Roasting a chicken, people say, is easy. And it can be. But to reach poultry perfection I've tried many things.

I took my son into the doctor's office today where he was diagnosed with an ear infection. The medicine prescribed for him supposedly tastes like bubblegum.

This was one of the recipes published in today's food section of the local newspaper. The article was about a cookbook being produced that includes ECU (East Carolina University) tailgating recipes. I'm not sure what to think of it. On one hand, I like each of the ingredients individually, but I'm a little grossed out by putting them all together and calling it a "salad".

I don’t have a television. I spent much of my youth watching one and I wonder if I might have become a touch more focused had that not been the case. These days, I find that I get slightly depressed when I splurge on more than a few minutes in front of the boob tube. On a recent trip to Vermont I challenged this predisposition. I had access to satellite TV - hundreds of channels at my unsuspecting disposal.

Living in Manhattan, I would love to be able to eschew Yoga and all those chic lithe ladies toting their mats around town. Instead, I have taken to it. Running elicits strange pains and disconcerting ennui. I get ear infections, distressing lane possessiveness, and really dry hair from swimming. And I am not always good at structuring my time to allow for regular workouts. I’ve come to find that routinely going to Yoga classes with particularly good instructors has helped my strength and flexibility. It has enhanced my mind-body awareness and overall focus and composure. At the risk of sounding cliché, I even manage to have an occasional transformative experience which permeates my perspective ever so slightly.

A wine tasting took place at my home in Queens recently. Eleven tasters unscientifically sampled and rated five bottles of Sauvignon Blanc over brunch. Also known as Pouilly-Fume, Sancerre and Fume Blanc, a lower alcohol helps soften a hangover and presents a more refreshing taste at a generally less expensive cost. After years of sagging popularity, Sauvignon Blanc is experiencing a renaissance in consumption and vintners who produce it. Following are the results listed from most preferred (top of list) to least (bottom of list).

For my birthday this past week, I worked late and didn't get home 'til after 8PM. My husband had prepared a feast for me, including homemade gazpacho (not pictured), a delicious fish dish of his own creation, steamed green chard and pine nut cous cous. All of this, lovingly prepared in a 90+ degree kitchen with no A/C.

(Photo courtesy of the Oh So Vari Shari)

Why beans? Beans are nutritious, tasty and economical. They are a wonderful complement to, or centerpiece of, a great meal. I wish to always have a batch at the ready.

This was the theme of the cooking class that my husband and I attended this evening. We received a gift certificate for the class as a Christmas gift. With a title like "Valentines in Venice", one would expect there to be some attempt at making the atmosphere somewhat romantic, even if it is supposed to be a class.

Whose muse is whose?

So, about two months ago I ran my mouth about a fish market article I read in New York Magazine, and how fish from grocery stores will never compare to fish from actual fish markets. I balked at that, and so I promised a fish taste off, not unlike the Pepsi Challenge of years ago. Well, I finally did it and this is what I found.

In contrast to the bad Chinese restaurant experience about which Mark wrote a while back, I'd like to describe the meal I had this evening.

A wine tasting took place at my home in Queens yesterday. Eight tasters unscientifically sampled and rated five bottles of rosé over brunch. Made from a red grape that has its skin removed before pressing, rosés are neither cloyingly sweet or rock-gut cheap like their visual cousins the blush or the white zinfandel. Dry and bright, this variety is best served slightly chilled and pairs very well with summer fare. Following are the results listed from most preferred (top of list) to least (bottom of list).

I'll admit it, I recommended the restaurant. But in fairness I did describe it as a basement that used garbage bags instead of table cloths. My memory, however, of the quality and taste of food had been obviously clouded by too many Tsingtaos.

A recent communication with a friend that still works at my previous place of employment got me reminiscing about the good ole days of working in an office...such as the following:

Last night a bunch of us headed into a mysterious place in a foreign land and had an amazing adventure searching for exotic food...

Last night I came across an interesting article in New York Magazine. After reading the cover story about the insanity of celebrity culture, I turned the page to learn about the relative insanity of the New York City fish trade.

For the first time in a few years, we've had a good crop of tomatoes. Last year the squirrels would pluck off the green ones, take a few bites, and toss them aside, which really pissed me off. But this year, we've been lucky.

I think I'm going to make some salsa tonight...yum.

For me, summer has not really begun until I've had my first batch of pesto made from basil grown in my garden. That's what we had for dinner tonight. I was also able to pick a couple of cucumbers to put on the salad.

Yesterday we attended my nephew's 1st birthday party. Since one of the things that a kid is "supposed" to do on his/her 1st birthday is get really messy eating their first piece of cake, that's what I was expecting. (Our son totally destroyed an entire cake, while sticking gobs of chocolate icing in his mouth every now and then. However, I don't give my son cake or other sweets except on special occasion. A kid just doesn't need all that sugar. He'll discover it later on his own, I'm sure.)

About three years ago we were driving west on I-40 on our way back to Raleigh from Wilmington, NC. We saw a sign for Duplin Winery and spontaneously decided to stop and check it out.

The warmer weather signals more than the daffodils around these parts. After a too long winter alternating between nut-shrinking cold (outdoors) and hallucination inducing heat (indoors), thoughts immediately turned to dining al fresco. In my neighborhood that brings to mind one very obvious watering hole and the scene of gastro-intestinal horror distress that my wife and I only dare repeat twice a year max.

Just the other day we were looking for chocolate bunnies WITH ears. Alas they had all been sold to moms, dads, grandmas or chocolate fiends... So the only poor bunnies left were the deaf ones. Maybe they didn't hear us calling to them on 11:30pm Easter eve?