Winter
Apricot and Mulberry Jam Thumbprint Cookies
These gem-like jam thumbprint cookies are fun to make and so tender and beautiful. Use a combination of preserves like apricot and mulberry for color and flavor interest. This one will brighten up the cookie plates. It’s a beauty. That’s what mom said when she tasted the thumbprint cookies I’ve been making with our gorgeous…
Read MoreHomemade Baked Pita Chips
I love baked pita chips — simple to make and a great way to use up the last couple of loaves of pita that seem to hang on! Bake them for a healthier-than-fried version and still just as crunchy, salty, and addictive. I’ve written about cousins in all sorts of ways here (i.e., see this…
Read MoreLebanese Vegetable Soup with Chickpeas and Kale
This vegetable soup with chickpeas and kale is hearty with sweet butternut squash, tomatoes, and a hit of cayenne. So warming, healthy, and simple to make–which we do, weekly! Vegan and gluten-free. One frigid, snowy day last winter when Dan was down and out with a cold, his sister Trisha brought over a big tunjura…
Read MoreSumac Roasted Sweet Potatoes
Sumac roasted sweet potatoes are a natural! The bright, citrusy flavor of the sumac balances the sweetness of the potatoes perfectly. When I think about what makes the Thanksgiving plate so mouthwatering-good, it doesn’t take much for me to realize that it’s driven by sweet. Oh, and fat. Yes, there is the salty tenderness (brine…
Read MoreWarm Salted Caramel Sauce with Orange Blossom
Homemade salted caramel sauce is simple to make–mine includes a whisper of orange blossom water, so delicious with the caramel flavor. Serve the caramel sauce with sliced apples and more sea salt to garnish. It’s also wonderful over ice cream, apple pie, apple cake, banana bread, and anywhere else you like your caramel. The dinner…
Read MoreLemony Chicken Rice Soup, Avgolemono
Avgolemono soup is a simple, gluten-free Greek soup of lemon, egg, chicken and rice. Supreme comfort food! Avgolemono is even better after it has had time to sit and gain body, creaminess, from the rice. Make it early in the day, or a day in advance, and reheat it carefully over medium low heat. The…
Read MoreOlive Oil Popcorn with Za’atar
I don’t remember seeing movies in the theater all that frequently growing up. It was a very occasional treat, and I’m sure this was not out of discipline or deprivation, but because it just wasn’t the industry it is today. My great movie-watching memories are rooted most comfortably at home, with my brother and sister…
Read MoreCitrus Salad Recipe, and a new Middle Eastern cookbook
Holiday gatherings of our family have always included my mom’s special touches at breakfast. Her favorite of all the citrus fruits is grapefruit, and she painstakingly segments pink grapefruit after pink grapefruit to yield her big bowl of glistening fruit to make our breakfast table a celebration. Only someone (Mom. Me. Peg. If any…
Read MoreSweet Potato Biscuits from Kinfolk Table
The Lebanese, we love our kinfolk. Our kinfolk may be descended from the old country, they may be cousins who are cousins by blood or by affection, they may be neighbors who know when you’re home and when you’re not. Or they may be you and me, who love everything about gathering over good…
Read MoreArugula with Sugared Cranberries & Pancetta. And let’s talk cookbooks.
As I mentioned recently, I am a cookbookaholic. I love to hear about good cookbooks from anyone who is into them. I sort of assume the same of anyone else who likes to collect, cook from, and gift-give cookbooks. So in honor of the cookbook-buying and giving season ahead—in honor of all of the…
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