Sunday is market day here in the summer. A trip to the farmers' market is a weekly routine, even when I don’t feel like going—like today. I’m busy preparing for a trip to Florence, and it's really the last thing I have time for. Normally, I buy almost everything I need for the week at […]
Even though I enjoy cooking, some days, it just doesn’t feel manageable. That’s when I call in my “sous-chef.” My husband, Pierre, loves helping out in the kitchen, and I’m grateful I can step aside and let him take over. Sometimes he comes up with an idea, or I share what I had planned, give […]
A secret to always being prepared with a dinner plan is to think about what you can cook and have on hand as a versatile ingredient. There are so many things you can prepare in as little as ten to fifteen minutes that can be used in multiple ways. This routine has saved me a […]
Have you ever opened your calendar to find your day packed with meetings, leaving only slivers of time for essential tasks? It feels like one wrong move, and you'll drown in the day's demands. And then there's the inevitable 'What's for dinner?' dilemma. That’s today. It's a work-from-home day, which, pre-COVID, for many, was often […]
It was my birthday the other day, and while I love dining out, we usually choose to stay in. I find it’s the perfect time for a treat like champagne and king crab legs, which are ridiculously easy and quick to prepare and cost a fraction of the price of going out. While I’m all […]
If you're feeling at a loss for dinner ideas for the week, instead of searching for new recipes, draw inspiration from what's in season. I start my dinner plan each week based on what I find at the farmers' market over the weekend. Seeing what is fresh and in season is a great way to […]
Quite often, we get dinner crashers—but they are always welcome! Usually, the unexpected dinner guests are my children's friends, and there is enough to go around. When there isn't enough on the menu to feed a few more mouths, I add a simple course like fruit or the French cheese course for dessert so there […]
The fridge is pretty bare today, but I want to avoid a grocery run since tomorrow is Farmers' Market Day when I stock up for the week. During my morning kitchen check-in, I found steak and peas in the freezer and some fruit and lettuce in the fridge. The dinner plan is simple: thaw the […]
A quick kitchen check-in is part of my daily routine. It takes just a minute and avoids the last-minute scramble of figuring out what's for dinner. Today, I know I'll be home late and won't have much time to cook. We don't want to eat out, so I'm looking in my refrigerator and cupboards for […]
Today is Sauce Day. Every month or so, I make a pot of tomato sauce. I use some the week I make it and freeze some, too. There's a good reason the Italians have a routine of making tomato sauce – it tastes better than jarred sauce, and you can serve it with anything! Vegetables, […]
This morning, I did my usual kitchen check-in. I asked myself the perennial question, "What's for dinner tonight?" Salmon sounds good tonight, and it's quick to make. I take the salmon out of the freezer so it can thaw. There's the melon I cut last night, cherries, something for a salad, and camembert if we […]
This evening is one of those evenings I can't muster the will to make dinner. Even though it was Sunday, it was an intense workday with no rest for the weary. This morning, anticipating the long and exhausting day ahead, I did a little dinner prep before the day got the best of me, and […]
