YOU KNOW I'D NEVER STEER YOU WRONG. So when I tell you that chicken poached in vermouth --Poulet au Vin Blanc -- is über-delicious, awesomely-aromatic, and as colorful as a Lady Gaga concert, you'll just have to believe me. The dish is mercifully uncomplicated, too. In fact, you can throw it together when you come home from work, and then enjoy it for dinner about 35 minutes later. Here's the recipe: Read more » Poulet au Vin Blanc
February 18, 2012
YOU KNOW I'D NEVER STEER YOU WRONG. So when I tell you that chicken poached in vermouth --Poulet au Vin Blanc -- is über-delicious, awesomely-aromatic, and as colorful as a Lady Gaga concert, you'll just have to believe me. The dish is mercifully uncomplicated, too. In fact, you can throw it together when you come home from work, and then enjoy it for dinner about 35 minutes later. Here's the recipe: Read more » Recipe: Brioche
February 9, 2012
FOR VALENTINE'S DAY (or any day), why not treat yourself to the most luxurious bread in the world? I'm talking about buttery, eggy, Brioche. I've found that Julia Child's easy-peasy recipe produces as a good a dough as any long and involved recipe. If you have a food-processor, brioche can be yours in a snap: Read more » Whole Wheat Pita Bread
February 5, 2012
MY KITCHEN resembled a Middle-Eastern bake-shop yesterday, as I turned flour, water, yeast, salt and olive oil into Pita bread. The recipe I played with, and how I tweaked my oven to get the dough to form a balloon, or "pocket:" Read more » Giveaway: Pullman Loaf Pan
January 28, 2012
HOW DID I PRODUCE the perfectly rectangular loaf of Pain de Mie (French sandwich bread) you see pictured above? By baking it in a Pullman pan. A Pullman pan is a bread pan with straight sides and a lid that slides over the top. The lid keeps the bread from forming an arch as it bakes. This flat-topped, straight sided loaf is a pleasure to slice. And its entire crust can be removed with just 4 flicks of a knife. Frankly, I'm enjoying my 13x4x4 Pullman so much that I bought a second one to give away. Who'd like to win it in a random drawing? Read more » Chocolate Mousse
January 11, 2012
NOTHING TICKLES MY TASTE BUDS more than Chocolate Mousse. I love its light, foamy texture and its rich, out-of-this-world flavor. Furthermore, mousse freezes perfectly well. This means you can schedule it for your very next dinner party. Read more » Purple Poulet: Chicken in Red Wine
January 7, 2012
SOME DAY, I hope you'll try my Purple Poulet -- a fast stew of mushrooms, onions, garlic and boneless chicken breasts, all enrobed in an aromatic red wine sauce. You can serve it atop a crispy potato galette, as above, or on rice, egg noodles, or toasted Pain de Mie. When I served the dish to my partner last night, he thought we were eating beef. Indeed, the wine had turned the chicken a pretty purple shade, and the meat was so incredibly moist and tender that it tasted, even to me, like long-simmered pot roast. Read more » Pain de Mie: French Sandwich Bread
December 31, 2011
OKAY, I'LL ADMIT IT. I'm addicted to French sandwich bread, or Pain de Mie. What a versatile loaf! I use it for sandwiches, toast, French toast, croutons and canapes. Pain (pronounced "pan") is French for "bread," and mie (pr. "mee") means "crumb," or "interior." And the crumb in this instance is soft and moist. Yet the bread is so deliciously dense that you can cut it into paper-thin slices. My New Year's resolution is to have this lovely loaf on hand at all times. Fortunately, it is incredibly easy to make: Read more » 
