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RED BANK: A WANDERING CHEF SETTLES DOWN

100615covas7Lauren Van Liew in the kitchen of her new catering business. Dishes include a classic fresh spinach salad, below.  (Photos by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

100615covas5In the warehouse that formerly housed Adam Sobel’s Cinnamon Snail kitchen on River Street in Red Bank, chef Lauren Van Liew, a 32-year-old Middletown native has opened Chef Covas Catering.

Cooking in kitchens from Boston to Vegas to Boca Raton, Van Liew has been around the culinary butcher’s block more times than many of her much older contemporaries.

With her history and experience, she says “I want to bring families together at the dinner table.” She also says, “I want to conquer the central Jersey catering world.”

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HOLIDAY FOOD TRADITIONS? DO TELL!

120314 davis rhubarb cakeRhubarb coffee cake baked in the kitchen of Red Bank resident Sue Davis. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

morsels mediumLike Tevye, in ‘Fiddler on the Roof,’ PieHole has tradition on its mind this holiday season.

We’re calling on all home cooks and bakers to share with us the holiday food traditions that grace your table every year.

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WHAT YOU WANT IS OFF THE MENU

112014 temple2Pineapple cashew fried rice: available, but not on the menu, at Temple Gourmet. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

morsels mediumWhile waiting for friends at Temple Gourmet Chinese in Red Bank recently, PieHole perused the menu and listened to our waitress describe the specials. But what, we wondered, had those people ordered?

A nearby table held a gleaming platter of golden fried rice lavished with sweet pineapple, golden raisins and cashew nuts.

It turns out to be a dish the kitchen will whip up for anyone who orders it. The secret?  You just have to know it exists.

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FAIR HAVEN: COOK, TASTE, LEARN

071614 taste technique schlossbachMarilyn Schlossbach teaching a class at Taste and Technique Cooking Studio. Below, the Cast Iron Steak Scampi she prepared. (Photo by Susan Ericson. Click to enlarge)

By SUSAN ERICSON

071416 taste technique steakA dozen guests gathered at the counter of Taste and Technique Cooking Studio on River Road in Fair Haven last week, absorbing the pearls of culinary wisdom of chef and retaurateur Marilyn Schlossbach.

Cooking studio owner Carolyn Rue has managed to bring in some of the most sought-after  local restaurant chefs, making sure that the classes are not only informative and delicious, but often entertaining.

The class, titled ‘Jersey Farm Fresh Table,’ consisted of a full dinner, cooked by Schlossbach.

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