Category: New England Cuisine
Grilled Garlic Butter Clams
New England summers have always meant copious amounts of seafood for me. And this year is no different — so as soon as the temperatures hit that comfortable level where grilling outside can be accompanied with eating outside, we picked up some littleneck clams to grill. Our local butcher shop, which also features a nice [...]
Stress-Free Thanksgiving: Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Onions, Bacon and Cranberries
On Thanksgiving, my husband cooks our turkey. It goes in the countertop rotisserie and spins around, cooking for a few hours. It’s always juicy and so flavorful, and everyone dives for it. But me? I am all about the side dishes. There’s something exciting about a table loaded with squash, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, green [...]
Stress-Free Thanksgiving: Cranberry Citrus Martini (and Don’t Forget the Drinks)
Confession: I’ve been known to carefully plan holiday dinners but totally forget about drinks. Usually it’s my husband who clues into the conspicuous absence of beverages. He asks me if I bought anything to serve for drinks. And my response? Usually something like “Well, there’s water!” He’s not fond of that answer. Don’t worry — [...]
Tangy Cranberry Almond Coleslaw
Warm breezes, the sound of waves crashing on the shore, laughter … these are the things our happy summer celebrations are made of. And they are fueled by summer dinners where the chicken is grilled, the corn is freshly peeled and steamed and the salads are chilled. We had a bit of a celebration recently [...]
Oven Poached Flounder with Garlic and Olive Oil
“Winter was not kind to my body this year.” Those words escaped my lips at the beach last week. It erupted forward before I could self-censor myself and tuck the sentiment away. My cousins, to whom I spoke, quickly tried to argue with compliments, a sweet gesture but the scale doesn’t lie. I’ve put on [...]
Lighter New England Clam Chowder, A Family Recipe
A little over a year ago, Shawn, the kids and several of our friends were on the Cape (Cape Cod, that is) for a wedding. One evening, we got takeout from a little place in Orleans, Massachusetts called Sir Crickets. We all ordered something different — fried clams, fried oysters (mmm!), clam chowder, fish and [...]
Butternut Squash, Toasted Walnut and Dried Cranberry Salad
So. I’ve had a couple of butternut squashes in my fridge. They’ve been taunting me. Staring me down. Begging me to do something, anything with them. But I was nervous. It’s been years since I handled and cooked squashes in their whole form. Typically, I take the easy way out and buy squash that’s already [...]
Connecticut Spice Cookies
These tender, slightly chewy spice cookies are adapted from an old family recipe.
Cristina Ferrare’s Clam Sauce
Clear as day, I remember the first time I had white clam sauce. I was probably 8 or 9 and out to dinner with my family at this great pasta restaurant on the Connecticut shoreline. The restaurant is not there anymore, but when it was it could be relied on for amazing, delicious housemade pasta [...]
The New Englander Panini with Easy Cranberry Orange Mayo
When I came home New York (and meeting Bobby Flay!) on Monday, I was totally inspired … by sandwiches. I haven’t worked much with sandwiches recently, and I couldn’t wait to work on some new flavors. This sandwich is all about New England. Lettuce from Boston, cheddar from Vermont, cranberries from Cape Cod … Oh, [...]
