As featured in Condé Nast Traveler Magazine “How to Build the Ultimate Picnic Basket, According to Chefs Around the World.” (France) Leeks are a staple in my springtime kitchen. They are one of my favorite seasonal ingredients for their gentle fragrance. I add them to soups, mashed potatoes, braise them in wine with pasta, and make this Savory French Leek Pie. The French have elevated leeks to an almost noble ranking. The leek, le poireau, is harvested in France throughout most of the year, and recipes abound and vary by region and family. I first tasted this particular dish during a brief stay in France and, unlike most savory pies, it doesn’t require…
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“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.” ― Rainer Maria Rilke This simple recipe for Olive Oil and Orange Cake celebrates the turning of the season. While it still feels a lot like winter most days, the buds on the trees have opened, a few sprigs of flowers have emerged next to mounds of melting snow, and the birds that left in late autumn have returned with their old familiar songs. Let’s bake a cake that is much like the end of March, a little bit sweet, a little bit savory.
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I first experienced red wine pasta (yes, this dish is an experience) while in Tuscany. It was on a long drive to escape the rain that we came upon a small osteria, somewhere outside of Chianti. I’m still not entirely sure that it was open. However, we were seated and exchanged pleasantries in Italian. There was no menu. The old woman who greeted us might have also been the cook, I’m not entirely sure. She returned with two plates of the most gorgeous colored spaghetti I had ever seen.
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Irish Cottage Pie, a comforting dish made with ground beef and various vegetables, and topped with buttery mashed potatoes is a classic recipe perfect for transitioning between winter and spring.
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A luxuriously decadent, grown-up dessert. With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, I wanted to make a fun and sophisticated treat. Then it happened! Chocolate red wine cupcakes. Oh, yes… These decadent and grown-up chocolate cupcakes are made with a blend of natural and Dutched unsweetened cocoa, hinted with Bordeaux, and swirled with luscious homemade buttercream. You decide if you want to frost them with vanilla or chocolate, I’ll give you the recipes for both. And yes, even the frosting has red wine. No store-bought boxed cake mix here. Just a few pantry ingredients and a couple of minutes is all it takes to make these cupcakes from scratch.
