We’ve been a little under the weather for the last couple weeks (as this terrible head-cold that’s going around has made its way through each family member!), so Superman and I have each made a version of “Mom’s Homemade Chicken Soup” over the last two weeks. The “mom” in the title is my mom. It’s her recipe. And everyone loves it.

A generation later, I’ve made it enough now that my kids think it’s mine. So now I, too, have a “Mom’s Homemade Chicken Soup.”

(But every kid needs to have a “Mom’s Homemade Chicken Soup,” don’t you think?)  Continue reading →

… herbs, that is.

I’m always a little stunned that basil costs so much at the grocery store. It’s about $3 or more for this tiny plastic tub-thing that gives you only about six leaves. Not that I need more than six leaves, but still … $3???? That’s kind of crazy. And we use basil a lot. We do a mixture of basil, olive oil, roma tomatoes and cheese (parm or mozzerella) that we spoon over cheese ravioli and then hum and close our eyes because it’s so delicious. And I do a bruchetta that’s almost the same (only feta cheese, and the addition of olives). I always love basil in spaghetti sauce, too.

So, at the grocery store a few weeks ago, I saw this basil plant for only $1.99! Thought I’d try to grow my own. Look how cute he looks. My brother-in-law called him Senior Basil:

Unfortunately, while we were gone on our week-long road trip, Senior Basil bit the dust.

Hoping it was only due to the fact that we were gone for a week, I decided to try again and bought another one. I’m giving it another whirl. …

I’ve never been good at growing anything on that window sill before. It doesn’t get any direct sun, and I’m not sure how much sun basil needs. (I think a lot?)

Now, one herb I DO have good luck with is rosemary, but absolutely anyone can grow rosemary in So. Cal because it grows like wild here. (It actually thrives when it’s hardly watered and left to die.) Here’s my crazy rosemary. (I zoomed in really close and took this at a reeeeeeally creative angle so you couldn’t see the rest of my yard, which looks horrible right now!):

I’ve got this rosemary growing for about five feet along the side of my house. I send the kids outside for some when we roast red potatoes or chicken.

And that’s lavender in the background, too (the bluish green plant) — I suppose I can cook with that, too, right? I’ll have to look into that one. I have recipes for both a lavender lemon cake and a lavender limeade, but I’m never sure if all lavender is the same and you can cook with any? Or are there only certain varieties that can be used for cooking?

So what’s next up? Maybe dill! (I’m gettin’ wild, people!)

Do you have luck with any herbs? Do you have tips for growing the basil? Do you think Senior Basil II will survive? Any favorite dishes for using rosemary or basil?

This is Dave. He’s Superman’s youngest brother. He comes into my kitchen like this from time to time and shows me a thing or two about finding my way around.

My culinary skills can be described as thus: late-blooming, learned from television, rather routine but with brief flashes of delicious.

I can make a normal dinner for my family that my kids seem to think is edible, but I make the same things over and over, and did for a good seven years when I was a SAHM. My kids had almost memorized my rotation: spaghetti, potato soup, beef au jour, tuna melts, ravioli with chopped tomatoes and basil, and mastociolli. Those were my basics.

Now that I’m a working gal again, Superman has taken on the cooking. Mostly because he’s home before I am, so it makes more sense to have him start things simmering. Superman is actually a very good cook. His salsa is brilliant. And he also makes us pancakes, breakfast burritos on Sundays, the most amazing enchiladas ev-ah that he learned from his dad, and hamburgers that could be served in restaurants. He also grills. And he makes a delicious Spanish soup (at least that’s what I call it, because it has lots of cilantro, some kind of hot pepper, chicken with a good spicy finish, and is topped with cheese/tortilla strips/onions). Continue reading →