Food Features

Untitled Document Q. What’s the difference between scallions and green onions? Can one be substituted for the other? — Bill A. There is no difference. Zip, nada, zilch. Whether they’re called scallions or green onions seems to be largely a matter of geography. In the mid-Atlantic coastal states and New England they’re more likely to […]

Untitled Document Every time I eat at the Lake Pointe Grill, I feel a twinge — and sometimes more than a twinge — of jealousy. It’s not because I want a restaurant that’s been busy since the day it opened. That naïve dream died years ago when I found out just how complex and difficult […]

Untitled Document When my husband, Peter, was a college freshman, he and a friend developed a shared longing for liver and onions. The friend had an apartment, so they decided to make themselves a liver-and-onion feast. “It says here to dredge the liver in flour,” said Peter’s friend, reading the recipe. “What the *@#$ does […]

Untitled Document When Buffalo native Peter Engler moved to Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood in 1972, he found something strange at the local Jewel: bean pies. Intrigued, he bought one. It was good, the filling a sort of dense custard flavored with nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla. The beans contributed more texture than flavor. Engler found bean […]

Untitled Document Dear Julianne: Would there be any way you could get your hands on the “Tortellini Michelangelo” recipe from Tuscany Italian Restaurant? I am in love with the cream sauce and cannot figure out how to duplicate it. — Beth Tortellini Michelangelo is one of my favorite dishes at Tuscany Restaurant, too. Once I spoke […]

Untitled Document “. . . in this miraculous age it is quite possible — and it’s fun — to be a ‘chef’ even before you can really cook.” — from The Can-Opener Cookbook, by Poppy Cannon, 1952 The Travel Channel’s Bizarre Foods features host Andrew Zimmern traveling around the world eating weird food. It can be […]

Untitled Document Experiencing Loneth Soares’ cheerful personality and hearing her infectious laugh, you’d never guess that her childhood was filled with terror, trial, and hardship — but it was. Loneth was born in Cambodia, and the Vietnam War began spilling over into Cambodia during her earliest years. When that war finally ended, however, the horrors […]

Untitled Document Thanks to the Internet, I’ve had the pleasure of watching some of my children’s contemporaries progress into adulthood, particularly friends of my older daughter, Anne. Even though they’re scattered everywhere, I get reports of major events — grad school! jobs! engagements! pregnancies! — and eventually photo series of new babies morphing into toddlers. […]

Untitled Document Have you ever had a totally perfect experience? Whether an elaborate occasion, or spontaneous get-together with friends, a day of unexpected discoveries on vacation, or a simple walk in a beautiful snowfall, it’s a time when all of the components fall together and are absolutely right. Those kinds of experiences are rare treasures, […]

Untitled Document Good Grief — Not Beef! I just want to put something straight About what should be on your plate, If it’s corned beef you’re makin’ You’re sadly mistaken, That isn’t what Irishmen ate. If you ever go over the pond You’ll find it’s of bacon they’re fond, All crispy and fried, With some cabbage […]

Untitled Document Somehow winter always seems the coldest in early March. Perhaps it’s because March is considered a spring month, even though spring officially doesn’t start until the third week of the month. Those warm and sunny days that we get sporadically are cruel teasers, too, making the inevitable return to frigid temperatures all the […]

Untitled Document What would be your last meal on earth? What would be the setting? What would you drink? Would there be music? Who would be your dining companions? Who would prepare it? Melanie Dunea posed these questions to 50 renowned chefs from around the world. Their answers are the subject of her 2007 book […]