Lamb has been our meat of choice for our Easter/Spring celebration for many years. My family of four enjoys rack of lamb, so years ago I adapted a recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, “The Complete Meat Cookbook” by Bruce Aidells and Dennis Kelly (Houghton Mifflin Company, 1998). (If you like this cookbook you […]
Photo by Karen Levin My family loves St. Patrick’s Day not only for the parade and the dyed-green Chicago River but mostly for the wonderfully hearty and home braised corned beef and cabbage one pot meal I make every year. Serve with soda bread and your favorite local beer or ale. Corned Beef and Cabbage […]
I didn’t grow up in Chicago or New York with their signature pizza styles. My first slice was in a Pizza Hut in Orlando in the 1970s. With my elbows resting on the sticky red and white checkered tablecloth, I bit into an extra cheese with pepperoni. Ah, a food I could eat with my […]
Ah, the simplicity of pie. Sweet or savory ingredients piled onto a pastry base, sometimes topped with more of that same flaky pastry to fully enclose the yummy stuff inside. There are endless iterations—fruity, creamy, meaty, tart. But when it comes to buckles, crumbles, crisps, or (gasp!) cobblers, pie purists put their foot down. You […]
Pesto is a versatile, delicious sauce that can be a cozy winter warmer-upper, or it can be a spring/summer refreshing cool-down. Kind of like the weather in our crazy Chicagoland spring, which is hopefully around the corner! Either way, if you like basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese and olive oil, you will love this dish and […]
Sometimes the seasons (I’m looking at you, icy driveway) or just the busy pace of our lives stand in the way of routine grocery runs. For those hungry moments, it’s a good idea to keep a few long-lasting, shelf-stable items on hand to whip up a yummy meal on the fly. Chef Mario Batali, food […]
When it comes to heart health, salmon and sweet potatoes are like Sonny and Cher, Simon and Garfunkel, Johnny Cash and June Carter—a dynamic duo. Each brings their own flavor, but the pairing is inspired. In the recipe below, the marinade offers a tart citrus counterpoint to the potatoes’ natural sweetness. This meal is a […]
This year, Mardi Gras, the last big celebration before the solemn season of Lent, falls on Tuesday, Feb. 17. A few years ago, during a trip to New Orleans for a food conference, our good friend Bruce Aidells took me and my daughter Amelia to meet chef Leah Chase at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant. She prepared a […]
This year, Mardi Gras, the last big celebration before the solemn season of Lent, falls on Tuesday, Feb. 17. A few years ago, during a trip to New Orleans for a food conference, our good friend Bruce Aidells took me and my daughter Amelia to meet chef Leah Chase at Dooky Chase’s Restaurant. She prepared a […]
February is American Heart Month. Time to take stock of your diet and fit in some new, lighter entrees. In the past, I have developed healthy recipes for several cookbooks for the American Heart Association. The following are their basic guidelines. As you make daily food choices, base your eating pattern on these 10 recommendations: 1. Choose […]
