Anyone who’s read this blog more than twice (Thanks, Mom.),  knows that my all-time favorite soup making appliance is the immersion blender. It’s great for pureeing soups, making salad dressings, tapenade, even smoothies. What the immersion blender doesn’t do is—slice, dice and julienne. For that I use my less favorite kitchen tool: the mandoline. Correction: […]

The soup this week was something of a command performance.  My wife and I are co-hosting a fund-raising dinner with another couple on Saturday and we wanted to offer jars of soup as a take away for the attendees. To be honest, co-hosting may be too generous a term.  The couple we’re working with are […]

I know it’s pathetic but I was looking through my old clippings last week and I stumbled upon the first menu I ever wrote for the Los Angeles Times (it’s here if you’d like to see it). It had a Spanish vegetarian theme and featured empanadas, garlic soup, and a great Catalan dish with grilled […]

In keeping with my goal of using vegetables that are in season and, the season being summer, keeping kitchen time to a minimum, I bring you the summer squash.  One squash in particular, actually: Zucchini. I’ve been a fan of zucchini ever since I was a kid.  No surprise there. It’s what you might call […]

I’ve got a confession to make.  I’m not crazy about eggplant. It’s bitter. It’s sort of rubbery.  And when you add it to most dishes all it really adds is texture. I’m sorry if I’m offending anyone with these comments. It’s how I feel, and I suspect I’m not alone. I’m talking about you Europe, […]