March 24, 2018; Savannah GA: There over 500  varieties of mangoes, but outside the tropics, you rarely see more than a few. I have had insanely delicious mangoes in the Caribbean, Mexico, Africa, Thailand, and Sri Lanka, but I love the so-called Champagne mangoes (left) that are in season now. Also variously known as Ataúlfo,  young, baby, yellow, honey, Adaulfo, or Adolfo, this rich, sweet, smooth-textured variety is grown in Mexico....

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March 7, 2018. Savannah GA: I have written about both asparagus and shad roe (see March 24, 2008)  on the blog before, but when they are both in season (like now!), I cannot resist having as much as possible. I still think my mother’s asparagus recipe (right) is the best.  It promises to “Keep warm — keep crisp — keep green.” And it does. Garnish as you will.  A little butter or olive oil. Hollandaise. Romesco....

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Savannah, Georgia; December 22, 2017:  If you love travel, the exotic, and food, and if you haven’t been to Morocco, GO. You will not be disappointed. From the fishing villages on the Mediterranean and Atlantic to the ski resorts of the Atlas Range,  there is something for everyone in Morocco. I remember a few years ago when The Lord of the Rings movies were being filmed in New Zealand, that foreign island nation went onto everyone’s...

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Savannah, Georgia; December 13, 2017: For the past few weeks, I have been harvesting big, orange-sized Meyer lemons from my tree. I first wrote on the blog about Meyer lemons almost exactly 10 years ago, in a piece about Christmas, which included recipes for Lemon Squares. (You can read the blog here.) I was living in Washington, DC, at the time, but the couple who had bought our house in Charleston continued to send me lemons from my tree...

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Savannh, Georgia; October 30, 2017: Pasta with Chanterelles I am loving the cool weather which just began yesterday – though daytime highs will approach 80° F  by the end of the week. I have probably foraged the last of the chanterelles for the season, so I wanted to have a dish that featured them. I had just enough for a hearty pasta dish for one, but I am including a recipe for four. I am not particularly fond of grocery store mushrooms...

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October 19, 2017; Savannah, Georgia. The written history of the flourless chocolate cake is full of exaggerations, suppositions, and just plain bad history. I’ve seen it linked to Vienna’s famous Sachertorte – never mind that the Austrian cake contains flour and is coated with both an apricot and a chocolate glaze. Some claim that Torta Caprese from the storied Italian isle of Capri is its antecedent, though it is held together with ground...

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