About Me

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My friends call me the "grammar goddess." Really. ;-) I own a freelance writing, editing and tutoring business. Previously, I served three years as food editor for The Morning Sun in Mt. Pleasant, which kindled my interest in food writing. My other areas of expertise in writing include features, community news, architecture/construction and engraving/personalization. I have a frightening number of cookbooks and watch too many DIY, HGTV, Food Network, Cooking Channel and Antiques Roadshow (BBC and PBS versions) shows. And I tweak nearly every recipe I make.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Vive La Difference: Perfect Ribs Made with Custom Equipment

My most recent column in Brighton Patch featured ribs by Tom Coates. (I nearly put a capital R on them because they're so well thought of in the community; see some of the comments people have made on his grill website).

Tom is what some might call an extreme griller; an architect for 25 years, he decided to make his own artisan-style grill, which is a kind of hybridization of a wood-burning oven and a grill. His goal was to replicate the kind of food his father and grandfather, who were both accomplished at cooking over an open fire, used to make.

I think he's exceeded expectations. Tom also has started his own business making these grills; upon seeing it up close at work, I can tell it's a well-made grill that gets splendid results. He has a number of testimonials  -- and the evidence of my eyes and nose -- to prove it.

I wish I could convey the ribs' look and smell ... it was fabulous. His other recipes on the website sound great, too. But smell-o-blogs, like "smell-o-vision" that Rachael Ray wishes she could invent, don't exist. Yet. I keep hoping it'll happen someday!

Tom provided me with the photo of the finished product, which looks fabulous! He says using his grill with charcoal and various kinds of wood truly brings out the flavor of the meat, which you can eat with various dipping sauces.

Unfortunately, I had to leave before they were done, but I want to try his ribs when he does another grilling and sampling session at either Leaf, Barley and Vine or The Wooden Spoon (both located in Brighton, Michigan) I plan to attend!



Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Website Gives Those In Need a Boost ... And Pizza

Random Acts of Pizza  is doing good ... one pizza pie at a time.

Here's the background, based on an article  from Utah-based Deseret News.

ABC News reported that Daniel Rogers, a lawyer from San Antonio, Texas, came up with the idea a year ago while unemployed. He knew he was "depressed" and feeling "disconnected from society," so he thought of what might change that.

"Connecting down-on-their-luck pizza lovers with a steaming hot pie, he figured, might make people feel a little bit better," according to the Deseret News article. "'[A pizza] says someone's got my back, someone's looking out for me,'" he said.

For more information, or to donate, go to http://www.reddit.com/r/Random_Acts_Of_Pizza/.

This is an awesome idea.
What else would work to cheer the unemployed? I'm thinking deliveries of a bag or two of Lindt chocolates ... or maybe Dove chocolates. (You could stretch those out for a week or more!)

On a more practical note, people could donate their unneeded gift cards to places like Wal-Mart or gas stations so the unemployed could get things they need.
People don't just need help at Christmas and Easter, sadly. As the Bible says, "For the poor you have always with you: and whensoever you will, you may do them good: but me you have not always." Mark 14:7, Douay-Reims version.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

'Top 10 Veggies' Are Cheap and Nutritious

Two or three weeks ago, I saw an interesting link on AOL's home page: Top 10 Vegetables With the Most Nutritional Bang for Your Buck by Sally Deneen on WalletPop. It's worth the read, really, to find what she calls "the best, cheapest veggies."


Here's the list:

1.Cabbage
2.Collard greens
3.Mustard greens
4.Turnip greens
5.Carrots
6.Cauliflower heads
7.Brussels sprouts
8.Broccoli florets
9.Spinach
10.Cauliflower florets

Reading it made me want to make a pot of vegetable soup using as many of these as possible; since it was very hot, the feeling passed. Quickly.

Interestingly enough, aside from carrots, spinach and broccoli, they are all vegetables I didn't care for as a kid. What would you make with the veggies on this list? And how would you make them appeal to kids? Let me know.




Saturday, May 14, 2011

'Another Reason to Believe': Jon Bon Jovi

I knew there were a few good reasons that I have always loved Jon Bon Jovi.

Great musician? Check. He and Jennifer Nettles sing one of my favorite songs together (originally his alone)

For another thing, he's downright adorable. C'mon, girls, have you looked at him?

He even seems to be a fairly normal guy ... especially for a rock star. Sorry to disappoint you all, ladies, but he's taken. Jon Bon Jovi's been married since 1989 to his high school sweetheart and they have four children.

The fact that he's opening a pay-what-you-can restaurant mostly staffed by volunteers in Red Bank, New Jersey this spring called Jon Bon Jovi's Soul Kitchen makes it clear the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation is doing the right thing for those Livin' On a Prayer. It's an obvious living out of the ideal mentioned in Luke Chapter 12, verse 48, as quoted by John F. Kennedy, “For of those to whom much is given, much is required.”

Those who can afford it should pay a minimum suggested $10 donation (but they'll take more if you can ante it up).

I think Jon Bon Jovi just got cuter and gave me Another Reason to Believe.

(In case you'd like to go to the original source, I read about this in an article on Take Part's website.)

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Restaurant Review: Niko's Place Restaurant

On vacation this week. I went to Niko's Place restaurant in New Port Richey, FL, which offers numerous healthy options, for my birthday dinner last night with my mom, aunt and uncle. I had prime rib with mashed potatoes mostly sans gravy, maybe one tablespoon (yes, not the best choice, but I trimmed off all fat and had the soup and salad bar with it, which is fantastic!)

In fact, most entrees at Niko's, which is a family tradition when we are in Florida, include the soup and salad bar; it can definitely be a stand-alone meal.

My mother enjoys Tilapia Athena often; she says it's a healthy fish dish that gives you a choice of vegetables, sweet potato or potato as well as the salad bar.

If you travel in the Port Richey/New Port Richey, FL area, give it a try!

Niko's Place Restaurant 
(727) 841-8151
6818 US Highway 19
New Port Richey, FL 34652

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Win a 'Pantry Makeover'

Whole Story, the blog for Whole Foods Market, is hosting a contest through Jan. 31, so hurry.

Quote about contest from blog:

"So tell us, what healthy eating changes do you plan to make in 2011? Where do you find your motivation and inspiration? We want to hear it all!



Share a bit about your approach to healthy eating in the comments below by January 31st for a chance to win." You do this in the comments section of the blog contest entry.

Contest winners get a $99 Whole Foods Market card and will be put in touch with one of the store's Healthy Eating Specialist to get a "pantry makeover" that helps them learn how to shop for healthy food at a reasonable price.  

Reasons Detroit Food Rocks

I slightly twisted a title from an article in Canada's version of the Reader's Digest called 9 Surprising Reasons Why Detroit Rocks for this blog post. 


Number 5 in the article includes Detroit Eastern Market, a place where my dad always got steaks for Detroit Western International High School's staff picnic, which he organized for many years. He felt they were the best steaks ever. (We always got the leftover steak because he coordinated the picnic, and I agree with his assessment.) Another site the article recommended is vegan- and vegetarian-friendly Russell Street Deli, which I want to try.

One reason Detroit area food rocks is that many of the supermarkets here, supermarkets including Whole Foods Market, Trader Joe's, Kroger's and locally-owned Hiller's Markets, make it super easy to find healthy food. Hiller's also has a gluten-free foods section and a shelf tag system making it easy to choose Michigan products.


That's just the tip of the iceberg as far as Detroit area food is concerned. Check this blog for more great places in 2011.