I’m a fan of many fall and winter vegetables. Butternut squash. Cauliflower. Parsnips. But the nearest and dearest to my heart is the lowly Brussels sprout. If you think you hate them, I strongly encourage you to give them another try. When overcooked, Brussels sprouts can turn into a mushy, stinky, skunky mess (in fact, I first had them this […]
more about: entertaining
Freeze Candles for Longer Burn Time via Apartment Therapy
Next time you’re lighting up the candles for a dinner party (or just a weeknight meal), try freezing them first. Doing so will make them burn more slowly, meaning you’ll be able to enjoy them longer. For the best results pop them in the freezer the night before. Get the full details on Apartment Therapy.
Entertaining Out-of-Town Visitors
Most of my friends live here in New York but jobs, graduate school, and familial obligations have scattered a few of my closest friends throughout the East Coast. I love to entertain visitors and it’s always great to catch up with an old friend, but I can’t help feeling some pressure when hosting out-of-towners. As with any highly-anticipated and planned […]
Holidays or HOLYdays?
“Ms. Slatalla, your advice on holiday hosting is not only wrong, it’s rude. First off, the holidays are HOLYdays, based on religious celebration and ritual.” This week, a reader named loschinchi wrote to say it’s not OK to skip the prayer before Thanksgiving dinner just because praying might make guests uncomfortable, disagreeing with my Modern Manners column in Real Simple‘s November issue. […]
A Wine Tasting Diary Can Help You Know What To Buy
I’m not sure if it’s commonplace in the rest of the country, but in the Mid-Atlantic wine is a form of gratuity among friends. If your neighbor lets you borrow his lawn mower, you give it back to him with a full tank of gasoline and a bottle of wine. If your friends invite you over for dinner and tell […]
Easy Potluck Ideas
Earlier this week a friend asked me to help him make an entrée for an international potluck lunch he was supposed to participate in at work. When we were planning the dish, he made two recipe suggestions: chicken paprikash and shepherd’s pie. I suggested going with the latter since it would be easier to double the recipe and serve to […]
Modern Manners: Family Food Fight
“I have relatives who will bring raw meat to a family barbecue without being asked, and then insist on having the host cook it,” writes a reader named laureltanner. “They don’t like the patties the hosts use. I feel this is insulting. “Am I wrong?” laureltanner asks. ”BTW, these are the same people who will serve homemade, but pre-frozen, chicken parmigiana […]
Hosting a Party When You’re Sick
Unfortunately it seems the changing season has caught up with me, and I woke up yesterday with a cold. It’s nothing too uncomfortable—just a sore throat, minor congestion, and fatigue—but I recently began night school at a culinary institute and the school told students not attend class if with any type of respiratory infection. I have class tonight, so this […]
