Kitchen Report

Earlier this spring, I rediscovered ricotta cheese as a simple dessert. Similar to cottage cheese, ricotta can serve as a substantial filling for both sweet (cannolis) and savory (lasagna) dishes. But it can also stand on its own as a low-fat, high protein dish. A recent brunch order in a New York C

We finally have tender yellow green leaves on the trees. The witches fingers of bare branches are all wearing tiny bows of color and from a distance the lilac trees look like poofed up bichon frisés after a spin at the doggie salon. I kind of hold my breath until the leaves return, immediately softe

Last Friday I took the train down to New York City to attend the 2012 James Beard Federation Awards dinner as a nominee at the Books, Broadcast and Journalism awards. It is the JBF’s 25th annual awards celebration. When I heard my name announced over the livestream broadcast from the press lunch in

The Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Ky., falls on May 4-5. I’m not really swept up in the culture around the Derby, even though my mom lived in Lexington for nearly two decades. In my most cynical moments, I can’t understand the big to-do around a 2 minute race. But I admit, I cried through “Seabiscui

Two nights a week I don’t get home until 9 p.m. after swim practice and I am ravenous! Sometimes I have leftovers on hand so I can eat right away. But most nights I need to make something substantial – and fast. Beef stir fry with green peppers and onions is a perfect answer. It’s [...]

I’ve been meaning to tell you about this cookbook for awhile. For all those of you out there who are raising chickens, pickling, and making your own crackers, you’ll find good wit and wisdom in “Make the Bread, Buy the Butter” by Jennifer Reese (Free Press, October 2011, $24). Having chickens cluck

Forget plastic green grass. Go au naturel with these delightful and easy-to-make Chocolate Easter Baskets. You will need exactly three ingredients: a bag of pretzel sticks, a bag of semi sweet chocolate chips (or your favorite chocolate), a bag of mini candy-shelled Cadbury Eggs. If you have any lit

I’ve got some thrilling news! My cover story for The Christian Science Monitor has been selected as a James Beard award nominee under “Food Coverage in a General-Interest Publication,” a new category this year. “The Big Stir” was the title on the cover of the July 11, 2011 magazine, but you can find

You might call this a pre St. Patrick’s Day post, except here in Boston I’m a little bit late. St. Patrick’s Day celebrations start the weekend before March 17 because there just simply isn’t enough time to get in all the Irish-related festivities in just a day or two. We may not dye our river [...]

You may recall some weeks ago that I was complaining about the aftertaste of boxed mix biscuits. I had been in a mad dash between activities but was still craving a just-from-the-oven biscuit to go along with a bowl of cheddar corn chowder. Even though I added some dried Rosemary to the dough for a