I rarely use a drinking straw. In the entirety of my nearly 11 year marriage to Alex, we have only purchased one box of 100 plastic straws, many of which were used for crafting, not drinking, purposes. Along came Lil and our family’s straw consumption sky rocketed. Straws are fun for kids and easier...
Read more →I recently mentioned on twitter that having the first meat of the season hanging in the basement made me feel like our house was a home again. Someone (who are you? I can’t find the tweet now!) replied “It’s modern mistletoe!” That got me to thinking about how meat curing is a tasty metaphor...
Read more →Ingredients and Inspiration This is the week of at least three feasts for our family. Our fridge is full of chicken stock, brussels sprouts, and charcuterie for our contribution to Thursday’s meal. I have five or six pie pumpkins to process into puree this week. I’ll give some to pie-makers and freeze the rest....
Read more →Is your Thanksgiving menu finalized? My mother is hosting dinner this year so Alex and I are responsible for very little. We’re bringing a charcuterie platter for the appetizer, brussels sprouts (probably pan roasted with homemade bacon) and Alex’s dressing. If your menu isn’t full of family traditions, here are five suggestions for seasonal...
Read more →Cranberry sauce is the most neglected dish on the Thanksgiving table. It is over-sweetened to the point of tasting like jam, or worse, dumped and sliced from a can, ridge marks remaining. Why should these tart orbs be subjected to such a fate? Cranberries are easy to obtain fresh in November and full of...
Read more →Thanksgiving is a little over a week away. This week I’ll share some of my favorite recipes. Cooking a whole bird is a beautiful thing. The cook has the ability to infuse the meat with distinct flavors and a whole bird can feed a family for many meals. Use these techniques for a perfect...
Read more →Thanks to a generous friend who gave me a huge stash of canning supplies, I have a new favorite jar. (What? You don’t have favorite jars? Crazy!) This jar is blue, which is fun, and obviously old. It nearly matches four others I have of the same size and brand. This one is special...
Read more →I credit my mother with inspiring our family of cooks. She allowed us to prowl her cookbooks and recipe file. She encouraged us to make food for the family, despite the mess that often ensued. She (and Alex’s mother) started the tradition of experiment cooking. Because of Mom’s encouragement, I started making whole wheat...
Read more →On a crisp day last month, I visited Kokoborrego Cheese Company at the Sippel Family Farm with friends Bethia Woolf of Columbus Food Adventures and Faith Durand of The Kitchn. We took the hour-long drive north of Columbus to discover more about Ohio’s first sheep’s milk creamery. Why Cheese? After many years running the...
Read more →Before I make a meal plan, I always look ahead on my calendar. This week is particularly full of local events that I hope to attend: It’s Dine Originals Restaurant Week! Enjoy original prefix menus for just $10/20/30 November 7 -13 and support Local Matters at the same time. I think I’ll treat Lil...
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