I cook because I love to eat. I garden because I love to cook.
My children have always loved pesto; since they were little, pesto on spaghetti has been one of their favorite meals. Before they got wise and refused to help, I tortured them annually with the Great Basil Harvest. We sat outside for what seemed like hours …
I try to eat salads for lunch at least four times a week. It’s tough. No, literally, tough; it’s a lot of chewing. I sometimes feel like a cow chewing its cud and I can get sick of them pretty quickly. The only way to …
I learned to cook mainly from my father, Bert, who was the primary cook in my family growing up. I cooked all kinds of dishes with him. I learned to make spanakopita (Greek spinach pie) and baklava, both with thin, buttery layers of phyllo dough. …
I’m always looking for innovative, edible vessels in which to serve appetizers. I’ve bought pre-made phyllo cups at the supermarket, and I’ve seen packaged cup-shaped crackers. For years I’ve covered crostini with fresh tomato bruschetta and other toppings. The healthiest version is to stuff endive …
I tend to avoid trends in the kitchen. Even though I read a lot of cooking magazines, I’m always a little late to the party; I’m not one for change. I don’t own an Instant Pot. My second or third unopened tub of miso is …
I first started making dinner for my family when I was about twelve or thirteen years old. One of the first meals I made was pizza. Every Wednesday, I made two pizzas. I would come home from school, dissolve some yeast in warm water and …
One of the great pleasures of home gardening is that each year, you get a fresh start. If a particular crop or variety of plant did not work out, grow well, or produce much, each spring you get a do over. You get to start …
As the cold of winter continues, I have time to reflect in this off season about the crops I grew in my garden last year and changes I want to make in the coming year. During this time, I like to review the list of …
While clothes may make the man, croutons make the salad…or soup…or pasta. They are little nuggets of crispness that finish a dish, and no, they should not be relegated just to salads. They can be a little oasis in a creamy soup and will add …
Some people are soup people. Take my grandfather, for example. He ate soup as a first course at dinner every day, even in the middle of the summer. That’s a soup person. My father-in-law also loved soup. He would eat soup as a full meal …
