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Best Meatballs

one and a half slices recipe italian spaghetti meatballs
OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Authentic Italian Meatballs

one and a half slices recipe italian spaghetti meatballs

Last weekend my world was changed forever when I was schooled by a friend very dear to me in the subtle art of the perfect Lady and the Tramp style meatball. That fine grained, tender, perfectly seasoned Italian delicacy resting lightly atop a bird’s nest of egg noodles dusted with Parmesano Reggiano. The ultimate comfort.

For a while now I have been faithfully married to my essential Bolognese sauce. Considering this sauce the pinnacle of comfort food, I had relegated meatballs to a facet of my childhood and did not intend to explore them much further. Until, that is, a friend of mine suggested we spend a chilly Sunday afternoon cooking meatballs in the style of this-is-how-my-grandma-made-it lore. Skeptical of such lore, but always willing to learn something new, we threw a cooler in the back of the car and drove out to visit Jesse Straight at Whiffletree Farm, purveyor of local chicken, pork, beef, lamb, turkey, and other pasture raised meats (see more about #eatlocal and Whiffletree Farm here). Upon our return, we set to work simmering a basic marinara. 

As it turns out, the secret to the very best authentic Italian meatballs is threefold: 1) cook them a long ass time, 2) use a combination of meats (beef, pork, and lamb), 3) the love of cooking. Slow cooking. With a loaf of fresh Italian bread by the stove for all day marinara sauce dipping and taste testing, a playlist, and plenty of good vibes, we cooked. We opened a bottle of red wine that was fantastic but I can’t quite identify beyond the bright red eyeglasses on the label. Free OneandahalfSlices swag for anyone who can tell me what this wine is. We talked and dabbed marinara sauce on the noses of my slightly grumpy kittens. And we connected.

So here we have it. The Whiffletree Farm three-meat authentic Italian meatball recipe, worth the lore, worth the investment, and worth every moment spent in friendship in the kitchen. Happy cooking.

🍅🍅🍅

Three-meat Blend
Meatballs
Marinara
Bird Nest 1
Unidentified Wine Pairing
Bird Nest 2

what you need

For the meatballs:

2 pounds Whiffletree Farm ground beef

1 pound Whiffletree Farm ground pork 

1 pound Whiffletree Farm ground lamb

4 eggs, or one egg per pound of meat

2 cups breadcrumbs, or 1/2 cup bread crumbs per pound of meat

5 garlic cloves, minced

one handful of parsley, finely chopped

1/8 cup dried oregano and basil

dash of cayenne pepper

salt and black pepper to taste

For the Marinara:

24 oz of canned, chopped Italian imported Roma tomatoes

three to four fresh Roma tomatoes, diced

one yellow onion or two shallots, finely minced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

dried oregano, basil, and parsley

salt and pepper to taste

(optional) parmesan cheese rinds

how to make it

First, get the sauce going.  Place a few tablespoons of olive oil in the bottom of a large pot stovetop. Add the minced onions and garlic, all the spices, and, if you are so inclined, a few pieces of ground pork. Sauté over medium heat for a minute or two and then add the canned and fresh tomatoes. Add salt, pepper, and spices, bring to a boil, then reduce to the gentlest possible simmer. Add the Parmesan cheese rinds and cover the pot.

Now, craft your meatballs. Set the oven to high broil and combine all three meats in a large mixing bowl. Add the eggs, breadcrumbs, garlic, spices, and fresh parsley. Stir with a wooden spoon until well combined. Try not to compress the meat down into the bowl too much in the process.

Gently roll meat into 1 1/2 inch balls, careful not to squeeze or compress the balls too much. Ideally, you want finely-ground meat and loosely-compressed meatballs. Arrange on a baking tray and broil for five minutes, remove from oven, turn each meat all over once, and broil five minutes more. 

Simmer. Carefully transfer all meatballs into the Marinara sauce. Ensure all the meatballs are covered by the sauce and, if they aren’t, add a bit of water so that this is the case. Simmer your meatballs in the sauce for two to three hours covered, then an additional hour uncovered until sauce reaches desired thickness. Serve over pasta of choice and sprinkle with finely-ground Parmesano Reggiano cheese. 

Don’t forget the red wine! 🍷

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Veggie

Hummus

one and a half slices recipe hummus Mediterranean
OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Hummus

one and a half slices recipe hummus Mediterranean

Guys, I am never buying store-bought hummus again. Big statement. But it is way less difficult to make than you think. This creamy, beautiful hummus requires two cans of chickpeas and not much else. It pairs well with tzatziki/cacik sauce and is a staple for any Mediterranean spread. It also has a lot of protein for those who are #plantbased. Admittedly, hummus is healthier when the dippers are cucumbers and carrots, but I have an inescapable addiction to Stacy’s pita chips so hummus, unfortunately, must be consumed in moderation in my kitchen. Highly recommend.

 The key to creamy hummus is in how long you blend your chickpeas. The flavor is all in the toppers. Get creative and enjoy!

🍋🧄🍋

Lemony, garlicky, imminently dippable, and minimal. 

what you need

2 cans (30oz) chickpeas

1 cup of the chickpea liquid from the can

1/2 cup tahini

1/4-1/2 cup good olive oil

juice from 1 lemon

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon cumin

salt to taste 

one hell of a powerful blender

For serving: chickpeas, cucumber, halved tomato cherries, drizzle olive oil, minced parsley, sprinkle of sumac and/or paprika and/or cayenne pepper

how to make it

Place chickpeas, half of the chickpea liquid, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, olive oil, and spices into your ‘one hell of a powerful blender.’

Puree on high for approximately 2 minutes, adding additional chickpea liquid after two minutes if the texture isn’t becoming smooth enough. The secret to smooth hummus is just to keep blending…

Taste for flavor and add spices as needed. Spoon your hummus onto a plate and spread it out drizzling with olive oil and adding your toppers. These can be cucumbers, thinly sliced bell peppers, small feta cheese crumbles, halved cherry tomatoes, roasted pistachios, and, of course, healthy sprinkles of sumac And cayenne.

More Mediterranean
one and a half slices tzatziki cajik turkish greek

Tzatziki

Tzatziki sauce is a staple of Mediterranean cooking. There are several variations on the theme to include the Turkish Cajik and Haydari sauces. The basic idea is to combine cucumber, dill, mint, lemon, or garlic in some meaningful way and use it as a dipping sauce. It’s great with fresh vegetables or pita, but also delicious as a dipping sauce for red meat as in a kofte or kebab. Authentically, at least for Cajik, the cucumber is grated and then pressed to expel water, but this version is a whole lot simpler. It was part of our recent Mediterranean dinner

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July 16, 2022 2 Comments
caesar salad sauce recipe one and a half slices

Caesar Sauce

This is an all-purpose, HEALTHY, creamy, herby, Caesar-esque sauce for dressing salad, for dipping vegetables, and, yes, even for chicken wings. And it has become a staple weeknight meal component in this house.

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January 16, 2021 5 Comments
one and a half slices borek cigara boragi recipe

Borek

Borek [boh-rek] (plural Böreği) is a delicious Turkish/Eastern European street food that I added to the OneandahalfSlices repertoire in college when a Turkish friend took the time to teach me a little of his home cuisine. I would go as far as to call borek the Balkan empanada – pervasive with a distinct variation on the theme in every country. It can be baked, fried, filled with cheese, filled with greens, filled with meat, but usually involves Phyllo dough (unless you are me and are too lazy to deal with Phyllo dough). This particular borek is called Sigara because it is rolled into tubes like a cigarette. It makes a great brunch, lunch, or light dinner option (as pictured here) and has its origins in Ottoman cuisine.

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May 28, 2022 3 Comments
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Veggie

Tzatziki

one and a half slices tzatziki cajik turkish greek
OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Tzatziki Yogurt Sauce

one and a half slices tzatziki cajik turkish greek

Tzatziki sauce is a staple of Mediterranean cooking. There are several variations on the theme to include the Turkish Cajik and Haydari sauces. The basic idea is to combine cucumber, dill, mint, lemon, or garlic in some meaningful way and use it as a dipping sauce. It’s great with fresh vegetables or pita, but also delicious as a dipping sauce for red meat as in kofte or kebab. Authentically, at least for Cajik, the cucumber is grated and then pressed to expel water, but this version is a whole lot simpler. It was part of our recent Mediterranean dinner – numerous interesting recipes coming your way from that one!

what you need

half a cucumber, peeled and very finely diced

1 handful of fresh dill, chopped

2 tablespoons lemon juice

3 tablespoons good olive oil

2 teaspoons salt

1/2 clove of garlic, diced finely

1 teaspoon paprika or cayenne pepper

2 teaspoons black pepper 

2 cups Greek yogurt of choice

Top with: thinly sliced cucumber, sprig of dill, sprinkle of sumac (optional) 

how to make it

Dice the cucumber finely and add to a bowl with dill. Add the yogurt and stir until combined. 

Add lemon juice, olive oil, salt, cayenne, garlic, and pepper, and stir well to combine.

Refrigerate until ready for use. Overnight is fine. The garlic will seriously blow up in this sauce. I’m usually a fan of mega garlic but I’d tread lightly on this one. 

Spoon into a bowl, sprinkle with sumac, and top with cucumbers and dill. Serve chilled. 

Other Dipping Sauces
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Chimichurri

one and a half slices chimmichurri authentic argentinian uruguayan
one and a half slices local simple recipes food

Argentinian Chimichurri

one and a half slices chimmichurri authentic argentinian uruguayan

If you’ve eaten at our house, chances are you’ve had authentic, Argentinian chimichurri. It’s Argentina’s only real condiment. And it goes on everything , from salad to Ovoka Farm wagyu. Go spicy. Go limey. Want it for breakfast? I got you: Crab Avo Toast.

argentina

what you need

2 cups of super finely chopped parsley

3-5 garlic super finely chopped garlic cloves

2 tablespoons super finely chopped red onion

1 super finely chopped red chili, seeds and all

Juice from one lime (or half a lime if you live in Florida)

1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

3/4 cup (plus a little more for good measure) good olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

how to make it

Dice the parsley super finely and remove the stems. Using a chopper, finely dice the garlic, the onion, and the chili. Add it to the parsley and mix with salt and pepper. 

Add the lime juice, the red wine vinegar, and the olive oil, stir, and store in the fridge overnight or a few hours prior to eating. 

Enjoy!

Parsley
+ Garlic
+ Onion
+ Chili
+ Olive Oil
Chimi Avo Toast!
More Authentic Argentinian
one and a half slices corn baked humita recipe

Humita

It’s summertime. Which means it is time for Humita. Humita is a highly versatile Argentinian dish that comes in many, many forms. Humita appears throughout the Argentinian culinary atmosphere as a soup, steamed in the

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September 3, 2022 1 Comment
one and a half slices ham and melon cantaloupe recipe summer

Jamon con Melon

This is the simplest of appetizers. Elegant and perfectly balanced. Sweet and Salty. aka Melon Carpaccio. #summervibes

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September 17, 2022 No Comments
one and a half slices

Salt

“I have two lovers in life that I have never slept with. The city of Paris and potatoes.” – Francis Mallmann. The taste of empanadas, parrillada, and red wine came to flavor my adolescence, calibrating

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January 28, 2023 5 Comments
argentinian empanada recipe authentic argentine oneandahalfslices

Empanadas

There are many varieties but a recipe for specifically Argentinian empanadas is difficult to find – especially in English and out of the metric system. Often served as an appetizer, empanadas are hearty little handpies

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January 3, 2021 4 Comments
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Veggie

Pasta Pomodoro

pasta recipe pomodoro red creamy simple easy sauce
OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Simple Pomodoro (tomato) Sauce

pasta recipe pomodoro red creamy simple easy sauce

There is a lot to be said for simple, staple recipes. The French five mother sauces are said to be like the First Principles of cooking. Master these five sauces and you can make any sauce. The five French sauces are: Béchamel, Velouté, Espagnole, Tomato, and Hollandaise. All excluding the latter begin with a simple Roux (fat source, like butter or meat drippings, plus flour – what Americans know as the most basic gravy). 

The béchamel is the dairy-based sauce – think fettuccine alfredo. The velouté is a different kind of white sauce where the creaminess comes from an animal fat like chicken or pork drippings, not milk or cream.  This can be one kind of gravy. The Espagnole is the second kind of gravy, where the drippings come from a red meat. The tomato sauce is, well… tomato. And Hollandaise, from which we get its sister Béarnaise, is a butter, egg yolk, and lemon-based sauce. 

Pomodoro sauce is the Italian name for the simple tomato-based mother sauce, as “pomodoro” means “tomato” in Italian. It is meant to be the quickest, simplest pasta topper and I give it to you here in five simple steps that will keep you away from canned pasta sauce for life (as will my meat-hearty Bolognese sauce). 

🍅

what you need

1/2 onion, diced finely

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons good olive oil

2-3 handfuls of cherry or roma tomatoes, diced finely, with all their juices

1 handful of fresh basil

1 splash cream or half and half

how to make it

First. Sauté the onion and garlic in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat until fragrant, ~3 minutes.

Second. Add 1 more tablespoon of olive oil and the tomatoes (and juices), stirring to combine and cooking for an additional ~5 minutes.

Third. Puree the tomatoes in a food processor and then strain back into the pan to remove the seeds.

Fourth. Add the splash of cream and stir over medium heat until hot.

Fifth. Top with fresh basil and grilled chicken, if desired, then spoon over pasta.
Other Pasta Dishes
one and a half slices zucchini parmesan girl dinner pasta delicious

Girl Dinner

I’m entering my level up era and I’ve been eating a lot of girl dinner. Yes, I know, girl dinner is french fries and a pornstar martini. But this girl dinner is a fraction of the cost and it takes like 15 minutes to make. At home. So you can continue doing #levelup things (or play videogames, either).

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August 23, 2024 2 Comments
one and a half slices fettucine alfredo recipe

Fettuccine Alfredo

Creamy, comforting Fettucine Alfredo is hard to beat. Fettucine Alfredo is one of those “authentic” Italian classics that should be made with reserve pasta water, a little butter, and parmesan, but old habits die hard and I make my alfredo just like my mother. So, yeah, don’t eat a gallon of this stuff, but by all means, throw some steamed broccoli or sliced chicken onto a bed of this dreamy creaminess and float on off to heaven. Any which way, this is pure comfort in a pasta bowl, and perfect for my Sunday afternoon.

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September 17, 2022 2 Comments
one and a half slices recipe italian spaghetti meatballs

Best Meatballs

Last weekend my world was changed forever when I was schooled by a friend very dear to me in the subtle art of the perfect Lady and the Tramp style meatball. That fine grained, tender, perfectly seasoned Italian delicacy resting resting lightly atop a bird’s nest of egg noodles dusted with Parmesano Reggiano. As it turns out, the secret to the very best authentic Italian meatballs is threefold: 1) cook them a long ass time, 2) use a combination of meats (beef, pork, and lamb), 3) the love of cooking. Slow cooking. So here we have it. The Whiffletree Farm three-meat authentic Italian meatball recipe.

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December 15, 2022 1 Comment
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Peanut Sauce

OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Peanut Sauce

This is the versatile Peanut Sauce. Ironically, only the variation is made with actual peanut butter. The version I typically make is peanut-free! But this is THE sauce for healthy Pad Thai, Weeknight Stir Fry, rice attire, salad dressing, noodle accoutrement, etc. If you’re missing an ingredient, don’t panic. There is a substitution for almost everything. So customize away!

what you need

2 tablespoons tahini

2 tablespoons almond butter (or any nut butter)

Juice from half a lime

1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

1 whole garlic clove, peeled

1 small knob of fresh ginger (no need to chop or peel)

3 tablespoons Tamari (or soy sauce)

1/2 tablespoon fish sauce

1/4 cup cashew milk (or other nut milk, or regular milk)

Salt, black pepper, & cayenne pepper to taste

 

 

See below for sweet peanut variation.

how to make it

Place all ingredients in chopper or small blender (I use the smallest container in this 3-in-1). Blend until smooth adding milk or water to reach desired consistency, noting that if adding to stir fry over heat, the mixture will thicken slightly.

Notes on texture: The amount of liquid controls how thick or thin this sauce becomes. Add more or less milk depending on desired thickness.

Notes on ingredients: This recipe is SUPER flexible. The substance comes from the nut butters. My favorite blend is tahini + almond, but peanut is a good option as well. If lacking tahini, you could make the entire thing with 4 tablespoons of almond butter.

Lime and vinegar give you the tanginess. I would be hard pressed to make this without lime juice but, technically, you only need one of the two, and could probably get away with lemon in a pinch. Similarly, you could skip the ginger OR the garlic OR the fish sauce and not be hurting for it.

To make this recipe sweeter: add 1 tablespoon fresh honey, 1 tablespoon of Hoisin sauce, or 1 tablespoon of molasses.

Sweet Peanut Variation

what you need

1/4 cup natural peanut butter

1/4 cup lime juice or 1/8 cup rice wine vinegar

2-3 tablespoons Tamari (or soy sauce)

1/2 teaspoon fermented chili paste (or sriracha)

1 tablespoon maple syrup

2-6 tablespoons of water

1 teaspoon sesame oil

(optional) 1 garlic clove, finely grated

(optional) 1 fresh ginger knob, finely grated

 

how to make it

Whisk together all ingredients excluding the water. Add the water one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

Since natural peanut butters vary in consistency from very thick (Whole Foods or Publix brands) to very thin (some in jars), you will need to adjust the amount of water to achieve the consistency that suits your dish.

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Local Veggie

Caesar Sauce

caesar salad sauce recipe one and a half slices
OneandahalfSlices food blog recipes One and a half Slices Virginia eat local

Caesar Sauce

caesar salad sauce recipe one and a half slices

What is Caesar “sauce?” You mean Caesar dressing… as in, Caesar salad? Or is this some kind of dipping sauce? And does it have anything to do with dill? Yes, all three! This is an all-purpose, HEALTHY, creamy, herby, Caesar-esque sauce for dressing salad, for dipping vegetables, and, yes, even for chicken wings. And it has become a weeknight meal staple in this house.

How can sauce be the centerpiece of a weeknight dinner?

Keep reading…

///Update: If you are looking for a more traditional Caesar dressing recipe, you can find it here. 

There are several core, buy-every-time-I’m-at-the-grocery-store ingredients in my kitchen. 0% (non-fat) plain Greek Yogurt is one of them. I eat a ton of it, mostly in homemade breakfast parfaits. Chobani, Fage, or Whole Foods brand will do. But most importantly, it serves two unique purposes: (1) It doubles as sour cream. That’s right. Anywhere you would put sour cream (chili, baked potato, sweet potato, quesadillas), just lop on a dollop of Greek yogurt instead; (2) It serves as the base for creamy sauces like this one.

Homemade Caesar dressing is delicious, especially when made with a non-fat base like Greek yogurt as opposed to Mayonnaise. With a few alterations, you can easily turn this into a dill sauce for dipping (which pairs phenomenally well with carrots or drizzled on baked potatoes). So take this where you want to take it with customizations following the base outlined below. And if you come up with something that you like, please share it in the comments section!

Steak Caesar Salad 1
Steak Caesar Salad 2

(local flat iron steak from the Whiffletree Farm meat CSA)

This sauce is integral to my mission to re-imagine the American weeknight dinner, a la Michael Pollan and Dan Barber. Simply put, putting meat at the center of every meal is not a good thing – not good for our bodies, not natural, and, most importantly, not good for the greater food system and its sustainability over time… our sustainability over time. Both Pollan and Barber state it more eloquently than I ever could, so for a quick dose of this philosophy, I recommend Season 1, Episode 2 of Chef’s Table on Netflix.

Telling World War II era Americans not to eat steak and potatoes is about as American as communism. But let’s not make it about our politics or our cultural identity. Let’s make it about our relationship with food and how, worldwide, it has gone astray. Food is highly commoditized, commercialized, and over-engineered. And our relationship with it is a product of convenience, indulgence, and excellent marketing (did you know that there is a sugar lobby right here in Washington, DC?!). 

So what can we do? How can we fix it? First and foremost, vote with our feet. Explore Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in the local area. The Northern Virginia area has several and mine is, proudly, Potomac Vegetable Farms with a Whiffletree Farm meat share (supplemented by periodic trips to the Spring House Farm). And patronize truly local farm-to-table restaurants (The Restaurant at Patowmac Farm and Field & Main, you rock my world… even Fiola DC has allowed COVID to take it in a new farm-centric direction).

Potomac Vegetable Farms works in concert with many smaller farms nearby (it has meat, poultry, and eggs, not just vegetables). Using a CSA not only supports local farms but it forces us to eat more seasonally – more naturally – as opposed to running to the store for an imported ingredient anytime we want to make a dish. You’ll make tomato soup in the summer because that is when tomatoes are abundant. And guess what? Those tomatoes will taste SO much better. While CSAs typically require payment up front, they average out to the equivalent of store-bought groceries… because produce isn’t expensive; packaged food items are. Just be flexible and focus on your store-bought staples (like yogurt, in my case), letting the CSA contents drive the menu for the week. And don’t be afraid to put a baked potato, a sweet potato, or a Portobello mushroom at the center of your weeknight plate.

hmm… I got a TON of carrots this week… how will I use all these carrots?! Hey, I know a food blog for that… 😉🥕

what you need

> > > Base

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese (Reggiano is best)

2 table spoons olive oil

1 garlic clove (raw or roasted)

Salt & black pepper to taste

> > For Caesar

2 teaspoons anchovy paste

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

(optional) dash of Worcestershire sauce

> > For dipping sauce

1 tablespoon dried dill (or 2 tablespoons fresh dill)

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Sweet Hungarian paprika, to top

 

how to make it

For either variation, place all ingredients in high-speed blender (this is my favorite 3-in-1) and combine. 

The thickness will largely depend on the consistency of your yogurt (for example, Chobani is thinner where Fage makes a much thicker yogurt). Most often, the sauce will be too thick and require thinning. This can be done with water, milk (non-dairy like cashew, macadamia, or oat is fine), or by adding extra lemon juice and olive oil. 

Feel free to play with the amounts. Anchovy paste is one of the key ingredients to authentic Caesar dressing (but then, so is egg, if not in the sauce, in the salad itself). So if you like to anchovy it up, by all means. This recipe is tuned to my taste, with extra parmesan. I will also usually be heavy handed with the dill if making the sauce variation.

You can also roast the garlic clove in tinfoil for 10 minutes on 350 to deepen the garlic flavor.

Top either dressing or sauce with a sprinkle of paprika.

Sweet Potato Wedge Dippers
Carrot chips!
Carrot Chip Dippers

This sauce is integral to my mission to re-imagine the American weeknight dinner, a la Michael Pollan and Dan Barber. Simply put, putting meat at the center of every meal is not a good thing – not good for our bodies, not natural, and, most importantly, not good for the greater food system and its sustainability over time… our sustainability over time. Both Pollan and Barber state it more eloquently than I ever could, so for a quick dose of this philosophy, I recommend Season 1, Episode 2 of Chef’s Table on Netflix.

Telling World War II era Americans not to eat steak and potatoes is about as American as communism. But let’s not make it about our politics or our cultural identity. Let’s make it about our relationship with food and how, worldwide, it has gone astray. Food is highly commoditized, commercialized, and over-engineered. And our relationship with it is a product of convenience, indulgence, and excellent marketing (did you know that there is a sugar lobby right here in Washington, DC?!). 

So what can we do? How can we fix it? First and foremost, vote with our feet. Explore Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) in the local area. The Northern Virginia area has several and mine is, proudly, Potomac Vegetable Farms with a Whiffletree Farm meat share (supplemented by periodic trips to the Spring House Farm). And patronize truly local farm-to-table restaurants (The Restaurant at Patowmac Farm and Field & Main, you rock my world… even Fiola DC has allowed COVID to take it in a new farm-centric direction).

Potomac Vegetable Farms works in concert with many smaller farms nearby (it has meat, poultry, and eggs, not just vegetables). Using a CSA not only supports local farms but it forces us to eat more seasonally – more naturally – as opposed to running to the store for an imported ingredient anytime we want to make a dish. You’ll make tomato soup in the summer because that is when tomatoes are abundant. And guess what? Those tomatoes will taste SO much better. While CSAs typically require payment up front, they average out to the equivalent of store-bought groceries… because produce isn’t expensive; packaged food items are. Just be flexible and focus on your store-bought staples (like yogurt, in my case), letting the CSA contents drive the menu for the week. And don’t be afraid to put a baked potato, a sweet potato, or a Portobello mushroom at the center of your weeknight plate.

hmm… I got a TON of carrots this week… how will I use all these carrots?! Hey, I know a food blog for that… 😉🥕

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Guacamole

one and a half slices guacamole recipe mexican food
one and a half slices recipes local delicious food

Guacamole

one and a half slices guacamole recipe mexican food
mexico-icon-png-picture-697490-mexico-country-png-mexico-map-icon-png-512_512

The avocado is native to… Mexico! The growing season peaks in the summer but avocados are prevalent year-round (PSA: this post is NOT local). Then there is the less-desirable, much larger Florida avocado, which is less preferable for guacamole due to its high water content.

The avocado has an extremely high fat content with about 20g of fat per cup. But it’s  the good kind of fat (yes, there is a good kind). We actually really need healthy fats in our diet which is why I am not high on low-fat or non-fat things. When you eat fat, eat real fat (e.g., avocados, nuts, coconut, yogurt, cheese) and when you’re going to eat sugar, eat real sugar (e.g., fruit, honey, maple syrup).

High in fiber, potassium, and vitamins, avocados are super nutritious. Honestly, most of the fat in a snack of chips and guac is in the chips… Which is why I recommend serving guacamole with carrot sticks and cucumbers. You’ve probably all heard my healthy living rule of thumb by now: if you do nothing else, don’t eat anything that comes in a package. Easy rule to follow, right? I’m convinced it’s the single best thing someone can do for themselves, followed closely by eliminating soda, juices, and flavored waters.

Now let’s talk about avocado skin and… skin. Avocado is a skin food. It is the single best moisturizer and face mask money can buy. It probably sounds crazy but… you’ve got to try this, if for no other reason than to turn your face green and provide some entertainment value to your cohabitant. Turn the leftover avocado skins inside out and smear the remaining pulp onto a clean, dry face. Massage the pulp into your skin until your face adopts a green-ish hue. Let sit for 10 minutes, gently remove with warm water, and pat your face dry. And just like that… baby face. Another solution to face or body moisturizer is to buy straight cold-pressed avocado oil in the grocery store and use it similar to coconut oil. Avocado oil can be a bit heavy, so use it sparingly. 

Finally, it is no secret I am a fan of bowls. Bowl diets. Weeknight bowls. Themed bowls. Guacamole (or just plain avocado) is the perfect and necessary addition to a Mexican-themed bowl. Simply put, avocado is one of those hearty fruits that can stand on its own as a main course… like a sweet potato, a russet potato, or a Portobello mushroom. It is incredible how little the body actually needs to sustain itself (especially when we consider the portions restaurants deliver). It is also incredible how much protein we actually consume. To avoid giving an unsolicited lecture, I’ll simply head nod to Michael Pollan. Depending on your level of interest and amount of free time, here are three resources that make the case for altering the Western notion that a large piece of meat has to appear as the centerpiece of every plate:

  1. For those with 15 seconds: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” – Michael Pollan
  2. For those with 15 minutes: Unhappy Meals, Michael Pollan for NY Times
  3. For those with 15 hours: In Defense of Food (also, The Omnivore’s Dilemma and The Botany of Desire).’

what you need

1 ripe avocado

Juice from 1/2 lime

1 small tomato, finely diced

1/4 sweet onion, finely diced

1/2 jalapeño pepper, finely diced

Fresh cilantro leaves

(optional) 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard

(optional) 2-3 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese (I use about 1/4 of a half goat cheese brick)

Salt, pepper, and cumin to taste

For serving: corn chips (I like salted blue corn chips), carrot sticks, and cucumber slices

how to make it

Cut avocado in half and remove pit. In a ripe avocado, the pit should come out easily when tapped with the blade of a sharp knife and twisted. Spoon avocado pulp into small mixing bowl and mash with a fork to desired consistency (I like to leave mine a little chunky). (Save the skins!)

Add lime juice, chopped cilantro leaves, salt, pepper, cumin, and mustard, and stir until just combined. 

Add goat cheese, mashing it gently with a fork and combining with avocado mixture until little white pieces are still visible. 

Finally, mix in tomato, onion, and jalapeño pepper.

Top with: pomegranate seeds or bacon pieces or more cilantro leaves.

Serve with: blue corn chips, carrot sticks, and cucumber slices. 
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Omni

Essential Bolognese Sauce

spaghetti Bolognese recipe pasta oneandahalfslices
one and a half slices recipes local delicious food

The Essential Bolognese

spaghetti Bolognese recipe pasta oneandahalfslices

From Rome to Buenos Aires, pasta – specifically, spaghetti and meat sauce – hits different in other countries. This Bolognese sauce is as authentic as they come, with a counterintuitive yet elegantly simple sauce-making process that will ensure you never touch another jar of Classico. It is meaty, salty, and carries richness made possible only through the simplest yet most flavorful of vegetables – carrot and celery. 

For absolute best flavor possible, serve over fresh egg-based pasta (Virginia local shoutout to Dal Grano in Mclean, VA for the absolute best handmade pasta). It is better the next day and freezes incredibly well, so make a double batch and throw some in the freezer for later. Adapted from Marcella Hazan at NY Times.

what you need

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 onion, diced

1 garlic clove, minced

2 celery stalks, finely diced

2 medium carrots, finely diced

1 pound ground beef (or bison, or half beef half pork)

1 cup milk 

1 cup white wine

2 small cans diced Italian plum tomatoes

fresh egg noodle pasta

salt, black pepper, fennel, oregano, nutmeg

1 parmesan cheese rind

parmesan cheese, finely grated

how to make it

Place oil, butter, and diced onion in Dutch oven or large sauté pan and sauté until onions are translucent. Add carrots, celery, and garlic, and sauté another 2 minutes. 

Add meat, salt, pepper, and herbs. Chip up the meat and cook until brown. Add milk and a dash of nutmeg, cover, and simmer on lowest possible heat until the milk has disappeared (~30 minutes). After the milk has been absorbed, add the white wine and simmer until it disappears (another 30 minutes). 

Lastly, add the tomatoes and the cheese rind, and cook on lowest heat for at least an hour – long enough for the meat to break down thoroughly. Add splashes of water as required to keep the sauce from burning but at the end, all of the liquid should be gone. Taste and adjust for salt.

Spoon sauce over cooked and drained pasta, and top with finely grated parmesan cheese. Or use in my Authoritative Lasagna recipe!

Cooking Note: the method here may seem strange, but what you are going for is to cook flavor into the meat and completely break down the vegetables. First, you are asking the meat to absorb milk. Then, white wine. And then you make the sauce by adding the tomatoes. The sauce gets flavored with additional seasoning from this point and the cheese rind. 

While we’re on the subject of Italian food, let’s talk about olive oil. Last year, my mom and I went to Greece. That same year, a friend and I toured Rome and middle Italy (the inspiration, honestly, for finally getting this recipe right). In both places, I sampled olives in large quantity and came to the same conclusion: I do not like them (despite their prominence in the food of my inherited heritage: empanadas). Olive oil, on the other hand, is nectar of the Gods. Olive oil plus salt, pepper, oregano, red pepper flakes, fresh baguette, and a bottle of Brunello are makings for my favorite evening. 

Okay, but olive oil.

In Greece, we toured an olive farm and olive oil manufacturer and learned all the WRONG ways we had been purchasing and consuming olive oil. I think there is this general notion that we should all buy “extra virgin” olive oil for daily consumption but, beyond that, we don’t have any real knowledge of what makes one olive oil better than another. Turns out there is another phrase, in addition to “extra virgin” we should look for on our olive oil labels: “obtained exclusively from mechanical processes.” 

‘What an odd phrase,’ you might think. And you’d be right. But it turns out that 99% of the world’s olive oil is derived from primarily chemical processes (ick). If the olive oil is derived from nothing more than a mechanical press (which is what we would all think, right?), it will say so, explicitly, on the label. 

Finally, the last form of certification that your olive oil is legit is the International Olive Council’s (IOC) official seal (pictured below). Since most of the good olive oil in the US is imported (save perhaps in California), you can also look for the Protected Designation of Origin (PDO/DPO) seal for the country of origin, e.g. Spain, Italy, Greece. 

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