Gretchen Mckay

1 week ago | newsminer.com | Gretchen Mckay

With decades of cooking and testing recipes under my apron, I'm no spring chicken. (Sadly.)But I certainly love to eat a good spring chicken, especially if preparing the meal for my family entails an easy recipe that's built on inexpensive, everyday pantry ingredients and fresh, seasonal fruits and vegetables. This simple, budget-minded dinner for four is perfect for the first sunny days of spring.

1 week ago | timesdaily.com | Gretchen Mckay

I don't pay attention to all the viral food trends on TikTok and Instagram. There are so many crazy recipes screaming for attention, and so many of them just seem dumb. But every once in a while something looks just so incredibly awesome that I have to try it. kA 4=2DDlQH6DE6C?Qm%92E :?4=F56D E96 sF32: 49@4@=2E6 EC6?5[ H9:49 3642>6 D@>6E9:?8 @7 2 4F=EFC2= A96?@>6?@? :?

1 week ago | courant.com | Gretchen Mckay

By Gretchen McKay, Pittsburgh Post-GazettePITTSBURGH — For many Italians, the 40-day Lenten season is punctuated not by sweets but by a smooth, bright-white cheese that comes in white plastic containers. It’s called basket cheese — formaggio da pasta filata in Italian — and it’s long been an Easter staple for Italians and Italian Americans who’ve grown up celebrating Nonna’s Old World food traditions.

1 week ago | twincities.com | Gretchen Mckay

Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish made from salted and fermented vegetables, most often with napa cabbage and some sort of radish along with carrots, garlic, ginger and chili. Seasoned with two other staples in Korean cooking — umami-rich fish sauce (made from fermented anchovies) and gochugaru (dried red chili powder) — the condiment adds a salty and sometimes fiery punch to any number of dishes. Think rice bowls, stews, noodles, fritters and even tacos or crispy, flavor-stuffed pancakes.

1 week ago | post-gazette.com | Gretchen Mckay

Alyssa Gruber isn’t one of those “crazy” runners that hits the pavement no matter the temperature or weather. A few miles a week does it for the North Sider. “For me, it’s more about being active in whatever way is fun,” she says. The North Allegheny High School grad, who’s also into hiking, dance and yoga, doesn’t quite understand the love some runners have for a celebratory post-race beer. “It’s so funny how they’re so enthralled with drinking alcohol after a run,” she says with a laugh.