#dinneralovestory

[dinnermeat]

#tb to that time I stole a Pulitzer Prize sticker from my agent’s office. #iwuzr… #tb to that time I stole a Pulitzer Prize sticker from my intermédiaire's bref. #iwuzrobbed #whatisdalsreading #dinneralovestory

[dinnermeat]

Reminder: Last day to win a stash of @naturesbakery fig bars, my new favorite mi… Reminder: Last day to win a stash of @naturesbakery fig bars, my new préférée mid-day pick-me-ups. Follow them, then hein with the tag #dinneralovestory to be eligible. Deadline, tonight at 5:00 ET. Good luck!

[allwayshungry]

Farro Bowls with Broccoli and Avocado

Ingredients

TJ’s 10-minute farro bag (or 1 1/2 cups uncooked farro/4 cups cooked)

2-3 bunches broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets

kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon dijon mustard

1/4 cup rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/3 cup grapeseed oil or light olive oil

2 avocados, sliced or chunked

Possible toppings: chopped peanuts, sesame seeds, cilantro, furikake

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450°F

Cook farro according to package directions.

Toss broccoli, olive oil, salt and pepper in a bowl until every floret is glistening. Don’t clean bowl. Dump onto a foil-lined baking sheet and roast until crispy, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, whisk together mustard, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, oil

When broccoli has finished roasting, remove from oven and place back in the bowl. Drizzle dressing, tossing as you go until it’s dressed.

Serve with avocado and desired toppings.

[dinnermeat]

#TBT to exactly 20 years ago, February 22, 1998, when I decided to write down wh… #TBT to exactly 20 years ago, February 22, 1998, when I decided to write down what I had for dinner and just...never stopped.

[dinnermeat]

Attention new parents, new homeowners, newly betrothed or newly married: Dinner:… Zèle new parents, new homeowners, newly betrothed or newly married: Dinner: A Love Story, my first book written expressly for you milestoners, is now FREE for Kindle Unlimited subscribers.

[gastropost]

From Gastroposter Maria Pontikis, via Instagram:

Austin and I always do a bit of meal prep on Sundays to ready ourselves for the week ahead (I've linked 👆🏻 an old post explaining our meal planning process, if you're curious). Yesterday, we braised a pork shoulder for food52/ dinneralovestory's genius ragu, an endlessly adaptable base recipe scented with red wine and aromatic fennel seed. Tonight served as sugo for orecchiette, with pecorino and lemony fennel slaw, but also amazing as carnitas, heaped on sandwiches, to top polenta... with plenty left to freeze for later. loveykitchen

[cookinginterrupted]

The freezer is your friend: Part 3

I am a big fan of making things ahead and then freezing them for days when everything is crazy. Like the days when you need to make dinner but you’ve just flown home from a trip and cannot focus on making a whole meal or when your child has a baseball game at 5:30pm. Make ahead meals that just need to be reheated and paired with a few low prep work items can totally save the day letting you eat something good instead of mediocre take out. I recently found a new recipe that is perfect to make ahead for coke-braised carnitas.

This recipe was on one of my favorite blogs, Dinner a Love Story, and I was excited by how easy it was. Just put the pork in a large pot, cover with Coca Cola and a few other items, and then simmer for a few hours. I made the recipe with pork butt instead of pork loin since that’s what my butcher recommended and the pork shredded up perfectly. The recipe calls for tossing the pork with a “little bit” of the braising liquid before serving. I wound up with about 2 pounds of shredded pork and tossed each one-pound serving with 3-4 tablespoons of braising liquid to make sure it would not dry out. I used one pound of the frozen meat to make an excellent dinner of carnitas tacos with a side of some canned black beans on a busy week night. We had a tiny bit of pork left over which went into a quesadilla later in the week. The other pound of frozen pork was given to my brother who just had a baby. He and his wife were super excited to have it for dinner too and asked for the recipe.

Needless to say I’ll be making this pork again soon to restock my refrigerator. If you need more ideas for make ahead freezer meals, check out part 1 and part 2 of “The freezer is your friend”.   

[entertaininglyinsightful]

The rule is: something sweet, something crunchy, something pickled, something from a pig , and something aged. 

Find tips for making the best cheese platters here, here, and here.