Creamy Asparagus Flans for Spring Brunch

Hadley, a neighboring town near Amherst, Massachusetts, where I live, is famous for its asparagus. In late spring, around mid-May, when the crops finally arrive, everyone rushes to buy a bunch. Farmers sell bundles of the handsome spears at outdoor markets and roadside stands, and not to be outdone, our groceries all display the verdant stalks with signs noting that they are LOCAL! Continue reading

Potato Salad with Chorizo and Chives

This potato salad is a new and delicious twist on tradition. Small red skin potatoes, boiled in their skins, then quartered, and chopped hard-boiled eggs form the base, and are accented by bits of chorizo, a smoked Spanish sausage available in many supermarkets. It is the chorizo with its subtle smokiness that makes this potato salad so distinctive. These three ingredients are tossed together in a mustard and shallot vinaigrette, then sprinkled with snipped chives. Continue reading