Category Archives: BRUNCH

HOUSEBOATING AND EGG STRATA

I trace my love of houseboating to the 1958 film Houseboat. In the film Cary Grant lives on a houseboat with his motherless kids and Sophia Loren, a symphony-conductor’s runaway daughter masquerading as a housekeeper. So romantic. So fun. Made me (and every woman and man in 1958 America) want to trade lifestyle—and spouse—for the […]

FARMSHOP AND AVOCADO HUMMUS

It’s sunny and bright, hip and happening, and loaded with celebrities. We could be describing Southern California and Los Angeles in general, but instead are telescoping in on Farmshop, an artisan market and restaurant that perfectly reflects the cool vibe of both the region and the city. Actually, there are two Farmshop restaurants—one in L.A. […]

COOMBS HOUSE INN and QUICHE

Connoisseurs consider the Coombs House Inn  one of the best B & Bs in all of Florida and I know why. Her name is Lynn Wilson. Lynn, an architectural interior designer and decorator, discovered the house that would become the inn when vacationing in Apalachicola, Florida, in 1978. At that time, the mansion was uninhabited, boarded […]

ROSEMARY BEACH RESTAURANTS AND RECIPES

ROSEMARY BEACH is aptly named: “Beach” for the glorious sparkling white-quartz sand that hugs the Gulf of Mexico and “Rosemary” both for the flavorful herb and, by extension, the flavorful food that thrives in the northwest Florida beach community. For a 107-acre town welcoming homeowners and vacationers—and an area where almost every rental accommodation sports […]

BEST BREAKFASTS IN LOS ANGELES AND RECIPE FOR FABULOUS FRENCH TOAST

Most Los Angelenos are religious about dieting. With movie star focus on beautiful bodies, the savvy shun sugar, fat and all those awful carbohydrates. But when it comes to breakfast, the devil takes over the City of Angels and lures even stringent believers to abandon restraint for total decadence. Dieters tempted to indulge in forbidden […]

RIVIERA MAYA: TWO GREAT RESORTS/ONE GREAT RECIPE

Time to confess. I’m promiscuous. I sleep around. Sometimes I practice a sort of serial monogamy, seduced by the pleasure of one. On the other hand, I believe “the more the merrier” and “variety is the spice of life,” so have been known to jump into a different bed each night. That’s not to say […]

Croque Madame

The Grove Café & Market in Albuquerque, New Mexico, serves French-accented foods in an attractive setting that is part cafe, part coffee house and part gift shop. Add the sum of the parts and you’ll get a whole lot to love, including a terrific Croque Madame popular at breakfast, brunch and lunch.

HOT COCOA CAKE

Guess you have to be there (Ann Arbor) to indulge in the full monty, but you can sample some goodies by mail order. For example, Zingerman’s fabulous Hot Cocoa Cake (a coffee cake that is not too rich, not too sweet but just right) is available in the Ann Arbor deli and bakehouse, by mail order, and, now, even in your own home kitchen as Zingerman’s shared the recipe below. Praise the lard!

FABULOUS SOUP RECIPES

Recipes for two great soups, Cream of Brie and Cream of Bean. Both are luxuriously rich and beautifully versatile (can be served hot or cold, summer or winter, with any number of garnishes changing the flavor).