Cooking Articles

Semi-Homemade Slow Cooking

In the freezer section of the grocery store, I recently came across several different brands of frozen crockpot meals. Normally I am not a huge consumer of pre-prepared frozen meals; in my opinion homemade...

A Bit O' Irish Eats For A Whole Lot O' Luck

No matter what your ancestry, it would almost take some work to make it through March 17th without eating, wearing, or doing something green. If being green for a day means a little bit of that Irish...

Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup: A Match Made In Heaven

There was a time when I refused to eat breakfast. Cereal tasted bland, the texture of oatmeal didn’t agree with me, and yogurt was not yet a part of my routine. In an effort to get me to eat something...

Chicken Soup For The Sick Child's Soul

As it seems this winter has been dragging on and on, we are still in the midst of the winter cold and flu season. Our kids are exposed to millions of germs at school and daycare, so it is inevitable that...

Sleepovers . . . Eat-Overs!

Is there a kid alive who doesn’t love a sleepover? And anytime there’s a group of kids, you know it won’t be long until the hunger pangs strike. I was listening to NPR the other day and heard...

Chocolate Cheesecake . . . In the Crockpot?

Desserts are totally new territory for me and the crockpot. While I’ve used the slow cooker for stews, soups, veggies, and all manner of roasts, I didn’t take the plunge into the dessert arena until...

Go For The Green

It’s that time of the year when thoughts turn to leprechauns, legends, and green goodies galore—at the table too. St. Paddy's Day food at our house has taken many forms over the years. From making...

The Generous Bachelor: Earl Tupper with the Homeless

Owing to the climate, my home of Austin, Texas is also the outdoor home for a rather large number of homeless people. There are approximately 3,600 homeless people in the city of Austin, and about half...

Rice Plus Rummage Equals Dinner

We’ve all been here. It is the end of a long day at work. You’ve shuttled the kids to their after school activities and maybe you even fit in the gym. You know the refrigerator has leftovers, odds...

Kitchen Cheater

Cheating. The sad story is that many of us do it. I even do it from time to time… in the kitchen that is. I got to thinking again about when it is alright and when it is just plain wrong after watching,...

Party Like the Irish on St. Patrick's Day

When I was growing up, St. Patrick’s Day in my family was a really big deal. We are one-quarter Irish, but on March 17, the other three-quarters just got lost in the mayhem. There was always a party....

Have a Corney St. Patrick's Day!

Having married into a predominately Irish American family, I have taken on the St. Patrick’s Day holiday as a new family tradition. While my old way of commemorating the day was to put on a green article...

Scones and Tea, Irish Style

Teatime is a lovely tradition frequently associated with the British Isles. It's the perfect way to warm up on a misty morning or take a nice pause in the day to enjoy a soothing cup of fresh brewed tea....

A Very Boxty St. Patrick's Day

A little poem for you: Boxty on the griddle, boxty in the pan, if you can't make boxty, you'll never get a man. What is boxty, you want to know? Good question. For if you were paying attention...

Green Beer and Blarney

If you're caught downtown in a major or close-to-major city on March 17th, you'll be seeing lots of green. Although St. Patrick was neither from Ireland (try Wales) nor responsible for the many legends...

Every Dinner's Irish With a Side of Colcannon

Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day. But aside from March 17th, there are a couple other occasions each year when my family likes to throw back a pint in a grotty pub, listen to my dad affect a really...