I noticed Japanese Butter Shoyu Chicken on a restaurant menu recently and decided to learn more about it. Shoyu means soy in Japanese. Adding butter to the soy sauce adds a rich and creamy flavor and texture.

Here’s a quick and easy recipe. I flattened boneless, skinless chicken thighs to about 1/2 inch thick, so the dish takes less than 10 ...Read more

For a simple, refreshing summer dinner, I decided to serve a Greek salad with salmon sauteed in an olive oil, lemon and garlic sauce. Fresh oregano gave a burst of flavor to the sauce.

A secret to keeping the salmon juicy and flaky is to under cook it a little leaving the inside a little translucent. The salmon will continue to cook in its own...Read more

I used pork, fresh peach slices, red bell pepper and almonds for a variety of tastes and textures in this summer supper. It’s a treat when ripe, juicy peaches are in season. In fact, August is national peach month. The sweet peach slices provide a contrasting sweet flavor to the tangy dressing.

Some peach tips:

How to pick a ripe one: ...Read more

Here’s a simple and flavorful sandwich supper idea. I decided to add za’atar seasoning to my chicken salad to give it a Mediterranean twist and used the salad in a sandwich.

Za'atar, a spice mixture popular in many Eastern Mediterranean countries, typically includes dried oregano, thyme, sumac and sesame seeds. You can also find it in jars...Read more

I had a light and refreshing salad bowl dinner at a friend’s home and decided to make one at home during these warm days. I used quinoa as the base for a vegetarian meal.

Quinoa is an ancient grain originating in the mountains of Bolivia, Chile and Peru. It’s also considered a complete protein, which means that it contains all nine of the ...Read more

Sometimes on a busy evening it’s great to have a quick hand-held meal that you can just pick up and eat. Here’s a burrito that can be made in minutes or in the morning for the evening.

Salsas adds a kick. Use a mild or strong one. The heat is up to you.

The tortillas should be warmed before they are filled. Place tortillas on paper towels ...Read more

I was thinking about making a light summer salad and saw a caprese salad made with tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. I decided to combine tomatoes and cheese with spaghetti to make a vegetarian pasta salad.

The juicy tomatoes, creamy mozzarella and fragrant basil made a great accompaniment for the spaghetti in this quick and easy dinner. You can...Read more

It’s a treat to enjoy ripe mangos and they’re at the height of the season now. This light mango salsa dresses delicate veal scallopini. These are very thin cuts of veal that take only a couple of minutes to sauté.

The mango salsa uses fresh mango cubes. Here is a quick way to make it.

Slice off each side of the mango as close to the seed ...Read more

With thoughts of French Bastille Day, July 14, and the Olympics coming to Paris, I thought it would be fun to savor a simple, classic French Bistro dinner, Steak with Shallot Sauce (Steak aux Eschalot).

To go with the steak, I cooked some potato cubes with French green beans. These beans, also called haricot vert, are thinner and sweeter than ...Read more

I was looking for a cool salad for this July 4th and created this spicy North African inspired chickpea salad. It makes a light summer vegetarian salad. I added some hard-boiled eggs to add variety to the texture of the dish and I give a foolproof method for cooking the eggs.

HELPFUL HINTS:

The vegetables can be very coarsely chopped in a food...Read more

My Italian friend, Daniela Musio, loves to cook. So, when she mentioned that her family likes her special easy summer dish, I asked her about it. She said that she cooks chicken with fresh fennel, fragrant rosemary, garlic and wine. It’s all made in one pot.

Fresh, crisp fennel has a mild anise flavor and when cooked it adds a slight crunch ...Read more

This is a super-fast vegetarian dinner that takes less than 10 minutes to put together. It’s perfect for a warm summer evening during a busy weekday or weekend.

I love fresh berries at this time of year and used strawberries and blueberries for this salad. They looked great at the market. You can use raspberries or blackberries or whatever ...Read more