Nutritional Yeast

Nutritional Yeast

  The International Paralympic Committee’s Nordic Skiing World Championships, right here at Telemark Lodge in Cable, Wisconsin near our winter home-base.  The paralympic equivalent to the World Cup, this is the championships for athletes from around the world competing in biathlon and cross country skiing. 

Turnip Chevre Gratin with Peas

Turnip Chevre Gratin with Peas

.   Once again it’s the time of year when we pack up the trusty (and a little rusty) 4Runner with food and gear and turn her nose northward.  For months we’ve been reading the tales of snow in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and have tried 

Faroe Island Oat Cake

Faroe Island Oat Cake

    On my way to bed recently I happened to glance at this window…what an incredible creation!  The streetlight gives the orange hue, but the morning sunlight would erase this temporary masterpiece so there was to be no waiting until daylight.  I know that my 

Kale Sausage Soup

Kale Sausage Soup

  This may be a good meal for the post-holiday recovery.  Brothy with good protein and the vitamin punch of kale, your liver will thank you.  This is also a favorite of my friend Mary Kay and one that we’ve eaten as she’s been on this stem 

Pepita Dip

Pepita Dip

  If it’s going to continue to be gray outside, it might as well snow a little—and it is!  White flakes are showering down and I’m grateful for even a small change in these overcast days.   Here’s a tasty and healthy little snack for the holidays. 

Crawfish Étouffée

Crawfish Étouffée

    I have been spending quite a bit of time lately with my dear friend Mary Kay from south Mississippi while she is in the upper midwest.  Recently she wanted to give back to her friends here in the northland the experience of Mississippi/Louisiana hospitality, so 

Burned Leeks with Dill Cream Cheese

Burned Leeks with Dill Cream Cheese

  Another Faroe Island dinner delight. All I had was a blog photo from a dinner at the Faroe Islands restaurant KOKS and the deducing began.  Regardless of what their version actually was, these niblets may have been my favorite part of the dinner—this and the celeriac purée.  Fortunately 

Star Anise Pickled Onions

Star Anise Pickled Onions

  This is a stone tile creation by Scott of limestone and onyx.  A fun little bathroom design and another photo distraction to entertain—like the previews before the movies, sometimes they are the most captivating part of the show!     Speaking of star anise… A couple of months ago I heard 

Thanksgiving Flashback

Thanksgiving Flashback

  I often trot through our nearby wooded parks and recently stumbled upon this fire pit.  Most of our trails were built by volunteers in the mountain biking community…can you tell?  Knowing some of this crew I would guess this pit will be used well into the winter 

Savory Roasted Pears

Savory Roasted Pears

  My sister and I recently went to this display of Flora Metamorphicae, 4,000 flower sculptures created by six Norwegian artists.  The flowers travel the world and the displays are changing and unique to the surroundings in which they reside.  Each flower is different, some resemble 

Potato Dill Soup

Potato Dill Soup

  October days are either stunningly orange with sunlight filtered through turning leaves, or it’s grey, rainy and chilled giving us a hint of the November to come.  This potato soup with a tang of buttermilk, yogurt and dill seed will not let you down during 

Plum Ketchup

Plum Ketchup

  (A visit to the Niagara Escarpment, more photos below…)     Close your eyes and open your mind to let ketchup become more than you think it is.   That red puree we think we know so well has origins in China (doesn’t nearly everything?!?) as a 

Mini Eggplant Pizzas

Mini Eggplant Pizzas

  For the last month or two colorful eggplants have been brightening the palette of our local Farmer’s Market.  This picture of dazzling garden abundance is from my friend and photographer David Cavagnaro of the Pepperfield Project.  Color and shapes!  Many of these varieties can be used but the size and 

Cabbage Horseradish Slaw

Cabbage Horseradish Slaw

    There are many versions of slaw, usually shredded cabbage and vegetables with a dressing or vinaigrette, sometimes sweet and sometimes with a pickled slant.  “Koolsalade” or “koolsla” (sla short for salade) was Dutch for cabbage salad, and we easily latched onto that term like 

Tarragon Sugar and a Faroe Islands dinner

Tarragon Sugar and a Faroe Islands dinner

… Fresh tarragon with sugar was not my original idea, but reading it in a menu convinced me this was the meal I wanted to attempt to recreate for a Scandinavian dinner for my friend Dennis, the generous Dane who loves to host elaborate festivities. The Faroe Islands 

Herb and Chevre Orblettes

Herb and Chevre Orblettes

  The Holiday Music Motel We were wandering around Sturgeon Bay looking for a place to stay since it appeared as though a storm was descending, and though we like camping…it takes real dedication to set up WHILE it’s raining.  Vacationland of Door County is 

Fassolada

Fassolada

  Another soup from the deli days. It was awesome in summer because the vegetables and herbs could be local and fresh, but also pretty tasty in the winter when you needed a substantial bowl of chow.  Fassolada is a Greek stew (sometimes called their national soup) 

Iced Nutmeg Cucumber Tea

Iced Nutmeg Cucumber Tea

Nutmeg Iced Tea is great for a summer’s day, so here are photos of a divine location to relax with a glass—a gazebo co-created by Scott and metal-master friend Hung Van Pham.   This is the initial design in miniature, before it took an evolutionary turn to include metal.   The top…not 

Sweet Potato Falafel

Sweet Potato Falafel

  These orange lumps turned out to be great munchables.  We served them at an event as a gyro substitute with yogurt tzatziki, then the next day we ate them as leftovers, and the day after that I packed a few along for a road trip 

Beetroot Salad with Juniper Berries

Beetroot Salad with Juniper Berries

  How is ‘beetroot’ different from a beet?  Not.   You’ve already heard me say what I’ve said for decades….beets are back.  They are back stronger than ever and people are asking for them—I even served a beet salad at a wedding last summer.  Don’t be