My Madison Bistro

I’m a creature of habit.

Whereas some people find a routine to be stifling, to me, it’s relaxing and calming.

In the summer, my Saturday routine used to be 1) large grocery store for dry goods, 2) farmer’s market, and finally a quick stop at 3) the local market. After cleaning up produce and putting away groceries, I would make cheese ravioli and sautéed vegetables, drizzled with a little olive oil. The leftovers would be tossed in marinara, pesto, or vinaigrette for a slightly different twist for Monday’s lunch.

Eventually I abandoned that particular routine – I’d still often go to the farmer’s market on Saturday morning, but I switched up my main grocery shopping to Sunday mornings (early, of course, before the crowd shows up – I can’t be the only one who doesn’t enjoy shopping in crowded stores!). Because of the change, I no longer ate my standard ravioli/veggie combo.

So I changed things up. I adapted a recipe I saw in Eating Well to two people. Well, kind of.

Continue reading “Pasta Primavera”

Tags: Cheese, comfort food, pasta, Vegetables

For awhile now, I kept seeing this recipe pop up on food blogs. I would bookmark it, then forget about it. And frankly, I will admit, that there’s a local grocery store that sells The. Most. Amazing. Coffeecakes. Ever.

Seriously.

For a long time (well, the couple of months since my friend B discovered this coffeecake), I thought I didn’t want to try to even come close to this coffeecake. The cake was moist, the apples perfectly spices, the crumbs…my God, the crumbs. Soft, not crisp. Amazing. Decadent. Delicious. Perfect for Sunday mornings.

Then I would remember the Big Crumb Coffeecake recipe that everyone has raved about. So, I tried it. I substituted tart baking apples for the rhubarb and used all purpose flour (which many seemed to have done so far without incident), and made the coffeecake.

Continue reading “Big Crumb Apple Coffeecake”

Tags: apples, cinnamon, comfort food, fruit

For several years now, whenever I would roast a chicken, I would either stash the carcass away in my freezer, or deposit it directly into my soup pot. Last Thanksgiving, the turkey bones were turned into stock for my parents, and just last week, the leftover carcass from a turkey breast became stock (same recipe as chicken stock).

And yet, I’d never made beef stock before. So, I picked up some marrow bones and beef soup bones from the butcher (these are seriously inexpensive), waited for a cool day (it froze this weekend! Twice!), and got to work.

Continue reading “Beef Stock Recipe”

Tags: beef, Carrots, celery, garlic, Onions, prunes

If you’re looking for an excuse to eat cookies for breakfast, might I suggest these Cherry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies?

You could think of them as a bowl of oatmeal studded with dried cherries and a dash of sweetness. Accompanied by a cup of steaming coffee or tea with milk (gotta have some protein, right?), these cookies are the perfect breakfast for cool fall weather.

Or not. Unless, of course, you are either five years old or trying to embrace the concept of carpe diem.

But they do make a perfect snack. For regular oatmeal cookies, simply omit the almond extract, cherries, and white chocolate, and add ½ teaspoon cinnamon with the dry ingredients.

Continue reading “Cherry White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies”

Tags: cookies, dried cherries, oats, white chocolate