Landscape plans may be the furthest thing from your mind now that it’s autumn, but I say this is the perfect time. With incredible deals at local nurseries, you can get so much more bang for your buck—sometimes twice as much. My family has moved around a fair bit, and at each of our homes […]
Category Archives: Self-Health Survival Guides
09
Oct
Oct
Ask Chef Phyllis: I confess that I buy chicken breasts at the supermarket each and every week. I bake them, grill them, smother them in cream of mushroom soup, and overcook them in every way possible. I’m tired of them. I never buy whole chickens anymore, or other parts of the chicken except for wings […]
07
Oct
Oct
When the temperature cools and the leaves begin to change color, I always seem to get the urge to dust off my slow cooker. Not that it’s neglected at other times of the year—after all, what better way to keep your baked beans warm at the neighborhood cookout? But fall and winter are definitely the […]
03
Oct
Oct
Ask Chef Phyllis: By late summer, I have an abundant amount of zucchini from my garden, and most of the time by then my family is tired of eating it as a vegetable, in a soup, or from the grill. I know if you leave a not-so big zucchini just an extra day or two, […]
01
Oct
Oct
As we transition from the Indian summer days of September to the crisp autumnal days of October, I start to feel a strong hankering for comforting food. Nothing quite satisfies on a cool, blustery fall day like a bowl of piping hot soup. Most gastronomic historians will agree that the lineage of borscht (or borsch, […]
30
Sep
Sep
Fall is here, and along with the season comes one of the most versatile fruits out there, the apple. It’s easy to find an apple recipe for every eating occasion you can imagine, and for good reason. This ubiquitous, orb-like fruit is simply delicious—and it’s quite nutritious as well. What’s so great about apples? Let […]
24
Sep
Sep
Ask Chef Phyllis: Our life has changed ever since we found out that our daughter is gluten intolerant. We buy rice pasta and gluten-free flours, and we read every label in the supermarket. It makes me tired because I feel our favorite recipes all have to be redone. Some of our favorite soups are broccoli […]
23
Sep
Sep
With a name like buckwheat, it would be understandable to assume it’s a form of wheat. Right? Well, if you were to make this assumption, you’d be completely wrong. Turns out that buckwheat isn’t a grain, like wheat. It’s actually a fruit seed related to rhubarb. The fact that buckwheat is a seed rather than […]
17
Sep
Sep
With summer holidays well behind us and school back in full swing, all of a sudden it seems like dinner is once again an issue. I don’t know if it’s the shorter days or the extra activity that hits in the fall—probably a little of each. But every year around this time I find myself […]
16
Sep
Sep
One of most heated debates about food these days is whether or not organic food is more nutritious than conventionally grown. No matter what side of the fence you’re on, it’s easy to find a study that will support your perspective. In my mind, there are some basic, common-sense reasons why we should eat as […]
10
Sep
Sep
Ask Chef Phyllis: My husband is a hunter—mostly large game like deer, elk, and moose, which comprise much of our winter menus. I have a few large roasts and many packages of steaks, chopped meat, and stewing meat in the freezer. On weekends, I like to make a roast, but sometimes it’s dry. I need […]
09
Sep
Sep
It’s my birthday this week, and I tend to treat the day the way most people treat January 1st. This is the time when I reflect on what’s going exactly the way I want and what could use a little adjusting. I’ve always approached it from a whole mind-body-spirit angle since I truly believe that […]
03
Sep
Sep
As summer winds down, I invariably notice my appetite will start adapting to the shift in weather almost immediately. In that brief span of time in early fall, before the nights cool down and the leaves change color, I’ll find myself craving a crisp, refreshing salad one night and a much heartier meal the next. […]
02
Sep
Sep
Who doesn’t enjoy a sweet treat every once in awhile? I know my family does. While I don’t have baked goods around continuously, a really good chocolate chip cookie is one of my all-time favorite indulgences. And now that I know about various choices for healthy sweeteners, I feel better about indulging just a little […]
27
Aug
Aug
Ask Chef Phyllis: My Mom used to make chicken breast or veal cutlets with fresh sage leaves and prosciutto as a special dinner. She called it “saltimbocca,” which she said meant “jump in your mouth.” I don’t know about that, but I do know it’s an old Italian specialty from the Rome region where my […]
26
Aug
Aug
Around our house, ketchup is the king of condiments. My husband got hooked when he was in the Navy. Forced to eat the bland food they served on the aircraft carrier, he disguised the powdered eggs with ketchup. My boys adore the sweet, tomato-y flavor it adds to most anything. But for me, it’s just […]
20
Aug
Aug
With its dense texture and mild flavor, swordfish is a surefire hit on many a summer table. Even people who think they don’t like fish might be persuaded by its distinctly un-fish-like characteristics. Because of these traits, swordfish is perfectly suited for bold flavors that other, more fragile kinds of fish could simply not stand […]
19
Aug
Aug
Plants are amazing things. Not only can they provide us with delicious food, they’re pretty to look at too. I dare you to gaze at a patch of wildflowers and feel angry. Basic biology class filled us in on the life-serving purpose of plants. We exhale carbon dioxide, which they turn back into oxygen for […]
13
Aug
Aug
Ask Chef Phyllis: We recently celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary. A surprise gift from our children was a class at the famous Santa Fe cooking school, since I love to cook Southwestern foods. At the class, which was wonderful, we donned aprons and pitched in after our instructor made some regional appetizers and entrees. Guacamole, […]
12
Aug
Aug
Around these parts, a new school year is about to begin, and with it comes the discussion of what to do about lunches. I can count on both hands the number of times our boys have gone through the lunch line for their midday sustenance, but that doesn’t stop them from being completely fascinated by […]