Cooking For One

Dear readers:

I’m writing to let you know that Phoebe will be leaving Big Girls, Small Kitchen this week, to pursue other paths.

I’m sorry to lose a partner, and I know we’ll all miss her richly described travelogues and genius gluten-free recipes gracing the pages of BGSK. She’ll be here tomorrow to wish all of you a fond farewell.

And–don’t worry! This site will live vibrantly on under my quarter-life care. Stay tuned for great new features, starting with an open-faced egg sandwich I know you need to add to your comfort food repertoire.

I do want to…

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EGG ON TOP MEALS: Polenta with Fried Capers, Red Pepper, and an Egg; Grits with Old Bay Frizzled Shallots and a Fried Egg; “Eggs in Pipérade” Pizzas with Crispy Prosciutto; Baked Eggs with Tomatoes & Smoky Potatoes; Ginger-Scallion Noodles

There is perhaps nothing I like better than finding leftover quinoa in a Tupperware in the fridge. And if there’s a night when I’ve gone out to dinner with friends while Alex stays home, it’s not unlikely that the next day I will get to feast on the remains of his dinner–unless he’s made himself…

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Consider me slightly late to the party, but recently, I’ve been having a love affair with Heidi Swanson.

Even though I am a long-time devotee of Peter Berley, another vegetarian food icon, in my post-college carnivorous state, I don’t think I gave proper mind to the more veg-centric food bloggers out there. Or, at least, in my own experimentation with their recipes.

One of my private chef clients is vegan, and it’s opened up my eyes and my palate to some very intriguing possibilities – and Heidi has been…

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Check out my beloved Grilled Cheese Pinboard!

My apologies: it’s the second to last day of January, and I’ve yet to post about grilled cheese. It doesn’t mean that 2012 isn’t a year of eating and writing about my favorite sandwich, er, meal.

Fortunately, it’s a good one, a classic inspired by the rich French soup, and perfect for winter. It’s also incredibly simple. Just two ingredients make this sandwich, a red onion jam created by Merrill over at Food52 and first seen on BGSK in another simple dish, a

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Back in May, right before our book came out, I moved out of the apartment I shared with Caitlyn for four years, and temporarily back into my parents’ place. Now, it’s 2012. And guess what? I’m still here…

As the idea of “temporarily” went out the window in mid-November, my mother and I began to have a bit of a turf war over the kitchen. Most of the time, she was happy to let me cook in peace. But come lunchtime, which as a fellow self-employed soul, could range from 11am to about 3pm, things could get…

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OTHER EASY SOUPS: Asian Broth with Shredded Veggies and Noodles; Cauliflower Soup with Sharp Cheddar and Thyme; Leek Soup with Lemon and Dill

January has always felt like a month meant for hibernation. It takes time to recover from the holiday season, and all the marathon socializing that comes with it. And my body is usually telling me “no more finger food, no more people,” and “more blankets, more mindless television.”

But when I feel like holing up like this, I also usually want to cook. Not fussy things that take…

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DISH: Polenta with Fried Capers, Red Peppers, and an Egg
TYPE: There’s-nothing-in-the-house-to-eat Lunch or Dinner
MAIN INGREDIENT: Polenta, Red Peppers, Capers, Egg

Has this ever happened to you–that there’s absolutely nothing in the house to eat? Either it’s been a while since you’ve gone shopping, or you’ve arrived at a weekend or rental house and the cupboards are bare. As likely as not, all the stores are closed, you’re snowed in, or you’re simply too lazy to go out.

But because I live in an apartment of ingredients where there’s very little food you could grab and…

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OTHER BOOZY FOODS: Oatmeal Stout Cake; Beer-Braised Short Ribs with Soy and Honey; Baked Tofu with White Wine, Mustard, and Dill

If my ex-boyfriend North had his way, he would have eaten Penne alla Vodka for every meal. No matter what the venue—New York diner, upscale Italian restaurant, or our college dining hall—he would try to order this pasta dish, and amazingly enough, most of the time he got his way.

I’ve never been one for depriving myself of rich, indulgent food. But somehow I drew the line at Penne…

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BGSK’s Other Prize-Winning Grilled Cheese Sandwiches: Grilled Cheddar Sandwich with Pears and Pecans; Perfect Grilled Cheese; Grilled Mushroom-Cheddar Melts; Prosciutto & Fontina Panini with Arugula Pesto and Pickled Shallots.

We believe there’s a pretty fine art to grilled cheese sandwiches, one that you too can achieve mastery at by watching this video.

Look, they may seem simple: some bread, some butter, some cheese. But there are finer points. And then there are tweaks.

Once you move beyond the three necessary ingredients, you move into a kind of wonderland. You get to…

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OTHER QUICK PASTAS FOR ONE: Soba Noodles with Kale and Walnut Sauce; Spaghetti with Spicy Red Sauce; Pad See Ew; Garlicky Angel Hair with Shellfish; Linguine Aglio e Olio con Acciuga

When no one else is around for dinner and I get hungry, chances are I’ll whip up some pasta for myself. As anyone who cooks for one knows, it’s one of the best ways to make a single-serving portion, and as everyone in the world knows, pasta is just about the best foil for whatever ingredients and leftovers you have…

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