We are well into January now, and all of those New Year's resolutions to subsist on green smoothies and sorghum grain bowls may be looking more aspirational then realistic at this point. Enter Beef Stroganoff, a rich and sumptuous cold weather hit packed with umami meatiness, the tang of sour cream, and the piquant brightness of white wine and mustard. Beef Stroganoff is the perfect old-school counter to the self-flagellation that too often accompanies the new year, and beats the joy out eating. This New Year resolve to eat food you love!

It's moving day for us at The Hungry Hounds. Fueled by donuts, coffee and tons of moving help from family and friends, we are on our way from Pennsylvania to Indiana for our final goodbyes with Paul's family before we leave for Haiti. Cooking and eating in our kitchen for the past few weeks has been a bit of an awkward experience with many frustrated sighs and the frequent realization, '...oh right, we packed that already, didn't we!?' One of the last dishes we made when our kitchen was still in full swing was this tasty Flammkuchen, a comfort pizza-like-classic from the Alsatian and South German regions, with many variations and names. We modeled ours after the classic version, a thin crusted flatbread pizza with a creamy, slightly tangy sauce, smoky bacon, a smattering of cheese, and the succulent sweetness of caramelized onions.

One summer in high school, my sister and I discovered the brilliance of white pizza with fresh summer veggies. The simple contrast of creamy sauce and peak of season vegetables is a dynamic combination. The local favorite at the farm-stand near our house featured sweetcorn and mozzarella. I had this summery veggie pizza in mind as I layered fresh August tomatoes, peppers, corn, and red cabbage on creamy basil studded ricotta and gooey mozzarella, topped with leaves of sweet basil. Heaven. 

For another great vegetarian main, check out our grilled spelt flatbread with tapenade and tomatoes.

I am a sucker for a colorful veggie, and when I saw these vibrant purple string beans at a farm stand on the way home from work, I was smitten!  With a wacky color-scheme in mind, I paired the quickly steamed beans with dollops of lime-hued green goddess dressing, made creamier and healthier by the addition of avocado instead of mayonnaise. Avocado Green Goddess Dressing is my take on the retro 70's classic. This cheerful side dish is ready in 10 minutes, and adaptable to whatever produce you have on hand. 

As the weather warms up we are putting the grill back to use and bringing back color to our diet.  We opted for a lighter dinner of grilled chicken with lettuce, cucumber, and stunning watermelon radishes from our CSA. The dressing was a creamy herb buttermilk ranch.

Spring is so close you can taste it. The daffodil bulbs we forced in our basement this winter are starting to bloom. But spring is still not close enough to give up winter's comfort foods just yet. Back from our trip to Philadelphia, it was time for quiche. The recipe below is simply delicious, and you could easily swap out the extras if you liked. The filling is adapted from Anne Willan's The Country Cooking of France. For a side Rebecca made an white bean salad with quick pickled red onion, feta, CSA dilly beans, and a garlic mustard vinaigrette.