for my hungry busy guy

i am living with a man who is finishing his last few months of graduate school. many of you know what this means: odd hours-late nights-papers-conferences-thesis-anxiety-driven months. nick has always coped remarkably well. but as level-headed and calm as he is, the words “there’s just not enough time in the day…” have been uttered in a slight panic more than once. so i’m doing my best to bring some bright spots to his long days. i baked these triple ginger cookies yesterday, because let me tell you, the man loves cookies. last time i baked cookies, he put them in his morning cereal…which i’d highly recommend. anyway, i’ve been meaning to make these triple ginger cookies for the past year and boy were they worth the wait! these bite-sized babies explode into a sweet, spicy dance party in your mouth. you must try them. then i went a little over board. it may have been the intense 365 day cooking marathon Julie Powell accomplished (I finally saw Julie & Julie last week!) but i was in the mood to cook (alotta food) this weekend.  saturday was spent on a velvety leek and potato soup by nigel slater*, that we devoured for dinner along side grilled cheese sandwiches. save your parmesan rinds people, they work their magic in soups.  sunday morning i made  roasted tomato basil soup that we will eat for lunch this week. Later that afternoon was spent working on dinner, meatballs with peas, served over fluffy mashed potatoes. best. idea. ever.  it may not be the most attractive dish you’ve pulled out the oven, but it’s full of quirky fun surprises. if you’ve never tried putting golden raisins in your meatballs before, you must. unexpected, bright and juicy. we’ve got a fridge filled with homemade ready-to-eat meals this week, which makes my busy man very very happy. tonight, i tackle a big patch of giant chipotle bean casserole, an old favorite which will freeze nicely for the next few (crazy) months. photo (1) by yours truly, photo (2) here. *i’m loving niegl’s book the kitchen diaries, practical and thoughtful recipes.