I sometimes like to think of myself as the Pierogi Queen. This is a 100% self-deemed title, but a title I take seriously in the kitchen. Back, long before I went to culinary school, the Pierogi was one of the first dishes I truly perfected including coming up with my recipe for the perfect pierogi dough. While this may not seem like some incredible accomplishment, it truly was/is for me. No I didn’t cure cancer, but I did cure the epidemic of the dense, tasteless Pierogi and for that, I feel I deserve some kind of recognition. Seriously though, last year, I went about buying all of the various store bought pierogies out there for a taste tasting and after trying 6 different Pierogi brands, not one of them had a light, flakey, fluffy dough. So because I invented a dough that is a work of art, I have since ...

I am the proud mommy of an incredibly sweet and beautiful toddler, named Mayzie. A few months ago, my husband and I undertook the monumental task of potty training Mayzie. We had made a few half-assed attempts prior to this but on this one weekend we decided, the time is now! I promise you this has something to do with this cookie post…. The major motivator to have Mayzie do her thing in the potty was the objective of “if you pee in the potty, you get an M&M”. Prior to this, Mayzie had never had an M&M before, and like any normal toddler, after her first taste of M&M, she was addicted and subsequently completely potty trained in 48 hours (no exaggeration). So with that, we started buying bulk amounts of M&Ms from Costco and have them on the ready anytime we need to use bribery for any situation ...

The first time I ever visited Paris I was a junior in college and went with a friend for Spring Break. While everyone else I knew was joining the Cancun bandwagon of beaches and binge drinking, I yearned for something more cultured and filled with French food and pastries. After getting off the plane and getting to my hotel, the first thing I did was find one of those small Brasserie’s that you see in French movies that are painted dark red, with dim lighting, smokey air and loaded with all of France’s delicacies. I found one of these places about 3 blocks from my little hotel, and immediately knew this would be the place I would enjoy my first of many Parisian meals. Oddly enough, at the age of 19, I had never ever liked eating eggs. I blame this on my mom who ate a soft-boiled egg every ...

One my newest culinary obsessions is the Shishito Pepper. Our friends over at Greenflast Farms were the ones who introduced them to me. They were in our Famr Share box this past summer and my husband and I became infatuated with them. Shishito Peppers have are a super mild pepper with great flavor that when charred and tossed with a few bright ingredients (like lemon juice) are an addictive appetizer that everyone loves. Seriously…. Everyone …even my most picky relatives have found them irresistible. If it’s the summertime, Shishito Peppers are also awesome when charred on the grill! I like serving my Shishito Peppers with a little spicy aioli (aka mayonnaise mixed with some hot sauce) for a nice contrast in flavor. The great thing about this appetizer is that it takes so little time to make…anytime we have a random guest show up at our house, this is the ...

Since moving from New York City down to Princeton, New Jersey a year and a half ago, my husband and I have really taken advantage of the local farms that we have just a few miles from our home. Despite all the crap I’ve given the state of New Jersey over the years (the words “armpit of America” come to mind), I am not only in love with this state, but in awe of the amazing farms, produce, and local community efforts in food/farming/sustainability. One of our favorite farms has become Cherry Grove Farm, a sustainable dairy farm and creamery, which makes cheeses from their grass fed cows. Cherry Grove also has an abundance of super cute animals which my 2 year old daughter goes nuts for…. and their farm store on premises is what I go nuts for so it’s a win win outing for our family. The other ...

With summer and summer produce in full swing, I have been taking advantage of making dishes that highlight all my favorite foods that are in season only this time of year. Two of my favorite foods that are best in the summer are farm fresh Heirloom Tomatoes and Basil. Basil and tomatoes go together like Batman and Robin and the addition of my favorite Italian Cheese, Burrata is just icing on the Batmobile (horrible metaphor but you get where I am going with this….). I originally was thinking of making this salad with my Basil Pesto, but decided to go the route of a Basil Vinaigrette instead (lighter, and more salad-like). I found a recipe for a basil vinaigrette from a fantastic food blog I love, and changed up a few things like using Spring Onions instead of shallots because, spring onions are also in season! Some other variations of ...