• How to make a meringue for pie

    Making a meringue is not terribly difficult, but it does require a lot of time with an electric mixer. Basically it is just super-duper whipped egg whites, with sugar. You should probably use cream of tartar, which will make the meringue fluffier and easier to work with. I used to be scared of cream of […]

  • How to make a graham cracker crust

    I may not have mastered a regular pie crust, but a graham cracker crust is much easier. It is also the perfect vehicle for a key lime pie (my favorite!). Obviously you will need some graham crackers. My mom said that this crust recipe is on the box of graham crackers she has at her […]

  • Turkey-cheddar burgers

    Back when Gourmet was still magically appearing in my mailbox every month, I came upon this: How good does that look? Seriously. And turkey burgers seem healthier than beef (although that may just be a lie I tell myself). These come with sundried tomato mayonnaise, which is super easy to make and can be used […]

  • Salsa, a few ways

    You know how a bunch of jarred salsas say they are “chunky” or “super chunky”? I hate those. I like my salsa to be as chunk-less as possible. But I know I’m weird. So I will show you how to make salsa my way, but also tell you how to make it for normal people. […]

  • Boursin chicken

    If you’re looking for a chicken dish with minimum effort, this is a good one. It looks kind of fancy and tastes more interesting than plain old chicken breasts, but it only takes about 5 extra minutes to prepare. Start with some Boursin cheese. It comes in a little plastic tub and may be in […]

  • Peach-raspberry crunch pie

    Do you ever watch “The Best Thing I Ever Ate” on Food Network? It may be the worst possible show to watch when you’re hungry. I was watching the “crunchy” episode when I saw this. Peach-raspberry crunch pie. So all my plans for making a regular raspberry pie went out the window. The peaches peeled […]

  • Sweet corn pancakes

    Everywhere you look in the summer in Maryland, there’s fresh sweet corn. It’s great grilled, but we don’t really have access to a grill right now. And it’s good boiled and sprinkled with chili powder. But there’s only so many times you can eat that in one summer. I wasn’t totally sure how these were […]

  • Pesto, tomato and mozzarella panini

    What to do with the leftover pesto, the mozzarella from the pizzas and the sandwich bread? Make my favorite sandwich. This is a pretty easy one. You can do it in a regular skillet (like I did here), or a grill pan if you want fancy grill marks on your sandwich. Or even a panini […]

  • How to bake a loaf of white bread (or two)

    The other night, I got the silly idea to bake a loaf of bread instead of buying one. I have actually made this once before, but apparently I forgot how long it takes to rise. Let’s just say that starting this at 8:30 p.m. was a poor choice. It really isn’t difficult to make, it […]

  • Pizza from scratch

    We have lived here for more than a year, but we still haven’t found a place with pizza we love. Sure, there are a few places we like. But nothing amazing. I am open to all styles of pizza, but my favorite is classic Italian margherita: thin, blistered crust, fresh tomato sauce, bubbly mozzarella and […]