During the summer I have a bounty of fresh herbs. Sage, chives, oregano, mint, lavender and lemon balm are perennials in my yard. Sometimes thyme survives the winter and it comes back for a second or third season. Each summer I plant dill and basil. I am fortunate to have…
One of the many blessings from a home garden is having fresh herbs readily available. This year I have three kinds of basil. I planted sweet basil from seeds. I purchased a bush basil plant at a farmer’s market. My neighbor gave me a lettuce basil plant. Basil is nice…
My mother’s birthday was last month. We celebrated her 98 years. She is cared for in a nursing home in Michigan. She has significant memory loss and is wheelchair bound. She recognizes family as familiar people and is happy to see us. Sometimes she reverts to the language of her…
Whenever I cook a naturally raised chicken or turkey I want to make the best use of it. After the turkey (or chicken) has been carved and served I save the bones to make broth. The procedure is simple. I put the bones, a few vegetables (a carrot, an onion,…
Blueberries are appearing in the grocery store. They are from the southern states–it will still be a while before the Michigan berries are ripe. Even though they are not from Michigan the blueberries are lovely, and so I made a family favorite pie. Pastry: 1 cup flour 1/8 tsp. salt…
Meals and special desserts are a part of family life. In our home we enjoy pies, especially fruit pies. I have practiced and tweaked my recipe for pie crust until I was satisfied. The shortening in pie crust should be 1/3 the amount of flour. (I don’t remember where I…
It is the first day of Spring and I am looking forward to the appearance of flowers and herbs. The snowdrops are up, and the robins have returned. The hyacinths are beginning to poke through the thawing soil. Before long the violets will be blooming. I plan to gather these…
On New Year’s Day we like to sip coffee and enjoy cinnamon rolls while we watch the Rose Parade on TV. I have a recipe that allows me to make the dough the afternoon/evening before, and then in the morning I shape and bake the rolls. My dear husband makes…
Spring seems to be on hold as cold temperatures persist in Illinois. But I am beginning to think about my herb garden. I recently read that Tansy is a deterrent for Japanese beetles. I have seeds to plant, hoping that it will help get rid of the throng of beetles…
Recently I have been going through some old folders and found a copy of a recipe with a story. According to the distributor of the recipe, she paid $250 for the Neiman-Marcus Cookie recipe. Did I ever try the recipe? I couldn’t remember. I had the ingredients on hand—well, most…