First a Cook  I love ritual, especially those involving food and connection with family and friends. My favorite ritual is Friday night Shabbat dinners. It’s quite lovely when we get together with extended family for Shabbat, but I am especially fond of those that we share quietly in our dining room as a family of […]

The Republican National Convention is about to invade my city in a matter of days. Politics is in the air and I want to crawl under my bed and hide. It’s my least favorite subject and I avoid it at all costs. I’m the mushy middle. Hopelessly moderate on just about everything political and non-political. […]

Strawberry rhubarb pie is MY pie. The one that I would choose over all others. The one that I wait 10 months out of the year for and spend the other two hoarding rhubarb as if the apocalypse is upon us. I grow it, I buy it, I steal it from neighbors’ yards. Nothing stands […]

If you have some apples hanging around like we do (like, 21 pounds), make these. I swear – this takes a much lower skill level than pie and is surprisingly simple. I have posted before, using different flavor preserves or Nutella.  This time, though, I used fresh thinly sliced apples instead of preserves. AMAZING. Seriously […]

The Privilege of Helping My name is Emily and I am a chronic helper. Anyone who has been the recipient of my gestures can attest – I am well intentioned, but I am an eager, enthusiastic helper who though genuine, can run the risk of over-helping. Back in grade school, it was a minor holiday […]

I purposely don’t spend much time scouring the internet for recipes. I feel like they hinder my creativity by planting preconceived ideas in my head. That’s kind of the way I feel about toys for my kids – we don’t have many because I’d prefer that they figure out how to play with something by […]

The Wallpaper Factor I saw an article recently about a woman who wore a hidden camera to show how many times she received harassment from men in a day. The article brought back a memory of some advice I received from an elderly woman not too long ago. Before I go any further, let me […]

I don’t regard myself as an entertainer. I lack the skill or the energy to plan parties with thematic decor, parchment wrapped mini sandwiches, and coordinating signs on chalk boards. In fact, I get very overwhelmed when I see blog posts or magazine articles telling me how easy it is to create the perfect summer […]

From This Mom To Her Village: Mother’s Day feels like a very linear holiday for a role that is so dynamic. I celebrate my mom, my kids celebrate me, and so on. We go to brunch and plant flowers in a domino effect of celebration and admiration for our respective mothers and mothers’ mothers. To […]

These cookies are hearty and spicy and make you think of gingerbread houses and small German villages.  I’m obsessed with them and have added them to the mandatory rotation of family Christmas cookies.  Like all recipes, I followed Eva’s notes and then made some of my own adjustments like adding some salt and vanilla and […]

I’m on lock-down. A one year lock-down from initiating any change that adversely affects our family financially. This lock-down, imposed by my husband, feels a bit like being grounded from hanging out with my friends. I feel restrained and am trying my best to infuse some interest and energy into my life within the boundaries […]

Peaches and dreams. That about sums up my experience making this pie. What was intended to be a simple summer pie ended up being a catalyst for summoning some of the best summer memories. As I was preparing my peaches, my mind wandered to the summer I spent working at a local road side fruit […]