So after a long weekend of tramping around town with mom+little sis, 1 chicago style hotdog, a trip to Rosebud (where I got the inspiration for this recipe), the Art Institute and many delicious breakfasts later: I'm back, Wustof in hand, Canon Rebel back in biz to document my fun. I do have to admit though, I love the iPhone pictures, but we'll see how this goes.As I said before, my mom and sister where in town this past weekend for their spring break. On Saturday night, we went from restaurant to restaurant, trying to get a quick table for dinner sans reservations. Finally after walking in circles around River North, we ended up at the doorstep of Rosebud. After shopping and going to museums all afternoon, we were ready for a meal: and boy did we get a treat! I ordered the Fettuccine Boscaiola, which is Mushrooms, Spinach, Garlic in a White Sauce with Toasted Breadcrumbs and White Truffle Oil.  Each bite was divine.  The mushrooms where cooked perfectly to my taste (I like a little bit of cooked crunch...nothing limp when it comes to mushrooms, that's boring!), and the breadcrumbs where a perfect surprise on top. We also had a traditional Spaghetti, and topped our meal off with a giant slice of the Canolli cake. We waddled our way back to the hotel room, and promised that this would be our new dinner place in town.So since I was so inspired, I can't seem to get away from Martha lately, I had to try this. Plus my favorite part is I had all these things in my pantry which makes it all the better. This dish is a carbonara like pasta, quick, easy, ready in 25 minutes.  I opted for turkey bacon instead of pancetta: although next time I may use a high quality bacon. Turkey bacon doesn't give you those delicious crumblies...it was more like bacon chips. I also used about a 1/2 tbs of black truffle oil to give it a little bit of a flourishing aroma and taste.

Fresh Linguine Pasta with Bacon and Peas by Martha Stewart

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6

• Coarse salt and ground pepper
• 4 slices turkey bacon, sliced crosswise into 1/2-inch pieces
• 2 shallots, halved and thinly sliced OR 1 medium onion+2cloves minced garlic
• 1 box (10 ounces) frozen peas, thawed
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream or half and half
• 2/3 cup chicken broth
• 18 ounces fresh linguine pasta or any type of fresh cut pasta

Directions

1. Set a large pot of salted water to boil. In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain (leave fat in skillet).
2. Add shallots/onions+garlic to skillet; season with salt and pepper. Cook over medium, stirring occasionally, until they begin to soften, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Reserve 2/3 cup of pasta water to make chicken broth (if using a boullion cube**).
4. Add peas, chicken broth and whipping cream; season with salt and pepper. Simmer until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
5. While simmering, drizzle oil over mixture. Toss while continuing to simmer.
6. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente, according to package instructions. Reserve 2/3 cup pasta water**; drain pasta, and return to pot. Pour sauce over pasta; toss to combine. Sprinkle with bacon, and serve

**I used a bullion cube instead of canned/boxed chicken broth because that's what I had in my cupboard. I made the broth using the water from the pasta so it was more starchy and able to thicken a little better with the peas and onions.  If you don't use a bouillon cube, just reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water and slowly add while tossing with sauce.

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.