Fruit

Spiced Persimmon Tea Cake: Perfect for a Blustery Morning in SoCal

Spiced Persimmon Tea Cake: Perfect for a Blustery Morning in SoCal

Here I sit on a blustery December day in Southern California enjoying a hot cup of my favorite Darjeeling tea and a slice of this spice cake. Sweet Juliet is curled up at my feet enjoying a quiet nap. Mmmm. Life is good. I think…

Ole! Cranberry Sauce with Chiles

Ole! Cranberry Sauce with Chiles

  ‘Tis the season. You can’t have Thanksgiving (or Friendsgiving–what a great idea!) without cranberry sauce and this cranberry sauce recipe is a stunner with a bit of a southwestern kick–chiles. Cranberries are, of course,  a part of America’s history. Reportedly, cranberries were served at…

For the love of plums…

For the love of plums…

For the love of plums… I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox and which you were probably saving for breakfast Forgive me they were delicious so sweet and so cold –“This is just to say” by William Carlos Williams William Carlos Williams…

Blueberry, Lemon and Almond Cake

Blueberry, Lemon and Almond Cake

Yotam Ottolenghi. <sigh> This Ottolenghi recipe was featured recently on the NY Times food site and it is wonderful. The crumb is light and the almond flour gives this little cake a delightful texture. This cake is so good, in fact, that it is almost…

Apricot Tart

Apricot Tart

  Wow!  Just wow! What do you get when you combine a shortbread crust, a frangipani custard base and beautiful just-in-season apricots from the farmers’ market?  This tender and absolutely stunning tart! Take my advice and eat this tart just warm from the oven when the warm apricots…

Day-O! and Banana Cake

    Join Juliet and me as we conga around the kitchen island singing Harry Belafonte’s Banana Boat Song . Got you in the mood for a banana recipe? The way I figure it, everyone needs a few good banana recipes. Bananas are a health food, after…

Strawberry Mascarpone Tart

Do the words five ingredients and gourmet dessert go together? Throw in the word fast and you have this gorgeous strawberry tart. Your guests will rave (in a good way). You may be unfamiliar with mascarpone cheese, the main ingredient in this tart. Mascarpone is a mild-flavored…

Banana Upside Down Cake

  I have a parrot, actually an umbrella cockatoo, named Moti. Moti is twenty-seven years old and quite the diva, especially about her food. In Moti’s world there is no sunshine if she doesn’t find a half a banana in her food dish each morning. Moti…

Crepes with Raspberry-Cassis Sauce

  I’m having a bit of a pity party about being alone on New Year’s Eve, so I decided to cook today. Several days ago I discovered this Martha Rose Shulman recipe on the New York Times site. One of my indulgences in life is…

A Twist on Cranberry Sauce

A Twist on Cranberry Sauce

    A good cranberry sauce recipe is kind of like the perfect little black dress. It is a must for Thanksgiving gatherings and it usually should be understated. This recipe is a little black dress with an edge. It is a fresh cranberry salsa…