When it’s time to spice things up

August 10, 2020 by
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Spices in jars
When you have extra time on your hands, it can be all to easy to lounge about scrolling through Instagram or Pinterest. While that is a fun pastime, it gets old after a while. If you are looking for something to do that doesn't involve the computer and is cooking-related, head over to The Washington Post, where Becky Krystal is… read more

Perspective is everything – an open letter to the Great British Bake Off

August 10, 2020 by
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As I was not feeling well this morning, I decided to watch comfort television before I began my day, which always is The Great British Bake Off. You may recall my harsh judgments of the last series in my recap posts. Butterscotch coffee cake [butterscotch sauce] (my photo) While watching the beginning of Cake Week again, I began to scrutinize my… read more

Food news antipasto

August 9, 2020 by
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Running out of things to watch in your Netflix or Amazon Prime queue? We have the answer with a new short film that dives into the world of Japanese cooking via one of its most iconic elements: dashi. The brainchild of chef Shinobu Namae and filmmaker Eric Wolfinger, the show explores each step of the dashi-making process through the eyes of the Michelin-starred… read more

Hats off to grocery workers

August 8, 2020 by
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Due to the pandemic, I have finally succumbed to doing some of my grocery shopping online. This service has been offered for a few years at my supermarket, but I haven't been interested in it before. Grocery shopping is my happy place - I find zen in the aisles as I inspect new products, compare ingredient lists, and carefully pore… read more

Cookbook Shelf and Kitchen Detective for Hire

August 8, 2020 by
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Today, I came across an article in the NY Times, "The Celebrity Bookshelf Detective is Back." While I am a voracious reader, I am not interested in what celebrities, or even what my friends are reading. I can make up my own mind in that regard. But what I enjoy figuring out are what cookbooks are in the kitchens of… read more

The three essential baking pans everyone needs in their kitchen

August 6, 2020 by
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I recently made several pound cakes in this Nordic Ware loaf pan to give to friends and neighbors. One neighbor, witnessing the Facebook posts of my pandemic baking spree featuring myriad layer cakes, breads, Bundts, and other baked goods, asked me how much room I needed to store my baking pans. The answer is...a lot. Since my kitchen is not… read more

Sourdough, yes, sourdough again

August 6, 2020 by
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While Darcie has recently broken up with sourdough, I've decided to rekindle my relationship. I admit that I am a serial killer. Many a jar of sourdough has met an unseemly death under my watch. Selfishly (and repeatedly) in the past, I have neglected my jar of starter to die a lonely, cold death. I have no issues creating a… read more

To the restaurants I never knew, and those that I love

August 4, 2020 by
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At the beginning of March, I wrote about missed opportunities to eat at some of the world's finest restaurants that had closed their doors forever. My motivation for that article was not, as you might think, the impact that the coronavirus was having on the restaurant industry. I had been thinking about restaurants like Fäviken, which served its last meal… read more

Food news antipasto

August 2, 2020 by
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Kitchen cleaning hacks are constantly being shared on social media, and one that has been making the rounds lately involves a trick for cleaning your glass oven door - use a dishwasher tablet. There are some nuances to this that make it more effective (you apparently need to get the tablet a little wet but not too much), but people… read more

On not reinventing the wheel

July 29, 2020 by
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One of my favorite pastimes is to find recipes that recreate classic American snacks like Oreos and Twinkies. I look for recipes that are not exact duplicates, but rather better versions of these iconic treats (this is one of the many reasons I am a fan of Stella Parks, who does this so well in her cookbook BraveTart). Finding ways… read more

Transporting pie can be as easy as, well, pie

July 28, 2020 by
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Apple pie
Before I discovered my secret to transporting cakes, pies, and other delicate food items safely, I went through a lot of trial and error. I tried various types of containers and boxes, built up "dams" around the object made of towels and pillows, and even resorted to holding the food for short car trips that seemingly took forever because I… read more

The GBBO has been secretly filming its next season

July 27, 2020 by
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With much of the world in lockdown for the spring, when The Great British Bakeoff (known in the US as The Great British Baking Show) is usually filming, most GBBO fans probably thought that there would not be a 2020 season. As it turns out, however, the cast and crew have been surreptitiously filming the next season, and it may… read more

Food news antipasto

July 26, 2020 by
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Whenever someone asks me the question, "If you could start over, what profession would you choose?" my answer is "professional baker." There are many reasons that never happened, and recently my excuse has been that I am too old to get started in that physically demanding line of work. Perhaps I should reconsider, as there is still plenty of life… read more

Crumb coatings make everything better

July 25, 2020 by
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My husband and I have a running joke that the only thing that cannot be improved by deep-frying is iceberg lettuce. What makes deep frying so special? One reason is the breading or coating that adds a pleasant crunch to whatever you are cooking. A recent email from Australian Gourmet Traveller reminded me of this truism with an email that… read more

Flower cakes that are wobbly works of art

July 23, 2020 by
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Gelatin cakes are gaining in popularity partly because they are gluten-free and partly because they are fun to eat. While they are often gorgeous to view, they usually don't taste that great. Pastry chef Jena Derman decided that she wanted to try her hand at making them, although she had ideas on how to amp up the flavor. What started… read more

Breaking up with sourdough

July 22, 2020 by
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Back in the early days of the pandemic (I'm sad that I even have to type that phrase), when yeast was nowhere to be found on store shelves, intrepid bakers rolled up their sleeves and went to work making bread the old-fashioned way: creating their own sourdough starter. I was one of those intrepid bakers, fastidiously weighing rye flour on… read more

Eating (and cooking) as a coping mechanism

July 21, 2020 by
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Confessions of a stress-eater: I really didn't need that second homemade mint-chocolate chip ice cream sandwich, but I ate it anyway. It was delicious and I regret nothing. Perhaps when I am forced to wear regular pants again I might think otherwise, but for the time being I am taking joy where I get it, and for me food -… read more

Food news antipasto

July 19, 2020 by
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We'll start this week's roundup of food news with an announcement from Saveur magazine. In a recent IG post, the magazine said it is bringing back the Saveur 100. You can help contribute to this special issue by telling Saveur about your favorite places to eat, must-have kitchen tools and gadgets, and game-changing techniques. In the past few weeks, social… read more

Learning from the masters

July 18, 2020 by
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Television cooking shows can offer useful cooking tips, workable recipes, and creative ideas on how to showcase unusual ingredients. Sometimes, however, what is being done on the small screen - especially in competition cooking programs - does not exactly translate to the real world. Good Food (AU) Eloise Basuki explains this is a humorous, snark-filled article on 12 unrealistic cooking… read more

Moldy jam causes a stir at Sqirl

July 16, 2020 by
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Earlier this month I wrote about how there is no clean part of moldy bread. Perhaps I was sensing mold in the air because recent events have brought the subject to the forefront. Jessica Koslow, owner of the highly regarded Los Angeles cafe Sqirl, has come under fire for reportedly scraping the mold off containers of Sqirl’s house-made jam and… read more

Fear of an empty pantry, part two – the baking edition

July 16, 2020 by
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Earlier this month, Darcie wrote a piece entitled Fear of an empty pantry. I think we can all relate to battling our fears of ingredient shortages since we've been dealing with the pandemic. A friend once called me MacGyver because every time she needed anything while we were at the park with our kids, I had the item in my… read more

Another famed restaurant closes permanently

July 13, 2020 by
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The headlines about top restaurants that are closing permanently continue to pile up. Even long-standing establishments that have weathered recessions and natural disasters are not immune to the financial pressures created by lockdowns and the public's reluctance to resume in-person dining when it is available again. This time it is K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen, a staple of the New Orleans dining… read more

Food news antipasto

July 12, 2020 by
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Two world-famous NYC-based culinary schools announced their merger earlier in the week. The International Culinary Center (formerly the French Culinary Institute) is closing its doors after over thirty years and will be absorbed by The Institute for Culinary Education. We don't know the plans for the ICC's legendary instructors )Jacques Pépin, Jacques Torres, André Soltner and Alain Sailhac) although ICE… read more

Beautiful to grow and wonderful to eat

July 11, 2020 by
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Gardening has long been a hobby for me. I inherited the gardening bug from my parents, who grew an assortment of vegetables, fruits, and flowers in gardens scattered across our small suburban lot. While it's obvious when you are growing vegetables that you plan to eat them, the same cannot be said about gardens that showcase beautiful blooms. There are… read more

Let’s call the whole thing off

July 10, 2020 by
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Back in February (which personally seems like a decade ago), I shared my thoughts on the demands and judgment of the internet reader in Order up: one recipe, hold the narrative. Recently, one of our most-loved cookbook authors, Dorie Greenspan wrote about Joanne Chang's Maple Blueberry Scones for the New York Times. The comments on that article are enough to… read more
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