pinterest it says "This Pepper Chicken Stir Fry recipe is ridiculously easy to make with ingredients that you already have in your pantry..." MOSTLY true.  But I will tell you---I do not have oyster sauce in my pantry.  Do you? (Not a rhetorical question---I'm actually curious if that is a standard ingredient that people keep on hand). ...

A friend of mine posted a link to Eat Your Books , and so I thought I'd try it out.  The website indexes cookbooks, blogs, and magazines to create a database of recipes. When you sign up, you add the cookbooks you own to your "shelf" (as well as any blogs and magazines), and this creates a searchable database of ingredients . So, for example, last night I typed in "chicken thighs" and my results returned recipes from Food 52, The Kitchn, Barbara Lynch's Stir , etc...blogs I follow and a book I own.  What follows is a little evaluation of the website thus far: CONS: The free trial allows for only 5 shelf items (including books, blogs and magazines) Not everything is indexed (although this is to be expected) They do warn you that basic ingredients (salt, pepper, olive oil, etc) are not indexed, but I found that this can also include fresh herbs (tarragon, thyme) etc...so, not so useful as a grocery store tool, depending on the recipe. PROS: you can ...

It is very hot here, and that means I like to keep as far away from the stove/oven as possible. So that means we've been eating a lot of salad. I find salad making very tedious and usually delegate that chore to my husband. However, when the main dish is a salad, I find ample opportunities for creativity and experimentation. I started with this recipe from Real Simple (August 2008), Chicken Salad with Potatoes & Arugula , but found that I was without arugula and just simply not in the mood for potatoes, so I lifted the dressing and the rotisserie chicken, substituted dried tarragon for fresh, and turned it into Chicken Pasta Salad with Hearts of Palm INGREDIENTS: 1 package fresh or dried pasta (I like rotini or some other shape that will capture the goodies) 1 rotisserie chicken (or chicken leftovers)--you'll probably only need half a chicken's worth 2-3 large hearts of palm, sliced 1/2 cup walnuts (optional) 1/4 cup EVOO 1-2 tablespoons champagne white wine vinegar...

One of my favorite pieces of mail is the monthly arrival of Real Simple magazine, courtesy of a gift subscription from my mother. My absolute favorite part of the magazine is the recipes which do tend to be simple and healthy. I like recipes that I can cook during the week, but are a little more exciting than dumping two cans of beans in a pot with some canned tomatoes and chili mix. In the past week or so, I made the following recipes: Tilapia with Peppers and Olives (Real Simple, October 2009) LESSONS LEARNED: tilapia + green olives + lime = awesome yellow cauliflower IS slightly sweeter than white cauliflower if you cook tilapia too long, it still tastes good, but it falls apart from the filet RATING: A- Seared Lamb Chops with Minted Spaghetti Squash (Real Simple, October 2009) LESSONS LEARNED: I don't like squash, in general. But living in New England in autumn makes one want to like squash. Not only did I like this squash, I'd make it again for a Thanksgiving meal. ...

Serves 2 INGREDIENTS 2 chicken breasts, sliced juice of one lime kosher salt Penzey's "Florida Seasoned Pepper" 1 tbs unsalted butter 1 tbs olive oil 1/2 large yellow onion, chopped one large clove of garlic, chopped blanched slivered almonds 1/2 cup white wine 8 oz. Wehani rice (cook acc. to package directions: 35-45 min.) 1/3-1/2 cup dried zante currants INSTRUCTIONS start Wehani rice (prepare acc. to package directions, you can substitute broth for water...if using water, throw a pinch of kosher salt into the water. I also add a pat of butter.) while rice is simmering, prepare chicken slices by rubbing with kosher salt and Florida Seasoned Pepper (can substitute lemon pepper), half of the lime juice, and set aside in a medium frying pan with lid, heat olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add onions and garlic to the pan, cooking until translucent (onions) Add almonds to pan and saute for 3-4 more minutes add chicken slices, browning on all sides. add other half of ...