I must tell you about this stew.
Because even if you believe that you will never ever make it, you must know of its existence!!! And so, you will make a conscious, knowledgeable decision whether you make it or not.
I don’t want the responsibility lying on my shoulders knowing that (some of) you are walking around [...]

I was behind to join Twitter, behind with setting up a “fan” page on Facebook (mostly because I dislike to use the word “fan”, but do go and visit me there for updates, OK?), and then behind with making matzo balls… Technology-wise, I wonder, is it an age “thing” that I’m so behind? But matzo [...]

First, a short announcement.
I’ve started a new Facebook “fan” page for my blog. I feel uncomfortable saying “fan” so let’s keep it simple and informal. If you like Facebook and you’d like to get post updates there, click here to check it out and join me. Thanks!
Now, where were we? Oh, yeah, brisket.
Brisket is really [...]

This soup has been waiting to be published for a looong time. With all the holidays bustle of shopping and cookies baking, it got buried under a pile of other recipes and things to do and write about that wouldn’t wait any longer.
It’s been waiting since…. hmmm, 3 weeks ago? It was freezing cold here. [...]

A quiet dinner, a glass of wine, dining al fresco by the swimming pool, watching the red and orange sunset, gazing at the ocean, listening to the waves, and looking into the eyes of your loved one…
Aha, I gotchya! Didn’t I?! You got all dreamy, haven’t you?!
But it does look like it could have been [...]

Originally, I had nothing to say about it. Too easy to create, too quick to make, there was no opportunity to blurt a word out before it was done. But it’s beauty too astounding to ignore, I had to share. Its expected tart sweet gorgeous tang, I could not wait until Thanksgiving.
Yes, I’m talking about [...]

How would you like to have these for your holiday dinner?
Remember the Pumpkin banana cream pie? The recipe is here. So this is what you do when you don’t want pie (skip the dough step), or if you do make the pie but have extra custards.
I mentioned a shortcut in the pie post – if [...]

As far as my memory goes back in time, I can count the times I baked with someone on one hand. I don’t get too many opportunities to bake together with family or friends besides my son (who sometimes quits before the process is complete) or an occasional guest. Baking means a lot to me. [...]

I consider myself a pretty adventurous eater. So what is chicken soup doing here? Well, I’m not so much an adventurous home cook anymore. I blame it on the kids.
I’m just kidding.
A little.

Sometimes I fear people might get the wrong impression about me. I am aware that some people might think that since I was a personal chef for a few years, or because I own more then 130 cookbooks (I don’t count anymore), am subscribed to 3 food magazines (well, now Gourmet is gone…), and prefer [...]

Sometimes unplanned dishes are the most delicious (Ooh, a rhyme!). And sometimes making pasta for dinner is actually an excuse to eat kale.
Kale, chard, mustard greens, and all their green friends are new in our fridge, on our table, in our hearts, and now also in our backyard (more about it later). Those are ingredients [...]

Since the movie Julie & Julia came out (Have you watched it yet? You should!), I’ve been seeing and hearing so much about Julia Child’s Potage Parmentier (potato-leek soup) and her famous  Boeuf Bourguignon recipes. A perfect timing indeed since, if you haven’t noticed yet where you live, like say in… California, fall is here. [...]

Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful sunny day. It started grayish and rainy but around 10 am the sky became clearer and bluer. That made me happy and at the same time nervous, realizing all of a sudden that summer is coming to an…. end. I had a little panic attack. Then I started [...]

“Where is the photo of the banana bread?”, you might ask. And who is this person in the photo? (Photo was taken by my cousin).
I told you in my recent “a happy place” post that my father gave me an envelope with letters from my childhood years. I read them but will need to re-read [...]

How does your cooking for dinner routine look like? Are you cooking something quickly at home? Do you stop by the drive-thru? Are you being creative and playing with the food or are you stuck in a rut (like me, lately)? Are you cooking by yourself or maybe with your kids? Or are you one [...]

There’s a tree in our front yard. Every year, a late bloomer.
All the other trees in the neighborhood are standing tall and proud, showing their flowers to everyone. Some trees are in the next stage of clinging to the last flowers which are peeking through the new fresh leaves that come after. The real fast ones have [...]

Spring break.
Two words that shouldn’t be paired together, I think. But schools are closed and my husband and son left for a week and flew to visit family and relatives living out of state.
It was me and baby at home. I really didn’t like being apart. In fact, I hated it.
But, I find that it is [...]

I had a dream last night.
I was on a big boat with many other people. Strangers. The water was deep and so white from the strong current that the boat was rocking wildly from side to side and up and down, like in a storm. Like the big pirate ship ride in a theme park. [...]

 
What do you call the 4th addition to a trilogy? Foursome? Quartet? Freelogy?
I gave you Flaky and Creamy recipe…
then we had Crunchy…
and then Sweet and Smoky…
and now this Buttery thing.

But first, the winner of the Secret Stash Sea Salts giveaway is…. Deb! who wrote the largest number of comments.

It’s winter. Well, you know it. But this one seems to be not just any winter, but a looooong winterrrrrrrr. And I love grilled meat! And I can’t wait ‘till the global colding that’s been going on here in the past few weeks will end. Snow in March? Com’on… I have already done some“ grilling [...]

Let’s talk about quiche.
Every now and then I like to have a good quiche and eat it too. Of course.
But not just any quiche. Not one with a soggy bottom, ahem ehhm, or one that is waaay too rich and makes you feel so stuffed and guilty after eating it, or one that…. Oh, let’s [...]

No, I am not going to give you another decadent chocolate dessert recipe for Valentine’s Day. They seem to be all over the place as it is. You don’t really need another one. Do you? On the other hand, what are you going to have for dinner before the dessert? Or is it going to [...]

The sun is shining this morning. What a perfect light to take a photo. However, my throat feels a little like I swallowed a frog, so I really really wanted tea this morning and not my usual coffee. But I don’t have an espresso machine at home. My husband did buy me one for my [...]

I love that when I bake a cake at home the aroma of the cake can be smelled from the garage when someone comes home. It can be smelled even from the street. Imagine this – an aroma of freshly baked cakes coming out of each house on your street. Wouldn’t it be absolutely wonderful?
But [...]

Whenever I manage to create a beautiful dish out of leftovers, I think about my grandmothers. Strong, hard working, stubborn and resourceful women (I got those genes), they couldn cook something great out of anything (I got those genes too). Back in the old days there was no such thing as throwing food away, right?!
I [...]

 Are you a foodie? Are you a foodie and a parent? Do your kids share your passion for food? Or do they give you a hard time? Watch the video:

I am a foodie and a picky eater in a choosy finicky, or conscious eating way. Since we got married, I got my husband all excited [...]

This is a soup for people with either big or small food budget. But no matter how deep are your pockets, it will make your heart big and your stomach full and satisfied. I got the recipe for this lentil soup from my dear and favorite aunt Eti. She cooks like they used to in [...]

What can I say? I love bread puddings, sweet or savory. It’s like old-world food. Basic ingredients. Using leftover bread. A warm and rustic dish. Golden crust. The best of comfort food.

Here’s a lovely recipe from Gourmet magazine that I made a few days ago. Eating more leafy greens is, ahemm ahemm, one of my [...]

I want to dedicate a cake to you. To celebrate the end of a year and the beginning of a new one. You deserve it. It has been tough lately. But it will get better, right?! It has to.
I usually don’t fuss over a change of digit when a year ends, but this year it [...]

Holidays season means… party time, and if you’re lucky, then it’s parties. Here are a few ideas to make your party stress free.
What you see in the pictures is what I served for my birthday party in August. That was outside in the backyard… But, regardless of the weather, all the ingredients I used then [...]

A few months ago I was talking on the phone with a relative from Los Angeles. She said she likes my blog and read it almost every day, and she likes the recipes etc, and then she asked “why don’t you have recipes for soup?”. “SOoooUP?” I asked, “But it’s summer! And you live in [...]

Do you have days when you don’t feel like cooking? Even if you are a foodie/chef/a person obsessed with food/can’t think about anything else but food all day and night? Do you always have something fresh in the fridge to cook dinner with? Hhmmm.
Well, I don’t. I know, I know, I have posted a few [...]

Making fresh herbal tea feels so refreshing and healthy. No need to use a tea bag, but you can if you insist. I love to use lemon verbena which has a delicate lemony scent and flavor and is one of my favorite herbs. I grow it in a pot in the back yard. It “dies” [...]

I used to hate Brussels sprouts, but I have already told you everything about it in Try something new: Brussels sprouts. So, let’s assume that you have tried it – as I said, and liked it – as I knew you would, and pick up from there?
For the past 3 years I’ve been making Brussels [...]

I love Giada De Laurentis’s idea of adding balsamic vinegar to chicken marinade (isn’t she pretty?). In her new cookbook “Giada’s kitchen”, she has a recipe for sweet and sticky chicken drumsticks using this vinegar.
I liked the idea but I changed the recipe (quite a bit). I thought she put too much sugar and honey [...]

Sarah, a mom I know from my son’s school, gave me a little bag with roasted fresh pumpkin seeds she baked at home. They were very very tasty.
Pumpkin seeds make a nutritious and tasty snack, and have an extra oomph during the holidays. They make a good treat to serve to your holiday dinner guests [...]

Our friends, the M. family, cook chicken every Friday. What a great idea! I used to drive myself crazy thinking what to cook for dinner every Friday. We like to have a nice dinner to celebrate the end of the week and beginning of the weekend. So, I embraced their idea and was looking for [...]

As the temperatures drop down (sorry to bring this up), I feel that my energy levels go down too, and it makes me think of stew. But not just any stew. A stew that is easy to make, with good basic ingredients, a nice piece of meat that cooks fairly quickly, and an unfussy recipe.

Although [...]

My husband went grocery shopping and came back home with this weird looking squash. I was amazed and surprised, I must admit, about this initiative. I still remember the days when he refused to eat vegetables, and until this day I still have to shove fruits down his throat. Like a little baby, he won’t [...]

For many many years I hated Brussels sprouts. I didn’t want to hear about them or look at them. Not think about them eaither. But after a few Thanksgivings and Christmases, I started to have doubts. I thought that if this is a staple at the table during the holidays season, (you see it in [...]