Prenatally Exposed to McDonald’s?

February 5, 2011

“I want McDonald’s! Why can’t we have McDonald’s?” was a refrain that I started hearing from the very first day I brought Andrew home.   What was shocking about it was the emotional intensity that came with the pleading.  As a child, I can remember getting excited about a trip to McDonald’s, but for us it […]

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Culinary Lies: Part 1

February 3, 2011

From that very first morning of Andrew’s arrival when he announced to me that he didn’t like pancakes, I knew I needed a strong culinary plan.  I had seen family and friends deal with the very same issue on many occasions, and I knew what the consequences could be if I didn’t act swiftly.   Parents […]

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If I Had a Hammer: Chicken Saltimbocca

February 2, 2011

I’m often asked if Andrew likes to cook and help out in the kitchen.  The truth is that Andrew likes to eat more than cook – that is until there is a cool tool or gadget to be used.  Meat grinders, food mills, cheese graters, knives, blowtorches, this is Andrew’s kitchen domain.  If I need […]

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Crazy Chicken: An Antidote to Teenage Surliness

January 28, 2011

Waiting for your child to become a teenager is a bit like driving in a heavy fog.  Everything seems fine as you proceed with caution through the murkiness and then out of nowhere, you have to slam on the brakes and brace yourself for impact.  Well, the wait is over.  5,4,3,2,1…Impact. My normally happy-go lucky […]

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Be Vewy Vewy Quiet, I’m Hunting Wabbit!

January 26, 2011

It could be the Easter Bunny. Perhaps it’s Peter Rabbit’s fault. I, personally, blame Warner Brothers. Whatever the reason, Americans do not eat rabbit and whenever I mention it in polite society, I feel like Elmer Fudd trying to feed Bugs Bunny to my son for dinner. I know the vast majority of people will […]

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Dear God, Adobo Please!

January 19, 2011

Andrew and I always start our meals with a prayer.  It’s not the traditional Catholic “for these gifts which we are about to receive” type of prayer.  Somehow it has developed into a family prayer that encompasses all that we are grateful for – the needs of family and friends, current events, pets, jokes we’ve […]

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“Dad’s” Buttermilk Pancakes

January 16, 2011

Once I made the decision to keep Andrew out of the foster system, it was only a matter of days before he was living with me.  In fact,  he was a student on a Friday morning and “my son” by Friday afternoon.   This quick transition made for some uncomfortable times in the beginning.  As […]

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To Confit or Not to Confit: An Existential Question for the Duck

January 14, 2011

Duck Confit It’s crazy that I would start with this recipe.  But Duck Confit embodies all that I believe about food, life in the kitchen, and supping with others.  It is also the very first food that Andrew asked to have for his birthday celebration.  He has seen me cook it, put it away and […]

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Feeding Andrew: A Love Letter from Father to Son

January 13, 2011

Writing your first blog is a daunting, nerve-racking kind of business.  First, just the technical hurtles of the blogosphere are enough to stop anyone over 40 and I definitely fall in that category.  Next, the strange nature of my blog, a mixture of slow cooking and single parenting, has kept me at odds over how […]

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