The Manhattan

The classic, elegant Manhattan is one of the first cocktails I ever learned to drink. It seemed like such a grown up, classy thing to sip on while sitting in some dark, oak paneled New York bar. So the young me thought it was fun while the...um...older me now appreciates the taste.

Roasted Potato and Bacon Caesar Salad

I love Caesar salad and you probably do, too. I've rarely met anyone who doesn't. But let's be honest and say that there's not much to it. Yes it has delicious garlicky toasted croutons but mostly it's a delivery vehicle for Caesar dressing. That's what we really love, isn't it?

Life in the Big City - Spring in My New York

Lately I've had several out of town friends plan visits to New York and, of course, want to know where to go and what to see. In a city like this, there's no short answer to that question because you could plan dozens of trips and never see the same things twice. And I appreciate that tourists do what tourists do, just as I do when I'm a tourist in another state or country. Still, it hurts my heart to think that anybody's view of my lovely city goes no further than Times Square and the Naked Cowboy.

Curried Chickpea and Hummus Sandwich

Happy National Hummus Day! Yes, there is such a thing and well there should be because I love hummus. My parents lived in Israel for a few years and they brought back a life-long love of Middle Eastern cuisine. So I grew up with tahini, falafel and massive doses of hummus. And as an adult on my own nothing's changed. My fridge looks a whole lot like theirs did, complete with many tubs of Sabra hummus.

Pasta Primavera Salad

Tick tock...we're counting down to Memorial Day weekend. Patriotic festivities, the start of long summer weekends and for many, the first BBQ party of the season. What's not to love? Well, sometimes what's not to love is the same old collection of mayo laden side salads. Sure, I make them, too, and there's a favorite macaroni salad that's been making the rounds for I don't know how many summers. Time for a change, maybe? Don't like change? OK, how about just an addition.

Mustard Roasted Cauliflower

I'm not sure how much cauliflower I eat in a given year but it would not surprise me at all to find out I'm personally subsidizing some nice cauliflower grower out there. Hey, if you're that farmer, it would be so much easier to bypass the grocery store altogether and just back that truck up to my house. It's my favorite vegetable.

Watermelon and Herbed Feta Cheese Salad

Sweet, juicy, ripe, beautiful watermelon...I've been waiting for you. And just in time for Memorial Day weekend. That is the official start of summer entertaining as far as I'm concerned and whomever decided summer doesn't really start until June 21st needs to rethink that.

Pretzel Crumb Caramel Banana Cream Pudding

Can we take a moment to consider all the ingredients in this jar? Crumb topping made with pretzels for that sweet and salty bite, banana pudding made with thick double cream and homemade caramel sauce dripping down over it all. Forget heavenly dessert - this is the dessert served in heaven. I dipped in my spoon to take a taste and when I came out of my trance the whole jar was gone. And I can't even blame the dog because she doesn't like bananas.

Cheesy Ramp Biscuits

I am one of those ramp obsessed New Yorkers who flock to the farmer's market in spring when the first crop of ramps appear. I buy a ton of them and put them in virtually everything I cook. And yet I realized that I haven't shared a single one of those recipes with you and it's because I was too busy eating and savoring to photograph and write. And by the time I finally came out of my hypnotic ramp state last year, they were almost gone. Maybe it's because their season is so short that we're so obsessed. But I'm getting an earlier start this year.

Lemon Drop Daiquiri

Warmer weather makes me crave lots of citrus in my food and, of course, in my drinks as well. I've been making good use of the big bowl of lemons sitting on my counter and I definitely wanted them to shine through in my cocktail. A lemon drop was the logical choice.

Beet and Chickpea Burgers with Feta and Tahini

Let me describe the state of my kitchen the day I decided to experiment with beet burger recipes. A big bowl of chopped beets, a row of bowls filled with black beans, white beans and chickpeas. Another row of bottles from where I'd basically emptied out my spice cabinet. I had curry powder, smoked paprika, cumin, dried oregano and garlic powder. Representing the fresh herbs from my fridge were scallions, chives and parsley. And finally I had spoons and bowls for mixing various combinations because these were going to be the best beet burgers I could make.

The Month in Review - April 2015 (and a Little Horn Blowing)

April might be gone but it was thoroughly enjoyed. Sunshine, comfortably warm temperatures, blooming trees and a riot of spring flowers.April in New York is an absolute delight. It's also when May issues of magazines typically hit the newsstands. You all don't mind if I do a little tooting of my own horn, do you? Because one of those magazines featured me! Yes, an actual, glossy, printed, buy it at the newsstand magazine has me in it. It has a bunch of other great stuff too, of course, so you definitely want to buy a copy. Assuming there are any still left because I might have bought just a few extra for myself.

Pear Margarita

It's getting to be that time again when my mind turns to thoughts of margaritas. OK, that usually happens every Friday or whenever my best friend and I happen to head out to our favorite Mexican restaurant. I'll spare you the details of how many years we've been haunting that place. But what I'm talking about today is Cinco de Mayo.

Spring Pea Soup

When I was wandering around the produce section of the market, looking for dinner inspiration, I wasn't really expecting to make soup. Not that I'm opposed to it almost year round but my mind was looking for spring food inspiration. And there they were - spring peas. And fresh chives and even pea tendrils. And I started to think about a light, simple but flavorful soup.

Walnut Cake

As much as I might ooh and aah over some beautifully decorated and artfully frosted cakes, the fact is that I usually prefer something more simple. Give me a crumb cake and make sure there's a thick layer of it, a good coffee cake dusted with powdered sugar or a simple almond pastry and please have a pot of tea ready as well.

Blueberry Cheesecake Martini

For most of my life I was obsessed with strawberry cheesecake. That is, a standard New York style cheesecake with a layer of strawberries on top, usually glazed with some kind of syrup. Steakhouses are the best places to find perfect examples of this classic and it's what I always ordered. Until a few years ago when we had dinner at Sojourn and tasted their blueberry ricotta cheesecake. And my fantasy cheesecake repertoire suddenly grew.

Cast Iron Loaded Deep Dish Pizza

I'm a lazy pizza maker. There, I've said it. Living in New York, it's easy enough to satisfy a pizza craving by simply walking two blocks in any direction of my apartment but I don't so much care for those thin pizza parlor slices. OK, I may have just jeopardized my right to live here but I've said that now, too. There are several excellent options for pre-made artisan dough around here and I tend to keep balls of it in my freezer. Are you sort of thinking of forgiving me? But I tend to dump whatever form of tomato sauce I have in the house, some pre-shredded cheese and slices of pepperoni on it, put the whole thing on a sheet pan and shove it in the oven. Wait! Come back here. I can do better, I promise.

New York Frito Pie

I grew up in Manhattan. We had Frito's but no Frito pie. We also had no Walmart or Target or any supermarket larger than a standard studio apartment because real estate is way too expensive around here. It was a deprived existence. OK, not really. New York is an amazing place to grow up but we still had no Frito pie. Thanks to some of the wonderful southern foodies I've met through blogging though, I have been introduced to this creation and it sounded wonderful.

Mango Mint Sparkler

The mangoes are back! Just like the tulips beginning to pop up all over the city, fresh yellow mangoes are another sure sign of spring. I stopped by the fruit cart for my daily dose of bananas and a bunch of sweet grapes and there was a big bin of mangoes. Oh, yes, I'll take a few of those too, please.

Southwestern Egg and Sausage Cornbread Bake

It all started when I had a huge craving for cornbread. I do love it but it's not something I think about that often so this sudden urge was unexpected. Nevertheless, I have an easy recipe and all the ingredients in the house pretty much all the time so cornbread got made. I buttered a slice and ate it with a bowl of soup for lunch. So good. But then I wanted more for dinner.

Lemon and Thyme Sweet Cornmeal Loaf

I keep a notebook full of recipe ideas and every week I look through to see what I feel like experimenting with. Some recipes keep getting moved to the bottom of the pile for one reason or another, sometimes because they're a bit complex. This one, however, stayed in the pile way too long for such a simple recipe. And now that I've made it, I can say it will be making repeat appearances.

Cucumber Mint Martini

The first time I ever heard about cucumber cocktails I had to stop and think about it. I love cucumbers without a doubt but, in a drink? As I let the thought absorb, though, it made as much sense as olives in a martini or celery and tomatoes in a bloody Mary. OK, I accepted it and then obviously had to try it.

Chili Mac

Today I'm going to tell you how to take a simple, one pot recipe and make it more complicated. No, I'm not kidding but I can totally explain. It's only going to get a little bit more complicated but it's going to get a whole lot more good. And the ratio of complication to goodness makes it very worth it.

Chocolate Chip Crumb Cake

I was looking back through my recipes this weekend and realized that I had not shared a crumb cake dessert with you since the beginning of December. Clearly this is a huge oversight on my crumb cake loving part because I sincerely believe in crumb topping all the things! I also strongly believe in chocolate so the two were bound to come together sooner or later.

Flirty Martini

When I was out walking Hadley yesterday I looked at some of the empty street planters that are all over the upper east side of the city. Around the holiday season they're filled with evergreen shrubs and tree cuttings but since January they've just been bare and frequently filled with snow. But they weren't bare yesterday. When I looked closely I spotted some tiny buds just beginning to poke out of the earth. And I know what they'll become very soon - tulips! A riot of tulip colors all over the city shouting welcome spring. I think this calls for a cocktail.

Spaghetti with Garlic Herb Breadcrumbs (Pangrattato)

If you follow me on Instagram then you probably saw that I attended a PR event the other night for the National Peanut Board. It was fun and I met some cool peanut farmers and drank a peanut cocktail (yes, I do plan to recreate that, as a matter of fact) and stuffed my face with the best chocolate and peanut butter cups ever! And then I got home at nearly 8:00 pm and there was nothing for dinner...again.

The Month in Review - March 2015

Goodbye cold, snowy March. I won't miss you. Well, OK, maybe a little. I'll miss the explosion of fresh citrus in the market. And I'll miss the kind of devoted kitchen time that comes from inclement weather. Warmth and sunshine will make me want to be out and about. No worries, though, because I have lots of spring and summer recipe ideas to try out. But before we kick winter out of here for good this year, let's take a look back at the delicious results of my extra kitchen time. Enjoy!

Middle Eastern Inspired Meatless Burger

Excuse me but how did it get to be nearly 7:00 pm and I'm still at my desk? Oh, yeah, it's all that lovely extra light that happens after DST in early spring. And I'm not complaining for a second because I love it. But I should probably be more mindful of the clock so that I don't finally come up for air, starving and realizing I have not prepped anything for dinner.

Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Lava Cakes

Do you know what day it is today? It's Chocolate Peanut Butter Day! Actually, it's the second annual Chocolate Peanut Butter Day. It seems like there are random food holidays every day of the year but somehow the combo of chocolate and PB is not officially recognized. Fortunately, several of my food blogging friends and I are rectifying that mistake because this is certainly a combination that needs celebrating. Carla from Chocolate Moosey and Miriam from Overtime Cook are hosting our little online gathering and you can see all the other delicious creations from my fellow bloggers at the bottom of this post.

Passover Chocolate Chip Mandel Bread (Jewish Biscotti Cookies)

Mandel bread or mandlebrot (the word mandel is Yiddish for nut or almond) is a traditional Eastern European Jewish delicacy. Baked as a loaf and then sliced, the texture is slightly softer than Italian biscotti (which I love) but there are certainly similarities. Although my parents are Eastern European, sadly my mother's baking repertoire did not include these cookies. The only ones I'd ever tasted were the packaged ones from the store and I'd just as soon pass on those, thankyouverymuch.

Grape-tini

It has stopped snowing in New York, at long last. And it's warmer. Not warm, exactly, but with the hope of warmth in the near future. And with that, the fruit man has returned. Carts filled with all types of fresh fruit can be found every few blocks in Manhattan and I love them. I've missed the fruit man.

Cheesy Potato and Parsnip Kugel

Growing up in a Jewish household, kugel was a holiday staple. It's basically a casserole style dish that can be made with either noodles (typically sweet) or potatoes (typically savory). Because of the no-flour restriction of Passover, noodle kugel usually appeared at Rosh Hashanah but, to tell the truth, I'd be just as happy if it never appeared at all. Potato kugel, on the other hand, was always welcome.

One Pot Mexican Style Quinoa

I was spending a rainy weekend at home but with plenty of paperwork and computer work to do. So, a rainy, working weekend at home. No lazing around watching movies and cooking a Sunday roast with all the fixings, sadly enough. So I took a stroll through my fridge and pantry and was thinking along the lines of a rice and beans dish with some extra veggies thrown in.

Honey Grapefruit Bourbon Smash

A few years ago we had dinner at the lovely Water Club on the river. While we were waiting in the bar for our friends to arrive the bartender offered to make us a special cocktail. As a general rule, we never turn down an offer to sample what the bartender thinks is good but sadly, this time we were disappointed. He made us a honey and lemon drink that, frankly, tasted like a cough drop, and it put me off the idea of using honey in drinks. But enough time has passed so that I've gotten over that medicinal taste and decided to see if I can do better.

Spinach Colcannon Bake

Traditional Irish colcannon is a dish of buttery potatoes mixed with sauteed buttery cabbage. So, Irish buttery comfort food. This? Well, this is not exactly that but it's still buttery and comforting and a tasty twist. I've seen colcannon made with kale or even spinach instead of the cabbage but I took it a step or two further from tradition but no further from delicious.

The Million Dollar Everything Bagel Potato Chip Idea

Let's talk about favorite flavors today. Do you love seeing "experimental" flavors from your favorite brands? Do you love trying the new ones and are you sad if you loved it and never saw it again? Or do you sometimes stare at the new flavors and wonder whose weird idea was that? If you answered yes then we so need to talk because I'm giving you a chance to weigh in on all this!

Blood Orange Mint Gimlet

Oh, look, it's snowing again. For the bazzilionth time this winter. Shocking, I know. I'm trying hard to be positive and see the bright side. I'm cozy and dry at home. I have food in the fridge and a blissfully well stocked liquor cabinet. I have a sweet furry dog to keep me extra warm. But the house-bound, stir-crazy thing is making it hard to see the glass as half full. So I'm going to fill it with a little spring.

Creamy Chicken Stew

Know what makes a food blogger happy? New pots and pans. OK, and kitchen appliances and new dishes and cooking gadgets. But for sheer ooing and aahing, nothing beats a shiny new pan. The only problem comes when we're hesitant to use it because it's too pretty and we don't want to mess it up. This new beauty from OXO sat on my table, being admired, for longer than I care to admit.

The Month in Review - February 2015

Snow...snow...snow...groundhog emerges, says "eek, snow" and runs back into his burrow...snow. Pause for chocolatey love celebrations. Snow...snow...snow...oh, look at all this lovely citrus in the markets now...snow...snow...snow. That was my February. How was yours? I guess the only upside (and I'm struggling to find one, believe me) is that I got to spend a lot of time in my kitchen. So, it was a freezing cold, overly snowy and generally unacceptable February but with lots of delicious food.  Let's take a quick look back at all the recipes before we climb back under the covers and pray for spring. Did I mention it's snowing this morning?

Banana Bread Doughnuts with Banana Glaze

One sad, lonely, over-ripe banana. One baked doughnut pan. And a sweet tooth. That's how this all started. Normally, if I have sad bananas, I think about banana bread but this time I had just one. Not enough for a well flavored bread. But, it was just right for a small batch of baked doughnuts.

Vegetable Frittata with Pasta Chip Crust

Today I have the pleasure of introducing you to my newest snack obsession, Pasta Chips. I'll admit that I couldn't wait to taste every flavor and then I mostly just wanted to munch away while watching a great movie. But what makes these special is that each variety is its own little flavor bomb and really deserves to be used in some way other than just shoved into my mouth in record speed. So, I think the only practical solution is that, from now on, I just buy two bags of each!

Marinated Greek Yogurt Cheese Balls (Labneh)

I'll be the first to admit that I'm completely obsessed with Greek yogurt. If I don't have my daily serving, I get a little cranky. If my supermarket runs out of my favorite brand, I will go to another market to find it. I need my fix! But apart from my daily treat, I love using it as an ingredient in dips, dressings and even cakes and quick breads. But my number one passion these days is turning it into cheese.

Pasta with Cauliflower Ragu

A few years ago I was attending a business dinner at a fine Italian restaurant and saw cauliflower ragu on the menu. I'd never heard of it before and, I admit, it sounded a bit odd. But, given my lifelong fondness for cauliflower, it was a sure bet I'd order it. And I promptly fell in love.

Thirsty Thursdays: Salted Caramel Triple Threat Chocolate Martini

Salted Caramel Triple Threat Chocolate Martini

Check out today's post on A Cocktail Life for this boozy dessert in a glass!

Cherry Cheesecake Skillet Brownies

Let's say that you're in the mood for an ooey gooey chocolatey dessert. OK, that would be pretty much every day. But let's say that you also wanted to make something pretty simple and no fuss. And a little special, but still no fuss. And maybe even a little romantic? These skillet brownies are so what you're looking for!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Tarts for Two

It's getting to be that time, isn't it? Heart shaped boxes of chocolates for sale everywhere. Cards and bouquets of flowers and restaurant reservations to be gotten. Hmm. I'm all for the chocolates and cards and flowers but being packed into crowded restaurants on Valentine's Day is actually not big on my list. I much prefer a romantic dinner at home. And this is definitely the time to splurge on a good dessert.

Thirsty Thursdays: Pink Greyhound

Pink Greyhound

Check out today's post on A Cocktail Life for this simple and refreshing variation on a classic!

Tamale Pie

After a long busy day, when I get hungry and realize it's already dinner time but I'm still at my desk, want to know what makes me happy? Remembering that I have dinner all ready in the fridge and it just needs a quick re-heating. Really happy.