I love a good salad. In fact salads are the backbone of my summer (and often autumn, winter and spring) menus. They can be made ahead and at times even improve with advance preparation, leaving me free near dinner time to focus on other parts of the meal or on other things […]
Seasonal Humility Life has its ways of keeping us humble. Just as the sun begins to shine and the horizon looks level, just when we begin to think we’ve got it made, the road takes an unexpected turn and: That groundhog sees his shadow. Hopes of an early spring in […]
The Phone Call Sometimes life takes a radical turn. Sometimes you see it coming. Other times you don’t. Last year, in February, I went for a routine mammogram. Then I went about my business. I attended a women’s retreat. I posted to my blog. In the midst of living, I […]
A good tomato sauce is at the heart of many wonderful meals. Seasoned with garlic, onion and herbs, a rich tomato sauce is a classic. My family just called it Spaghetti Sauce while using it to pull together a variety of recipes. It is delicious on its own over a […]
After a season of feasting on rich foods and nibbling on elaborate cookies I’m ready to get back to basics. In my kitchen that often begins with the tradition of cooking black-eyed peas and greens to inspire luck in the coming year. The origins of this southern tradition are debatable […]
The look and feel of the shop was everything I aspire to in my own kitchen; organized while being generous, interesting yet at the same time useful, efficient but full of texture and fragrance.
In many parts of the country late summer means abundant backyard gardens overflowing with fresh zucchini, summer squash and tomatoes. If you don’t have a backyard full of your own then generous neighbors are often eager to share their bounty. Failing that the stalls at farmer’s markets and produce stands […]
At least it wasn’t raining at the Camas Farmer’s Market last Wednesday afternoon. In fact business seemed brisk while I was there. The mixed spicy greens from Yacolt Mountain Farm had sold out before I stopped by so I settled for a bag of kale. Only one box of strawberries […]
I discovered this fantastic recipe many years ago. It was the photo that caught my eye but the directions that sold me. While it looked like a gorgeous side dish baked as a casserole it was really made from fresh sliced tomatoes, minimally cooked in the microwave and topped with […]
Some of the old recipes, the ones I remember fondly from when I was a child, are hard to come by. Recipes for Squash Pancakes, Southern Green Beans…
Do you have a cookbook you go back to again and again for inspiration? Some of my favorite cookbooks, like “Betty Crocker’s Cookbook,” are on my shelf because I can trust them for the basics. Some, like “Joie De Vivre” by Robert Arbor, share wonderful stories about food. Still others, […]
Last night for dinner I decided to try something new: Kale. While it is not rare or uncommon it is a vegetable I have never cooked before. Maybe that is because I didn’t really know what to do with it or maybe it’s just that it reminded me of the […]