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I'm Maggie,a food-loving, curiosity-seeking mom raising two boys, a dog, and a tankful of fish next to the beach. Welcome to my skillet!
More about Life in a Skillet -
C is for cowfish blowing sand from rocky reefs to uncover tasty crab and shrimp.
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Agent Colt Shore: Domino 29
True story: I once had a gig in espionage. Honestly. I can’t really share any details – statute of limitations and all that – but money and information did change hands, and I operated under a code name. A not-very-cool-sounding code name, but still. Once I let it slip to The Kids, and the look of astonishment on their faces was priceless . . . I was sad to have to dash the visions ofRead the Rest »
Mystery dinner?
So THIS is what the Kids are up to when I’m not home to cook. I saw this mystery meal after downloading the photos on my camera; the home-cooked fare I missed going to see the Stones. Kids cooking for themselves. Nice job, guys: Mind if I steal the recipe? I’m thinking of adding poblano pepper, red onion and cherry tomato. Mmmm.
Naoki Honjo kitchen photograph
This photo absolutely captivates me. It’s the illustration for Tessa Hadley’s short story “Experience” from an old New Yorker, and I wish you could see it full-page size, as I did. I instantly imagined an entire persona from this peek at a refrigerator. It’s impossible for me to read the New Yorkers each week, so periodically I page through a stack, making sure I’ve read all the good bits and tearing the Table ForRead the Rest »
Doctor up your pancake mix
Trader Joe’s Buttermilk Pancake Mix is my breakfast shortcut of choice. Just add eggs and water – or eggs, water, and oil for waffles – and presto! Pretty good homemade-tasting pancakes in a few minutes. It’s hard to find a from-scratch recipe that has that same rustic taste, and at just under two dollars per box it’s not a bad deal. I say pretty good, because I’ve figured out a way to doctor up theRead the Rest »
Fast, hearty, and delicious chicken, leek, and artichoke penne
Oh. My. Gosh. This improvised dinner that was absolutely, fabulously divine, with a hint of earthiness from the mushrooms, flavor from the leeks, and brightness from the artichoke hearts all coming together to coat the penne with love and delicioiusness. It’s easy to make, with a simple broth of just artichoke water, butter, and olive oil thickened with a bit of flour. Read on! Continue reading
Caprese salad with chicken, penne, and pine nuts
A simple recipe for you today for this quick and easy caprese salad, a light dish for these longer hotter nights. The pine nuts are a nice touch, adding a crunchy earthiness and finishing the dish. 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved 1 cup fresh mozzarella balls, halved 1/4 cup each Italian parsley and basil, cut into ribbons 1/4 lb cooked chicken breast, diced 2 cups cooked penne and 1/4 cup toasted pine nutsRead the Rest »
50 and Counting with the Rolling Stones in San Jose
There’s got to be something wrong with getting dressed up and sipping roasted truffle bisque before a Rolling Stones show. Maybe not as wrong as Jessica Biel wearing a clip-on nose ring to Chaos to Couture, but when said roasted truffle bisque is accompanied by lobster tail and is served in a restaurant arena at a special reservations-required seating before the show, it’s cause to wonder. While Mick and Keith were backstage, possibly channeling eternal youth inside matching hyperbaric chambers, a legion of similarly-aged fans sat inside The Grill at the HP Pavilion at a $72.95-per-person-pre-fixe-Rolling-Stones menu, selecting from house made chanterelle pasta, red wine marinated poussin, applewood bacon wrapped filet, or potato scaled turbot. And drinking wine. Check it out. Continue reading
A dog walked into a bar . . .
Pup took me for a walk this morning. He didn’t seem to want to take our usual route around the block to the empty field above Seacliff Beach to dig at gopher holes, so I followed him to see what he wanted to do. He made a beeline for Kid Two’s bus stop, where he sniffed around, left his mark, then took me down the side street bordering the field – past a hidden gardenRead the Rest »
Happy Birthday Grandma Juju!
Today is my mother’s 70th birthday. She loves flowers almost as much as she loves her grandchildren; since I couldn’t be there to celebrate in person, I was happy to find this clever floral birthday cake to fete her: She has been blessed with four children, seven grandchildren, and a husband who likes to bake. Dad (aka Downtown Tom) tried his hand this year at decorating a cake for her. It turned out pretty well,Read the Rest »
Can you print me out a burger, mom?
I am completely flabbergasted at this Jetsons-meets-Chickienobs notion that one day in the not-so-distant future we’ll most likely have the ability to push a button on a kitchen device and be delivered a steak or burger. It’s called “bioprinting,” and people are actually working to figure out ways to let us have our cows and eat them too. Check it out. Continue reading
Very cool fuzzy cactus
It was a foggy morning at the Big Sur Garden Gallery, where we stopped to admire their very cool and interesting collection of cactus and pick up a cappuccino and croissant from the Big Sur Bakery right next door. Here’s the star of the show: Isn’t that so cool? I’ve never seen anything like it before. Here are a few other of the roadside cacti. This artichoke-shaped cactus is enormous, almost four feet tall.Read the Rest »
