comfort food

for my friend, connie, who is craving rigatoni and invited us to dinner tonight.

Cheesy, hammy, gooey rigatoni:

1/4 lb. ham, sliced thick
1/4 c. Fontina cheese
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp. flour
1/2 lb. rigatoni
1/4 c. dry bread crumbs
1/4 lb. Mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup Provolone cheese
3 tbsp. butter
2 c. milk

Dice the ham. Grate cheese coarsely. In saucepan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over low heat. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring frequently, until it bubbles. Whisk in the milk; bring to a boil, stirring constantly and continue to cook for a minute. Stir the ham and the cheeses into sauce. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Cook rigatoni in boiling salted water until almost done. Drain and mix with sauce. Season to taste with salt and plenty of pepper. Butter a 1 1/2 quarts baking dish and pour in rigatoni. Cover loosely with foil and bake until bubbling, 25 minutes. Remove foil; heat broiler. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter and toss in bread crumbs. Scatter crumbs over noodles. Brown the dish in the broiler for about 5 minutes and serve with massive green salad, chianti, and if you've got room, dessert.

ommm...

having one of those days where my heart and brain are just racingracingracing, and since i don't have a candle handy, thought this might help me wind down.

happy weekend

this weekend i'm going to take my sweet dog, lucy, for a winter walk on the beach. she's getting old, and moving more slowly (aren't we all), but she perks right up as soon as she smells the salt water.

window of the day

to do item no. 64

have yet to see the cherry blossoms in japan, but i have walked around the reservoir in central park under a canopy of pink flowers. not quite the same but still gorgeous.

photo by tirau dan.

think pink

when you're having a bad day, just think pink. these photographs by yvette inufio do the trick.

what i'm craving

... is a trip to le marche aux puces de Saint-Ouen, the famous flea market in paris, to find two vintage chandeliers for my study and bedroom. but since i don't work for AIG, i'll settle for... by those nifty swedes at ikea. just $39.99. gotta love it.