I live in western Massachusetts, and so far this year we’ve had a day of tornados in the spring, a slight earthquake and a major hurricane in the summer, and just a few days ago a totally unexpected, out of nowhere, fall snow storm!  The latter, a true Nor’easter, did so much damage that almost everyone in our little college town ended up for the better part of a week without power or heat, and in some cases without phone and water.

At my house we had no electricity or heat, but my trusty Viking gas stove top worked, making it possible for me to cook during the black out. The first dish I made was “quick” red beans and rice. Instead of following tradition and using dried beans, which are soaked, and then simmered slowly with ham hocks for several hours, I used canned ones, rinsing them off first to remove their salty taste.