• Orange-glazed chicken stir fry

    Because of my pickiness, my weirdness and my shellfish allergy, I didn’t really eat Chinese food growing up. But my mom LOVES Chinese food, and once I learned how to order something that won’t kill me, I realized I actually do like things like General Tso’s chicken and fried rice. You know, the healthy stuff. […]

  • Mediterranean chicken skewers

    Chicken is not the most exciting food. I mean, it’s not bad. It has a lot of protein in it, it’s generally easy to cook and it’s versatile. But eating plain chicken every day can get pretty boring. This chicken, though, has that extra somethin’ somethin’, with the added bonus of not too many ingredients and […]

  • Sweet potato tacos

    It’s almost Cinco de Mayo! Let’s make some tacos. No, those aren’t carrots. They’re pieces of sweet potato, cut into carrot-like shapes. Stick with me here.   Back in Annapolis, Toby and I got into the habit of going out for Taco Tuesday. Most of the time, that meant meeting our friends at Paladar for margaritas, fresh guacamole, […]

  • Expeditionary cheese crisp

    Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all! I’m still in sunny (but cold) Afghanistan, but since it’s Arizona’s 102nd birthday, I wanted to share a little AZ-inspired snack I made the other day using ingredients from an MRE. In case you’re not familiar, MRE stands for Meal Ready to Eat, and they come in plastic bags. Each MRE […]

  • Four-cheese macaroni (and cheese)

    Are you ready for the Super Bowl? This will be the first time in several years that I won’t be around for Super Bowl, which is very strange for me… and possibly even stranger for Toby. He’s going to have to order some pizza and wings, I guess, or make his own bourbon chili, pulled pork, […]

  • Short rib lasagna with celery root béchamel

    A few months ago, my mother-in-law took a cooking class at the Cincinnati Women’s Club taught by a chef from a fancy Italian restaurant in town. She learned how to make a delicious, very gourmet lasagna. Then she made it for us when we stayed with her on our way to Toby’s college homecoming. You […]

  • Meaty lasagna

    I don’t make lasagna very often — in fact, I’ve only made it a few times, ever, and the last time was probably before I even met Toby. But when Toby asked me to make dinner for one of his Marines and his wife (because the wife is pregnant and on bed rest), I thought […]

  • Cheese and bacon strata

    Football is kind of a big deal around here. Between my need to watch Georgia games and Toby’s desire to watch every other football game ever played… it can get a little excessive. And while I’m on board with lot of football on TV, I wasn’t super excited when I realized that moving to the […]

  • Salt steak

    Our friend Travis is a serious griller. Not only do he and his wife Heather make several gallons of chili every fall weekend for Navy game tailgates, Travis still always makes sure to bring beef or pork (often rubbed with the awesome coffee his brother makes, and accompanied by some kind of homemade sauce), hamburgers, […]

  • Macaroni and cheese

    I love macaroni and cheese. Any kind of macaroni and cheese. Well, maybe not that dusty-tasting kind from fast food-type restaurants (I’m looking at you, Boston Market), but any other kind. Frozen, from a blue box, whatever. But I think this is the best traditional (read: no weird ingredients) macaroni and cheese ever. Seriously. Now, […]