World Bread Day Giveaway: October 11 through October 16, 2024 On World Bread Day, we are encouraged to celebrate the vital role bread plays in nourishing the world. Bake bread at home. Share it with friends. Support a local bakery. Donate to a charity that combats hunger. To support World Bread Day, four of my favorite brands are sponsoring a fabulous giveaway on social media. One lucky winner will receive: (1) Ankarsrum Assistent Original Stand
Green Olive, Rosemary and Black Pepper Loaf for World Bread Day
The angle of light has shifted here in the Northeast. The sun now sparkles through leaves tinged with gold and russet. It’s the season of late harvests, soups, and stews—all of which call for an exuberant loaf of bread. Enter the Green Olive, Rosemary, and Black Pepper Loaf, with bold flavors of whole grain punctuated by salty bursts of olives, parmesan, rosemary, and a hint of peppery heat. This loaf is a perfect companion to
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Blueberry Key Lime Tart Biscoff Crust
Imagine a puckery key lime custard offset by the spicy sweetness of Belgian speculoos cookies. Top that with fresh native blueberries bound in a shiny glaze. Those ideas, along with a new rectangular tart pan, inspired this Blueberry Key Lime Tart Biscoff Crust. It is the perfect picnic dessert. Its flavors embody summer. The tart travels well, cuts into uniform slices, and is tangy and delicious. For many years, I made a blueberry tart out
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Fresh Tomato Cheddar Tart
Full summer means abundant produce, and nothing is more welcome than ripe tomatoes. Tomato sandwiches, panzanella, bruschetta, fresh tomato sauce for pasta—this is also the time when I love a fresh tomato cheddar tart. Often, I prebake a tart shell and then fill it with alternating slices of fresh tomato, basil and mozzarella. Because fresh mozzarella can be tough when heated, I bake the tart only long enough to warm everything without cooking too much.
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Play Boules!
Looking for a way to bring home the French Olympic spirit? Consider playing boules or pétanque this season. The simple game, a staple in southern France, gives us an excuse to hang out with friends and enjoy good food. It’s a constant in our lives and we have a boules family that means a great deal to us. We feel very fortunate to have this fun games and our friends in our lives. Background on
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Watermelon, Tomato, Balsamic Salad
Serious heat means, seriously no cooking. Here is a super simple and refreshing recipe I’m making right now, Watermelon, Tomato, Balsamic Salad. It’s a combination of crisp cubes of watermelon, ripe grape tomatoes and thin slices of red onion. (Here in Connecticut, everything is early even the red onions and the sweet corn.) Not too many cooking tips with this recipe. Use a sharp knife and you should be able to slice the red onion
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Charred Onion, Cherry Tomato, Mozzarella Panzanella with Pesto Dressing
Panzanella is a zesty bread salad and summer staple in and around the Tuscan province of Italy. Usually made with cubes of crusty Italian bread, tomatoes, basil, cucumbers and a simple splash of vinegar and olive oil, is infinitely customizable. Cooks add or subtract ingredients to suit their tastes. It’s one of those dishes that never disappoints. This version, Charred Onion, Cherry Tomato, Mozzarella Panzanella with Pesto Dressing, is a riff on the classic. Basil
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Take 5: Professional Copper Cookware Basics
Ninety percent of U.S. consumers replace their cookware every ten years, a fact I learned listening to a cookware trend seminar recently. In a household with pots and pans from the 1970’s in daily use, this shocks me. Then again, there is a trend towards better cookware. People must be trading up. We cook in the same professional copper cookware we used professionally over 30 years ago. Some of our pans are even older; Charlie
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Frøsnapper Danish Marzipan Pastry Twists
The frøsnapper is a twist of Danish pastry filed with marzipan cream that’s dipped in poppy and sesame seeds before baking. Danes eat this buttery, crunchy, nutty and almondy pastry as a snack with coffee. In my next life, may I come back as a kid who eats frøsnapper after-school each day. Although making Danish pastry is a small project, frøsnapper are easy to make. Give yourself a couple of days to produce these. Make
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Shortbread Bars with Marzipan Cream, Chocolate and Dried Cherries
These Shortbread Bars with Marzipan Cream, Chocolate and Dried Cherries win many fans. With the varied colors and pops of silver, they stand out on our seasonal cookie tray. These bar cookies consist of a layer of crumbly shortbread topped with an almond filling, chocolate chips, dried fruit and roasted salted almond chunks. Kosher salt in the dough adds a pleasant contrast to the sweet almond topping. Be creative with what goes on last. Butterscotch
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"Let no man fancy he knows how to dine Till he has learnt how taste and taste combine."
-Horace, Satires, 2.4