Welcome to my new weekly recipe blog!
A place to document stories and recipes.
I am, and always have been, a big believer in the power of food as an effective storytelling tool. Once a week, I will upload my favorite recipe of the week, accompanied by a story. Enjoy!
10/08/26
Thai Coconut Curry Soup with Sticky Short Ribs
The First Time I’ve Ever Cooked with Mushrooms:
For the last few years, I’ve made it a mission to challenge any food aversions or picky-eater tendencies in me by teaching myself to cook and understand the foods and ingredients I’ve always told myself I “don’t like.” I have been terrified of mushrooms for as long as I can remember. I have never liked them.
When my roommate and recipe taste-tester, Ella, requested this Thai coconut curry that’s very reminiscent of Tom Kha soup, I got to work. While doing research on the ingredients, recipes, and origins of this dish, I realized it’s commonly served with mushrooms. This felt like the perfect opportunity to finally try adding some to my practice.
I was pleasantly surprised by the addition of mushrooms to this dish. I really enjoyed it. It was the first time in my life I have enjoyed mushrooms, so that must speak for something!
Recipe
Ingredients
4 Bone-in short ribs
neutral oil
½ yellow onion
a healthy chunk of fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves
3 tsp Thai red curry paste
3 Thai Chillies
2 Tbsp brown sugar
4 cups chicken broth/bone broth
1 can unsweetened coconut milk
1 bok choy
oyster mushrooms
edamame
1 Tbsp soy sauce
3 tsp sesame oil
Thai chili crisp
green onions
cilantro
3 limes
Optional- prepared rice or ramen noodles for serving
Start by heavily seasoning your short ribs on all sides with salt, pepper, and paprika. Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large pot, heat oil on medium high. Once hot place short ribs in. Create a sear on each side until a brown crust forms. Remove from pan and set aside.
Dice onion, garlic, and ginger. Add to the same pan you seared the short ribs in.
Add the curry paste, cook everything down, stirring together until the onions become soft. Then add 2 cups of broth, soy sauce, sesame oil and brown sugar. Stir together and bring to a simmer.
Add your short ribs back to the pot. Place in the oven, covered, for 4 hours to slow cook.
While your short ribs are in the oven you can prep your vegetables. Thinly slice your oyster mushrooms, prep your bok choy by thoroughly cleaning and trimming. Thinly slice your Thai chillies, green onion, and a little extra ginger. Chop some parsley for topping, and slice your limes. Steam a bag of frozen edamame and shell. Place all your veggies in a bowl and set aside.
After 4 hours your short ribs should be “fall-off-the-bone-tender”, and the liquid should be reduced significantly. Remove short ribs and set aside. Place the pot back on the stove on a medium heat. Reduce the liquid down for about 15 min, then strain and return to the pot.
Add coconut milk. bok choy, the juice of 2 limes, chillies, ginger, and mushrooms to the pot. Cook down for an additional 30 min. Add more broth if needed. Then add short ribs back to the pot for 10-15 min.
Serve your dish with rice or ramen noodles. Top with the edamame, lime, Thai chili crisp, cilantro, and green onions.
Enjoy!
9/30/26
Stuffed Acorn Squash with Whipped Goat Cheese!
For a while, I have been saying the phrase: “this recipe came to me in a dream,” and for a while, I think people believed it to be a joke. I’ve always had extremely vivid dreams and daydreams. When I started cooking and working in food, food naturally started to make its way into my dreams.
I’ve been a huge fan of everything squash in fall cooking for as long as I can remember and am constantly trying to find new ways to reinvent how we eat squash. This stuffed acorn squash with whipped goat cheese came to me in a dream. I sat and imagined each flavor before ultimately settling on this variation. My friend Maggie believes this to be one of my best recipes to date. Enjoy!
Recipe
Ingredients
(Serves 2)
1 acorn squash
½ cup quinoa (rinsed)
¼ of a yellow onion
1 apple
10 Brussels sprouts
1 shallot
4 cloves of garlic
½ cup white wine
1 fennel
1 cup chicken bone broth
¼ lb Italian sausage
1 log of goat cheese
1 lemon
roasted and salted pumpkin seeds for topping
Sage
Rosemary
Thyme
olive oil
honey
cinnamon
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Then dice your celery, onion, fennel, and apple into a small dice. Then thinly slice the shallots and Brussels sprouts. Place a medium-sized pan on the stove and set it to medium heat.
Cut the bottoms and tops off your squash, cut them in half, then scoop out the seeds and guts. Put ½ Tbsp of oil in each squash, along with a drizzle of honey, a few dashes of cinnamon, salt, and pepper to taste. Massage both halves thoroughly to rub in the seasonings. Place in your preheated oven for 30-40 min, until the squash is fork-tender all the way through.
Then brown your sausage in your heated pan, no need for oil. Chunk the sausage into small pieces as it cooks. Once the sausage is browned, add your apple, celery, shallot, fennel, Brussels sprouts, onion, and garlic to the pan. Cook these ingredients down until soft.
Add your rinsed quinoa to the pan.
Toss and cook the quinoa with the rest of the ingredients in the pan for about five minutes.
Pour white wine into the pan, cook the wine down until there is little to no liquid remaining and it is almost fully reduced.
Next, add chicken stock, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook until the quinoa is fully cooked and soft. Most of the liquid in the pan should be reduced at this point. Chop rosemary, sage, and thyme, and add to the pan, along with salt to taste.
Stuff your squash with the vegetable quinoa filling. Really stuff them. Top with whipped goat cheese and pop back into the oven for 5-10 min. Top with chopped herbs and pumpkin seeds.
Whipped Goat Cheese:
Place goat cheese, the juice of 1 lemon, 2 tsp of honey, 3 Tbsp of olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste in a blender. Blend until smooth. Place in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
Enjoy!
I serve mine with a fall harvest salad!