After a 7 month sabbatical: I'm back and trying to kick-start my food blog. So hello all you out there: whether you care what I cook or not....welcome to my world.My world consists of a 15'x6' hallway more commonly referred to as my kitchen. And although it is possibly the worst looking room in my house off the bat, it is transformed each day into an eatery, my own little haven.Monday as I scoured for a recipe to ale to my sick husband, I found this Bon Appetit recipe from 1994 for Chicken & Vegetable Stew. After a short excursion to the doctors office, to Walgreen's, to Whole Foods and back: I began my first experience roasting root vegetables.Here is my revised, and hopefully lighter version of the Bon Appetit Chicken Stew with a little side of crisped french bread.

Chicken and Roast Root Veg Soup with Crispy Bread

4 tablespoons vegetables oil, divided3 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts3 tablespoons butter4 parsnips, peeled, sliced1 small turnip, peeled and cubed3 large carrots, peeled, thinly sliced3 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise, sliced1 pound baby new potatoes, each cut in half4 tablespoons all purpose flour8 cups reduced sodium chicken broth1 tablespoon dried rosemary1 tablespoon dried thyme1 bay leaf1/4 cup 2% milk + 2 tbs butter

Preparation

Pre-heat oven to 450F.  Combine leeks, turnips, carrots, parsnips and potatoes into a roasting pan (if you don't have one, I used a casserole dish).  Top with salt and pepper, and drizzle with 2 tbs olive oil. Toss to coat thoroughly.Roast until vegetables are just tender and slightly browned, about 35 minutes.Heat vegetable oil in heavy large Dutch oven over medium heat. Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt and pepper. Add chicken to pot in batches and cook until light brown, about 5 minutes per side. Using tongs, transfer chicken pieces to cutting board.  Slice and chop chicken into bite size pieces and add back to pot. Pour off fat from pot and discard.Add butter to same pot and melt over medium heat. Add roasted vegetables to pot. Cook 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add flour and stir 2 minutes. Gradually mix in chicken broth. Increase heat and bring to boil. Return chicken to same pot. Add 1 tablespoon tarragon and bay leaf. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until chicken and vegetables are cooked through, turning chicken occasionally, about 30 minutes.Add milk and butter to pot; increase heat and simmer until liquids thicken, about 10 minutes.  Discard bay leaf. Mix in remaining 1 tablespoon tarragon. Season stew to taste with salt and pepper, top with freshly chopped parsley.

Crispy Bread

1 loaf french bread, sliced thinly on a bias1/2 tbs freshly grated parmesan cheesePre-Heat oven to 450 (should already be at this temp from roasting the vegetables)Thinly slice the french bread and place each piece on a baking sheet. Season to taste with koshar or sea salt, and top each slice with microplaned cheese.Bake for 5-10 minutes or until edges start to brown.

I have a new fruit obsession: peaches! I use to despise them: my sister was always eating them growing up. The dripping, the stickiness, the smell, the weird fuzz on the outside. Why would I want that when I could have a fruit I already knew was delicious and safe? And less drippy.Last week I was at my new favorite market, City Fresh. The first thing that caught my eye was the mound of beautiful, plump, peaches. I had to try a few. I bought 2 thinking I could pawn them off at work if I didn't like them. Then it happened, I bit into the crispy, not so juicy and fuzzy fruit I always hated.I was hooked.This past Sunday as I did my shopping, I bought 3# at 49c. It was too good to be true for my new addiction! As I was reading through Bon Appetit this week, I realized the wonderful new cooking opportunities this opened! Fortunately, the August issue has a whole section of peach recipes, and one that caught my eye: Roasted Peaches with Amaretti Crumble. My husband is allergic to coconut, so macaroons are out. I tweaked it to be an almond crumble, and it was a hit with my neighbors who came over for dessert!. Well, here's to my first posting! Bon Appetit!

Roasted Peaches with Almond Crumble

Recipe by Cindy MushetTaken from Bon Appetit magazine, August 2009

Ingredients

• 5 amaretti cookies (Italian macaroons; about 3/4 ounce total) (I used double the almonds)
• 3 tablespoons whole natural almonds
• 2 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 3 firm but ripe large peaches, rinsed, wiped clean of fuzz, halved, pitted
• Vanilla ice cream

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 11x7x2-inch glass baking dish. Combine cookies, almonds, flour, and sugar in processor. Using on/off turns, process until cookies and almonds are coarsely chopped. Add 3 tablespoons chilled butter to processor. Using on/off turns, process topping mixture until moist clumps form.
• Place peach halves, cut side up, in prepared dish. Spread topping over surface of each peach half (about 1 generous tablespoon for each), pressing lightly to adhere and leaving 1/4-inch plain border.
• Bake peaches until tender when pierced with knife and topping is golden brown, about 35 minutes. Cool slightly. Transfer 1 warm roasted peach half to each of 6 plates. Serve with scoop of vanilla ice cream alongside.