Rhapsodic Variations on a Theme of Tabouli

Tabouli. Just saying it makes me want to sing--Ta-BOOL-ool-ool-li. This summer, I've been going rhapsodic on a theme of Tabouli. This dish feeds my creative need to compose--to augment, ornament, substitute and transpose. Beat-the-heat bonus: you can make it in the morning while the kitchen is cool and serve it later (that evening or the next day) right from the refrigerator.…

Taste of India–Rhode Island’s Best Tandoori Chicken

Taste of India on Wickenden Street serves exquisitely tasty New Delhi-style Indian Cuisine, and Rhode Island's best smokey-succulent Tandoori Chicken. Indian cuisine is among the most tantalizing, aromatic ways to enjoy healthful, nutritious Food, Glorious Food, If you love Indian flavors, and especially love the heady-rich New Delhi/Northern Indian preparations (we do!!) then You'll happily go out of your…

F is for Food, glorious food! living well, despite everything

Food," says Rosetta, owner of Rosetta's Kitchen in Asheville, NC, "is the physical embodiment of prayer."** ** in Soil and Sacrament: A Spiritual memoir of Food and Faith by Fred Bahnson Food nourishes us; it facilitates healing and creates community. All five of our senses are involved in the enjoyment of food. So how did food become such a problem…

Simply the best Rhode Island Stuffies

Stuffies are Vintage Rhode Island food. Quahog Clam Stuffing is to Rhode Island what Meat Loaf is to Iowa. Stuffies came into being in order to stretch 2 servings of clams into enough food for 6 people (and using up yesterday's stale bread is also clever). If you live on the coast and your supermarket…

Not your same old boring salad

Tired of your usual salad? This Arugula, Apple, Walnut salad with Ginger-Lemon-Dijon dressing is a sweet-tangy-spicy pick-me-up for your tastebuds. Bonus: it will ratchet up your energy-level, too. Salad Ingredients (per serving): 1/2 cup baby arugula 1/2 cup romaine or other lettuce, shredded 1/2 medium apple, cored, quartered and thinly sliced 1/4 stalk of celery, thinly…

a Winter Day in Providence: Thai lunch at Pakarang on South Main

We're spending a leisurely, fun winter day in Providence, Rhode Island: This article covers our second stop of the day, Pakarang Restaurant on South Main Street. We've worked up an appetite playing art gallery games at the RISD museum; let's eat. I favor family owned and staffed restaurants that consistently provide high-quality and delicious-tasting food for…

Braciola (Italian Beef Rolls in Tomato Sauce) for 2, prepared with love

Braciola is slow food--weekend fare for people who love to cook. I enjoy chopping the ingredients and pounding the meat. There is art in rolling the beef and stuffing, making neat little bundles of yum. Aromas tantalize while the beef tenderizes in the simmering sauce, increasing everyone's anticipation. Braciola is best when it's prepared with love.  Here's…

Yes, Brian, you really can bake your own French bread

The secret is patience. Love your dough and don't rush the process if you want your bread to love you back. It's a bit like child-rearing, only it doesn't take 18 years to raise a loaf. And it's a whole lot easier because bread is so much more predictable than a human being is. I'm…

The Queen’s Cranberry Relish, for a Royal Thanksgiving Feast

This English-style cranberry conserve (with nuts) is the bee's knees! My husband learned the chef business under Art Wood in the 1960's at the Wagon Wheel Lodge in Rockton, Illinois. Art cooked for the Queen--yes, yes, Elizabeth of England! I don't know whether he served  this to her, but he did serve it at the…

A Day of Eating Inexpensively on Federal Hill: Good News for starving artists, budget-minded tourists and skin-flint curmudgeons

Have no fear of Federal Hill, penny-pinchers! Tracy Lee Karner has sleuthed out food bargains just for you! You can follow my meal-plan and eat a lot of good restaurant food for $26 for the whole day (you need  to click here, to hear the mighty mouse theme song right now)! 9:00 Breakfast: Caffe Dolce…