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I grew up thinking paprika was the fancy orange stuff you sprinkled on deviled eggs – a decoration for special occasions. While on a recent trip in Boston, I had the pleasure of ordering a plate of deviled eggs perched on a bed of arugula at Coda Bar & Kitchen. The paprika was the star [...]
Have you ever had that moment when you opened a can of evaporated milk and realized the recipe called for sweetened condense milk? That happened to me the other day while assembling ingredients for a pumpkin tart. You read that correctly. I baked a pumpkin tart with a ginger snap crust for spring. Who says [...]
This always happens to me. I buy bananas and a couple turn brown before I finish the bunch. While flipping through my collection of twelve community fundraiser cookbooks – a collection boardering on obsession at this point – I found eight different variations of banana bread. But I wasn’t quite in the mood to try [...]
These hoisin chicken wings make a great appetizer with friends or a main dish worthy of curling up on the couch with your favorite movie. I chose the latter when I decided to bake up these beauties. The Chinese five-spice powder, a blend of ground star anise, cloves, cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel seeds, added [...]
One of the best compliments I have ever received for my chili was when a friend’s wife told me, “If you feed my husband chili again, he’s sleeping at your house.” This recipe has considerably less beans than my slow cooker version, which will make all of my friends’ wives very happy. Instead, I decided [...]
When I’m traveling alone in an unfamiliar city, I gravitate toward a certain kind of restaurant. I look for simple food prepared in interesting ways and a good cocktail on the side. It doesn’t need to be overly trendy or expensive – a local neighborhood joint is what I prefer. I try to order several [...]
Cookie Monster was my favorite Sesame Street character. I learned how to shape the first letter of my name in a Betty Crocker Cookies cookbook. The first recipe I ever created was a cookie. Well, I didn’t so much as “create” the recipe as I just smashed three different recipes together. I think it had [...]
I believe the best salads occur when I clean out the cupboards. That’s exactly what happened here. I always have spring greens and carrots on hand. The dried Asian pears were extra samples from an event I hosted. Leftover from a recent batch of cookies I whipped together for work, the dried cranberries and candied [...]
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, the aroma of chocolate is in the air. Forget the heart-shaped box of chocolates and bake with your boo. This cake is so rich and dense; a little slice will do just fine. I recommend serving it with a dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of ice [...]
I have to admit, I’m obsessed with the Two Fat Ladies. (I own all four seasons on DVD.) It was a popular cooking show in the late 90’s that featured Clarissa Dickson Wright and Jennifer Paterson gallivanting throughout the United Kingdom and Ireland cooking for village locals. Let’s just say they had big personalities, spoke [...]
I will never understand the appeal of American football. While shopping for a dimmer switch at Home Depot, a man approached me and asked, “How ‘bout them Steelers?” Without missing a beat I responded, “I’m sorry. I don’t follow baseball teams well enough to know.” His expression shifted from startled to beet red angry in [...]
This recipe is so easy I was hesitant about posting it. It’s just toasted bread, cheese and a dollop of jelly after all. Then I remembered the number of times this simple combination has saved me when I needed an easy appetizer of a dinner party or a simple late-night snack. There must be at [...]
As the weather dipped into the low single digits this week, I looked for any excuse to use my oven. I baked cakes, casseroles and even a heaping pile of garlic potato wedges just to feel the warmth radiating off the polished stainless steel. One evening, I was torn between the creamy comfort of potpie [...]
My pumpkin pie cravings only last during the holiday season. But, I could eat this cake well into the New Year. As if the cream cheese glaze spilling over the side wasn’t enough, the cheesecake filling elevates this dessert to a whole new level. Consider serving each slice on a dark plate, dusted with powdered [...]
I’ve made a variation of Baked Eggnog French Toast nearly every Christmas for the past few years. Though, this one seemed a little more special because it symbolized a year of positive change. How? You might ask. There were parts of my life that seemed dry and a bit stale. So instead of throwing them [...]
Like a comedian playing dive bars to test his act, I accept interesting speaking opportunities to practice my timing and presence in front of an audience. I later condense and refine my material based on their reaction. What were the audience’s facial expressions? Did they laugh at the right times? Is my story drawing them [...]
This recipe is a classic example of learning from my mistakes. I had an entirely different cookie in mind when I started things to the bowl. Then I realized I didn’t have four essential ingredients to achieve the flavor I wanted. So I did want any cook would do in my situation – I improvised. [...]
There’s no need to visit Whoville to steal any of these cookies. My friends own greenSinner, a sustainable floral business in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood. Segmented into three distinct sections, Lawrenceville was originally built to house steel workers, and their families, employed by the mills along the Alleghany River. Tightly packed row houses nestled between abandoned [...]
There’s no doubt potatoes are near the top of my Thanksgiving shopping list. Turkey is first, of course. Then somewhere between canned pumpkin and fried onions sits potatoes. Unlike the usual mayonnaise and mustard variety often found at summer picnics, this salad is perfect for the fall. The combination of mustard, bacon and vinegar allows [...]
Unpacking my weekly farm share box is like opening a present from a distant aunt. There’s about a 50/50 chance the contents is not quite what I wanted. You know what I mean. A sweater with a kitten hand-stitched across the front, a personalized scarf with my name spelled wrong or an industrial-sized package of [...]
November is the only time of the year when my pumpkin consumption hits an all-time high. Pumpkin pies. Pumpkin lattes. Roasted pumpkin. You name it. I even bought a pumpkin scented candle recently for the occasional pumpkin fix. The pumpkin cravings are then pushed to the back burner in December, only to be replaced with [...]
Visiting the farmer’s market is a ritual I look forward to every week. I love the energy of the market. One day it’s an empty parking lot, and the next it’s a hub of food and social activity. Sadly, each visit is inching closer to the last as my local market is closing for the [...]
“I’m making green beans and bacon to go with the steaks for this event,” Joan said as she twisted the can opener around an industrial-sized can of green beans. A crowd of twenty gathered awaiting their upcoming feast while holding glasses of red wine in the adjoining banquet room. “They’re going to love it,” she [...]
Wow! It was a busy few months. Throughout the summer, a majority of my writing energy was focused on completing a master’s thesis paper for graduation. It was a 40-page beast of an essay filled with loads of information about culinary tourism and community development in urban neighborhoods. If you are ever in need of [...]
With Labor Day becoming a distant memory and the first day of autumn just around the corner, it’s time to ease into my baking grove again. I was at the farmers market recently when I noticed a beautiful display of apples at one of the stands. Piled high in blond wicker baskets, the farmer commented [...]
Beets are bountiful at the farmer’s market this time of year. My favorite way to prepare beets is by roasting them until the skins fall away and the interior flesh is tender. This method helps to bring out their natural sweetness. My friend Amanda refers to beets as “nature’s candy.” And I would agree. With [...]
Located in Chicago’s west side is a former convent towering three stories above Racine Avenue. I noticed white paint along the arched windows flaking away as I soaked up the building’s architectural detail. Camouflaged by ivy spilling over a brick wall surrounding the space, the structure could be easily shrugged off as abandoned by anyone [...]
“Let’s head over to Wealthy Street. So many great restaurants are popping up in GR,” my friend Emma Gosling said. “There is a lot going on.” After a long seven hour drive from Pittsburgh, I was in Grand Rapids, MI to attend a friend’s wedding reception. The first item on the weekend agenda was dinner [...]
Flip to page 44 of Table Magazine’s summer issue and you will find a story about a dashing (handsome, really) young man. You guessed it…ME! Table Magazine is a regional publication dedicated to sharing local food and lifestyle stories occurring in Western Pennsylvania. My field work on culinary tourism in neighborhoods – the emphasis of [...]
I saw this idea floating around Pinterest for several weeks. So I thought it would be fun to try it out for myself. When I shared early photos of my handiwork on Facebook, I was surprised to find so many people harboring nostalgic feelings for candy soaked goodness. Jodi commented on how she would pair [...]
Fresh herbs are one of my favorite ways to add a boost of flavor to a dish. This time last year, I planted an herb garden near my front entryway. The location is a wonderful conversation starter for arriving guests – particularly those who can’t resist running their hand over the plants as they walk [...]
Mario Batali blazed into the Pittsburgh area this past Saturday to promote his new cookbook Molto Batali: Simple Family Meals from My Home to Yours. The event, hosted by Market District in Pine Township, included a 30-minute cooking demo and book signing. I was invited by the Market District social media crew to join several [...]
The weather reached well into the 80s this week in Pittsburgh. It certainly was not a good time for my central air conditioning to stop running. Especially considering it’s only two years old and we just made the last payment. In a desperate attempt to stay cool, I found solace in this refreshing beverage. I [...]
While waiting at the checkout counter at my local grocery store, my eyes wandered over the magazine rack. I flipped through several before impulsively deciding on a pamphlet-sized beauty published under the Betty Crocker brand. That was nearly two years ago. I found the magazine while organizing my bookshelves recently and decided to give this [...]
Votes are in and the wait is over. I’m thrilled to share that CulinaryCory.com was selected as an Official Honoree of the 2012 Webby Awards in the Personal Blog/Website category. (I get a custom framed certificate and bragging rights. So fancy!) The Webby Awards was created in 1996 as a way to recognize the best [...]
Like most large families focused on stretching their food budget, I grew up thinking mushrooms always came sliced in a can. You know what I’m talking about – the clank of the can opener finishing its rotation around the rim and juices expelled into the sink using the lid to hold back the can’s contents. [...]
There once was a time when I knew Chicago’s O’Hare airport like the back of my hand. Nearly each week, I would board a plane to some far off city (typically the west coast); get whisked to a windowless conference room where I would eat Chinese take-out, and work into the late evening. Then it’s [...]
I’ve always believed fries were designed as a delivery mechanism for ketchup. So how would I react to frozen fries with the flavoring baked in? That was a question I asked myself when Alexia Foods invited me to sample their new Parmesan Lemon Waffle Fries. Alexia is known as a company who thinks differently about [...]
Distraction can be a beautiful (and tasty) thing. In a time when I should be focused on a thesis proposal and other projects for my graduate studies, I somehow gravitate to the kitchen in search of inspiration. This week’s inspiration came from a new cookbook by Shauna Server called Marshmallow Madness. Filled with a seemingly [...]
While typically reserved for holidays and special occasions, sugar coated cashews are the perfect everyday treat. This recipe serves two purposes in my life. The first is it offers a tasty sweet snack with a crunch that can go on for hours. Second, the house smells amazing afterward. Think of all the money I’m saving [...]
Edible Allegheny magazine is a regional publication dedicated to showcasing local food activities occurring throughout Western Pennsylvania. They boast a circulation of nearly 47,000 readers and the stories published in each issue become the talk-of-the-town. I’m thrilled to share some exciting news! CulinaryCory.com and a lovely picture of yours truly are profiled in the “Online [...]
It could have been in any premium hotel in any downtown metropolis – great location, an acclaimed chef and countless press accolades. However, Habitat strives to break away from the typical hotel restaurant experience by offering a highly seasonal menu with ingredients sourced locally in an atmosphere that is comfortable and easy to enjoy. We [...]
Daikon is a long, white, root vegetable that translates literally to “large root” in Japanese. My first introduction to these lovely radishes was through a community cooking demonstration I attended several months ago. We watched for nearly an hour as our instructor prepared each ingredient with focused precision. It was as if the small cleaver, [...]
My sister Rosita was the first person to introduce me to Pinterest nearly six months ago. And I have been hooked ever since. It is the latest online darling to hit the social media scene that is quickly earning its place next to Facebook and Twitter. For me, the site is a wonderful way to [...]
Brookline, located just south of downtown Pittsburgh, is known as the city’s second-biggest neighborhood. The area has experienced an emergence of new independent businesses, particularly food shops, over the past few years. It was through an invitation to join a walking food tour from Sylvia McCoy, owner of ‘Burgh Bits and Bites, I was able [...]
After several weeks of unusually warm weather, winter has finally arrived in Pittsburgh. That means it’s time to gear up for some much needed baking. The warmth of the oven offers a sense of comfort that can only be appreciated when a dusting of snow swirls across my front lawn. I had a couple of [...]
My appreciation for the mighty beet grew around the time they started to appear in my winter CSA box. Before I found them awkwardly interesting and, frankly, annoying at the same time. They are a pain to clean, they stained my hands several shades of magenta and would take hours to transform into anything edible. [...]
I’ve come to realize there are two reasons why my mom enjoys my visits to northern Michigan. The first is to provide the opportunity to see her ridiculously clumsy son do something that’s uncontrollably laughable. Like the time I collided into a tree that mysteriously jumped in front of me while walking on the sidewalk. [...]
Living on potato chips and Red Bull for the past two weeks was a real challenge. Balanced between my usual hectic holiday activities, I worked hard, and well into the late night hours, to finish projects for three graduate classes this semester. Now that everything is completed and grades are officially posted, preparing real food [...]
I arrived home after a long day of activities to be greeted by a package on my doorstep. The box, measuring 24”X24”, contained a wide assortment of products from my friends at Kikkoman. We had such a blast last year hosting a Tasty Turkey Party and they asked if I was interested in testing a [...]
