Penne alla Cognac
I remember standing before the huge glass windows of Restaurant Taormina at a time when Mulberry Street in Manhattan’s Little Italy bustled and breathed. Our favorite waiter always sat us by those floor-to-ceiling windows, sometimes even squeezing a table into…
Apple Crisp
The trees in the Northeast hung onto their colorful leaves far longer than usual courtesy of a very rainy summer. Finally, pops of red, orange and yellow dance to the ground as the leaves are released from their branches. Now…
San Diego Salsa
It’s funny how the twist and turns of life can take you to places you may never have gone. If you frequent these destinations often, the familiarity breeds a sense of belonging. I spent so many summers at my parents’…
The Pembrooke’s Greek Burgers
If you want to take a detour from the traditional cheeseburgers served on the Fourth of July, these Greek burgers may be worth a try. They’re simple to prepare, and the flavor from the briny feta and creamy freshness of…
Peppers and Eggs
As a child, Fridays in Lent meant Stations of the Cross after a tuna sandwich lunch in the church basement. I can still cite the fourteen stations as well as become nauseated when recalling the incense that permeated the air…
Baked by Emma
Would it surprise you to know the most amazing custom cookies are produced in my hometown of Chatham, New Jersey, by a high school senior? Eighteen-year-old Emma Hartnett launched Baked by Emma in August 2021, after her cousin gave her…
The Pembrooke Tangerine Martini
This cocktail represents my favorite flavors of the season-orange, thyme and rosemary. It also pairs beautifully with sparkles, noise makers and Ould Lang Sine. Here’s to 2023. The Pembrooke Tangerine Martini 1/4 cup orange vodka 1/4 cup tangerine juice. (Tangerine…
Herbed Potato Chips
Chips or nuts have always paired perfectly with cocktail hour. It doesn’t take long to elevate them either. This simple recipe utilizes all the wonderful herbs of the season. Using ridged potato chips ensures the flavorful herbs adhere to the…
Stilton and Prosciutto
We’ve all fallen for the charcuterie board. The basic smoked meat and cheese appetizer has been elevated to masterful presentations boasting an array of cheese, fruit, breads, olives and slices of meat twisted and turned into flower-like petals. However, if…
Sparkling Thanksgiving Sangria
If the holidays were a track and field event, then Thanksgiving is the gunshot that starts the race. How better to begin the season than the way we will conclude it on New Year’s Eve….with bubbles. This sangria, with notes…
Dover Sole with Heirloom Tomatoes and Crispy Zucchini
For me, September marks the transitional month of the calendar. After all, the school year essentially symbolizes “a year in the life” from our childhood through our children’s youth until they graduate from college. Summer meant blissful freedom from the…
The Pembrooke’s Focaccia
Flashback 1997. For the past two weeks, upon my arrival at work, I am greeted by a tower of styrofoam containers set on the receptionist’s desk and the heavenly smell from the bacon that they hold inside. One of the…
A Taste of Asia Salad
I remember my mother bemoaning she “didn’t know what make for dinner this week” on many occasions. My sister, father and I offered ideas that were often dismissed by terse comments such as “I made that last week” or “We’re…
Sandwich Night at the U
Thank God for the sandwich. Think of the possibilities. From tuna melts to pastrami on rye to Italian subs to bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel to peanut butter and jelly on soft white bread, this meal can be…
Blue Devil Soft Tacos
You can’t get any easier than this one kids. My son made this dish when he was a student at Duke. The packaged pulled chicken or pork is already cooked, so you simply have to heat everything up. It’s the…
Stag Orecchiette
I consider the four years I spent at Fairfield University, one of the best times of my life. Those carefree days spent with friends who I still hold dear often included sharing meals. We ordered in, dined out and cooked…
Holy Cross Tortellini Soup
For the Students at the College of the Holy Cross, the winter months bring bitter cold weather to beautiful Mount St. James. Nothing warms the body like a hot bowl of soup. This super simple tortellini soup recipe is as…
Blue Hen Roast Chicken
I’ve often wondered how a simplistic thing like roasting chicken can be so utterly satisfying. This recipe for the students at University of Delaware uses chicken breast with the bone in. You can also use thighs or drumsticks, but the…
Arthur Avenue Panzanella Salad
My housemates and I ate dinner together almost every weeknight at our townhouse at Fairfield University. We each took turns cooking, and the meals we prepared provided more than nourishment; they were a window into our childhood and a nod…
The Pembrooke Nachos
Nachos are the ultimate ice breaker. One cannot be polite as your hands try to contain the triangular chips bathed in a myriad of messy toppings from chili to melted cheese to Pico de gallo. Immediately we notice who prefers…
Hot Peppers
Heat. It warms us on cold days, pours from our bodies in the form of sweat when we tax them, and embraces us when we walk from a cool air conditioned space into the sultry summer air. The feeling of…
Lemon Fettuccine
March marks my official adieu to winter. Fur pillows are packed up, stored in the attic and replaced by their pastel linen counterparts. Tulips fill vases around the house and the aroma of gardenia- and peony-scented candles permeates the air.…
The Pembrooke’s Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese
I find the purest love in comfort food. I remember tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches on meatless Friday nights in the winter when I was a girl. It’s a perfect pairing—the creamy smooth soup and the crunchy toasted bread…
Pear Salad with Truffle Oil
Perhaps one of the most romantic, precious gifts in the world is a pear. I think of the scene in The Godfather II when a dashing, but poor Robert DeNiro gives his wife a pear that she takes gently into…
The Pembrooke’s Thanksgiving Stuffing
I plant a sage plant in a large pot on my deck each summer. By late July, its soft gentle green leaves grow tall and peak inside my kitchen window reminding me of its presence and offering itself to pair…
Autumn Banana Bread
The utterly unique flavor of banana defies description. One could not call it sweet, nor tart. It’s the fruit devoid of juice with a texture that is only wonderful when eaten perfectly ripe. One of baby’s first foods, the banana’s…
Candy Sushi
When I finally landed a job as a fashion assistant, my young mind never thought about the uneasiness that would accompany it. Steaming clothes and packing shoe boxes with stilettos that never fit back into the box the same way…
Mussels with Tomato and Wine
My paternal grandmother refused to eat any fish with a shell referring to them as the “scum of the sea.” I could not understand her distain as often these dishes were the most expensive items on a menu. Indeed, shrimp,…
Lou’s Pink Squirrels
In early March, when the thought of being relinquished to our homes seemed incredulous, a group of neighbors gathered outside to chat. We joked that if liquor stores closed, we’d have to dust off the créme de menthe and peach…
Drew’s Bananas Foster
Thoroughbreds restaurant sits on the main drag known as Highway 17 in North Myrtle Beach where traffic perpetually crawls in the summertime because of the vacationers that descend upon this popular South Carolina shore. Our family has frequented this dining…
Pasta with Sausage, Tomato and Cream
Now our families gather around the kitchen table discovering each other again. There is no where to rush off to, and time stands still. The calm preparation of a meal feels foreign, but utterly wonderful. This recipe has been a…
Escarole and Bean Bruschetta
It is not uncommon to see escarole floating in my kitchen sink so the sand that stubbornly clings to its leaves drifts to the bottom. After a couple of hours soaking, the escarole is subjected to a vigorous rinse with…
Super Bowl Sunday Guacamole
Super Bowl Sunday, the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving—the quintessential American celebrations—so perfectly spaced out in the calendar year, represent not only an event, but a season. Football fan or not, who doesn’t embrace an excuse to party on a…
French Vinaigrette
The constant quest to elevate everyday meals cannot overtake the goal of keeping recipes as simple as possible. Flavored oils fill supermarket shelves, and I’ve made many myself over the years. They provide the essential time-saving tool for marinades and…
Pear Martinis
The journalist H.L. Mencken described the martini as “The only American invention as perfect as the sonnet.” Maybe that’s why the libation makes frequent appearances in Hemingway’s novels, and although it is never mentioned by name in The Great Gatsby,…
Tyler’s Potatoes
“I have made a lot of mistakes falling in love and regretted most of them, but never the potatoes that went with them.” —Nora Ephron The potato feeds the world. First cultivated by the Incas, the Spaniards discovered the treasure…
September Snack
My trip to the farmers’ market this morning provided the inspiration for this treat. Colorful summer bouquets were displaced by buckets of mums, and the last of the peaches were set to the side to make room for an abundance…
Snack
Snack time began at 10:15 AM at St. Cecilia’s elementary school. Only the first, second and third graders partook in the brief reprieve from schoolwork. Apparently, the nuns thought the fourth- through eighth-grade students were old enough to survive until…
Lou’s Whiskey Sours
I tasted my my first cocktail at the tender age of six—a wonderful whiskey sour in a high ball glass loaded with ice cubes. My parents only drank cocktails during the summer; the rest of the year belonged to wine…
Jersey Salsa
It is time. Sweet Jersey corn and the champion of the harvest—the Jersey tomato—have arrived. Husks are torn and silk is scraped away from the cobs as they are prepped to be submerged in boiling water or roasted on the barbecue.…
Spinach Salad with Warm Bacon Dressing
When I was in high school, Friday and Saturday nights meant driving up and down Route 46 in New Jersey with friends deciding where to stop for late-night snacking. We’d cram into booths at Friendly’s or diners after basketball games,…
Springtime Halibut
I recall the first meal I cooked for my husband Adam and myself when we moved into our first home—a simple marinara over spaghetti. It remains the most memorable meal of my life. We crouched down to eat it at…
Fennel & Orange Salad
The sharing of a meal with family and friends is truly one of my greatest pleasures. What is it about conversation combined with good food and wine that binds us? I recall with fondness the many family gatherings on holidays…
Chocolate
Miss Fitzpatrick, my seventh-grade teacher, who we endearingly referred to as “Miss Fitz,” stood about 4’10, had a mop of graying hair, a significant gap between her teeth, and more energy than all the kids in the school put together.…
Isabel’s Mac and Cheese
Isabel lived next door when my husband Adam and I bought our first home on quaint North Summit Avenue in Chatham, New Jersey. Isabel was friendly, yet never overt. Her clothes and jewelry were soft yet eclectic, always boasting magnificent…
Boursin
During my time as the managing editor of a local magazine, I worked closely with the art director Joe. While merging editorial and art, Joe and I became dear friends and confidants. Think Anne Hathaway and Stanley Tucci in The…
Friday Fish Salad
As a child, I never ate meat on Fridays. This was surely due to my parents’ Catholic upbringing when in their youth, the Catholic Church forbade meat consumption on Fridays. The reasons for this are somewhat muddled. It was most…
Fall Carbonara
I did not grow up eating brussel sprouts. Never once were they served at any meal, at any time in my childhood or adulthood. We Italians love our broccoli rabe and string beans with tomatoes and escarole, but a brussel…
