Small-Batch Shortcake with Strawberries and Devonshire Cream

Have you ever had one of those moments where you couldn't decide whether you wanted to make strawberry shortcake or strawberries with Devonshire cream? Yeah, that happened to me. So I made them both!

This wasn't the usual shortcake recipe we use in my family (rather, it was one for cream biscuits), and it wasn't as buttery, but it was definitely good. Also, the cream is technically mock Devonshire cream. But really, who cares? It's yummy! I made the shortcake recipe smaller so that it yields four cakes. If you want the full recipe, e-mail me or something.

Spicy Rice Noodles with Pork

Wow! When I made this, I thought I'd eat half today and save the other half for re-heating; you know, skip the whole 'making lunch' thing one day and just nuke these leftovers. Unfortunately, I started eating it and, due to circumstances completely beyond my control, it all disappeared. Into my stomach. Completely beyond my control.

Cutting the carrots into teeny strips was a bit more annoying (and took longer) than I'd thought, so I suppose you could just chop up your vegetables like usual. But this way it has the whole 'look how much work I put into your stir-fry, jerk, you better make it worth my while' vibe to it.

Japanese-style Marinated Veggies

I was a bit worried when I decided to make this because, normally, I hate radishes and raw onion. But I decided to go ahead and give it a try anyway. You know what? It was pretty awesome! I think the sweetness really did something to make it wonderful. In the future, I'm going to play with this recipe a bit and see if I can't make a kind of relish out of it: that could be fun. Anyway, I liked it.

Cheesecake Omelette

This omelet makes a nice, sweet breakfast! I had it for my birthday, but I've never personally made it before. Probably because my omelet-making technique is like the kiss of death to eggs everywhere. But I didn't end up tearing this one, so there! Take that, omelet-karma! I decided to call it a cheesecake omelet because of its ingredients. Plus, it just makes it sound decadent, don't you think?

Easy Cheesy Mushrooms

I had just finished wolfing down my burger when I decided to make this. I had half a scallion left, a pan with a bit of oil in it and a bunch of tired, old, sad-looking mushrooms in my fridge. Hence was born this recipe of necessity. I personally liked it: not too cheesy, just cheesy enough. In successful ad-hoc cooking -- as in flirting -- getting the right amount of cheese is important. If you don't have a dirty, oily pan you can heat up, use 1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon of oil.

Curry Burger

I am a big fan of this burger! It's a bit spicy and a bit sweet and tastes very much like juicy hamburger. Since I prefer my meat to taste like itself even after it's been seasoned, this was a big selling point. The burger was supposed to be topped with mango chutney and served open-faced, but as I'm not a bit fan of either open burgers or toppings, I made this a topping-less closed burger. And it was yummy.

Josy's Green Bean and Mushroom Salad

This salad is pretty darn good. It has a nice, simple flavor when you eat the beans, more intense when you munch on the mushrooms. The cheese is nice and salty, and I do love me some cheese! I think it would probably work just as well with only 1 tablespoon of oil. The recipe says it's for one, but I ate it as a side with lemon-pepper salmon and had leftovers.

Sweet Kiss

If you like creamy liqueurs, which I do, you should love this drink! It's light and sweet and cold and creamy: perfect for summertime. Enjoy!

Shortbread Cookies

These are literally my favorite cookies of all time. I know that everyone has their own shortbread recipe, and they're all attached to them, but this is the one I grew up eating and it is therefore the gold standard against which I judge all shortbread cookies. They come apart in your mouth like little pillows of heaven sent from the angels. Light, glorious: shortbread at its best. This is my mother's 'secret' recipe, which she got off the back of a box of Benson's cornstarch. They're amazing!

Latte with Foam

I admit it: I am one of those yuppies who own a Keurig coffee machine. I know, I know: this makes me some kind of consumerist whore. But the darn thing brews single cups of coffee! And it makes great hot chocolate with no lumps in less than a minute! I mean, come on: no more lukewarm coffee, and fast hot chocolate? Surely I can be forgiven my sin on this one...

Anyway, the latte recipe implies using this fancy-schmancy coffeemaker. But I'm sure you could modify it if you wanted.

Spicy Marinated Turkey Cutlets

This is a really, really quick meal to prepare because cutlets are thin and cook very fast, and you can marinate it ahead of time while you do other things (like living your life and whatnot). The turkey is delicious while still tasting like turkey; it's got both zip and zest, refreshing at the same time as spicy. This meal was a real winner. Not to mention fast and easy. It's a keeper!

Chickpea and Spinach Saute

This makes a nice light lunch or, I suppose, a good side-dish at dinner. The slight bitterness of the spinach, the blandness of the chickpeas and the sweetness of the pine nuts make a good combination of flavors and textures. It's nice and warm, which I think is a lovely way to eat chickpeas (as opposed to the usual cold chickpea salad). The book I got this recipe from suggests you could also serve it over rice.

Rhubarb Custard Pie with Pecan Crust

I confess, even though it grows in my garden most of the time I don't like rhubarb. So I was a bit concerned about making an entire pie out of it. However, my fears were unfounded! The pie was really good, and the entire family liked it. The filling was light with a nice lemony taste, and the rhubarb blended nicely with everything else. The sides of the crust got stuck to my pan, which made this not the prettiest pie to serve, but it certainly was a delight to eat! The next time I make this, though, I'll use a deep pie dish: mine left the pie crust taking up most of the space, so I had to alter the filling and had leftover custard. This recipe is the one I modified as opposed to the original.

Gingery Carrot and Celery Soup

This soup is hearty without being too much, if that makes any sense. The ginger is definitely evident on the tongue, especially after you've eaten the soup, but still subtle. The flavor is mild yet still carroty without being overwhelming. It's satisfying but not heavy. All in all, a simple soup lacking in complexity, which I think is a good thing. This recipe makes 2 servings, so be prepared for leftovers if you're making it for yourself. You'll feel wholesome while eating it.

Pasta with Savory Broccoli Sauce

I have to admit, I was a bit worried when I decided to make this because it has anchovy in it, which I hate. But really, it was quite all right. The sauce was lightly salty, and the bits of crushed red pepper made an interesting variation. It wasn't fantastic, though. And if I did make this again, I'd be sure to serve it with a slotted spoon so the extra liquid gets left behind: pasta swimming in its own sauce is not nearly as fun as it sounds.

Pasta Olio e Aglio

This pasta sauce is light and subtle, leaving the flavor and texture of the pasta to take center stage. Even though I order this in restaurants all the time, I've never made it myself before. Probably because I was worried about messing it up. But worries begone! it was surprisingly easy. The recipe I made serves four people, so either adjust it accordingly or invite some friends over for dinner.

Salad With Honey Mustard Dressing

This dressing is very mustardy and very zippy: I could even see how it would go well on chicken! I'd make it again except, this time, I wouldn't toss the lettuce with the dressing quite so early -- putting them together in advance made the lettuce shrink somehow. I suspect the dressing ate the lettuce. In any event, the 'tiny salad' effect was very depressing, especially considering how long I'd spent tearing up so much lettuce into so many pieces. Oh well, live and learn. At least the dressing was amazing!

Taco Casserole

This spicy dish is for anyone who loves the comfort of cheesy-topped casseroles straight from the oven and is also obsessed with taco meat. I have to warn you, if the shell is your favorite part of the taco this casserole probably isn't for you, since it has no shell in it whatsoever. While it's inspired by tacos, and has taco seasoning in it, I wouldn't want to serve it in a taco if I were you.