Certain food combinations are much more than the sum of their parts: tomatoes and basil; bacon and eggs; chocolate and raspberries. To this list, I must add goat cheese and honey. Just drizzling honey on goat cheese and eating on a cracker is a sensory delight. Inspired by this taste, I created this dessert to showcase goat […]

Strawberries have arrived, which means it is time to make strawberry jam (followed by all the other fruits of summer: cherry, peach, gooseberry, and any other ripe fruit). Time for a jam session! Homemade fruit jam is simple to make: equal parts fruit and sugar plus one package of pectin for every 4 cups of chopped fruit. Place the […]

Phyllo dough seems so simple: buy a box from the freezer case, defrost, brush with butter, and wrap around a filling. But the result tastes like paper, so is homemade phyllo dough worth the effort? Maria Sakellariou, who teaches Greek food classes for Kitchen Conservatory (next one is “Greek Goddess” on June 12), graciously taught […]

Bakeries and pastry shops in Paris have a running competition on croissants: is it bread or pastry? Boulangeries sell yeasty doughy croissants and patisseries sell flaky buttery croissants. The first step to eating a delicious croissant in Paris is to go to a patisserie, not a bread shop. So I have always thought that pizza is firmly in the […]

Parties are just more fun when they have a theme. I love duck, so why not an all-duck dinner? Great, except no one wants duck liver ice cream, so I served a mousse (not a goose or a moose) for dessert. I bought seven ducks, saved the livers, cut out the leg quarters for duck […]

After the Day in the Kitchen: Fish cooking class, the participants said their most favorite dish was fish tacos. After the four-part Culinary Skills class, the participants said that their most favorite dish was fish tacos. At a recent Iron Chef competition, the chef who made fish tacos was the winner. Fish tacos are a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, […]

My father always told me that the surest way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. But I have found that not any food works; there are some controversial foods that do not bring the desired outcome. But this particular dish is sure to result in satisfaction – for all parties involved. Chicken-Leek Pot Pie (Cock-a-Leekie) […]

Our bees are angry and frustrated. The spring has been cool and wet, which has kept the bees inside their hives. What do you do when you are cooped up? Have sex. Yes, bees do do it. The bees have rapidly multiplied, which is good — except the crowd of bees produced multiple queens. The […]

When a food tastes really delicious, don’t just serve a little bit. Go all the way! Don’t just cook a couple of morel mushrooms; cook enough to satisfy demand! The morel hunting season has begun and there are plenty available. Pictured here are three pounds of morels right before we cooked them. The best way […]

Need inspiration for an Easter dessert? Chocolate Strawberry Millefeuille. Buy Dufour all-butter puff pastry at Kitchen Conservatory and bake until crispy. Cut into squares. Sandwich the pastry with chocolate pastry cream and fresh strawberries and garnish with whipped cream and caramel sauce. Make the sauces ahead of time and assemble at dessert time. Millefeuille, which means […]