White Bean, Parsley and Morel Pasta

There’s a boatload of parsley springing up in the Seattle garden at the moment. It adds a nice green bite in contrast to the richness of the mushrooms and the heartiness of the beans.

White Bean and Morel Pasta

Wild Mushroom Pasta Handkerchiefs

This is a decadent dinner. One you enjoy on a special occasion with special people, some candlelight and a good bottle of wine. We felt like we were actually dining at Alice Water’s Chez Panisse when we sat down to this lush, umami-filled celebration of wild mushrooms and hand-rolled pasta.

Wild Mushroom and Hand-Rolled Pasta Handkerchiefs

Crostata di Perrella (aka Herb and Cheese-stuffed Calzone)

Visiting Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse Cafe in Berkeley was one of our life’s culinary highlights. Since then, we’ve made countless recipes inspired by or directly from her amazing cookbooks. Now — with springtime bursting out around us — is the perfect time to make this herb-filled thin-crust calzone. (If you have herb beds, you may already have most of these herbs already!)

Herb and Cheese Stuffed Crostata

Cannellini Bean Enchiladas in Tomatillo Suiza Sauce

This enchilada recipe comes from a little cafe outside of Santa Fe called Harry’s Roadhouse. You can make this with chicken, or go vegetarian and use cannelini beans instead.

Cannellini Bean Enchiladas with Green Tomatillo Sauce

Scallion Potato Pancake in a Skillet

These simple potato-scallion pancakes from Thomas Keller’s ‘ad hoc at home’ cookbook are easy to make and even easier to eat. They make a great side dish for all kinds of meals. We had ours with a maple-orange-dijon glazed chicken, also from Thomas Keller’s book.

Scallion Potato Pancake

Butternut Squash Polenta with Sausage and Onion

You cannot go wrong with a recipe from Melissa Clark of the New York Times. This butternut squash recipe proves it once again. Stirring squash into the polenta while it cooks results in a deep, rich flavor that belies how low-fat this dish actually is.

Butternut Squash Polenta with Sausage and Onion

Chicken and Dumplings (+ Mushrooms) For Dinner

A few weekends ago, the skies opened up over the Pacific Northwest, dumping buckets of rain. From the shelter of our car parked down at the beach, we could see the blue-grey rainclouds coming up the inlet a good half mile before they got to us. And then the downpour swept overhead and washed over us, the wind and the rain blurring the view from our little haven into an impressionist’s sea scene. Perfect weather for chicken and dumplings, as the rain beats down on your cozy little tin-roofed cabin.

Chicken and Dumplings

Indian-Spiced Chicken with Tomatoes and Cream Sauce

This Indian chicken and cream sauce recipe from Bon Appetit takes a little time to stew, but is very straightforward to make. The house fills with wonderful smells as the flavors cook down and meld together – a perfect recipe for a Sunday afternoon.

Indian Spiced Chicken with Tomatoes and Cream

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

You know those days where you come home from work and you know you should work out, but all you want to do is eat something healthy and warming and then climb into bed with tea and cookies and a book, and fall asleep wrapped in the warm embrace of a hot dinner and a thick down comforter? This chicken noodle soup is for precisely those days.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Paella: A romantic Valentine’s Day dinner

There’s something romantic about sharing paella. Maybe it’s the luxury of eating chicken, shrimp, chorizo, and mussels, all in one dish. Maybe it’s the velvety golden saffron-scented rice and vegetables, all intermingled together. Whatever it is, there’s something special about sharing a dinner of paella, Spanish wine, and some candlelight with your love.

Paella: A decadent dinner