Paper Palate

Here in Northern California, it is chilly.  Very chilly.  So, I have been on the lookout for some tummy-warming comfort foods to help ease the effects of the cold.  Imagine my surprise when my new Sunset magazine arrived with a lovely picture of chicken pot pie on the front and the bold headline: Comfort Food […]

When I saw the headline “Ahwahnee Behind-the-Scenes” in the Sacramento Bee’s Food section, I knew I was in for a treat.  Have you heard of the Ahwahnee?  It’s an amazing hotel located in California’s Yosemite National Park, on the floor of the Yosemite Valley.  Just thinking of it brings a wistful feeling….and, on a less wistful note, it’s […]

Delicious Living is a monthly magazine many American natural food groceries offer their customers for free.  The magazine, published by New Hope Natural Media, is more than the sum of its advertisers.  It almost always offers several good-for-you and good-tasting recipes.
The December issue focuses on baking a better, or more accurately, a healthier, holiday cookie.  From […]

Bi-monthly magazine Cook’s Country is the bigger, glossier, and down-homier sibling of Cook’s Illustrated. Cook’s Illustrated readers will recognize the style of the equipment and product reviews; these get their own departments, “Equipment Roundup” and “Food Shopping,” respectively. Cook’s readers will also recognize the method of experimenting with and testing dishes until they really shine, […]

I can still be into latkes if I’m Catholic, right?  Even if I wasn’t already intrigued by this traditional Hanukkah dish, I certainly would be after reading Sunset Magazine’s Lots of Latkes article. 
Sunset’s Amy Traverso offers one traditional latke recipes and four unique versions of the crispy potato pancakes.  Traverso recommends serving homemade applesauce alongside […]

This simple recipe was discovered in a back issue of Delicious magazine (January 2005); the vagaries of publishing means this is their Christmas issue.    Originally the recipe was for a gluten free mince pie; being lazy and with no intolerances I just swapped the pastry making section for some ready rolled. Now I can hear you […]

Food and wine is the first section of any wine book that I flick to. Is it going to be perfunctory, clichéd, adding little to the banal generalisations of others? Or will it enlighten, offer a fresh twist and inspire?
Secrets From The Wine Diva has 40 odd pages covering the subject of food and wine. […]

Christmas is less than two weeks away. I have been diligent: two puddings, one cake, several jars of mincemeat and some salt beef are all in the process of being ready for the big day(s). Paradoxically though, I’m still craving the food I ate in the summertime. The warm, grass scented days are refusing to […]

Hello, my name is Madeline and I am addicted to sourdough bread. Living just 90 minutes away from San Francisco means that I can get some amazing sourdough in my regular grocery store. I can also make a quick weekend trip and get some Acme Bread Co. sourdough at the Ferry Building, then […]

The Tools of the Trade section of December’s Bon Appetit features super-sized cooking tools, from chafing dishes and warming trays to a screwpull cork catcher, that promise to make cooking for a crowd slightly less painful.
I suspect more than a few readers aren’t prepared to spend $120 on a De’Longhi Coffeee Urn they’ll use once […]