From Scratch

I always hate to see summer end, especially when it’s as fleeting as this year’s has been. Winter dragged on well into spring and after a few hot days in early June, summer has been mostly cool and rainy, sort of like Seattle without a Starbucks on every corner. Perhaps that’s why I was able […]

Barack Obama’s acceptance speech in Denver last night was thought-provoking, historic and unique, delivered not in the convention hall but in a football stadium before 80,000 people. “This campaign is about you,” he said, meaning all of us.
If you missed the speech, here it is in its entirety.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=yZCrIeRkMhA

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It’s not often I literally laugh out loud during political conventions, but I certainly did last night during Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer’s speech at the Democratic National Convention. While pundits are saying Hillary stepped up to the plate and hit a home run — which she did, bravo to her — Schweitzer hit one out […]

These might be the easiest biscuits you’ll ever make. There’s no cutting in of shortening or cutting out of dough. Mix, drop, bake, enjoy.
They’re marvelous at breakfast but don’t expect them to be like muffins or scones. They are biscuits in every sense but one: they’re not dry. They’re not very sweet either and even […]

Cook’s Country Television will debut next month, presumably on PBS. The program’s a companion to Cook’s Country magazine, a sister publication of Cook’s Illustrated which has produced America’s Test Kitchen for PBS for several years.
Little else is known. There’s no information at pbs.org and all that’s found at the Cook’s Country website is a notice […]

This has probably happened to you: you start searching online for one thing and end up with another. In this case, I was looking for Cuban-style yellow rice and black beans and after a few clicks I was at red beans with white rice billed as Jamaican. I suppose the coconut milk is partly the […]

My friend and fellow blogger, sulz, has awarded me a martini, a fun little blogger award I’m delighted to accept. What she didn’t know is this is my first martini ever. Seriously. I’ve never had one, not even a taste. So my cyber ‘tini is especially delicious. Thanks, sulz! I’ll share the fun and award […]

Are you one of the millions who’ve been riveted by the Summer Games? With apologies to Jeff Foxworthy, you might be hooked on the Olympics if…
A cute cartoon this week from Randy Bish of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

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Hours before their scheduled joint appearance, the new welcome screen at Barack Obama’s website confirms Friday’s many reports of his choice for the second spot on the ticket.

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Labor Day weekend will mean baked beans for many in New England. When I moved here and knew nothing about making them, even I knew that a recipe for Boston baked beans that began with two jalapeno peppers wasn’t authentic. It was an Alton Brown creation (bless his Southern heart) which, mercifully, is not on […]

Bob Woodward’s new book about the Bush Administration will be published September 8 and his publisher’s embargo is so tight not even the title was revealed until today.
The War Within: A Secret White House History is Woodward’s fourth about this administration; the previous three all reached Number One on the New York Times list and […]

Even with the dollar in the Dumpster, $18 million is a lotta, lotta money. And that’s how much Rachael Ray rakes in annually from her various shows and food-related ventures, according to Forbes.
The princess of perkiness, the poster child for Gidget Disease, tops Forbes’ list of the 10 top-earning celebrity chefs. However, Ray is not a […]

Russia’s president pledged this evening to begin withdrawing troops from Georgia tomorrow. Yesterday, President Bush told Russia to behave and was backed up in the chiding by Condi Rice who told Russia to start acting in a “21st Century way.”
At the Bush ranch in Crawford she said, “Now I think the behavior recently suggests that […]

As much as I love chicken adobo, I rarely make it in summer. Instead, I make this simple and eye-catching chilled chicken and pasta salad that has some of the same flavors plus the added dimension of a touch of sesame oil.
Even though the price of wheat is up substantially, pasta is still an economical […]

Like many, I try to cook with what’s in season. That’s especially true in summer, when almost everyone has access to fresh, local produce. This is the second summer for this blog and some of my favorite high-summer recipes are here, so it’s time for a recipe round-up. There might be new ideas for those who […]