The other day I got a text from my friend, Jill, that our local store had gooseberries, and did I want any? What a silly question! Of course, I wanted some gooseberries. Within seconds I was dreaming of the gooseberry-almond cake from my days in Heidelberg, Germany. When Jill arrived …

What’s for dinner? It is a question I have asked myself daily for the past 400 days. Yes, I have cooked every meal since mid-March 2020 at home. No restaurants, no take-out, nothing. But, if you know me, I enjoyed it, especially these cumin-roasted pork chops. In the spirit of …

Today’s recipe combines one of my recipes and one by my friend Inger, who writes The Art of Natural Living. She posted a pear frangipane tart sometime before Christmas, and I had been tasked with finding a Christmas dessert with a 1999 Château d’Yquem Sauternes (thanks, Lee!). Such a problem …

Helen of Troy was known for her great beauty. In Greek mythology, she was Zeus and Leda’s daughter and was said to have been the most beautiful woman in the world. She wasn’t without her issues, though. Just read up on her, and you will be glad she wasn’t your …

I was given six small, extremely juicy blood oranges by my friendly farmers, Eunice and Larry (Larry’s Veggies), right at the end of blood orange season. She said, “I know you will do something wonderful with them.” Weeks earlier, friends Susan and Towny had sent me a recipe for scallops …

Taking away the flowers of some plants makes them stronger and happier. Basil, for instance, will branch and provide you with much more pesto fodder if you ensure it never blooms. However, when we take away a zucchini blossom to stuff, fry, and eat, will it mean more zucchini to …

Recently, I shared my simple vegetable Napoleons with you as a side dish for the goat cheese-stuffed chicken. If you make it, you will probably end up in the same boat I did: lots of leftover parts — zucchini, yellow squash, eggplant, tomatoes. While that sounds like all the fixings …

Throughout the holidays, we watched a lot of “feel good” movies. That is code for RomComs, chick flicks, Hallmark, Lifetime, and Disney fare… you get the idea. Whenever we get to this time of year, we put a moratorium on anything that might tax our brains, souls, or hearts. Nothing …

Not to dwell on the realities of 2020, but we had to get creative about seeing friends, if only virtually. For an international Zoom dinner, one of the guests made a wish for chicken breasts stuffed with herbed goat cheese and vegetable Napoleons on the side. That was a wish …

When it comes to making kebabs, there are very few culinary rules, other than you need some skewers, meat or fish, and vegetables. The recipe for grilled lamb kebabs (below) is simple to prepare, easy to cook and perfect with a red blend from Gigondas thanks to Provence WineZine. However, …