Last week at home on the farm it stormed. The thunderstorm was sudden and intense, like most summer storms. They sweep in from nowhere. The sky stays blue and bright until just before it starts. The only warning is a subtle change in the atmosphere --- the air feels damp and crackles in anticipation as if with some secret electric charge. Clouds gather quickly. The temperature drops ten degrees. A few raindrops fall, becoming a constant patter, and then sheets of water sluice down from above. The rain is so heavy that your shirt soaks through when you dash outside to check your car windows.
Read moreTHE EASIEST STRAWBERRY TART
It's a lovely coincidence when the most beautiful desserts happen to be the easiest, as is the case here. Aside from slicing strawberries -- which I'm going to assume you can handle -- there's very little skill or effort involved at all. You bake a simple graham cracker crust for 10 minutes, then fill it with a blend of Greek yogurt and sweetened whipped cream, and top it with sliced strawberries. Even if you are half asleep, or talking on the phone, or totally intimidated by pastry baking, you can make this.
Read moreCARAMELIZED GARLIC, SPINACH & CHEDDAR QUICHE
I reach over to finish the last sip of my cocktail. A sweet, fizzy blend of muddled blackberries, tequila, lime juice, and club soda, we've named it The 157 and declared it our official apartment cocktail. Dinner is finished. The counter is strewn with dishes: a cutting board, bowls scraped clean, forks.
Read moreGRAPE-NUT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Chocolate chip cookies are already pretty good to begin with. Add in a few handfuls of snack-like ingredients for crunch and chew, and they get even better.
I don't remember eating a plain chocolate chip cookie very often growing up -- this is the version I know and love. The cookie dough of this recipe is exceptional, and you should be warned that it's almost impossible to stop eating once you sneak a spoonful.
Read moreTOAST FOREVER
Breakfast has never been my thing, but breakfast foods: yes please. If there is anything better than a slice of toast, slathered with just melting butter, I don’t know what it is. One of my favorite ways to eat toast is this: lightly toasted bread, a very thin layer of salted butter followed by a thin layer of honey, sprinkled with wheat germ.
Read more