Gretchen McKay

Don’t you just love queso fundido? I know I do. The Mexican version of fondue, the hot dip made with ooey gooey cheeses is the perfect way to kick off a meal of tacos or enchiladas because it’s 1) easy to make and 2)  immensely sharable. If you add enough chorizo to the mix, and […]

Pasta is a favorite for dinner because it doesn’t generally require a lot of special ingredients or equipment. That said, a dish of noodles covered in red or meat sauce can feel a bit heavy when it’s warm outside. The solution? Toss the pasta instead with a simple sauce made with cherry tomatoes, garlic and […]

Are you tired yet of all that garden-fresh zucchini? After you’ve marinated it in olive oil, lemon juice and vinegar; shredded it for a vegan crust for pizza; sliced it for salads; pan-fried it with butter; and grated it into breads and muffins, consider making boats with them. Choose the fattest one of the bunch, […]

Melissa Hughes has run dozens of races since her first 5K five years ago. So she knows exactly how it’s going to go down when she and her best friend run through the city on Sunday during the Pittsburgh Marathon.  Strangers shouting out their names. People pointing fingers. Most definitely there will be cheers, most of […]

MANTEO, N.C. — So maybe it wasn’t the nicest message I ever sent my son. Especially since the whole point of our off-season beach getaway was to leave our many worries behind in Pittsburgh, and simply chill. “Just in case: Dad and I are about to go up in an airplane,” I texted him, attaching […]

Like many in Pittsburgh’s Greek community, Panayiotis Liokareas grew up eating and cooking with extra-virgin olive oil, both at home and on summer visits to his paternal grandfather’s sun-baked olive groves in Kalamata, Greece. Known for its exceptional taste and healthful dietary fat, EVOO is a cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet. A flavor booster in […]

These days, when it’s tougher than ever to make a living off the land, Shenot Farm and Market is flourishing. The Shenots have growing fruits and vegetables on the same 100-plus hilly acres in Marshall for more than 150 years, ever since Christopher Scheno and his wife, Margreta, emigrated from Alsace-Lorraine in France with their […]

Mary Anne Mohanraj missed a lot of things when she went off to college, but the thing she was most homesick for was her mother’s cooking. When her parents immigrated to Connecticut from Colombo, Sri Lanka, in 1973, they brought with them their fiery curries, coconut sambols and countless rice dishes. Many of the recipes […]

  It’s July. Surely there are blueberries on your kitchen counter or inside your fridge just waiting to be turned into something fantastic. Summer’s favorite fruit is available in spades this time of year. And whether we’re tickling them off bushes in our backyards or piling them into our shopping cart or basket at the […]

The garden gods have been good to me so far this summer, even if the weather has been something of a nightmare for those of us without central air. Despite a long string of 90-degree days and not enough rain, my basil is thriving. Thanks to soft and tasty leaves at the ready, pesto is […]