Family Dinner with JP

During a brief period of my life, which I like to refer to as my Plump Years, my affection for certain foods was limited only by my willpower. Of which I had none. And while I would certainly doff my cap to the makers of those delightful Haribo gummied bears or the entire pantheon of Cheetos snacks, I would be remiss if credit were not given to a dish which, even now, I have trouble putting down. Chicken Tikka Masala, you test the limits of my will! And I love you for it. The problem was twofold. First, there was an all you can eat Indian buffet near my law school that served CTM. And the answer was "I can eat 5 plates of rice and Chicken Tikka Masala before I need a nap." Second, there was an amazing delivery joint near my house, specializing in Subs, Pizza, and Indian food (and yes, they did all 3 amazingly well), meaning that on a good day, I could polish off 4 pounds of CTM during my lunch break, then head home and order CTM delivery, eating half for dinner, and the o...

Sometimes (all day every day) I think I'm much cooler than I actually am. So when I excitedly told Laura that I got heirloom beans, I genuinely expected a response along the lines of "Oooooh! What are those?!" or "Where on earth did you get those?!" Instead, I received a very mundane, unimpressed "From Rancho Gordo?" Because, as Laura pointed out, who else sells heirloom beans? Still, I was grateful when Laura lent me her Rancho Gordo Heirloom Beans cookbook. Beans - incredibly versatile, incredibly varied. For this adventure, I opted for some hearty soup to warm me up in the impending rainy snow of winter. This soup is really easy, though it requires the use of a stand or immersion blender. There are really three components at play that will be combined into the final served dish: the bean soup with chard; the croutons; and the poached egg. I've given a primer on poaching eggs before, but I will refresh your memory here. The...