Bake with abandon!
The weather has cooled just as I feel squashed against the ceiling of my baking limit. At a time when I can’t face another bag of flour or brick of butter, the overnight temperatures dip to chilly, pull-up-the-blankets digits. I awake to the hum of the furnace, the tip of …
So, Eric Idle came to dinner and was seated beside me. We were going to entertain the other guests with a ripping rendition of The Dead Parrot skit. Only I was so busy thinking up clever tweets I forgot my lines. So I went upstairs to …
When I was very little, I thought my mother knew everything. Absolutely everything. If I had a question, she had an answer. If I had a problem, she had a solution. She cured my near-fatal bout of the mumps with teeny-tiny vanilla cupcakes. She could …
Seasons jumble in my head. Apricots and black currants are oh-so summer, except when the apricots are peaches and the currants are jam. Then it’s late fall — Thanksgiving to be specific. Confused? So am I. I started out with two tasks on my agenda 1) …
Writing a book is a lot like working in theatre. “Hurry up and wait!” is the mantra. You learn your lines (or write them in this case), hit your marks (deadlines) and then wait. For months. You watch the clock, the calendar and your nails …
I’m not one for culinary deception. I have never understood why anyone would slip perfectly good spinach into brownie batter or sneak astringent cauliflower into banana muffins. Not only do the flavours conflict, such subterfuge gives respectable vegetables an inferiority complex. So, let me be perfectly clear. When I …
Developing recipes for unfamiliar culinary tools is a bit like having coffee with someone you met through an online dating site. You’ve memorized their profile, you’ve Googled them to see what others think, and you’ve figured out how to make them like you. But no matter …
First there was Lex Luther, The Joker and Mr X. Then came Dr. Horrible and his malevolent idol Bad Horse, The Thoroughbred of Sin. I’m fortunate to have never come across such terrifying evil doers. Some say I remain unscathed because I live a quiet …
These are some of the ingredients that go into what my husband calls “That Orange Beef Stew Thing You Make.” I call it Braised Beef with Orange and Tarragon but who am I to quibble? He likes it. I like it. Our guests like it. …