secret recipe club: mexican mac & cheese and bakewell tart

i had already made my grocery list and planned my meals for this week when i realized two things: i totally forgot that it's time for the secret recipe club again and this week is cinco de mayo! i had browsed rachel cotterill's blog and bookmarked a few recipes right when i got my assignment, not even thinking about mexican food. once i realized my blunder, i read through the list i had bookmarked and easily chose this mexican mac and cheese! while not spicy, it went over really well in our house with a toddler and preschooler. for dessert, i made one of my favorite combinations: almond and raspberry in this bakewell tart. i knew the tart would taste great, but both jason and i were surprised at how light it is. i assumed the almonds would make a heavy, dense cake, but that couldn't be farther from the truth. and while rachel and i don't have much in common besides food - she's a computational linguistics PhD student, declares she's "someone who collects skills the way other people collect stamps", and she has written two fantasy novels - there's no doubt that we both share a love of food.

one pot tortellini with meat sauce

with daylight savings time now in full force and the sun setting later and later, we're making a conscious effort to get the boys to sleep earlier. which means i am on the lookout for simple meals appropriate for adults, a toddler, and a finger-foods-eating baby that can be on the table from start to finish in a max of 30 minutes. most one pot pasta recipes i've tried fit these requirements, but don't always taste great or usually, don't have enough liquid and i end up with too hard pasta and burnt sauce. not good. this one pot tortellini is not one of those meals. while the three of us gobbled it up with our forks, the finger-foods-eating baby was the clear winner: we had to cut him off after three bowls.

meyer lemon pasta with bacon

it's no surprise that i love meyer lemons. they're sweet and tart, a perfect mix of lemon and orange. i've always used them for sweet treats - meyer lemon tart, meyer lemon cupcakes with meyer lemon buttercream, and a runaway hit, meyer lemon iced raspberry yogurt cake - but they're equally as delicious in this simple pasta. if you're looking for a vegetarian option, omit the bacon. can't find meyer lemons? use a regular lemon instead. the flavor will be a bit more tart and pronouncedly lemon and definitely delicious.

creamy mushroom stroganoff

when i first made mushroom stroganoff a mere four years ago, it was good - how can pasta tossed with mushrooms cooked in dry sherry and butter be bad? - it didn't have the creaminess that stroganoff is known for. i tucked the thought of a remake into the back of my mind. where it then sat for years until i was thumbing through cooking light's fresh food fast, a book i picked up in the bargain bin of my local bookstore, thinking it would help reinvigorate my weeknight meals. and that it did. this version did not disappoint - the addition of sour cream added the perfect amount of creaminess i was looking for. the butter and dry sherry didn't hurt either. 

fettucine with seared tomatoes, spinach and mozzarella

i love love love dinners like this one. not only is it really simple to throw together, all the flavors balance really well, and it's something that should a baby or toddler beckon for your attention, another person can jump right into and not need much explanation to know where you are in the recipe. bonus that it's easily ready in 30 minutes - the longest step for me is waiting for the pasta water to boil - and the classic flavors are loved by toddlers and adults alike. this one easily makes it into my weeknight rotation and will taste especially good in the dead of winter, when we're longing for some kind of taste of summer.

secret recipe club: 30 minute baked tortellini

to say i've been busy the last six weeks is the understatement of the year. if you think toddlers are a time suck, try adding a newborn into the mix. it leaves an obnoxiously little amount of free time every day. and even less time for all of the usual things. we had gotten into a routine, the three of us, and since the baby made his arrival right before easter, dinners like this twenty minute easy tortellini bake by julie at this gal cooks, are perfect. and while it isn't exactly photogenic, this dinner is delicious with very little hands on time.

secret recipe club: meyer lemon iced raspberry yogurt cake & slow cooker chicken cacciatore

a couple weeks ago, a friend of mine mentioned making a blueberry lemon cake on facebook. after reading that and seeing the post, i couldn't get the thought of a meyer lemon layer cake out of my mind. the very next day i scoured claire k creation's blog for cake recipes. i bypassed - and pinned for later - this best ever carrot cake, this lemon tea cake, and this coffee cake for this greek yogurt & raspberry cake. topped with meyer lemon buttercream, it made two pregnant women - she 38 weeks, me 32 - very happy.

skillet gnocchi with ham, peas & mushrooms

want a one skillet meal that pleases everyone, is infinitely adaptable, and can be on the table in 30 minutes? then this skillet gnocchi is for you! want more vegetables? add them. prefer a meatless option? skip the ham. change up leftover chicken breasts or grilled or roasted vegetables by tossing those in. not a fan of swiss? try cheddar or monterrey jack. endless options, all delicious.

pasta with roasted tomatoes and fried eggs

last weekend i had a handful of roasted tomatoes, baby spinach, and a small piece of brie leftover from sandwiches i made for new years eve. i cooked up the remnants of a box of fusilli, tossed the hot pasta with the brie, spinach, and tomatoes, and topped the whole mess with two runny fried eggs. it was the best lunch i've had in a long time.

cacio e pepe with lemon

here's the thing: you can't have it all. all those women out there, working full time, raising kids, keeping a marriage afloat, cooking a real dinner for their family every night, finding time for hobbies and themselves, their plan will sooner or later crack. the problem is that as life goes on, we add more and more responsibilities all wedged into the same amount of time and with the same amount of effort and attention span we've always had. so what happens? something gives. in the last year, i've spent more time and focus on health and wellness, spending nights and weekends working out instead of blogging or keeping in touch with far away friends. i spend my evenings playing with my son, so time dedicated to dinner becomes shorter and shorter. not because i no longer enjoy cooking - follow me on pinterest and you'll see my kitchen is still a flurry of activity - but because i would rather spend my time building towers and crashing them with my son than stuffing ravioli. so now, more than ever, i am on the lookout for meals that start to finish are done in less than thirty minutes - bonus if they're toddler friendly. this pasta fits the bill perfectly. although the original recipe calls for a meyer lemon - rightfully so, since they are deliciously sweet and tart - a regular old lemon will do. toss in some cooked peas, like my favorite alfredo, to round this out as a meal.

secret recipe club: pasta with blistered tomatoes & arugula and iced grapefruit cookies

last march, i made this whole wheat grapefruit cake for my secret recipe club selection and fell in love with grapefruit in baked goods. so this march, when i stumbled on these pink grapefruit cookies at life of a modern housewife for this month's secret recipe club, i knew they would be delicious. it just so happened i had absolutely nothing planned for dinner that same saturday night, so lucky for me while browsing her recipes, i also found this fettuccine with blistered tomatoes and arugula. it's one of my favorite kind of meals - meatless, pasta, and ready in less than 30 minutes. i will definitely be making it again.

pappardelle with mushrooms

as much as i adore mushrooms, i've always steered clear of any recipe that called for dried porcinis. i don't know why, but they've always intimidated me; something about having to reconstitute them made me afraid they would turn into chewy sponges in the end. boy was i wrong! i'm so glad i gave this recipe a try. it's really simple and full of mushroom flavor. don't let the time fool you - 30 minutes of it is spent waiting for the porcinis to reconstitute. no wonder this was one of cooking light's best recipes.

chicken paprikash

if i remember it correctly, i was in sixth grade when i finally got a cd player for christmas. it was the first year in our new house and one of the only times i can remember waking up christmas morning in my own house. usually we went to our grandparents'. that year, they came to us.

shells with mushrooms and bacon

even before baby winn was born, jason and i have divided weekly dinner duty. usually we each choose two meals to make, assuming one night will either be leftovers or take out. usually jason chooses something without a real recipe, like paninis or pasta with meat sauce. this month, when browsing through my newest copy of everyday food with the baby, jason shouted we had to have this pasta dish for dinner. naturally, i suggested he cook it. and that he did.

The original recipe came from Everyday Food... I am a big fan of pastas with simple sauces, so when I saw this, I knew I had to make it.

sweet corn pasta

a couple noteworthy things have happened in the last couple days -
for updates and other tidbits you won't find here, like kitchen trial and error on facebook
the huffington post and spry living featured my creamy barley with tomatoes, chicken and spinach. click the links to get other recipes featuring whole grains and barley.

and now, the pasta. this pasta fits in perfectly during two times of the year: the end of summer when sweet corn is at it's peak and the dead of winter. i think we can all agree tossing pasta with lemon, fresh basil, and fresh sweet corn at the end of summer is perfect, but it would also be a great reminder of better weather to come in the dead of winter, once the holidays are over, and we're sick of digging out our cars every day. it took me a total of 20 minutes to whip this together, making it a perfect weeknight meal.

pearl couscous with roasted tomatoes & onions

remember this spring when i made this outrageously good chicken and pearl couscous with tomato and lemon? i haven't made a single thing with pearl couscous since then. not a single, solitary thing. so this week, as i was planning dinner, i was in the mood for something just a little bit different but also really quick and easy. i did what any other person would do: googled.

in my quest for a good pearl couscous recipe, i finally came to this one from running to the kitchen. i knew the flavors would be good - roasted tomatoes and onions, bright lemons, fresh mint and basil, and salty feta - as a side with baked fish. this was beyond delicious and deceptively simple. this couscous would be perfect for an end of summer picnic, since it can be served warm or at room temperature. leftovers reheat well and are equally delicious served with two poached eggs on top. 

penne with pesto, tomatoes, and crispy prosciutto

after reading through my dad's pesto tale last week, i had pesto on the brain. lucky for me, i also had a pint of fresh cherry tomatoes from my mom's backyard - lucky, since the chipmunks and deer managed to eat all of my tomatoes, plant and all, this year - and my basil was overflowing. i tossed the two together, topped it with some prosciutto i crisped up in a pan and had a simple, flavorful, thirty minute summer-on-a-plate dinner.

linguini with potatoes, green beans and pesto

ever since my mom got an ipad last year, a couple times a month, she emails a picture of some baked good or dinner that's so good, she has to share. after more than a few this summer, i casually mentioned she should be a guest blogger. instead, my dad took on the challenge.

i've said time and time before that food and places are intricately tied together (see food always tastes better outside, blackberry peach cake,  mini baked chocolate cake donuts and  strawberry jam). while i was at the dinner my father describes so well here, i don't remember it much, if at all. my italian memories center around gelato and prosciutto with melon. i've always found it funny how two people, on exactly the same trip, remember very different things.

By Guest Blogger "Pops"

Kate didn't become a foodie totally by chance. Her Mom and I sewed those seeds long ago as we are both quite the foodies in our own right. One of Kate's Mama's favorites has always been pesto. I could take it or leave it but if given my druthers I would leave it, that is until the magical evening of August 6, 2004.

orzo with artichoke pesto and grilled corn

i spent my last childless saturday morning being as lazy as possible. i watched a couple hours of food network, caught up on a couple magazines, and did whatever else i felt like. that morning, i watched giada make this orzo pasta salad as part of a simple beach picnic and decided to invite some friends over for one last pre-baby dinner - and a reason to make the salad.

one of our good friends - who will remain nameless - hates artichokes. i mean, hates them with all his might. and of course, he just happened to be coming over for dinner. i was careful not to mention the artichokes and was pleasantly surprised to see him go back for seconds! while i haven't been able to totally convert him, it's a start.

jason's pasta primavera

below is the third installment from jason, my taste tester, who - since his macaroni and cheese success and egg sandwich experiment - has decided cooking isn't really too hard. he has occasional food projects, just like me, that he wants to share. here's his method for pasta primavera.

With my friend visiting from out of town, I wanted to make a good meal that he would like. He told me that he likes pasta primavera, a dish I've never made before and have eaten only a couple of times -- rare enough I couldn't remember what the dish was. Basically, pasta primavera is a pasta focused on vegetables, and sometimes has meat.