So long. Farewell.

Today is our last post. Our last post forever? Maybe. But definitely our last post for the foreseeable future. This blog started four years ago this month as a project that we worked on when we lived close together and wanted an opportunity to take more pictures (of food) and have an excuse to try dishes that were anything from weird, to exciting, buttery, inventive, healthy, sugary...not that you really need an excuse for something like that. We have enjoyed having a place to collect our favorite recipes and share them with you, even when we weren't sure anyone was reading. But as time has passed and demands on our time have increased, the time is right to move on to other things. Thanks for reading and please keep using and sharing our recipes; we'll check back on the comments from time to time to say hello. We will miss you.

Cheater Carbonara

Caroline doesn't have a lot of time to spend in the kitchen these days. And when dinner time rolls around, she often finds herself cooking with a little helper sitting at, on, or near her feet. Maybe you know the feeling?

Some days you have time for chicken marsala or roasted vegetable lasagna or black bean and chicken chilaquiles. But when things get a little crazy, you have nothing good in the cupboard, old pasta hanging out in the fridge, and kids clamoring to be be fed- you know the type of day we're talking about- you just need something good and fast.

Enter this cheater carbonara. Pasta alla carbonara is an Italian dish from the area of Rome. The original features a silky egg and cheese based topping that's not quite a sauce (like in our Orrechiette Carbonara), but isn't scrambled eggs either. We call this recipe "cheater" carbonara because, while you'll find egg and bacon here, the cooking method is a snap.

Angel Hair with Shiitake, Caramelized Onions and Spinach

We here in DC are quietly waiting for Hurricane Sandy to collide with some nice arctic Canadian air. It's the calm before the storm...just waiting. Will classes be canceled? Will the city flood, or, more specifically, will my basement manage to stay dry? Will we all lose power? When we all lose power, how long will it be out? We'll just have to wait and see, I suppose. And just what does this have to do with this dish? Not one thing. I just wanted you to think about the hurricane even if you live far away. It's a little exciting in a bad-things-could-happen kind of way. Anyway. On with our recipe for today.

One of the farmers at the market in Old Town Alexandria sells some of the most delectable mushrooms I've ever eaten. And the shiitakes, oh the shiitakes! I knew they deserved their own dish to highlight such a rich, buttery flavor. So I caramelized some onions, and tossed them together with the mushrooms and some spinach (or arugula, as my husband prefers, but it's a bit bitter for me sometimes) in some angel hair pasta and voila! A simple, elegant, and, might I be so bold to say, superb pasta dish that will tempt even those who think they don't love mushrooms. 

Frosted Pumpkin Bars

Oh heavens! These are Tasty with a capital "T". I have been craving pumpkin goodies, and as you probably know if you've ever made a pumpkin confection, you always have more pureed pumpkin in a can than you actually need. So you get to make several pumpkin treats. It is a great deal if you ask me. I mean you don't want to waste any food do you? No, that's what I thought.

Potato Kale Bake

I love and hate Sundays. I love them because it's the one day of the week when I generally don't have anything I simply have to do- I can sleep in, go for a long walk, relax, cook, read, go to church, talk with family, watch movies, etc. I hate them because we have church at 3. 3:00 to 6:00 pm, to be precise. And yes, it's just as dreadful as you might imagine. Gone are the days of elaborate Sunday dinners. Gone are long afternoon naps. But. It does give me time and reason to make much tastier lunches than I normally would have. Which, considering my usual distaste for that meal, is quite a feat. So yesterday I decided to make this potato kale concoction before heading out to our evening church. And it was a warm, flavorful, and delicious lunch.

German Donuts

If you ask any of my uncles what they wish my grandma would make more often, they'd promptly respond "keekles." Also known as fasnachts or Küchle if you're German (or spudnuts if you're an Idahoan), they're basically a donut made from a potato enriched dough. We all have fond memories of fall days at grandma's house with gallons upon gallons of cider and mountains of freshly made keekles rolled in powdered sugar, enough to satisfy the entire Koeberle clan. 

Traditionally these donuts are served on Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras), obviously because of all the gluttony they inspire. My grandma's newspaper clipping with the original recipe tells the story of a little girl who ate 15 donuts all in one sitting...her mother encouraged her to repent afterwards, but the girl remained unrepentant, proud even, of her donut binge. Such is the way with keekles. I know from experience (though you might want to ask my sister Kate how she felt after eating 8 before you try it yourself).

Kate's Chicken Chimmichangas

There was a period of time not so long ago that chimmichangas were pretty much the only thing my sister Kate would eat (that and ice cream, of course). She used to beg my parents to take her to the Mexican place one town over at least once a week. But then I came to visit and we dug up an old recipe from my aunt, modified it a bit, and suddenly trips to Newark were no longer necessary for Kate's happiness. She could actually have chimmies any time she wanted.

So now it seems like I "get" to make them whenever I go home to visit. It's not like Kater can't make them herself, but like most things in life, they're better when someone else makes them for you. And I'm not going to lie- these are a little bit of work. There's cooking and wrapping and frying involved, but the end result is so tasty that we usually forget about all the hard work (and oil splatter burns) after the first bite.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

It's that time of year when we start baking more and more. We use up our supply of cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice. Our homes smell wonderful and our pants get a little snug. So let it begin with these heavenly Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls.

(The little white dots are powdered sugar that I didn't mix in well enough.)

If you LOVE cinnamon rolls as much as me, I imagine that these will enter in your repertoire of great recipes. The taste of pumpkin is quite mild as is the addition of wheat flour. The dough turns out soft, the cinnamon is spicy and delicious, and the topping is ubber rich. Yes, I did love this recipe. Now my only "issue" is that I have a tray of them for my husband and I to eat, or as he suggested perhaps we could share a few (hard for me to let go of homemade cinnamon rolls though). Well, and I guess I do have another "issue". I now have quite a bit of left over pumpkin puree. I suppose I'll just have to make something else delicious today, perhaps something like our Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, Pumpkin Bread, or our Pumpkin Cookies. (A hard decision to be sure.)

Warm Cabbage Apple Salad

There's something about cooked cabbage that I just love. A good coleslaw is always appreciated, but if you really want to do me in, give me an egg roll stuffed with shredded cabbage or maybe some hearty borsch. And since I've been craving cabbage lately, I found this apple-cabbage salad to be pure fall perfection.