A good home office isn’t just a place to put your laptop: It’s a place where work gets done with style, where high-tech gadgets make everything work a little easier and look a little cooler. Here are a few home offices from House Tours and Tech Tours past that do just that.
I am one of those goofballs that, yes, actually gets a kick out of Valentine’s Day. Not in an over-the-top pink hearts and roses kind of a way, but just in that it makes me feel happy. Warm fuzzies toward those I care for and all that.
Most years, my husband and I just stay in and cook a meal together. We’ve done mac ‘n’ cheese, homemade sushi, osso buco, and this year for the surprising first time, steak. This steak. This dry-rubbed steak with boozy butter, which I first made on a spontaneous date night a few weeks ago and which immediately earned itself a spot on our Valentine’s Day menu.
For Valentine’s Day we normally think about how we can show someone else we love them — how cute cards, or fun desserts, or a small gift will make someone else happy. While these small acts of kindness are wonderful, it’s also a time to show yourself a little love. It’s February, it’s dreary outside, and it’s the perfect opportunity to take care of yourself with something comforting, delicious, and maybe just a little healthy.
One of my favorite reader questions in the last few weeks came from Kathy, who asked for inspiration for a new recipe to make with her honey on Valentine’s Day. I loved the idea of Valentine’s implied by this request. Instead of going out to a packed restaurant, or just one person slaving away for the other, this is a meal not only eaten together but cooked together, the whole process part of the fun.
Whether you’re cooking with someone dear this Friday night, or for a group of friends, or for your whole family, here’s a recipe that lends itself to some togetherness in the kitchen. Easy risotto, stirred meditatively, cooked slowly with a glass of wine in one hand and the music turned up.
I’ve long perfected my method for the perfect grilled cheese, but when I first started cooking, it always seemed to elude me. Either my sandwich was toasted on the outside with unmelted cheese inside, or the cheese was gooey but the outside burnt. That was until I figured out the old line cook trick: put a lid on it!
