Posts By: Ellen

Food Friday/Garlic and Gooseberries: Italian Zucchini and Leek Omelet

In honor of my daughter’s upcoming semester in Italy, I made what I call an Italian omelet for brunch the other day. Actually, I am not sure if this is how they make omelets in Italy, but somewhere along the way I learned this technique and have always called it that. Using our first zucchini

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Food Friday/Garlic & Gooseberries: Swiss Chard and Bacon Soufflé

Soufflés seem to have gone out of fashion. Why is that? I think maybe they seem intimidating, and yes, they do have a lot of steps that might seem complicated at first. Then there is that persistent possibility that they may not rise, or that they will rise and then fall before getting to the

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Garlic & Gooseberries: Midsummer Report

Progress: The garden has been busy growing and the first eggplant has been harvested along with our first and only yellow summer squash so far. There are lots of zucchini and yellow squash blossoms but only one actual squash. I had never heard of anyone’s zucchini plant not producing until I met my neighbor, who

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Garlic and Gooseberries: Bolting

Browsing in a small bookstore recently, I came across this treasure: Vegetable Gardening in the Northeast by Marie Iannotti. Even in today’s world where it seems every question can be answered by a Google search, there is something very comforting about holding a book of instructions in my hands. It feels like everything I need,

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Wednesday Wanderings: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow House

A few steps past the bustling urban center of Harvard Square, Brattle Street leads into a quiet, leafy tree-lined neighborhood. The beautiful old stately mansions put one in mind of another era, a more genteel time, and it wouldn’t surprise me to see a horse and buggy come down the street, or to hear the

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Boston Philharmonic Youth Orchestra: “Shaping future leaders through music”

My family used to teasingly call me Cinder-Ellen when I was little, but last weekend I got to feel like a real Cinderella princess. My husband and I got invited to participate in some of the festivities to celebrate the 35th anniversary of the Boston Philharmonic Orchestra and the 75th birthday of their charismatic leader,

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