A Birthday Dinner Photoblog
It’s been an annual tradition for several years now: Osso Bucco, our friend from Las Vegas, comes down to visit during my birthday week (his birthday is a week from now, so we celebrate together) and we all go over…
Comments Are Open
Dear friends, Dilalini and I have opened the comments again, which means you can weigh in on recipes and posts here at Crouton’s Kitchen without having to register and log in. We started requiring commenters to register and log in…
Family Fourth of July Cookblogging
Our grandson Pesce stayed with us during the last part of June, joined on the 2nd of July by his parents, Baguette and Truffle, and his Aunt Escargot, our daughter. Escargot’s boyfriend Manzo Bistecca rolled in on the 3rd, and…
Second Rule of Cooking Club
If it looks wrong, go with your gut. Our second cooking club dinner was last night. The theme was Italian, using recipes from the cookbooks of celebrity chef Mario Batali. Ditalini and I were in charge of the antipasto; Magret…
First Rule of Cooking Club
… is tell everyone about it on your cooking blog. Ditalini and I are Hash House Harriers, members of a notoriously disorganized hare & hounds trail club with chapters all over the world. After a recent trail, while eight of…
Slow-Braised Short Ribs
This dish is from Hugo Ortega’s Backstreet Kitchen cookbook. I prepared it for a cooking club dinner the other night, and it was a hit. Although it may appear complicated, it’s actually easy to prepare (if you don’t count peeling…
Green Chile Beef Stew
I tasted this green chile beef stew at my friend Gusti Come Pollo’s house. It was so good I chained myself to the front porch and refused to leave until she shared the recipe. Yesterday I finally got around to…
Sausage & Spinach with Fettuccini Alfredo
We went to one of our favorite Italian restaurants a few weeks ago. We were with a crowd, so we ordered appetizers. On the appetizer menu was a dish labeled Sausage & Spinach. Sounded good, so we tried it, and…
Gusti’s Spoon Cornbread
Our friend Gusti C. Pollo introduced us to this cornbread at a party last month, and I begged for the recipe. She graciously shared it with me, and yesterday I made a batch to see if it was as good…
Crouton’s Bouillabaisse
The deMenthes always have seafood on Christmas Eve. Since we were visiting our son Baguette and his family in Las Vegas this year, and since our son had announced he was going to make clam chowder on Christmas Day, I…