The Charms of Rhubarb!

By Lori Powell

Get it while you can…as rhubarb is only with us for about 1½ months and is a true signal of spring. The first harvest begins in late May or the beginning of June.

Rhubarb has grown in popularity over the years since it’s easy to grow (it is a perennial), is pretty to look at (jewel-like color when red) and is versatile, since can be used in sweet as well as savory recipes.

Rhubarb is technically a vegetable but is treated more like a fruit. The tart celery-like ribs contain a good dose of vitamin C, K, calcium, potassium and manganese. However the leaves are poisonous so if they are still attached when purchased, remove and discard them before using.

Click to read more ...

The Last Big Holiday Party, Ever

By Sandy Hu

Steve and I have had a tradition of hosting an annual holiday party from our days as newlyweds living on West 14th Street in New York City. We would serve a collection of hors d’oeuvres with wine, ensuring there was enough food so guests could linger through the night and make dinner of it, or just drop by for a drink while doing the rounds of holiday merrymaking. The crowd then was mostly magazine people and accountants from Price Waterhouse, representing our two careers.

We continued the tradition when we moved to a condominium in Waikiki. At that stage in our life, the guests included family living in Honolulu, newspaper people and more Price Waterhouse accountants.

By the time we moved to San Francisco and restarted the party tradition, we had two children so the mix of guests now revolved around PR people from the agency where I worked, people from high-tech startups where Steve worked and fellow parents from the French American International School.

Click to read more ...

Rhubarb Chutney for your Easter Feast

By Lori Powell

So, officially spring has arrived in my neck of the woods. Tulips, hyacinths and the ubiquitous forsythia that bloom everywhere at this time of the year are flourishing.

The birds are singing up some sweet tunes every morning. Two Mourning Doves showed up on my back porch during that horrendous rainstorm last Saturday, which I took as a token of good luck! Apparently they establish their territory in early spring.

I was hoping that they would consider my back porch as their home. They mate for life and these two were huddled together on a shelf, safe under the back porch away from the high winds and torrential rain.

Click to read more ...

Try This Easy Party Appetizer

It’s always useful to have a great, fool-proof party hors d’oeuvre recipe, especially at this time of the year.. But it can be daunting to find something that can feed many, doesn’t take all day to make and won’t break the bank. We’ve got the perfect dish – Curry Chutney Deviled Eggs. The curry and chutney add big flavor so these eggs are sure to be a hit at the party!

Click to read more ...