Well, Jack Frost was not really nipping at my nose this holiday season. It’s been surprisingly warm here in New York, but I still felt the need to get into the holiday spirit. What better way to get into that spirit than with fresh, straight-from-the-oven, roasted chestnuts? And they really couldn’t be any easier to […]

While I was at my local market, I spotted them, in a produce box, plunked down in the middle of the aisle. But it’s November, hardly the time for squash blossoms, and beautiful ones at that. They were perfect, large and delicate flowers, unblemished, each firmly affixed to a burgeoning, little zucchini. Every person at […]

I remember my grandma’s waldorf salad– an interesting mix of both fruit and vegetables, all mixed up with a paste-like dressing. I have never been a huge mayonnaise fan, but yet I was enthralled with the waldorf dressing. A little mayonnaise, a touch of whipped cream, could it be? Sweet yet tangy, light and lustrous, […]

In the vegetable world, zucchini is a lot like Olivia Newton-John’s character “Sandy” from the 50′s era movie, Grease. On its own it can be a little boring, stable and nutritious, but give it some black spandex pants, and a perm, and Va-Va-Voom! What I’m saying, is that everything needs a little bit of care […]

My sister-in-law doesn’t like rice. What? You may be asking yourself, how can a person dislike something so innocuous. That’s almost like saying you don’t like water– which come to think of it, my sister isn’t all too crazy about. I guess you could say that I come from a family of awkward eaters. But […]

Nubby sweaters. Dishes of hot oatmeal, drizzled with cream. Brisk walks along sidewalks littered with crunchy gold-hued leaves. Braised meat dishes, the stewed meat literally falling off the bones. It is fall. Out my window and a few blocks down, I can see Central Park, a place where only weeks ago, couples strolled in flip-flops. […]

I can’t resist. I have explained my new salad fixation; so yes, Brian and I have been eating quite a lot of them lately. And the latest incarnation, is my favorite type of salad to make: a very green, non-lettuce variety, enriched with imported tuna, packed in olive oil. Fresh, rich, the 3 Bean Salad […]

What do you do when all of sudden it’s September, and you just feel fall coming? It’s dark now by 7:30, there are no more cherries in the market, nor apricots, and there is actually a chill in the air when the sun goes down. Yes, fall is a-comin’. And I think I am ready […]

I must admit, I am not the hugest fan of the 30-minute meal, at least not for dinner anyway. Maybe it is simply that I am at a different place in my life. One where time is not of the essence, but I actually enjoy the time that I spend in the kitchen, chopping, roasting, […]

Usually I tend to be a rather shy person, quiet until I really get to know a person. But take me to a grocery store, and I get positively verbose. I love to chat with strangers in the check-out line about what they are buying. It is very voyeuristic. For those moments you get a […]