It is with great sadness that I must tell you today that this good thing, my beloved column Sugar and Spice, must come to an end. After three amazingly fun and inspiring years writing for The Adirondack Express, it is time for me to close up my old recipe binder (more on that binder in a bit) and move on to new adventures. Don’t worry; you’ll still be seeing me around town, and you might even see a few surprises from me in this here newspaper, very soon. And don’t forget, I&rsq ...
Can I ask you a question? A very, very personal question? How do you organize your underwear drawer? Hah-not really. My real question to you is: how do you organize your recipes? I mean, do you keep yours in a recipe box, a recipe binder, or perhaps on a disc, in your kimpewter? Why do I ask? Because I’m having troubles, big troubles. See, I have totally outgrown my old recipe binder, and it has been patched, duct taped and stapled one too many times to count. The pocket that says, “ ...
I am writing today’s column on March 20, which is the very first day of spring. Are you as ready for springtime as I am? Is it just me, or did winter drag on and on and on this year? Prolly just me. I’m just not a winter kind of girl; need some sunshine and daffodils and fresh warm breezes coming through my open windows. And even though there’s still about two feet of snow on my lawn at this writing, with no daffodils in sight, I am loving this early Spring day so much, because ...
I’m very lucky. You see, my mom Carol in California is not only my official (yet tragically underpaid—oops, I mean UNpaid) column proofreader—she’s also an amazing home cook and my biggest cheerleader. Whenever I get writer’s block she inspires me by describing, in mouth-watering detail, her latest fabulous dinner party entrees. Quite the entertainer she is, that Carol. Much more than I’ll ever be, fer sure.
Earlier this week, I was whining on and on and on t ...
Do you ever just get a “hankering” for something, like maybe good Chinese food, or some comforting Italian? Well, a few weeks back, I was craving some Osso Buco, BAD. I just love Osso Buco, but it’s gotta be done just right. Like, with real veal shanks and lots of vegetables, over pasta. So, what does any respectable food columnist do? Learn to make it herself, that’s what. And I did, and it came out fabulously, I must say, but before I share my recipe I need to discuss a ...
I have a very dear friend named Gisele Kress. You may already know Gisele, this being a small town and all. She is definitely someone you’d wanna know; beautiful (some say she looks just like Jennifer Aniston), funny, smart, and a great mom to her three boys, Matt, Kevin and Ethan. Tragically, Gisele’s oldest son Matt (who was seriously one of the sweetest young men I’ve ever met) died in an automobile accident about a year and a half ago, along with his friend Craig. Gisele, b ...
Been busy as Chip Kiefer, Don Gooley and Sharon Kleps, combined, over here on Spruce Drive lately, but don’t worry, I’m never too busy to dig up some new recipes, just for you. This blogging business (if you haven’t checked me out yet, you can do so at: SugarAndSpiceAdk.blog-spot.com) has provided me with a plethora of new recipes to try out, which has been really fun, yet challenging, as I’m still off the “sugar wagon.” Good thing I have places to send my swe ...
Before I get started on this week’s column, I’d like to remind you all that I, Leslie the Cheesehead, was rooting for the Green Bay Packers in this year’s Super Bowl, and then, ahem, they won. Last year, I backed the New Orleans Saints (remember when they used to be called, “The Ain’ts?), and they won, also. No accidents here, folks: I have lady luck on my side. So, if you’re buying any lottery tickets or heading down to The Turning Stone any time soon, you ma ...
I’m about to tell you a little something about me that’s going to rock your world and it’s not the fact that I “heart” Valentine’s Day. It’s the fact that I “heart” Valentine’s Day more than any other holiday-get ready for this: even Christmas. That’s right, I love, love, love Valentine’s Day more than Christmas, more than Thanksgiving, more than St. Patrick’s Day (where I make a shameless fool out of my very Swedish s ...
Still nosh, nosh, noshing away over here in Upper Thendara Heights, in the glamorous suburbs of Old Forge, New York. And from the girl who doesn’t know anything OR care anything about football, here are some more amazing Super Bowl facts, just for you:
• The first team to ever win five, count ’em, five Super Bowl championships was the San Francisco 49ers (during my husband’s glory days—he’s a native San Franciscan).
• The team with the most ever Super Bowl ...
Just so you know, I only used that word,”noshing” because it really, really annoys my husband of 23 years. He can’t stand it. Is that mean? Nooooo—that’s just how we keep our marriage spunky and fun. Sort of like how he knows that I can’t stand it when he calls what most people call shorts, “short pants.” Makes me CRAZZZZZY. Ah, marriage.
All of that really had nothing to do with The Super Bowl, which is coming up on Sunday, Feb. 6. Truth be told, ...
I’m trapped, TRAPPED, I tell you, in my home office today, for a couple of reasons:
1. Because my editor-in-chief, Ms. M. Lisa Monroe(M. totally stands for mean, in case you didn’t know), keeps e-mailing me and asking, “Where, oh, where is that column, Miss Leslie? Don’t you know there are only 12.5 seconds left until deadline, and if you don’t make deadline, this entire publication will CRUMBLE?”
2. Because I’m waiting for the Sears, Roebuck and Co. (se ...
Before I begin this week, I have an announcement: I desperately need your favorite appetizer recipes for a 1 or 2 part Super Bowl series I’m working on. They don’t need to be anything fancy, just good. You can e-mail me at the address listed at the end of this column, or give me a call at (315) 369-2885. I would be ever so grateful, and maybe, just maybe, will give you my last available kidney (those Langworthys got the other one, remember?). Thank you.
Remember last week, when I tol ...
Happy New Year to you. Did you happen to make any New Year’s resolutions, and, if so, have you been stoic about keeping them thus far? I mean really, it IS only January 4th, so if you’ve messed up already, well you don’t need me to tell you that you’re in big trouble, buster. Every single year it seems I make a bunch, and maybe only live up to one or two. Like last year—if you’ve been reading my column all along, you might remember that my resolution was to bo ...
No, silly, I’m not preggers again, but I did give “birth” recently, and I’m very excited to tell you all about my new bouncing, burping bundle of joy. He/She/It is so adorable, so talented and so very inspirational, you won’t believe your eyeballs. Any clues yet? Well, keep reading.
See, I’m always looking for fresh ways to be as creative as I can be. Got a lot of my creativity ya-ya’s out this past summer and fall, what with re-doing our daughter’ ...
Well, this is it: Part 7 of my seven part series. And what a long and crazy trip it’s been. We’ve crock-potted together, casseroled together, and even tried out some new fast soups and chilis together. But guess what? I’ve saved the best for last. Truly I have. Hey, Oprah’s not the only one with the big holiday giveaways this year, folks; I am bequeathing upon you my family’s most guarded easy-supper recipe ... are you ready? Are you sure? All right, since you&rsquo ...
Well, it’s December again, which can be either the best time of the year for you or the worst, depending upon your attitude and circumstances. I actually used to dread December, as I was in the retail business for years and years and trying to make the holidays magical for both my family and my customers was just exhausting, to say the least. But these days, I am just a “leisurely” housewife with a grown child who doesn’t live at home most of the time, so I actually really look forward to the ho ...
I’m writing this week’s column on November 15th. I usually like to write my columns a couple of weeks in advance, because, well, one just never knows, and I would hate to miss my deadline. Why, we could have a freak power outage here in the ADK that lasts for weeks on end. My computer might crash, again, and our miracle-computer-fixit-guy Colden Hippeseley could be on vacation in the Bahamas . Or, I could lose my precious writing fingers in a freak food processing accident. I could go on and on. ...
Been busy as Chip Kiefer over here in the “suburbs” of Old Forge again this week. Which makes me more grateful than ever for the super easy everyday dinner series I’ve been working on for you (and who are we kidding--for myself) these past few weeks. Skipping dinners on a busy day is just not an option in my home; Big Daddy E. needs his suppah. He’s one hungry hunk of burning love. Heck, if it were just me living here in our exclusive Upper Thendara Heights (by the way, that name is an inside jo ...
Rockin’ the old crockpot over here on Spruce Drive today. I’ve just been such a busy bee lately, and I can’t even tell you with what, or why. My peri-menopausal mind has gone blank, BLANK, I tell youz. Well, come to think of it, I did spend a lot of time this weekend baking for a dear friend’s baby shower (not naming names here, but has there ever been a cuter preggo mom-to-be than spunky little Kate Russell? Me thinks not). And at said friend’s shower, I chatted with another BFF about this here ...
Hey, thanks for coming back for more super simple everyday suppers for your hectic holidays. Say THAT five times fast, I dare you. But really, did you try last week’s Pork Carnitas Tacos yet? If not, you should; I just know you’ll love them. This week, I’m sharing with you my quick and easy and Cute As A Button Baby Meatloaves recipe—really easy to put together, super delicious and so stinkin’ cute you’re going to feel guilty for eating them. But eat them you will, because they’re killer. I also ...
So, I’m parting with tradition this year, big time. No, I’m not talking about tacos for Thanksgiving dinner or anything like that, you silly goose. I’m no wild and crazy Diane Heroux. To be really honest, when it came time for me to sit down and actually think (ouch.) about writing about Thanksgiving pies and Christmas cookies and roast turkeys and stuffings and such, I just couldn’t do it. Not this year.
See, I think we’re all inundated with good-intentioned cooking shows and magazines and co ...
A few weeks back, Big Daddy E and I decided to take in the Remsen Barn Festival of the Arts (also known as the Barn FOTA on the streets). We’ve lived here in the North Country for six years now, and have never been, so we really didn’t know what to expect. Our friends and neighbors the Kleps and Finkle and Bathke families never, ever miss a year, and since they are the sophisticated/jaded/worldly types, I figured I had better expect to be impressed. Boy, were we ever.
The day was brisk and blow ...
All right, you can just get your mind right out of that gutter, ya hear? Because I’m talking about pies—Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, to be exact. After all, would you expect anything else from Mrs. Pumpkin Pie? From the Queen Of All That Is Pumpkin? I thought not.
Here’s what I’m totally loving right now: putting anything I might want or need out there into Facebook land, and receiving more back than I ever expected. Case in point—last week, I wrote as my status, “Free lunch to anybody who sends me a ...
I’ve got a few things on my mind (shocking, but true,) this week, and I’d like to share them with you, if you have a moment:
• First up: the 17th Annual Calypso’s Cove Charity Go-Kart Race a few weeks back. Just for the record, I am THE VERY WORST GO CART DRIVER, EVER. If you were there, you know that already. And I can’t even blame the beer I drank. In fact, my husband and friends on my team, Hot Moms #1, tell me I was so turtle-like in my driving that I was actually “lapped”, whatever that m ...
Apples in the attic,
Apples in the hall.
Apples in the summer,
Apples in the fall.
Apples make you healthy,
Apples make you tall.
I will eat some apples,
I will eat them all.
Took in the Old Forge Farmer’s Market last Friday afternoon, and bought a big sack of the most delicious locally grown apples we’ve ever, ever eaten. Apples are my very favorite fruit, and you all know by now that fall is my very favorite time of year, so I am one happy woman. I can’t even remember what kind of ap ...
