Mother’s Day — May 13th this year — means strawberry pie for me. Some people think of fancy hats, teas on the lawn and corsages. That’s not how my family celebrated Mother’s Day. My grandmother, Dora, was a huge fan of strawberry pie. She believed you could tell the class of a restaurant by the quality of their strawberry pie. She passed the same appreciation on to her daughters and granddaughters. Along with this appreciation, she [...]

March is here! My crocuses are starting to bloom! St. Patrick’s Day is almost here! This winter has been very mild in North Central Ohio and I forgot that spring was on the way. There are a few things that I really love about spring. Warm sunshine and flowers are top on the list. But St. Patrick’s Day is right at the top too. When my kids were in elementary school, we had a big [...]

Spread the holiday spirit with homemade food gifts. Photo Courtesy of Nestle. Ok, fellow bakers, cooks, foodies and kitchen mavens – the holiday season is on and, if you’re like me, you’re looking for some delicious ways to strut your culinary stuff – er, make your friends and family really happy by giving them some homemade food gifts. If you still need some ideas, fret not. I’ve found some really good ones for you.

Every year I deliberately avoid the Black Friday frenzy and the Cyber Monday madness. I’d like to enjoy my turkey leftovers and movie marathons in peace, thank you very much. But every year when it’s Back to Normal Tuesday, I realize just how far behind I am in my Christmas shopping. If you’re feeling a bit behind, too, you can relax. I’ve done some pre-shopping snooping for you and have found some nifty gift ideas for you to [...]

  That’s right, kids, the Thanksgiving Day Feast countdown is on – are you ready? I’m not either. But it’s high time I got the ball rolling on things, because I’m cooking for everybody. I like doing it, but with a busy schedule, I need to make sure I’m ahead of the game or we’ll all be feasting on pb & j (which does not go well with gravy). If it’s your turn to cook [...]