Secret Revealed! The Quest for the Secret of Really Green Pesto, Part 2
July 31, 2009
The Results:
Making pesto can be a slightly messy job. Making two separate batches of pesto is a very messy job—especially since I was trying to get them both out on the table at the same time. I was reminded once again that I am incapable of toasting pine nuts on the stove without completely forgetting what I am doing and burning them.
I decided to try the blanching experiment first, since it was superhandy to use the same boiling water for blanching the basil and then… more
Comments (28)The Quest for the Secret of Really Green Pesto, Part 1
July 29, 2009
The Challenge:
A few months ago (well, in the winter, actually), I mentioned in my Organic Gardening magazine column that one of my goals this summer was to discover how to keep pesto really green. Really, really, green. Like the kind you sometimes get in restaurants when it comes out on your plate, and it still has that neon-fresh color as if it hasn’t been exposed to any air.
Pesto is one of my culinary specialties. Every year I grow lots of basil, and then one… more
Comments (16)Top 10 Places I Want to Travel to Before I Die
July 27, 2009
For some crazy reason I don’t have a vacation planned for this August. One day I looked at my calendar, and there was no room left to get away—when you combine my schedule, my husband’s schedule, and all the kids’ events, it makes it hard to take trips unless you plan way in advance. So other than a quick weekend trip to visit with my in-laws, we are staying home.
But I can dream! And dream I shall. I am going to share my list of the top 10 places I want to go to before I die (in no… more
Comments (17)Fuzz Is My New Buzz
July 24, 2009
Maybe it’s because I’m getting older (with the granny glasses to prove it), but I’m starting to tire of the whole “buzz”-chasing world. Now, it’s all about fuzz for me. What’s fuzz? It’s the happy feeling and comfort of a warm, soft cashmere blanket, or a place that just delivers the goods over and over again.
Last week I stayed at the new Standard Hotel in Manhattan. It’s got tons of buzz: new André Balazs hotel that straddles the new Highline park, alleged celebrity… more
Comments (6)What Family Values? The Real Reason America is Falling Behind the Rest of the World
July 22, 2009
I stumbled across a frightening little list this morning. It’s a list of the only four countries in the world that don’t offer guaranteed paid maternity leave for mothers (based on a Harvard/McGill University study of 173 countries). You might expect to see Liberia, Papua New Guinea, and Swaziland on the list. But…the United States? Of America? As I so often find myself asking these days – what’s wrong with us?
While we in the U.S. do have the legal right to up to 12 weeks of… more
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