Local Jersey tomatoes just arrived, and Debbie and I both had loads of cilantro and garlic from our farm shares. With the nationwide salmonella outbreak behind us, we were itching to make something with tomatoes -- Spicy Grilled Salsa would be ideal. Our salsa making mission involved a lot of ...
Kitchen Chronicles
Do you have any…?
When you are regularly cooking with friends, the question "Do you have any...?" comes up again and again. You'll raid each other's pantries, gardens and fridges, the combination of shared ingredients making delicious, economical dishes. Someone has lots of dried beans and another person has squash ...
Cooking with Imaginary Friends
Sometimes, just the thought of cooking with one of my friends gives me the incentive to tackle a dish requiring patience. This time it was a beautiful fresh fruit tart. While making shortbread crust and custard for the tart I’d be bringing to a BBQ, I thought about being in the kitchen with a ...
We All Need to Eat (Why not Eat Well)?
Sabine's cookbooks are in Dutch and she's used to measuring ingredients by weight on a trusty European food scale. But a summer morning making her homemade ketchup recipe this week showed we have much more in common than not. We want to make healthy foods for our kids, encourage their creativity ...
Chocolate and Zucchini
With an excess of zucchini amassed from our gardens, my farm share and Saturday morning visits to the farmer’s market, Suzy and I knew last week’s cooking date would include zucchini as the star. We briefly pondered what simple and useful food to make on such a hot and uncomfortable summer day. ...
Through the Years
My friend Evelyn and I often cook together and share ingredients and dishes we want each other to try (or to help us finish the leftovers). When she and her husband went on a vacation recently, Evelyn brought me back an incredible gift--The Picture Cookbook published by Life in 1958. She was ...
An Extra Share
Upon returning from my vacation, I received an e-mail from my close friend and cooking partner Debbie, who was about to go away with her family. She was suggesting that I pick up her CSA share while getting mine. You see, among other reasons, Debbie and I planned to participate in the Starbright ...
Cooking Family
As I'm sauteeing garlic, my five-year-old picks basil from the garden and plucks off the leaves, my 2-year-old cracks eggs expertly in a bowl and my husband chops mushrooms and olives. We're making a simple vegetable frittata for dinner. As we all fall into our roles to the backdrop of Van ...
Food Reflections
It’s my first day back from vacation and though I’m bleary eyed and jet lagged, I mustered up a bit of energy for my morning jog. The rhythm of my footsteps naturally lulled me into thoughts of the food I created and enjoyed with my family while away. For the brief thirty minutes of my run, I am ...
Lazy Days of Summer
I'll admit it, there are nights I just don't want to cook. As much as I truly love cooking, there are those moments when everyone is hungry before I get a chance to even think about dinner, and also those times when I'd rather sit down with my husband and have a glass of wine than fire up the ...