“The Fish Guys are up in the fan,” Baby Bird stated matter-of-factly a month or so ago, at dinner. “What?!” “The Fish Guys are up in the fan. Look,” she said again pointing to our kitchen ceiling. Ah, the minds of children. Since that evening, it seems that The Fish Guys have taken up residence […]
Food
My daughter’s first Shirley Temple
A few weeks ago, Baby Bird got to be a flower girl in her cousin’s wedding. After the ceremony, guests milled around, chatting and sipping a drink before dinner. My little one showed a lot of interest in my glass of bubbly and that’s when I remembered: the Shirley Temple. I ordered one and sat […]
Du lait s’il vous plait: milk in another language
Du lait s’il vous plait.” Milk please,” my daughter requested at school yesterday. In French. Unprompted. Baby Bird has been attending two half-days of French preschool. She has only been to preschool six times and is already asking milk in French. Not that I’m surprised. Language is her strong suit. She LOVES books and reading, […]
Armenian Matnakash Bread Recipe
Four years ago, this week, Big Papa and I visited Armenia for the first time and ate Armenian Matnakash Bread. This bread was our introduction to Armenian cuisine. I remember we arrived late at night and were very hungry. On the dining room table in the apartment where we were staying, our host had left […]
Taking the ‘can’ out of Cannellini beans
Last Friday, while trawling my neighborhood farmers market for farm-fresh goodies, I spotted them: shriveled, damp looking bean pods, cream with rosy highlights. Cannellini shelling beans! Not a very attractive looking bean on the outside. But inside–heaven. Cannellini beans themselves are white kidney-shaped beans, with a pale green to pale yellow pod that may be […]
Armenian feast in Amish country?
We recently spent a weekend in lovely Lancaster, Pennsylvania, attending a reunion for families with children adopted from Armenia. Who would think we would find an Armenia feast in the middle of the Amish countryside? But find a feast we did! Armenian Delight from Broomall, Pennsylvania cooked up delicious dolma, kebab, tabouli, kufta and, of […]
Bay Laurel Ice Cream Recipe
I was intrigued when I saw it on the menu at Marjorie Restaurant in Seattle: Bay Laurel Ice Cream. Just like the sage, thyme and lemon verbena ice creams I’ve made from herbs grown in our garden, I imagined how bay leaves, typically used as an aromatic or as a savory ingredient in soups […]
Soergel Orchards and Country Store in Wexford, PA
When Big Papa was a little boy, he would go with his family to Soergel’s roadside stand for fresh-picked fruits and vegetables. On several of our trips to visit his family in the Pittsburgh area, we’ve stopped at Soergel’s, even though its days of being a small roadside stand have long passed. Soergel’s is over […]
Patriotic Popsicle Recipe
Legend has it that on July 4, 1776, when John Adams — who fought for independence and eventually because the second President of the United States — and his wife, Abigail, sat down for a meal to celebrate the birth of their independent country, they dined on turtle soup. The remainder of their meal included […]
Fennel coleslaw recipe
Summer–when ballgames, boating and picnics rule– is the quintessential season for potato salad and coleslaw. Whether you serve them alongside sandwiches or paired with the traditional combo of dogs, burgers and chips, it’s hard to imagine summer passing without a few opportunities to enjoy these two classic summer salads. I created this twist on garden […]