The Art of Gnarl

Posted on August 30, 2011 by admin

When I lived in San Francisco years ago, I would often cook dinner with a good friend of mine who was also my roommate’s girlfriend. On one occasion (or perhaps even several) we made some sort of stoner-like concoction of potato, beans, tomato and cheese that we dubbed “potato gnarl.” While tasty, filling, cheap and easy, it was not nice on the eyes and certainly nothing you’d prepare on purpose with any intent on serving anyone other than yourself, your child who didn’t know better or a pile of teenagers. And thus “gnarl” became any shapeless wad of ingredients, often … Continue reading →

Openface Pizza-Style Sandwiches

Posted on July 27, 2011 by admin

Even though I work at home, lunches can be challenging for me. It seems like it would be a welcome break, but often I realize I am starving at 2 pm, having sat at my desk for hours in the middle of a project. For a while I had an alarm on my computer that would say, really loudly, GET UP AND MOVE. And I would. I’d fill my water, go empty half the dishwasher, make a nice lunch and so on. It worked really well until my free trial ended and I didn’t bother finding another program. And so … Continue reading →

Weird but Good and I’d Do it Again

Posted on July 25, 2011 by admin

Sometimes I stare at the recent delivery of items from the weekly veggie basket and have no immediate ideas. On such occasions I usually throw a few ingredients at Google and see what happens. This time around I think I just did “turnip radish” and the very first recipe I found happened to be from David Chang. Considering he is reponsible for my favorite brussels sprouts recipe EVER, I decided to make his recipe exactly no questions asked. Supposedly it is a “play on Korean sweet-and-sour pork” but using shiitakes and radishes and turnips. The root veggies are browned then … Continue reading →

Grilled Portobello & Sweet Potato with Farro and Mystery Sauce

Posted on June 27, 2011 by admin

I’m just going to admit up-front that I can’t for the life of me remember what the red sauce is. I recall making it from scratch. It could very easily be plum. I remember it being tangy, slightly sweet and vibrant. If I recall anything more I will update. The rest is pretty simple. Farro cooked in broth with spinach, toasted, slivered almonds, grilled sweet potatoes and portobellos. With an unforgettable sauce. Sigh.