I can’t help but to wax nostalgic during the holidays.  Like any family, we have seen the best of times and some of the not so very best of times.  I remember fondly the adventures of life in a large family and  reminisce the first time I was able to win a fight with my… Read more »

After a very chilly afternoon of food science and model rockets, it was time to warm up with some hot chocolate.  After ordering three medium hot chocolates and a medium fry at a local fast food restaurant, I was stunned to have the cashier tell me it would be over $12. How did this happen? … Read more »

Yes, I am a geek who plays piano.  I have played for many years and in truth, as a child I was fairly good.  But as things happen in this life, I ‘saw a squirrel’ and my attention was drawn elsewhere around the time that I started working in restaurants. Not one to sit on… Read more »

I know that I should wait at least a fortnight before writing about soup again, but this is soup season after all.  The leaves are falling at a breakneck pace and the winds come and go, slicing through our coats as though they are razor sharp shards. And then Monday, it was 70 degrees, but… Read more »

One great thing about teaching international cuisine is that I get to scout out of the ethnic markets in our area.  There are not many, that I can assure you. The first time that I walked into an Asian market in my youth (Chinatown, D.C.) I was at a loss for words.  The selection of… Read more »

 Another week has passed us by as we trudge through the murky waters of Autumn.  As the temperature drops, there are only a few more weeks to get in the fresh and vibrant ‘summery’ dishes that remind us of vacations in Mexico or elsewhere in the world. In our American Regional Cuisine class this week,… Read more »

I sit in shock and wonder;  I don’t know what to say.  It hits me that The Beach Boys have been recording for 51 years.  That’s six years longer than I’ve been alive; and the latter is a very long time. I can’t say that I’ve ever been the biggest fans of the Boys, but… Read more »

There are times at which the supporting character makes the entire performance.  Without the complimentary affectation of the little guy, the main attraction oft goes unappreciated and underutilized.  Take Shakespeare’s cons, for example.  Would Hamlet have been anything without the awkward comedic and seemingly despondent relief of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern?  Who were they, anyway? Would… Read more »

We were driving down the road a few weeks ago during a day of shopping and sundry tasks when my daughters started discussing alliteration.  I laughed to myself as they discussed the many facets that comprise both sides of the argument of whether one should employ this literary technique in their writing. Known to alliterate… Read more »

On any other day, I would be happy to write about a heavy breakfast item. But at the moment, I am sitting and wishing I could instead be walking off today’s lunch — a tasty regional spread of crab imperial, crab cakes, barbecued oysters in homemade sauce, steamed clams in brown butter, beer-battered soft shell… Read more »