Recipes

The subtitle of this post could be Variations on a Theme. Brahms did it with classical music, William Carlos Williams did it with poetry and I'm doing it with salsa. And peaches. And more homegrown tomatoes. Now, I'm not claiming to be in the same league as the...

I can't believe I didn't think of half the tomato dishes people suggested yesterday, especially since Summer Fest ended with tomatoes. Given my mental lapse, I'm quite surprised how polite you all were with your suggestions. Not one of you put "Doh!" in your answer...

This is the dessert that helped salvage last week's birthday fiasco. It's rich, it's mocha-y, it's almost like a truffle. It can stand on its own as a decadent treat, or elevate a mediocre cake to the realm of greatness — providing you like the...

She doesn't know it yet, but Julie Van Rosendaal is my new BFF. I loved her Grazing snacks, but the Double Berry Crumble Squares from her book, One Smart Cookie, sealed the deal. Delicious and with only 1/3 cup of butter for the whole pan?...

Birthdays are rather fluid events in my family. We like to celebrate en masse but conflicting schedules often mean we delay festivities until everyone's available. The April birthdays often pile up until they tumble headlong into Easter. September dates have been known to get inched...

This is the long-awaited salted caramel ice cream post. Asked for by Cheryl of 5 Second Rule, with a recipe provided by Cheryl the Backseat Gourmet and tweaked by yours truly. I know I ranted about caramel in the past. I was critical of undiscerning food...

Tomatoes are a paradoxical plant. Botanically, they're a fruit — they have their seeds on the inside — but in the kitchen we treat them as vegetables. While their flesh is a staple in many world cuisines, their leaves are toxic enough to poison a...

Stop me before I buy again. I've gobbled so many Garnet Beauties lately, I swear my cheeks are sprouting fuzz. When the cat stopped napping in the fruit bowl, I took this as a sign to keep it (the bowl, not the cat) brimming with peaches....

Zucchini is one of those innocuous vegetables that doesn't really stand out. Sure, the small ones can be tender, but the large ones tend to get spongy. Because of the high moisture content and neutral taste —and it's debatable zucchini actually has a taste —...

Last week for Summer Fest, Stephanie of Wasabimon and I swapped blogs for the day. I posted about peach ice cream on her blog and she posted about peach freezer jam on mine. She was even kind enough to watch the comments section and answer...