To say, “I’m just going to make a sandwich,” can imply some level of defeat, of phoning it in, a sigh of acceptance. But a sandwich can be a litmus test for what you want to give on any one day. There are, of course, the low-effort sandwiches: the peanut butter and jelly, the classic…
My grandmother and mother have great skin, so I have good genes, but eating healthy is important for my skin, too. I haven’t had instant ramen in 10 years and don’t drink soda. When I wake up, I wash my face. I’m really into certain aromas and when I found this Clé de Peau soap…
Are summer dinner parties more relaxed than their winter counterparts? I suppose it depends on the cook and the crowd. All the brightly colored produce and fresh herbs from the planter box make me want to cook up a gorgeous feast to share with friends, but the wearying heat and vacation vibes mean I don’t…
Whether it’s a fancy apple tarte Tatin, a robust pineapple-ringed upside-down cake or a saucy flan, there’s something thrilling and suspenseful about turning your homemade dessert on its head. Any of these acrobatic dishes would taste fine served right-side up from the pan. But it’s that stunning reveal that adds a little drama and puts…
It’s tough to paint a picture of my first chilaquiles plate, but I’ll try: simmering green salsa on a pastel dish, covering crispy tortilla chips cracking like eggshells against a fork — and also a runny egg, with handfuls of herbs and entirely too much queso fresco. Or it could have been salsa roja, shining…
Hi friends, I hope you all made it through this weekend’s heat wave in good shape. (I ran straight to the beach.) I’m back with another edition of reader questions and, boy, do we have an interesting mix this month. There’s a visitor from the South searching for “decent Thai” — and we can do…
A melody drifted across the dining room like a smoke ring: “Tall and tan and young and lovely. …” The singer, sitting at the end of the bar, had Astrud Gilberto’s sultry contralto and calm, unrushed phrasing. There was a guitarist, too, tracing bossa nova rhythms that the bartenders fell into each time they raised…
On a recent Friday morning, the cookbook author Molly Baz put the finishing touch on a new recipe for shingled tomato toast with sesame mayo. Reaching into a wooden salt cellar, she grabbed a three-finger pinch of salt and showered her dish. Not just any salt — Diamond Crystal kosher salt. “It’s just the only…
Headliner Yemen Café What does owning restaurants have in common with flying? Both are risky endeavors, and both are Akram Nassir’s careers. He’s a captain for Delta Air Lines and has just opened another Yemen Café. While achieving his dream of becoming a pilot, he went into the restaurant business with his father and uncle.…
This August menu is essentially designed for beating the heat on seriously sweltering summer days, when ice-cold everything seems appropriate. We’re on the right track, I think, with a chilled soup, followed by a room-temperature vegetable salad and a dessert straight from the refrigerator. The avocado soup — a cool, savory smoothie of avocado, lime…