The art of giving

Photo by Alecia Paolini WHETHER ITโ€™S FOR THE HOLIDAYS, a birthday, an anniversary or any other celebratory event, nothing beats receiving โ€” and giving โ€” a gift made by hand. Our featured artist today is Gene Paolini, who hails from Northern California. He has been a craftsman and woodworker all his life. He got introduced …

Cranberries, the all-American side dish

โ€œYOUโ€™VE NEVER HAD CRANBERRIES?โ€ This is my incredulous response to my Better Half, who grew up on the tropical island of Mauritius, out in the middle of the Indian Ocean, a place described by Mark Twain as โ€œHeaven on Earth.โ€ The tiny nation is indeed beautiful, and bountiful: mangos, coconuts, bananas (the kind that actually …

Gluten-free Christmas shortbread/cookies

Todayโ€™s recipe comes courtesy of sister Francine, who keeps us on our toes with her culinary creativity. Gluten-free shortbread cookies. Itโ€™s a recipe for gluten-free shortbread cookies, courtesy of The Conscious Plant Kitchen. She recommends doubling the recipe but here is the singular version: Vegan Almond flour Shortbread cookie (single recipe) 1 1/2 cups almond …