Cooking Around the Calendar

Cullen Skink, made with Finnan Haddie Scotland; the land of my foremothers, and the home of my heart. Also home to some truly delicious food. If you have never been to the U.K. you might believe the old stories that say British food is over cooked and under seasoned. Based…

January 8, 1815, the United States achieved its greatest land victory of the War of 1812 near New Orleans. If you are a youngster, you probably have never heard the song “The Battle of New Orleans”, recorded by country artist Johnny Horton in 1959. Lucky you! Many years ago, I spent…

First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Bananas Foster Bread Pudding in a baby carriage. Bananas Foster, served tableside with a towering inferno of rum soaked flames, is not only a decadent dessert, but also a great bit of theatre. But what if you’re throwing a party? I can’t…

Today, we are still in New Orleans. At least in my heart! Down south, it’s 70 degrees, and here it’s hovering around freezing! But, we can still celebrate the taste of summer, even if we are covered with snow. Maque Choux is a Cajun/Creole dish that features that Native American…

Whether you celebrate Twelfth Night on January 5th or 6th, or not at all, it’s still the time we take down the Christmas décor. My mother and I are big fans of themed Christmas decorations. When I was little, we had our tree done up in a magical silver and…

My year is winding down with a whimper. Really, that’s me whimpering. I’ve had the most atrocious cold this last week. Not even exaggerating, this has been the worst cold I’ve had in decades! Since I’ve been out of commission, I’m afraid I wasn’t able to post about our New…

A delicious way to use some leftovers. The day after any holiday that revolves around food typically brings with it a fridge full over leftovers. One way I like to use these leftovers is in a potato hash. I don’t really have a recipe for this; it’s more like guidelines.…

My once and future holiday project. Once up a time, in the 1980’s, when I was a newly minted adult, I embarked on an ambitious project to collect our favorite family recipes and put them together. I gathered together all the magazine clippings, handwritten recipes from my grandmothers, even the…

A South Carolina Favorite, with a Maryland Twist Christmas Eve dinner in the United States often features fish or seafood. When I was growing up, my mother would make Oyster Stew. Although a very simple dish and relatively easy to make, it has a richness that is undoubtedly festive. Other…

A yummy layered cookie featuring raspberry jam and almonds. These Viennese Triangles were one of the many holiday cookies we made every year when I was growing up. Mum and I would spend most of a weekend, togther in the kitchen churning out batch after batch of homemade sweetness. If…