With the exception of my work, I am not what you might call a process person. I don’t make jam, pasta or bread, the last layer cake I assembled looked demented, and I will never, ever get around to organizing the wedding photos. Which is why the sudden desire to grind meat for burgers at […]

My mother, an all-around sportswoman, loved to fish, and she didn’t mind scaling and gutting her catch. She was, however, less enthusiastic about cooking it. Uncomplicated was the name of the game. Both my parents felt that the mild fish they preferred—flounder, drum, sheepshead—was so pristine it didn’t need much fooling with, although things changed […]

Temperatures are creeping up, but March in the Northeast is still heavy going. And even though there is beautiful asparagus available at my local supermarket, it’s surrounded by bluff, hearty winter squash, rutabagas, and chard, and, consequently, it looks a little embarrassed to be at the same party. I walk past the showy spears without […]

I love my wok. I really love it. I’ve just never actually used it. Until today, it resided, still in its box, in the hall closet. Sam and I would roll in, stuffed, happy, and inspired after a visit to Chinatown. “We really need to season that wok,” one of us would say. “Is it […]

I came to a screeching halt in front of the seafood counter. The fishmonger at my local Whole Foods carefully tipped out the last of his ravishingly pink treasure behind the sign that said “Native Maine shrimp. $3.99/pound” and stood back to admire his handiwork. Our conversation—equal parts, “They’ll all be gone by 2 o’clock […]

I’m pigged out, which is not the same as pigging out. I’m bored with beef. I do not want to see any more turkey for a while, although a fragrant bowl of homemade turkey stock, thick with orzo or tiny pasta stars, does not count. A juicy roast chicken will always have its place, but still. […]

I stared at my haul in consternation. Yesterday evening, when the predicted snowstorm pulled into town right on schedule, I made a provision run and scored two splendid lamb shanks (a long slow braise is just the thing for a snow day), along with a few other goodies. But what I had completely forgotten about […]

I don’t think I’ve ever met a condiment I didn’t like. I love to get them as presents under the Christmas tree—I feel like a world traveler without getting out of my pajamas—and I love giving them—Branston pickle to a homesick Englishman, a big beautiful jar of preserved lemons or mostarda as a hostess gift, Ocracoke […]