A wild tear leads to… kumquat marmalade?

You know how sometimes an idea just pops in your head and you can’t shake it? I’m sure this happens to everyone, just changing forms to match their passions or interests. For me, this usually involves food, sometimes it’s a gradual process, but sometimes an idea just slaps me in the face and I end up going to extreme lengths to satisfy the compulsion. [...]

A Riff on Dressy Applesauce

I love reading recipes and ogling gorgeous food photography. I have binders of printed recipes from blogs and websites and a compulsive desire to buy cookbooks that I barely keep in check. That is partially why I am so excited about the new Gourmet website.

It has a look and feel that I prefer to Epicurious and interesting articles. I especially like their “Politics of the Plate” column with recent posts about the FDA’s definition of milk, and the ridiculousness of organic seafood and the USDA’s pending rules.

While perusing the site for the first time I stumbled upon an interesting dessert recipe designed for one. However, it was the picture and the idea, not so much the actual recipe that caught my attention. The idea is to dress up applesauce, but I’m not a big applesauce fan (at least since I’ve been old enough to drive). So I took the picture and came up with an idea that I thought would be a tasty alternative. [...]

Christmas Packages Part 2 (in Lent, no less)

I had originally envisioned at least three different posts about Christmas treats, but since I’ve been negligent, I’m going to wrap it up with this post. In the interim I have been cooking and I hope that I’ll stay on task for at least the next few weeks.

My Christmas packages were a mix of candies and cookies, so today I’m going to share my turtle recipe. This is an adaptation of my mother’s recipe for turtles. In fact, my mother came up and stayed with me a few days after my knee surgery to help me get around and while she was there she helped me make the turtles that I gave out (the pictured ones are from my first batch). [...]