Baked Fennel Au Gratin with Orzo and Onion

I ate fennel nearly fifty years ago when my husband and I were in Zurich, Switerland in the mid-seventies where we studied Jungian psychology. I didn’t like this vegetable much back then because of its potent licorice flavor. Also, I wasn’t familiar with how to cook it. I only baked it with a sprinkle of…

Delicious Delicata-squash soup

Throughout much of 2021, I was dealing with extensive dental work including implants and extractions. Therefore, I needed to eat soft and mostly smooth foods. If I didn’t follow these simple directions and exerted effort to chew harder foods, like sandwiches, steaks, carrots, nuts and the like, even chips or crunchy foods, I would need…

Creamy Zucchini-Potato Soup

However, I developed a taste for zucchini early on in my marriage once my husband and I traveled to Zurich, Switzerland to study Jungian psychology.

Loaded Potato, Broccoli and Cheddar Cheese Chowder

I always enjoy starting a lunch or dinner meal at a restaurant with a cup of soup. Except for French onion soup, which I don’t like, or something very spicy, I’m quite open to a wide assortment of soups, like creamed ones, thick ones with grains, barley, orzo or others with meatballs, poultry, cheeses, and…

Turkey Tetrazzini: A Tasty Treat with Thanksgiving Leftovers

From my childhood, with leftover turkey, I remember our housekeeper, Ann, serving an old-fashioned dish, common at the time – turkey-a-la-king. Sometimes she would use chicken. Ann added carrots, crunchy celery, and certainly peas, along with making a creamy white sauce. Aside from it’s saucy flavorfulness, what I affectionately recall were the colorful, but slimy…

Oriental-Style Pork with Oyster Sauce and Mushrooms

As I’ve stated in other parts of this book, I didn’t eat pork until after I was married because my Jewish parents kept a kosher house. However, I still recall a whiff of bacon cooking in the kitchen and I loved that smell and flavor, still do! I think my mother followed certain rules, and…

Shrimp Couscous Vegetable Chowder

I’m a big fan of shrimp, cooked in nearly any manner. I ate shrimp often as a teenager, since our mother took us, my three younger siblings and I to Florida’s beaches for Christmas break. There, I acquired a taste for shrimp cocktail, served with lemon slices and hints of a spicy cocktail sauce. I…

Cabbage, Potato, Zucchini, Mushroom, Barley soup with Bacon

INGREDIENTS Serves 8-10 9 slices bacon, cut into 1-2 inch pieces 2 lbs Yukon gold potatoes, unpeeled, cut in 1/2 -inch pieces 1 small head cabbage – savory, green or Napa variety, cored, cut into 2 inch pieces (1 1/4 lb) 8 oz fresh mushroom, crimini type, brushed cleaned, or a variety you have –…