Food is one of my favorite human art forms. I consider a boring meal to be a missed opportunity, a lot like a blank wall–sometimes there are good, practical reasons to save time and have something simple and undecorated, but it’s always better if you can achieve something delightful with a modest effort. I have put considerable time and energy into enjoying and exploring food, including seeking out exciting food when I travel, trying unusual and rare foods, and developing ways to cook and enjoy exceptional food at home. My favorite cuisines are Italian and Japanese, but mainly because they are the ones with which I have the most experience.
This section of the site (which is growing slowly) is for sharing a few of the fruits of my exploration of food. Right now this includes a few recipes, plus my new international gelato index to help you find good gelato wherever you are.
Over time I intend to add more restaurant reviews (for now see my restaurant links and my Food Map of Florence), my experiences from cooking and cooking courses, and other guides. See also my posts in the food category.
Recipes & Cooking
I have put up a few of my recipes here, and will put up a few more gradually (plus improvements to the current ones).
My cooking focuses on minimizing the effort/quality ratio.
Good food is great, but in today’s busy world it isn’t reasonable to spend two hours cooking every meal, especially if one lives alone or in a household where everyone works. Therefore most of my recipes are quick, designed to take a half hour or less, so you can do them in that narrow window between getting home from work and becoming hungry enough to get cranky. The ideal pasta sauce, in my opinion, should be able to be prepared in less time than the pasta itself takes to cook.
Some of my recipes are more complicated, but my rule is that if a dish is twice as much work to prepare it had better be twice as good.
Most of my dishes are Italian, not authentic Italian but my own versions altered to be easy and practical, even if all you have is an American grocery store. Some of my dishes use other cuisines, but all follow the same principle of minimizing effort while still producing something exciting.
Individual recipes and discussions of cooking are reachable through the menu above, just hover your mouse over Recipes & Cooking Guides in the navigation menu.
