Paper Palate

I came of cooking age at the height of the convenience casserole era. Almost every recipe my friends and I made involved opening up cans of creamed soup and vegetables, pouring them over meat, spreading processed parmesan cheese over the top, and baking for 45 minutes in a 350-degree oven. Occasionally, I would stumble into […]

Do you love to entertain but don’t have the time or knowledge to roast a chicken? Are you tired of serving the same boring chateaubriand time after time to your dinner guests?
If you answered yes to either of those questions, you may just be ready to start a tasting club. That’s just what […]

There has been an explosion in the use of spices in the United States these days, not least of which is in my own kitchen, thanks in large part to our growing awareness of and interest in the cuisines of other countries. We have been the beneficiaries as groups of immigrants have settled into […]

Summer is in full swing here in Chicago and, much as I am committed to Foodbound, I’m not crazy enough to cook in this heat. So I decided to look for something to test from Ana Sortun’s Spice: Flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean that did not require much cooking.

Muhammara, like many middle eastern […]

Lately, I’ve become obsessed with spices. It might be due to the monthly spice challenge Barbara Fisher started over at Tigers & Strawberries, or it might just be that I’ve become brave enough to venture into cuisines that are outside of my habitual comfort zone.
Whatever the reason, I can’t get enough of them, especially […]

Photo courtesy of www.simonsays.com
There’s an interview with Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, at Truthdig.com that caught my interest. In July of 2002, The New York Times Magazine published an article which reported that a growing number of respected nutritionists were beginning to conclude that carbohydrates, not fats, were the main cause of […]

On February 24, 2003, Bernard Loiseau, chef and owner of La Cote D’or, a three-star restaurant and hotel in Saulieu, France, shot and killed himself, ostensibly over a coming demotion from a 19/20 to a 17/20 rating in the 2003 Gault/Millau Guide, and the fear that he was about to lose his third Michelin star. […]

One of the main signs that summer is just around the corner here in the Midwest is the reappearance of the farmers’ markets. At first the offerings are the slight, leafy greens of spring: spinach, green garlic, asparagus. But over the weeks the bounty changes as the summer fruits and vegetables come […]

Lentils are the unsung heroes of the legume world. They have a rich nutty taste, they cook quickly, and they are versatile. They come in many shapes, sizes and colors. But because they have a tendency to absorb flavors from other foods and spices it is easy to mess them up, in […]

I have a confession to make. I’m obsessed with beans. I have been ever since my mother set that first bowl of doctored Van Camp’s Pork and Beans in front of me. Her method was to take the can of beans, dump it into a saucepan, and throw in some ketchup, Worcestershire […]