I don’t know why spring cleaning is a thing. Around here, winter is our chance to tackle tasks that can’t be done in the warm months. Come spring, seeds will […]
FAT TUESDAY
Shrimp and Okra Gumbo: A Movable Mardi Gras Feast
A Truro cook carries his Louisiana traditions wherever he goes
I won’t be in New Orleans for Mardi Gras this year. We’re visiting my brother Brit and his family in Montana. But I’m not worried. My brothers and I have […]
FROM THE LARDER
Adobo for Dinner, No Matter the Season You’re In
A question posed by a poet leads to a recipe for comfort in hard times
The first time I met Priscilla Lasmarias Kelso, she had joined us on a walk at the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain — the Boston neighborhood where Christopher and I […]
KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL
Button Mushrooms Can Be Magical, Too
We were on our annual pilgrimage to the Met a few years ago and I was giddy with anticipation of getting to watch the chandeliers sail into the ether, but […]
KITCHEN CONFIDENTIAL
Garlic-Ginger Paste Warms Up Almost Any Winter Dinner
After a brisk walk down to the bay on frosty winter day, I crave foods to warm me up from the inside out. There’s no better way to raise your […]
COMPOSTABLE CHRISTMAS
Goodbye to the Ubiquitous Gift Bag
Plain brown kraft paper and natural materials become elegant wrappings
WELLFLEET — Heidi Daniels fondly remembers the time she spent as a child in the school supply aisle of her local Ben Franklin five and dime. “Construction paper and pink […]
ROME DISPATCH
Bucatini Cacio e Pepe Is Forever
A plate of pasta to love in the Eternal City
I’ve long suspected that air travel is unnatural, and the physical effects of being hurtled through the air in a metal tube across several time zones get worse as I […]
GARDEN PLOT
Planting Garlic Is a Down Payment on Spring
Each clove will give you two crops come summer
The early morning air is crisp and clear. As I head out to the kitchen garden, brisk winds following on the heels of a faraway tropical storm carry swirls of […]
FROM THE LARDER
An Oyster Feast
How do you top Wellfleet’s best bivalves? Buttery, bacony, peppery answers from three local farmers
If you listen carefully right now you will hear whole beds of Wellfleet oysters fattening themselves up for a winter that many of them won’t see. That’s because thousands of […]
LONDON DISPATCH
A Cross-Cultural Curry to Come Home To
At Dishoom in London, a reminder of the gifts of flavors immigrants bring
I know it’s a mistake to leave the Outer Cape in September or October, missing the glorious weather we wait for all summer long. But Christopher had a work trip. […]
FROM THE LARDER
Sweet, Salty Tomates d’Été au Fromage Bleu
Garden tomatoes and salty cheese meet in a Montréalais skillet
A couple of weeks ago my mother told me that she had had entirely enough tomatoes for the summer and was now tossing ripe ones from her garden straight into […]
FROM THE LARDER
Beach Day Summer Rolls
A cool, crunchy, herby, satisfying lunch wrapped up in a neat little package
I’ll own that I have a reputation as a high-maintenance beachgoer. All summer long, Christopher heads out to find a spot on the sand between Long Nook and Ballston with […]
FROM THE LARDER
A Puerto Rican Pernil Makes a Barbecue for a Crowd
Garlicky marinated pork shoulder, slow-roasted on the grill
One thing I’m realizing now that Truro is truly our home is that there are of lots of people we will only get to catch up with in the summer. […]
INCIDENTALLY
No Quesadillas?
We were having lunch on the upper deck of the Bookstore Restaurant in Wellfleet on a fine day in July. At the next table was a family with three young […]
CIVIL RIGHTS
The Narrowing of the Public Square
An ominous decision from the Supreme Court on serving same-sex couples
The Supreme Court’s June decision in 303 Creative LLC v. Elenis, allowing businesses to refuse to serve same-sex couples based on religious objections, took me back to a day in […]