Good Things by David

Over the weekend I knew it was time to photograph our surroundings because the fall foliage was just the right color and texture.  I try every single year to capture the landscape at the perfect moment.  If I wait too long or if the weather is off, everything can change overnight and I'm left with bare trees and a barren landscape. Going up our driveway in the mornings during the month of October, I'm always observing at what's happening around us; the flora & fauna don't need a calendar or a clock to work their magic.  I can always tell on these morning drives up the driveway when I need to photograph.  Luckily, there  haven't been any blustery rainstorms, official hurricanes or unusual icing conditions which have prevented me from taking advantage of the beautiful fall foliage here at home. The weekend was such a marvelous two days for me and my family.  Not only did I have the good news regarding my niece's health, I also had the chance to catch...

I finally have some time to sit down and write a few thoughts.  At some point yesterday when I was on the phone with a friend of mine, she said to me: "you never seem to sit down".  It's true.  There is always something that needs to get done, some item that needs to get put away, cleaned or organized, some email that has to get written and meals that need to get prepped.  This is every single day.  However, yesterday was different.  Yesterday, I had to sit down.  It's not often I write about my personal life or that of my family, but while I was reaching for my phone  yesterday afternoon I noticed that I had several messages, one of which was from my brother, Erik.  He had typed two sentences that were to the point, but carried a lot of meaning: "She's through with her medication.  She is in remission!"  I believe the tears of joy began rolling down instantaneously as it sunk in that my little niece was out of the woods with h...

Welcome to  Heritage Home .  I'm so pleased to finally be sharing the creation of an online shopping experience with all of you here.  What began as an idea to sell one particular item has led to a merchandising division of Good Things by David, with several products that I love having in my home.  This extension of the blog is not something I had even entertained a year ago, but since then, the concept has taken on new dimensions and I couldn't be more delighted with the results.  I feel like all of this has grown organically for me, and the timing to be entering the arena of retail couldn't be any better. The brand 'Heritage Home' came through weeks of brainstorming and working closely with a superb graphic designer (more on her later) to capture what I was aiming for.  Home is comfort.  Home is what we're all drawn to.  The notion of 'Heritage' rings true for me and every one of you.   Several months ago I wrote a post entitl...

I'm getting ready to condition some of my cutting boards here at home, so I thought I'd post this entry from last year as a reminder.  This is how I care for these kitchen tools every month. A good, solid cutting board is one of those kitchen tools that every cook should have.  As one who spends a lot of time in the kitchen cooking up meals for my family, I rely heavily on my cutting boards to get me through many culinary tasks.  Although my boards experience a lot of cutting, dicing, slicing, chopping & mincing on a daily basis, I treat them gently by maintaining them well.  Any type of cutting board is an investment for the home cook, and it's one that shouldn't go to waste because of neglect. Wood is my preferred surface for cutting boards, but there are other types available to the home chef, such as polypropylene (these I highly recommend for cutting meats because they can be cleaned in the dishwasher) and bamboo, which are suitable for any kitchen....

Granola is always in my pantry because it's a quick go-to breakfast or snack for us here at home.  I've shown you one of my favorite recipes before and have since altered it here and there over the months, from batch to batch.  For the Fall season I decided to add a bit of spice and expand on the dried fruits & nuts in order to make it even more tasty.  Autumn seems to herald in all of those sweet combinations that suggest warmth & spicy aromas, so what better way to capture it than with some delicious granola? You have to understand that I make a large batch of this so that it can be packaged up and parceled out to people in the neighborhood, but one can always cut the recipe in half if need be.  I like to keep some in one of my vintage Ball jars so that during the week I can have a light breakfast with my yogurt & banana, but I also love to have it in the afternoons when I want a boost of energy.   Packed with oats, wheat germ, a few...

I’m pleased to introduce this special edition set of heritage copper cookie cutters designed by me for Good Things by David .  Having worked closely with American coppersmith, Michael Bonne, to create these wonderful iconic images, nothing gives me greater pleasure than making them available to you for your very own home.  Everyone here knows how much I cherish my collectible copper cookie cutters which have been featured  extensively over the years, and it is because of this passion for them that a brilliant collaboration was formed to create a limited-edition set.  Soon to be available exclusively through a store I’m creating, the charming Bee & Hive duo will allow you to bake & decorate unique cookies which are bound to become family favorites. Who doesn’t love baking delicious cookies in adorable shapes for family and friends?  It’s a time-honored tradition in my house that I have enjoyed doing every single year for various special occasi...

It's been a very long time since I had a rice krispie square, so when a few people requested them recently, I wasted no time and went to work.  Popular with kids and adults (you know you like them), these sweet treats are probably one of the easiest things in the world to make.  Nothing more than toasted rice cereal, melted marshmallows and butter, the squares come together in a matter of minutes.  Waiting for them to set is perhaps the most difficult thing to do since their enticing sweetness makes you want to dig right into them, but this too can be remedied. While searching for the 'krispie' treat recipe (it had been decades!), I was amazed to see how creative people can be with their squares, or rounds, or shapes.  For this particular batch I wanted the original square with nothing added to it.  To make it easier for people to devour one, I decided to put each square on a lollipop stick.  As tempting as they are to just grab and bite, the st...