family meal

In praise of corned beef and cabbage

15 March 2012

Every Irish-American family has at least one good St. Patrick’s Day story. Ours involves green beer, green teeth, and a banner at a wake that said, “Good luck Casey!” (Casey, may he rest in peace, needed a lot more than luck in that story.) Even so, enjoying St. Patrick’s Day has nothing to do with [...]

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Asparagus for Lunch

31 May 2011

Eating asparagus is the culinary equivalent of wearing pastels: it’s a rite of spring, an indication that cold days are behind us. But while I have yet to meet a pastel I like, the same isn’t so for asparagus. I eat asparagus indiscriminately: blanched, roasted, grilled, or raw. I like it in soup, in pasta, [...]

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Iced Coffee Talk

10 August 2010

There are times of the year when iced coffee becomes a necessity. My brother’s wedding on the coast of Massachusetts last year was once such occasion. The week before the wedding, we rented a odd, split-level house in Marion to help in wedding preparations. To say that it was hot that week is to shortchange [...]

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Neighborhood Watch

7 July 2010

The neighbors think I’m spying on them. It looks suspicious, I’ll admit. My binoculars appear to be pointed directly at their bathroom window. (They do need blinds.) Spy blood runs in my family, but when it comes to the target of of my attention, I swear it’s innocent. Rather than on the bathroom, the binoculars [...]

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