Food trends (at my house)

A few weeks ago, I was bored at work. There was a convergence of exams to be taken, exams to be graded, and grant proposals to write. These events occupied both graduate students and faculty, but they left this postdoc (who didn't need to do any of those) a little bored. Officially my work is rather self-directed, so I shouldn't ever be bored. If I've got free time, I can find a new project. But in practical terms, I can only start so many self-directed projects before I need to interact with my co-workers.

Well, the time of boredom has officially ended. The summer semester has started, so I once again have meetings to attend, papers to edit, and feedback on my research to digest. In terms of demands on my time, I've left the desert and am now in the middle of New York City. As a result, I haven't been giving proper attention to the blog and you're all going to have to make do with some quick pictures of some of the food I've been cooking lately.

First, I seem to have become addicted to spaghetti carbonara. As a vegetarian, I've never really appreciated this dish, which is traditionally made by frying up some pancetta, then tossing it with hot pasta, a raw egg, Parmesan cheese, and black pepper. The heat of the pasta gently cooks the egg and cheese into a creamy sauce. I recently decided to try a vegetarian version that doesn't simply omit the meat, but attempts to add strong, new flavors by adding smoked tempeh (i.e "fake bacon"), butter, and capers. I've never before seen the need for fake meat, but this dish has me reconsidering. For the record, I've eaten it 5 times in the last 10 days.

We had friends over for dinner last week, and I used the excuse to try some new things. First, I found a recipe for watermelon soup, which is basically pureed watermelon, ginger, mint, and white wine (I left out the feta). It was a lovely light start to a summer meal and I would highly recommend it.

The main course was a beet pizza, topped with provolone, figs, and greens. I thought it was a little odd. The flavors blended well, but if I were craving pizza, this would not fit the bill. Still, the guests enjoyed it, so it wasn't a total loss.What's been on your dinner table lately?