Many moons ago I pretty much excluded white flours from my cooking repertoire. I think I was brainwashed into believing there was a pecking order of nutritious flours and these were way at the bottom.

You may consider onions a kitchen staple, but not in my kitchen--and not during a pandemic.

My shortage of celery expertise these last few months is why my salads lacked spunk, why my soups were uninspiring, why my sauces felt wanting, and why my peanut butter snacks and Bloody Mary mix missed companionship.

But when certain family members nixed my cookies for their disagreeable taste, I did the unthinkable—I traded my precious olive oil for Neutral Oil.

I tend not to use a lot of salt—just enough to add its salty taste and unity without causing attention to a dish. But lately I’ve used more. Here’s why…