• Breakfast

    Ditalini’s Dutch Baby

    Later this morning I’m going to photoblog the deMenthe family’s 4th of July feasts. That, along with this entry, will (I hope) signal an end to my long absence from Crouton’s Kitchen. A long time back I promised to post Ditalini’s…

  • Casseroles,  Meats

    Hasenpfeffer

    Hasenpfeffer is also known as braised rabbit in spiced red wine sauce, but the literal translation is “peppered hare.” We made this dish often when we were first married. That was more than 40 years ago, and rabbit was not…

  • Breakfast,  Cookblogging,  Seafood

    A Traditional Christmas

    I was on deck for Christmas Eve dinner. Since we didn’t have company this year, I didn’t make the usual pot of clam chowder. Instead, we treated ourselves to shellfish, our Christmas Eve fallback when it’s just family: a shrimp boil…

  • Cookblogging,  Smoking

    Thanksgiving 2016

    Sorry, no recipes this time, just a few notes and photos. The deMenthes enjoyed a traditional Thanksgiving. Number one daughter Escargot was here, along with number one son Baguette, number one daughter in law Truffle, and number one grandson Pesce.…

  • Meats,  Technique

    Oven-Baked Beef Back Ribs

    We had a couple of slabs of beef back ribs in the freezer and were looking for something to do with them. I saw this recipe online and thought it was worth a try, with a few modifications of my own.…

  • Cookblogging,  Cooking Club

    Seventh Rule of Cooking Club

    Outdoor grilling and smoking requires every bit as much planning & preparation as cooking in the kitchen. Yesterday’s bimonthly meeting of the On On Gourmet Hash House Harriers was a grilling cook-off. Ditalini and I were the designated hosts, so…