“What the heck do you do with this stuff…and do you want to make something with it?,” asked my neighbor Winnie, handing me a jar of pumpkin butter.  It had been a party favor from a recent shower she’d attended.  Since neither Winnie nor her husband cook a lot, much less bake, the pumpkin butter was…

Walk into any market, health food or otherwise, and you’ll probably find displays upon displays of “alternative milk” offerings–from almond and cashew to rice, coconut, and, more recently, oat.  But the original “alt milk beverage” is soy milk.  I confess I do not like most commercially packaged soy milk–always tastes overly “processed” to me, no matter what brand….

In a previous post I talked about my obsession with baking rustic loaves using my trusty starter “Barney,” who I’m proud to report is still alive and kicking.  But lately, my favorite bread to bake at home is Milk Bread, the incomparably fluffy, pull-apart tender carb of my dreams.  Its pillowy texture sort of reminds…

For the first time this season in the South Bay, the weather actually felt like fall–bright sunshine, crisp chilly breeze.  I snuggled in bed with my dog Violet this morning without fear of overheating–for a little dog she generates more heat that an electric blanket blasting on high.  When Violet decided she’d had enough of…

I know I’ve been MIA for a while–a long while.  What seemed like a short break from writing and posting turned out to be more of an extended absence.  Life, more specifically work-life, had taken a greedy gluttonous bite out of my free time (and maybe even a sizable nibble at my soul).  When I…