Cooking Articles

Chicken Soup: Stress Reliever

I have officially survived four weeks of grad school. Actually, survived is a generous term. What’s the word for little sleep, lots of caffeine, too much reading, and general stress? I’ll have to do...

The Fish Who Came to Dinner

Too often at the fish counter I find myself going back to the same old choices. It is too bad, because I am blessed with a particularly nice fish market with a selection of imported and local specialties...

The Kitchen Wanderer

The great thing about having a hobby (or in my case a passion) such as cooking is that your friends know what to give you for all those important gift-giving occasions, from birthdays, to Christmas, to...

Take a Bite Out of Schoolwork

Now that the books are covered, the first tests administered and everyone’s getting settled into back-to-school schedules, maybe there’s a subject or topic that’s getting your kids down. Perhaps...

The Perfect Fall Cookie

My idea of the perfect way to cap off a brisk fall day is with a glass of fresh apple cider and a spiced wafer cookie. These are thin, firm cookies flavored with ginger, nutmeg, cloves, and molasses. They...

Strip Party!

Now that I have your attention. . . get your minds out of the gutter, dirty readers! Allow me to clarify, this article is all about having a Strip Steak Party. Yes, the sexy strip steak is worthy of...

Marvelous Marinades

When you want to add a special touch to a cut of meat, poultry, or a piece of fish, nothing beats a marinade. A marinade is a seasoned liquid containing an acid and herbs or spices. Sometimes it will also...

Cupcake Vs. Muffin: Making the Case for Team Muffin

A friend of mine, Adam Weiss, engaged his twitter followers in the age-old debate: if a cupcake and a muffin were to get into a fight, who would win? Well, maybe that wasn’t exactly his proposition;...

Yom Kippur: Before and After the Fast

Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement, is considered to be the single holiest day of the Jewish year, aside from the weekly Sabbath observance. As an act of repentance, Jews fast from sundown on the eve of...

Dispelling the Greatest Culinary Urban Myth

It is perhaps the greatest culinary urban myth of our time. You’ve heard it stated repeatedly on cooking shows. The chef adds a cup of wine to a delicious looking dish simmering away on the stove,...

Too Cool For Carrots? Think Again.

I have been thinking a lot about baby carrots. I have been thinking a lot about carrots in general, as well as broccoli, butter lettuce, beets, and heirloom tomatoes. In fact, I have been thinking about...

Introducing Your Kids to the Joys of Pesto

Today marks another national holiday, Columbus Day. Whether your kids are off from school or not, you can celebrate this “minor holiday” with an easy pasta dinner tonight, featuring homemade pesto....

Slow Cooking With Fall Flavors: Crock'toberfest

On a recent trip to Chicago I was reminded that one of the largest fall festivals in the world--Oktoberfest--happens at this time of year. In the Midwestern town that my dad calls home, Oktoberfest is...

Roasting Tough Fall Veggies For A Sweet Outcome

We all know someone who even as an adult refuses to eat certain vegetables because of some childhood trauma. By trauma I mean perhaps they suffered through years of Popeye tasting spinach or carrots cooked...

The High Fructose Corn Syrup Purge

A friend of mine recently announced on her Facebook page that she is doing the high fructose corn syrup purge. I am not sure if the concept came about as a specific part of a healthy eating program or...

Fresh Frozen Dinner, Meals on the Go

With the air not quite so warm and the sun not shining quite so bright, the nice thing about fall is that you get a lot more done on the weekends. Good or bad, it is somehow a relief to wake up to a cool...