Recipes & Cooking
A Matter Of Taste: An Interview With Alison Riley
Even the best cooks and bakers among us know that not every attempt at food preparation turns out to be the way it was intended. Part essay collection/part cookbook, writer and creative-director Alison Riley’s Recipe for Disaster: 40 Superstar Stories of Sustenance and Survival (Chronicle Books, 2023) folds in humorous and heartfelt tales to satisfy almost…
A Word In Edgewise: From CyberSilk Road to Front Porch–Threads of Thoughts
Photo courtesy of BigStock/fortton I learned to use chopsticks when I was seven or eight, during those occasions my parents and I dined in downtown Hartford at the Far East Garden. Dad was keen I learn to operate chopsticks properly, calling the restaurant owner to advise. Far East Garden’s enchanting red lanterns illuminated a prominent framed portrait of…
For The Love Of Cocoa
Dean Packingham shares the sweet story of how he started his Duluth-based hot chocolate company, Mike & Jen’s Cocoa Mix. If you’re a fan of hot chocolate (which, let’s face it, we all are in this six-month-long-winter state), you might have noticed something about most instant hot chocolate mixes on the shelf: you can’t pronounce…
Cookin’ Up A Powderhorn Storm
For the first year ever, the Powderhorn Culinary Arts Show will feature cooks of all skill levels on Oct. 19. Whether you own your own restaurant, you’re a novice in your kitchen at home, or the closest thing to “culinary” you know is takeout, the Powderhorn Culinary Arts Show will be your opportunity to show…
Un Appétit Pour La Vie
Twin Cities chef extraordinaire Bret Bannon discusses life in the kitchen and being his authentic self. “I try to inspire people to have joy in their lives,” Bret Bannon smiles across the table. We are sitting in his immaculate dining room, surveying the food he laid out for us as soft orchestral music plays in…
Pop a Bottle: How to Unleash Your Inner Sommelier
Wine. We drink it, we bond over it, we bring it to parties, we sip it alone after a long day. We don’t need science to tell us a well-chilled glass of good Champagne is a singular delight, but beyond that, the expansive wine aisle can be a bit of a conundrum. The rows of labels, growing…
2016 Holiday Gift Guide: Andy Lien
KRUPS Savoy 12-Cup Thermal ET351 The newest coffee maker on the market features a thermal carafe, which purportedly keeps coffee warm for up to four hours, but my road testing has had me sipping still-warm coffee the morning after. I’m not proud of this, I’m proud of the coffee maker. And, because there’s no burner…
The Cookie Creative: Manipulating Icing
Everyone has a memory related to cookies. Whether it’s dunking Oreos in milk when you were little or watching your grandma make Christmas cookies, somewhere in your memory is an event involving cookies. Holly Nolan’s dad was a cartoonist and her mom was constantly baking cookies and cakes. “Getting into cake decorating really married the…
Recipe: Pride Pasta
June is Pride Month and I just love a good reason to try out some artistic recipes. In the past, Lavender has featured Pride recipes by Ross Sveback and I hope you go back to find them here and here. There are recipes for Skittles flavored vodka, the original rainbow layer cake, rainbow mini donuts,…
Recipe: Bacon Granola
You read that right: bacon granola. Last year, I was surprised by how easy it is to make granola rather than buy it. What’s more, there are countless ways to modify your homemade granola, from adding a cup of coconut or seeds or nuts or dried fruit or even chocolate as it’s cooling. So, of…
