As a Francophile, I knew I had to take my kids to Richmond’s French Food Festival last weekend. The Festival is a mission of the Little Sisters of the Poor, who assist the elderly poor with independent and assisted living as well as nursing care. Richmond has plenty of food festivals, from Greek to Indian and… Read More Richmond’s French Food Festival
The food culture of Argentina is an interesting mix of native and indigenous cuisines with Mediterranean, particularly Italian influences. The prevalence of cattle in the South American nation means that beef is nearly always on the menu there. When making a delicious Argentinian-style dinner for my family, grilled steak with chimichurri was a must! Chimichurri… Read More Argentinian Dinner
Near the Eastern France/Germany border, the region of Alsace is a unique mix of French and German culture. Over the region’s long and storied history, ownership of this region has passed back and forth between the two countries time and again, resulting in shared influences on the cuisine, language and culture of the area. The… Read More Unique Chateau in Alsace, France
The Aperol spritz is a classic European aperitif that you’ll find in traveling through France and Italy, especially in the summer dining al fresco or streetside in one of many outdoor cafes. When my husband and I visited Paris last fall, the Aperol spritz was on every drink menu, and we drank them all over… Read More Cocktail Classics – The Aperol Spritz
The title of this post has a double meaning. My husband and I took our “grand European anniversary trip” last fall, but it’s only now that I’ve had the time to sit down and give our trip the in-depth posts it’s due. See, nearly as soon as we returned from our trip, holiday planning took… Read More Paris – Finally!
I haven’t been blogging as regularly as usual, but I do have an excuse! I’ve been working on arranging all the details of my husband’s and my next grand adventure: a 12-day trip across France, Germany and the Netherlands with a stopover in my favorite place, Iceland, on the way home. We’ll be visiting Paris,… Read More A Grand Adventure
If you’re looking for a quick, healthy and delicious snack to try at home or take to a party, give this 7-Layer Greek Dip a try! Start by spreading a large container of your favorite plain hummus evenly on the bottom of a glass baking dish. Dice red peppers, red onions and cucumbers and sprinkle… Read More Quick 7-Layer Greek Dip
Ever since I was little, my parents have taken me and my brother and sister to the Pennsylvania Dutch Country of Lancaster, Pennsylvania regularly. As a kid, our summer vacation was often spent staying at a campground or a cabin for a week and visiting all the antique shops, farmer’s markets and Amish and Mennonite… Read More Pennsylvania Dutch Food Culture in Lancaster, PA
So of course by now, Thanksgiving has come and gone, and with it my Family Food History project. Since my aunt always makes a full, traditional Thanksgiving meal with turkey and mashed potatoes and stuffing and gravy, I didn’t want to make a ton more food since I knew everybody would already be stuffed. I… Read More Project “Family Food History” Thanksgiving
So once I caught the genealogy bug, I dove in with both feet and started digging up amazing, enlightening and interesting stories about my ancestors. On my mom’s side, I’m German, English, Scottish, Welsh, Dutch and a tiny bit French. On my dad’s, we’ve got English, Scottish, French and Welsh, with an ancestor I’ve been… Read More Project “Family Food History” Thanksgiving – Dutch and French Cuisine
Dogwood Dispatches 