Food

A favorite childhood memory of mine is making bread with my grandmother.  She didn’t mind free-form loaves, sticky hands and flour on the floor, and she worked the drawn-out process of bread making into her daily routine in a way that made it seem natural and easy.  Her daily routine was a lot different than [...]

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Don’t worry –this isn’t another post about Thanksgiving leftovers.  I like them as much as the next guy (preferably straight from the fridge), but by Saturday, I’m ready for something new. This is a dish I’ve made over and over this fall.  The seasonal flavors — sage, earthy and slightly sweet chestnuts, and the always-welcome [...]

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As anyone who reads this blog knows, I’m always up for cooking something new for dinner.  When it comes to Thanksgiving, though, I become a rigid and sentimental traditionalist.  I want it all just like last year and the year before, and for me that means turkey with sage stuffing, mashed potatoes and pan gravy, [...]

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One of my favorite rituals this summer was sharing a cup of pistachio gelato with Julia.  We both love it  –if it’s good; that is, flavored with the subtle, unique taste of fresh green pistachios and little else. This ice cream is something different, though, and I’d never had anything like it until my friend [...]

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The end of summer always leaves me a little blue.  (And by my reckoning, summer has just ended.  With self-serving inconsistency, I begin the season with Memorial Day and end it with the autumn equinox, which was on September 23 this year.)  There are many consolations, though:  crisp air, golden light, tweed jackets, and deliciously [...]

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I’m working on my eggs.  Don’t worry –I’m not going to bore you with obsessive step-by-step analyses of frying, poaching or omelet making (though I can sometimes really go for that sort of thing). I have been trying out some new recipes and techniques to brighten up my repertoire of egg dishes, however, and I [...]

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I love a good casserole.  The comforting single-dish meals were an important part of the food of my childhood.  You don’t see many of those 60s casseroles anymore, though, maybe because our palates have evolved beyond their frequently salty, one-dimensional flavors (often produced by convenience ingredients like canned condensed cream of mushroom soup, tater tots [...]

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There are a few dishes I call kitchen help –I keep them around to help me get a nice meal on the table in very little time.  Actually, they’re more condiments or relishes than full-fledged dishes.  I can make them quickly (and in advance, when I’m that organized) from common or pantry ingredients and then [...]

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