“I pick up my teaspoon and take a small bite, and am transported. The cake is nutty and moist, the cream with… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I want coffee to taste of coffee. Maybe a little cream and sugar. I do not want coffee that tastes of potpourri… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I begin to describe a three-tier cake. The bottom tier would be a deep, dark devil's food cake filled with thick chocolate… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Lois and Eloise and Benji have been cooking from the book all week in preparation, making everything from homemade marshmallows and chewy… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Time to cut the cake, newlyweds." Caroline ushers us over to the sweet little two-tier cake, round and covered in white fondant… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Yep," I say, cutting a large slice of the Dutch Baby pancake and sliding it onto her plate along with two pieces… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“So," he explains. "Take the piece of bread, dip it in the olive oil and then in the spice and nut mix,… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Your body will always tell you what you need. If you crave sweet things, your energy is flagging. If it's meat you… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Making dinner for Wayne is either the easiest thing or the hardest thing on the planet, depending on how you look at… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“We'll start with oysters on the half shell and homemade salt-and-pepper potato chips, just to whet the appetites. Then a wedge salad… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I sliced the chicken with my fingers and put it into a small skillet to warm, separate a couple of eggs, and… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Life is also about balance, just the way recipes are about balance. When your recipe isn't balanced, it doesn't taste right. Too… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“You have to come for dinner soon. Alana seems to have perfected this insane braised chicken with chorizo and chickpeas that is… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I invested in a fifteen-dollar handheld mandoline, knowing that my knife skills would never be good enough to get the potatoes thin… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“A chilled pea soup of insane simplicity, garnished with creme fraiche and celery leaves. Roasted beet salad with poached pears and goat… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Three square tiers of hazelnut cake filled with caramel mousse and sliced poached pears, sealed with vanilla buttercream scented with pear eau-de-vie.… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I cooked with so many of the greats: Tom Colicchio, Eric Ripert, Wylie Dufresne, Grant Achatz. Rick Bayless taught me not one… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I wander back out, and find Patrick doing the unthinkable. He is cooking. There are two placemats on the island, napkins and… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Stirring the pastry cream and putting it in the blast chiller in the island, a total chefly indulgence that I have never… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Iceberg wedges with a homemade Thousand Island dressing and bacon bits. Prime rib, slow roasted in a very forgiving technique I developed… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Laid out on the rustic farm table that sits to the side of Maria's enormous kitchen island is a lovely spread of… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“These. Are. AMAZING," Caroline says around a mouthful of apple cider zeppole. We're at the Logan Square Farmers Market, and have eaten… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Last night I read about a dish Gemma made for the staff for breakfast, which sounded really good despite its horrible name.… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Bubbles enters with a plate overflowing with rugelach. The three of us fall silent as we indulge in the small snail-shaped pastries… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“I grab the nonstick skillet, put it on the stove, and fetch four slices of bread from the breadbox. I've been playing… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Can I offer you a slice of this amazing caramelized white chocolate apricot brioche made by my favorite granddaughter?" "You may indeed."… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“What is it?" "It's a Thermomix." "That crazy cooking-blender thing you were telling me about?" "The very one." I've been coveting this… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“RJ gets to work in the kitchen on the dinner he is preparing, allowing me to sous chef. He seasons duck breasts… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Andrea is coming to pick me up in about thirty minutes to head to her folks' house for Thanksgiving. I've got buttery… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Between culinary school, a year and a half of apprentice stages all over the world in amazing restaurants, ten years as the… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“In ten minutes I am at the massive Whole Foods on Kingsbury. I go to the salad bar. I fill containers with… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Yeah, just what I needed, a massive three-day Hostess binge, followed by a week of trying to replicate recipes so that if… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“On the coffee table is a bottle of Madeira, a plate of dark chocolates, a bowl of tiny tangerines. He opens a… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share Image
“Jack was the kind of guy you could take into any situation and he would figure out how to fit in. Wayne, not so… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Volnay is prancing, head up proudly; her squat little bowlegs producing a smooth gait that would make the dog show people preen. She carries… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Deciding that he was essentially useless, I made him a large glass of sangre del tigre- "blood of the tiger"- a lethal Bloody Mary… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“I cooked with so many of the greats: Tom Colicchio, Eric Ripert, Wylie Dufresne, Grant Achatz. Rick Bayless taught me not one but two… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Last night I read about a dish Gemma made for the staff for breakfast, which sounded really good despite its horrible name. Toad-in-the-hole. Seriously,… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“I'm going to explode," my dad says, rubbing his stomach gleefully. He's just put down a massive sandwich piled with corned beef, pastrami, chopped… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Miss A-la-na here seems to think that my pork medallion with caramelized-onion pan sauce is a little heavy-handed, that the onions need a lighter… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Relax, princess. If your prince arrives, I'll vacate. Just keeping you company. Besides, he should know better than to leave a beautiful girl waiting… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Yeah, just what I needed, a massive three-day Hostess binge, followed by a week of trying to replicate recipes so that if no one… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Going to the gym...all those people who always told me that you get addicted to it, that endorphins kick in, that eventually you crave… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“This year I am doing praline pecans, an old favorite family favorite, easy and addictive. And a festive holiday dark chocolate loaf cake, with… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“I pick up my teaspoon and take a small bite, and am transported. The cake is nutty and moist, the cream with the barest… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“Yep," I say, cutting a large slice of the Dutch Baby pancake and sliding it onto her plate along with two pieces of thick-sliced… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“The cake is pretty simple; they didn't want anything too fancy. Two tiers. The bottom is the Frango mint tier from the cake contest,… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
“In a frenetic whirlwind we chop and dice and mince, turning anything we can think of into a possible pizza topping, and packing them… — Stacey Ballis Copy Share
