As much fun as it is to watch the pros race from pantry to stove on shows like Top Chef, I have no desire to emulate them during the holidays.

Thanksgiving is hard enough with more people than usual in the house—all wanting to help, chat with the cook, or just stand around the kitchen.   (Did I mention how small my kitchen is?)  I’d plummet right over the edge if I tried to cook everything from scratch on the big day.

That’s why I look for side dishes that can be prepared ahead and finished off with just a few touches at the last minute.  A beautiful salad that can be handed off to a helpful guest for final assembly is a real lifesaver when you’re trying to get the turkey out of the oven, the gravy made, the potatoes mashed and the rolls heated all at the same time.

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Pumpkin season is upon us.  From the first jack-o-lantern on the porch to the last slice of Thanksgiving pie, no vegetable is more closely identified with fall than the many varieties of Cucurbita pepo.

I’ve always loved the complex, spicy flavor of pumpkin baked with a heady blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves. This year, however, I was ready for a change. I craved  a light and tender cupcake with little more than a lively undercurrent of fresh ginger to highlight the pumpkin’s natural flavor.  It had to taste as clean and fresh as a fall morning, not too sweet and not too spicy.  Why should children get all the treats at Halloween? (more…)

Blame the rain, the 45 mph winds and the power outage that spread across two days.  I’m sure I’ve mentioned before that I live among the redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains.  When the weather is great, it’s a glorious place to be.  When it’s bad, it’s miserable.  This week, the electricity went out just as I was preparing to publish this post on my desktop Mac.  So I’m later than usual.  My apologies.

Grapes called to me at the farmers market for weeks as I contemplated schiacciata all’uva, a Tuscan variation on foccacia, liberally studded with dark, juicy grapes and dusted with a blanket of sugar. (more…)

For years, I avoided  figs at all cost.  My childhood memories of throwing rotten fruit that had fallen from the tree in my best friend’s yard tainted any thoughts of actually eating one.  As far as I was concerned, figs were gushy, sticky and positively repulsive.

Then, as an adult and a food writer at that, I felt compelled to at least try one of these fruits that so many others had described as utterly ambrosial.  Plucked right off the tree, it was perfectly ripe and felt like a miniature water balloon in my hand.

I was a convert at first bite.  The flavor was mild and sweet as honey with faint undertones of vanilla.  The pink inner flesh glowed like a jewel.  It was silky and soft, all but melting in my mouth, and the seeds popped between my teeth like caviar.

It’s amazing how much difference it makes to eat fruit in its time.

Now I know why some people suggest the forbidden fruit Eve nibbled in the Garden of Eden really was a fig.  Few fruits are as sensual.

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Before we left on our recent trip to Alaska, I compiled a collection of recipes that I thought might work for car camping.  They had to be simple — based on ingredients we could find at most any grocery store —and require a minimum of pots and pans.  One skillet would be ideal.

At the same time, I wanted fresh flavors and appealing textures.  Canned goods and pantry items soon lose their charm when you’re traveling for six weeks.

Our favorite quick and easy meal turned out to be an updated version of Joe’s Special, the venerable San Francisco dish made with spinach, eggs, onions and ground meat.  Think of it as a deconstructed fritatta.  It takes a bit of chopping but it comes together fairly quickly and tastes terrific.

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