Iconic Food
Want to separate an Authentic Philly Cheesesteak from the also rans, the fakes, the me-toos, the inedible and the downright despicable? Read on. For me the cheesesteak’s claim to true greatness has always been its ability to withstand all efforts to gentrify it. It is a trencherman’s lunch,
Kitchen Tools
Ask any inveterate professional or serious amateur cook about their favorite (tool(s) in the kitchen and you will get myriad and disparate answers. Actual tools rank high of course. Almost all of mine are ancient, handed down to me from my mother and grandparents. Nothing quite like my black
Neighborhood
In today's America, where urban and rural are indistinguishable, the idea of a “neighborhood” is difficult to conjure. Life in the Fifties, in the microcosm called a neighborhood went on relatively undisturbed as the unseen commonalities that held us all together proved impenetrable to outside influences. Ritual prevailed.
Newsletter
It is always with a bit of chagrin and bewilderment when I come across the term “secret sauce” when I read an article about food and restaurants. Is it an actual sauce that chefs use to give their food the appeal that draws customers and acolytes? Or is it the
Wine
My family fed me wine at the dinner table at an age that would summon family services today in a blink. Not just dainty store-bought ersatz chablis but hard-core dago-red (most Italian winemakers accept that term as a legitimate description of what they make every Fall). My grandfather made his
Recipe
This dish is an Italian-American invention that most likely originated in the Mid-Atlantic region around the Chesapeake Bay. The Chesapeake Blue Crab makes a fish sauce that, in my opinion, and the opinion of many, is unparalleled for fish sauce across all cultures. My father and two uncles kept a
Recipe
I made the bread pictured. My grandmother made this bread twice a week. Even after a stroke compromised much of dexterity of her right arm.It has all the characteristics of Italian bread which is different than equally wonderful French bread. While French bread has a signature glass-like crispness, italian
Recipe
Use fresh Mission figs just as they are turning deep purple and are soft
Newsletter
The Wizardry of the Peasant Cook
Paris
When in Paris...
Business
I root for the restaurant community in Baltimore
Coffee, Bussiness
A Cautionary Tale