The holidays are a great time to make Meatballs! If you want to entertain royally this year, consider the meatball. Made well ahead of time, these bite-sized hors d’oeuvres are a perfect addition to your repertoire.  As a center of the plate item for dinner…

Hearty Italian Lamb Ragu: A Recipe for Rich, Earthy Flavors This hearty ground lamb ragu from Chef Michael Mina is the perfect pairing for Strozzapreti pasta. Its rich, deep, and earthy aromas make it a must-try for lovers of bold flavors. While ground lamb may…

LAMB SHAKSHUKA IS THE ULTIMATE BREAKFAST FOR DINNER This bright, spicy tomato-y Lamb Shakshuka is topped with eggs and baked in the oven. Its tomato and red pepper sauce is enhanced with cumin, paprika, and a dash of cayenne. I’ve wanted to cook Shakshuka for…

SPICE UP YOUR BURGER REPERTOIRE WITH THIS CRUNCHY, VIBRANTLY-FLAVORED SPICED LAMB BURGER. “ This is one of my favorite Bon Appetit recipes of all time. I make it every summer — the lamb fat seeps into the pita (in a GOOD way) so it gets…

Shepherd’s  Pie or Cottage Pie…which one is it? Probably no food takes me back to my childhood faster than what we called Shepherd’s Pie. That saucy, flavorful filling of meat and veggies, those creamy mashed potatoes topping it, and its golden cheese crust are some…

Delicious, spiced meat kebabs served on a Middle Eastern Classic—a bulgar wheat salad. Viking’s “The Kitchen Table: A Culinary Journey Around the World (Viking Cruises 2016)” is a world-straddling food voyage. Picking just one recipe from this lavishly illustrated treasury is hard work.  But on…

Add a rich new element to your Summer Grilling Last weekend in honor of 30 years of friendship, a group of us got together for our first Grill of the season.  And like way back then, we all cooked something bringing it with us to…

Pizza, need I tell you, has taken over the world. And Turkey is no exception.  Spicy, crispy Turkish Pizza is called ‘Lahmacun‘. It’s Turkey’s most famous street food. And it’s a snap to make at home.  Picture it as a flavor-packed crispy flatbread topped with…

This wonderful pasta dish is a great weeknight find.  A hack makes it even better.                       I like to make pasta at least once a week. It is our go-to comfort food. This week, I…

Are you serving enough Lamb? These Chops from Costco ought to be on your shopping list. Lamb is a pretty pricey option when it comes to choices at the meat counter. That is good loin lamb chops.  Shoulder and Sirloin Chops are more economical but…

This Lamb Ragu is a colorful and flavorful introduction to Fall. Chef Micheal Mina’s recipe for Lamb Ragu is a keeper. It starts with a bouquet garni of fennel and cumin seeds, Aleppo pepper, and whole black peppercorns.  This gives the dish a hint of…

The lamb chops at Costco represent great savings compared to almost anywhere else. These lovely trimmed chops are irresistible at Costco prices. But darned if I could cook them correctly.  I tried all kinds of methods. Stovetop or oven-roasted, mine were inevitably inconsistently cooked. They…

Two countries create a dinner dish worthy of at least two stars. I love a great meatball which is really what Kofte are.  I am always on the lookout for new flavors to try.  This recipe is from two different sources: A Turkish recipe from…

Comfort Food that brings back memories of home. When I was growing up, this dish passed for Shepherd’s pie at our house.  It usually involved the leftover Sunday Roast and any mashed potatoes that managed to survive our wonderful Sunday family dinners. But if you…