New England Clam Chowder
What would an 18th century soup recipe be without a bit of controversy stirred in? New England clam chowder is a cream or milk based soup made with fresh clams, onions and potatoes and absolutely NO tomatoes. With New York’s debut of the tomato based Manhattan clam chowder in the 1930s, the polarization on the [...]
Reuben Sandwich
In 1914, the Reuben was reportedly created in New York by restaurant owner Arnold Reuben, Jr. for a hungry actress named Annette Seelos. The Reuben was also supposedly invented in 1925, when Omaha grocer and poker player Reuben Kulakofsky made this sandwich for his fellow poker players, one of them being Charles Schimmel who added [...]
Scotch Eggs
Scotch Eggs are a common menu item in England, and despite their name eluding to a different origin, actually did first appear in England. London department store Fortnum & Mason is credited with “inventing” them in 1738 and helping increase their popularity in the 18th century. This meat-wrapped, breaded and fried hen’s egg (or quail, [...]
Smoked Salmon Plate with Cornichons and Capers
A recent assignment in England gave us plenty of opportunity to enjoy this classic appetizer of smoked salmon, cornichons and brown bread. We often make it at home paired with regular Irish Soda Bread, but Irish Brown Bread, made with a mix of regular and whole wheat flour, sweetened with a little molasses or honey [...]
Corned Beef and Cabbage (New England Boiled Dinner)
Corned beef and cabbage is one of the food traditions most closely associated with the celebration of Irish ancestry each year on Saint Patrick’s Day in the U.S., though oddly enough it’s not really an Irish national tradition. In 17th century Ireland, salted beef was widely produced but it was very expensive and only accessible [...]
Chabichou du Poitou
Chabichou du Poitou is a French goat cheese from the Poitou-Charentes region, a cheese which according to legend dates back to the mid 700s. As old as this cheese is however, it was only in 1990 that it was granted Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (AOC) protecting the authenticity of its origin. The soil is chalky in this [...]
Cassoulet
This is not the proper way to make Cassoulet. This recipe will however get cassoulet on your table in about 30 minutes – 45 minutes if you’re a procrastinator or are styling ingredients for a photo shoot. With Languedoc origins from the Southwest of France, historically cassoulet is not a quick meal to prepare and [...]
Shrimp and Arugula with Spaghetti
Arugula is also known as rugula, rucola, rocket and roquette and is a spicy, peppery and nutritious salad green. Originating in the Mediterranean it has long been used in Italian cooking, and the ancient Romans not only ate it for good luck but also as an aphrodisiac. Shrimp and pasta is a perfect vehicle for this [...]
Montgomery’s Cheddar
Unlike some British cheese names, the name Cheddar is not government controlled or protected. This means that Cheddar is open to international imitation and interpretation. Fortunately Montgomery’s, Keen’s and Westcombe, three British farms producing Cheddar using the old traditional method, joined together to create an Artisan Somerset Cheddar British Slow Food Presidium, a local project dedicated [...]
Duck à l’Orange
If you’re looking for an easy weeknight meal, this is not the dish you’re looking for. Duck à l’Orange is not difficult to make but it does take some time and attention, for which you will be greatly rewarded. Crispy duck skin rivals bacon any day. This has now become our Christmas Eve tradition, we [...]
Roasted Chestnuts
Chestnut season each year arrives just in time for the holidays, making this treat a great way to wrap up any winter holiday meal. A special chestnut roasting pan with holes in the bottom is not required, but it does make the roasting a little more exciting. We usually just roast them in the oven, [...]
Apple Chips
Apple chips are really easy to make, and are a sweet, healthy, crunchy snack addiction. You don’t need to add anything at all – just bake a bunch of apple slices at 200F for an hour, then flip them and continue baking until mostly dry. Brushing with a little optional maple syrup and cinnamon makes [...]
Pumpkin, Rosemary, Sour Cherry Muffins
We originally made these muffins only as an excuse to bake something in chique square parchment papers, but they turned out to be such a great treat we’ll be making them a lot more often. Lorraine Pascale’s recipe from her adorable show Simply Baking was the inspiration, but I made some customizations and added sour [...]
Seared and Poached Apples
This recipe required 15 pounds of apples. Only two apples are needed for cooking, but it took picking 15 pounds of apples at one of our local Bucks County orchards to challenge us to find literally bushels of unique and good-looking apple recipes. Seared with a coating of ground almonds, candied ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and [...]
Brin d’Amour Cheese
Brin d’Amour cheese is a French raw sheep’s milk cheese from Corsica, and is also known as Fleur du Maquis (the Flower of the Maquis). There are many translations for Brin d’Amour such as “sprig of love” or “breath of love” which seem to have been inspired by its romantically aromatic coating of dried herbs. [...]
Oktoberfest
Oktoberfest began in 1810 in Munich, Germany as a city-wide marriage celebration for the crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. The celebration later became an annual tradition and just had a 200 year anniversary in 2010. The official website of the Munich, Germany Oktoberfest details the layout and extent [...]
Escargot with Parsley Butter
The mollusk of the forest, snails have been consumed since pre-historic times and were considered a luxury by the Romans. Helix Pomatia, also known as the Burgundy or Roman Snail, is one of the most coveted edible species in France and are harvested under strict laws protecting their sustainability and habitat. Their flavor when cooked [...]
Grilled Peaches with Rosemary & Balsamic Vinegar
We recently went on a Bucks County Food Tour and were introduced to quite a few local Pennsylvania farms we’d never visited before. One memorable stop was Manoff Market Gardens where you would have to be completely crazy to leave without at least a dozen ripe, gorgeous peaches or without petting Hale, their Public Relations [...]
Prunes in Armagnac (Pruneaux à l’Armagnac)
Prunes in Armagnac (Pruneaux à l’Armagnac), where have you been all our lives? We were only just introduced to this classic dessert from the southwest of France on our last trip to Paris. Starving from a day’s walking all over the city, and prepping for an evening finding the best views of the Eiffel Tower, [...]
Mussels with Saffron and Mustard
We love mussels. During our first trip to Paris, we went to one particular restaurant named La Tête d’Or in the 1st arrondissement several times, for one very good reason – can you guess? On the first visit, I ordered the moules marinières expecting the usual 10 or so mussels normally served when I’ve ordered [...]
Heirloom Tomato Tart
Why did we spend $8 for 2 pints of multi-color heirloom cherry tomatoes at Headhouse Farmers Market in Philly? Because we didn’t grow our own this year. Also, I really wanted to make this tomato tart and, if you’re reading this, then you probably do too. Tomato tarts are a classic dish in France and [...]
Pain Perdu (French Toast)
Pain Perdu, also known as French Toast, translates literally to “lost bread.” Why “lost” bread? Some say that soaking stale bread in a mixture of milk and eggs and then frying it in butter gives new life to old bread that was otherwise lost to us. We however like to think it refers to the [...]
Paris Picnics
Picnicking in Paris is a romantic idea many travelers have in mind when visiting this beautiful city. It’s important to know that not every grassy expanse in Paris allows picnicking, or even foot traffic, but there are a still quite a few parks and surrounding seating areas that permit lounging and picnicking, many even allowing [...]
Paris Markets
After a 5 year wait, we finally made it back to Paris. Our first Paris trip together was in November 2006 for our belated honeymoon, and it was half way through that trip that we realized we’d never get through the entire “must see” list we’d been compiling for weeks. This year’s visit allowed us [...]
