Over the weekend I reorganized our spices, a project that involved transferring our dried herbs and spices into new jars. An unexpected perk of the process was the opportunity to take in the aromas of each. The wafts of cardamom seeds stayed with me through the day on Monday, and by evening I could no […]

Eating local food when it is in season – elitist though it may be – is a good trend for food in America, one that I hope has more staying power than most foodie fads. To that end, I try my best to try to promote that style of eating, on this blog and in […]

Spending last weekend out of town was great fun for Martha and me, but it seriously interrupted our usual weekend meal planning and grocery shopping routine. When we returned home on Sunday night, I was scrambling for ideas for what to put on the table. Rather than spend a precious weeknight writing a menu and […]

Was it the stuffing? The mashed potatoes? No. I’ve realized my favorite parts of Thanksgiving are not so specific as one dish on the table. As Tom and I begin to establish our own Thanksgiving traditions, I’ve become attached to many of them. This was our firstofficialthanksgivingasamarriedcouple and we were lucky to enjoy it with […]

Although ostensibly a day devoted to giving thanks, Thanksgiving for many descends into gluttony – or at the very least eating a bit too much food that is a bit too rich. Whatever effect this might have on one’s soul, it definitely takes a toll on the body, as the pending post-thanksgiving naps will attest. […]

As much as I love a good risotto, what I’m really hoping for when I serve one is that people won’t want to finish the whole dish. I wasn’t after a risotto lunch; I wanted to try an idea I’d had in mind for a while. Probably the best thing to do with day (or […]

Local food mega-site the Heavy Table recently stirred up controversy by deeming, after conducting a metro-wide tasting, the Bruegger’s bagel to be the best bagel in the Twin Cities. To have a giant national chain beat out all the local options was understandably upsetting to the many people whose culinary ethos is built around eating […]

Why is it always the smallest dishes that require the most work? Take these two-bite-sized steamed buns: for all the time I spent making them, I probably could have barbecued a whole cow. Twice. The work began two weeks ago when I started my kim chi, the Korean fermented cabbage pickle. Beyond ingredients I had […]

Some people have their broccoli-cheese casserole; I have this: penne with blue cheese and broccoli. It’s filled with the same comforting overload of starch and gooey cheese but has an added element of danger provided by tangy blue cheese and generously-applied red pepper flakes. I’ve been making this dish for years – I distinctly remember […]

It’s almost election day, a time for Americans to exercise the most basic mechanism of self-government by choosing our rulers. Nobody can have failed to notice that the stakes are high this year. Issues that once elicited some kind of consensus have become the source of bitter disagreements. As a food blogger, I have a […]