I swear strawberries grow like weeds in California. I drive by several huge fields of them each morning on my way to work. According to the California Strawberry Commission, (which I didn’t even know existed until about five minutes ago, but they have a really cool thing on their website called the Berry Report which
April 12, 2011
Short URLcooking, food, ingredients, seasonal, strawberryIngredients, Seasonality, Spring
According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (www.unctad.org) the term citrus fruit includes several different types of fruits. Although oranges account for about 70% of citrus output, the group also includes small citrus – such as tangerines, mandarines, clementines and satsumas – lemons, limes and grapefruits. And I swear I have about
March 15, 2011
Short URLblood orange, citrus, cooking, food, grapfruit, ingredients, lemons, oranges, seasonalIn the Kitchen, Ingredients, Seasonality
Pot Roast – the bastion of 1950’s kitchen cuisine. A foundation for countless recipes using leftovers. Gentle reminder of Sunday night dinners everywhere conjuring images of women in pearls and oven mitts. Comfort food at its’ peak. I’ve never really been a big fan of pot roast and not because of the misogynistic images it
February 23, 2011
Short URLdinner, family, food, recipesDinner, In the Kitchen, Menu Planning, Recipes, Winter
I mentioned recently that I have been acquiring kitchen gadgets at an alarming rate and I wanted to share a story about one of them – my new tart pan. I’ve been making “tarts” for years, but really, they were just tart crusts in a pie pan. They tasted different than a plain ‘ol pie,
February 22, 2011
Short URLbaking, cooking, dessert, dinner, family, food, ingredients, recipes, seasonal, tartDessert, In the Kitchen, Ingredients, Recipes, Winter
So while I appreciate fine food and exotic ingredients, at the core my tastes are pretty pedestrian. In the past, anytime someone has asked me what type of food was my favorite, I was embarrassed to answer, “pub food.” But really, it’s just comfort food and is there anything better than a good burger, homemade
February 18, 2011
Short URLcooking, dinner, family, food, ingredients, recipesDinner, In the Kitchen, Ingredients, Recipes, Winter
Cauliflower is a funny thing. I never minded it as a kid (and Madison doesn’t either) but I have had plenty of kids at my dinner table turn the stuff down. I know, it’s kinda stinky, looks weird (sometimes all I can think of when I look at it is a boxers’ cauliflower ear. Gross!)
February 9, 2011
Short URLcooking, dinner, family, food, ingredients, inspiration, menu planning, recipes, vegetableIn the Kitchen, Ingredients, Recipes, Seasonality, Winter
Boy has my cooking come a long way…… Just recently Madison discovered one of my very first cookbooks – Walt Disney’s Mickey Mouse Cookbook. Last week as I was working in the kitchen and she was lying on floor flipping through cookbooks – a girl after my own heart – she announced that she would
January 20, 2011
Short URLbread, cooking, dinner, family, food, menu planning, protein, recipes, seasonalDinner, In the Kitchen, Ingredients, Recipes, Seasonality
Leftovers get a mixed review in our house: Joel won’t eat them unless there’s pasta involved, Madison will eat them if I disguise them or they’re Asian-food related and I only like them in wintertime. The pets take what they can get, (except the cat – she’s pickier than Joel.) I pack my lunch three
January 12, 2011
Short URLdinner, food, ingredients, menu planning, pasta, seasonal, vegetables, winterIngredients, Seasonality
For a short period of time each winter, English Peas are in season here. Unlike their cousins, the snow pea and snap pea – which are available year-round, are much smaller and can be eaten whole – English peas are what you think of when you think pea – perfectly round, plump and bright green.
January 11, 2011
Short URLcooking, dinner, family, food, seasonal, vegetableIn the Kitchen, Seasonality, Winter