Whether it’s the perfect ankle boot or a no-fail recipe for ganache, I love a good multi-tasker. And this just might be one of my very favorites! This herb pot centerpiece takes just a few minutes to assemble and looks so pretty on your summer table. It works as a simple and inexpensive table decor, [...]

So last month I talked about some easy, low-key tactics for dissuading deer. You can also strategically employ plantings to help keep the herds at bay: Think “deer-resistant”, not “deer-proof”. Every season brings fewer and fewer truly deer-resistant plants. That said, in addition to barberries and daffodils (yes, they are deer-proof, I promise), I have had excellent [...]

Ugh – this spring! Here in New York it’s been days and days of rain, followed by a few glorious days – followed by days and days of rain. And instead of barbeques, salads and light meals, my oven’s been going non-stop, casseroles are in steady rotation and last week I even made soup! Gah!!! [...]

Am I the only one who’s obsessed with J. Crew? Like, obsessed in that I-worship-Jenna-Lyons kind of way? Of the many (many) things they do well, I think one of the best is the perfectly imperfect vibe that all of the outfits seem to project. Nothing ever looks “done”, yet it always looks totally cool. [...]

While perusing the “round table” line-up at Alt Summit SLC, this caught my eye: “Growing and Maintaining a Small Blog with Pride”. I immediately clicked on the speaker’s name. And I’m so glad I did, because it brought me to this beautiful lady: This beautiful lady is Tiffanie Turner, of corner blog I connected with Tiffanie [...]

I know what you’re thinking: “Breaded chicken cutlets? Do I REALLY need a tutorial on this?” Yes, you do. We ALL do. When I got my long-awaited copy of The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook, I was so excited that I dropped what I was doing and immediately sat down to peruse all of the wonderful recipes. [...]

Noah will be in a little program for a few weeks before camp starts, and I have to send him with his lunch each day (I know, when did THIS happen??). As his picky eating has been well-documented here, you can imagine how stressful this is for me. But one thing I can pretty much [...]

So remember my bike trip around Manhattan? Well, I did it (kind of)! Seems that – as usual – parenthood intervened to teach me that: a) I am most definitely NOT in charge of my plans, and b) a change in plans often works out even better than expected. I’ve posted Part One on Go [...]

Do you have puff pastry in your freezer? Well starting today (and forever more), you will. You must. And with this recipe (and more to come) you will know why. Puff pastry is my very favorite “shortcut” ingredient. It is infinitely adaptable, and can go sweet as easily as it can go savory. With puff [...]

As a lifelong New Yorker, I’ve had a lifelong relationship with black and white cookies. And we’ve had our ups and downs. See, the idea of the black and white – plain Jane on the bottom, sugar icing on top – meets all of my cookie requirements. And visually, I can’t resist the clean, simple [...]