Linzer cookies, a traditional Austrian Christmas cookie, are one of my all-time favorite cookies. With their delicate nutty shortbread-style crust and jam filling, what’s not to love? Slightly more involved to make than the average drop or slice-and-bake cookie, I think that these are well worth the effort. They are lovely to look at and […]

This is not healthy food and there are no shortcuts; but boy is it worth it. French onion soup is probably my favorite soup. It is an indulgence. I don’t eat it often and when I do, I want it to be worth it. This recipe is worth it. In fairness, it’s not the soup […]

One of the biggest things I’ve learned about blogging is that there is a “national day” for almost everything. Seriously, even ginger snaps have their own special day: July 1st. But who can wait for summer when it’s holiday cookie season. Ginger snaps are typically small, round (also called biscuit) cookies, and are a derivation […]

Winter is a wonderful time. Earthy, hearty, beautiful root vegetables are in abundance. But what to do with them?  I say roast them. I love slightly browned roasted vegetables lightly toasted in olive oil. Straight-up, as a side dish, or here, mixed together in a hearty winter salad. This roasted winter vegetable salad hits the […]

It’s that time. Whether you love it or hate it, find it joyous or stressful, the holiday season is upon us. Or as I refer to it: cookie season. And I am a cookie fan, especially Christmas cookies. I touched on this last year when I blogged about easy slice-and-bake holiday cookies. Frosted holiday cookies […]

Oh my, do I love apples and apple sauce!  Homemade apple sauce, I should add. Making your own apple sauce for the upcoming Hanukkah holiday is to me as important as making your own cranberry sauce on Thanksgiving–it’s critical. It also does not take much time or effort. Apples in season do the hard work […]

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 […]

Thanksgiving is so close I can taste it. But the stress of it is real. I’ve tried to help with my apple slab pie. If apple isn’t your thing, or you’re looking for another relatively easy-to-make option, these bourbon chocolate-pecan slab bars may do the trick. While the anticipation of cooking for large groups can […]

I consider this another fun, seasonal, Fall cocktail, based on the “Fallen Apple” cocktail I first read about in Saveur in 2015. The Fallen Apple recipe talked about in that article was from chef Anna Bogle of Summit City Lounge in Whitesburg, Kentucky (a place and a state I’ve never been). A “Fallen Apple” cocktail, either the […]

It’s almost game time, Thanksgiving will be here before you know it. This is my favorite holiday of the year by a long shot, which is probably not a surprise to anyone who knows me well. A food-focused day with friends and family, truthfully, I could Thanksgiving frequently. Last year I blogged about a favorite […]

I don’t think I fully appreciated a good oven-braised pot roast until I turned 40. It’s a great thing. Pot roast is a generic term for browned meat cooked with vegetables in a covered pot.  It began appearing in cookbooks in the late 19th century. But this cooking method known as “braising” (or slow cooking in […]

Power bites and power bars continue to fascinate me. I have been enjoying various types, and so has my family. Honestly, you can’t go wrong if you are trying to come up with an option in your apartment or house; just let your flavor preference guide you. These are my latest. These are cranberry nut […]

Thanksgiving is so close I can almost taste it. All those wonderful, familiar, harvest comfort foods together on one table. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday by far, centered around what I love to do most: cook and eat. Thanksgiving first began in 1621 with a shared meal between the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians. It […]

Sometimes the origin of food can be surprising. Things don’t always come from where you think they should have. Caesar salad is one of those. One of the most loved salads on the planet, this simple favorite is believed to have been created by an Italian-American restaurateur , Caesar Cardini, in Tijuana, Mexico. The story has […]

Halloween is not just for kids. Some of my adult friends are clearly more into Halloween than their children. A few couples in particular reliably dazzle neighbors and friends with their well-thought-out, elaborate, and creative costumes. My husband and I are not that couple. Don’t get me wrong: when required, we can put forth some […]