Appetizers

My brother-in-law Mike did not trust my Philly cheesesteak sliders. Not even a little bit. This is a man who once drove forty minutes to … Read more

“You’re really going to bring meatballs to a game day party?” my brother-in-law asked, one eyebrow raised like I’d suggested showing up with a plate … Read more

My phone buzzed for the fifth time during the second quarter. It was my brother-in-law, and he wasn’t asking about the score. He wanted to … Read more

“You’re not actually going to serve that store-bought salsa, are you?” My brother-in-law Mike stood in my kitchen doorway, holding a bag of tortilla chips … Read more

I was wrong about baked chicken wings. For years, I thought the only path to that shatteringly crisp skin was a deep fryer, and I … Read more

The blackened, blistered patches of char on the kernels, that’s what I was after. Not the butter. Not even the cheese, honestly. Just those little … Read more

The sharp, vinegary bite of hot sauce mixed with cool, tangy cream cheese — that smell, the one that fills the kitchen before anyone else … Read more

Half a brick of cream cheese still cold from the fridge and the game starting in forty-five minutes. I’d promised everyone my famous Buffalo chicken … Read more

I had been looking for an appetizer that actually disappeared before the main course. Not just picked at, but the kind of thing where people … Read more

Standing at the counter at 11:47 AM, peanut butter knife in one hand and a slightly stale loaf of bread in the other, when my … Read more