Nothing delivers brightness and body faster than Dijon mustard. I learned this at a young age, when a family friend brought my mother a big ceramic jar of the condiment from France. It was so noble looking, it probably would have remained untouched on a pantry shelf for years if it hadn’t been for the […]

Salad in winter is a tricky proposition. Tender, young greenhouse lettuces are all well and good, but we all know that most other salad swear-bys—tomatoes are an obvious example—are disappointing out of season. But more importantly, this type of salad doesn’t suit the heartier, richer food we crave this time of year. A plateful of […]

Fat Tuesday. Mardi Gras. Both terms are far more cheerful and indicative of tomorrow’s excesses than the term “Shrove Tuesday,” from the word shrive, meaning “confess.” The only thing I feel like confessing the day before Ash Wednesday is that I prefer cane syrup or sorghum—something with a little whang to it—to maple syrup on […]

Better than a box of chocolates. That’s what I thought, at any rate, when I found the dried egg fettuccine in the kitchen cupboard. DeCecco smartly packages theirs in a box, which protects the nests of delicate golden noodles from getting crushed in the pantry supplies. Tucked away in the back of the cabinet, this […]

When does collecting become hoarding? At what moment does ripeness slip-slide into decay? Funny, the things that go through my mind while editing the contents of the refrigerator, especially when I get to the designated cheese corner. It’s heaped with rather too many odd-shaped little parcels—our entertaining and general all-around indulgent spree began at Thanksgiving—and […]

Pears are full of intrigue. Because they are usually rock-hard when you buy them, it’s difficult to gauge when they’ll be ready to eat and whether they’ll ultimately reward you with sweet, meltingly tender flesh. It’s no wonder that many shoppers pass them over for apples, which are immediately gratifying. But some things, as we well […]

A visit to any farmers market this time of year will tell you that there are more apple varieties to choose from than ever before. You’ll find crates of rough-skinned heirloom russets plunked down next to more conventionally handsome Gala, Fuji, and Honeycrisp. Which are best for eating out of hand? For baking or applesauce? […]

A great pan gravy is not difficult to make, but attention must be paid, and at the last minute, too. That’s why so many examples of this noble subset of the sauce realm are truly god-awful. I know this for a fact, because I feel compelled to order gravy if I see it on a […]

Many people believe that the Thanksgiving bird is merely the means to an end: gravy. I don’t count myself among them—I enjoy the flavor of roast turkey, both white meat and dark—but there’s no arguing about the fact that you can never ever have too much rich, velvety gravy. It gives the entire meal a […]

When I was a child, no one I knew cooked pasta (what we called noodles) with tomato sauce at home. In our part of the South, that sort of food was considered not just ethnic, but positively exotic, enjoyed as a special treat at the lone Italian restaurant in town. So although a college roommate introduced […]