Entertaining Essentials ...more

November 9, 2009

For a fast entrée option, stir the tapenade into hot cooked pasta. ...more

November 5, 2009

A refreshing summer salad. ...more

July 17, 2009

A light and refreshing way to serve fish. ...more

June 16, 2009

Perfect for your kids. ...more

May 7, 2009

A fancy dish that you can make right at home. ...more

April 13, 2009

A garden pest chewed my pineapple plant, and the almost-ripe pineapple fell off the stem. How can it finish ripening? ...more

August 20, 2008

"This so-called news article is so one-sided and vindictive it's absolutely disgusting," decried valued reader grskeeter, who took umbrage at a column suggesting that when her effort to get the county mayor initiative on the ballot faltered recently, local lawyer Mary Ann Stiles might well have enjoyed a well-deserved stiff Boodles martini - or two. ...more

August 17, 2008

Who knows if Tampa lawyer Mary Ann Stiles is a drinking woman, but if not, she certainly could be forgiven if she's devoted herself since Friday mostly to some serious quality time with a fifth of Boodles gin. ...more

August 7, 2008

POWER OF THE PRESS If you're a coffee freak (welcome to the club, by the way), you probably know all about the flavor you get from a French press coffeemaker. Using one, however, requires a little patience while waiting for the coffee grounds to diffuse into the water. AeroPress solves that time crunch by using a plunger to push the water through the grounds in only 20 seconds. A microfilter sifts out the usual grit you would get at the bottom of the cup. Cost: $25.95. Available at www.aerobie.com and the Sarasota-based www.cappojim.com. ...more

May 6, 2008