Cooking Articles

The Kitchen Remodel Reality Check

As I write this, our kitchen is being re-modeled. In other words: the house is a mess. The kitchen is ripped apart. And we’re eating off paper plates with no kitchen sink. Yeah, I knew it was coming....

What They Serve In Hell

There is a game my boyfriend and I like to play at dinner parties. It is called: What They Serve in Hell. The concept is pretty simple. During a break in conversation, preferably while people are scanning...

New Food of the Month: Avocados

Just the other day, while grocery shopping in the produce department, an avocado caught my daughter's eye: "What is that? What does it taste like?" When I suggested we buy one and try it, her eyes lit...

Slow Food/Fast Food

The other night, as I was eating my dinner that consisted of a can of soup and a beer, I had the thought that I had lost touch with real food. I eat food every day, but real food? It’s not often that...

Cup O' Joe In The Crockpot

One of my latest food related obsessions has been a good cup of coffee. It’s gotten to the point where I can’t start my morning without one (or three depending on my level of sleep deprivation). ...

A Wine-Worthy Picnic

They say that the best way to learn about wine is to drink it. If that is the case I must be well on my way to Master Sommelier certification. Okay, so I am far from a real sommelier, but I do drink...

Er, What's the Name of That Veggie?

On a quick trip to the grocery store recently—I was actually picking up some veggies for some recipe development assignments—one of those 4-digit codes on the red beets was missing. The young checkout...

A Duo of All American Strawberry Desserts

One of the highlights of the late spring season is the perfectly ripe strawberry. If you are lucky enough to find these beautiful gems at the local farmers market or berry patch, don’t pass them up!...

Making Recipes Your Own

Last month I was treated to a rare and thrilling evening: someone else cooked for me! My dear friend, Limor, made the most delicious lasagna I have ever tasted. The other elements of the meal--roasted...

My Secret For a Perfect Fruit Crumble

Around this time of the year, I start to clean out the two freezers in my garage. I usually have a moratorium on buying things at the grocery store as I try to use up all the produce I have from last year’s...

Market Fresh California Meets Asian Sauce

Inspiration for cooking comes from lots of places: new cookbooks, magazine articles, restaurant meals. This week’s inspiration derived from a combination of factors: a recently published cookbook on...

French Onion Soup-rise

Ah, yes, French onion soup. One of the yummy, warm, cheesy dishes that everyone loves.  A full meal with two of my favorite things: cheese and bread. Mmm. I've always said, 'All I need to live a happy...

A Rare Treat In A Soft Shell

The California desert is definitely not the home of the blue crab. But that is where I was, browsing the aisles of the upscale market Bristol Farms when I spotted a sign in the fish case declaring the...

School's Out For Summer. Now What?

You can hear it all around ñ the sound of the collective glee of school kids everywhere as they get ready to be set free for the summertime. But as your kids skip down the road and toss their backpacks...

Crockpot Camping

Camping tends to bring out the hidden "MacGyver" in all of us, and can inspire us to use resources in unique ways. This brings to mind the time I went camping with my closest friend last Memorial Day...

An Herbaceous Garden

Every year about this time I usually try to plant a small garden on my patio, and every year I fail miserably. But this year is different. Normally I just go about my modest garden with little more than...