just the food, ma'am.

here's a spate of foodstuffs that have kept me going in the last few months:



gorgeous pizza: focaccia crust, roasted homegrown green zebra tomato puree (from the freezer—much obliged to myself circa september 2010 for thinking of me), fresh spinach leaves, kalamata olives, chopped onion, a drizzle of olive oil. i especially like this photo because of the shocked visage of the little garlic pot—so expressive.



sourdough ciabatta? yeah, i conquered that with my own four hands (okay, two of them were max's). check out those holes!

the recipe is from wild yeast blog, which has guided us through many thrilling sourdough adventures so far.

when you have freshly baked ciabatta rolls in your apartment, you make a sandwich.



a perfect sandwich is about as perfect as perfect gets. perfect sandwich: homemade ciabatta roll, dijon mustard, sliced avocado, baked marinated tofu, crispy dry-fried kale strips.



more luxury: heaps of tender homemade noodles (rolled and cut by our glorious little hand crank pasta machine), topped with crispy kale (washed and dried as thoroughly as possible, cut into strips, then briefly dry roasted in the oven at around 200 F—like quick no-oil kale chips) and sautéed seasoned tempeh cubes, all drizzled generously with toasted walnut oil and sprinkled with coarse salt. this dish is such a reward to ourselves, it's totally worth the effort.



oh no! i've really been neglectful because these raviolis—my customary birthday supper—date back to december. naturally, the meal was preceded by rollerskating and subsequent cocktails by candlelight (the rain darkened the bar, but failed to dampen our spirits).

homemade hand-cut ravioli with roasted butternut squash filling and a buttery-kale-walnut sauce...growing old is really not so bad when you have a dear someone to cook exquisite birthday meals for you.