This was the first application for the recently arrived garlic scapes. They added a perfect amount of freshness to the typically heavy dish without deviating from the traditional flavors too much.

I did learn the difficult way that I must remember to not salt the pasta water for carbonara, however. So take that as a lesson learned from my experience - unless of course you feel the need for a salt lick in your life.

Carbonara is great served with a light salad on the side. Or perhaps your entire vegetable drawer to make up for the decadence of pasta, eggs, cheese, and fatty pork.

Nevertheless, it's worth it.

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I'm pretty sure that anyone who's ever eaten at a steak house has tried baked potato soup at some point. It's creamy, delicious, and encompasses all the flavors of a piping hot baked potato with all the toppings.

This soup is a perfect way to use up leftover mashed potatoes and makes a nice first course, or paired with a nice salad, a great main. I had some potatoes that were starting to grow eyes and had already planned on making mashed potatoes to go with a pot roast I made the other night - but there were far too many to feed just the two of us. I made the extra and popped them in the fridge overnight.

The next day I combined them with a little chicken stock, bacon, onion, and garlic. Instant dinner - and crowd pleaser. The soup is just as versatile as is a baked potato. Add any toppings you normally would - chili and cheese, broccoli and cheese, green onions and bacon, sour cream, etc.

Also, if you're like me and hate leftovers, it's a great way to use up leftovers without feeling like that's what you're doing. I put chopped scallions, shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese, crumbled bacon, and a dollop of fat-free plain yogurt in place of sour cream and - I can assure you - it did not taste like last nights leftovers.

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It's not very often that I get to check out my food while it's still on the vine. Being able to do so was pretty cool. Of course, I imagine there could be better ways to appreciate a sexy tomato still on the vine than deciding to batter it and pan fry it in bacon grease - but why bother?

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There are few things I enjoy more than the sweet, fresh corn available each summer. I did a much more in depth post on how much I enjoyed sweet corn last year at about this time, but sadly it didn't make the transition to the new website.

Last year I tried it off the cob, sauted with butter and tossed with parmigiana reggiano. This year I've decided to implement it into a rustic soup with chicken and bacon.

Because really, what doesn't bacon make better?

I've made attempts to make this as low calorie as possible - all the better to watch our waistlines with - and managed to make each one cup serving slide in at under 150 calories per serving.

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I had a serious hankering for some old fashioned comfort food today, so I thought some collard greens would fit the ticket quite nicely. Growing up I thought greens were gross, as most kids do I'm sure. Then I'd eat them if they were saturated in butter and sour cream...them's some good eats. But, them's also some seriously fattening eats too. So, when the husband requested them a few months ago along with some stewed tomatoes and cornbread, apparently a favored comfort food while visiting the sandbox for 15 months, I decided to tone down the fats a bit.

Now, usually I use the turkey-ham like in the recipe - it's full flavored and super low-fat...well, for meat at least - and it works very well in the recipe. Today I was feeling particularly gluttonous and used some nice thick cut bacon.

I think I'm going to go eat the leftovers now...

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