Tag Archives: Brunch

Sweet Potato Home Fries

Posted on July 9, 2011 | Leave a comment

These sweet potato home fries make a perfect side dish as part of a warm breakfast.  They also go well with a Continue reading →

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Cheese and Chilies Pancakes

Posted on April 3, 2011 | 2 Comments

If you know Caitlin and me, you know that we love a good pancake.  You can find us at IHOP now and then, but for the most part, we prefer making our own.  And boy have we: from gingerbread to butternut squash to lemon ricotta.

From the sheer number of pancakes we make, you might think that pancakes hold a special place in our relationship.  You’d be right — I made banana sour cream pancakes for Caitlin on our first date (and in spite of my friends’ concerns about having a date in the morning).

So when Caitlin suggested Continue reading →

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Herb and Cheese Popovers

Posted on March 14, 2011 | 9 Comments

Popovers are one of my favorite things to make – and eat.  The only problem is that, right now, I’m usually cooking for one.  And it’s just not safe to leave me alone with warm popovers.  Indeed, the last time that happened, I wolfed down five vanilla eggnog popovers before noon.  I think I was able to save one for Caitlin, but I may be wrong.

This past Friday, I attended a pot-luck “dinner.”  Only instead of the usual dinner items, everyone was charged with bringing a brunch item.  There were donuts, scrambled eggs, french toast, more french toast, smoked salmon, bagels, and the like.

My contribution, naturally, was popovers.  Herb and cheese popovers to be exact.  I had been meaning Continue reading →

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Lemon Ricotta Waffles

Posted on February 8, 2011 | 4 Comments

I must have read Shoeless Joe sometime in grade school, no older than eight or nine.  At the time, I loved baseball and everything about it.  But even more than watching it or playing it, I enjoyed reading about the game.  Between all my baseball books, W.P. Kinsella’s debut novel held a special place on my young bookshelf.

Of all the great writers, from James Thurber to Ring Lardner, to have tried their hand at a baseball story, none captured the magic and drama of the game like Shoeless Joe.  And as wonderful as the book was, the movie adaptation Continue reading →

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Gingerbread Pancakes

Posted on January 16, 2011 | 15 Comments

Gingerbread pancakes are the perfect treat on a cold Winter weekend morning, when there’s nothing better than curling up on the couch, drinking your hot coffee, and folding over sections of the Sunday paper.

Caitlin and I grated some fresh ginger for these pancakes.  For a little extra touch, you can add some Confectioners’ sugar and top with a piece of pickled ginger.

And if you do decide to brave the cold, well at least Continue reading →

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Buttermilk Pumpkin Waffles

Posted on October 3, 2010 | 5 Comments

Pumpkin isn’t just a scary face anymore.

Pumpkins dominate the fall season, their faces appearing on billboards and plastic buckets, their representatives occupying porch steps and window sills.  When we think of pumpkin patches and Halloween, we have the Jack O’Lantern variety in mind.  And that’s too bad.  Pumpkins Continue reading →

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Baked Banana Oatmeal

Posted on June 7, 2010 | Leave a comment

Spare thoughts can reveal a lot.

Like anyone, my mind can often wander.  Sometimes it wanders to far-off and unknown places, which leaves me looking lost and confused.  These thoughts are stray thoughts, without any purpose or sense of direction.  These stray thoughts require a passing hand or snapping finger to direct my attention back to the well-worn path.

But other times, my mind moves with a sense of purpose.  Pushing past the brush and trekking towards a clearing.  More often than not, these directed thoughts focus on finding either legal or culinary clearing.

When I’m folding laundry or putting away dishes, my mind goes in one of two directions.  It goes Continue reading →

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Southern Cornmeal Pancakes

Posted on May 17, 2010 | 4 Comments

When I first started my blog, my goals were modest to say the least.  I hoped a few dozen people would visit my blog each day.  I hoped my blog could be featured within the first few pages of a Google search.  And above all, I hoped that someone I didn’t already know might leave an encouraging comment.

I’ve met each of my first two goals.  According to the blog administrator, my blog receives over a hundred page views each day.  The administrator also lists the search terms and hyperlinks that direct these individuals to the pages within my blog.  When I keyed some of these terms into Google, sure enough, there was my blog – and on the first page no less!

I’ve also met my third goal – and in exciting fashion.  For many months now, Continue reading →

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Quinoa Meal

Posted on April 2, 2010 | 6 Comments

Relationships are like cooking.  Just as recipes often require staple ingredients, so too are relationships built on certain foundational elements.  But, beyond the basics, the thrill of cooking resides for me in the unexpected combination of ingredients.  The way a sprinkling of cayenne pepper intensifies chocolate with its smoky spice.

Charles and I share many ingredients between us: a love of writing and cooking (and a sometimes bossy attitude in the kitchen!), a creative eye, an interest in obscure documentaries, the desire to wander new cities by foot, and the legal profession.  And while I cherish our similarities, my life has been enriched by our unique ingredients.  Charles was raised Jewish in New Orleans and with several siblings, whereas I grew up in Washington, D.C. as an only child from an Irish Catholic family.  Together, we’ve incorporated these traditions, yielding a flavor that is complex, new, and wonderful.

Last March, we tried our hand at hamantaschen in honor of Purim.  In December, amidst law school final exams, I enjoyed Continue reading →

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Chocolate-Chip Oatmeal Pancakes

Posted on March 15, 2010 | 2 Comments

For me, chocolate is a lot like Ben Affleck – it’s best in a supporting role.

Chocolate-chip cookies, chocolate croissants, and chocolate-chip blondies are definite draws.  Think Good Will Hunting, School Ties, and Mallrats.  But put chocolate in a starring role – chocolate cake, chocolate truffles, or chocolate pudding – and you have a Gigli or Daredevil in the making.

By my standards, these pancakes are well cast.  The chocolate chips meld into the oatmeal-buttermilk batter, giving a subtle performance, but one that adds to the overall production.  They don’t steal the scene, but rather, focus it.

We all know chocolate as a dessert, but it’s a role it often plays, and usually overplays.  But after making these pancakes, Continue reading →

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