A Persian Feast

By Marilyn Hunter

Not every home cooked meal has to be eaten in our own home. Last night we went to our friend’s apartment for a Persian Feast. Her apartment is no ordinary place; rather it’s perched on a high floor of a skyscraper with spectacular views of the ocean, mountains and downtown city lights of Los Angeles.

Sweet spices, fragrant rice and roasted meats wafted down the elevator shaft for a delicious welcome long before we arrived on her floor. Persian meals are well-balanced affairs with salad, vegetables, piles of fresh herbs, pickles, walnuts, feta cheese and of course the famous rice dishes.

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Halloween Spaghetti Casserole

By Marilyn Hunter

I don’t know about your house on Halloween night, but ours is hectic, especially this year with it falling on a Monday! This means by the time we get home from school, changed into costumes, go through the usual hysterics of two excited boys, then settle down for photographs before venturing into the jack o’ lantern-lit streets, there’s no time for preparing dinner. So I dug out a tried-and-true baked spaghetti casserole recipe that can be made on either Saturday or Sunday and then pulled from the fridge and reheated about an hour before serving.

It’s funny how memories work, but Andrew’s cousin Chipper sent him an email a few days ago asking if he remembered how Gramma Hunter used to make her baked spaghetti casserole. While this recipe isn’t hers, it is in her spirit that we offer this version to you. Gramma Hunter loved all holidays, mostly because the whole family would come to her house for food and fun.

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Corn Pudding for a Harvest Moon

By Marilyn Hunter

Harvest moon is that very special time of year when a big, bright, orange moon rises around sunset. Harvest moon, sometimes known as corn moon, got its name by the light it provided farmers, which helped them work late into the night at the peak of harvest.

These nights, when moon meets sun, are a joy for our boys. For them, this time of year means pumpkin patches, corn mazes and hayrides. For the family table, it means taking advantage of the wonderful fall produce…apples, squash, sweet potatoes, pumpkin and the last few days of corn season.

There’s a giant pumpkin farm, far from the bustle of the city, where we go for all of the above food and fun. It takes all day by the time we go, spend time and come home, but it’s worth the travel.

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Indian Summer Paletas

By Marilyn Hunter

I love Indian summer in California. Just when everyone is getting ready for sweaters and football season, Californians are enjoying the remains of those warm summer days. These are heat wave days in L.A. with temperatures into the 100s. For those of us who don’t have a pool, we often turn to popsicles for relief. And keepin’ it real in L.A. means not just any popsicle, but a Mexican paleta.

If you’ve never visited a paletería, it’s time you did. Paletas are ice pops made from fresh fruit. They come in a wide variety of flavors from mango, pineapple and tamarind to arroz con leche and cucumber with chile y limón. I once read that if summer in L.A. had a flavor, it would be mango con chile.

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Dumplings around the World

By Marilyn Hunter

For centuries, dough has been shaped, molded, dropped into boiling water or simmering stock to poach. I grew up eating Southern-style chicken and dumplings. Maybe this explains my adult love for the little, more refined spaetzle.

Sometimes I imagine having a German grandmother on the plains of Texas making spaetzle instead of its bigger dumpling cousin. Spaetzle is a cross between dumplings and pasta. They are boiled and then pan-fried in butter. The boys like to eat them plain, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese.

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