Rotini with Swiss Chard & Sausage Ragu (Sara Foster’s Casual Cooking)

Rotini with Swiss Chard and Sausage, originally uploaded by shannon_turlington.
Please forgive me for posting this rich, hearty, warming pasta recipe in the middle of summer. Yes, this is truly a wintry dish, but it was so good that I couldn’t wait to share it with you.
This is the first recipe that I have tried from [...]

Raspberry Sherbet (The Perfect Scoop)

I bought David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop last summer, but for some reason, I didn’t make any ice creams out of it last year. I don’t know why — the book is gorgeous, filled with tempting color photographs of Lebovitz’s unique ice cream recipes.
I have decided that this year I am not going to be [...]

Reflections on Change

I don’t believe I’m going out on a limb when I say that change is difficult for almost everyone. We are animals deep down, and we like our predictable routines, just like my dog likes knowing when her meals and walks are going to come every day. Of course, the problem is that change is [...]

The Essentials of Cooking

For Christmas, I received a wonderful cooking reference book: The Essentials of Cooking by James Peterson. The contents of the book are exactly as advertised in the title. This book provides all the essentials you’ll need to start cooking, with step-by-step instructions and many, many helpful tips, all illustrated by gorgeous color photographs. Armed with [...]

Cooking the Book: Fresh Every Day by Sara Foster

I love cookbooks. In fact, some (like my husband) might say that I’m obsessed with them. When I get a new cookbook, I like to go through it several times, noting which recipes I want to try, getting a feel for the style of cooking that’s presented, figuring out whether there is anything new to [...]

French Onion Soup (Bistro Cooking)

Patricia Wells is my new best friend. I have had her cookbook, Bistro Cooking, for a while but only recently began cooking out of it. The recipes are simple but hearty French bistro fare that rely on the best ingredients for flavor, and each one I have attempted has been delicious. Her Marinated Goat Cheese, [...]

Some Thoughts on Gourmet’s Recipes

I love cookbooks. I have a carefully crafted library of them, and I have to constantly resist the urge to buy one more. Even foregoing beef, lamb and pork as I do, and eschewing the regular preparation of desserts and complicated breads at home, I doubt I’ll ever be able to cook my way through [...]

Anniversary Flowers & Church Lady Cooking

It was my second wedding anniversary this week. My husband, who does many things right, remembered to send me irises, my wedding flower. We took the day off from work to spend together, finishing with a memorable dinner and a fantabulous crème brulée at what has been dubbed, even in its first year, the [...]

Review: How to Cook Everything

Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything taught me how to cook. I don’t mean the type of cooking where you slavishly follow a recipe step-by-step without much thought to what you’re doing or why you’re doing it. I mean the type of cooking where you look at what’s in the fridge or in the market [...]

Review: American Classics/Italian Classics

American Classics and Italian Classics are both relatively slim collections of “best recipes” from Cook’s Illustrated, organized around a theme. (There are many of these volumes, but these are the two I happen to own at the moment.) If you already have The New Best Recipe, I would recommend against purchasing either of these because [...]