bay leaf

Molokhia (Egyptian-style)

Molokhia ( ملوخية), also known as Jute, or Jews Mallow is the name of both a plant and a dish. It has medium sized saw-toothed leaves that come to a point at the tip and have small tendrils at the base of each leaf. Nutritionally, it has three times the calcium and phospherous as Kale, [...]

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New England Clam Chowder

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In a world where most clam chowders would be more aptly named “clam flavored potato soup”, finding a morsel of clam is like winning a Toyota Camry. It’s a feeling of elation that’s quickly tamped down by the realization that the rubbery clam is bland and tasteless. That’s not a problem you’ll have in my [...]

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Coq au Vin

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Cooking inspiration comes in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes a stroll through a verdant farmers market on a warm spring day sets the gears of creativity in motion. Other times, it’s a six pound bag of Costco chicken, a half-full bottle of Côtes du Rhône, and some odds-and-ends lurking in the dark recesses of my [...]

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Chipotle Chicken Chili

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As a kid, when I heard the word “chili” it brought up images of brown chunky mush that looked (and smelled) like something you would feed a furry four legged companion. Between the gas inducing kidney bean “chili” that came out of the kitchen at home and the cans of Hormel that friends would warm [...]

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Pork Sugo with Strozzapreti

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Fall is one of my favorite seasons. The golden sunsets cast long shadows, vermillion leaves scurry around in circles carried by the brisk autumn breeze, and in the kitchen, it’s the season of slow-cooked melt-in-your-mouth roasts and home warming braises. Perhaps it’s driven by some primal nesting instinct, but as the thermostat falls, I yearn [...]

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Spaghetti and Meatballs

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With the mercury falling faster than the stock market, I decided to bridge the gap between summer salad and winter braise using the last batch of tomatoes ripened under the waning summer sun to make spaghetti and meatballs. As usual when I’m making an old favorite, I went searching through my archives to see how [...]

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