Laurie Colwin’s Buttermilk Cocoa Cake
Let’s get to the point: buttermilk cocoa cake requires no eggs. Not, mind you, that the eggs, or lack therof, were my motivation for baking buttermilk cocoa cake. What sent me paging through my ragged copy of More Home Cooking was a quart of buttermilk, bought with the best…
Butter-Poached Radishes
Very honestly, I am struggling with the importance of radishes at this moment. I know. Everyone needs a break from ugliness of reality. But offering that break without acknowledging the reality is troubling, to say the least. Friends, we are in serious trouble. And now, on with the show. —…
Carrot Rice
Carrot Rice has its origins in Sri Owen’s classic The Rice Book. I use Three Ladies Basmati rice, bought in five-pound bags. It is remarkable how quickly two people can go through five pounds of rice. — I have tinkered with the original recipe, but at its most basic,…
Slightly Spicy Chicken
Slightly spicy chicken is a reworking of Red Pepper Chicken Wings. We have been here before. Why rework a perfectly good recipe? A couple weeks ago, while trying to organize my desk, I found the original notes for Red Pepper Chicken Wings. and decided to make the recipe that very…
Ribollita
Ribollita, Italy’s soup of water, beans, greens, and bread, is one of the country’s many ingenious methods of using up stale bread. The inspiration for today’s post comes from Carol Field’s classic The Italian Baker. — Before going any further, the obvious must be stated: I am not Italian. I…
Broccoli Stuffed Baked Potatoes
I know, I know, the nineties called. They want their recipe back. Stay with me. We all remember–at least, those of us old enough to recall such things–the classic cheese/butter/sour cream/bacon versions of the stuffed baked potato. Delicious they are. But the world, to quote Stephen King out of context,…
Summer Squash Gratin
This morning a friend emailed. So, she said, you haven’t updated the blog for a while. Um, yeah. I know. Believe me when I say it wasn’t for lack of effort. Anyway, here we are. And here is a post. — Okay, so summer squash, which for today’s purposes encompasses…
Hot weather foods
As I write, much of the Eastern United States is smothering beneath what climate experts call a “heat dome.” Rather than go into technicalities, know that heat dome basically means it’s extremely hot, with little relief in sight. Atop this, wildfires are burning in New Mexico and parts of California….
Cherry Cranberry Muffin Cake
Cherry Cranberry Muffin Cake is just what it sounds like: muffins that have become cake. Credit for the muffin cake concept goes to Dorie Greenspan. Writing in Baking From My Home to Yours, Greenspan describes having readied the ingredients for apple nut muffins only to have her brunch guests show…
Greetings from the East Bay
I am still here. My internet connection is another story. Some of you may recall my complaining loudly about our crummy internet setup. I’ll spare you the details; suffice to say, we finally got fiber and thought our troubles were over. How very silly of us. While it’s true we…