I have never had the pleasure of actually traveling to Spain, but I have been lucky enough to be blessed with a sister-in-law that comes from Salamanca who knows a thing or two about tapas. Having her around has afforded me a glimpse into a food culture that I otherwise probably would have never known … Read more
Don’t you just love it when you are walking through the grocery store, list in hand, and you bump into a ridiculous deal that you just can’t pass up even though it doesn’t fit in with anything you were planning to make? Yesterday was one of those lucky days for me. Intending on just picking … Read more
Happy Chinese New Year! Year of the snake is looking to be a good one so far and last year, which happened to be my year, year of the Dragon, was a pretty darned good one. So to give a proper goodbye to the old and kick off the celebration for the new, I tried … Read more
Just in time for Thanksgiving, here is one of my all-time favorite Fall dishes. The recipe was inspired by an African vegetable side dish I read a few years back in one of the many food magazines we subscribe to. I made a few tweaks, transformed it into a soup, and have been making it every … Read more
I had never heard of a lemon cucumber before, let alone seen one, so when our neighbor gave us a few from their garden along with a bushel of tomatoes, it took me a couple of days to figure out what the heck to do with them. The first thing I did was cut one … Read more
Again, I find myself at the Asian market shopping for seafood that I just can’t find at the major grocery chains. This time the target is whole squid and, luckily, they had plenty. My intention was to make black ink rice for a paella dish, but that subject will be left for another day. With … Read more
Thinking back to my childhood, I remember Sundays as a day when we would most likely have a roast or some form of a meal that maybe took a little longer than beans & wieners or SOS. Subconsciously, I guess I continue to do this in my house as it seems to be the day … Read more
In our house, asparagus is a pretty popular vegetable all year long, especially during the summer months. Steamed asparagus gets the job done and sautéed hits the spot as well, but I think grilling asparagus takes it to the next level. I just throw them in my locking grill basket with some olive oil and … Read more
Goodbye dear friend – you will be missed, at least in California starting July 1st. That means you still have time to book a babysitter, make reservations for Friday and Saturday night at a fancy restaurant, and get your goodbye kiss. Here is a list of some of my favorites throughout the State. The picture above is the pate … Read more
I have never been to Argentina or Peru so I am not sure what “authentic” chimichurri should be exactly. Judging from the reading I have done on several of the typical recipe sites and a few blogs though, it seems some people are pretty passionate about their chimichurri. Apparently, there are a few purists out there who are quite adamant … Read more