Good morning. I had a lovely run of Brooklyn sandwiches going, before work, school and Easter intervened to send me back to the kitchen. There was a classic Saigon-style bánh mì from Ba Xuyen in Sunset Park. A colossal roast beef, fried eggplant and mozzarella hero from Defonte’s in Red Hook, with hot peppers, gravy…
On the subject of raisins in carrot cake, the food writer Allison Robicelli once wrote for Taste Cooking, “They don’t just get to show up in desserts, acting like they belong there when they have no business stepping outside of the world of trail mix.” However you may feel on the matter — raisins or…
Starter episode: “The Worst Black Bear Attack in History: Part 1” Matt Pycroft, a filmmaker who specializes in documenting far-flung and hostile outdoor locations, delivers interviews with guests who share his thirst for exploration. One’s definition of an adventure can vary dramatically, and that’s reflected in the broad range of subjects here. Many episodes focus…
In the early 1950s, Lucinda Moore founded a church ministry from her home in Blount’s Creek, N.C. The property anchored the charity work she became known for: nursing sick people back to health in her house, giving needy people the clothes that hung in her closet, leading religious ceremonies in the church she helped build…
When Julia Louis-Dreyfus hit her 60s, she was struck by a realization: She wanted to hear from the old ladies. The star of “Seinfeld” and “Veep,” who has nearly a dozen Emmys, was in the “second act” of her life. But she was contemplating her third. She said she craved the sort of wisdom that…
By the Numbers: A rising fatality rate. The illness is caused by infection with a bacterium called Neisseria meningitidis. Last year, 422 cases of invasive meningococcal disease were reported in the United States, the highest number since 2014, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But as of Monday, 143 cases have been…
After the quiet winter months, spring heralds the return of longer days and gathering over leisurely meals. The best dishes for those get-togethers are the ones that feel celebratory enough to serve to guests, but are simple enough to ensure you’re not spending all day in the kitchen. These three cheery mains — a salad…
Good morning. What I smelled during a 10-minute bicycle ride today: wood smoke, diesel exhaust, grass, frying bacon, rotting wood, bleach, balloon rubber, dollar pizza, a tendril of burning weed, the sharpness of electrical ozone, cart coffee and, last, the strong, sweet scent of lilies — Easter in the air. Good Friday! There’ll be ham…
Austria is best known for its white wines, grüner veltliners and rieslings primarily. But it also produces brilliant reds, which, because they often seem like afterthoughts, can be great values. Why do they seem so relatively obscure? Partly, it’s because grapes like blaufränkisch, which has great potential for making complex, contemplative wines, and zweigelt, the…
When I joined The New York Times as a columnist in 2022, I hadn’t worked in an office in over two decades. Before, I wrote freelance articles and books at home; my only co-worker was Tux, my tuxedo cat. On my first day, I was shown to my cubicle and given a computer. Feigning confidence,…
