A busy afternoon at the office. Up to my neck in the crushing deadlines of the high-stakes world of magazine publishing. The telephone rang. Stifling the urge to answer with the Dorothy Parker classic "What fresh hell is this?" I was more than delighted to hear the voice of my dear friend Sharon Franke, Director of Food Appliances in the Good … [Read more...]
BEEF FONDUE BOURGUIGNON
I've always regarded fondue as the most glamorous dish in the whole wide world. Growing up beef fondue, like this recipe for Beef Fondue Bourgignon, was the star of my birthday dinners, the one night a year mom would fire up our two big fondue pots. Rounding out these annual evenings of elegance was the grand finale of … [Read more...]
BRANZINO MARCO POLO
Somewhere along the line everyone agreed on some sweeping generalizations about recipe monikers. If it's "Florentine" expect spinach in there somewhere; "à la Grecque" gets you olive oil, lemon, oregano and probably olives. "Hawaiian" and "Polynesian" are the big yellow warning signs for … [Read more...]
A DAZZLING MUSHROOM CENTERPIECE: THE GLORY OF FUNGI
The New Year's Eve party invite was billed as "A Finger Food Through Down." The crowd would be a collection of serious NYC foodies. Feeling confident I could hold my own in the culinary contributions department, I pondered a way to pull focus from the accomplished competitors. Eureka! Knowing there would be an abundance of … [Read more...]
OUR TOP 10 BEST LIST FOR 2011
1. Best Meal: Our wedding party. After sharing our lives for 29 years, Steve Russell and I married in September. 125 guests (45 of whom were family, pictured) celebrated in Greenwich Village on a sunny Sunday afternoon overlooking downtown and the harbor. Highlights of our spectacular feast included four types of caviar, toasted ravioli, lobster rolls and a four foot long … [Read more...]
OSSO BUCO (SSD #13)
A nicely turned out Osso Buco is about as Simply Spectacularly Delicious (SSD) a recipe as one can have in one's repertoire. By virtue of there being only two sides of the cut of veal that need browning, it's arguable that this is the easiest braised-meat dish around. When you consider the searing and turning and multiple batches required for a … [Read more...]
LAMB SAUTE WITH LEMON (SAUTE D’AGNEAU AU CITRON)
We have the estimable Mapie, Countess de Toulouse-Lautrec, to thank for this inspired tagine-style lamb stew recipe. And thanks go out again to our pals Liz and Al for this gorgeous tagine which they brought back from their honeymoon in Morocco many moons ago. The Countess, born Adélaïde Lévêque de Vilmorin in 1902, was … [Read more...]
PEPPERMINT CREAM (SSD #12)
The good folks at OXO have made my holiday entertaining just a little bit easier by sharing their new hand-held mixer. One for me and one for Andrea at Let Loose Littell who won our little contest. I referenced this peppermint whipped cream recipe in my little chat with Julia Child -- and you'll recall she thought the whole notion splendid. So … [Read more...]
COSTOLETTA DI VITELLO MARSALA: VEAL CHOP MARSALA
A well-prepared Veal Marsala is marvelous thing, with a mushroom-studded sauce delivering a high-wire balancing act of sweet and savory. A Goldilocks concoction that's not too thick, not too thin, but just right so as not to overwhelm the taste of tender veal. Sadly, all too often restaurants both grand and humble serve up … [Read more...]
SUSHI PARTY! AUTHENTIC HOME MADE SUSHI RECIPES FROM TOKYO’S PREMIER SUSHI SCHOOL
Steve and I had the good fortune to live in Tokyo for six months a few years back, where one of the many eye-opening experiences included an abbreviated sushi course at the prestigious professional Sushi Daigaku school. This introduction to the exactingly precise methods of preparing the perfect sushi rice, fish, and tradition-bound assembly … [Read more...]