Ramps are wonderful! What are ramps? Imagine what it would taste like if spring onions, leeks, shallots and garlic had a baby. They’re a wild leek that is harvested in the spring. Where I live, in New York state, they grow in abundance in the woods.

I confess – I didn’t harvest my own. I was able to pick some up at my local farmers’ market.

The other night I made Ramp Ravioli. They turned out great! How do I know? Because my 16-year-old said they were the best ever, and he was right (if I don’t mind saying so myself).

To make filling, combine dry ricotta, egg, parm, salt & pepper.

To remove the moisture from the ricotta, I use a pillow case or tea towel - 100% cotton. Put the ricotta in and wrap tightly with plastic wrap for at least 30 minutes.

The pillow case absorbs a lot of moisture from the ricotta

Try to line up the ramps as best you can, and then trim them.

Try to line up the ramps as best you can, and then trim them.

Slowly caramelize, about 20 minutes, the white part of the ramps in 2 tbsp. each of butter and olive oil. When the greens are tender, wring them of all excess liquid and chop until fine. Do the same with the caramelized part and add to the filling.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add the cleaned ramp greens and boil until tender, about 7-8 minutes.

Caramelize the ramps in 2 tbsp of butter and 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium/low heat.

Wring as much liquid as you can out of the greens. Chop up fine. Do the same with the caramelized part.

Next make your ravioli using whatever method you prefer.

The filling makes about 30 ravioli. What you don't eat right away can go into the freezer for later.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, cook ravioli about 7 or 8 minutes and serve with marinara.

The filling has the caramelized ramp flavor going all through it. The greens add some flavor and they make the ravioli look pretty.

The other white meat. Yup. I’m talking about pork. My husband is a real ‘porker’ – meaning that he loves pork in all its forms.

I picked up a 3 pound pork loin. One pound I used to make these awesome Spicy Pork Tacos with Spicy Black Beans. With the rest I made my own version of a porchetta – which is basically pork on pork.

This is really easy to make and serves 4.

Step 1 – Butterfly the pork loin, score and generously salt and pepper.

Step 2 – Combine about 1/4 cup of parsley, 3-4 cloves of garlic, olive, salt and pepper. Spread with the parsely mixture.

Step 3- Preheat oven to 350F.

Step 4 – In a skillet brown 3/4 pound of sweet sausage with about 1/2 cup each of onions and fennel. As it softens add 2 minced cloves of garlic. Add 1/4 cup white wine and let it reduce. Allow to cool and then add bread crumbs and parmesan cheese until it’s the consistency of loose stuffing.

Step 5 – Spread on butterflied pork roast. Roll and tie.

Step 6 – Roast until the pork’s internal temperature is 140F. It should take about 45 minutes to an hour to cook.

Step 7 – Let rest for 10 minutes. Slice and serve!

Leftovers sliced thin make a great sandwich. You can also whip up some pan gravy to warm up the leftover pork roll.

It occurred to me the other day, that I may possibly have a slight addiction to cooking shows. Like the rest of society, I’m going to blame this on my mother. She‘s the one that was watching the Galloping Gourmet. I was only four or five at the time but I distinctly remember him (perhaps because he was slightly tipsy?).

She watched Julia Child too. That probably explains all the crepes we ate – both savory and sweet. My favorite were the ones she rolled around chicken and baked with a white sauce topped with gruyere.

I digress.

By the time I was a teenager, I was watching cooking shows all on my own. Yan Can Cook and The Frugal Gourmet were two of my favorites.

What I learned from these shows, and my mom, was how to take a broader view of food. Experiment with spices. Try a new technique.

Today there are more cooking shows than I can keep up with and the things that appeal to me now are much different than they were in my teens. And while I enjoy many of them, my new favorite is Extra Virgin with Gabriele Corcos and Debi Mazar. Think reality show meets cooking show.

These two are a real life couple. (I remember her from her gal pal days with Madonna!) He’s Italian and she’s a city girl. Together they’re raising their two children to have an appreciation of where there food comes from.

This Orange, Red Onion and Fennel salad is an excellent example of putting together ingredients that you might not normally combine.

I’ve been eating this salad all winter. My family loves it and so do our dinner guests. It’s the perfect accompaniment with hearty winter stews or braised dishes. If you don’t like arugula. No problem. Switch it out with mesclun, baby spinach or whatever you like. The idea is to experiment.

Just a few ingredients. . .

Serve on a pretty plate and you're good to go!

It had been a long day. I’d just driven three hours from New Jersey in some pretty crappy weather after attending an all day conference. I was tired, hungry and just a little cranky.

As I pull into the garage door, the cellar door opens and Lexie comes running to meet me with a big smile on her face. I open the car door and she jumps in, giving me kisses. Now that’s the way to be welcomed home!

I go up the stairs and the rest of the family greets me. Lexie is still jumping up and down and I notice that she’s still ‘smiling’ – except something is a little off. Her tongue is sticking out of her mouth a little.

I ask Mark if she’s okay. He tells me that she had a play date with his brother’s young dog and maybe she ate something weird. We check her but she seems okay.

I call the vet on Tuesday and tell them that something isn’t right with Lexie. Her appetite is fine and she’s got plenty of energy but something is wrong with her mouth/jaw. She has allergies and was taking some medication, could that be a side effect? They wanted to take a look.

Wednesday morning, Lexie jumps into the car. She LOVES going to the vet. Weird. They weigh her, listen to her heart and check all vitals. This is taking longer than normal. I’m starting to get worried. I don’t want to upset Lexie though.

I ask if everything’s okay. They’re not sure. Her lymph nodes all over her body are inflamed. They let me see for myself. They ask if it’s okay to draw some blood and to aspirate her lymph nodes. Why? To send to a pathologist.

A pathologist??? A pathologist? My head is reeling. I ask the doctor to just tell it to me straight. She looks me in the eye and said she’s worried that Lexie has canine lymphoma. She’ll let me know the results ASAP. Lexie looks fine. She’s happy. WTF?

I call Mark. He’s on the road to see a client in New Jersey (about 3 hours away). He can’t talk. He’s angry. He starts grilling me. He’s convinced that I didn’t ask the right questions. He’s not mad at me really. He’s just mad because deep down he knows that it’s not good.

The diagnosis is confirmed. We’ve got decisions to make. We Google. We talk to the vet. We cry. We hope. We pray.

Bottom line – even with intense treatment there is no cure. We may extend her life for 9 months or so. This is so unfair. She’s young. She’s only five. We rescued her. Is this ironic or what?

We decide to let her enjoy the time she has left. No chemo. We go on long walks. She plays with her other doggie buddies. She doesn’t get shooed off the couch or the bed and she can have as many treats as she wants.

We begin to think. They made a mistake. She beat the odds. She’s fine. She’ll make it.

But she doesn’t. Two weeks later she wakes up fine. Happy. Justin goes to school. I go to the office. Mark is working from home and he heads out to lunch at noon. By 3:30 when Justin comes home, he notices that she’s shaking and acting a little off. He tries to keep her calm.

I come home at 4:00. Lexie tries to greet me and falls down the stairs. It’s bad. It’s horrible. She’s shaking. Panicking. She has vertigo. She can’t jump into the car.

I call the vet. Justin calls Mark, tells him to meet Mom at the vet’s. He doesn’t need to say anything else.

We all know. We don’t say it but we know.

By 5PM she’s gone. It hurts a lot. It’s been a week. We’re raw.

It’s tough losing a pet. This was especially hard because she was so young. I still expect to hear her jump off the bed to come greet me. I’m not sure when that stops.

Will we get another dog? Probably. When we’re ready. What Lexie (and all the others before her) have brought to our lives is more than the pain of their loss.

So . . . what I try to force myself to remember is her like this:

Happy Dog!

Water Dog!

Merry Christmas! Where's my bone?

Yes, I'm on the couch and I'm ignoring you . . .

Sunning on the deck.

I really can’t stand throwing anything away. I honestly enjoy foraging through the refrigerator and the pantry to see what I can come up with.

Let’s see. I’ve got some leftover spaghetti, sauce, sausage . . . what can I make with those ingredients? Spaghetti pie! I’ve made this dish a thousand times but I usually make it with ricotta cheese. I guess that means it’s time to get creative.

Here’s what I came up with:

Preheat oven to 350F. Mix eggs, Italian seasoning, cheese, garlic powder, salt, pepper and milk together. Add the cooked, leftover pasta. Press into the bottom of an 8″ or 9″ buttered pie plate. Top with sauce, sausage and mozzarella. Bake for 35 minutes. Let rest for 2-3 minutes. Slice and serve.

This year our local farmers market added a fresh fish vendor. Pura Vida Fisheries, located on Long Island, makes the five hour (plus or minus) trip to our market EVERY Saturday. Yay!

This month I’ve picked up oysters, mussels, scallops, cod and striped bass.

Mussels and Clams

Next time I think I’ll pick up some swordfish.

Fresh Swordfish

Mark has been enjoying the oysters.

Nothing is better than a FRESH oyster.

Here’s a simple fish dish that will work with most white fish. In this case I used striped bass.

In a heavy skillet, heat oil until very hot. Place fillets skin side down and cook for 3-4 minutes. Carefully flip. In the meantime, make the sauce in another saucepan. When the fish is good and brown and the fish is cooked (it will be opaque), place on a plate, spoon sauce over the fish and garnish with the dill or fennel.

Striped Bass with Wine-Lemon Sauce