Any time you see the term “bonne femme” in a dish it will be something very comforting, thrifty, and wonderful. Loosely translated it means “good wife”.
Poulet au Bonne Femme was a recipe long before Julia Child wrote her amazing version. I think that we can get stuck in a recipe rut, afraid to deviate from what someone else has done. I hear from women all the time who feel that there is some insurmountable difference between a “foodie” and themselves.
I used to tell people that the only real difference between a chocolate pudding and a chocolate mousse is that you …read more

Potentially there will be no Saturday Surfing this week. It may actually end up being Sunday Surfing or no surfing at all.  You see, I am busily catering a sit down dinner for 50….or 40….or 35. We aren’t sure.
I wanted to really bless a close friend and she was heading up a luncheon….so I offered to create magic if at all possible. I chose a Southwestern – New England Fusion menu and I will be blogging it over the next week or so.
This is Kyrie creating magic. My daughter Erin took the picture. One of my favorites…

Anyway….
The menu looks like …read more

I like creamy, rich soups the best. In chilly weather there is just nothing like a hot, creamy soup to warm you up. At the same time I love exotic flavors. This Thai Coconut Curry Soup has it all!
Rich and creamy, with a faint coconut flavor that is followed by a tingle of spiciness. As my dad used to say, “This soup has some authority to it!”.

Eating hot peppers really does cause your circulation to increase and it warms you up more than just a warm soup alone would. You can simmer this in a crockpot or make it on …read more

This is another one of those super easy meals that is absolutely delicious but doesn’t look beautiful plated. I know. It is just the way it is. Some of the best recipes I have are not photogenic.

Picante chicken is the simplest stuff in the universe. It is perfect for Once a Month Cooking (OAMC) and making ahead. I made a batch of it prior to my surgery.  You just buy chicken breast, toss it in a freezer bag, cover with picante sauce and throw it in the freezer….Raw.

When I was in high school eons ago when the world was new and all….I was not known for being cutting edge. I was the very last one to break down and try to style my hair a la Farrah Fawcett. I was skeptical of straight leg jeans and wore elephant bells well beyond the point that everyone else had cigarette leg jeans going on…I refused to give up my platforms for ballet flats…and even after I got married I fought getting a microwave until the late 1980s.
I mean, I don’t believe the world is flat or anything but I …read more

Having recently gone to pick blueberries I am now in the process of  using them for as many meals as possible. We try to get enough to last an entire year but we may be a little short this year. In any case I could not resist attempting to create a sauce for meat. I had originally been thinking of pork medallions for this sauce because it has some presence.  I had chicken breast so that is what I used but I think that  the pork is the better choice due to the fact that it has more flavor.  I …read more

Although I made this spicy apricot glaze for chicken it would also be fantastic on pork.  It is sweet and spicy, tangy and smoky with layers of flavor. It really was delicious.  You can find the whole Father’s Day Menu here.
Father’s Day is always fun around here. This year, however, Marc is working on that day so I was glad to test the menu ahead of time. He was very enthusiastic about the chicken, and he tends to be a meat and potatoes (and lasagne) kind of guy. There is enough heat to the glaze to keep it from being …read more

I served this with the spicy mango chutney and it was a big it at the house. Marc is always appreciative of my cooking but doesn’t always comment on it. He gave this recipe a Marine Corps “Out-effing-standing” . I think that is as high in the USMC rating system as anything can get that isn’t directly related to Chesty Puller, or a bulldog.
The chicken comes out very flavorful and tender. The flavors are exotic enough to be impressive but, and here is the best thing of all, you can have it totally finished in 45 minutes. Serve it with …read more

After Christmas I bought four rosemary trees that had been shaped as Christmas trees and clearanced for 2.00 each. I was excited about it because there is so much that fresh rosemary is wonderful for.  I love smelling it when I am sitting out on the porch…I love using it in cooking and baking.  I love adding springs of it to my drawers or closets.

Another thing I love is chicken and noodles, or Pennsylvania Dutch chicken pot pie.  I thought I had come up with every variation known to man but I was inspired the other day to add rosemary …read more

There is nothing, and I mean nothing that will scent your kitchen up like Mole.  Not moles, silly, Moe-LAY.  Mole is a Mexican sauce that is so complex that it is unbelievable.  Your taste buds will be going nuts for hours trying to figure out all of the flavors they have taken in.  Sweet, spicy, warm, tangy….the list goes on and on in waves of flavor ecstasy.

Mole can be time consuming..but the best way to make this is in a slow cooker so that all the flavors meld together.  I like to stir in corn at the last minute but …read more