When a recipe does not turn out as expected, do not pronounce failure, but rename the recipe! Thus a fallen souffle becomes a timbale. As Julia Child said, never apologize for the food you have cooked. Here, an underbaked chocolate cake becomes a warm chocolate cake with a liquid center, a.k.a chocolate molten cake. It’s […]

I love chicken-and-waffle restaurants. They combine the best part of breakfast and dinner: waffles with sweet syrup and salty fried chicken. Who needs bacon with your waffles if you can have crispy fried chicken? Chicken and waffles are a perfect Sunday food — breakfast or dinner or any time of the day. Waffle irons are […]

A difficult question to answer is, “how many does this recipe feed?” All depends, are you feeding football players or little old ladies? Is this dish the only food or part of an extensive buffet? Diners eat wildly different calorie amounts. I can serve what I think is an appropriate serving size, but if you […]

The end of February is traditionally a time of feasting and rich foods leading up to Mardi Gras. Save the diet for Lent and indulge in this delicious and seasonal dessert.  Caramelized Pear Cake 4 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled and diced (about 3 cups) 1 tablespoon sugar 3 large eggs 2 cups sugar 1 1/4 cups […]

We celebrated Valentine’s Day last night at Kitchen Conservatory with a spectacular menu of shrimp, scallops, lamb, and chocolate. Play of the night: one of the students said he bought the class as a Christmas gift for his girlfriend, which was a twofer — he got credit for both Christmas and Valentine’s Day with one gift! […]

Twenty-five years ago, Kitchen Conservatory opened and started offering cooking classes and essential kitchen tools. Here are 25 things about us. 1. We love to cook and we love to eat. We are food-obsessed. 2. Our power breakfast is last night’s dessert. 3. On any given day, we make ice cream. 4. We are our own best […]

Want to impress? Bake a souffle! Here are the secrets to baking souffles. Make a bechamel sauce (white sauce), flavored with onion, salt, pepper, paprika, and freshly-grated nutmeg. Separate the eggs so that there is no trace of egg yolk (or fat) in the egg whites. Make the souffle base first (the sauce can be made ahead of […]

The first time I ate pasta was a revelation; I wanted to eat pasta every day for the rest of my life – it was so satisying. I was so smitten that I bought a pasta machine and learned how to make pasta. The best pasta of all was ravioli. I loved the little surprise of […]

This simple and old-fashioned dessert recipe is easy to make and very satisfying.  Lemon Pudding Cake  3/4 cup sugar 1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest using the microplane grater) 1 cup milk 2 eggs, separated 2 tablespoons flour 1 tablespoon butter 1/4 cup lemon juice  Mix together the butter and sugar until creamy, then add the lemon zest and flour. […]