Posts categorized as Recipes

A few weeks ago I made the most decadent, highest calorie macaroni and cheese dinner I could possibly come up with. Why? Because it was my birthday, I had Covid and it’s a very cold January. I needed comfort… and food. Cheese normally does the trick, no? This meal is creamy and delicious. Make sure to use medium shell macaroni. They hold the cheese well, making every bite perfect. Just as if you were preparing baked ziti, don’t over cook the pasta because it continues to cook in the oven. […]

My 10-year-old goddaughter for Christmas gifted me red serving baskets with adorable checkered liners. She knows red is my color and the theme of my kitchen decor. She’s so thoughtful! The baskets are the ones you’d see at a drive-in movie or old-school diner. I wanted to make food fitting for their use. Hamburgers, hotdogs, or French fries would work well. I went with my favorite out of the three, French fries. I realized after looking up a few recipes that I’ve never made fries correctly. I learned you’re supposed […]

I worked at Marzullo’s Bakery on Long Island when I was 16 years old. Marzullo was one of those tough Italian types. I felt intimidated by him at that young age. But I respected him and learned a lot from Tony. He was an incredible cook and baker. Sometimes he’d make us lunch in the back kitchen. I’ll never forget this linguine with clam sauce. It was absolutely, perfectly delicious. Other times Tony insisted that I test out foods and pastries he was experimenting with. You just didn’t say no […]

I had the idea to convert our spare guest room, where I work, into a legitimate office. It’s been a long time coming and now I’m finally getting around to doing it. In the room is a bookcase. I was sitting at my desk the other day and swiveled my chair around. I looked at the bookcase and realized I couldn’t remember the last time I pulled a book off the shelf. I notice how many cookbooks I have – 20 maybe more! Googling recipes online is our go-to these […]

It’s been a productive garden season partly because of the consistent rain over the summer and the warm weather we’re having of late. I just harvested another batch of beautifully ripe tomatoes. If we don’t get a cold front, I may even procure one more collection! What a great year for tomato growers. It’s been my best year to date– that’s for sure. My herbs are also still growing strong. I made another large batch of pesto last week. I have so much parsley and oregano, it feels premature to […]

I went to Trader Joe’s for the first time since the start of the pandemic. I especially get excited over their canned goods, in particular the Grecian eggplant with tomatoes and onions sauce, the chickpeas with parsley and cumin, and — oh!– the canned stuffed dolmas. Spending way too much time in the flower section and buying Trader Joe’s herbal soap is another big draw for me. Then you always find the unexpected. I came across the most perfect, clean, and fresh onions. The shape was flat and wide. The […]

Simple is best in almost every situation. That also applies to cooking.  Minimal ingredients allow you to enjoy each individual flavor and really taste what you’re eating for what it is. I had baby portobello mushrooms in the fridge and I had planned to make stuffed mushrooms but I didn’t have much time last week and I didn’t want to deal with the mess. So, I thought to just sautée the mushrooms in butter. I had basil from the garden on the counter and I garnished with that. The earthy […]

Strawberry Fields Forever!! John Lennon’s reference in the Beatles song is based on nostalgic childhood memories of him playing in the garden of Strawberry Fields, at the Salvation Army Children’s Home in Liverpool near where he grew up. The Beatles spent 45 hours in the studio over 5 weeks, tracking the song and ended up with three different renditions, finally combining two of them. Is this why the lyric mentions  “forever”? It also may have to do with the fact that strawberry fields actually last forever. You plant one container […]

Confession. I’ve made guacamole only a handful of times in the past few years. This is because Key Food, on Beach 87th and Rockaway Beach Blvd. has an absolutely delicious guacamole. Guac is a bit of a chore to make and it’s just so easy to grab the container off the shelf. The one I get has the deli label on it, and they have it on Fridays throughout the weekend. For a person who is “almost vegetarian,” avocados add richness and satisfaction to meals. Not to mention they contain […]

My friend Matt Johnson stopped by to borrow a blow dryer to fix a window screen. (Yes, it’s actually a thing). As a thank you, Matt brought over homemade clafoutis. What is clafoutis? I didn’t know either until I took a bite of this decadent French pastry. The dessert is traditionally made with black cherries and placed in a shallow, buttered baking dish. It is then covered with a thick flan-like batter and topped with powdered sugar and butter. It’s served lukewarm and sometimes with cream. Matt’s been baking all […]