I tried it too. There was an offer for a Mediterranean Plate for $5.99. What I got was a huge amount of hummus, Greek salad, a couple of falafels and a pita. Tasty yes, but not worth the 4 mile round trip.
Thing is, the offers close to me are thin at best. The real selection is way to hell across town. Which ain’t no…

The year I was born, a dear friend of my parents suffered a terrible loss, her mother and daughter died in a car crash. My parents offered to be with her on Christmas. Her husband was not a fan of turkey, we did not eat ham, so we had roast duck with wild rice dressing. As the years went on, more people were invited;…

I have been making Thanksgiving for One for a few years now, which allows me to make what I love most. The protein is usually a game hen.
1. Sage and Walnut Dressing
2. Mashed potatoes and gravy
3. Fresh green beans and carrots
4. Cranberry sauce
5. A slice of pumpkin pie from the grocery store.

I took a tip from Alton Brown for my cranberry sauce. Instead of leaving it chunky (which, I believe, is technically a compote) I puree it until smooth. It changed everything. There is enough natural pectin so it is like a jam. It pours onto the plate during dinner, spreads easier on sandwiches, pours over brie.…

This story brought to mind a wonderful memory. Mary & Hugh.
An aged bohemian couple, who lived in unmarried bliss in a wonderful ex-whorehouse near Long Beach (with red flocked wallpaper, numbers were still over the bedroom doors and the bathroom had a hidden panel to a sun porch to hide the sailors when the shore…

I’m dating myself here, (fuck it, I’m 63 next week) but I’ve been making that stuff for 40 years. It’s called extract, it’s not the same as cold brew. I use the Filtron coffee system. 1 pound of coffee, 60 oz water. Let sit for 12 hours, strain through the felt filter. 40 oz of extract. I keep it in a bottle in the…

A bun is formed individually and is glazed all over, like a doughnut. A roll is cut from the rolled up log and has glaze or goo on the top.

Compared to chain bakeries, they’ll never match Cinnabon. As far as the best I’ve ever tasted, that honey bun clone in the photo ain’t got a chance. A great cinnamon roll has enriched dough and a brown sugar glaze. My preference is for pecans in the glaze.

What I will take away from this is that I can change the way I hard cook eggs depending on the final application. I now know the techniques for hard cooking eggs for out of hand eating vs. deviled eggs (my all time favorite hard cooked egg dish). Thanks again, Claire.

Inspired idea! I can see an immediate benefit to the inclusion of zucchini, a lot less oil. Most creamy dressings substitute avocado, cashews or tahini for oil which doesn’t reduce the fat, it just substitutes one type for another. And those choices can over-thicken the dressing. Zucchini has so much water that…

May I make a plea for less hostile headlines? It is clear why it is being done. It is not just callous, but inaccurate, until you have seen every sunset photo taken by every reader.

Oh, my lovely Hack or Wack testers, my heart goes out to you both. Your indomitable spirit embiggens us all. The things you do give us 4 minutes distracted from the chaos is generous beyond measure. My disbelief that someone would use that much oil to pop corn was matched only by their flagrant disregard for the…

Picking corn when I was little (before microwave ovens), the farmer told us that he didn’t cook it, just ate it at room temperature brushed with melted butter. I still prefer it that way.

One of the fixtures of summer was the rotisserie on our gas grill. Chicken, roasts, the aroma wafted across the back yard. It was necessary, too hot to cook inside. Add grilled corn on the cob and a salad. Dat dere is summer.

Nope. I’m firmly in that camp, too.

The absolute worst way to put mayo on a sandwich is a squeeze bottle. Subway does it (another nail in their coffin). The sandwich place at my work does it (on one side of the bread only). My favorite sandwich joint spreads it on with a spatula!

I love mushrooms so much, it’s hard to cook a small enough amount to create a single layer in my largest skillet.

Parmesan cheese. Crumbled. In the filling. Counterpoint for the mustard. Little nuggets of glory.

I’ve always had a microwave and a toaster oven, but precious little space for Instapots, Air Fryers, Panini Press/Grills. I am really looking forward to what I will learn this week. I think it would be useful to know the wattage of the ovens you use and how to adapt if the wattage is different.

I am very happy to see Desert Hearts on this list, it is hard to explain just how important that film is. I saw it over and over in the theater, marveling at how perfect it is. The first lesbian story with a happy ending.

I had read “Desert of the Heart” by Jane Rule, a landmark work in its own right. What Natalie…