We’re currently in Austin, looking for a permanent home. I can’t believe I used the word “permanent” — nothing is permanent, and “permanent home” sounds like I’m lying to myself and to you. Anyway, the kitchen in the Airbnb we’re…
May was a fucking tough month for our family. We had a big decision to make: do we go back home to expensive California, which is going through yet another serious crisis, or do we move to cheaper, thriving Austin?
We are visiting Austin at the moment, staying in an Airbnb in Cherrywood, a beautiful neighborhood in the northeast. The food scene here genuinely impresses me. Though we eat at home most of the time and eat out twice a…
If you’ve been following me for a while, you know I’ve never shared a meat recipe. I eat meat and love the flavor, but for moral reasons I limit myself to once a week — and honestly, it just doesn’t…
I hate following trends. I prefer to start them. Everyone is wearing Hokas, I wear Asics. Everyone switched to earbuds, I’m still on my first pair of Earpods. Everyone was making Dubai chocolate, I was making chocolate clusters. But now…
I can’t believe I posted the recipe video for this vibrant, warming dish on Instagram and YouTube but never here. It’s January and pumpkins are still around, at least here in North Carolina, where I am now. Not sure about…
Or, how to avoid getting frost bites in November in Boston! It was my second time in Boston. The first was about a month earlier, with the whole family. Had Leo, my eldest, not started college there, I probably never…
Reposting this one because it’s been on our breakfast rotation for twenty-two years and shows no signs of leaving. This recipe was born 23 years ago, in the first trimester of my pregnancy with my eldest. When everything except fresh…
I’m taking a break from creating new content to focus on a new project: introducing my grandmother’s Moroccan sesame anise cookies to America. Family and friends keep asking for them, so I’ve been mailing cookies all over the place. If…
I love stuffed vegetables but I’m rarely in the mood to make it myself. Though I love stuffing leaves — it’s like rolling a joint (says the woman who, in 51 years, has never actually rolled one). It’s satisfying —…
A friend has been sharing his pain with me about his heartbreak after a 10-month relationship ended—heartbreak that could have been avoided if he had been willing to fully commit to her. I listened, took his side, and held space…
Pita is a hiding place, a sleeping bag, an edible bowl. Anything you tuck into a pita will be delicious. No wonder Eyal Shani’s Miznon restaurants are so successful. He didn’t invent pita sandwiches, but he showed the world that,…
Did you know I was a private chef during the pandemic? I never mentioned that because it was brief and partly and wasn’t as exciting as it sounds. Not even cooking for Hollywood stars and well-known directors made it glamorous.…
Not much to tell. Although I did have a good day. I made a new friend who’s an astrologer, then went on a beautiful hike with my aunt and uncle at Catawba Falls. We followed it up with an early…
Do you know what the problem is with being a digital nomad? You’re always missing something. Family, friends, kitchen tools, an ingredient. Last week I wanted to make my grandmother’s tea biscuits but didn’t have a rolling pin. I could…
I’ve made so many freaking variations of this Waldorf salad—with pineapple like my sister taught me, with blood oranges in the winter, with Asian pear, and now for Rosh Hashanah. With apples and honey. I normally don’t add any sweeteners…
I have been wanting to make matcha pancakes forever! I kept seeing them everywhere – on Instagram and pancake mix packaging at Mitsuwa, the Japanese supermarket chain. The pictures on the packaging looked good, but they DEFINITELY contained dairy and…
Who knew that North Carolina produces such excellent produce. The apples here are the best I’ve ever had. The peaches, as Auntie Elana says, are also incredibly good, but last year it rained more than usual so they are not…
I haven’t eaten granola for years until my new friend, Susan, introduced me to Purely Elizabeth grain-free granola. Susan is as conservative as me when it comes to food. I totally trusted her, but out of habit, I looked at…
Traveling is fun only on Instagram. Thank God, I only have to pack and unpack my carry-on one more time this summer. It was easier in ancient times, when you had someone who schlepped around your luggage. Luckily I travel…