The Hungry Squid

The past 4 days have been dominated by music - Atlanta gangster rap, upbeat electro-indie pop, soulful acoustic folk, raw, infectious punk. Halifax Pop Explosion definitely delivered, in a big, big way. Therefore Sunday, post-HPX, post-dancing shoes, post-late nights and early mornings, has been a lazy day, and what better way to celebrate a day of rest than to bake muffins? The secret to these wholesome, flavorful puppies is the rich tanginess of ricotta cheese, which gives them a moist texture and a bolder flavor, accentuating the tart orange and offsetting the sweetness of the cranberries. Topped with jam (I used partridgeberry, left over from my trip to Newfoundland), they are perfect with a cup of French press coffee and back issues of the Economist. Cranberry orange ricotta muffins From food.com Ingredients 1 cup whole wheat flour 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup large-flaked rolled oats 1 tbsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 1/2 tsp salt 1/...

Last weekend, the Fabulous 5 reunited for the first time in over 6 years, and it was just like old times. P, P, A, J and I were the best of friends as kids; despite living in different states and different countries, our families would always find a way to get together over a long weekend, summer break or Christmas holiday. The day-long road trips were always worth it, and we would make the most of precious 72 hours, playing the Mowgli game, going on underground adventures and of course, putting on brilliant, lengthy original plays. As we get older, it has become harder and harder to coordinate, so the time we had together this weekend, celebrating A's beautiful wedding to D, was particularly special. Of my many, many fond memories from family vacations with the Fabulous 5, one of my favorites are of the countless trips to the beach that we made from P and P's house on Long Island. After a morning of playing in the salty waves at Jones Beach, we would all gathe...