DISH: Pan-Fried Trout with Pecans
TYPE: Nostalgic, Experimental
MAIN INGREDIENT: Trout, Nuts
MENU: Warm White Bean and Arugula Salad; Fennel-Potato Puree

Since we started the blog, my mother, on occasion, has taken to shooting me an email with whatever foodie whim has occupied her thoughts on a given day. Earlier this year, it was an escarole-wrapped fish and rice dish that she wanted to run by me. After I said, “can’t help you with that one,” she served it to me weeks later with a delicious avgolomeno sauce. We both…

DISH: Genovese Pesto Pasta with Potatoes and String Beans
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Basil, Pasta, Olive Oil, Pine Nuts

Sometimes it seems as though the whole blogosphere is about to explode in one big umami-gasm. People seem to obsess over that perfect taste sensation that is umami-a self-defining, you’ve-got-to-experience-it-to-believe-it flavor. Though I’m a food blogger, I’m not really one to think about food overly much, at least not when I’m in front of it. I much prefer to eat it than to dissect it.

EVENT: “Welcome Home Whitney” Holiday Dinner
VENUE: Sophie’s Apartment, West Village
PARTY SIZE: 20
TYPE: Festive, All-American Buffet
MENU: Pigs in a Blanket; Assorted Cheeses; Mustard-y Turkey Meatloaf; Roasted Brussels Sprouts; Carrots & Parsnips; Fennel-Potato Puree with Mascapone; Ginger Pear Cake (Steph); Insomnia Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches

After six months of living abroad in London, our beloved friend Whitney realized she wasn’t in Kansas anymore and decided to make a great pilgrimage home for the holidays. But before she moseyed on…

It’s Christmas Eve. For many, we hear that means carols, eggnog, and prettily lit Christmas trees. For Jewish New Yorkers, it means something else entirely: takeout Chinese.

I have a slightly different experience than most NYC Jews, though: my grandmother was born on Christmas Day, and my mother grew up celebrating the day both as Christmas and as a birthday. For much of my childhood, we went to Grandma Jane and Poppy’s house in Westchester for the annual Christmas-Birthday party where my main activity was playing with my sisters and cousin on my grandparents’ very cool red, orange, and yellow shag carpet left over from the 60s.

HOLIDAY DINNER PARTY MENU: Red Wine Braised Short Ribs; Butternut Squash & White Bean Puree with Bacon-Sage Croutons; Alta Brussels Sprouts; Pear Almond Tart

For a month or so this fall, my friend Sophie started having Monday night Gossip Girl and Brussels Sprouts dates with our friend Mark. I’m not sure why they decided those two joys needed to go together—perhaps to analyze the misunderstood Manhattanites along with the misunderstood vegetable? They would cook other things too, mind you, but the centerpiece of their meal was always some delicious…

EVENTS: Family Hanukkah Brunch at Uncle Michael and Aunt Cindy’s; Surprise-Ingredient Sunday Night Dinner
DISHES: Forgotten Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars; Potato Latkes; Oven-Fried Flounder with Parsley Aioli
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Chocolate, Potatoes
FISH & LATKE PHOTOS BY: Alex

Paradoxically enough, I spent last Friday night, the first night of Hanukkah 2009, decorating Christmas cookies with Phoebe at Kate’s house, in preparation for the following night’s holiday party. In between icing a stocking and a candy cane, we lit the first two candles.

I spent…

EVENT: The Kenner Family Christmas Party
VENUE: Kate’s Parents’ Apartment, Upper East Side
PARTY SIZE: 100
TYPE: Large-Scale Holiday Dinner Buffet
MENU: Beef Bourguignon; Scalloped Potatoes; Corn Pudding; Roasted Brussels Sprouts; Just Salad Fixings; Lemon Bars; Pecan Bars; Chocolate Fudge; Christmas Cookies; Cranberry Punch; Spiked Cider

The holiday season is an especially busy time for us Quarter-Life Cooks. Among our twenty-something friends, our expertise is in high demand for planning, prepping, and decorating all sorts of festive gatherings. But one particular grown-up…

DISH: Pink Greens; Arugula and Beet Salad
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Beets and their Greens

I don’t know why, but I always seem to over-estimate how many beets I will need for any given meal that features them. There was certainly no exception when it came to our latest catering gig—I roasted nearly double the number of beets I would need for my relish, and still came away from the baby shower with leftovers of that to add to the beets still sitting in my fridge. Despite the fact that cooking these pink veggies en masse transforms…

VEGGIE-CARNIVORE DINNER PARTY MENU: BBQ Chicken Satay; Soy-Sesame Tofu Skewers; Teriyaki-Dressed Soba, served warm; Mixed Greens with Creamy Mango Vinaigrette; Coconut Shortbread

When I turn to tasty soba noodles to offer me some sustenance, I’m more likely than not to dress them with julienned raw veggies and the sesame oil vinaigrette I threw on these rice noodles I made a while back. For a recent mag club, though, I wanted something a little different-but I also wanted something different from the hearty fall dishes like gratins I was starting…

EVENT: Mary’s Baby Shower
VENUE: Rebbecca’s Apartment, Chelsea
PARTY SIZE: 40
TYPE: Afternoon Sit Down Tea
MENU: (Cocktail Fare) Caprese Skewers with Pesto Dipping Sauce; Deviled Eggs; Asparagus in Parmesan Puff Pastry; (Sit Down) Sexy Ugly Caramelized Onion Tarts; Green Apple & Brie Sandwiches with Honey Mustard; Turkey & Beet Relish Sandwiches with Dill Mayonnaise; Mixed Greens with Lemon-Basil Vinaigrette; Zucchini & Walnut Bread; Chocolate Chip Banana Bread; Cherry Scones; Apple Cinnamon Scones; Magnolia Cupcakes

Our friend Jocelyn is lucky…