From Scratch

When I wrote about pasta portions and the American penchant for huge portions, I mentioned a man I met in Italy who took all Americans to task — actually, he called us barbarians — for oversaucing our pasta. He was right, we do.
Who better to explain the proper way than Mario Batali, in a video […]

Barack Obama is the projected winner of the Democrats’ caucuses in Iowa. Obama had 38% of the vote, with John Edwards at 30% and Hillary Clinton at 29%.
It was history in the making and unlike Jesse Jackson’s presidential campaigns, which were more or less black campaigns, Obama’s Iowa win came about with a true ‘rainbow coalition’ […]

I don’t even want to imagine how many millions of tubs of this chemical cocktail are sold each year, especially during the holidays. At some tipping point in our history of dubious foods, people began using it beyond its intended purpose as a topping and started adding it to cakes (from mixes), frostings (made with instant […]

Remember when Bill Clinton was running for his first term and Hillary, already controversial, said, “I suppose I could have stayed home and baked cookies and had teas…”? It was enough of a gaffe that, once in the White House, she released a cookie recipe and is said to have really made them. With her own two […]

The Democrats’ debate October 30 was not Hillary Clinton’s finest hour or two, especially when it came to the sharp challenges by Senator John Edwards  of South Carolina. There were moments that went way beyond any Flip-flop Award I could give her — again.
Now the Edwards campaign has jumped on her performance with a hard-hitting ad that […]

Former Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK), is taking matters into his own hands. He was not included in tonight’s debate on MSNBC after the cable channel’s parent company said he did not meet the polling and fundraising requirements. So he will participate — from across the street — via a webcast from his site, answering the same […]

I loved disco in the late 70’s and early 80’s, still do. I especially loved the oh-so-gay Village People and their “wink-wink” smash hit, YMCA. Now imagine if Idaho Republican Senator Larry “airport men’s room” Craig ran into the Village People during a layover (I’d rate this PG-13):
Update 10/15 Well, darn. The video’s no longer available. […]

Whenever I’ve made challah or other braided loaves of bread, I haven’t posted a recipe because I find it very difficult to describe the simple technique of proper braiding. It’s not like braiding hair. And it’s nearly impossible for me to describe how to use the thumbs in shaping dough professionally.
Technology to the rescue. This video lesson, […]

This one’s personal. Irish music legend Tommy Makem died yesterday of lung cancer here in New Hampshire, his adopted home for decades. He was 74. He, along with the Clancy Brothers, became household names with their Ed Sullivan Show appearances in the early Sixties. He also performed solo, never failing to bring down a house […]

Tom Snyder died of leukemia yesterday. He was 71. He was a radio and television pioneer, legendary enough to have been fondly spoofed on Saturday Night Live. If you’ve forgotten — or if you’ve never known — how good and often-newsworthy a talk show can be in the hands of a master,  please enjoy this tribute […]

Paul Simon is putting his mouth where his money is — and playfully tinkering with his own lyrics in the process. He’s touring Iowa with CT Senator Chris Dodd, campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination. Simon and Dodd go back 20 years, introduced by Saturday Night Live creator Lorne Michaels. Simon, his wife Edie Brickell […]

If you’ve ever wanted to ask a presidential candidate a question, comb your hair and get ready for your close-up. YouTube and CNN have teamed up for two live presidential debates with questions coming from ”we the people”. Anderson Cooper tells it:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=B5mDCDAkOlQ
And the second debate, the Republicans, will be September 17 November 28.
YouTube has a special page […]

In yesterday’s post, when I hastily scampered away from mentioning The Everly Brothers, did I think the blog police would show up and confiscate what little HTML I know for violating my (self-imposed) parameters? I guess I’m the blog police here, and just to keep myself on the straight and narrow, Don Everly (dark hair) loves to […]