This is the saga of a mystery and a delicious treat. The other day, I was leafing through my voluminous loose-leaf notebooks in which I keep recipes, looking for something which, of course, I couldn’t find. I try— I really do— to be organized. I have nifty dividers carefully set up and the best of intentions. The trouble is, I’m a compulsive recipe collector, and I somehow don’t keep up with my filing and my labeling. They are simply outstripped by my wanton enthusiasm for stockpiling things that “look good.”
Read morePeanut-Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
Any visitors to my kitchen know to find their way to my grandmother’s green biscuit tin which I lovingly hand-carried from England decades ago. They know they can always count on finding some kind of homemade cookies lurking inside. Though I’ve got several dozen different kinds in my baking repertoire, one kind making a frequent appearance is peanut butter chocolate chip. For some reason—and I think I know what it may be—these are Felix’s professed favorites. The reason is, I suspect, that they are just so good! They have a rich, crumbly, buttery crumb that’s somehow reminiscent of shortbread, but with peanut butter and good chocolate chips nestled inside. They are a breeze to make and completely addictive. What’s not to like?
Read moreOsso Buco
When the autumn days get shorter and cooler, there’s really nothing I like as much as settling into my kitchen and cranking up the oven for a little braising. There are so many semi-obscure cuts of meat, many of them inexpensive, that are transformed into fall-apart-on-your-tongue deliciousness with slow cooking in a yummy liquid up to their proverbial armpits, if you see what I mean. Among my favorites are lamb shanks, pot roast, short ribs, brisket…well, the list goes on and on. Today, however, I’m tackling Osso Buco, an Italian favorite that means, literally, “pierced bone” and refers to the cross-cut bone-in veal shanks that are the meat of choice for this dish. Because the bone marrow is so collagen rich, it provides a gelatin-like thickening agent during the slow cooking that results in a flavorful, velvety smooth sauce.
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