East and West

My first cooking in three months. One standard I know works and one simple riff on something my mother used to make.

I added radishes and red onion to a sweet sesame cucumber salad mom used to make. Guess I should have asked Dirt if he was down with the menu...man had a pile of radish crescents and red onion straws on his salad plate.


East - Cucumber and Radish Salad with Sweet Sesame Dressing

1 English cucumber, halved lengthwise and cut into thin crescents
2 cups radishs, halved and sliced into thin crescents
1 medium red onion, halved and sliced into thin ribbons
1 T dark sesame oil
1 T sugar
1 T olive oil
1 T white vinegar
1 t salt
1/2 t ground black pepper

1. Place all the veg in a bowl.
2. Add the dressing ingredients and toss well.
3. Let marinade in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to 1 hour.


West - Baked Rigatoni with Eggplant and Italian Sausage

Look at the gooey cheese. Get lost in it. Know that there is MORE underneath it mixed in with the fresh marinara and holding those rigatoni together.

My first crack at it, with a link to the recipe here.