... build a sourdough starter from scratch! Friends, if you've ever wanted to build a sourdough starter from scratch or if you've tried in the past and failed, it's time to try again! We've had a glorious few days of sunny skies and warm weather here in Upstate New York, and my starter hasn't been happier in months. I'm not feeding it any differently; it's thriving simply because the temperature outside has risen. This got me thinking: if the weather here is finally looking bright (despite...
13 days ago โข 1 min read
Friends, hello. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend. We are back from Vermont, and I am missing sitting on my cousin's screened-in porch admiring the view. This week I worked on a rosemary-olive sourdough recipe (using this recipe as a base), and while it was a little heavy, it was very tasty. More on this soon: I also put together a little Mother's Day gift guide. A few things Iโm excited about include the seasonโs latest cookbooks as well as this bright blue tortilla press (so...
20 days ago โข 1 min read
Friends, hello from Vermont, where green mountains and dogs abound! We arrived at my cousin's house yesterday evening with dinner in tow for 20 people: four baked pastas (assembled but not baked), large-batch Caesar dressing with many bags of Romaine, focaccia, and two almond tortes, which my sister, who does not like to cook or bake, whipped up yesterday morning. We baked the pastas upon arrival, assembled the salad while the pasta baked, and warmed the focaccia while the pasta rested. It...
27 days ago โข 2 min read
Friends, good morning. As I type, snow is falling, the third time this week, and while I should not at all be surprised having lived in Upstate New York for a decade now, it's still, well, I don't know: disappointing? What is not disappointing is discovering that my favorite baked steel cut oatmeal can be made eggless (pictured above). As most of you know, I don't avoid eggs, but I often receive questions about replacing them in recipes, historically for allergy reasons but more recently for...
about 1 month ago โข 3 min read
Friends, hello. This hot cross bun recipe has lived on my site for years and as with many of my bread recipes, it has been tweaked numerous times. When I made the buns last year, I remember thinking they were a little too sweet and dense, and while my family still devoured them, I couldn't help but tweak them one last time. In sum: I've reduced the sugar from 1/2 cup to 1/3 cup (gram measurements, of course, are included). I've added the zest of one clementine (or orange) and then,...
about 1 month ago โข 1 min read
Friends, hello. A few weeks ago, I revisited Jim Lahey's N0-Knead Bread Recipe. It was the 5th recipe I ever blogged about it, and in the nearly 20 years of making it, I hadn't strayed from the original recipe. But something I've been doing with nearly all of my bread and pizza dough recipes since writing Pizza Night is this: 30 to 60 minutes after mixing the dough (a period that allows the gluten to relax and the flour to fully hydrate), I perform one set of stretches and folds. It doesn't...
about 1 month ago โข 2 min read
Nearly 20 years ago, I had my first taste of really good corn tortillas. I was in San Francisco for a wedding, and after a morning a run โ those were the days! โ Ben and I stumbled upon the Ferry Building Farmers Market and specifically the Primavera stand, where a very long line suggested maybe we should hop in it. We did, and about 30 minutes later, we were eating the best chilaquiles โ maybe the best meal โ of our lives. To this day, I cannot visit San Francisco (if I'm there on a Saturday...
about 2 months ago โข 2 min read
Friends, hello! This week I spotted champagne mangoes at the market, and I couldn't resist buying them. I have been on a corn tortilla-making kick and having fresh salsa to pair with our tacos sounded so nice. Friends, it was! I haven't made this recipe in ages, and it was such a treat to have on hand โ so bright, so refreshing, such a welcomed contrast to the food and flavors we've been subsisting on all winter long. My children gobbled it up... And I enjoyed leftovers on my breakfast tacos,...
about 2 months ago โข 1 min read
Friends, hello! A week ago, I shared this sandwich bread recipe, and the most frequently asked question I've received since is: Could I make the loaf using whole wheat flour? I respond as I always do: Yes, you can, but keep in mind two things: 1.) the more whole wheat flour you use, the less lofty your loaf will be. 2.) Depending on the flour you are using, your bread might not necessarily be more nutritious. Why? It has to do with the milling. Most commercial flour on the market is made from...
2 months ago โข 2 min read