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Homegrown Mango
Florida fresh homegrown mango, just picked from the tree, is absolutely delicious. No comparison with commodity mangoes sold in supermarkets. It's wonderful to have a friend with a Mango Tree in her front yard here on West Coast of Florida and is generous in sharing....
Sweety Drops, Who Doesn’t Love That Veggie Name?
Also called Pepper Drops these days, they first appeared in US grocery store salad or olive bars. You might be tempted to think tomato, but these cute little veggies are actually peppers. Also known as Incan Red Drops, originating in the Peruvian Amazon, this wild...
Butter vs Margarine
I prefer butter to margarine because I trust cows more than chemists. Joan Dye Gussow, Growing Older
No Cook, Quick Fix, Chatty, Fruity and Nutty Dessert
Sometimes I just wish for a simple dessert that does not require mixing or baking ahead. My friend Alice mentioned that this grape let-your-guests make-their own-dessert while still sitting around the dinner table, filled the bill for...
More Asparagus, My Favorite Spring Salad and a Smart Tart
Nicoise Salad Spring Nicoise Salad features boiled and marinated new potatoes, roasted asparagus, canned tuna and olives. Or place rows of roasted asparagus, cooked potato quarters, canned tuna, olives, grape tomatoes and chopped baby corn on a platter. Drizzle with...
Asparagus Season—A Reason to Celebrate Spring
Spring —Now is the right time. If there is one reason to eat asparagus, there might be a dozen. The flavor of asparagus is elusive to describe. Is it buttery or herbal, mellow or nutty, or delicious and surprising? Maybe all of these! The delicate taste of...
A Story about Walnuts
Did you know the botanically speaking, a nut is a fruit with a hard shell containing a single seed. The true nuts you might encounter in the produce aisle include hazelnuts and chestnuts. Many of the products sold as “culinary nuts” belong to other botanical...
Good Gadget-Microplane Herb Mill
Tired of chopping parsley? I am. I remembered my favorite garnish gadget one day when my cooking time was limited. I already had parsley washed and destemmed in a plastic bag in the veggie drawer of the refrigerator. I pulled it out of the refrigerator along with the...
Parkside, Poolside or Inside—”Cream” of Broccoli Soup To Be Sipped— Hot , Cold or Room Temp
Spring has officially sprung and my thoughts go to all foods "green"—today it's broccoli, but more particularly, broccoli stalks/broccoli stems, with added "trees" for deeper green color. I title this soup "cream" because it is a pureed soup that does not contain...
Pool Lit -Stanley Tucci’s Autobiography, Taste, Continued
The last chapter in Taste was hard to listen to. Stanley had pain in his mouth and it turned out to be cancer. Chemo and radiation left his body fragile with a 30 pound weight loss. After 2 1/2 years of suffering, a lot of it in bed and ill from even the smell of...