From Scratch

Everything has a price. Too often, the price of convenience is steep, both in dollars and good health, and it’s a steeper price than I’m willing to pay.
Take taco seasoning. Those handy envelopes of not quite three tablespoons sell for about a dollar and contain way more than a day’s worth of sodium. Depending on the brand, each […]

I don’t know if food prices are rising in your country but they are in mine, and quite sharply. Sometimes the only way to stay within a budget is to use more economical cuts of meat, the really flavorful ones that are tough from frequent use on the animal but which become fork tender when cooked […]

For me, few thing are homier on a cold winter day than a bowl of hot chicken noodle soup. It’s easy and quick to make and so adaptable to individual tastes or what’s on hand; canned soup just doesn’t compare.
I don’t think I’ve ever made chicken noodle soup exactly the same twice. A pinch of this, a […]

It’s not just the absense of ham hocks or other meat that makes this lentil soup a little different, it’s also the inclusion of lemon, adding another dimension to the broth. The end result is a colorful lentil soup that’s lighter than most and I welcome that right now.
I’ve been eating sparingly since the holidays; indulging […]

Adobo is both a seasoning — you’ve probably seen it at the market — and a national dish of the Philippines. With the latter, it’s a tangy soy braise of chicken or pork, and like most of my favorite dishes it consists of a few good ingredients, simply prepared. The sum is greater than the parts.
When […]

Someone who saw the Coca-Cola Ham recipe here sent me a recipe for pork chops using Coke. She said it’s a week night favorite and popular in the South and, best of all, fast. You can count the ingredients on one hand.
It looked intriguing but awfully sweet, with Coke in the sauce and brown sugar on […]

There’s nothing that’ll cut down on pizza consumption faster than moving from the Big Apple to the Little Snowball. The local pizza joints’ pies range from bad to worse to inedible. At least one of them uses frozen crust already rolled into a thick circle and all of them have chewy, doughy crusts. That’s blaphemy for someone […]

I really ought to call this “mac” and cheese because I always use penne; today’s is dark whole wheat. And it’s grownup in two other ways: it’s lighter, both in fat and cholesterol, and the flavors are not bland. Far from it. 
When I wrote about excessive pasta portions in July, I mentioned a recipe I’d seen that […]

The origin of hummus can be told in three words: lost to antiquity. It’s been around for thousands of years, in the Middle East, the Mediterranean and parts of India. While the word “hummus” is Arabic for chick pea, the primary ingredient, most of us use the word for the popular dip and spread, which […]

Someone who is just beginning to cook emailed me and asked, rather shyly, if I have a “real” recipe for pork chops, not just a mention of pork brined in a few ingredients, as in yesterday’s rice timbales post. I replied with this recipe, which produces moist and flavorful chops, as long as they’re not overcooked.
Since […]

One of the best surprises is finding an interesting recipe while I’m already at the market. When it turns out to be good enough for the regular rotation and fast enough for any weeknight, I’m thrilled. This delicious, refreshing recipe goes together so quickly the first thing I did was put the water on for the […]

So one day, while Mr. Knife Skills was chopping veggies into a fine dice for bolognese sauce, he suggested I post about what he called “guy food.” I turned off the processor, which was chopping beef without my help, certain the noise had affected my hearing. “Guy food?” Without looking up he said, “Yes. Food for […]

About a decade ago, a cyberpal who is a very good cook raved about making ham with a Coca-Cola glaze, as she was about to do for Easter. It was a popular method, she assured me, even though word of this hadn’t reached me in Manhattan. I was a bit skeptical, but she’d never shared […]