A savory custard pie easy enough for Sundays

When COVID-19 shut down our city, my business, which focused on promoting local events, came to a screaming halt. Routine is something that has always been important to me. When I no longer had my work, I had to create wayfinders to navigate my new, unstructured lifestyle. That’s where quiche comes in. Quiche always seemed…

Leftovers remix: Sweet potato hummus flatbread

I’ve been trying to have healthier lunch ingredients on hand so I don’t have a hanger moment and hit the Postmates button. I stumbled upon this recipe for sweet potato hummus to go with grain bowls. I made A LOT of it. It’s so good. Dinner rolled around the other night and I was craving…

Recipe: Vacation Reboot Mediterranean Mini Meatloafs

What a month! I’ve spent the past several weeks traveling with J and his mom, beginning with an Alaskan cruise and ending with a trip to the Oregon coast. While I love trying new foods, I have to say I was so relieved to be home and back in my kitchen. Vacation foods, especially on…

Recipe: Very Romantic Spaghetti Carbonara

The first time I had mind-blowing spaghetti carbonara was on my honeymoon in Rome, Italy. It was not the first time I ate the dish. There were variations at various American pasta spots that added heavy cream or mozzarella to the dish, making it more like Alfredo. Good, but a little heavy and lacking finesse.

With a little help from my friends: Food Budget Diary #4

Monday Breakfast/Lunch Coffee and then a salad with leftover chicken for J. I have my leftover chicken and rice. It holds up really well. Sometimes rice will get dry but I think due to the fat content here, it was all good.

Thank goodness for leftovers: Food Budget Diary #3

I have an abbreviated food diary for last week starting from when my houseguest left (miss you already Gaby!). Wednesday It’s a real old Mother Hubbard situation in here since I haven’t cooked anything in almost a week. Time to re-up on groceries and get back on track.

The reasons I dine out too much: Summer edition

See that delicious polenta? Full disclosure: I did not cook that. The last week has been a bit of a fail in the home cooking/food budgeting department. J and I went on a short trip to the coast to escape the heat and then, I’ve had my very favorite cousin in town for the past…

Recipe: Grown-up Sloppy Joes

How many of you loved sloppy joes as a kid? There’s nothing quite like ground beef smothered in a tomato sauce both salty and sweet, served atop a squishy, white-bread hamburger bun. It was one of the few times you could throw manners aside and let that filling drip down your face while wiping with…

Eat like a kid, (try to) budget like an adult

We have a stressful week coming up. We run an events and jobs website, and our main employee is out of town all week (I miss you already, Wendy!). We are down to J, myself and our part-time worker. I’m hoping I can continue my budgeting efforts even though my finger is going to be…

Let’s try this budget thing!

Hello there! This was my first week taking a hard look at how I spend on food. Living in Portland with an abundance of dining options, my main challenge is NOT eating out every night. Because I could, probably at a different place every night #blessed. BUT I also want to pay my bills and…