Author: Alison Boyd

sept. pasta
Dinner, Pasta

Celebrate Tomatoes

Warm September days and cooler nights bring perfect conditions for ripening plum tomatoes. August was for boating, swimming, beach walks and pottering in the garden. Now is the time for processing and preserving the last of the summer as the heat slowly fades.  If you want enough preserved fruit to last the winter, canning is […]

pavlova
Dessert, Featured, Summer

A Red, White & Blue Pavlova

“Please bring your Pavlova’, is the request I get from my hosts when I offer to contribute to their summer gatherings.  My signature seasonal confection hails from Australia, and features a rich, pillowy meringue base, with a crisp shell and a soft interior topped with cream and fruit. It was invented to honor the visit […]

Chicken, Dinner

A Taste of the Eastern Mediterranean

This Greek style lemon chicken combines boneless and skinless chicken thighs with a simple marinade of lemon, garlic, olive oil and oregano. Chicken thighs are a freezer staple in our house, as they are versatile, inexpensive and do not dry out during cooking.  To accompany them are two dishes with flavors redolent of the eastern […]

Fish, Holiday Meal, Salad, Spring

A Tart to Celebrate The Spring

During my years catering private parties and weddings I would get numerous requests for “something with smoked salmon.” This popular tart originally featured wild smoked salmon, baked in a buttery crust with a creamy filling and peppery watercress for sharpness. It was the ultimate crowd pleaser and deserved another airing, albeit with some updates. Good […]

Dinner, Featured, Holiday Meal

A Polish-American Easter

At the turn of the last century, the North Fork of Long Island experienced a large influx of Polish immigrants, driven by religious persecution and a strong desire to better themselves in a country of boundless opportunity. They stayed and prospered, working the local farms, and later purchasing their own land. Their influence is still […]

chicken_meatballs
Dinner, Featured, Savory

Sharing Street Food With Friends

Gather around a tasty and fun platter of food with your closest friends. Leave any shred of table etiquette behind when you share these spicy chicken meatballs, served Southeast Asian ‘street-food-style’ in lettuce wraps that are eaten with your hands. Assembling these flavor bombs loaded with veggies, sauces and delicious chicken is a messy, delicious, […]

Salad, Winter

A Burst of Citrus

The bright colors and vibrant flavors of citrus at peak flavor and sweetness arrive in winter, giving us a  burst of winter sunshine and a needed boost to our jaded palates.  I love to serve them in salads, where they do double duty as a dressing ingredient. Paired with crunchy fennel and creamy mozzarella, you […]

fish_feast
Fish, Seafood

A Feast of Fishes That Won’t Break the Bank

A traditional seafood feast for the festive season may seem prohibitively expensive this year, but the good news is that you can eschew the high prices charged for lobster, crab, and scallops, and still make a wonderful celebratory meal for your friends and family. When you visit your local market this holiday, look for sustainable and […]

pumpkin_cupcake
Autumn, Cake, Dessert

The Real Pumpkin

Pumpkin Spice: words that conjure up an idealized world of glowing fall leaves, holiday treats and cozy evenings by the fireplace. But there is a lot of Halloween trickery afoot in the grocery aisles and your favorite coffee shop at this time of year.  Chances are that the confections, lattes and smoothies on offer have […]