• 05Feb

    Hi, gang. I hear sales of big-screen TVs have gone up recently. Why? Because it’s SUPERBOWL TIME! This Sunday, February 7 is Superbowl Sunday and people all over the country are gearing up with new sets, stocking up their refrigerators and coolers with beer, and planning their munchies spread.

    This year, it’s the Indianapolis Colts vs. the New Orleans Saints. And since this is the first time in the team’s history that the Saints are going to the Superbowl, I’m sure many New Orleanians and Louisianans are going to party hardy this weekend.

    Now, I won’t claim to know much about football, but if you’re having a Superbowl or tailgate party, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s see what’s on the menu…

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  • 30Jan

    Hi, all. I hope everyone’s sage and warm in the latest wave of winter wonderland-ness that’s hitting various parts of the country and the world. All I have to say is, “BRRRRRR.” This is the kind of weather that sends people running to comfort food, stuff that’s warming and that reminds us of our childhoods. Of course, comfort food means something different to everyone.

    Which brings me to my topic for this week: February is National Snack Food snacksMonth! Now, snack food is not necessarily comfort food, but for some, it is. And it’s particularly appropriate that I’m writing about snack food today because I’m craving it for an entirely different reason, and it is a source of comfort for me during those times. I think you know what I mean. Moving on…

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  • 22Jan

    Hi, kids. It’s been a really rough week for me. I’ve had to deal with a broken sink, bad news from various friends and, worst of all, a malicious virus on my computer. It’s the Malware Defense, and if any of you have had to deal with it, you know how heinous it is. My entire week was taken up wbangingheadagainstkeyboardstreetsigith combating this vicious thing and in the end, I had to wipe out my computer and reload my OS. It’s going to take me days to reload all my programs. A couple of programs I lost altogether because I no longer have the installation disks. <huge sigh> The people who created this obviously have knowledge and skill—why can’t they use their powers for good? I hope the proper karma is in store for the people who sit around and come up with this stuff. People like that are a waste of humanity.

    Anyway, on with the show.

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  • 15Jan

    Hi, kids. Before I get into this week’s topic, I just want to express my sympathy for all the victims of the earthquake in Haiti, and for all those here and around the world who lost loved ones. In thinking about what to write about this week, I remembered how lucky I am right now that I have the luxury of talking about food and that I don’t have to scrounge around a devastated countryside looking for food and water. When I’m feeling sorry for myself, I try to remind myself of these things. If you’d like to help with the relief effort in Haiti, visit the Red Cross.

    Okay, let’s get into it.

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  • 08Jan

    Hi, all. I hope that the first week of the new year has been good to you. I know a couple of people who have lost people very close to them this week, so my heart goes out to them. It’s not an auspicious way to start the year, but one can hope that things can only get better from here.

    Let’s get drinking…

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  • 02Jan

    Hi, gang. It’s the second day of the 2010 and I’ve been thinking about what to write for this week’s blog. The last couple of days, I’ve been breathing a sigh of relief that 2009 is over. It’s been an extremely difficult year for me, as well as for many other people. I’ve had turmoil and disarray in just about every area of my life. Although some really awesome things happened, too, they happened amidst craziness. So, it was kind of like finding pearls on a beach and having to brush away the sand to really see it.

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  • 26Dec

    Question: What is tiramisú?

    Hi, all. I hope everyone had a happy and fun holiday. And I hope that the gifts you all got were the meaningful kind, rather than the costly kind. Sometimes, those two things overlap, but far too often, people buy expensive gifts just because they’re expensive and not because they really mean something to the recipient. I know several couples who opted to make donations rather than send out Christmas cards and buy gifts. I know one family who sponsors needy families in other countries by buying important items for them. For example, last year they bought a goat through Heifer International. This year they bought a goat, a flock of chickens, and a flock of ducks. If you visit Heifer International, you can choose your gift and they send it to those who need them.

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  • 19Dec

    Hi, gang. Well, the holidays are upon us. This past week was Hanukkah and this coming week is Christmas. Then, on December 26, begins the 7 days of Kwanzaa. Whether you celebrate one of these holidays or the winter solstice or nothing at all, we’re all confronted with the same thing: lots and lots of food. We have those family dinners to attend and/or have our own gatherings. And even if you avoid both those events like the plague, chances are that you have to attend your company soiree. So, very few of us escape the trap of delicious, tempting food.

    WWW.countryliving.com

    www.countryliving.com

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  • 11Dec

    Hi, all. Well, I got word the other day that my cookbook will not be ready to be released by Christmas. This means that I will miss out on potentiwhatnomeat_coveral Christmas sales. So, for example, anyone who’s browing Amazon or Barnes & Noble for a gift for Aunt Mary might say, “Oh, look at this cook Italian vegetarian cookbook. Aunt Mary would love that. But, oh, it won’t be available by Christmas. Let me look for something else.” (By the way, I don’t know what’s up with my book cover here. Either it comes out cut off, or I have to make it teeny tiny. )

    whatnomeat_cover_small2Actually, to make Christmas sales, it should have been out by now. My publisher, which has a very small staff, had some set-backs in their schedule and they’re struggling to catch up. And, unfortunately, that’s the way it goes in publishing sometimes. People get inundated, schedules go off-track, and unanticipated problems arise. There’s not much to be done about it except to make the best of the circumstances. Although, I’m not really sure what that means right now.

    I’m determined to finish the testing of my second cookbook by the end of the year. Or, at least most of it. I’m sure I’ll have few remaining recipes after January 1, but I can deal with that. I’ve spent so many years working on this one that I’m sick of it. I want it done. I think it’s going to be a really good book, but, seriously, enough is enough! :-)

    I have a couple more book ideas on the back burner, so I’m anxious to get on those, too. I’d be happy if I could spend my life developing recipes and writing cookbooks, but I’m not Julia Child so I don’t foresee being able to pay by bills like that. So, I’m focusing this weekend on some resumes and cover letters. Doing those always depresses me because I know that each job I apply for will have hundreds of others vying for that same position. And I always end up wondering, “What the hell are they looking for? What do those other people have that I don’t?”

    Resumes and cover letters are not easy. Each one has to be tailored to each specific job and it sometimes takes me a couple of hours to tweak them for a particular job. And I get the sense that I’m doing it all for nothing. I always feel that my resume will just end up on the reject pile along with the others. Over and over and over. At the end of a “resume day,” I always end up depressed and, sometimes, crying. Then, I dread doing it again. I mean, it becomes like torture to sit down and do them. So, I put it off. I’ve put it off for a while now. Mind you, there hasn’t been much available, which depresses me even more.

    But a couple of job openings came up that I can handle, so I’m going to spend some time applying. I have to. Because when the question “Have you been looking?”  invariably comes up, I have to be able to honestly say “yes.” Certainly, nothing will happen if I do nothing.

    On a more pleasant note, I made gluten-free chocolate-hazelnut cake and chocolate chip-hazelnut cookies, and even people who are put off by the non-pareilsterm “gluten-free” had to admit that they were damn good. Alas, I neglected to take pictures of them. :-(   I decorated the edge of the cake with mini nonpareils and put edible holly in the center. edible-hollyIt was really pretty. Oh, well.

    So, that’s where I am right now. I hope you all have a great weekend and coming week. See you next time.

    Nonpareil photo: www.Dylanscandybar.com

  • 04Dec

    Hi, gang. This week, I spent a lot of time testing recipes that required coconut. The recipes are mostly Indonesian and African, and call for urapshredded coconut, chunks of coconut, and coconut milk. It’s not that I was jonesing for Southeast Asian or African food, or even coconut—it was a decision of practicality. I decided that if I was going to go to the trouble of cracking open a coconut and working to get the meat out, I’d might as well do two coconuts at once and have enough for all the recipes that require it. So that’s what I did. Now I have some in the refrigerator and put a container of it it in the freezer.

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