Bread of the Month: Celebrating strawberries, streusel in a scone

I would wager that, in the spring, when grocery shoppers across this country get a hankering for strawberry shortcake, strawberry pie, strawberry…anything, that don’t give a moment’s thought to the fact that most of the strawberries they’re buying come from the productive fields of California, from Oxnard to Watsonville.

My mom, Salinas-born, but Kansas-bound, . . . → Read More: Bread of the Month: Celebrating strawberries, streusel in a scone

Pleasing the plum palate

Is it possible I’ve been hypnotized by a fruit? If so, it is the plum that has seduced me, once again. Fortunately — or not, really — the season is woefully short, but during it, I find myself drawn, again and again, to the stunning array of plums, pluots and plum/cherry hybrids, gleaming like jewels . . . → Read More: Pleasing the plum palate

Bread of the Month: Crumbling new life into old cornbread

The first time I made “bread salad” or panzanella, as it’s commonly called, the recipe had me soaking cubes of very stale, sturdy bread in water, wringing those cubes out and mixing them with tomatoes, onions, cucumber, basil and vinaigrette for what turned out to actually be a very delicious experience.

This old-world method of . . . → Read More: Bread of the Month: Crumbling new life into old cornbread