A bridal shower is one of the most joyous parties you can possibly give, and the occasion calls for light, delicious festive foods.  This menu offers four of my personal favorite chicken salad recipes.  (For a smaller shower, you could serve just two or three)  The French often serve a sampling of different foods and call it a “degustation,” so here’s your chance to be both chic and unique. Each…

Bittersweet Chocolate Panini, Photo by Dan Kacvinski Baby boomers have childhood memories of eating all sorts of comfort foods: meatloaf, macaroni and cheese, Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup, french toast and tuna sandwiches. Over the years, though, Julia Child and the Food Network did a lot to change these food habits, and helped boomers appreciate new, more eclectic food dishes. Macaroni and cheese might still end up on the dinner…

Coming up with lunch ideas can be more challenging today than in years past. Some schools may elect to forbid peanut butter on campus if a student has a peanut allergy, which removes the old standby of peanut butter and jelly. And almond, cashew or other nut butters don’t always appeal to tiny palates as a substitute. My grandchildren, Ariella and Melina, took peanut butter and jelly sandwiches every day…

For Valentine’s Day, share your passion for pasta that’s pretty in pink  We met Suzanne and Don Dunaway on a Valentine’s Day, while sitting at a small table during a reception for Julia Child’s American Institute of Wine & Food. We began talking and discovered that we had many interests in common, but mostly food, wine and traveling. At the time, Suzanne was an illustrator for Gourmet magazine, focusing on…

Akasha Richmond is a self-trained chef and artisan-style baker who has been catering events in the Los Angeles area for the past 20 years. A tall woman with dark hair and blue eyes, she bears a striking resemblance to Barbra Streisand, for whom she worked as a private chef. Richmond said some of her fondest memories were made at Streisand’s home, where she selected fresh vegetables from her garden for…