Trapanese Pesto is quick and easy to make in your food processor. It requires no cooking, making it the perfect summer sauce or topping. It is vegetarian; if you omit the cheese, it can be vegan. I use this pesto three ways. It can be a sauce on pasta, a bruschetta topping, or a dip with crackers, pita, or bagel chips. Trapanese Pesto (Tomato & Almond Pesto) * Prep time 15 minutes Ingredients 1/2 cup roasted Marcona Almonds, unsalted 2 Garlic cloves, puréed or finely minced 1 (14 ounces) can Whole San Marzano Plum Tomatoes*, roughly chopped 1/2 cup Sun-Dried…
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My love for noodle kugel comes from many a dinner with our Jewish friends when Gary and I lived in Chicago. Although I am not a believer in organized religion, I have always had an affinity for one of the Jewish holiday traditions – Passover Seder. The story told at dinner so resonates with me. Fast forward to my Ancestry DNA test, and I learned that I have almost 30% Eastern European Jewish DNA. I know what? How can Jewish be in DNA when it is a religion and a culture? Well, I wondered that myself. And this is what…
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Our friend Shawn started making this pizza in June. He has made it at least three times since. How do I know? I check his Instagram. So on a Zoom call with a few friends a couple of weeks ago, we all decided to make this pizza on the same day and enjoy it together on our next Zoom in two weeks. That was last Thursday. It was such a fun way to Zoom with friends. If you are on social media, I can’t imagine that you have not seen this recipe. But just in case here it is. That…
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Cinco de Mayo came and went this year. It was nothing like last year when we celebrated Cinco de Derby with the fun fascinators and muy mucho margaritas, but it was still fun. This year, I made my now famous (according to my family) Slow Cooker Barbacoa. Dang, it is really delicious. So I am going to promise myself now. Barbacoa is not just for Cinco de Mayo anymore. But First More Funnies because we still need to laugh This past week Charleston and South Carolina loosened shelter in place restrictions, but it is still a ghost town in most…
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Perhaps it is my age, or maybe it is my history. But I love dining at traditional, old-school Italian restaurants where the recipes are passed down through the generations. These restaurants are focused on the quality of food, not cutting-edge presentations, glitz, or glamour, just the food. I remember the first time I went to one of these restaurants. I was sixteen, and my grandmother took me there for dinner after I passed my driver’s test and got my license. That was at Ann & Tony’s in West Jefferson, Ohio. Dining out was a big deal as a kid in…
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Several weeks back I read this recipe on Pineapple House Rules, a Texas-based “mom blog” I follow because of Lilly’s recipes. This particular recipe made me think about the street vendors in the Hispanic neighborhood in Chicago where we used to live. They served the corn “on the cob” with the husk still attached as the handle, slathered in mayonnaise, spices, and cheese with a wedge of lime. Since my mayonnaise usage is selective, the idea of slathering it on fresh sweet corn seemed over the top and too sweet. All I could think was, why would they do that. Now decades later…
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Le Farfalle has been open for 18 months, and I had yet to give it a try. Honestly, new restaurants are opening in Charleston almost every month throughout the year. Some make it, and some don’t because this is a food town and “good” is just not good enough to make it. Le Farfalle came to Charleston with great fanfare, but as we all know hype is not always deserved. So, I usually let a new place get its legs and will wait for the “grand opening crowds” to die out. I will read a few reviews, and listen to…
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Last Saturday, it was my turn to host a group of friends who gather to drink wine and have dinner at each other’s home. I bumped up attendance by adding my two sisters and Bryan & Craig, so instead of the usual six, we had ten. With wine school that morning I knew that my time was going to be restricted, so I needed to make a one-pan dinner and lasagna is always a great dish to serve. My sisters also volunteered to assist. One did appetizers, and the other did dessert. Whew, that saved me a tremendous amount of time.…
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