I always associate certain foods with particular holidays and times of year. Christmas dinner was synonymous with lasagna and my grandmother’s chicken and escarole soup. My birthday in October was […]
Recipe Box
COOK’S KITCHEN
A Risotto That Recalls a ‘Where Have You Been All My Life?’ Encounter
Honoring spring asparagus with a less-is-more version of a classic
Those ho-hum bundles flown in from the other hemisphere most of the year can’t fool me. I like to wait for real asparagus — and it’s finally here. The green […]
THE ESSSENTIALS
The Squid Season Starts With a Stew
A lightly seasoned Italian take on a Provincetown tradition
They’re here! After spending the winter offshore, squid arrive when the waters around Cape Cod begin to warm up. They come to spawn, with activity peaking from late April until […]
FROM THE LARDER
Subtle and Ethereal Homemade Ricotta
Make it once and you’ll understand why it’s worth the trip
It’s the end of our stay in my other hometown. We fill the car with our suitcases plus all our Mardi Gras accoutrements, including wigs, hats, a sequined dress, and […]
MEXICO CITY DISPATCH
The Art of the Breakfast Taco
In both murals and markets, a culture of corn and chiles reveals itself
I knew a winter trip to Mexico City would be a chance to improve my rusty Spanish and eat (a lot). This time I also found myself learning about art. […]
FROM THE LARDER
A Coconut Cake That’s a Celebration, No Matter What
Agnes Bouquet’s recipe for special occasions
My grandmother possessed a solid repertoire of braises, etouffeés, and gumbos. Her fried chicken set the gold standard to which I still aspire. She must have cooked her way through […]
PASCHAL TABLE
An Answer to the Fifth Question: ‘Why Gefilte Fish?’
Pickled onions and raisins are agrodolce, to suit the season
These spring holidays are contradictory ones, foodwise and in every other way, it seems to me. I grew up eating Easter hams and hunting for eggs laid by chickens, presumably, […]
COMMUNITY COOKS
About Those Granola Bars: ‘Cooks Know Crumbs Have No Calories’
A reader’s version with a peanut butter and chocolate topping
I read Sophie Mann-Shafir’s “Granola Bars With the Works” (March 23, page B4) with interest because I love granola bars and I, too, have struggled to find a recipe for […]
SNACK TIME
Granola Bars With the Works
Pistachios, cherries, and chocolate chunks come together in not-too-crumbly, not-too-sweet squares
This all started with Edouard Fontenot’s Indie-adapted Eleven Madison Park granola. I had to stop making it this winter because when I had it on hand it took over as […]
NEW ORLEANS DISPATCH
A Friday Fish Fry, Hold the Sacrifice
Crisp fillets with a hint of warm spices are a fine fast-food tradition
NEW ORLEANS — After the many indulgences of Mardi Gras, the Archdiocese of New Orleans publishes a list of antidotes in the Times-Picayune — “fish frys” to fill the Fridays […]
FAMILY RECIPE
An Eggplant Parm That’s as Good as Mom’s
Take it from Rosalie: peel the eggplant, make your own marinara, and don’t use too much cheese
Saying that your mom’s eggplant parm is your favorite thing to eat is like admitting that the Mona Lisa is your favorite painting. It’s a well-deserved classic, of course, but […]
FROM THE LARDER
Fondue Baked Into a Winter Pie
On a trip to France, ‘unexpected events’ are met with the comfort of cheese
In the end it will be the cheese that kills me. Not the red meat. Not the gin. Well, maybe the gin, a little, but mostly the cheese: hard or […]
FROM SCRATCH
While Short Ribs Simmer, a Kitchen Memoir Takes Shape
A soup to accompany a writer’s weird limbo
There’s a marked difference between the menace of blizzard snow, icy and gravelly against the window, and what’s happening here today. Today, the sun is just barely shining through the […]
COOK’S KITCHEN
Nun’s Farts Are Dunkers to Sigh For
A donut devotee makes heavenly fritters for Fat Tuesday
Mardi Gras, a.k.a. Fat Tuesday, is next week — the last hurrah before the 40 days of fasting and self-reflection of Lent begin, for those who observe it. Besides prompting […]
THE ESSENTIALS
Two Cooks in the Kitchen
When love means ‘That’s Italian!’
It’s not always easy for two cooks to coexist peacefully in one kitchen. A neighbor of mine, a well-regarded French chef, lets his partner’s Thai cooking rule at home. In […]
