cream

Whether it’s a wedge of snacking cheese or a scoop of “I live alone” ganache, having a small treat available at a moment’s notice is good for everyone. The best treats taste great on their own but also play well with others for an excellent…

Bitter is good. Burnt ends, blackened catfish, crème brûlée, and the giant charred bubble on your pizza pie are just a few examples of how good it can be. The palate can taste five flavors—sweet, salty, bitter, savory, and umami—and the…

Making really good meatballs isn’t exactly rocket surgery. As long as you season them aggressively and use a light touch while mixing, you’ll be good to go. But I recently discovered an easy way to make an already delicious dish even…

It might look like fluff, but buttercream frostings are delicate emulsions. When chilly temperatures interfere with this fine balance, buttercream can break. The “break” could refer to the state of the emulsion or to your heart, because the…

Portland was covered in ten inches of snow on Wednesday, which is a lot of snow for a city full of people who don’t know how to drive in snow. This means I’ll be staying home until it melts, and playing a fun game of Chopped with my pantry…

Pastas have been used in desserts for some time now, like sweet lokshen kugel or white chocolate orzo pudding, but I confess, I’ve been missing out. All this time, my boxes of macaroni have only been treated to savory dressings, vegetables,…

Much like myself, potatoes are capable of taking on a lot of salt. The sharp salinity is quickly tempered by the creamy, slightly bitter potato flesh for a flavor combination I never get tired of. Potato chips, French fries, and fully…

About a month ago I found a two-for-one deal on tri-tip steaks, and I bought a whole bunch. Having recently read an article claiming one can dry age steaks by simply leaving them in the refrigerator for an extended period of time, I decided…

Fruit compote is one of the simplest ways to add a bright and sophisticated component to anything from ice cream to oatmeal, or even roasted meats. While you might normally make a big batch of berry compote in a pot on the stove, this would…

Looming apocalypse. Paranoid conspiracies. Rocket-obsessed oligarchs. As Thomas Pynchon’s novel turns 50, its world feels unnervingly present.