Cooking Blog

My good friend Alex’s 24th birthday occurred just recently. My friends and I are big fans of potlucks, so it seemed obvious that one should be held in his honor.

We decided to go with a universally loved theme: Southern food.

I have a bad habit of “treating” myself to coffee and a breakfast treat on the days I commute to work. After waking up early and traveling many miles in the process, I try to justify spending money and lots of calories on a delicious bakery muffin. Treats are okay in moderation, but there is really no excuse to do this several times a week. My new goal is to create healthy breakfast items at home that make it easy for me to grab-and-go. I started out this challenge with a blueberry muffin recipe from The Old Farmer’s Almanac All-Seasons Garden Guide.

If you’ve never tried bulgur, I guarantee you that the following Bulgur With Butternut Squash and Chard recipe will be the perfect introduction. Easy, quick, healthy, and scrumptious, this dish will help you discover how much you can love bulgur outside of tabouli.

It finally feels like Spring here in Seattle. And for me, Spring means cooking up dishes that use all the fresh produce that's starting to flood the markets such as this creamy, delicious asparagus mushroom risotto recipe.

I’m beginning to think that I have an unnatural obsession with brownies. First, I told you about hiding black beans in them. Next, I stuffed zucchini into brownies. This time, I won’t play with ingredients—instead, I will offer a rather undervalued baking method. As it turns out, you can make brownies in your slow cooker. But is it worth it?

A former colleague once made me business cards with the title “Cookie Queen.” I do make my fair share of cookies, and the rave reviews motivate me to keep my “title.” For this reason, I tackled the Cranberry Cookies from The Old Farmer’s Almanac Garden-Fresh Cookbook.

This recipe is simple enough to whip up for having scones on hand to grab as you’re running out the door to school or work, yet it’s elegant enough for a fancy brunch or special occasion. The final product has just a hint of lavender that pairs well with honey and a steaming cup of tea.