Gloucestershire Village with Characteristic Cotswold Stone Architecture
When I was still “commuting” to England in my job as a scientist, a friend living in Gloucestershire introduced me to a fabulous opportunity. They knew someone who owned a local restaurant who was looking for an extra pair of hands to fill in for a missing-in-action cook. Would I be interested?
Either the restaurant owner was desperate or my friend over sold my skills, but they were eager to have me. Continue reading
Lime-Cumin Chicken Salad in Square Won Tons
There are certain flavor combinations that I find magical.
Sometimes these are flavors that take each other up a notch when combined in sequence – like Roquefort with a good Cabernet Sauvignon. Both the cheese and the wine are excellent alone; yet, when you pair them in the right proportions by eating them sequentially, each one enhances the other. Continue reading
Grotto Hill in Hawkstone Park
On a trip to England this spring, I caught up with my golfing friends at their annual “away” outing. This year the golf was set in Shropshire’s historic Hawkstone Park. The Park boasts the usual English history complete with lords, barons, castles, gory battles and executions. In this case, it also has fascinating geography. Continue reading
Mocha Devil’s Food Cake with Oh-so-easy Ganache
Regular readers may be wondering why, until now, I didn’t have ANY desserts posted.
No, I don’t hate sweets. I love a good creamy bowl of ice cream, a fluffy cake, a nice soufflé or a crisp cookie. But I do have one hang-up with making desserts. I can’t resist turning them into extended science projects. Continue reading
Lake Kabekona, Minnesota – My Favorite Minnesota Lake
I’m in Minnesota (MN), U.S., this week. If you’ve never been here, it is a beautiful place — referred to as the “Land of 10,000 Lakes”. In fact, MN has many aquatic natural wonders. Continue reading
“Cabbage Bowl” and Vegetables Ready for Dressing and Service
When our son Alex, who lives in New York City, asked for help with his upcoming “house-warming” party, I was delighted.
ME: Would you like me to fly out and help? The party sounds like fun!
ALEX: Well, I hate to trouble you. If you could just send me some ideas, that would be nice. I was especially interested in the recipe for those Asian rolls.
ME: Oh, I’m shocked. You don’t want your parents to attend your first big party?? 🙂
Needless to say, the end result was not a trip to New York – Continue reading
Billboard Outside the Royal Opera House (Covent Garden)
Jamie Oliver may be English born and raised, but he knows Italian. Jamie’s Italian Covent Garden, one of his three London restaurants and one of his many Italian establishments, is a hop-skip away from London’s Royal Opera House (AKA Covent Garden). Continue reading
Villa Entrance
Tuscany, as most everyone knows, is a magical and unspoiled place. Although many areas can be crowded with tourists, with just a bit of effort, one can still find beautiful slices of traditional Tuscan life. When asked by friends to join them in a stay at one such unspoiled gem, we agreed without hesitation. They had found a villa to rent at a family-run winery in the Chianti Classico region of the Black Rooster (Gallo Nero) between Sienna and Florence. The villa’s resident caretaker, Marianne, would provide home-cooked traditional Italian meals for us on selected evenings. How could we possibly resist? Continue reading
Traveling throughout the United Kingdom, I struggle to understand how such a densely populated country can have so much green space and agricultural land. The population density of the United Kingdom is a staggering 650 people per square mile — compared to 84 people per square mile in the United States. One of the ways they achieve this “greenness” is by densely packing the cities, villages and hamlets (a village without a church) — leaving large expanses of green space for agricultural use.
Outskirts of Inkberrow Village
I retired as a scientist at age 50 to pursue my culinary passion and culinary school. This meant, of course, that my fellow culinary students were younger than my children — as were many of the faculty. Yet, it all came together. The older students looked to the culinary juniors for energy and encouragement. The younger set looked to the few “oldsters” for a bit of academic counsel and faculty-management strategy. Continue reading
A GLOBAL GARNISH 