Rain, Snow, Floods, and a Birthday

I have been sitting here trying to figure out what to write about for my next blog when a message just came through on my Facebook page.   My sweet youngest daughter wrote the following post before going to bed: I cannot wait to go home tomorrow to celebrate my Momma’s birthday! It doesn’t matter how old […]

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Acadia duck

A Michelin Star Meal with Cuisinart

What could be better than an evening at Michelin-starred restaurant Acadia in Chicago with hosts from the Cuisinart company and table mates being cookbook authors and magazine editors?  Talk about lively conversation!  Sometimes I have to pinch myself that I am able to attend these amazing events.  My daughter Kristina and I had another one of our food […]

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Michael Symon Carnivore

Night with a Carnivore

Iron Chef, restaurateur, cookbook author, and co-host of The Chew,  Michael Symon, is also a longtime affiliate with Calphalon.  In celebration of Calphalon’s fifty years and to present Symon’s newest cookbook, Carnivore, Calphalon hosted a dinner to showcase both.  My daughter Kristina and I were thrilled to be invited to the event held at the Calphalon kitchens in […]

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545 North Chef Paul Cavatelli 1

The Taste of My Hometown

My hometown of Libertyville, Illinois, about 35 miles north of Chicago, was named by CNN as one of America’s best small suburbs due to the vitality and ambiance of our downtown along with its strong sense of community  and historic appeal.  There are many things to brag about in Libertyville – our beautiful parks, downtown activities, great schools,  […]

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A Hollywood Face Lift

Welcome to the new Culinary Cellar!  I moved my blog to WordPress, and as you can see, it looks a little different, but modern and updated.  You might even say it has had a face lift.  But not any face lift;  it was done by Andrew Wilder of Blog Tutor in Los Angeles.   There are parts […]

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Grace+Curtis+Duffy+with+Kristina1

Finding Grace

One of the favorite activities my daughter Kristina and I love to share together is our quest for beautiful food everywhere in the world.  Whenever Kristina is visiting us near Chicago from her home in Los Angeles, we know all we have to do is drive into the city for some of the best food on […]

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It’s Time for the Housewares Show!

This weekend is the annual International Home and Housewares Show at McCormick Place in Chicago.  My daughter Kristina and I look forward to this fabulous show every year.  We find all the latest trends in cooking, appliances, and everything you would ever want in home products, in addition to watching all the celebrity chefs at the […]

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The+Pancake+Handbook1

Diner Pancakes

  It’s a pancake kind of day.  Not that every day can’t be welcomed with a stack of steaming cakes, but today in the Chicago area, I am looking out onto a Winter Wonderland.  We received about nine inches of snow and it’s still coming down.  My husband got out the snow blower just to […]

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