Pork

Pork is “the other white meat”, or so it’s been called. In 1987 the U.S. National Pork Board began an aggressive advertising campaign to help position pork as a white meat alternative since it was commonly getting overlooked by consumers. The campaign was paid for using a checkoff (tax) collected from the initial sale of […]

For all the many times I’ve been to Hawaii, I never had Spam musubi there. Not sure how that’s possible, yet here we are. This was a request from my older son and now I’m hooked. Spam musubi is delish, but yes, you must get past the Spam part to fully embrace it and its […]

Its original name in Italian is minestra maritata, which translates to “wedding soup”. But some say a more appropriate name would be, “wedded broths”—as in leafy green vegetables (minestra) blended with meat (maritata). The marriage in this soup isn’t referring to the marriage between two people like many believe, but rather to the dish’s nuanced flavors between […]

Let’s talk about meatloaf, shall we? Some love it, some love to hate it and some love it in secret and refuse to admit it. I find this fascinating. Historically, meatloaf is considered a traditional German, Scandinavian dish that is cousin to the Dutch meatball. Meatloaf, when you break it down, is exactly as the name […]

Bolognese, known in Italian as ragù alla bolognese, ragù bolognese, or simply ragù is a meat-based sauce in Italian cuisine, commonly associated with the city of Bologna. But contrary to popular belief, Bolognese has no definitive tie to the city of Bologna, in northern Italy. Food historians typically agree that the dish originated in Imola, […]

One of the most common things people will ask me is what is a good, easy “quick meal”. To be honest, this question is never actually straightforward because what is typically added before I have a chance to answer is: “oh yeah, it can’t have a lot of prep work, my whole family has to […]

I always considered myself a mashed potato person, but my sister loved Thanksgiving stuffing. It took me a few years, but I got there. Thanksgiving is my preferred holiday. I’ve mentioned this before, but a holiday based around food, friends, and family is the perfect holiday for me. Thanksgiving has no real rules when it […]

Sometimes you find things in the least expected places. Like killer burritos in Denmark. Sounds crazy I know, but it’s true. Some readers follow me on Instagram, if you do, you may already know what I’m talking about. While visiting Copenhagen last Spring, my boys and I stumbled across delicious slow roasted pork burritos at […]

Bulgogi is one of Korea’s most well-known and loved barbecue dishes, typically featuring thin slices of beef that have marinated for hours and been grilled to perfection. The reason for the long marinating time is to allow the flavors to be absorbed, creating an extremely flavorful, tender meat so appealing to the senses, that you […]

I have always loved paprika. My first exposure to it was the light dusting on the top of my mom’s deviled eggs that she frequently made when I was a kid. To six-year-old me, paprika made the simple eggs look elegant. I liked that, even way back then. For anyone who is unfamiliar, paprika is […]

Chef and restaurateur Sondra Bernstein, founder of Sonoma’s wildly popular wine country farm-to-table eatery The girl & the fig, is my featured Changemaker for November. Bernstein, whose mantra is “doing one thing is boring,” is someone I have long admired. A one-woman show, Bernstein is credited with “putting Sonoma County on the big-league culinary map 20 years ago […]

Sweden is a stunningly beautiful place, and authentic Swedish meatballs are worth a trip there alone. Seriously, they were amazing. I traveled to Stockholm in the summer with my family, the first stop in a three-part European adventure. I had never been to Sweden before and quickly fell in love with the simple natural beauty, […]

The Muffuletta is one of the greatest sandwiches ever created, yet sadly many have never heard of it. The Muffuletta is a New Orleans classic, created in 1906 by a local grocery owner named Salvatore Lupo. Lupo, an attentive man, watched as Sicilian farmers would come to his store, The Central Grocery & Deli, and order an […]

Pasta is an incredible thing.  I love that there are a million ways to make the same type of pasta taste quite different.  And if I am being honest, I could eat pasta every day.  I could live in Italy and eat homemade pasta for every meal.  But neither of those options is reasonable.  When […]

In Britain, December 26th is Boxing Day, a national holiday, that celebrates the traditional post-Christmas servant’s day off. Sausage rolls or Boxing Day rolls as they are often called, are a traditional dish served during this holiday celebration. In the past, this day was one of the only days when upper-class families had to survive […]