• Mixed Berry Pie

    Mixed Berry Pie

    Generally I try to avoid neighborhood message boards / Facebook Groups because half the time people post things like “there’s a man with a machete standing outside the bodega” or “packs of wild dogs are roaming the streets.” Occasionally, though, someone will post something that’s not terrifying. Such was the case the other day when…

  • Sugar Snap Peas and Asparagus with Hand-Pounded Pesto

    Sugar Snap Peas and Asparagus with Hand-Pounded Pesto

    When you spend twelve years in L.A., it’s easy to forget what real spring feels like. I say “real spring” because the spring that you get in L.A. is ersatz spring… nothing really died in the winter, so nothing really comes back. It never got that cold, it never snowed, you never stepped into an…

  • Roasted Fennel with Sardines and Toasted Garlic Breadcrumbs

    Roasted Fennel with Sardines and Toasted Garlic Breadcrumbs

    Moses saw a burning bush and I saw a roasted fennel. Yes, a vision came to me last night when I came home from Union Market with the ingredients to make Spaghetti con Le Sarde, a Southern Italian pasta dish with sardines, fennel, fennel seeds, raisins soaked in wine, and toasted breadcrumbs. Only: when I…

  • Blueberry Streusel Sour Cream Coffee Cake

    Blueberry Streusel Sour Cream Coffee Cake

    We hosted a brunch here last weekend. The original plan was just to offer bagels and cream cheese (four different kinds!) and smoked salmon with red onions and sliced tomatoes and capers and coffee made to order. That seemed like enough but then I asked myself,”What else would you want there if this were at…

  • Herby Panko-Crusted Rack of Lamb

    Herby Panko-Crusted Rack of Lamb

    My father-in-law Steve (the crab cake king) loves rack of lamb so much, I’m pretty sure he’d eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if he could. And seeing as my in-laws are staying with us, when I offered to cook them dinner on Sunday, I knew that if I asked “any special requests?” there…

  • Quick Meatballs Over Slow-Cooked Polenta

    Quick Meatballs Over Slow-Cooked Polenta

    Meatballs are not a go-to dinner for me. Sometimes I crave them, but then I think about all of the work: the tearing of the bread (yes, good meatballs have bread soaked in milk), the soaking of the bread in milk (I just said that), the grating of the Parmesan, and — worst of all…

  • Where to Eat in Copenhagen

    Where to Eat in Copenhagen

    We come to this place for magic. No, not AMC movie theaters, I’m talking about Copenhagen. Ever since Noma opened its doors in 2003, Copenhagen has become the preeminent culinary destination for food-savvy travelers, even those lucky enough not to get a reservation (I kid). The city is so rich with culinary destinations, you could…

  • Escape From Noma

    Escape From Noma

    This is not the post that I thought I was going to write about Noma, the massively influential Copenhagen restaurant that’s been declared “The Best Restaurant in the World” five different times. In fact, I didn’t even think I’d ever get to eat at Noma, especially when they recently announced that they’re closing the restaurant…

  • Focaccia with Butternut Squash, Garlic, and Sage

    Focaccia with Butternut Squash, Garlic, and Sage

    Butternut squash and sage in the spring? Alice Waters would throw a fit! But, hear me out: we went to Sailor last week in Fort Greene and April Bloomfield’s food was so incredible — I’m still dreaming about that green toast… and that chicken… and that stuffed radicchio — that I spent much of Saturday…

  • Inga’s Bar, Gertrude’s, and Foul Witch

    Inga’s Bar, Gertrude’s, and Foul Witch

    Carrie Bradsaw used her oven to store sweaters and took every dinner as an opportunity to put on a slinky new dress, slide into her Jimmy Choos, and step out into the glamorous New York City restaurant scene. And though I actually use my oven for cooking and mostly wear Vans, sometimes the pull of…