In these tenuous times, I find myself making comfort food-homey dishes that surround your soul like a warm blanket. One of my family’s all-time favorites is a long, slow-simmered ragu’ spooned over a bowl of pasta. This usually requires a little forethought, prepping the ingredients, followed by hours of simmering on the stove. Yes, it …
Yes, fall is upon us. Amazing how a year can go so quickly and yet feel interminable. Jamie came home yesterday from work and pronounced “We need to make something sweet today” to which I replied, “Sounds good to me but NO PUMPKIN”. Pumpkin lattes, desserts, all things pumpkin are popping up everywhere, its way …
The fires in California have cast an apocalyptic haze to our skyline. We actually hit the water for an early morning row, but coming off the water we noticed we were the only ones left at the reservoir. The pic confirmed, maybe rowing this morning wasn’t such a good idea. Bad for the body, but …
Surprise! You are going to love this. Did you click on CAKE-TWO from Vanilla Cake Pan Cake just out of curiosity? The shameless two for one plug? The Vanilla Cake Pan Cake is actually a riff on the Original Cake Pan Cake, a chocolate cake. It’s just as easy to make and just as delicious. …
This is your lucky day! This post is a twofer. That is I will be posting two recipes today! Ok, maybe not so lucky as we are smack dab in the middle of a smokefest alternating with a heatwave and this post is about baking. Although, the upside is both cakes are INCREDIBLY easy to …
Now don’t freak over the term Fuzzy Squash or Melon. This squash does have a fuzzy exterior but it is scraped off before cooking. You are left with a sweet, mild, squash that is wonderful in soups, as a side dish with Chinese sausage and bean thread noodles, or stuffed with meat filling and steamed-my …
There are things you take for granted, things that are constants within your own universe. For example, I have made the same banana bread forever. A recipe from my kids’ pre-school teacher WAY BACK in the day. Every time I strayed and tried a different recipe my family’s response was “it’s not bad, but it’s …
The search continues for a thin, crispy chocolate chip cookie just like my grandmother use to make. My first try was a Tate’s Chocolate Chip Cookie facsimile by that guru of American desserts, Stella Parks. While absolutely scrumptious-buttery, caramelized, slightly chewy in the middle with crispy edges, they just weren’t my grandma’s cookies. So… I …
My grandmother, who we called Pau Pau, was the classic iron fist in the velvet glove. She was outspoken and strong-willed, bossy, pragmatic, the protector of her family. Not gonna lie. She was kind of scary. I see where my mom gets her strength, her willfulness, and her disciplinarian streak. When my brother and I …