Food

Celebrate the holidays with 12 days of cookies, each inspired by a different classic dessert:Taking inspiration from the traditional banana split, we created a cookie combining all the flavor elements into a rich cheesecake bar.We started with a...... Full story

RALEIGH, N.C. — Grown-ups and kids, all clad in swimsuits, all holding paper plates, queue up before the dinner buffet: beef brisket, pork ribs, pasta salad, hash brown casserole, tossed salad, rolls, vegetables and dip, pita chips and dip,...... Full story

LIMA — Andrew Grenier's mind doesn't stop planning.Grenier, executive chef at Lima Memorial Health System, said he often thinks of new recipes while driving. A menu to-do list is taped to the wall by his desk, waiting for him to check it off...... Full story

Baked ChickenCOLUMBUS GROVE — For her 21st birthday, Donna Smith asked for nice dishes. Her father obliged and bought six place settings of beautiful white china rimmed in platinum. She still remembers the pattern name:...... Full story

Cake pops — those colorful dipped and decorated golf ball-sized rounds of cake on a stick — are everywhere. They're popping up at school functions and weddings, birthday parties and baby showers.There are books about cake pops, classes...... Full story

Fresh Berry PieWAYNESFIELD — He built his own home — with no building experience — so it shouldn't be too surprising that Chad Spencer also took on the challenge of baking a good pie from scratch.“I'm not afraid to try...... Full story

Dove/Venison PoppersLIMA — Clark Spieles' office is ringed with mounts of the game he has taken — elk, coyote, whitetail deer, muledeer, antelope and more. His trucks' license plates pay homage to October and November, hunting season....... Full story

Ah, s'mores — the summertime dessert you're never too old for. Appearing in a 1927 Girl Scout publication, s'mores have become so popular they're celebrated every Aug. 10 (National S'mores Day). And it's easy to see why. The campfire classic...... Full story

Granny's Refrigerator Bran MuffinsWAPAKONETA — Janie Childress lives in her grandmother's house, with its beautiful purple clematis still beckoning visitors to the front door. Childress keeps the things dearest to her nearby. Her children,...... Full story

By Jackie Burrell Contra Costa Times (MCT) Equinoxes and solstices aside, the last weekend of May marked the start of summer party season. Flags will flutter for Memorial Day and Fourth of July, and families will dust off the grill and break out the...... Full story

Summer Citrus Steak SaladLIMA — Carrie Hamilton just returned from an esteemed Culinary Institute of America advanced baking class in New York. She baked six different dishes in seven hours. No pressure there — but she loves it.Hamilton...... Full story

By Russ Parsons Los Angeles Times (MCT) Ah, the warm days of summer, when some mysterious force compels even the most hapless cooks to start a fire and burn some meat. Walking around my neighborhood last weekend, the smell of flaming beef fat was...... Full story

LIMA — Dinah Arlington placed in The Lima News Cookie Contest a few years back and now has written a book, “Someone's in the Kitchen with Dinah.”“Everybody's always singing me that song,” she said.She'll have a book...... Full story

Home-cured bacon? Sounds like one of those things the average person wouldn't in a million years attempt.But what if we told you it's so easy a child could do it? And what if we also said the results are so good the bacon you make will blow away any...... Full story

A recipe for moist, flavorful banana bread is a find. A half-dozen of them, all in one book, is a discovery.And if they all come together quickly with wonderful results, well, that's a gold mine. “Maida Heatter's Cakes” (Andrews McMeel,...... Full story