Author: J.M. Hirsch
-
Mastering homemade teriyaki sauce with 5 delicious recipes
If you’re still using teriyaki sauce from a bottle, you’re doing it all wrong. I didn’t set out to master DIY teriyaki sauce, but my 11-year-old suddenly started craving the stuff. Not even sure where he ate it that it was so good to inspire almost nightly requests. But knowing how simple this potent sweet-…
-
Chocolate and chicken? Yes, with this amazing mole sauce!
Don’t be fooled into thinking mole (pronounced mole-EH) is only a Mexican chocolate sauce. To start with, though it is rich and decadent, it is savory, not sweet. In fact, depending on how it is made, it can pack significant heat. Most varieties involve some sort of ground nuts or seeds, which give these sauces…
-
Mix up your hummus game with carrot puree topped with lamb
Entertaining should not be about fuss or pomp. I want my focus to be on my guests. And on making sure the food packs tons of satisfying flavor. Not much beyond that matters, which is why I tend to gravitate to a version of family-style dining. Here’s how it works. I start with a base.…
-
Want an easy, festive Christmas dinner? You want beef roast
It’s the malleability of Christmas dinner that can make it so challenging to plan. Which is to say, choice can be intimidating. At Thanksgiving, it’s about turkey. Valentine’s Day demands chocolate. Easter? Ham or lamb. And Fourth of July is burgers and dogs. But Christmas doesn’t enjoy a similar association that presets the menu. When…
-
For all your gift giving needs – The best food books of 2015
Have you ordered your copy of the latest five-ingredient-paleo-gluten-free-Nordic-kale smoothie cookbook yet? Me either. You know why? Because nobody outside hipster man bun-loving enclaves in Brooklyn and Los Angeles actually eats that way. Just don’t tell the publishing industry, which forever seems to trip over itself to get into ink whatever outrageous culinary fad crosses…
-
Finally! A US-made hard cider that’s actually worth drinking
BOSTON – There was a day not so long ago when this country had squat to offer as far as hard ciders. And for those of us who came of age on this deliciously dryly-sweet boozy beverage, it kind of sucked. Having spent my university years in Scotland, I took advantage of many a pint…
-
Still no cranberry sauce fan? Maybe bacon will convert you
Admittedly, I’m a bit of a freak when it comes to cranberry sauce. Nonetheless, I can’t help but think there is something seriously disturbed about people who claim not to like it. What is there to dislike? Whether from a can or homemade with loving care, cranberry sauce is sweet, tangy, a little spicy and…
-
A simple Cuban marinade can add big punch to easy oven fries
Most of the foods we eat pass our lips and leave not even a fleeting memory. Most foods. But then there are those that linger not only on our tongues, but in our minds. Perhaps by association of a time or place or person, or simply by the power of their own deliciousness. Somehow these…
-
A flank steak Frito pie fit for feeding a summer crowd
This is one of those recipes that feels a little trashy, but it’s so good you won’t care. In case you haven’t heard of it, Frito pie is a thing. It happens to be particularly popular in the South and Southwest. The most basic versions of this utter comfort food heap hot chili and cheese…
-
The tips you need to navigate another year of packed lunches
There was a time when a lunch box was simply that, a box into which your parents packed your lunch. For many years they were metal and came emblazoned with your favorite cartoon or movie characters, as well as a matching thermos. By the ’80s, metal was passe, making way for plastic. But the basic…