Braised Back Ribs
Last week I went shopping and damn near passed out in the meat aisle. A package of short ribs was going for $18. Even the ham hocks, once reliably inexpensive, cost over $15 a pair. I tucked a package of back ribs into my cart–$7.49 a pound, in case…
Risotto Alla Parmigiana
I began this post with great hopes of offering cheap alternatives to traditonal holiday fare. Unfortunately, I hit on this idea on December 7th. It is now the 13th. Perhaps a bit late. In lieu of my original idea, I’ll keep on with the usual fare. Hopefully I’ll have my…
Easy Cinnamon Rolls
These humble cinnamon rolls come together quickly with pantry ingredients–flour, sugar, cinnamon, a little powdered ginger. Further, they’re leavened with baking powder, meaning you can mix up the dough, roll it out, and bake it. Even better, these cinnamon rolls are sturdy. You can freeze the unbaked dough in the…
Olive-Oil braised Celery with Potatoes and Carrots
With the holidays approaching, it is never the bird, the cranberries, or even the stuffing (roast in the bird or out?) that gives me pause. It’s not the sides, or whether or not to prepare brussels sprouts, which invariably go uneaten. Friends, it’s the celery. (We’re just talking food….
Polenta
Before diving into the excitement that is polenta, a few photographs from the Scottish Rite Center. Looking out on to Lake Merritt. It was extremely hot. The windows face east. Gauze curtains cut some of the sunlight. The Scottish Rite Center is in Oakland, California, on Lake Merritt. (Pictured above)…
Herbed Rice with Carrot and Potato
Herbed rice with Carrot and Potato was inspired by a Central Asian rice dish called Mashkichiri. Readers fluent in Hindi, Farsi, Uzbek, or Uiger may recognize the words mash–meaning mung bean, and kitchri, meaning a rice dish prepared with additional ingredients. My information comes from Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duigud’s…
Thai Salt-Pickled Cabbage (Pak Dong)
If you are feeling ever so slightly depressed these days, you might take heart at the notion of fermented cabbage as a unifying force. Hear me out. At a time when people are busy insulting one another on social media and doing worse IRL, some of us have been equally…
Poached Chicken with Udon Noodles
Poached chicken with udon noodles started with the noodles, which I made one night to accompany something–I forget what. My memory is not what it was. But I remember liking the noodles far more than the protein, and thinking I’d better write down how I cooked them, right then, mid-meal,…
Back on the air
Hello all- Sorry to be off the air. I would be lying if I said I knew what happened beyond a server issue. Thanks to the tech at Bluehost, who restored the blog in minutes. A new post will be up shortly. I know the past week has been extremely…
Pie Crust
Today’s post is unusual in that the entire thing is a recipe: for pie crust. Rather than give an explanation followed by a recipe repeating much of the post, I decided to let the post be the recipe. I realize many of you know how to make pie crust and…
