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Treat Dad with these brownies on Father’s Day

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

I was surprised that the late film star, Katharine Hepburn, was legendary in her day for her brownies. As a youngster, I adored the film roles she portrayed, quirky women often with an endearing rebellious streak. I never imagined that she had found baking fame until I read a revised recipe for her brownies in David Lebovitz’s “The Great Book of Chocolate” (Ten Speed Press).Lebovitz wrote that her recipe was fine, but to reflect more current tastes he tweaked it to include additional chocolate and chocolate chips. They are delicious, rich in chocolate goodness with the crunch of chopped nuts, either pecans or walnuts. The texture somewhere between cakey and fudge-like.They would make a welcome gift for Dad this Father’s Day, June 18. They are scrumptious on their own, but I like them served topped with ice cream or whipped cream and fresh strawberries. That’s how my dad would have liked them.Dave and Kate’s Remarkable BrowniesYield: 16 browniesINGREDIENTSSoft butter and flour for pr...

Indulge on a budget with grilled steak kebabs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

For this meat lover, there may be no better summer dinner than a fat and juicy ribeye steak cooked to perfection over a bed of hot coals. But boy, is that a splurge in these days of high inflation, especially when you’re also cooking for others.The economical stand-in to that expensive steak doesn’t have to be burgers. Instead, buy a less premium cut of meat, cut it into chunks, let it soak for a few hours in a savory marinade and then stick the pieces on a skewer with your favorite vegetables.Kebabs are not only more cost-effective than steaks, but also an easy way for home cooks to get meat and a variety of vegetables on the table at the same time. Plus, skewered food is just fun to eat, especially in summer, when dining tends to be a little more casual.For this recipe, I used top sirloin, a cut that’s leaner than ribeye but still full of beefy flavor. A quick bath in an acidic and garlicky marinade guarantees it will be tender.A few tips: Be careful not to threa...

Toast summer with Jack Kerouac’s Margarita

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Sipping a margarita can evoke the ensuing days of sunshine and outdoor antics. That’s especially likely when you make this recipe – a favorite of author Jack Kerouac on one of his many Mexican sojourns – courtesy of “How to Drink Like a Writer: Recipes for the Cocktails and Libations that Inspired 100 Literary Greats” (Apollo Publishers), writing by Margaret Kaplan.TAG GOES HEREJack Kerouac’s MargaritaINGREDIENTS2 ounces silver tequila3/4 ounce Cointreau3/4 ounce lime juice, freshly squeezed1 teaspoon agave nectar (optional)Rock salt for garnishingLime wedge for garnishingDIRECTIONSPour salt onto small plate. Rub a lime wedge around the lip of a rocks glass and dip the rim in the salt. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine tequila, Cointreau, lime juice, and agave, if using. Shake vigorously. Strain into the salt-rimmed rocks glass over ice. Garnish with the lime wedge.

Lowry: Whose Pride flag is it, anyway?

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

It’s June, when one can be forgiven for thinking we live in the United States of LGBTQIA2S+.Old Glory is, at best, supplemented with, and sometimes supplanted by, the pride flag in all its varieties.The flag is ubiquitous. Its increasingly elaborate jumble of clashing stripes — whether seen shopping, at a ballgame or on U.S. government buildings — is a reminder to get with the program, and that the program is always changing.Team Biden draped what is known as the Progress Pride flag, with no fewer than 11 different colors, on the White House in between two American flags, giving it — no pun intended — pride of place.Flags aren’t trifling matters. People rally to them and live and die for them. The firing on the flag at Fort Sumter at the outset of the Civil War, for instance, had a galvanizing effect on the North.Whereas the power of the Star-Spangled Banner is its extraordinary history, its relatively simple design, its easily understood symbolis...

On the road again, Indigo Girls making Medford stop

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Think of the Indigo Girls, and loud electric rock probably doesn’t come to mind. But there will be some of that when the duo of Emily Saliers and Amy Ray hit Medford’s Chevalier Theater on Thursday and Saturday, on their first full-band tour in many years.They’re touring “Look Long,” the album they released in March 2020. “We had the band tour all planned and ready to go before COVID hit,” Saliers said this week. “A lot of our arrangements have to do with who is producing, and who we invite to play with us at the time. But for us, (playing rock) is the most natural thing in the world; Amy has done punk albums and her main writing instrument is electric guitar. Most people think of us as a folk band, and the acoustic elements are always there– but we’re really more of a mishmosh band. A mishmosh with a little pigeonholing.”The duo writes nearly all their songs separately, with Saliers often pigeonholed as the more sensitive and Ray as the tougher one. “You can’t really articula...

Pozniak: Constituent outreach vital part of job for local pols

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

The legendary Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Thomas “Tip” O’Neill, from North Cambridge, famously said “all politics is local.” While lobbying him in Washington, I remember asking the late speaker what he meant by those words. He explained that too often, elected officials fail to regularly communicate and engage with those they were elected to serve. He made the point of saying that elected officials need to be better at constituent outreach on the local level by meeting, listening and sharing information.Two former members of our Congressional delegation exemplified this; Robert Drinan and Niki Tsongas. Drinan, of Newton, was the first Catholic priest ever elected to Congress. As his communications advisor on human rights, I saw first-hand his high energy approach to constituent outreach. Every weekend, he traveled through his district meeting with constituents to learn what was on their minds and update them on the work he was doing in Congress. He was a discip...

Vaughn: End of virtual Housing Court sessions burdens low-income communities

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

As residents of our affluent community, it is essential that we recognize the challenges faced by our fellow citizens in less privileged areas. Recently, I received information from a concerned constituent highlighting a growing issue that demands immediate attention: the detrimental impact of changes in the Housing Court system on low-income individuals and families.Across the state, both in public and private housing disputes, individuals are required to navigate the Housing Court, which serves as a separate part of the judiciary. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, virtual proceedings through platforms like Zoom were successfully implemented, offering convenience and efficiency for landlords, tenants, and all parties involved. However, the introduction of a new head of the system has abruptly terminated these virtual practices, causing significant disruption and hardship.Under the new system, administrative matters that previously took a mere 30 minutes via Zoom now require a t...

Dear Abby: Married woman wants more from affair partner

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Dear Abby: In high school, I had a close male friend, “Adam.” After graduation, I moved out of state. We remained friends for a while in college, calling, writing and visiting each other. He often declared his love for me, but I was interested only in a friendship. As with most high school relationships, we lost contact. Now, rereading old letters from friends, I realize there was a constant theme that we were perfect for each other and I should give him a chance.Fast-forward 20 years: My husband and I went back for a high school reunion and I met Adam’s wife. We all went out to dinner and had a very nice time. Adam and I exchanged phone numbers, agreed to stay in touch and we actually did. For eight years, we have been texting and staying in touch.Our marriages have deteriorated and we complain about our spouses, but also have real conversations and have grown very close. Three months ago, we met halfway between our two cities and began an affair. We now meet once...

CRSSD Festival to return to San Diego's Waterfront Park

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- Ready for an electronic music experience? The CRSSD Festival is returning to San Diego this fall, aiming to converge the past, present and future of the genre.The event will take place at downtown San Diego's Waterfront Park on Sept. 23 and 24, concert officials announced Tuesday.Star performers include British live electronic pioneers Underworld and Fatboy Slim, Grammy-awarded Australian DJ Flume, British Production powerhouse Basement Jaxx, among others. Where to watch July 4th fireworks in San Diego Here are other performers on the Fall 2023 lineup:Amelie LensBarry Can’t SwimBasement Jaxx (DJ set)Ben Böhmer (live)BlackchildCassianCharlotte de WitteChris Lake B2B ClooneeChris StussyÉtienne de Crécy B3B DJ Falcon B3B BoombassEliza RoseElderbrookEmmit FennEnrico SangiulianoEwan McVicarFarragoFatboy SlimFidelesFisherFjaak (DJ set)FlumeHaaiInterplanetary CriminalJayda GKučkaLadytronLayla BenitezLP GiobbiMutoNikki NairObjekt B2B Call SuperOvermonoPatrick masonRöyksoppSal...

To fight berry-busting fruit flies, researchers focus on sterilizing the bugs

Published Sun, 16 Feb 2025 16:00:00 GMT

Paul Nelson is used to doing battle with an invasive fruit fly called the spotted wing drosophila, a pest that one year ruined more than half the berries on the Minnesota farm he and his team run. In recent years, they’ve cut their losses closer to 5%, but it’s been labor-intensive and expensive.“It’s a pest that if you’re not willing to stick the time into it, it’s going to take over your farm,” said Nelson, the head grower at Untiedt’s, a vegetable and fruit operation about an hour west of Minneapolis.Nelson and other growers may someday get a new tool as a result of research at North Carolina State University into the insects, which ruin the berries by laying their eggs in them and have been estimated to cost growers hundreds of millions of dollars annually. The researchers, using a concept called “gene drive,” manipulated the insects’ DNA so that the female offspring would be sterile, and the method they used to achieve it significantly reduced the chance...