Apple picking is one of my favorite things to do all year, and is practically a mandate in New England. But sometimes, after you’ve eaten all you can, and you’ve made a pie, you’re still looking at a bunch of apples. Or maybe going picking with your little ones left you with some less-than-perfect specimens. It’s time to make applesauce. In my opinion, there is no better way to make applesauce than in the crockpot. All of its usual virtues apply here: the low, constant heat that prevents scorching, the lid that keeps all the moisture in, the long, unattended cooking time work together to make…

Now that school is back in session, I spend the first few groggy minutes of each day filling small, earth-polluting plastic bags with mass-produced, chemical-laden snacks. I don’t feel great about it, so I’m always looking for ways to substitute something homemade in the lunch bags. I do alright with the main part of the lunch and the fruit or vegetable, and I can make muffins or something for the morning snack, but the kids really want something salty and crunchy to go with their sandwiches. Homemade crackers are really easy to make, especially if you have a food processor. It’s simple dough…

So yesterday, I was reading a blog post about breakfast doldrums (no, I am not kidding) and somebody casually mentioned in the comments section that they just love Dutch babies, and pretty soon everyone agreed that Dutch babies are just the best breakfast that can be had.  “What?!?!” I shouted to my empty house, “I’ve never even heard of Dutch babies!” Sure enough, when I googled it, pages and pages of recipes appeared. Would you like to know what they are? Well, my friends, a Dutch baby is a kind of baked pancake, like a cross between a crepe and a popover, but easier to make than either. …

Happy Labor Day weekend! Even though the kids are back to school already, we’re all still celebrating the traditional final weekend of summer with cookouts, right? If you’re looking for something to take along to a party or make for your own, there are a lot of recipes right in past editions of this column that would be appropriate. (Click on the links for coleslaw, pasta salad, salad dressing, broccoli salad, black bean salsa, pico de gallo, fruit salsa, cobbler, chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes, sangria.) But the classic holiday cookout side dish has to be potato salad. I like all kinds of …

I guess I’m not really done talking about tomatoes yet! Pico de gallo (sometimes called salsa cruda or salsa fresca) is a kind of salsa that is made with all raw ingredients. It’s good to eat as-is, or as a component of another dish. Typically it has tomato, onion and chile peppers in relatively even proportions, but I like mine a little heavier on the tomato, particularly at this time of year, when tomatoes are so delicious. Even if you don’t use all three components in even proportions, they are still of equal importance, so choose each carefully. You can use any hot pepper you like, …

It’s special guest star time again! My mother-in-law is a great cook, who spoils everyone in the family with their favorite dishes. Potato pancakes are mine (well, one of mine) and she made them last time we visited. She learned how to make them from her mother, and like all recipes handed down between people who know how to cook, there aren't a lot of specifics in the directions. So I took the opportunity to watch them being made, and asked a lot of questions. Unless you come from a large family, you will probably be surprised at the amount of batter you see prepared here. (It made about 4 …

Tomatoes are here! There is no other food that more clearly illustrates the difference between in-season, farmstand fruits and vegetables and year-round, well-traveled supermarket produce. It’s just not worth eating tomatoes the rest of the year, so you should get your fill in the now. Besides tomato sandwiches, here are two great ways to enjoy tomato season. These recipes only take a few minutes to make, so wait until the last minute to put them together. Caprese Salad: Tomato, basil, and fresh mozzarella is a classic flavor combination. You’ll find these flavors together on pizza, pasta, …

Let me tell you a little story. I saw this recipe online over two weeks ago and decided to make it right away, since I had just returned from the market with an entire watermelon. I wasn’t fast enough, however, and my watermelon-crazy family ate the entire thing before I got a chance to begin. No problem, I bought another one the next day. Then they polished that one off. And so on. For over two weeks. Finally, when I purchased yesterday’s watermelon, they only ate half, so I swung into action. I made sure to take pictures, in case I don’t get an opportunity to hold a half a watermelon in my …

All of the things we love about summer can sometimes wreak havoc on our dinner plans. Late days at the pool or beach can lead to last minute panic: What am I going to make for dinner? Kids being out with friends or having friends over can lead to uncertainty over how many people you will be feeding and when. It’s a huge help to plan flexible meals, because you can really only eat so many hot dogs. Grilled pizza is a great candidate. I don’t usually advocate using convenience foods, but I am using store-bought flatbread here. I make my own dough for regular pizza, but I love the idea of …

I am a big fan of salsa. It combines my love of salads and dip all in one beautiful bowl. Even better, it gives me cover for eating chips for lunch. But I have already discussed the virtues of cutting up produce and mixing it up in a bowl here, here, and here, so let’s talk about choosing fruit. Make it colorful: Try to represent as many colors as possible. Here are some ideas: Red strawberries, cherries or watermelon, orange/yellow cantaloupe, peaches, mango or pineapple, green kiwi or melon. Think about texture: I always add an apple to give the salsa a little crunch. Watermelon would …

Broccoli’s back, folks! We’ve had a little fun on vacation with dessert and champagne, but I’m starting to feel the sugar overload and I’m ready to get back to salads. This is one of my favorites, and it’s my go-to potluck recipe. If you invite me to your party, chances are this is what I’ll bring. Like every salad recipe, you can make of this what you will. My mom made a similar salad when I was a kid that used bacon and shredded cheddar instead of the craisins and blue cheese, and it was one of my favorites even then. (It was certainly the only way I would eat broccoli!) You could add peas …

I spent last week at a large and boisterous family reunion in Florida. I got to see relatives I rarely see, and I ate lots of great food that I can’t wait to try to re-create at home. Amid all the eating and drinking and reminiscing, my cousin Terri kept churning out pitchers of her delicious, fizzy sangrias. I won't tell you how many gallons she ended up making, but these drinks proved to be the perfect antidote to the wilting Florida heat. I was so enamored of these two punches that I grabbed my camera and followed her into the kitchen so I could bring these recipes back for you. A few …

Happy Fourth of July weekend! We are at the beginning of the best time of year for food. For the next couple months, each week brings an embarrassment of riches in local farmstands and produce departments. Sometimes, though, you will (okay, I will) get a little overzealous and end up with too much fruit that is ripening faster than you can eat it. Such was the case with my peaches this week. While I usually just cut up the fruit and freeze it for smoothies, I was looking for something different this week, and came across this recipe in USA Today. Given that it is the Fourth of July, I’m going…

I've mentioned it before, but most of my favorite things to make in the summer fall into the broad category of salads, which includes all manner of chopped up produce mixed in a bowl. I make up a batch at the beginning of the week and eat it for lunch, or take it to cookouts. The fresh produce season is short in New England, and we should all try to make the most of it! Even though I have called this "salsa," don't feel like you are limited just to eating it with chips. If you have of bowl of this in your fridge, you will find lots of ways to eat it. It can be eaten as a side dish, or mixed …

Everybody likes banana bread, and nothing makes the house smell better. But do you know how fast and easy it is? The rain on Friday forced me to change my planned column (which was to be cooked on the grill) at the last minute. Unfortunately, we were headed out of town for the weekend and had almost no food in the house. With my deadline looming, I scanned my kitchen for supplies, and found three speckled bananas in the fruit bowl. Just fifteen minutes later, I had banana bread in the oven. You could do it even faster, since you probably don't take pictures of your food while you cook. I use …

The heat has definitely arrived. Once it gets past 85 degrees in my un-air-conditioned kitchen, I don’t cook dinner. I either grill outside or - if it’s really hot - we eat cold food. Pasta salad is good in either case because you can do your cooking in the morning, before it gets too hot, and keep it in the fridge until dinner. It’s also a good way to use up odds and ends in your fridge. And it’s a popular and versatile dish to bring along to a cookout. Because I was making this for my daughter to bring to a potluck pool party, this particular combination of ingredients was chosen for its …

It’s finally that time of year. When it’s hot, and the kids are home from school and the weekends are filled with cookouts, you probably start buying a lot more beverages. This will cost you extra money, and add lots of sugar to your diet. But if you make them yourself they can be pretty cheap, and adding your own sugar will cut back on the calories. (Trust me, you will never put as much sugar in your own drink as they put in store -or coffee shop- bought ones.) Keep these on hand to save yourself money and control the ingredients. Simple Syrup: Don’t you hate adding sugar to your iced coffee…

Whenever we visit my brother John, as we did a few weeks ago, my kids request that he make them ribs. Because he’s such a generous uncle, he always complies. And because he’s such a generous brother, he let me take pictures while he made them so I could share the process with you. (Aren’t I nice to let him feed my kids and do my work for me?) Now, please bear in mind that we are New Englanders. If you are from Memphis or Texas (or Kansas City or North Carolina), you are bound to find something blasphemous here. I would ask you just to avert your eyes, and enjoy one of our other fine articles …

I grew up on the North Shore, the land of fried seafood platters, where coleslaw is ubiquitous and homemade. It can certainly vary in quality, but it’s almost never that awful watery stuff that comes out of a big food service tub. If your only experience with coleslaw consists of gingerly removing that plastic cup from the side of your plate, I urge you to give this recipe a fresh look. Like most things I enjoy making, coleslaw (which just means “cabbage salad”) can be reinterpreted as lots of different shredded salads, so find your favorite. I’ll get you started with the most basic recipe, …

Much like our old friend hummus, tabouli is a staple of the Middle Eastern table, where it is served at almost every meal. True Lebanese tabouli is a parsley-based salad, while what you find in the supermarket is mostly bulgur (cracked wheat). I like it either way, so I tend to let the size of the parsley bunch I buy dictate the proportion. You should make it according to your taste, but if you grow herbs, this will be a great way to use them when they start growing out of control. Bulgur can be found in any supermarket these days, usually near the rice, but sometimes in the ethnic food aisle…