What we ate this week

After a brief hiatus, I'm back.

I spent a few days this week back in North Carolina, checking on my still-for-sale house (make me an offer -- we are motivated sellers) and catching up with friends. But don't fret, it was still a ninja-filled week, as evidenced by the ninjabread men I carried on the plane with me. (Thanks to Lisa for turning me on to the cookie cutters, which I purchased at Serendipity Boutique of New London, one of my favorite kitschy little stores since I was 10 years old. But you can also find them at Amazon.)

I also finished up Anthony Bourdain's Kitchen Confidential. I so want to go on vacation with him and eat lots of pork. I love you, Tony -- even more so now that your hair is steely gray.

It was also a good-for-the-soul visit for this blogger because nearly everyone I reconnected with mentioned reading this blog, even referring to specific recipes. Yay -- lurking readership! This means my blog is not, as it often feels, just a very public conversation between my sister and me.

But enough about my trip. Here's what we've been eating:

• Shrimp and coconut curry with green beans -- cooks up quickly and the lemongrass really makes the dish
• Cheating-on-winter pea soup -- ah, Dorie Greenspan, creator of the much-squealed-about stuffed pumpkin, you have done it again: this is not your mother's gross brownish split pea soup -- it's verdant and delicious
• Pasta with sausage, leeks and broccoli rabe -- this one is made more awesome for me by the fact that broccoli rabe is Tony Bourdain's favorite vegetable (no lie, he said so) -- we have so much in common, he really needs to take me on his next vacation

Finally, a fun fact: living in a 100+-year-old house means you actually get to see "frosted windowpanes", just as described in the carol. Wicked!