With the arrival of Ted came the suggestion of his own weekly dog feature. I was hesitant at first, but I finally succumbed after a whole two days of consideration. Give the people what they want! Stalking down Ted and capturing his antics has been a challenge and a pleasure, and we love to joke about Ted’s ever-growing “Internet superstardom.” I can’t believe that I’ve written over 50 posts and built the largest photo set in my Flickr stream around this one topic.

At this point, though, I have concluded that the weekly posts have run their course. JG, Ted, and I have settled into our routine, and I’m enjoying the opportunity to sit back and pet Ted while I read, instead of having the camera at the ready for the first time he chews a tennis ball or when his ears refused to flop.

So, today, on the anniversary of the very first Dogarazzi post, I’m passing the Thursday torch to Julie and Bailey, who I am sure will carry on the tradition with pride. That’s not to say that Ted will no longer grace this neck of the woods; he just won’t do it every week or even on Thursdays, necessarily. It’s not a goodbye to Ted, just a “see you around.” With that, I leave you with highlights from our first year with Ted!

Get your daily dog dose with Smalls, Kaya, Rufus, Ben, Bailey, Gus, Foxy, and Zapp!

Then I realized that I was not on top of things. Much to my chagrin, the tuition cost per credit had increased since I did my initial calculations, so this first trial class would not be fully covered. I had wrongly assumed that I only needed to complete twelve classes for this program instead of the sixteen that were required, which meant that I would be taking courses for an additional year. Furthermore, my boss informed me that, though not explicitly stated in the policy, the reimbursement amount was subject to taxes, so I would not receive the full amount.

When I plugged these new factors into my spreadsheet of costs, the effect was dizzying. I would have to pay that much to get a graduate degree for that long? Even with the tuition benefit from work, we would have to go much deeper into debt than I had originally thought, and I suddenly wondered if taking out a loan for sheer self-improvement was really wise. An advanced degree might render monetary returns, but there was no guarantee. Plus, we’ve been saving for various other things (a big vacation, a kitchen renovation), and the size of the necessary loan dwarfed these other expenses. Did I really want to commit myself to five years of part-time classes and a huge loan only to be back on the job market and uncertain? Call it sticker shock or reality, but it was hardly a fair trade. I e-mailed JG with my new information and misgivings about the plan, saying that I felt very defeated.

I had reached a level of panic of record intensity, at least in recent memory. Outwardly, one may not have observed much stress, but my breath quickened, and my hands were trembling. Anxious statements circled inside my brain, each egging the other on, and as much as I knew that I should get off that line of thinking, I could not dislodge myself. It was too important, too heavy, too immediate.

I was chatting with OPH at the time, and I instinctively started to spew my stress into the chat box. She talked me down from the ledge, and we commiserated over our respective struggles. Despite the cathartic venting, I still felt like there was a gray cloud of my head, and I typed resolutely, “This is a count your blessings day for me.”

And so, I did.

• I had a great lunch of leftover chicken cacciatore.
• Last night, I finished a really hard climb that has been taunting me for three months.
• I have a low-stress workload right now.
• Our evenings are empty for the rest of the week.
• I am taking Friday off.
• I visit my sister just ten days!
• So far, I’m enjoying the book I’m reading.
• Ted and I had a peaceful, uneventful walk this morning.
• At my request, JG agreed to make ribs for dinner, and we’re having them tomorrow night! My contribution is corn bread.

This type of exercise is very unnatural to me; one of my greatest character flaws is that I automatically seek out the negative in order to fix it. It’s also one of the things that makes me good at my job, but what do you know? Cheesy platitudes about positive thinking aside, I felt better in spite of myself.

Later, JG and I talked about my e-mail, and his suggestions were simple: try out the first class to see if I like it; wait until halfway through to decide about the program as a whole; and investigate financial aid. If nothing else, I still had reimbursement money for the 2008 calendar year, so it would be better to use it rather than postponing the course indefinitely. Maybe talking to a financial advisor would help to quell my anxiety. Yes, that all made sense. Forming a plan of action made the situation seem much less desperate. Deep breath. Carry on.

Over the weekend, I tested two recipes in this vein The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook because, apparently, all I am about is pitching this cookbook. Detailed descriptions are below, but the moral of the story is: Make the skillet chili mac tonight! And if you have six spare hours, make the chicken cacciatore!

(Oh, and Moral #2 is that meat is not exactly photogenic. Ahem.)

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When it comes to looks and sophistication, this chili mac will not score any points. It’s not a meal for impressing mothers-in-law or appeasing a discerning palette; however, what it lacks in refinement it makes up for in ease, taste, and quality of leftovers.

Method: Remember the penne with chicken and broccoli that I cooked to death because I missed the memo that the pasta was supposed to soften in the sauce? This chili mac is in the same family of recipes, and I did not make the same mistake twice. Hurrah! Instead, I made a mess of my preparations and neglected to read the procedure properly, and the result was a messy kitchen, an encrusted pan, and a flustered cook, none of which was the fault of the recipe. In helpful notes, however, I substituted ground turkey for the beef, as the recipe suggests, and we did not notice one bit.

Taste: How can you go wrong with pasta, chili, and cheese? You can’t! The dish tasted great, thanks to the chili powder and cumin, and the cheese oozed through the pasta. We ate steaming bowls of chili mac hot off the stove, which meant the sauce was roughly the temperature of molten lava. I don’t mind scorching the roof of my mouth, but JG opted to start with his salad. It was one of those meals that I wanted to just eat and never stop, but we restrained ourselves, and I packed up three lunches’ worth of leftovers. So far, they have warmed up very nicely, and I can’t wait to eat the last portion this afternoon.

Repeat appearance: I will definitely, absolutely, certainly, redundantly make this dish again. It gives me my chili fix without six hours of simmering in the crock pot, and the preparation is fairly simple, if one does not make silly makes like I did. Using turkey instead of beef made us feel a bit more virtuous in the nutrition department without giving up on taste. Next time, I will throw together a batch of corn bread to go with it because, you know, what it really needed was more carbs. Heh.

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For this week’s theme, old favorites, I chose a recipe for chicken cacciatore because that was one of my most-loved meals when I grew up. My mom, the Make It From Scratch Queen, made a really delicious version, and I have never tried it for myself. The ATK rendition here uses a slow cooker, which made me think it would not be labor-intensive, but — hoo boy! — that was not the case at all.

Method: I trust the ATK implicitly, and I don’t think that any of the steps here were superfluous, despite the mountain of dishes they created and the hours spent on my feet. The straight-forward, though involved, process had what felt like twelve hundred steps, not to mention the strong reminder that I am still a huge wimp when it comes to a hot pan of oil and placing meat into it. JG said that I used too much oil in the pan, which made for a lot of spattering, and that is a straight shot to panic for me. I intend to face my fear eventually, but I will wait until the weather is cool enough for me to cook in clothing that is more substantial than bare feet, shorts, and a tank top, thank you very much. Two hours elapsed while I prepared the ingredients for their four-hour simmer, and then I spent another half an hour after that finishing the sauce. By the time I had turned on the crock pot to low and collapsed on the couch, I was already doubtful that the final dish would be worth it.

Taste: I laid out the chicken on a platter and draped it with sauce, served myself a portion alongside a scoop of pasta, and took a bite. Oh, my. The chicken was flavorful and tender. The sauce had a mellow roundness of red wine with the hearty vegetables throughout. It was nothing like my mom’s marinara-based cacciatore, which was slightly disappointing, but this was fantastic and comforting.

Repeat appearance: Sigh. Maybe. I might do it again if JG and I worked together on the chopping and the chicken-browning, because it was really good. I just can’t get past what I consider to be a huge amount of prep time. If I’m going to be in the kitchen for two hours, I figure that I should have something to show for it, other than four hours of waiting. Even then, I used up so many pots and pans before I served anything! I also like my slow-cooker meals to be the type that I can assemble the night before, keep in the fridge, and turn on before I go to work, and four hours of simmering will not fit the bill. I’m torn because the end result was delicious, but I can’t bring myself to be excited to make it again. On the bright side, this recipe produced about a gallon of sauce, so I froze a container of it for the future. I figure that I can grill some chicken, make some pasta, and throw together a quick, fake chicken cacciatore.

Skillet Chili Mac
America’s Test Kitchen

Serves: 4-6
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes (includes 20 minutes simmering time)

For a lighter dish, substitute ground turkey for the ground beef. You can substitute Monterey Jack cheese for some or all of the Colby. If you want to spice things up, add 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes along with the chili powder, or serve with Tabasco.

• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound (85 percent lean) ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped medium
• 1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped medium
• Salt
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 tablespoon cumin
• 8 ounces macaroni (2 cups)
• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
• 1 15-ounce can tomato puree
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• Pepper
• 8 ounces Colby cheese, shredded (2 cups)

1. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the beef and cook, breaking up the pieces with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain the beef through a fine-mesh strainer, discarding the fat.

2. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil to the skillet and return to medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onion, bell pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the garlic, chili powder, and cumin and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Stir in the macaroni, tomatoes with their juice, tomato puree, water, brown sugar, and drained beef. Cover and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is tender, about 20 minutes.

4. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle the Colby evenly over the top, cover, and let sit off the heat until the cheese melts, about 3 minutes.

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Slow-Cooker Chicken Cacciatore
America’s Test Kitchen

Serves: 6
Advance Prep Time: 1 hour
Slow-Cooker Time: 4 hours

Cremini mushrooms (aka baby bellas) are available in most supermarkets. If you cannot find them, substitute 1 1/4 pounds portobello mushroom caps, each cut into 8 wedges. Jarred roasted red peppers are sold in jars of different sizes. One 12-ounce jar is enough for this recipe.

• 6 bone-in, skin-on split chicken breasts (10-12 ounces each), or 12 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (6-8 ounces each), trimmed
• Salt and pepper
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 1/4 pounds cremini mushrooms, quartered
• 2 onions, halved and sliced thin [I only used one]
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/2 cups dry red wine
• 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/4 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed thoroughly and chopped fine [I omitted these]
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups jarred roasted red peppers, rinsed and cut into 1-inch strips
• 1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1. Dry the chicken with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 teaspoons of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown half of the chicken on both sides, about 10 minutes, then add to the slow cooker. (Remove the browned skin if using chicken thighs.) Return the skillet to medium-high heat and repeat with 2 more teaspoons oil and the remaining chicken. Discard any fat left in the skillet.

2. Add the remaining 2 teaspoons oil to the empty skillet and heat over medium heat until shimmering. Add the cremini mushrooms, onions, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until the mushrooms are brown, 10-15 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 15 seconds. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and reserve.

3. Add the wine to the skillet and return to medium heat, scraping up any browned bits. Simmer until reduced by half, about 5 minutes, then pour into the slow cooker.

4. Add the tomatoes, 1 1/2 cups of the broth, the porcini mushrooms, thyme, bay leaves, and red pepper flakes to the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low until the chicken is tender, about 4 hours.

5. Transfer the chicken to a large serving dish and tent loosely with foil. Set the slow cooker to high. Whisk the flour and the remaining 1/2 cup broth until smooth, then stir into the slow cooker. Cover and continue to cook until the sauce is thickened and no longer tastes of flour, 15-30 minutes longer.

6. Discard the bay leaves. Stir the reserved mushroom mixture and roasted red peppers into the slow cooker and heat through, about 5 minutes. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon the vegetables and some of the sauce over the chicken and serve, passing remaining sauce separately.

But before the recipe-palooza, we have a couple of housekeeping items:

• The theme for the week of July 20 is old favorites. Which comfort food have you always wanted to make? Does Mom still have that macaroni and cheese recipe? What about Grandma’s chocolate chip cookies? (For you plan-ahead-ers, the theme for the following week is vegetarian.)
• Next Friday, Nic will host the wrap-up, but you have until Saturday for your recipe to count for the week.

In addition to those recipes from Week 1 posted after the wrap-up, here are the tested dishes from this week, organized by category and then alphabetized by recipe:

Bread and Breakfast

• Meghan hit a home run with Red Lobster Cheese Biscuits.
• Emily is still looking for a good cornbread recipe after disappointment with Rosemary Corn Bread.
• Nancy Pearl Wannabe fixed up the Pioneer Woman’s Yogurt Cream and Berries with no guilt whatsoever.

Sandwiches

• Proactive Bridesmaid took advantage of a new cookbook by making a Big Tomato Sandwich with Cheese.

Beef

• Constantly Arriving “beheld the power of cheese” with Better-than-Ever Beef Enchiladas.

Pork

• Kim’s experimental Yowza Pork Chops turned out pretty well, if she says so herself.

Poultry

• Alane loved her Brown and Wild Rice Chicken Salad, even if her choosy family members begged to differ.
• Janelle’s family loved her Easy Chicken Piccata.
• Erin was pleasantly surprised that Low-Fat Fried Chicken Strips were tasty and easy.

Seafood

• Erin took her first foray into grilling with Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp and Jalapeño.
• Julie has approved Creamy Crab Stuffed Mushrooms for future family get-togethers!
• Jess tweaked Garlic Cream Shrimp to the point where “only copious amounts of shredded Parmesan and ground pepper salvaged this meal.”
• Heather added the figure-friendly Kung Pao Shrimp to her regular rotation.

Pasta

• Jemima enlisted her husband to man the pasta machine for their Artichoke Ravioli with Tomatoes.
• Ross put together Arugula-Basil-Walnut Pesto to go over a first attempt at homemade pasta.
• Erin made a successful venture into “real food” territory with Bowties with Pesto, Feta, and Cherry Tomatoes.
• Nic noted that Capellini with Fresh Ricotta, Roasted Garlic, Corn, and Herbs was “not complicated, but it’s a lot of prep work for a fairly simple dish.”
• Jaime poached a chicken for the first time for Chicken Spaghetti.
• Daisy Yellow tossed together a tangy East-West Pasta Primavera.
• Merrick dusted off a cookbook from her husband and made Fusilli with Sausage.
• I brought my husband closer to the pro-lemon side with Lemon Fusilli.
• Stephanie was pleased that the Linguine with Asparagus, Parmesan, and Bacon was relatively light.
• Anna’s pantry-staple-fueled Marinara Sauce was a hit at her house.
• Kelly added Not-sagna Pasta Toss to her dinner repertoire.
• Jesse and Heather had good luck with Pasta with Broccoli, Edamame, and Walnuts.
• Megan channeled Giada de Laurentiis with her Penne with Spinach Sauce.
• Janet whipped up spicy Roasted Poblano and Chicken Penne.
• Jaime was won over by the tofu noodles in Shrimptastic Fettuccine Hungry Girlfredo.
• Audrey enjoyed the very cheesy Southwest Macaroni and Cheese with Adobo Meatballs.

Vegetarian

• Zandria declared the taste of Barley and White Bean Salad muy bueno!
• Which Box called Creamy Gorgonzola Polenta with Summer Squash Sauté a “swing and a miss.”
• Sherry loved her first try with Red Lentil Curry.
• Emily made an easy Zucchini Pie, but she’d jazz it up next time with a few additional ingredients.

Side Dishes

• Jane had success with a batch of Oven Fries!
• Janelle cleaned out a bit of her pantry with Savory Couscous.
• Suburban Lush satisfied her love of spuds with Twice Baked Potatoes.

Desserts

• Laurel celebrated her boyfriend’s birthday with Chocolate Sour Cream Cupcakes!
• I tried out Cream Cheese Marbled Brownies that were delicious, but not particularly cream-cheese-y.
• Meghan found a recipe for Easy Cream Cheese Brownies, but she was not a fan of the brownie mix she used as the base.
• Emily loved her Arnold-Palmer-esque Lemonade Iced Tea Sorbet.
• Janet made a game-time decision to go for peaches in her Peach (Originally Raspberry) Summer Sensation, but she was disappointed in its lackluster appearance, despite a high tastiness factor.
• Jennie made an impressive Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake, but she notes that the directions leave room for interpretation.
• Susan thought her Tiramisu Cookies were delicious, but warns that they take “a hundred hours” to make.

JG scouted out a good deal on tickets with a coupon on a $3 box of Tastykake Butterscotch Krimpets, which saved us the full cost of a day pass. The drive to northern New Jersey took about two hours, and we stayed at the park past rush hour. Overall, I was not impressed. The big thrill rides at Six Flags were very good, especially the Superman ride, where the seats tilted downward, and we “flew” horizontally. I also enjoyed El Toro, which was the longest, most sustained ride on a wooden coaster I can remember in a long time. However, the indoor Batman ride was horrendous, the Great American Scream Machine practically gave me whiplash, and three different coasters broke down before noon. In general, the park operations were clunky and inefficient, especially an odd ticketing system intended to prevent line-jumping. I’m glad we went, and we got our money’s worth, but we will return to our old stomping grounds of Hershey Park next year. It is the sweetest place on Earth, after all.

Our all-day absence meant that Ted had to spend the time in his crate, like a workday. We asked a friend to stop by to take him out in the afternoon, and JG walked him after we got home, but it was probably a rude awakening after the past few weeks of having free rein in the house with JG. Thankfully, the extended crate stay was a little easier because we picked up a new crate for Ted at the beginning of the month. He barely fit in his original one when he was all stretched out, which I didn’t really understand, because it was supposedly Westie-sized, and Ted is a smaller Westie. Regardless, Ted didn’t like spending time in his crate, and the cramped quarters did not help one bit.

We took a cue from Quincy’s owners and opted for a larger, wire-grid crate that collapses for traveling. Ted has a habit of barking at new, sizable additions to our decor (coolers, large shipment boxes, etc.), so JG set up the crate in our living room for an afternoon and let Ted wander around it to get acquainted. He nosed around the new structure, cautiously stepping in and out, lured by the treat JG had tossed inside. By the end of the day, Ted was happily situated in the new digs with his old towel. Even though the new crate looks more jail-like, Ted doesn’t mind going inside. Sometimes, he even beats me to the punch by hopping into his crate and waiting for me to lock the door.

Eventually, we’ll soften up the floor with some sort of padding, but for now, I’m relieved that Ted enjoys being in his crate. Shoving him into the old one made me feel awful, and he sounded so pitiful when he scratched against the door. These days, when I come to get him for the morning walk, Ted is simply lying down on his towel, patient and quiet.

Stay tuned for next week’s special one-year anniversary celebration of Dogarazzi! In the meantime, get your daily dog dose with Smalls, Kaya, Rufus, Ben, Bailey, Gus, Foxy, and Zapp!

Whenever I see my sister, there is one staple: baked goods. She claims she can’t bake, but I think it’s a front to coerce me into making something for her, as though I needed second bidding. We were chatting about the visit up to “the country,” as she calls it, and I reminded her to let me know what she wanted me to make ahead of time so that I could have it ready, rattling off items that have elicited jealous pangs from her. Pretzels? Big cookies? Raspberry bars?

“How about cream cheese brownies?” she asked.

Uh, way to suggest something I’ve never made, Zeister.

But, hey! This week’s Whip It Up theme is cheese, so what better time is there to experiment? Nic pointed out correctly that cream cheese is not actually cheese, in the production sense, but for the purposes of this challenge, we have let that detail slide. With that, I found a suitable recipe for the brownies at Smitten Kitchen and got to work.

Method
From the start, I fidgeted with the recipe because I did not need a 9×13″ pan of experiment brownies, and I figured that I could halve the ingredients and end up with a nice 8×8″ batch for testing purposes. Most of the reduction was a piece of cake, but eyeballing one half of a beaten egg for the cream cheese filling was no fun. If nothing else, for the purpose of reducing the cake flour and sugar measurements for the brownie batter, I learned that there are four tablespoons in a quarter cup. Who knew? I work better in the metric system, where the conversions make sense, for the love of all that is good.

The process was very easy to follow, which was not surprising since Deb adapted her recipe from what I’m sure was an already sound method from Cook’s Illustrated. I was rather inefficient with my use of dishes because I did not catch the detail that I would add everything to my melted chocolate, rather than the other way around, so do yourself a favor and melt your chocolate and butter in the biggest bowl you can. Also, I highly recommend the use of the foil sling for brownies to make removal and cutting so significantly easier. However, beware of using “the tip of a knife” to swirl the cream cheese and chocolate layers together; I was sure at certain points that I had punctured my foil lining. Next time, I would use the handle of spoon or a chopstick for a narrow, blunt swirling utensil. What, I wasn’t supposed to use a steak knife?

Taste
I cut up the brownies to have as dessert for a get-together this week, but JG and I shared one to make sure they were, uh, edible. I chose a brownie with a higher proportion of cream cheese swirl so we could properly test that portion of it, and we both took thoughtful bites. The brownie was moist, very chocolate-y, and pleasantly sweet, but we couldn’t exactly taste the cream cheese. In fact, if I had been blindfolded I may not have even picked up on the swirled layer.

Repeat appearance
JG had a quick solution to the wimpy cream cheese taste: double the filling. So, next time (because, oh, there will be a next time), I will halve the brownie batter as I did this time, but make a full portion of the cream cheese batter. That’s more of a relief than anything, since I won’t have to guess at what half of an egg looks like. I think I might try out one more test batch to make sure the proportion is right; after all, someone has to make sure that my sister doesn’t eat an out-of-whack brownie. I’m taking one for the team!

Cream Cheese Marbled Brownies
Originally seen at Smitten Kitchen, adapted from Cook’s Illustrated

Be sure to test for doneness before removing the brownies from the oven. If underbaked (the toothpick has batter clinging to it) the texture of the brownies will be dense and gummy. If overbaked (the toothpick comes out completely clean), the brownies will be dry and cakey.

For swirl
3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon all purpose flour

For brownies
1 cup (4 ounces) pecans or walnuts, chopped medium (optional)
1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped fine
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into six 1-inch pieces
2 1/4 cups (15 3/4 ounces) sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 325 degrees. Cut 18-inch length foil and fold lengthwise to 8-inch width. Fit foil into length of 13 by 9-inch baking dish, pushing it into corners and up sides of pan; allow excess to overhand pan edges. Cut 14-inch length foil and, if using extra-wide foil, fold lengthwise to 12-inch width; fit into width of baking pan in same manner, perpendicular to first sheet. Spray foil-lined pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Beat cream cheese and two tablespoons butter in medium bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually add 1/4 cup sugar and beat until well blended. Beat in egg. Mix in one tablespoon flour. Set mixture aside.

3. If using nuts, spread nuts evenly on rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven until fragrant, 5 to 8 minutes. Set aside to cool.

4. Whisk to combine flour, salt, and baking powder in medium bowl; set aside.

5. Melt chocolate and butter in large heatproof bowl set over saucepan of almost-simmering water, stirring occasionally, until smooth. (Alternatively, in microwave, heat butter and chocolate in large microwave-safe bowl on high for 45 seconds, then stir and heat for 30 seconds more. Stir again, and, if necessary, repeat in 15-second increments; do not let chocolate burn.) When chocolate mixture is completely smooth, remove bowl from saucepan and gradually whisk in sugar. Add eggs one at a time, whisking after each addition until thoroughly combined. Whisk in vanilla. Add flour mixture in three additions, folding with rubber spatula until batter is completely smooth and homogeneous.

6. Transfer half of batter to prepared pan; using spatula, spread batter into corners of pan and smooth surface. Pour cream cheese mixture over, then second half of brownie batter. Swirl the batters together decoratively with the tip of a knife. Sprinkle toasted nuts (if using) evenly over batter and bake until toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into center of brownies comes out with few moist crumbs attached, 35 to 45 minutes, watching carefully for overcooking. Cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 2 hours, then remove brownies from pan by lifting foil overhang. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares and serve. (Store leftovers in airtight container at room temperature, for up to 3 days, or, ahem, in the freezer until your resistance gets the better of you.)

To satiate my bottomless pit of pasta love, I am constantly searching out new way to work with what some (misguided) folks may consider a tired, has-been foodstuff, and last night, I tried a recipe for lemon fusilli that I had seen on Barefoot Contessa. I know, it’s been all lemons, all the time around here! Here’s the thing — up until recently, JG was under the impression that he did not like anything lemon, which sharply turned my love of the tangy citrus to an unrequited one. After I made a lemon basil pasta salad a couple of weeks ago, he came to the realization that he didn’t like lemony things that were meant to be sweet, like lemon squares or lemon meringue pie, but savory things were fair game.

I’ll take it! Trot out the lemony recipes!

Method
Ina’s recipe was surprisingly simple and easy to follow. Whenever I watch her, I have my doubts that the processes are so clean and easy, because her garlic comes peeled, her water comes boiled, and her baking sheets come greased. It must be nice! This time, I took cautionary measures against being flustered (as is my custom with a new dinner recipe) by chopping the garlic, zesting and juicing the lemons, and reducing the broccoli to florets before I started anything else. I took a little longer to make the dish than I should have, but at least I wasn’t stressed out.

I made a few tweaks to the ingredient list:

• I used tricolor rotini because I couldn’t find fusilli at the store.
• I omitted the third lemon to save JG’s taste buds, and I didn’t quite understand why Ina just tosses one in at the last minute.
• I substituted baby spinach for the arugula.
• I only used a handful of tomatoes because I would be the only one eating them.

I also opted to use the same water to blanch the broccoli and cook the pasta. Even with our household “you cook, I clean” policy, I like to be economical with my dish use. Why dirty up two pots when they were both for boiling water? Sure, the broccoli turned the water a little green, but that didn’t make a difference. The only trouble I had with the process was getting my cream sauce to simmer properly, but that is no fault of the recipe; I still have not figured out how to do it on our electric stove. One would think that almost three years in a house would have taught me that, but alas, no. Overall, the recipe proceeded just as Ina had predicted, and there were no unpleasant mishaps along the way.

Taste
The tradition at our dinner table is that whoever doesn’t cook gets to take the first serving, so JG dug in to the pasta before I got a chance. Now, I had already given him the disclaimer that I had reduced the lemony goodness so that there would be less chance of a “too much lemon!” complaint, but JG smacked his lips and said, “It’s definitely lemony, but it’s good!” I sprinkled Parmesan cheese on my helping, and took a bite. Yes, the two lemons’ zest and juice made the dish distinctly lemony, but the creamy base softened the acidity. The pasta had soaked up the sauce nicely, and there was barely any left pooling at the bottom of the dish. This dinner didn’t need meat to be filling because it was plenty hearty from the broccoli, tomatoes, and spinach.

Repeat appearance
JG declared, “Put it in the rotation!” and the recipe is now safely tucked away in one side of a clear plastic sleeve. This dish is easy and filling, and I packed up three lunch-sized portions after dinner. I’m glad to add it to the repertoire, and it’s a handy meatless option. In the future, I will retain the changes I made to the recipe, in addition to lightening up the sauce a bit by using equal portions of cream and milk. JG also requested that I chop the spinach more finely than I did last night, since I just ran my knife through it roughly. But don’t misinterpret my tinkering! This lemon fusilli is simple to make and really tasty, and I highly recommend it.

Lemon Fusilli with Arugula
As seen on Barefoot Contessa

• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 3 lemons [I just used 2]
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 bunch broccoli
• 1 pound dried fusilli pasta
• 1/2 pound baby arugula (or 2 bunches of common arugula, leaves cut in thirds) [I used baby spinach]
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 1 pint grape or cherry tomatoes, halved

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the garlic, and cook for 60 seconds. Add the cream, the zest from 2 lemons, the juice of 2 lemons, 2 teaspoons of salt, and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until it starts to thicken.

Meanwhile, cut the broccoli in florets and discard the stem. Cook the florets in a pot of boiling salted water for 3 to 5 minutes, until tender but still firm. Drain the broccoli and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 1 tablespoon of salt and the pasta, and cook according to the directions on the package, about 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain the pasta in a colander and place it back into the pot. Immediately add the cream mixture and cook it over medium-low heat for 3 minutes, until most of the sauce has been absorbed in the pasta.

Pour the hot pasta into a large bowl, add the arugula, Parmesan, tomatoes, and cooked broccoli. Cut the last lemon in half lengthwise, slice it 1/4-inch thick crosswise, and add it to the pasta. Toss well, season to taste, and serve hot.

Anyway, JG has hunkered down this week to start his preparations to teach the AP computer science class in the fall, which will be new to him. Last year, he taught a semester-long, introductory computer science course that was graphics-based and easy for beginners. This year, he has two sections of that same class, plus the AP course. Generally, JG likes to teach computer science because the students are upperclassmen who can handle being on their own with the programming, but the AP class holds a certain challenge in that the kids learn Java.

Oh, and JG doesn’t know Java.

In order to study up — or stay one day ahead of the kids, as I like to tease — JG has been going through the material, even before I leave for work in the morning. He sets up his computer on the dining table and follows along PowerPoint slides from the textbook, and he looks quite studious, indeed. The other day, when I went to pack my lunch, I came across this sight:

Apparently, Ted was misbehaving, so JG had sequestered him in Study Land, but it looked for all the world like Ted pursuing his dream of becoming the next Java programmer. By golly, that dog will earn his keep, yet!

Get your daily dog dose with Smalls, Kaya, Rufus, Ben, Bailey, Gus, Foxy, and Zapp!

I am not an oncologist or anything, but I would say that I am aware of ovarian cancer in that I know it exists and is a risk for which tests should be regularly run. Generally, I am aware that there are endangered animals, children are hungry in other countries, and people have terminal illnesses. I would even go so far as to say that I might be aware of these issues even without a handy bumper sticker, but I suppose the reminder can’t hurt.

What does the bumper sticker really accomplish? I guess the money from its purchase may go toward environmental conservation efforts or medical research once expenses are covered. I question their effectiveness, but I am even more flummoxed about those stunts to “raise awareness.” A guy will sit on a flagpole for 27 hours to demonstrate how many people are afflicted with some such condition every day, and he gets featured on the local news, but I am unclear what happens as a result. I wonder if people go home and then donate money or time to help out the cause, or if they simply gaze up at the weirdo on the flagpole.

That’s not to say that I am not in favor of supporting medical research, saving the planet, or feeding needy people. There are so many good causes to support, and they justifiably need people’s time and money to continue providing services and doing work, which can’t happen without informing and educating those people. I just don’t understand the drive to raise awareness, especially with a strange stunt, when most causes need money, goods, and time, not just acknowledgment that the need exists.

Maybe it’s that word that bothers me — awareness. To me, it implies cognizance and information, but not necessarily with any inherent action. I would like to be aware of a nasty dog behind a fence, traffic jams, or broken glass on the floor. Putting terminal illness and hunger on the same level seems imprecise, not to mention insensitive, and that impression only deepens when I see it on a bumper sticker.

Okay, I’m aware of ovarian cancer! Now, what?