Make a Wish

Everyone at my Thanksgiving table this year is going to have their own wishbone to break. No, I’m not cooking up 8 turkeys just so everyone gets a wishbone. I love my family, but not quite that much. I’m looking forward to the spice-brined and grilled Cornish game hens I’ll be cooking, but their little wishbones [...]

A Different Apple Pie

I wrote an article about apple pie a few months back, which appears in this month’s issue of Alaska Airlines Magazine. In rereading the article last week (it’s always surprising how quickly I forget exactly what I wrote soon as an article is turned in…), I was reminded of having come across a recipe called [...]

A Cookbook Extravaganza

If anyone on your holiday gift list is a food lover, you can make some progress on your shopping with a little visit to the Palace Ballroom in Seattle on December 1. Tom Douglas is hosting his third annual Ultimate Holiday Cookbook Social from 4:00 to 7:00 that afternoon. I’ve been honored to be part of [...]

Cheers to Zoë

I tuned in to In the Kitchen with Tom and Thierry for the first half hour of the radio program (710 KIRO Saturdays from 4:00 to 7:00) this past Saturday, before I joined them for the second half hour to talk about all things bourbon. In that first segment, my chef pals Tom Douglas (Dahlia Lounge, [...]

Drinking Dry: New Flavors

Seattle-based Dry Soda took the soda category to new levels when they launched in 2005. Not just about quenching thirst in a new way, these beverages were developed with the meal time in mind. With just a touch of sweetness (from pure cane sugar) and non-traditional flavors–kumquat, lavender, rhubarb and lemongrass–the drinks have a culinary flair that can [...]

T-Day Countdown

Can you believe it? Just two weeks from today is Thanksgiving. That’s what I get for blinking. I just started to make up my mental menu plan for dinner here that day. And though I am a traditionalist so often when it comes to my favorite things to eat and drink, I’m planning to stray [...]

Cooking at Home: Pork with Arugula Pesto

It was just one of those nights, last night. A night to fall back on a tried-and-true friend to make dinner in a flash: a simple pork tenderloin. For this two-person household, it’s just the right portion size, usually around 1 pound, 2 good servings with some possible leftovers. And it’s easy to cook 2 [...]

Dinner at Poppy

It took a few moments for Jerry Traunfeld’s answer to sink in. Not quite two months? Is that really all the time that Poppy’s been open? The smiling, but clearly tired, chef and owner of this hot new property on Capitol Hill assured me it was true. And he surely would know. I guess that’s [...]

Buying from the Source, for the Garden

We talk about local/regional/seasonal all the time today with regard to what we cook at home, what we choose in restaurants when we eat out. It’s a mantra that puts us all in a mindset to make some positive change: supporting local farmers, reducing carbon footprint, consuming more wholesome foods, more awareness of the food’s [...]