Easter has always been a favorite holiday, between the arrival and celebration of all things spring and all things rabbit, to the traditions of goody-filled baskets (our childhood Easter bunny was a rock star who gave us kites and books) and an egg-enhanced meal, what is there not to love? […]
It dawned on me recently (dawning can often come surprisingly late): I grew up surrounded by grains. Living in the rural Midwest, our farm was a cluster of trees centered in vast open fields that yielded oceans of golden wheat. Sometimes, the fields were planted with sorghum (we called it […]
Every year on March 17, many Americans channel their inner Irish…wait, I’m not even going to dignify it with that kind of phrasing. A number of Americans use St. Patrick’s Day, like many other holidays, as an excuse to overindulge. They drink – a lot. And it’s ridiculous because the […]
I came to know of King Cake because “I Was a Teenage Food Editor.†Actually, I was just a few years beyond teenage-dom when I was as the helm of a weekly food section at a Southern California newspaper, but I was certainly as inexperienced, naïve and pimply as any […]
This is a love story of sorts. Like many women, I am drawn to an individual that is – according to many — no good for me, yet I cannot resist. Our encounters are illicit and all-too-infrequent, whether they take place in public places or the privacy of my home. […]
My friend, Elaine – whose own oven yields magic at such a staggering and humiliating output, her kitchen could make Willie Wonka’s factory look as though it has gone dormant – not long ago gave me one of the nicest gifts I have ever received. She came to work and […]
Luck. Some folks believe you make your own; others think it’s out of their hands. I do believe there is a magic — call it luck, fate, what-have-you — beyond our control, a force and a direction that determines what will be. That being said, I also think you have […]
Well, it’s the holiday season, a time when peppermint rears its noxious and sometimes incongruous head in everything from chocolates to milkshakes to pancakes. But before I let you think I’m sounding somewhat humbug, know that AWS really does know how to celebrate the holidays. After all, I am the […]
If Norma Grubb’s spirit could have been in my kitchen this past Thanksgiving morning (and if her spirit could be anywhere, likely last on her list would be my mad kitchen), she would have been laughing her you-know-what off. I began the day in serious distress, as it was raining, […]
Gravy is not good for you. Let’s get that out of the way up front. I’m about to rhapsodize on one of my favorite things in the world, and I know very well that it is terribly unhealthy, excessively detrimental to one’s blood vessels and waistline, and has little or […]