Edible stories told here
These crackers don’t mess around. Like the man who came up with the recipe they are not a mindless snack, they require some chewing. Chock full of flavor and fiber and adaptable up to a point, a batch takes some time (mostly unattended) but these addictive snacks are worth it. Wally, my Dad, would make […]
This Zucchini bread with fresh blueberries is what I packed for an unexpected trip out-of-town in the middle of my garden’s summer bounty. Not too sweet, zucchini bread moist and tender, and bursting with fresh blueberries, perhaps a bit messy for a flight but totally worth the mad flurry of baking up the perishables I […]
Not too sweet and subtly spiced, these scones aren’t going to win any beauty pageants. The tender, almost cake like crumb, and a generous portion of fresh blackberries means either using a fork or getting your fingers stained with berry juice, but what’s summer without a bit of berry juice? I adapted my recipe from […]
Individual goat cheese stove top cast iron pizzas—because there is always a choice that doesn’t involve ovens or takeout. I don’t know what restaurants in your part of the world charge but around here a crappy takeout pizza will cost you about six dollars and a good one starts at thirteen or more. If you […]
Are you searching for a homemade bun that is just as soft and squishy as your favorite ‘I can’t bear to read the ingredient list’ store bought? Here it is. And bonus, it’s vegan without even trying. Yes hot dog buns with a pretzel outside and an almost challah tender yet egg free interior. How’s […]
Tender moist cornbread swirled with fresh strawberries and honey. The strawberries, in addition to adding a whole new level of yum to the scent of baking cornbread are also the perfect foil for a tangy vinegar barbecue sauce. Delicious slathered with butter and topped with some of the remaining strawberry sauce. Sub this out for […]
Fresh Strawberry Biscuits with Basil Butter Biscuits, tender and buttery: strawberries two ways- roasted, sweet and softly perfumed and fresh, tangy, bright and perfectly balanced with just a hint of finally it’s summer fresh basil. These delicious biscuits are what happens when you want to bake strawberries in something but not something sweet, no muffins or […]
No yeast, no pre-packaged biscuit dough, rather a compromise, not in flavor, but in time spent. By all means feel free to use a yeast dough or biscuits from a can. The filling’s the thing here, what lies nestled between each warm and delicious pull apart layer. Butter soaked garlic and a cheesy artichoke spread […]
Flat bread not flatbread and not quite focaccia this umm bread is a riff on my go-to flatbread, the Afghan Home style Naan from the wonderful Flatbreads and Flavors Cookbook. The yogurt adds depth often missing in breads without an overnight proof, tang might even be too strong a word, it’s the ingredient that adds […]
A simple and light sponge cake, made with either duck eggs or chicken eggs, the perfect complement to fresh spring strawberries and whipped cream. Call this what you will: Chiffon cake without oil or a sponge cake, this recipe, if you have a stand mixer, is so easy and such the perfect foil for tart […]
Quick and delicious Individual Irish Soda breads slathered with chive butter. Made without eggs and kneaded in the food processor these rolls, adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything, are as quick as biscuits but as versatile as yeasted bread. Feeling Lucky: on finding four-leaf clovers For my fifth and sixth grade years we […]
On my first trip to Italy I learned that all pizzas are not slathered in red sauce and heaped with mozzarella. At the time I was bitterly disappointed because my pizza had no cheese. Though the menu didn’t mention cheese I thought nothing of it, after all Dominos doesn’t list cheese as one of their […]
Be still my blueberry heart Biscuit dough subtly scented with vanilla wrapped around blueberry cardamom filling, baked until bubbling. A heart shaped box filled with fruity blueberry love and cardamom. We had this for breakfast but each bite reminded me of shortcake and summer, eating dinner while the sun is still golden on the tips […]
Party snack, dinner side, cheesy accompaniment for chili: bread sticks, made with flaky pastry dough, expected and unexpected all twirled into one addictive savory treat. Bread sticks are often a disappointment. Too much bread and not enough topping, or so overwhelmingly large that committing to even one seems too much. Or they’re thin and brittle, […]
Tender whole wheat yogurt biscuits topped with a silky, flavorful shiitake mushroom gravy. So good and just enough for two. Biscuits do not make good leftovers. But the beauty of the biscuit is you don’t have to make a whole batch. You can be baby bear about your biscuits, always just right. I, on the […]
With just enough meyer lemon to brighten your day these scones don’t need glaze to be delicious. But why not add a bit of sweet tea? Another layer of citrus flavor? All I had to do to make these scones on a week day was get out of bed a half hour earlier than usual. […]
Winter herbs: pale blue rosemary, purple sage, hints of silver and green on both. A bite of garlic, the salty tease of Parmesan, the soft grassy notes of extra virgin olive oil. And that’s just the frame. Wait ‘til you get to the picture, the picture that’s been filling the house with its addictive […]
This classic milk dough makes soft and tender dinner rolls or hamburger buns. Easily freezable. And bonus your house smells like fresh baked bread AKA comfort and joy. I love the smell of fresh-baked bread it reminds me of childhood and my mother and being warm when it’s cold outside. And as the year comes […]
Sit down at the keyboard with no plan, no plot, no character living on the edge of your brain and scratching to get in. Write a scene with no dialog, very little action, and long rambling descriptions of scenery. Bore even yourself. Netflix, Netflix, Netflix Begin to think about baking. Remember all the baked goods […]
Satsuma mandarin oranges blended whole with rooibos tea for orangetastic, simple, tender muffins flecked with poppy seeds and topped with an optional orange glaze. Let’s be honest. Okay, I’ll be honest. My ingredient lists are largely dictated by what I have lying around. Rooibos tea. Satsuma oranges. Let’s be really honest. I am not […]
Lying in bed predawn with only the glow of my smart phone to give color to the gloom. Did I suffer from insomnia before the internet? How ever did I fill those hours? What story remains unwritten because I just checked Facebook? What classic remains unread because of Words with Friends? Enough! Out of bed […]
Cheddar scones stuffed with tart autumn apples and onion. Flaky and tender, sweet and savory.
The tomatoes have finally arrived. After seemingly endless weeks of staring at green tomatoes things have finally started to turn. Straight up, on the rocks, I want to put them in everything. These biscuits are tasty on their own and over the top with gravy. I made a sausage gravy with tomatillos and cilantro […]
Every Wednesday I go to the farmers’ market downtown and buy a half flat of berries- four blue and two raspberry- and strap them to the back of my scooter, which makes me feel like Audrey Hepburn until I catch my reflection in a passing shop window.
May. Suddenly spring veering toward summer. A garden to plant. Warm sunny days and days where the weather changes every ten minutes. And two weeks where nothing went as planned. Not in the kitchen and not out in the real world. Nothing earth shatteringly good or bad just not as planned.
Strawberries are almost in season here. At the very least they are now arriving from California not Mexico. Baby steps toward spring. Though I guess we are already entering spring’s second stage here. Daffodils have given way to tulips and the lilacs are just starting to bloom. I have a confession. I didn’t follow a […]
No one taught me how to make pie crust (or pate brisee). Throughout my twenties I viewed pastry crust as a mysterious shadow figure made by others, crafted only by people who wore aprons. I’m no expert but, despite my ineptitude and impatience, my food processor allows me to make consistently flakey and tasty […]
Ah, holiday leftovers. What to do with the turkey, the ham, the cranberries? The cranberries. The delicious tart and oh so good for you cranberries. Add butter and cream of course.
The second batch with additional caramel apple sauce and no fresh chopped apple. Topped with a bit of caramel sauce and a slice of apple before baking. The first batch, with chopped apples. These muffins were made by request. A birthday gift. A chance for me to get in touch with my inner cavewoman- and […]
The poem is like the starter, but not like the starter. The poem has salt and heat. The poem is not the starter but the bread it will become. But the poem is not the bread. The poem has salt and heat. The poem is not the starter but the bread it will become. But […]
