What’s Going on Today: Cold, cold, cold. Edit book manuscript, keep the kiddo entertained indoors.

Naptime Goals: Assemble Eggplant Involtini, laundry, house cleaning, emails

Tonight’s Menu: Eggplant Involtini (Deconstructed), Salad

More Great Meatless Entrees: Artichoke-Lemon Pesto with Pasta, Artichoke Lasagna, Eggplant Parmesan, Caprese Pasta Salad, Spanish Garlic Soup, Tomato Soup Florentine, Sweet Potato & Lentil Stew

It is easy to get sucked in to cooking lots of hearty, meaty dishes in the deep of winter. Last week I posted two (2!) recipes for short ribs, twice as many as I published last summer. I think it is some part of my biological make up that I prefer hot heavy food in the winter, and cool light food in the summer. Since I go to the gym regularly I seem to be able to handle this sort of eating pattern. If it ever gets to the point where I can’t zip my jeans you’d better believe I’ll tone it way down, real fast. But, for now, I’ll stick to my warm winter casseroles and slow-cooker recipes in January and love every minute of it.

Today’s recipe was inspired my devotion to the idea of Meatless Mondays. (The movement to eat an entirely vegetarian diet at least one day a week in order to save the planet.) It was also inspired by my fondness for vegetarian food in general, particularly my undying devotion to eggplants. Which, frankly, is a love only outdone by my obsession with artichokes! Luckily, I married a man who joins me in the eggplant eating corner so he is always up for whatever I have in store. In this case, I decided to give my favorite Nigella Eggplant Involtini recipe a twist, or, rather, an untwist, and deconstruct it for a great make-ahead dinner. I grilled up the long strips of eggplant, mixed the delicate bulgur wheat/feta/pistachio stuffing and… stopped there.

It’s been a long while since I wrote a Travel Series. The only reason is because it’s been a long time since I traveled. I’ve been sticking to my regular Cooperstown, Martha’s Vineyard, Sag Harbor, Charleston and Florida travel rotation for the past two years. Not bad, I know, but my husband and I were in the mood for change recently and decided to spend the weekend up in Boston. My daughter spent the weekend being spoiled by her grandparents while we had a blast eating and relaxing around Beantown.

The first meal we ate in Boston was a delicious brunch at the South End Buttery. The South End is without a doubt my favorite emerging neighborhood in Boston. If I were to live in Boston that is the neighborhood I would choose. It reminded me a lot of the Upper West Side, my old stomping grounds in NYC. I’d read about the South End Buttery and we couldn’t wait to give it a try. We ate in the subterranean room of the restaurant, enjoying the cozy club-like atmosphere on such a cold day. My Huevos Rancheros were out of this world, while my husband devoured his decadent Eggs Benedict. On our way out we grabbed some cookies, Peanut Butter Reece’s Pieces for me, Chocolate Walnut Chunk for him, before hitting the town for a long walk to the movie theater for a matinee of The King’s Speech. Those cookies are still haunting me. Don’t be surprised if you see that peanut butter cookie recipe here soon!

This is the latest installment of my Tales from the Trenches Series. An ongoing series where friends and readers share their stories and recipes about the great food they fit into family life. We all have tips and tricks to share with each other: when we cook, what we cook and how we cook the delicious food we love to eat. If you are interested in contributing a story and recipe please feel free to contact me. Today Lisa, a Texas transplant living in New York City, is sharing her go-to recipe for the homestyle Texas chicken tacos she makes after work with her family. She is a busy working Mom but still maintains her love of cooking. Lisa happens to work at Ellen Hanson Designs. Do you remember when Ellen herself shared her recipe for amazing Chicken Curry? As you can see by the photographs (taken by their friend Kristy Knight) this is a design firm with plenty of talent. When I saw these photographs (turns out the whole office ate tacos for lunch after the photo shoot) I told them they ought to add a food blog to their website!

A popular fall back for unprepared parents is the TACO night. At our house, taco night is chicken tacos with rice and beans garnished with shredded red cabbage, avocados and lime slices.  We always add grated cheese and sour cream (or yogurt). My five year old son has had the job of chief grater since the day he could hold himself up on the kitchen stool. Being good Texan transplants, we keep corn and flour tortillas stocked in our crisper drawer. This dish is fun to put together as a family, and it works well if you have no meat in the house  – you can sauté almost anything, and if you wrap it in a tortilla with cheese it will taste good!

Please come over here to learn about The Cooperstown Club, my entry and in the Tyson Chicken Sandwich Challenge! I need your vote! Best of all, the winner gets a donation to their favorite charity. Mine charity of choice is Socks-n-Undies Sunday!

In the mood for an amazing set of pasta bowls from Williams-Sonoma and some terrific goodies from Crate & Barrel? Come over and check out this post about the new Crisco Mediterranean Recipe contest and enter to win all of this, and more, for yourself! It is as simple as leaving a comment and stopping in to say Hi. Read Full Post…