Category: Uncategorized

What’s A Turnip Got to Do with Halloween? Or Rutabagas, Beets, and Gourds, for That Matter?

October 31, 2013

Folklore or fakelore, the general consensus seems to be that the Irish who came to America brought their custom of carving turnips for All Hallows Eve. They must grow large turnips in the sod over there! Lacking a turnip, rutabagas, beets, or gourds would also do. Delicious legend, that’s what started the practice of carving … More What’s A Turnip Got to Do with Halloween? Or Rutabagas, Beets, and Gourds, for That Matter?

Halloween, It’s More Than Just a Martha Stewart Recipe

October 29, 2013

I confess, I love Halloween, it’s so pagan in its roots that I know that I am seeing vestiges of ancient practices. People associated many different foods with the holiday, not just pumpkins. A little shiver of pleasure runs through me as I think of those customs coming down to us from the past, visible … More Halloween, It’s More Than Just a Martha Stewart Recipe

Julia Child’s “The French Chef, ” by Dana Polan

July 17, 2012

“a history of early American television telescoped through the persona and history of Julia Child. . . . fascinating . . .” When you walk the streets of Cambridge, Massachusetts, you can’t miss the lingering traces of heroes and history. From the names of the men who brought you the Boston Tea Party to the … More Julia Child’s “The French Chef, ” by Dana Polan

Lemons – Tiny Cathedrals of Gold

April 6, 2011

Lemons, their pitted, nay, prehistoric, skins secreting golden oil, Shielding sourness, evoking memories of a grandmother’s kitchen, A grandfather’s garden. Born in the East, fruitful India, A kiss of cold, albeit fleeting, spawns the yellow Immortalized  in stone, paint, and clay. A fruit reverenced, Blossoming from mountain and lake, Urging cooks to slice, pierce, and … More Lemons – Tiny Cathedrals of Gold