published 3 years ago, at the start of August

Several days ago, we had this unusual hiatus to our typical 95 degree July heat. We had three wonderful days of cloud cover and beautiful rain – with an amazing rare double rainbow thrown in for good measure. It looked like the pot of gold was hidden directly behind my neighbor’s house – just stunning. [...]
published 3 years ago, mid-January

The last time we were visiting South Africa, my brother and sister-in-law had us over for dinner. Cynthia is a really good cook and the spread she so effortlessly prepared was delicious. She baked some butternut squash and stuffed it with a rice and sauteed vegetable mixture. In my adaptation, I changed up the vegetable ingredients just a little bit. I couldn’t help add [...]
published 3 years ago, at the start of January

My children like turnips. Really, I’m not kidding. And they like parsnips, too. So, I thought I would try and put them together in a soup. Alas, we had some serious muffin dunking going on for dinner last night. The key to selecting good turnips and parsnips is fairly straightforward: firm to the touch (no flimsy [...]
published 4 years ago, mid-December

The last few months, I have become an admirer of the Washington Post Food Section and the clever and humorous foodies that write it. Last week, they published a column on baking holiday cookies – one of my favorite things. They included a recipe for “no bake white chocolate apricot almond bites” which intrigued me. Now, white chocolate is [...]
published 4 years ago, mid-December

I don’t know about you but I absolutely love brussels sprouts. In years past, I never truly appreciated them until I had the opportunity to eat freshly picked local sprouts. Because they are most often grown in warmer climates and shipped across the country, they consistently taste bland. They are most tender and sweet after a hard frost (i.e., grown in climates with seasonal [...]
published 4 years ago, at the start of December

The last few weeks, I have had a hankering for broccoli soup. This fit the bill quite nicely. Broccoli is truly an amazing food – superfood – you could call it. It’s rich in fiber, calcium, vitamin C and selenium. This cancer-fighting vegetable also boasts significant antioxidant properties. Among its many health benefits, it is great for your eyes/vision and for regulating blood [...]