at home with ann

I bought cod.  Cod can be so boring, and sometimes, kind of fishy.  Why did I buy cod?  It was on special and had that little "wild caught" sign in front. I picked up a filet and decided I'd figure out what to do with it once I got home.  Plain baked or broiled sounded exceedingly boring, and my basil plants weren't quite ready to be harvested for pesto.  I asked google for some suggestions and came upon cod cakes.  Always a fan of food in cake form, I went with it.  Good reviews from big and little diners, alike.  Jon and I ate them with snap peas done in the lemon-garlic style .  Cod Cakes Yield: 12 cakes 1 small onion, chopped 1/4 cup parsley (about 8 sprigs), chopped 2 cups potatoes, mashed (I used red potatoes and didn't peel them) 2 eggs, beaten 1-1 1/4 pounds cod salt pepper Old Bay (optional) 3/4-1 cup breadcrumbs canola oil Lightly saute or steam onion and mix with parsley, potatoes and eggs. Season cod with salt, pe...

Like hummus, but not hummus.  If, like Colin, Tuscan Mashed Chickpeas are too much of a mouthful for you, you can gesture wildly and say, "hummah, hummah."  Sometimes in the afternoons I turn on the Food Network while I make dinner.  Barefoot Contessa is on at 4:30 and Colin says "Iinaaaah."  My poor child is growing up without Sesame Street and instead will be saying things like, "how easy is that?" The recipe says to serve this warm, but we also enjoyed it cold and at room temperature.  Tuscan Mashed Chickpeas original recipe from Barefoot Contessa 2 (15.5-ounce) cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed 1/2 cup chicken broth 3 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for serving 2 ripe medium-size tomatoes, seeded and small-diced (or about half a pint of grape tomatoes) 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese 3 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice Kosher salt and freshly ground black ...

This is a delicious dressing that is chock full of avocado, herbs, lemon juice and a topped off with a little olive oil.  All those healthy fats, your skin will glow!  I originally made it to go on chef salads, but also used it to top black bean burgers, and as a vegetable dip.  It's very versatile.  I also licked the spatula as I was transferring it out of the food processor, but that's not an official serving suggestion. Avocado Herb Dressing 1 large avocado 1/2 lemon, juiced 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar Handful each of basil and parsley (about 1/2 cup each) Kosher salt Black pepper Water, as needed In a food processor, combine avocaod, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and herbs. Blend well until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add water until desired consistency. (More for a pourable dressing, less for a scoopable dip.  I did something in the middle, about 2 Tablespoons.) Season with salt and pepper to taste. This keeps in the frid...

This recipe was kind of, sort of, inspired by Tyler Florence.  In the midst of one of the many feeding sessions during the day, I turned on Food Network.  Tyler's Ultimate was on, he was making a roasted salmon over ratatouille, and it looked delicious.  It used to be that Colin would ignore the TV when he was eating, because, you know, eating is his favorite; but now he'll fling himself back to look around and smile at me.  This is adorable, and all well and good, but I'd really rather he focus on the task at hand, so my TV watching might need to be put on hold.  We just had salmon, and while I'm happy to eat it every week, I thought it would be good to try something a little different, so I picked up some haddock.  The summer squash and herbs were from the CSA, and they were fresh and delicious.  The Saucy Squash is really just a tomato sauce with summer squash, zucchini, tomatoes and basil.  I'm using the leftovers to make french bread pizz...