As we visit other cultures on our travels we become inspired by the intense flavors and unique traditions. Even those of us who have zero experience in the kitchen sometimes find ourselves feeling bold enough to attempt a Moroccan or Indian recipe. In a way, the flavors bring back memories of our travels and celebrate those cultures. It's always fun, but not necessarily easy to find the spices you need—and when you do find Read More
Taste Manhattan Beach – Award Winning Breakfast
I adore Manhattan Beach. One of my other loves is breakfast / brunch. Seriously, what's not to love about sunshine and a brilliant spread of waffles, veggie omelets, blueberry or banana pancakes and fresh fruit? Where am I going with this? Saturday morning breakfast in Manhattan Beach at Uncle Bill's Pancake House. Sit on the patio of this house built in 1908, soak up the ocean-air, sipping your OJ and have one of Read More
Sweet & Savory Recipe: Moroccan Bastilla the Easy Way
When I started getting interested in cooking, I signed up for a local cooking class with my mom. The only class available was for Moroccan cuisine. Not only did I have no idea what Moroccan cuisine was, I had never cooked a meal in my life. Heck, I even screwed up boiling eggs. It was the New School of Cooking in Culver City, and we turned out several yummy Moroccan dishes. I was surprised. One dish stood out as my Read More
Homemade Limoncello is a Success!
I found out a few years ago that my family has a recipe for making Limoncello. I recently took the plunge and made my first batch. After 60 days in the making I'm very happy it was a success! My limoncello has gotten rave reviews from all who have tried it; it even won a taste test against fancy store-bought limoncello! I am sharing the recipe here because it's a fun and yummy project. Limoncello is an Italian lemon Read More
Orange Honey-Spiced Chicken
I am relatively new to cooking. But I tried making this Honey-Spiced Chicken with Carrots and Grapes dish because the picture in my Betty Crocker recipe book looked great. It turned out so good that it gave me confidence to cook more. I've modified the recipe a bit, but every time I make it my house fills with the warm aromas of cinnamon and citrus. Give it a shot - if I can do it, anyone can. Seriously. Recipe card is Read More
Fresh Fruit Salad & Balsamic Dressing
I make a tasty dressing for fruit salad that you might like; the recipe is a simple combination of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice and honey. If want to get crazy and use flavored olive oil or balsamic, it can become even better – I’ve used Blood Orange Olive Oil or sometimes Raspberry Balsamic Vinegar. I like it best over a fruit salad of watermelon, strawberries and nectarines. So refreshing, especially in Read More
It’s Pineapple Season! Cleansing and Slimming Juice
Pineapples actually have fantastic health benefits. They contain the healing enzyme bromelain which helps break down protein, reduce inflammation and aids digestion. Pineapples are also rich in beta-carotene and vitamin C, two of the many antioxidants with anti-aging properties, plus Vitamin B1 which we need for energy production. Once known as the fruit of kings, for many years pineapples were available only to the Read More