Kitchen Disasters

FlowersDrying1 Ten days left to my sister's garden wedding and I'm beginning to panic. My mom and I are making the wedding cake, and planned on decorating it with blooms from our gardens. But none of the flowers are paying any attention to their carefully co-ordinated schedules. In an ill-advised burst of speed, the rambling rose has galloped through its bloom phase like a Kentucky Derby contender. At this rate there will be no perky Dorothy Perkins hovering overhead as my sister and her groom greet guests. Sure, the long-lived lavender is fine, but the ephemeral lilies? Not so much. And while the hollyhocks look just dandy right now, will they  be able to stand guard along the wedding path come the Big Day? I guess we'll find out. So yesterday, I decided to preserve as much prettiness as I could -- regardless of whether or not the flowers are fit for consumption. Having recently written an article on how to candy flowers, I was up to the challenge. But as I ventured beyond the edible flower limitation, I learned that some flowers candy better than others.

I'm back. Andrew's back. The cats are back. And we're all pretty please about it. Even the Gerber daisies perked up for the occasion. After three months of camping out in my parents' guest room we're once again residing in our own home. And loving the...

Dull winter days. Steaming hot bowls of soup. A hunk of cheese and a slice of bread makes it a meal. Wouldn't you just love the recipe for this delicious, nutritious, palate-pleasing cold weather solution? Well, I'm not giving it to you. Not because I'm mean or...

Technically, our leak wasn't as bad as this photo. Emotionally? I felt like I was the Dutch kid asked to stick his finger in the dike. One false move and lives would be lost, houses swept away and my name would forever be synonymous with...

We have a tradition in our house. One of us usually kicks off the new year with a kitchen disaster. Last year, I discovered dried beans can, in fact, go stale. This year? I botched the pastry. Crostata no less. What else? I learned the hard...

  In the immortal words of my disaster-prone husband, "It's okay! The fire's out!" Only it was my turn to bellow this comforting phrase as I doused the flaming object in running water. Ever wonder what would happen should you soften butter in the microwave and use the...

I wish you could reproduce this recipe exactly as I made it. But you can't. Unless you mess up your preserves like I did. A few weeks ago, I attempted a homemade mixed-fruit ketchup. But I was so busy "multitasking" I missed the small but crucial...

No photo today. I had hoped to wow you with stellar shots of what my friends dubbed the Pound of Butter Cake — a Paula Dean concoction layered with impossibly rich buttercream. And yes, the recipe takes a whole pound of butter. As you can likely...

One of the hardest things about writing a food blog is coming up with ideas. I constantly walk the line between indulging my whims and keeping it real. So, for a monthly infusion of inspiration, I decided to join the Daring Cooks, the Daring Bakers'...

After hearing the crash, my holler and ascertaining no one was hurt, Andrew's only comment was, "Make sure everyone understands I'm not responsible." Okay. For the record, Andrew's not responsible. Not exactly the exoneration he's looking for. Allow me to clarify, Andrew didn't break the dish pictured...