In a matter of days we went from two feet of snow to temperatures that allowed for eating outside. Spring is around the corner, but we’re not quite there yet. For me, that is the perfect time for preparing this Chicken Pot Pie, the ultimate American family dish. Read more…
Snow, hail, sleet, temperatures below freezing. Some days it seems that winter will never end here in Washington, DC. Well, at least it’s a good excuse to prepare one of our favorite hot winter drinks: Mexican Hot Chocolate. My daughter Rosa thinks it’s like an enormous liquid bonbon, and I guess she’s right. This hot […] Read more…
While watching the 87th Academy Awards we want something decadent to eat: oysters! Last year we made raw oysters with a spicy vinaigrette, this year we’ll eat them broiled with a rich green herb butter and a crunchy breadcrumb topping. They are somewhat inspired by the famous Oysters Rockefeller, Read more…
Of course we’ll eat chili bowl tonight! After having spent almost five years in the States I have come to fully embrace this spicy and flavorful tradition on Super Bowl Sunday. Every year I try to make a different version. This year I used ground beef instead of beef chuck, and I must say, it […] Read more…
Some say it originated in NY, others say that this pasta dish with creamy vodka sauce is just another pasta from Italy. Well, whatever, fact is that this pasta is extremely popular in the States, far more popular than in my home country the Netherlands. We don’t sell ready made jars Read more…
It took a while for me to get acquainted with the American habit of drinking Hot or Mulled Apple Cider in winter. In the Netherlands, we do not drink our apple juice hot; apple juice typically is a cold drink. However, one day my kids asked for Hot Cider, so I started making it at […] Read more…
Our New Year’s Eve tradition is to begin and end the evening with champagne. But not without having an array of appetizers within reach or we won’t make it until midnight. These are some of the appetizers we’ll have this year, all easy to prepare: Warm Marinated Olives, Parmesan Crisps, and Goat Cheese with Cranberries […] Read more…
Every now and then I make everybody in the house very happy with this BLT. It’s one of the easiest sandwiches to prepare and absolutely in my top 10 of favorite American dishes. Provided, of course, the sandwich is properly made, ‘cause sadly enough I’ve had a lot of lousy BLT’s in my life: wonder […] Read more…
We’ll celebrate this Thanksgiving with our dear American friends, just like we did last year. I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate this explicitly American holiday! This year my friend Maren and I decided to cook some of the dishes together, like the turkey and her mother’s delicious cranberry chutney. She will take […] Read more…
What I like about Thanksgiving is that people start cooking several days in advance. The day before yesterday my American friend Maren called me and invited me over to prepare some of the traditional dishes with her. There’s nothing better than cooking with friends! We made one of her mother’s recipes: a delicious, spicy cranberry […] Read more…