Crunchy, Creamy and Just Sweet Enough

Although their name suggests that they’re defined by sweetness, sugar snap peas are really about the crunch. They aren’t any sweeter than regular peas. When you get good regular peas in season, they can be so sugary that it’s impossible not to eat them all right as you shell them, leaving nothing for dinner. (Produce…

Pandemic Shopping for Your Neighbors

About two weeks ago, I found packets of yeast for sale at a corner market, displayed on a shelf like it was no big deal, like yeast hadn’t become a precious commodity during the coronavirus pandemic as supermarket shelves emptied and Americans took up bread-baking like a national pastime. I don’t even bake bread. But…

Best Father’s Day Gifts

Father’s Day is fast approaching, but there’s still time to get the dad in your life a fabulous gift that he will cherish and appreciate. Dads have many different personalities and interests, but here are a few gift ideas that anyone would love to receive: Photo Book of Memories A beautifully laid out, professionally printed…

Why Wine? Why Burgundy? Why Now?

I had a lot of reasons not to write this column. For one, it stretches back to the other side of the divide, before the pandemic, when the wine panel was able to convene and taste together without trepidation. It seems unreal to recall sitting down in unmasked fellowship on a chilly day at the…