By February 2025. The second book is selling strongly — Susan says word of mouth is "exceptional" and several education and food policy organizations are using it as required reading. The combination of memoir and methodology apparently hits a need that wasn't being met. Claire said, "This book is going to do things the first one couldn't because it's useful in a way memoirs usually aren't." I'm proud of that.
I got an inquiry this week from a university extension program. They want to license the curriculum that Olivia and I wrote — the sixty-two-page document has been circulating in education circles and someone tracked it to its source and asked if it was available for formal adoption. I called Olivia in her college apartment and told her. She was quiet for a moment and then said, "Mom. We wrote that together." I said I know. She said, "Can we be co-licensors?" I said of course. We should have been co-authors from the beginning. The curriculum is ours together.
Mason leaves for the Culinary Institute in September. He's been preparing with characteristic thoroughness — reading the curriculum materials, following CIA alumni online, sharpening every knife to a degree of precision that I think is honestly not necessary for cooking but that I understand because it's his version of control in an uncertain transition. He's going to be extraordinary there. He'll also miss home, though he won't say so. He'll text me from the kitchen instead.
I made polenta this week. Slow-cooked, with good parmesan and butter, the kind that takes forty minutes of stirring and is worth every minute. The kitchen smelled like winter and warmth and good cheese.
That polenta took forty minutes of stirring — no shortcuts, no walking away — and somewhere in the middle of it I thought about Mason sharpening his knives, about Olivia saying we wrote that together, about all the slow and patient work that turns into something worth having. This Hungarian Noodle Side Dish carries that same spirit: simple ingredients, unhurried technique, and a result that tastes like someone cared enough to stay at the stove. It’s the kind of dish I’ll make when the house feels full of good news and I want dinner to match.
Hungarian Noodle Side Dish
Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 12 oz wide egg noodles
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup sour cream, room temperature
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Cook the noodles. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook egg noodles according to package directions until just tender. Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain and set aside.
- Sauté the aromatics. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt butter. Add diced onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 8–10 minutes until soft and golden. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more until fragrant.
- Build the sauce. Reduce heat to low. Stir in sour cream and cottage cheese until smooth and combined. Add paprika, caraway seeds if using, salt, and pepper. Stir gently — do not let it boil or the sour cream may break.
- Combine. Add the drained noodles to the skillet and toss to coat evenly. If the sauce is too thick, add reserved pasta water a tablespoon at a time until it reaches a creamy, loose consistency.
- Taste and finish. Adjust salt and pepper as needed. Transfer to a serving bowl or platter and garnish with fresh parsley. Serve immediately.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 320 | Protein: 10g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 40g | Fiber: 2g | Sodium: 310mg