Episodes

In the heart of Cleveland, OH, sits a non-descript house in an equally non-descript working-class neighborhood. It’s a home with a famous past and a legendary leg lamp lighting the front window. It’s the house where the movie “A Christmas Story” was filmed. The Christmas Story House After years of disrepair it’s been restored to its previous glory and is now open for tours year ‘round. A few years ago, I was delighted to be summoned to Cleveland for a week long series of business meetings e...

With roots that date back to the times of Attila the Hun and the fall of the Roman Empire, this delicious dish is a modern day favorite. Today, let’s explore the history of meatloaf. Going Back to the Start – The History of Meatloaf Let’s travel back in time to the fifth century. This time is rich with migration, political frenzy, and discovery. In the midst of all the chaos, the Roman cookbook “Apicius” is published. One of the recipes in the book is a concoction of chopped meat, wine, and...

The festive holiday months are upon us and with them comes some of my favorite things – family, fun, and food. So, if you’re looking for a dish to catch eyes and please palates, make my scrumptious goat cheese and sage stuffed mushrooms for your holiday soiree! A Stuffed Mushroom Dish for Your Next Soiree I know that in my family, finding just the right dish for a family holiday gathering can sometimes be a challenge. Why? Because you need to choose a dish that nobody else is bringing, but wil...

Lions’ Manes, Porcinis, Maitakes, oh my! Let’s get to work understanding the mushroom: from lowly fungus to nutrition powerhouse. Don’t Let the Misconceptions Scare You Away Mushrooms can catch a bad rap. I know that whenever I was young and these weed-like toadstools would appear in my front yard, my mother told me to stay away. Why on earth would I eat them now? It is true that some species of mushrooms aren’t to be eaten. But there are tons more that are delicious. And they are full of nutr...

Lying in the hallway of the emergency room, the policeman who had worked my wrecked leaned over me and said, “You know you’d be dead if you hadn’t been wearing your seatbelt.” This moment helped me learn about giving thanks on thanksgiving. Life’s Surprising Moments Are Not Always Pleasant Following a collision from behind on the freeway, my 2000 4- Runner was airborne with my back wheels leaving the pavement and the body of the car lifting up and to the left. My youngest daughter Hannah and I...

Whether it’s the sip of wine, the whiff of a favorite dish, or the laughter of a cherished relative, we all retain special memories of times together in the kitchen and at the table. Let’s look at some of the ways that no experience in life equals cooking and the satisfaction of engaging all your senses in that special experience. Remembering The Aroma Of Dinner I still remember the aroma of my mom frying steak for the evening meal. And of walking into our home on a blazing hot Texas afternoon...

If you want to enjoy a dessert that boasts the sweet and warming flavors of fall, pumpkin cake is just the treat for you! The Popularity and Prevalence of Pumpkin Spice Pumpkin is the star of the show in the fall. Everywhere you go something is flavored with pumpkin spice, or something pumpkin or other. The name “pumpkin spice” might seem misleading – are they really using pumpkin in all those desserts and drinks? What exactly is pumpkin spice? Thanks to the the marketers of all things con...

Jackets aren’t your only defense against the chilly autumn air – seasonal foods and beverages can also offer warmth and comfort. Familiar scents can evoke strong feelings. The part of our brain that processes smells, also stores memories and emotions. The scent and taste of fall spices can help you feel connected to past seasons, people, and events that you cherish. Here are the Top Five Spices for Fall Cooking Cinnamon. It’s a classic spice that adds a bit of sharpness with its sweetness. ...

It’s been said you are what you eat. And what you eat, how you eat, where, and with whom speaks volumes about your life. Establish the culture of your family at the table. Food and Culture Have Always Been Connected Throughout history and around the world, food and culture have been connected. For example, Mediterranean cultures brought us diets rich in healthy oils, lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, vegetables, herbs, and spices. Asian cultures bring rice, noodles and fish to the table...

Don’t let the name wild rice fool you – you can certainly tame this delicious grain and use it to create dishes your family will love, such as wild rice with butternut squash and leeks! Embracing a North American Grain Staple Wild rice is actually a semi-acquatic grass, one of two commonly eaten grains that are native to North America. The other is corn. Most wild rice consumed in the US comes from Great Lakes region. The Health Benefits of Wild Rice Bring wild rice into your kitchen to ma...

Ready for some fascinating facts about pigs? Behold the pig, the common swine, the barnyard hog. A most amazing animal. When we think of pigs, we usually think of bacon, ham, and pork chops. Lots of other images come to mind, too: Porky and Peppa from cartoons, Wilbur from Charlotte’s Web, and, of course, Miss Piggy from the muppets. What do we really know about pigs? Yet what do we really know about pigs? Livestock experts and other scientists have discovered that this multi-purpose animal ...

As Homer Simpson’s daughter Lisa confirmed and Homer discovered, bacon, ham, and pork chops do indeed come from the same animal, a magical, wonderful animal. The pig! European Explorers Brought Pork To The Americas You can draw a curly line from the pigs brought to our shores by the Europeans. Explorers to your latest backyard barbeque. Christopher Columbus took eight pigs as far as Cuba in 1493. But it’s explorer Hernando de Soto who’s considered the “father of the pork industry” in the Un...

Both crooners, Tony Bennett and Dean Martin sang “Just In Time” a hot tune that filled the airwaves in the late 50s and early 60s. With a song on our lips, a rumble in our tummies and with the workday behind us, we ask ourselves, “what’s for dinner?” For most, too often the answer is eat out, take out, or drive through. Let’s talk about “just in time cooking.” What do you have on hand? The better answer is this: It’s called “just in time cooking”. It’s the perfect answer to the weeknight prep...

The potato isn’t just an afterthought of what to serve with roast beef! Thankfully, however, the humble potato is getting recognition for the magnificent role it has played in the history of civilization. The Humble Beginnings Slicing their way through the jungles of South America, Spanish explorers came to the Andes Mountains, the longest mountain range in the world. It was there that these explorers ‘discovered’ an ancient food that was new to them! However, it had been cultivated among the...

So, you want to have some friends over and do something a little different and a lot of fun. Put on the song, “Mashed Potato Time” by DeeDee Sharp or “(Do The) Mashed Potato by James Brown and dance your way to a potato party. What’s a potato party? It’s one of two things. It’s an easy customizable weeknight meal where everyone gets their potato exactly the way they want it, or it’s an easy way to entertain guests on the weekend. Either way, potates are the main attraction. Potato Party Bu...

Eyes front and center! It’s time to talk about tubers and that all-time favorite, the baked potato. It’s a classic and a great side dish to countless main courses. It can even be the main course itself! Let’s learn how to bake a potato like a pro. The Ideal Baking Potato Potatoes are the world’s fourth largest food crop. The were cultivated first in Peru, then made a round trip across the ocean to Spain and back again to the Americas. Today, Idaho is the largest producer of potatoes but didn...

As the saying goes, “You have to break a few eggs to make a good omelet”. And it usually involves more than just eggs. While French is the origin of its name, the egg concoction that we know as an omelet has a history that’s as cloudy as the whites of a very fresh egg. (Yes, cloudy egg whites means an egg is as fresh as you can get it.) The Legend Legend says that Napoleon Bonaparte while in the south of France feasted on an omelet prepared by a local cook. He enjoyed it so much that he orde...

How To Buy Eggs Well, which came first? The chicken or the egg? It’s an age-old question, and once you decide, there’s still much more to ponder. The biggest question you might be asking is how to buy eggs at the grocery store? Is there anything that you need to know about these essential cooking items? First, let’s talk about chickens. Chickens First Crossed The Ocean The Egyptians and Chinese tended to fowl for their eggs as early as 1400 B.C. The Europeans domesticated chickens as early ...

Want to improve your health with a food that can keep you young and taste good, too? Let me introduce you to one of my favorite fresh herbs, basil. Besides being very aromatic, the flavors of this tasty herb that’s also a member of the mint family can range from clove to citrus. The King of Herbs Known as the “King of Herbs”, ancient Egyptians used it for embalming their mummies and the Greeks viewed it as a symbol of mourning. And it’s been cultivated for more than 5,000 years. Basil wears...

Basil Pesto Basil pesto. A pride courses through the soil of the northern Italian region of Liguria and specifically the city of Genoa. Do you know why? It’s the region that gave birth to that wonderfully homey sauce most of us know simply as pesto. Traditional Pesto Made Is Made With a Mortar and Pestle The word pesto comes from the Italian verb “pestare“, meaning to crush or pound. That’s because traditional pesto was made by grinding garlic and pine nuts together with parmesan cheese a...

How to choose a quality olive oil. What items do you keep in your pantry as a must have to help you answer the most important question you ask everyday, “What’s for dinner?”? One pantry staple I recommend is olive oil. Olive Oil is an Ancient Oil With Growing Demand It’s ancient oil that has been used for centuries in cuisine and medicine, and for health benefits. The United States is the third largest consumer of olive oil in the world and demand is growing. When you go to the grocery sto...

Sweet Summer Corn The next time you’re in a car driving down the middle-of-a-nowhere-road, surrounded by beautiful corn fields, allow yourself to daydream about running through those tall stalks. With a hypnotic affect, corn fields spark imagination like in the movie Field of Dreams when Shoeless Joe Jackson and his old pals called to Kevin Costner’s character, “build it and they will come”. Wrapped inside its green-hued husks with top-hanging silky tassels is one of summer’s simple pleasures...

My parent’s home is a hop, skip, and a jump away from me which has always been convenient when I was hungry. My dad loved it when I stopped in and I loved it when they had leftovers. Lest you think I am a total mooch, I didn’t always forage for food when I visited their home. But I loved it when I found some creamed corn! Leftovers Rock, Especially The Creamed Corn Once following a workout at the gym, I stopped in and scored a delicious, complete meal, ready and waiting in the fridge for a qui...

If summertime is a bookshelf, we reach the second bookend on Labor Day. President Grover Cleveland signed the legislation that declared Labor Day a national holiday in 1894. Its purpose was to take a break from work and to celebrate those who labor. And work we do. Which is why, this Labor Day, I invite you to spend time doing nothing, which is really something! We Are A Nation of Overworked Workers In the 1950s scholars wondered what workers would do with all their leisure time given the pace...