I recently discovered annatto seeds (I love cooking with unusual ingredients) and made a spice rub for grilling shrimp. They were so delicious I made them twice in one week!
Find my recipe on The Gourmet Food Blog at Dean & DeLuca.

Tapenade is one of those items I love having in my refrigerator for snack time. Because I work at home, it just makes sense to have dips and things around for quick lunches. And it’s so incredibly easy to make. What’s funny is that years ago I detested olives. That is until I tasted tapenade. [...]

How to feed a toddler? She will not eat carrots, mashed potatoes or apples, typical toddler food. She does not like plain, unseasoned food…even her oatmeal must have cinnamon sprinkled on top. Her chickpeas must be swimming in some sort of curry. No wonder: she is my daughter, all of 2 (almost), and she most [...]

What a joy to have warm, homemade flatbread (dusted with with nigella seeds, an unusual spice) to enjoy with two of my favorite dips: tzatziki and sweet potato/chickpea (both pictured above). Although it takes some time for the dough to rise, flatbread is otherwise very simple to make. Also great plain (or with a dab [...]

At A Voce Columbus Circle, after marveling at the verdure, their stellar small vegetable dishes meant as appetizers, I realized how convenient it would be to keep such snacks in my refrigerator either for lunch or to appeases those hunger pangs when I’m super busy and can’t cook. And though I am not able to [...]

Titan Foods in Astoria is one of my favorite shops for Greek goodies, but I can’t believe I used to drive all the way there to buy tzatziki when it’s so incredibly easy to make. (But please do visit the store for other things, like the large variety of feta cheese and olives). I even [...]

Mustard cream is one of my favorite sauces for salmon. I absolutely love the flavor of mustard, its pungency and the way it adds a bite to the cream. And any time you have mustard and cream, you have to add wine and shallots. They all just work together so nicely over the mildness of [...]

What do to with the tagine I bought at Sur La Table that’s been sitting in my cabinet for way too long? Make the eponymous dish of course. What I love most about tagines is that you can easily get creative making them. For example, I hate raisins, and though a lot of tagine recipes [...]

In my vain attempt to get Miss Toddler S to eat a wider variety of vegetables, I’ve opted to make quick pasta dishes like this one, which includes escarole and white beans—one of my favored combinations. Though the rotini topped with the most grated parmesan trumped, for the most part, the vegetables, she’ll have plenty [...]

Here is a warm, spicy soup for this cold, wintry day. And as much as I hate peanut butter (people are often surprised that this is one of the few foods I detest), for some strange reason I actually like it when it appears in a recipe. Since I am not a peanut butter connoisseur, [...]