Azle News story about my cooking lessons

Jeri Field from the Azle News interviewed my client, Linda Johnson and me earlier this week and here is the story:From the Azle News, December 30, 2010Resolved for 2011: Cook like a 'loser' and win - with help from Azle chef by by Jeri Field (Posted Today 01:08 pm)Dunaway teaches her students to cook and eat foods in their "closest-to-nature" form. If getting healthy is on your list of resolutions for 2011, perhaps you’d like to follow the lead of Azle resident Linda Johnson, who is learning to eat like a “biggest loser.”Johnson believes a simple back-to-nature diet will awaken the healthy person hibernating inside. Her awakening came earlier this year after a cancer diagnosis sent her to a nutrition class. She was told the best way to deal with the side effects during and after chemo was...

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Christmas Dinner 2010

We'll have two "Christmas" dinners this year, one on Christmas day and another on New Year's Eve when my daughter, Helen, Will, and granddaughter, Grace come into town. For the Christmas dinner on Christmas day I decided to make an non-traditional dinner since no one wanted anything roasted or stuffed. We used to go to a wonderful restaurant called Cafe Soleil in Azle and have tenderloin steak with a pepper sauce and Steve, Alexandra, and I loved it.Someone suggested we have that for our Christmas dinner. I was happy to oblige so our menu for Christmas:Appetizer: Snow crab legs with cocktail sauceSalad: Red leaf lettuce and romaine with herb...

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Holiday Cooking and Baking

Peppermint bark, ginger cakes, Kahlua cakes Palmiers on left, cheddar thumbprints on rightCheese tray Sticky Fingers bars, pecan tarts, cracker candy in bowlMy mother's sugar cookies in the "cookie room"For some crazy reason I thought it would be a good idea to have a holiday open house this year so family, people I work with and Steve's work friends could stop by and share some homemade goodies. Somehow about 75 people were told about the party and I started getting a little worried. Having that many people involved moving some furniture around and making a lot of food, in other words--a big project. I decided on a menu for both savory and...

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Private Cooking Lesson with Linda Johnson: More Brunch

Pecan Apple Crisp Linda with the sconesLinda Johnson is crazy about brunch so we are on part 2 of 3 "brunch dishes". She has a breakfast group at her house on occasion and is looking for interesting dishes to serve. This week we made bacon-cheddar scones with applewood smoked uncured bacon and lots of ground pepper. The scones were tender and perfectly cooked and the smell of the bacon, scallions, and pepper was really nice. I did explain to Linda that scones were in the category of occasional indulgence since they are pretty rich, but as in everything else, a small portion served with other healthier items is OK. These are just like the scones...

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