(Original Post Date:  July 26, 2010) Now that summer is finally here, I can finally find the perfect tomatoes… home-grown, vine-ripened orbs of perfect sweetness.  No zombie tomatoes here!  What a difference in taste it makes to have real tomatoes to add to recipes.  (I have to hold myself back from eating these whole tomatoes [...]

(Original Post Date:  July 19, 2010) Recently, my in-laws were visiting from overseas – and one of the things they love (apparently) is fruit.  They bought tons and tons of fruit – papayas, apples, bananas… and after dropping them off at LAX for their return flight, we came home to the fragrance of brown spotted [...]

(Original Post Date:  July 13, 2010) Last week, I posted my Rustic Blueberry Tart recipe… which was inspired by rock bottom blueberry prices at the local market. If you find yourself with a surplus of blueberries, you might also try these blueberry muffins.  There are perfect for breakfast, warm – right out of the oven.  Use [...]

(Original Post Date:  July 8, 2010) Last week, I was tempted by a sign at the local market advertising blueberries for $1/box.  After purchasing a few, I thought, this might be a good time to make blueberry recipes.  Next time, I’ll post the fabulous blueberry muffins that I made for breakfast a few days ago. [...]

(Original Post Date:  June 28, 2010) Last year, I bought several herb plants (rosemary, mint, sage, thyme, tarragon, cilantro, and basil), and grew a little herb garden on the patio.  Several of the plants have now gotten a little too big for their planters, and a little re-potting and selective pruning was necessary.  After all [...]

(Original Post Date:  June 25, 2010) After grad school, I lived near Hollywood, in the area of Los Angeles know as Los Feliz.  My apartment was about 2 blocks from the William Mulholland fountain, walking distance from the Griffith Observatory and the Los Angeles Zoo, and just about a mile from Thai Town.  I got used to being able [...]

(Original Post Date:  June 22, 2010) So as a follow up to my recipe on Peach Jam, here’s another favorite peach recipe.  This pie goes really nicely with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream. Peach Pie Filling: 4-5 c. sliced, peeled peaches 2 T. lemon juice 1/4 c. flour 1/4 c. cornstarch 1 c. sugar [...]

(Original Post Date:  June 7, 2010) I love mangoes.  But have you ever heard the phrase, “Your eyes are bigger than your stomach”?  Apparently, that was me.  I was at the Asian market, and bought this huge box of mangoes.  I ate about half of them within a week… but the remaining mangoes were starting [...]

(Original Post Date:  June 4, 2010) Sometimes I feel like eating cake.  The problem is, I seldom want to stop eating cake.  The twisted solution in my mind, of course, is to make a cake that is somewhat healthy (in the attempt to make me feel better about over-indulging in dessert). Carrots are a good source [...]

(Original Post Date:  May 27, 2010) So I’ve been on a KFC kick lately.  But man do the calories add up (as my 3 pound weight gain over the last few weeks can tell you)!  This recipe was an effort to 1) use up the giant frozen chicken wings in the freezer and 2) to [...]