Most of my Christmas presents this year were bottles of limoncello, a delicious lemony liqueur that originated on the Italian island of Capri. One surmises that they have bumper crops of lemons each winter, much as we do here in Southern California. Aside from being an incredibly tasty quaff (particularly once the hot weather hits), this is a fabulously thrifty gift: I reused lemonade and vinegar bottles with resealable caps, and since the liqueur is made only with peels, you still have all that lovely juice to make into lemon curd (as my mom did for her gifts), or to freeze in small blocks to be used once citrus season wanes.

I made my limoncello 100% organic by using Rain vodka (which is only 80 proof, but has a wallet-friendly pricepoint and notable smoothness) and organic sugar (which gave it that mellow earthy color, as opposed to the almost neon yellow that processed sugar allows). And of course, organic lemons from my dad’s bounteous tree.

It’s a perfect warm-weather aperitivo (pre-dinner drink) or digestivo (after-dinner drink); due to its sweetness, I would emphasize the latter. But mixed with soda water, this makes a refreshing grown-up soda, very much akin to San Pellegrino Limonata–with a kick. Read on… »

The perfect soup for when you have a heap of zucchini. Freeze it and enjoy on cold winter nights.

Ingredients

7 small zucchini, sliced
1 medium onion, finely chopped
½ to1teaspoon curry powder
2 tablespoons butter
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup chicken or veggie broth Read on… »

Dried lentils do not need soaking, only a rinse or two before they are cooked. I add a bone from the freezer that I’ve saved from the Christmas ham. You can bake the cornbread while the soup simmers for an hour or so.

Ingredients Read on… »

The weather in February is as fickle as new love. In the mountains of North Carolina, the wind can howl through the ridges like a scorned lover or the day can be as soft and gentle as a kiss. I’ve seen snow fall nonstop for a week in February and I’ve seen daffodils and crocus pop up through the snow with fresh, optimistic faces turned toward the dazzling sun.

The Februarys of my youth are bleak in my memory. The days were short; the evenings chilly; the days raw—and all without the benefit of television or telephone to break the monotony. The longest month of the year, I thought, despite the shortest number of days.  Yet it was in this dreary month when I was 14 that I first experienced what seemed like love, or at least a serious crush. Read on… »

Photos by Scott Valentine

Fondue, the term, comes from the Latin fundare, to melt, and has found its way into the vocabularies of nearly every romance language. It is a winter tradition in the French-speaking part of Switzerland but it has adherents throughout the Alps. Eating fondue is a simple way to get warm and full and it’s relatively economical since it is made of cheese, the poor man’s meat. Unlike other foods, cheese often improves with age and can last many months. When the weather in the Alps turned cold, the cheese that had been made in the summer, even if it wasn’t in its prime, could be melted down into a delicious sauce. Even stale bread could be salvaged because of fondue—dipping anything into a hot bath of cheese can renew its life force. Read on… »