Lasagne is a collated noodle dish.

My perfect lasagne would be straightforward al denté noodles framed with luscious sauce, just as lightning, seen against extravagantly swirling deep blue and grey clouds, is both dramatic and simple.

This recipe is not that, but it is luscious, subtle, to remember, to repeat.

As Christmas 2012 dinner, it is especially memorable because we shared it with an unexpected and charming guest.

This is a recipe we have often enjoyed.
In 2004, I copied it from The New York Times, from Mark Bittman’s Minimalist column called
“Crossing Over to the Dark Side” (July 14).
My old computer still has some files (recipes, emails, pictures) we occasionally want to look at: No matter how many times I print this recipe, it gets lost. I want to post this favorite recipe on my blog so it will be easier for me to find in future. And I hope you appreciate it as well.

I made fish tacos: not Japanese food, but I’m sure they would love them!
In this post, I discuss how to choose a ripe avocado, a convenient way to use oysters, using panko crumbs to make a fine crisp coat for the seafood, the joys of cilantro and corn tortillas…

When I was 12, I read an article in one of my mother’s “women’s magazines” about grilled bananas. We lived in a big old house with two fireplaces where we would often toast marshmallows over the glowing embers. Roasted bananas appealed to my desire for the exotic beyond the isolated UP. My mom was skeptical while I was persistent. She finally agreed to the experiment if the bananas were wrapped in greased tinfoil and placed in the embers. She wisely prevented me from poking a banana on a marshmallow stick—the result was a gooey mash of burnt banana and margarine…

I was surprised to hear that my sister-in-law, who has traveled far and wide, has never eaten grits. This post is dedicated to her!

Grits are traditionally served in the U.S. South, east of the Mississippi River. Grits were first made with our American native corn by the indigenous American Indians of the region to preserve corn over the year from harvest to harvest. Grits are produced by treating corn kernels with an alkaline bath to remove the tough skins of the kernels, then dried and coarsely ground. The resulting product is made into a porridge and served for breakfast or as a side dish.

And they are very bland, but have texture. One can take a Japanese donburi idea to make a wonderful breakfast or light meal by adding toppings of your choice: cheese, grebenes, okra pickles, chipoltle Tabasco sauce

Several years ago, I made a special lasagne. I’d just discovered lasagne made with béchemel sauce rather than pounds of gooey cheese. Mushrooms were on sale so I was inspired to create a memorable meal. Over the years, we’ve said to each other, “Remember that mushroom lasagne!” and smile fondly. But the recipe was misplaced…
This is not that recipe, but it is deliciously extravagant with mushroom delight.

A homemade fruitcake is a revelation of how delicious it is to wrap your mouth around a spicy-rich chewy-sweet delight. The pleasure is reminiscent of summer fruits though they have been transformed by sun, heat, air and time to deeper complexity.

I’ve always loved fruitcakes!

At work the other day we were looking at a “scrap-booking charm” someone had donated. My co-worker asked, “Is that a roll of toilet paper?” Yes: there in a miniature reproduction made of plastic, was a roll of toilet tissue mounted in a tiny faux ceramic holder! We wondered why anyone would want to put such a thing into an embellished to-be-remembered-forever scrap-book page. What sort of pictures would you want to commemorate with a roll of toilet paper?
Ah. but this is a food blog, so enough about TP…

In April 1984, a 115g jar of vegemite became the first product in Australia
to be electronically scanned at a checkout.

A friend in Australia sent me an amazing gift package which included a jar of Vegemite. There was some discussion on past posts here about whether I would like it or not. When or if I can find it here in the U.S. it is very expensive, but because of this lovely present I will most certainly pay the price: I love it!

Whenever we visit “Up North” Mr. Tess and I like to stop at The Big Stone Bay Fishery to stock up on fresh Great Lakes whitefish, smoked menominee, and fish sausage. He went up by himself to help close the cottage for the season. It was an early warning of the leaf-color soon to come to us in Southern Michigan. He spent a long weekend up there and came home with lots of great fish.