A simple sort of salty snack, these seasoned oven roasted hazelnuts tossed with fresh or dried rosemary and just a hint of heat and salt are delicious anytime
Food Processor Pate Brisee or Flakey Pastry Crust
My go to quick and easy flakey pastry crust made in the food processor in about five minutes
Ginger Eggnog with Gingersnap Spiced Whipped cream
Add a little spice to your eggnog, add a little spice to your life with this double dose of ginger- ginger infused brandy (or rum or whiskey) adds a kick to the eggnog while a gingersnap simple (ish) syrup adds a hint of cookie to your cream. I’m sure there are other uses for this […]
Easy Bok Choy Breakfast Skillet with crispy garlic
An adaptable to what you have one hand, one pan, one bowl slightly spicy breakfast with crispy garlic, bok choy, toast, and eggs. The leaves have all fallen from the trees and so the view takes another color palette shift, from greens to golds to blue and brown so I paint a new backdrop to […]
Lemon Cardamom Hot Buttered Rum Batter
What to do when you are craving comfort but not the usual comforts? Like a much loved sweater in a new bright color, or an upbeat cover of your favorite sad song. Or a delicious hot beverage that is hot buttered but brighter. A batter less sweet, a batter less basic, a batter for […]
White Wine Citrus Rum Punch
For anyone with a passing knowledge of Spanish calling a white wine drink “Sangria” is just sort of weird. Sangre=Blood , Sangria literally translates to bloodletting- as in the old medical treatment to balance humors until you pass out (that last bit does make sense in relation to the possible effects of any alcoholic beverage) […]
Cranberry Negroni with a sparkly sugar rim
Serve this batch cranberry negroni as a teaser for your next holiday gathering. Or scale it down and celebrate small but still sparkly
Fancy F***’N Iced Coffee (Irish Optional)
On the coffee snob scale I think I fall somewhere between Chock Full of Nuts (I’m not even sure that is still for sale but I do love the old theme song) and a bean with flavor notes longer than my arm that requires a specific temperature and method of brewing or pressing or distilling. […]
Radish Pesto- one of many things you can make with radish greens
how a bunch of radish greens turned into two condiments and some flat bread when I am very good I turn my fresh radish greens into a pesto or zippy chimichurri style sauce when I am just good I do the same only with slightly faded greens when I am bad I let the greens […]
green chile & cheese dinner rolls
I could write a long introduction telling you how delicious these are or some history but I’ll save that for my next cocktail. All you really need to know is in the recipe and most people just skip to that anyway.
The Oh! Oh! Mac Cocktail
Atop our bar sits a tattered copy of “Cocktail Bill Boothby’s World Drinks and How to Mix Them”. In faded brown ink the original owners (the Mr’s grandparents) signed their name and the year – 1952- on the title page. Some sections are pristine, some, like the section on Manhattans, have notes on how to […]
The Holidays without a Recipe -and a “recipe” for mason jar whipped cream
Why whisk when you can shake? One jar, one spoon, no real recipe but a song. That’s right I make my whipped cream in a mason jar. That’s right I like Hall and Oates. Cause darli’ you, you make my dreams come true. This holiday season is different- we had Thanksgiving for two. I served […]
Mini Pumpkin Cheesecakes w/graham cracker crust
When crafting a thanksgiving dessert menu I had two goals, use as few dishes as possible and make just enough to share or have leftovers for the next day but not all the days until spoilage. Bonus points for an easily freezable dessert and double bonus points for cheesecake. I made my own graham crackers […]
Cucumber Classic Margarita
The history of the Margarita is muddled (something with such straight forward ingredients is bound to have been made in more than one place by more than one clever mixologist) so why not muddle your ingredients too?! Just remember that just like the classic daiquiri this is less sweet than something made with a mix.
one bowl small batch peanut butter cookies
no flour no eggs no problem as long as you have ground flax on hand sometimes a small batch of comfort is in order. For this, I am here for you. Ten little cookies- enough for a day so there can be new cookies tomorrow . this recipe is based on this one from king […]
candied citrus slices for all your citrus needs
I made these sticky tart little jewels without a clear purpose other than a citrus glow for a grey day. As I experiment I will share possibilities include cake toppings, cookie topping, fancy sticky cocktail garnish (no teeny tiny clothespins though please!) . You can use grapefruit, oranges, regular lemons, or limes. I like the […]
spiced apple cider cucumber mocktail
Do you muddle? Not the muddle through that is my day to day but the drink variety- the pressing of fruit, vegetable, or herb to release its essence. If you want a mocktail that is more than just a non-alcoholic drink the best way is to use classic cocktail techniques. Club soda with lime is […]
Chorizo Cheddar Savory Dutch Baby
I thought about making this more complicated. Individual dishes instead of one cast iron pan- going to the store to buy crumbly mexican cheese or avocado. But then I remembered that my favorite things are straight up and easy and made with what I have on hand while still in my pjs. Breakfast should be […]
Easy Squeezy Caramel Apple Pie baked in cast iron
Perhaps you’re over pie (how can that be? every day should be pie day!) and onto Christmas Cookies and perhaps I should have gotten this recipe to you in October but I was working on getting it just right. This is just right. An apple pie that is both deceptively simple and complex- bright with […]
small batch boozy cocktail cherries- better than maraschinos
It’s cherry season. Okay so it’s not actually cherry season but it is Manhattan drinking season and so I’m finally diving into the cherries I made when it was actually cherry season and yum! And in a Brandy Manhattan they are so good and you can use frozen which will be better that the day […]
Hot Buttered Hard Cider- Rum Optional
Imperial Hard Cider topped with an easy homemade honey hot buttered rum batter will keep you toasty from top to toes! This is a delicious low alcohol winter warmer that adapts effortlessly to being just a bit more boozy (try it with bourbon!) The minute I tasted the 2Towns’ The Bad Apple knew we were […]
Cast Iron Apple Spice Cake
a lightly sweetened spicy cast iron “cake’’ that you can make as fancy or as straight forward as you want- if you have a mandolin to slice the apples a decorative pattern makes for a stunning presentation but equally tasty and almost as pretty is the apples cut into bite sized pieces. more things apple […]
mushroom pasta: spaghetti & simple chanterelle cream sauce
Pasta and mushroom cream sauce – though technically without cream, a white sauce made umami delicious with a healthy portion of fresh chanterelles and just a hint of salty parmesan. This comes together in less than a half hour and served with a simple salad (think butter lettuce and oil and vinegar) makes one wonderful […]
Cast Iron Pear Blueberry Clafoutis
Combining fresh ripe pears and blueberries in a lightly spiced clafoutis batter this dessert, or breakfast, or even breakfast for dessert has all of the best things from summer and fall. This classic French dish is easily modified to suit your whims and likes- brighten it with lemon, make it gluten free, make it with […]
SeekOut Hard Seltzer Cucumber+Juniper Paloma Cocktail
The paloma- a classic mexican cocktail with grapefruit, lime, tequila and a salt rim gets a refreshing update with SeekOut cucumber+juniper hard seltzer. Trust me on this one, it’s really good- the play between citrus, tequila, and the earthy sweet notes of the cucumber and juniper make this my go to hard seltzer cocktail. Originally […]
Homemade Hot Dog Buns the tangzhong way
There is something satisfying in the slight imperfections of homemade hot dog buns. Just as soft and fluffy as any bland conveyor belt bun but with flavor and character. This is a bun I want to invite to my dinner party. You can make these hot dog buns the day of or start the dough […]
sort of Mexican street corn on the cob or in a skillet
inspired by Mexican street corn but definitely not the traditional dish this quick corn recipe takes advantage of the season’s sweet fresh corn. If your grilling have this on the cob or if it’s raining or buggy or you don’t like your corn on the cob try it in a pan- either way this sort […]
cast iron quinoa cakes with crispy egg and feta
Simple and quick gluten free quinoa cakes are topped with fresh tomato, feta cheese, and a crispy egg to make a complete meal on a plate.
graham cracker biscuits
this riff on cream scones is the perfect base for all your summer berries- try these graham cracker biscuits with a scoop of raspberry sorbet and whipped cream or topped with strawberries
Two Thorns Hard Cider Raspberry Sorbet
Three ingredients- one amazing sorbet. The perfect summer weekend treat to beat the heat that’s not too sweet. So get up on your feet and raise a spoon to two thorns raspberry rose hard cider raspberry sorbet. This sorbet, packed as it is with fresh raspberry flavor, is excellent on its own or try it […]
