Rhythm. It’s the stuff that our days are made of. It makes things regular and predictable and gives us a sense of calm, even when chaos threatens.

Finding a rhythm when something changes always take a little time. When Will started kindergarten in September, it took a couple of weeks back in to find the right morning rhythm. Ok. Maybe it was a couple months.

Right now? I am trying to find my own new rhythm. Recently, I started a new job with a company I love. It’s part time and includes some office hours for me — something I haven’t had in nearly three years. I’m still freelancing as well, and developing new recipes. Meanwhile, I am seeking that new balanced rhythm that keeps me calm, sane and focused to get everything done that needs doing. I hope I find it soon.

When you are seeking a new rhythm, basic things like making lunch or having side dishes planned and ready to go can be a challenge. That’s where simple, easy, tasty and versatile dishes come in. Dishes like this Balsamic Pasta Salad.

Sweet bell peppers, vinaigrette-soaked broccoli, soft but firm pasta and salty olives combine with a sweet-tart homemade balsamic vinaigrette. It’s summery, balanced and so fresh.

And when you are stressed about dinner or worried about getting all your work done or wondering what you will pack for your child’s lunch, having a batch of this in the fridge ready to go is a huge blessing.

Really. Truly.

More Pasta Salad Recipes:

• Lemony Pasta Salad
• Antipasti Pasta Salad
• Orange Pasta Salad

What’s your go-to dish to keep on hand when things get hectic?

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Clear as day, I remember the first time I had white clam sauce. I was probably 8 or 9 and out to dinner with my family at this great pasta restaurant on the Connecticut shoreline. The restaurant is not there anymore, but when it was it could be relied on for amazing, delicious housemade pasta dishes served with bread so fresh it was still warm from the oven. I remember reading the menu and wondering why the white clam sauce was so different from the red sauce, which I knew I liked. I asked and was told it wasn’t as good as the red sauce. Still intrigued, I ordered it anyway.

White clam sauce is a different world from its red counterpart. It’s nuanced in flavor, lighter in texture and ultimately lets the clams really be the star, supported by garlic and other flavors. Usually, it has butter and white wine in it to round out the flavors as well — though not always, as this recipe attests.

And yes, that first time I tried it, I did like it.

When I recently received a review copy of Cristina Ferrare’s Big Bowl of Love: Delight Family and Friends with More than 150 Simple, Fabulous Recipes, I totally and immediately gravitated to Cristina Farrare’s recipe for clam sauce. It’s a simple version made with ingredients you probably have in the pantry (plus fresh parsley). For the fresh parsley, I ran out to my herb garden and cut some to use, but it’s also readily available at the grocery store. Then, the pasta came together super fast. Less than 20 minutes later, I was taking photos of the final dish. I loved that it’s this easy and simple to make. Also, the infusion of lemon really makes it amazing.

So far, I am loving Cristina Ferrare’s cookbook. When I opened it, it instantly inspired me to get into the kitchen and try something, which is a reliable sign of a well-done cookbook.  The recipes and photos (and let’s face it: photos are a must in today’s cookbooks) make you want to try everything. And if this recipe is any indication, the flavors are worth the effort.

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For years I haven’t watched the news at night. While I think it’s important to be informed (and I am), it’s easy to become enraptured with the frightening amount of bad things that happen every day everywhere. I like to believe in the inherent goodness of people, but also realize that for whatever reason some people do very bad things. But it’s my choice not to focus on those things. So, I change the channel when the news comes on.

All of this is a wind up to explain why it was so unusual for me to watch the news last night. I’d heard a preview about rising food prices, and I had to tune in. I handle the budgeting for our family — for everything from food and utilities to vacations — so I really feel the impact when prices rise. I wanted to know what I am in for.

The news isn’t good. We all know that the price of gas and food has risen over the last year. Fuel, which has risen nearly 30 percent in the last year, is largely to blame … and the rising prices aren’t done climbing yet. Gas is expected to topple the $5 a gallon mark soon — something that was unthinkable a decade ago. With this, the cost of meat has and will continue to rise, as will pantry staples. How much? Beef alone is expected to rise by 7% this year. Good thing we don’t eat a lot of beef anymore, right? But the rise in prices is largely across the board, so not eating beef won’t let us escape the costs.

The cost of putting food on the table — any food at all — is rising. Whether you eat all organic or whole foods or cleanly or low-carb, it doesn’t matter. If you aren’t feeling the pinch yet, you will.  That is scary.

This all made me start thinking about ways to cut costs, naturally. There’s only so much my family — and especially me — can comfortably cut back. As a food writer who makes a living developing recipes, I have to buy certain ingredients no matter what the cost. But what I can do is cut back in other ways like cutting back on my coffee habit, getting less takeout and driving less. And I can plan our meals in advance, allowing me to save on gas for the many trips to the grocery store I make each week.

Really, no matter whether food is an intrinsic part of your work or just what you need to nourish your family, planning is absolutely key to frugal eating. This dish — Lemony Pasta Salad — is a perfect example of a well-planned meal. It’s a side dish with 12 portions, so you can make it for dinner one night and have plenty of leftovers for lunches and quick sides all week. Easy.
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At dinner the other night, I found myself talking about how I came to start developing recipes and writing about food. It seems like so long ago now, but I once was a in-the-thick-of-it news reporter, covering politics and crime. I was on a first name basis with court marshals because I saw them nearly every day, and I had local officials on speed dial. And back then, before I had children, I lived and breathed my work — and none of it phased me.

But then something happened. I became a mom. Suddenly, the subjects that I covered didn’t sit well with me anymore. Though I still loved my work, I couldn’t stomach the stories I worked on — ones where people were facing low-points in their lives. I’d changed, and my career had to change with me, so I didn’t return to the newspaper full time after that.

I don’t know what really led me to food writing, beyond a fleeting interest in it. Honestly, I thought I would leave the newspaper, parent full time and churn out a few novels. But after attending a writing conference, I decided to try food writing via a blog … if only for a little while to develop clips. It’s been nearly five and a half years.

It’s funny how that small change in my mindset led me to where I am now. I’m happy writing about food, happy trying new recipes — even when they don’t work out every time, happy being someone who can type up this blog post on a shrimp and pasta recipe and have someone be reading it moments later. Everything changed, and I am glad for it.

This delicious pasta was a Saturday afternoon creation. We’d shivered our way through a freezing, windy soccer practice and returned home to veg. All thoughts of errand running were discarded in favor of an afternoon movie, and some comfy blankets. So, lunch? It needed to be hot, fast and comforting. This Shrimp, Basil and Tomato Pasta with Manchego Cheese is all that.

I’ve used basil and garlic with shrimp in a pasta before (see: Creamy Gorgonzola and Shrimp Pasta) and tomatoes, basil and shrimp are a natural fit (see: Fresh Tomato Basil Pasta with Romano Roasted Shrimp). But changing up the ingredients just a bit can lead to a whole new shrimp pasta dish. This one is different from all previous dishes thanks to the addition of Manchego cheese, an aged Spanish cheese that  is buttery with a mild and pleasant flavor. It’s made from Sheep’s milk.

So, this pasta has a touch of creaminess with the familiar flavors of tomato, basil and garlic. And then there is the shrimp, which soaks up a bit of it all. Delish.

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Last week, I asked on the Sarah’s Cucina Bella Facebook page if anyone would be interested in my ultra-fast recipe for homemade macaroni and cheese that takes about 15 minutes to make. The answer was a swift and resounding “Yes!”

I loved the response. I loved knowing that this is something that people want to hear about. And I love sharing it because it is so freakin’ easy.

This recipe is something I have worked on and honed over the last few months. I started making it one snowy night when Shawn and I were trying to decide what to make as a side dish for dinner. We were out of the boxed mac and cheese, but it seemed like the perfect accompaniment for the chicken he was making. So, I tossed together a quick roux (that’s just a fancy word for a butter and flour mixture), added whatever milk and cream I could find in the fridge and tossed in cheese.

It worked. In fact, it worked so well that I made it again shortly after. It’s become a staple for us because it’s fast (10 minutes of active cooking!) and made from ingredients that I always have on hand: butter, flour, milk, cheddar, dry mustard and salt.

A note on the dry mustard: I hate mustard. But this spice (it’s a powder, found in the seasonings aisle at the grocery store) is absolutely essential to a great cheese sauce. It really brings out the flavor of the cheddar cheese.

The recipe is below, but I wanted to give you three really clear steps on how to do this so it takes 10 minutes to cook (Note: total time is slightly longer if you add in the 5-10 minutes it takes to get the water to boil).

Step 1: Fill up the pot of water and get it going on the stove. It’s going to take a little while to start boiling, so do this first.

Step 2: Gather and measure the ingredients. I cannot stress how important this is. Once you start making the sauce, you need to move fast so having everything measured and ready to go is essential. Do this while you are waiting for the water to boil. Also, you will need a wire whisk and a rubber spatula or a spoon with a long handle.

Step 3: Cook everything.
Alright, this is crunch time. But if your ingredients are all ready, it’s a cinch. Toss the pasta in the water, then start cooking the sauce. But make sure you time it so that the pasta and sauce are done at about the same time. How?

It’s easy. The sauce takes about 10 minutes to make. So, depending on how long it takes to cook your pasta to al dente (these small shells took 10 minutes), you may start making it at the same time as the pasta goes in the water or you may wait a few minutes.

Making the sauce will be an intense 10 minutes. You really need to stay there, stirring a lot. But once the cheese sauce is done, the whole dish is done. You toss the sauce with the pasta and voila! You’ve made macaroni and cheese, no package of powdered cheese required.

That’s it.

See also Slow-Cooker Macaroni and Cheese. Read the rest of this entry…

Happy Friday, everyone!

If you are looking for a fast, fresh and delicious meatless meal today, try this ultra simple Asparagus, Shrimp and Mushroom Pasta. The veggies and shrimp are roasted in the oven before being toss with the pasta and a bit of pasta water. Seasoned simply with garlic, salt, pepper and a drizzle of lemon juice, if desired, this is too good not to share.

This was so good that it totally disappeared when I make it. Seriously. I expected there to be enough leftovers that Will could take it for lunch to school the next day. No such luck. The kids and I devoured the dish. Every. Last. Bite.

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Like most people, I learned to love pierogies thanks to the frozen section of the grocery store. They were easy to heat up and eat fast, which made them all the more desirable. I never even thought of how the potato and cheese filled pasta was made, until I was working at the newspaper years ago and heard about a local group’s pierogi making party.

Even then, I never thought I would make them myself.

But I did decide to try making pierogies. Now, these probably aren’t as amazing as a polish grandmother’s time honored recipe, but they are easy, delicious and even better than the frozen ones that I fell in love with years ago.

The filling is a mix of potato from a baked potato (save the skins for potato skins!), cheddar, salt, pepper and milk. The pasta outside? Premade round wraps from the grocery store. You can find these in the produce section near the wonton wrappers. They are pasta, and are super easy to use.

Have you taken the Family Meals Survey 2011 yet? If not, please do! I am researching the topic for some writing assignments, and would love your input. It only takes a few minutes. Thank you!!
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This pasta is a step out of the ordinary for me.

It’s rare that I make a pound of pasta for the four of us. Usually I am a half-pound-serves-four girl, but when I was making this, I decided to indulge. Good thing I did. The kids went crazy for this pasta, each having a second helping (which means they ate one adult-portion, instead of their half portion that I scooped out).

Generally, I don’t make cream pastas either. But the carton of heavy cream was staring me down, and I wanted to use it. I wanted something rich and creamy for dinner. This totally fit the bill (without being obnoxiously bad — yes, it has bacon and cream, but not an overt amount of either).

It’s not the healthiest dinner you can have, but sometimes having something that just hits the spot is just fine. Of course, this isn’t an every night thing … but once in a while? No biggie, I think.

Just try it. It’s delicious.

What do you think? Is indulging in a pasta like this okay once in a while?

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My husband knows that when I want to make a dietary change (like when I decided to cut way back on red meat last year), the whole family is going to be in on it with me. Hey, I am no short order cook, and I am confident that whatever healthy meals I serve will be fine for all. When I told him about Eat. Live. Be. For a Better 2011, he was right on board with eating healthier. (Color me lucky, right?)

So, Shawn did a little reading up and discovered Cook This, Not That! Easy & Awesome 350-Calorie Meals, a handy little cookbook all about low-calorie, high-taste meals. Of course, he ran right out and bought it. Like that day.

This cookbook is super visual, pitting the healthy meals that are roughly 350-calories or so each (the book says this one was 390 calories, but since I used low-fat milk, it was slightly higher) against high-calorie restaurant meals. It’s really interesting to see how the meals are slimmed and how many calories are saved. Eye-opening really.

At my suggestion, Shawn made us this Red Pepper Alfredo for dinner from the book. He cooks breakfast often, but dinner rarely — mostly because I like to do it. But I am warming to sharing the responsibility again a bit. A little, little bit.

So, anyway, the alfredo. Oh. My. Goodness. If I didn’t know that it was low-calorie, I would never ever guess it. The rich, slightly sweet, creamy sauce is amazing. Actually decadent is a better way to describe it. I swear, we all nearly licked our bowls. Loved it.

We’re really liking this cookbook and cannot wait to try something else from it. What’s your favorite healthy cookbook?

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This is a delicious, easy macaroni and cheese … but we will get to that in a minute.

Until I was in high school, I visited Santa every year — either at the mall or some store that hosted him. It was a thing, a must. But with Will and Paige, I haven’t made it a priority. Honestly, for the first couple years, we tried the whole mall Santa thing, and it didn’t work out. Sorry, but I don’t want any photos of my kids sobbing on some random Santa’s lap (which we all know is one of Santa’s helpers, since Santa can’t be everywhere all the time).

This year, I tried to do something awesome with the kids. Over the weekend, we headed out to a small Santa train ride event not far from our house. Will and Paige have always wanted to ride a train and it seemed like the perfect opportunity when a friend discovered it. Trains? Santa? Hot chocolate? Score!

I don’t even know where to begin. The ride amounted to little more than inching forward, inching back and going forward again. Will was bored. Paige was still waiting for the ride to stop when we were supposed to get off the train and go meet the big guy.

In short: it sucked.

But the very worst part? The unfriendly Santa with the falling-off beard. He wasn’t jolly. He didn’t laugh or “ho-ho-ho.” Heck, he didn’t even say hello or greet the kids at all when it was Will and Paige’s turn (what exactly was he waiting for, anyway?). And it certainly didn’t help that his do-called Elves weren’t even in costume.

Bah, we won’t be going back there. Though I have heard that there are some truly fabulous train rides like this. Have you taken one? Dish in the comments.

Fortunately, Paige met a different helper today who lived up to Santa’s name. He had the booming voice, the jolly demeanor and he was so friendly that Paige voluntarily hugged him. She doesn’t hug often. And look! His beard is where it’s supposed to be!

Now onto the Slow-Cooker Macaroni and Cheese. This has to be the easiest recipe for macaroni and cheese that I have ever, ever made. You basically throw everything in a slow-cooker and cook it up. That’s all. No stirring over the stove necessary. Heck, I might even whip up a double batch for Christmas.

This recipe calls for cheddar, which is my favorite for macaroni and cheese. What cheese do you like in yours?

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