When I was little, my mother used to call me Sarah Bernhardt. I had no idea who Sarah Bernhardt and she told me Bernhardt was a famous actress in the early 1900s. I think today my mom would call me a drama queen. She also suggested I not wish my life away, that someday I would wish I could get those years back. I thought about this again as I was reading my newest food … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Can’t Imagine Grilling a Salad? Then Try This, But Don’t Forget Blue Cheese & Basil!
Columnists
A la Carte: How Do I Love Lemons? Let me Count the Ways …
Over the past few weeks there have been so many holidays-- Easter Sunday, Passover and Ramadan-- and all had something to do with food. For Lent, we gave up something we wanted (often sweet stuff) for 40 days and had to have fish on Fridays; for Passover nothing leavening (desserts made with matzoh and matzoh for breakfast, lunch and dinner for eight days) and, at Ramadan, … [Read more...] about A la Carte: How Do I Love Lemons? Let me Count the Ways …
Gardening Tips for April from ‘The English Lady,’ a ‘Month of Activity’
Those April showers that come our way They bring the flowers that bloom in May And when it’s raining, let's not forget, It isn’t raining rain at all, its raining violets April is the month of activity in the garden, and our old nemesis, weeds are beginning to rear their heads, so we need to extract the little devils before they take hold and are difficult to … [Read more...] about Gardening Tips for April from ‘The English Lady,’ a ‘Month of Activity’
A la Carte: Gingerbread Cake is Super for Sharing
What a weekend! The weather was gorgeous so I thought I would go to Lowe’s and get some flowers to plant in my tiny front yard and some flowering plants to place where my bird feeders help my feathered friends during the fall, winters and early spring. But Monday morning at 4:30 a.m., as I drove my daughter to catch her plane back to sunny California, I had to use the … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Gingerbread Cake is Super for Sharing
Legal New You Can Use: Should an Investment Home be Your First Home in CT?
Because housing has become so expensive, making your first home purchase an investment home may be a good idea. Continue reading for an overview of the pros and cons to help you make your decision. Pro: Leverage to buy the home you want Many people who are looking to buy their first home usually can’t afford the one they truly want. Rather than put down a lot of money … [Read more...] about Legal New You Can Use: Should an Investment Home be Your First Home in CT?
A la Carte: Ricotta Cheese Pie Makes a Luscious Dessert for any Easter … or Passover!
Editor's Note: This is a column that our dear friend Lee White wrote for us in April 2016, that somehow we failed to publish (our apologies) -- but the recipe is as good today as it was then! This will be an odd Easter weekend for me. On Good Friday, I will pick up my Newbury, Mass., daughter-in-law. Nancy and second-youngest granddaughter, then drive up to Kennebunkport … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Ricotta Cheese Pie Makes a Luscious Dessert for any Easter … or Passover!
A la Carte: Spring is Here … Celebrate with Spring Minestrone
I have spent the past few weeks with friends, first with the Oscars (yes, we all saw the slap and, with all the brilliant actors and crew from the amazing movie, CODA, they knew what Will Smith was saying. I myself don’t read lips, but I knew what he was saying.) The following Friday, we watched UConn ladies in the Final Four. On Sunday, I watched them alone. … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Spring is Here … Celebrate with Spring Minestrone
A la Carte: Thinking Lent (or Passover or Easter)? Then Think Fish
Oh my, it may be April 1, as you are reading this. But this column is not about April Fool’s Day but rather two important holidays, which follow in just a couple of weeks—Easter and Passover. Because the two holidays follow different calendars, rarely do Easter weekend (including Good Friday, Easter Sunday or, that new holiday, Easter Monday) and Passover coincide. As … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Thinking Lent (or Passover or Easter)? Then Think Fish
Gardening Tips from ‘The English Lady’ for March, a Month of ‘Wait and See’
Those March winds shall blow and we shall have snow and what will the Robin do then poor thing? He’ll hide in the barn and keep himself warm and hide his head under his wing. March is a month of ‘wait and see’ as we anticipate walking around our gardens. This morning I walked outside, into a westerly breeze and a pleasantly warm sun. I took a deep breath and as I … [Read more...] about Gardening Tips from ‘The English Lady’ for March, a Month of ‘Wait and See’
A la Carte: Thinking of Those Southern Warmer Climes? Creole Daube Will Take You There
Finally, inflation has really got to me at the supermarket. I so wanted to make a pot roast and saw a lovely fat chuck roast. Before I put it into my cart, I saw the price: $31. I looked again. Yup, $31 for a piece of meat that requires 3 to 4 hours of cooking before it has the perfect chew. I left that market with chicken. The next day I tried another market. That … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Thinking of Those Southern Warmer Climes? Creole Daube Will Take You There
A la Carte: It’s St. Patrick’s Day, So It Must Be Time For Corned Beef & Cabbage!
I had such a fun weekend watching the UConn women play basketball at Mohegan Sun. And as I write this column, the final game (UConn vs Villanova) is tonight. We had only one loss in the Big East, and that was to Villanova. I have my fingers crossed. Friends Sue and Karen had extra tickets for me to see all the games. Frosting on the cake was the ability to see most of our … [Read more...] about A la Carte: It’s St. Patrick’s Day, So It Must Be Time For Corned Beef & Cabbage!
A la Carte: Twice the Usual Feast Today:- First Maple Gooey Butter Cake, Then Whole Coconut Curry Chicken
Column #1 All winter, friends have been wailing about winter. When will it be over? Will summer ever come? Others complain about the cold. Some have slipped on ice. For me, winter on the Connecticut shoreline isn’t bad. I grew up in Troy, N.Y. Went to college in Ithaca and Rochester, and lived and worked in Worcester, Mass. Even the isolation during the pandemic … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Twice the Usual Feast Today:- First Maple Gooey Butter Cake, Then Whole Coconut Curry Chicken
A la Carte: This Five-Way Chili is All The Way From Cincinnati!
I get excited when I see old recipes in my computer and haven’t made in decades. Friends asked if I could make dessert for 12. I wanted it to be yummy and attractive and decided on a flan, or custard. I’d made it often as a dish but not in years. When you take it out of the oven and turn it onto a slightly oval plate, the caramel waves over and stays that way for … [Read more...] about A la Carte: This Five-Way Chili is All The Way From Cincinnati!
A la Carte: Caramelized Coconut Budino Makes a Luscious Dessert
I am going to a dinner party next Saturday evening in Madison. There may be 12 people. I may have met half of them. Most are flying in to see their daughter and son-in-law in their new house into which they moved just three weeks ago. The last time I moved, it took me months to unpack boxes, never mind ready to host a dinner party in less than a month. And many of the … [Read more...] about A la Carte: Caramelized Coconut Budino Makes a Luscious Dessert
A View from My Porch — The Shady History of Connecticut Tobacco, Part 1: The Age of Discovery to the Jamestown, Virginia Colony
It’s been a while since my last View, which was A Primer on The American Rescue Plan. Since then, I have spent some time thinking about tobacco; and frankly, that’s a subject on which I have rarely, if ever, reflected. Then again, it’s not COVID, or its aftermath; and has nothing to do with the events of Jan. 6, 2021, or their aftermath. To explain, Christina and I saw … [Read more...] about A View from My Porch — The Shady History of Connecticut Tobacco, Part 1: The Age of Discovery to the Jamestown, Virginia Colony