kitchen adventures
These traditional refrigerator pickles – Do Chua – are a typical condiment that accompanies many classic Vietnamese dishes. You might be most familiar with them on banh mi sandwiches, but you’ll also find them beside rise plates, noodle bowls, and salads. They’re easy to make, and you need not make […]
Bagels are always a favorite in my house. Fortunately there’s a good bagel source nearby, so we often have them on hand. We also like to keep something we affectionally call “salmon glop” – a smoked salmon spread with dill, spiked with lemon. It turns a plain bagel into a perfect […]
What do you make for supper, when you haven’t been to the grocery store in a week? When you’re tired, and you have very little energy, and your spouse is feeling worse? At my house, the answer was this crustless quiche Lorraine for 2, a cheesy, custardy delight. looking in […]
In my family, we call it Magic Chocolate Cake, even though this is an old recipe that has gone by many names. Why magic? Well, what would YOU call it? This is a chocolate cake that tastes great, is dead simple to make, and uses NO eggs, NO milk, NO cream, […]
As the weather cools, my kitchen shifts into baking mode. I often make bread at home, and an easy no-knead English muffin bread is a family favorite. It takes just 2 hours from start to finish, which means I can have the idea for a soup-and-bread supper at lunchtime, and […]
As I’ve mentioned elsewhere in this blog, I’m downsizing in my kitchen. As much as possible, I’ll make a small batch of something, because most of the time I’m cooking for only two people. This Irish brown bread (small batch) is perfect for us. It has become my go-to bread! […]
There’s a phrase used in the food press recently: aspirational cooking. This is what we wish our kitchens would produce, or what we might accomplish if we really try, or food that we only wish we could manage. Let’s get something straight here – I don’t aspire to cook the good stuff, I […]
So here we are, sheltering at home during the Spring 2020 Covid-19 Pandemic, and of course I want to bake. So do lots of other people, which then means that the grocery store is gasp! out of all-purpose flour. And bread flour. Clearly, I needed to rely on my pantry for a while. […]
Are you staying safe at home? We are under Stay At Home orders (see news of novel coronavirus), and we’re not going out to the shops. There are a lot of us in this situation, so I thought I’d talk about cooking from the pantry. What does your pantry cupboard […]
It’s a constant challenge for the home cook: making supper with what you happen to have in the house. This quick baked apricot orange glazed chicken uses the end of a jar of jam, vinegar, and orange juice to create a first-rate dinner, all within about half an hour. It’s flexible, […]
Best-ever cheese muffins? Really? Yes, really. I don’t use the term “Best Ever” lightly. These are, truly, the best cheese muffins I’ve ever made. They’re quick, dependable, and gloriously cheesy. They go well with soups or stews, work as a standalone snack, or make an irresistible breakfast. I usually make these muffins with a bowl, […]
So far this month, we’ve had cold & grey weather – gloomy, but no rain or snow. According to the weather forecasters, that’s about to change. We’ll have a chance to put on our snow boots, test out the new electric snow thrower, and, best of all, warm up with […]