On our recent trip, we spent a few days in Montreal with Toby’s parents. It was great to see them and we were greeted on our arrival with homemade shrimp and pork wontons – love them! My mother-in-law was kind enough to make them again later in the week and walk me through making them, so watch for a future blog post on those! Toby … Continue reading Quebec City – A Foodie Adventure
After writing up my synopsis of Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s course at the King Arthur Baking Education Center, I found there were a few things that I thought were great tidbits of information so here are five additional tips about jams and preserves. If the recipe calls for processing times of 10 minutes or greater, there is no need to sterilize the jars in boiling water beforehand. … Continue reading 5 More Things…
I recently spent an amazing couple of days at the King Arthur Baking Education Center in Norwich, Vermont. My friend, Natashe, and I took a jam and baking course there with Cathy Barrow, of Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Kitchen and author of “Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Practical Pantry”. The facilities were great and the King Arthur staff were attentive, friendly and so helpful. And I was kind of like … Continue reading Jammin’ and Bakin’ in Vermont
The hubby and I (along with our half pint!) are packing up the car and hittin’ the road for a border crossing adventure! I’m so excited for the trip for a number of reasons. We’ll take two days to drive up to Norwich, Vermont, home to the King Arthur Baking Center, so I can attend a two-day baking class with Cathy Barrow, author of Mrs. … Continue reading Hittin’ the road!
This past weekend, Toby’s friend, and best man at our wedding, Chuckie, was in town from New York so we invited him over for dinner, along with our friends Matt and Jessica. Because we’ll be traveling over the next few weekends, I wanted to create a menu that focused on late summer produce since it will likely feel more fall-like when we return home. I … Continue reading Menu – Grilled Sausages and Salmon, Braised Green Beans in Tomatoes, Grilled Vegetables and Mushrooms, Plum Tart
A few years ago, I picked up a copy of “All About Braising” by Molly Stevens because I wanted to do more braising recipes for guests as they can be done in advance with minimal work prior to plating. I love this book and have cooked from it many times for dinner parties. Her recipes are straightforward, elegant and delicious. I wanted to use some … Continue reading Braised Green Beans with Tomatoes
A few months back I was shopping at our local grocery store where I saw a familiar face in a completely unexpected place. I recognized Raj, a Nepali training staff member from my Peace Corps service in Nepal. It took me a couple minutes to process seeing a face I had only seen in Nepal, in the produce section at my local grocery store, but … Continue reading Menu: Braised Whole Chicken, Roasted Vegetable Ratatouille, Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies
Several years ago, the Washington Post Food Section printed a recipe for Roasted Vegetable Ratatouille and I knew I had to make it. This was even in our condo living years, before we had a garden that grew too much zucchini and yellow squash. I love the rustic feel of this dish and the flavors really pop. I’ve made it for guests many times as … Continue reading Roasted Vegetable Ratatouille
We recently hosted our neighbors over for a late summer dinner on our back patio. Since they have two boys, I wanted to do a menu of finger foods that were easy to snack on as we chatted. The menu worked perfectly and everyone was free to just help themselves to whatever they wanted and it was so easy to put together. And dessert was … Continue reading Menu – Grilled Chicken Skewers, Pepperoni Sauce, Cherry Tomato Mozzarella Bites, S’mores Bar
Our first experiment with hibiscus cocktails yielded an absolute winner. We invited our neighbors over for cocktails and dinner and this pitcher of drinks was gone in no time. When having quests over for drinks, I love using drink recipes that can be made in a pitcher ahead of time. Not only do you get to enjoy your guests more without constantly having to re-make … Continue reading Hibiscus Tequila Cocktail
Half Pint Garden 