Dear Friends, Let me start with wishing everyone a happy, healthy, less-stress 2025. It’s been a few tumultuous years, so before we begin, I’d like to ask you to stop for a few seconds, take a long inhale, then exhale any left-o...
Now for some food!!! Chili Macaroni Bake Ingredients 1 cup (8 ounces) uncooked elbow macaroni – I also like the Mezzi Rigatoni (the small ones) 1 pound ground beef 1 medium onion, chopped 1 garlic cloves, minced...
Hello again. Seems like Santa is on the fast track this year, and so is everybody else. Over 80 million people traveled this Thanksgiving, and they anticipate 115 million will travel for Christmas, which is just over two weeks awa...
Christmas Eve Dinner Italian Style – It’s not the traditional Seven Fishes, but it’s yummy. EGGPLANT STACKS Ingredients: (2) large eggplants, skinned and sliced ¼ inch thick (3) cups Italian flavored breadcrumbs...
Hello everyone! It's November! Time flies when you’re having fun...and even if you’re not. It just doesn’t seem fair! All we can do is to do our best, even if we’re too pooped to pop. I hope Halloween brought you more trea...
Now on to the good stuff: FOOD!!!! There are a lot of recipes this month to help you prepare for the holidays: PANETONNE (CHRISTMAS CAKE) RECIPE SANTA’S SECRET** Ingredients 4 tbsp warm milk 1 tbsp dried yeast 8 tbsp su...
Dear Reader, Thank you for visiting my website. For those of you who were impacted by Helene, my thoughts for healing and recovery are with you. The devastation is unimaginable, and my heart breaks with each photo. Here we are...
Pumpkin Pie Pastry for one 9 inch pastry pans: 1 cups flour 1/2 tsp. salt 1/3 cups butter 2-3 tbs. cold water Sift flour and salt together Add butter and cut it through with pastry blender until mixture is in piece...
Dear Reader, Hello! Didn’t we just go through turning the calendar five minutes ago? Did you know the term “Time flies” is from an ancient Roman poet named Virgil? He wrote an epic poem Georgics, where the famous line “...
On to easy recipes while you scurry around getting kids off to school or turning over your summer wardrobe. Grilled cheese sandwiches. Here are a couple of my favorites. BTW, did you know you can substitute mayonnaise (the real...
Dear Reader, Wait a second! Didn’t we go through turning the page of the calendar ten minutes ago? I know because it’s in my last letter. Jeepers! I hope this finds you and your loved ones safe and well. And here we are, once ag...
TUSCAN STYLE COLLARD GREENS (A LITTLE BIT OF ITALY) INGREDIENTS 2 large bunches local collards 16 oz. low-sodium vegetable broth, divided 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil 1 clove garlic, chopped 2 large leeks, washed, w...
Dear Friends, Wait a second! Didn’t we just turn a page on the calendar five minutes ago, or am I delirious from the heat? Maybe both? Remember when talking about the weather was a safe subject? People may not want to ackno...
Here are a couple of my favorite summer specials. Nothing says summer more than watermelon (besides the heat!) WATERMELON AND BLUEBERRY SALAD Also very patriotic looking Suggestion: prepare the fruit ahead of time and leave t...
Dear Friends, Even though the summer hasn’t officially started, the weather has been extremely hot and steamy, although that’s not new to South Carolina. It seems like it lasts longer and gets hotter more often, and we keep fl...
I LOVE bacon. I make a salad with a pound of bacon but I’ll share that recipe another time. With summer Bar-B-Ques I thought you might try a different take on potato salad. You have to turn on the stove for that one, but the de...
Dear Friends, Spring has come! Flowers, trees, and shrubs are blooming. It brings a sense of hope. The phrase “Hope Springs Eternal,” is interesting that the words “hope” and “spring” are linked together. Spring...
It’s time for Fresh Basil!! Watermelon Salad – Delicious and Pretty Prep time: 15 mins Total time: 15 mins Serves: 4 Ingredients ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil 3 T fresh lemon juice Salt and pepper, to taste...
Dear Friends, Hooray for Spring! Blooming flowers brings me so much joy, and we can all use some of that now. I know the world is a mess, but we can’t give up on hope. Pray, meditate, whatever brings you peace. We have to...
Stuffed Shells Ingredients 1 lb. of large macaroni shells 2 cups Ricotta cheese – please don’t ruin it with cottage cheese! 1 cup parmesan or Romano cheese – grated ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley – the dried st...