Editor's Note: We are running a selection of Lee White's recipes today to give readers a chance to savor her favorite Thanksgiving recipes in one place! For more years than I can remember, I have been writing about turkey at Thanksgiving. I get every food magazine every month and every single month, in October, a turkey is on the covers. My mother never cooked a turkey. We … [Read more...] about A la Carte: From Lee With Love — Thanksgiving Recipes Galore!
Nibbles
A la Carte: Chicken Soup for the Soul … and so Many Other Things!
Sometimes you make something so easy, and so often, you assume everyone does it, too. That is me with chicken soup. I do buy those quart-sized cartons of chicken soup for the pantry. Sometimes it is low-sodium (which is often a little more expensive) or low-fat (even if we are not sure how low fat is really low). But my mother never bought canned soup, primarily because … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Chicken Soup for the Soul … and so Many Other Things!
A la Carte: Zucchini Cake For Now … or Later (It Freezes Beautifully)
Sometimes, I wish I had a garden, but I don’t like dirt or insects. My late husband’s family always had vegetable and flower gardens. My parents could have had a garden, but they didn’t even know what a trowel was, never mind seeding, weeding, picking or cooking vegetables. When I married my husband and we bought our first house, one with a small yard, we had a little … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Zucchini Cake For Now … or Later (It Freezes Beautifully)
A la Carte: How to Bake an Election Cake!
According to Walter Woodward, PhD, Connecticut’s Historian, years ago there was a Connecticut Election Cake Recipe. The newer recipe I found, “A Modern Election Cake Recipe,” looks like a half birthday cake, half fruit cake. It calls for yeast, some butter and buttermilk (the latter of my favorite add-ins for all cakes) vanilla, eggs, and so on. Like a fruit cake, you add … [Read more...] about A la Carte: How to Bake an Election Cake!
A la Carte: Mushrooms by the Million? Soup is the Solution!
This weekend, friends from Lyme offered a pound of freshly picked shiitake mushrooms for eight dollars a pound. I asked if I could get two. So this is a very short paragraph ... I am going to give you two mushroom soup recipes, both of which are incredible. You can use shiitake mushrooms (whose woody stems should be discarded), cremini, or other varieties. One is easy; … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Mushrooms by the Million? Soup is the Solution!
A la Carte: Meatballs are Perfect for (Small) Pandemic Gatherings
Feeding small groups of people during the pandemic is a problem. For our fundraiser for Democratic candidates (you knew I was a Democrat, didn’t you?), I decided to make meatballs and red sauce. As I learned long ago, everyone’s favorite “ethnic” food is Italian and, even though I have not a whit of Italian blood, I make lots of foods from Italy. So, the question was: … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Meatballs are Perfect for (Small) Pandemic Gatherings
A la Carte: Hold on to Summer, Make Your Own Luscious Ice Cream, Sorbets
Last week I missed getting the last peaches available at Whittle’s. This made me sad because, even though it is late September, I guess I am not ready for fall. In any case, I did find delicious peaches at Big Y and made two crisps (like cobblers but made with nuts, oat, butter, flour and sugar). Of course, I gave the desserts away because, once I have a portion at home, … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Hold on to Summer, Make Your Own Luscious Ice Cream, Sorbets
Nibbles: Gotta Love ‘The Apple Lover’s Cookbook’!
As I drive around our beautiful shoreline, I think about what is inland rather than the seashore. Apples will be everywhere, along with cider and cider donuts. I opened Yankee magazine last week and saw that Amy Traverso, Yankee’s senior food editor, has written a new edition of The Apple Lover’s Cookbook, replete with more sweet and savory recipes, more festival venues and … [Read more...] about Nibbles: Gotta Love ‘The Apple Lover’s Cookbook’!
A la Carte: Need a Quick, No-Cook, Hearty Salad? Tuna Panzanella is the Answer!
My eating patterns have changed over the past six months. It began with the shelter-in-place pandemic, during which I looked at my freezers and pantry (the latter is half my hall closet in the condo), and began using many of the shelf-stable groceries of which I had double and triple amounts.) But once the summer harvest became available, I began allowing my meals to be … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Need a Quick, No-Cook, Hearty Salad? Tuna Panzanella is the Answer!
A la Carte: It’s Almost Labor Day, But There’s Still Time for ‘Summer Vegetable Stew’
Last weekend, between cooking (more basil pesto and Coca Cola chocolate cake), reading (finally finished Scott Turow’s The Last Trial) or watching television (not much left now except MSNBC and the third season of The Good Fight.) I also spent some time on Facebook. My south-of-the-Baldwin-Bridge editor, Pem McNerney, who is no slouch when it comes to cooking, made … [Read more...] about A la Carte: It’s Almost Labor Day, But There’s Still Time for ‘Summer Vegetable Stew’
A la Carte: You Deserve Something Special! Triple-Ginger Pound Cake Beckons
Last week I made the most delicious dinner I’d ever made. And the easiest. And so satisfying that no dessert—ice cream, cookies, cheesecake or crème brulee—was necessary. Here's what it was: a T-bone steak I’d bought and frozen when they were on sale, three sliced tomatoes. mashed potatoes from 20 tiny ones I’d purchased from Stone Acres in Stonington and two ears of sweet … [Read more...] about A la Carte: You Deserve Something Special! Triple-Ginger Pound Cake Beckons
A la Carte: Savor a Taste of Summer in Chipotle Pasta Salad with Mozzarella
Remember Willard Scott from the Today show? I saw him a few years ago at a Sunday brunch at the Saybrook Point Inn. I always liked his birthday wishes to anyone over 100 years, sponsored by Smucker’s. I also laughed at his “best ever,” wherever he was broadcasting. The “best pancake” he ever had, the “best meatloaf” in all of Indiana, the most “beautiful sunshine” in … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Savor a Taste of Summer in Chipotle Pasta Salad with Mozzarella
A la Carte: Love Linguine? Just Add Spinach, Lemon Cream, Parmesan to Make a Delicious Dish!
It was a nice week with more company at home in four days than I have had in the last four months. Tuesday evening, I had five friends for dinner. We are all good friends, all five from Lyme, and all but I had spent a bit of time together. I had visited one couple twice over one month. My dining room table is very large and, while we could converse, it was too big for us to … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Love Linguine? Just Add Spinach, Lemon Cream, Parmesan to Make a Delicious Dish!
A la Carte: Friday Means Fish: How About Healthy, but also Delicious ‘Poached Cod in Tomato Curry’?
I still have not had an ear of sweet corn, but the farm stands do seem to be in high cotton*. (*I have actually never used that phrase, but I have been reading novels that take place in Virginia lately, and one person used “high cotton,” so I looked up the phrase and, originally, it meant that the crops, usually cotton, were doing particularly well, so I thought I would use … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Friday Means Fish: How About Healthy, but also Delicious ‘Poached Cod in Tomato Curry’?
A la Carte: Last Week, Pesto, This Week, Pasta … But ‘e Fagiole!’
It was a nice week: a little rain, a lot of sunshine, my first trip to the beach and low humidity. One evening, friends and I had dinner at Filomena’s, outside under a big tent, and listened to the New London Big Band, minus about six members, play mellow jazz. The decibels of the speakers were just right, it threatened to rain but didn’t and the food, as usual, was yummy. I … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Last Week, Pesto, This Week, Pasta … But ‘e Fagiole!’