What became “The Year of the Cake” started innocently enough. In October 2023, Sandi Pierantozzi and her husband, Neil Patterson, ordered a slice of pistachio torte from a bakery in Sicily. It was love at first bite. The couple returned to the shop each of the five days they spent in Taormina, always savoring the
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When the COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, entrepreneur Dan Tsao’s multiple businesses were devastated. As the owner of the restaurants EMei in Chinatown and General Tsao’s House in Rittenhouse and the publisher of two Asian weekly newspapers since 2007, Tsao sent out an email to his newspapers’ more than 43,000 email subscribers. The feedback
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When my editor asked if I’d like to write a foraging article, I said I’d think about it. I have avoided writing about foraging for a while now. Foraging—looking for wild plants and fungi to consume—seems to be growing as a hobby, and it’s an obvious topic for a nature writer. But it has always
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Sometime in the mid-1970s, Amira Abdul-Wakeel baked her first cake in her West Oak Lane childhood home. Her sister and a very close girlfriend all pitched in, and they beamed with pride at their pound cake. Then her mom came home, and exclaimed, “That’s the best corn bread I’ve ever had.” Slighted, but not defeated,
MoreGrid’s illustrious neighbor, the Reading Terminal Market, has some exciting new occupants. The New Jersey-based Valley Shepherd Creamery, due to open in November, will truck in milk three times a week, allowing customers to witness their cheese-making process firsthand. Already open are the Tubby Olive, which sells olive oils and vinegars on tap, and the
MoreClaudio Specialty Foodsby tenaya darlington, madamefromage.blogspot.comIf you’ve never had fresh mozzarella—I’m talking one-hour-old—do yourself a favor and stroll down to Claudio’s in the Italian Market. It’s one of the few places in the city where you can still observe a food tradition in action. Like Nan Zhou (927 Race St.), the noodle bar in Chinatown
MoreSpruce up that sack lunch with these easy recipes
Recipes and photos by Marisa McClellan
The days are getting shorter. Labor Day is on the horizon. Soon there’ll be a hint of a chill in the morning air. This can only mean one thing: Fall is coming, and with it fresh school (or office) supplies, one or
Philadelphia’s Farm to School program expands by lee stabert
Over the last few years, school lunch has scored a prominent place in the national dialogue—whether it’s Michelle Obama’s initiatives, Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution or “Fed Up With Lunch,” a Texas teacher’s disturbing blog documenting the daily menu at her school. It’s also an issue that’s poised
This month’s cover story on Greensgrow Farm hits on a number of our favorite issues—cultivating community, repurposing vacant land, food and self-reliance—but, at its core, it’s about the joys of hard work. As my dad used to say, “Hard work ain’t easy.” He would know. With the help of my mom and their four children,
MoreThese fresh, easy recipes are perfect for the upcoming season of seaside snacking and backyard barbecues by Marisa McClellan, foodinjars.com
MoreBecoming a home artisan is easier than you think by Marisa McClellan
Fire-roasted tomatoes. Vanilla-rhubarb jam. Plums in honey. Preserved Seckel pears. No, this isn’t the inventory list of some new upscale grocery—these are just a few of the foodstuffs I preserved last summer and have been happily eating all winter long.