It’s the season for gift giving. To my mind, one of the best ways to show you care is a home-baked gift from your kitchen. The beauty of home-baked gifts is that they are universally appreciated and enjoyed. You can make them weeks ahead of time and freeze, then defrost in the fridge the night [...]
Since Thanksgiving is the quintessential American holiday and meatloaf is the classic American comfort food, why not serve meatloaf for your holiday feast? That’s what I’m planning to do this Thanksgiving, with a few tweaks here and there. It is Thanksgiving, after all, so I’ll substitute chopped turkey for the chopped beef in the recipe. [...]
Rummaging through my overflowing recipe files, I found a recipe for “spaghetti pie”—one that has been beckoning to me through the decades, but for some reason, it remained untested until now. Most likely this recipe came about when a resourceful and creative cook wanted to use up some leftover spaghetti. But, this dish is so [...]
This past summer, I had the distinct pleasure of celebrating my sweet granddaughter’s first birthday. Her mom and dad threw her a unicorn-themed birthday party. What better way to celebrate the joys and wonders of a child’s first year of life than with the majestic and magical unicorn! My contribution to the dessert spread was [...]
A tomato tart done right is a culinary feat for the eye and the palate, and the best time to make one is during the summer when tomatoes are at their peak. This tart boasts a homemade tart shell that is golden and flaky, but you can save some time with a premade shell—just follow [...]
Here are two creative, fun and tasty ideas for a July 4th dessert grand finale. Family and friends will want to participate in creating the red, white and blue balloon cups. They will enjoy rocking the blown up balloons in the candy melts and then, after placing the balloons for a brief stint in the [...]
I love ratatouille, a classic vegetable stew hailing from the Provencal region of southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. To make these colorful and healthy veggie stacks, I used many of the seasonal vegetables and flavorings you would find in a ratatouille—eggplant, zucchini, peppers, tomatoes and onions, infused with olive oil and fragrant with garlic [...]
Spring is finally here! The longer days and brighter sun have done wonders to chase our winter blues away. Here’s a recipe for lemon bars to welcome and celebrate spring. These luscious bars have a crisp and buttery shortbread crust topped with a sweet and tangy lemon curd. Their lovely yellow color evokes the light [...]
Recipes for cauliflower crust pizza have been trending. They’ve appeared in magazines, on TV cooking shows, and on social media. I’ve lost track of all the cauliflower crust pizza posts on my Instagram feed. I must confess, I was skeptical. Cauliflower crust pizza? Really? No way it can compete with the crusty, high octane carb [...]
Looking for something special to make for your sweetheart on Valentine’s Day? Since cookies are a surefire way to just about anyone’s heart, why not show your love with some sugar cookies? While sugar cookies have a long and distinguished history dating back to 7th century Persia, it was the Protestant settlers in the colony [...]