The Bellaire Buzz - February 2023

Whirlwind Love

The Old Geezers

Date Nights

Walking Club

by Andria Frankfort Dilling

Chocolate Cake and Memories Cindy Gabriel: Not a Memoir, Part 4 Sweet Valentine’s Ideas Buzz Reads Chef’s Corner: Breakfast Spots

Houston, TX

Travel Buzz: Interior Mexico

Permit No. 2047 PAID US Postage PRSRT STD

Back Porch: Cooking Comments

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 3

EDITOR’S NOTE The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and I have a perfect view of a beautiful day from my office window. It’s corny, but I have never appreciated it more. The start to 2023 was a buzzkill for me. After three years of dodging it, I caught Covid.

It was not fun. Fortunately, I’m recovered and free from my quarantine. During those days of isolation, I craved my everyday routine and, above all, my circle of close friends and family members. I know I’m lucky to have this circle. Recently, I watched a segment on CBS Sunday Morning about happiness. The secret? Strong connections with family and friends. Making sure to have that person you could call at 3 a.m. if needed. In this issue, our features shine a light on close-knit connections. From longtime buddies who have reconnected in their 60s, to a love story about a couple and their baby returning home after living abroad, and my personal favorite – a sweet story of a family’s beloved chocolate cake. No need for me to make a 3 a.m. phone call: I just want a giant piece of that cake. joni@thebuzzmagazines.com

THE BUZZ MAGAZINES BELLAIRE • WEST UNIVERSITY • MEMORIAL • TANGLEWOOD/RIVER OAKS Published by Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401 info@thebuzzmagazines.com • p: 713.668.4157 • f: 713.665.2940 Follow us on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram and Twitter thebuzzmagazines.com Editor-in-Chief Publisher Editor Editorial Assistant

Joni Hoffman Michael Hoffman Jordan Magaziner Steinfeld Caroline Siegfried

Design Manager Staff Writers

John Duboise Tracy L. Barnett Sharon Albert Brier Cindy Burnett Andria Frankfort Dilling Angie Frederickson Todd Freed Cindy Gabriel Cathy Gordon Michelle Groogan Dai Huynh Cheryl Laird Annie Blaylock McQueen Jennifer Oakley Pooja Salhotra Cheryl Ursin Andrea Blitzer Leslie Little Jo Rogers

Account Managers

On our cover: The Old Geezers Walking Club – Murray Penner, Stuart Weil, Alan Aronowitz, Mike Kahn, Brad Rauch, Steven Finger, and Richard Seline – have known each other since elementary school and have reconnected over weekly walks.

Cover photo by Nikky LaWell, lawellphoto.com The Buzz Magazines has made all reasonable attempts to verify the accuracy of all information contained within. Advertising claims are solely the responsibility of the advertiser. Copyright © 2023 Hoffman Marketing & Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any portion of this magazine by any means without written permission is strictly prohibited. Printed on recycled paper. Please remember to recycle.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 4

THE RESULTS ARE IN: My Bellaire Properties Sold in Year 2022 5122 Braeburn 4517 Live Oak 4618 Pin Oak 4819 Laurel 4816 Locust 4401 Dorothy 4312 Phil

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MAILBAG

Your letters, thoughts, opinions Response to diversity letter [In response to a letter featured in Mailbag, Jan. 2023] I believe The Buzz has fairly represented the community without any prejudice or exclusion in its reporting of the news, events, stories and pics in each edition. What I see is reporting/stories/pics based on character, deeds and events in the community, not one based on a gender, skin color, nationality, religion or any kind of diversity quota system.

Make the news, contribute with good deeds. Submit your story. Be interesting. No one is news just because of their skin color, nationality or just because they live in million-dollar plus homes!

Patrick Villarreal Editor’s note: As mentioned in last month’s Mailbag, it’s important to us to be inclusive, and we aim to feature residents from diverse backgrounds throughout our four magazines (Bellaire, West University, Memorial, Tanglewood/River Oaks). We encourage our readers to reach out with story ideas spotlighting interesting neighbors and a variety of human-interest topics.

Inspiring seniors If articles like Keep It Moving: Seniors In Motion [by Cheryl Ursin, Jan. 2023] inspires just one copycat, you’ve done your job!

I was so excited to see Mickey Rosenau and Ellen Gritz featured in the story. Ellen’s pandemic re-route to her neighbor’s pool was my pool! What she neglected to mention was the intensity in which she swims her 1.25 miles. There were several occasions I had elite athletes at my house for meetings and/or visits and they were blown away by her stroke speed. Not only was it amazing to watch, her daily visits to my house resulted in a very deep and fun friendship, which has led the two of us down many adventures, doing very interesting and impactful things.

We are all so grateful to The Buzz to learn the good things happening in our community.

Melissa Levin

Putting pen to paper I love Dr. Portnoy [and his article Fountain Pens: The good old days, Jan. 2023]. A number of physicians still write with fountain pens. I vary between ballpoint and ink but prefer ink. I am glad ink on the hands is a mark of distinction. I still practice medicine and as long as it isn’t red ink, I’m okay.

In Praise of Paper by Anne Pierson Wiese is a favorite poem. It’s a must read.

Jimmy D. Schmidt, MD Editor’s note: This letter was sent to us in the old-fashioned way – handwritten in pen on paper and sent through the mail. Dr. Schmidt kindly included a portion of the poem he referred to in his letter. See this column at thebuzzmagazines.com for a link to read the poem.

Breaking boundaries I love the article [Breaking Boundaries: Helping those with invisible disabilities] by Michelle Groogan, Nov. 2022, and I’ve received so many compliments on your writing! Thank you again for covering this!

Liz Selig Send letters to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Please include your name, address, phone number and email address for verification purposes. Letters are subject to editing for clarity and space. Views expressed in letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of The Buzz Magazines, and The Buzz takes no responsibility for the content and opinions expressed in them.

What’s your story?

Covering health and fitness Having my picture on the cover [Tanglewood/River Oaks Buzz, Jan. 2023] has been fun. I have heard from people I haven’t seen in years. My incredible trainer, Bob Talamini, has also heard from quite a few people. I know The Buzz picked me [to be featured in Keep It Moving: Seniors in Motion by Cheryl Ursin] because of my age, however, I don’t think of myself as 87; I think we should constantly enjoy life, our friends, and our family. This fills me with all I need to enjoy life and feel young. Wishing one and all a healthy and happy New Year! Keep on moving!

Cyvia Wolff Editor’s note: Cyvia is one of multiple Buzz-area seniors who impressed us with their commitment to staying fit, their focus on healthy living, and their positive outlook on life and aging (no, not just because of their age!). If you missed this story, see thebuzzmagazines.com.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 6

We are looking for residents for upcoming articles who: • Know a buzzworthy neighbor to feature.

• Have a compelling travel tale.

• Have a milestone life event to share.

• Have a unique family tradition.

• Have an interesting passion or hobby.

If this sounds like you or someone you know, please contact us at info@thebuzzmagazines.com or 713.668.4157, ext 12.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 7

NEIGHBORS

by Cindy Gabriel, staff writer

Here Comes Aunt Jessie All I knew was what I saw – Not a Memoir, Part 4

W

ho you got there, Aunt Jessie,” said a bald-headed man with a black mustache and a white apron hanging around his neck. “That’s my million dollars,” said Aunt Jessie, referring to me as we walked up to the counter of his shoe-repair shop. The mustached man picked me up and put me on the counter, eye level with him. He peered at me up close and asked me what that hole was in my right cheek. “A dimple,” I managed to say.

“Let me see here,” he said, reaching inside his apron pocket. He pulled out a small pocketknife, opened it close to my cheek and said, “I can get that out of there if you want.” My mute but horrified face said I didn’t want. Aunt Jessie quickly reached between me and that pocketknife, and returned me to the floor, then pulled out her ruler and pencil and started making lines on a newsprint tablet. She sold her newspaper ad, and I kept my dimple.

It was one of those days, not often enough, when Aunt Jessie, my own personal Mary Poppins, rescued me from watching snails leave silver trails on my great-grandmother Mamie’s front porch. She knew I needed a taste of the outside world, and she needed a little sales bait for her downtown rounds drumming up advertising for the Fort Bend Reporter.

Aunt Jessie, with her big floppy hat, held on by a giant pearl hat pin, was a one-woman parade with 4-year-old me in tow. Her oversized purse held a newsprint paper tablet, with a metal ruler, which stuck out. Sometimes a streak of hair would escape from under her hat, which she would slide behind her ear, where the sharpened pencil sat.

Downtown Rosenberg was typical small-town America with blocks of storefronts leading to a train depot. The Art Deco Cole Theatre towered in the center of Third Street, the actual Main Street of downtown, across from the shoe store, next to the shoe-repair shop, Etta Mae’s women’s clothing, Jack & Jill’s children’s clothes shop, the drug store, the bank, the barber shop, and such. All the business owners were white, though many nationalities. Polish, Italian, Jewish, German, and Czech accents peppered the air.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 8

Plain old Americanborn transplants like my family wouldn’t have found Rosenberg if Aunt Jessie hadn’t moved there first. She was selling advertising for the Herald Coaster, the competing newspaper when the Ft. Bend Reporter came up for sale. Ikey (my greatgrandfather) bought it, and moved to Rosenberg with his wife, Mamie, Aunt Jessie’s sister. Aunt Jessie joined Ikey at the Ft. Bend Reporter as Business Manager, a title not typical for a woman of that day. I bet she insisted on it.

Working women were uncommonly common in my family, for the 1950s, but none quite like Aunt Jessie.

She often took her place among the downtown male proprietors to shoot the breeze. “I’m MARY POPPINS WITH AN EDGE Here, a younger Aunt Jessie Hogue turned an Old Maid,” she down at least two marriage proposals before becoming a self-described Old Maid. declared one day, sitting the eye and spoke. No one had yet explained to in a circle of men. She treated it like some kind me how people’s skin color put them in different of joke she started herself, to head-off smallcategories. I only knew what I saw. town gossip.

Aunt Jessie’s reply to everyone was always the “Hello, Aunt Jessie,” said most who passed on same. She nodded and kept walking in a noher sidewalk rounds. I knew she was my aunt, nonsense kind of way. They say Aunt Jessie was but it seemed like she was also Rosenberg’s aunt. quite a looker in her day, and turned down at I watched a “colored” man in oversized trousers, least two proposals of marriage. All I knew was held up by suspenders, step to the outside of the she could shuffle cards like a poker player. The sidewalk, tip his hat, and say, “Good Day, Aunt first game she taught me was Old Maid.

Jessie,” with a hint of twinkle in his eye, like she No one had yet explained to me about different was an old familiar friend. roles between men and women. All I knew was Most times, the colored folks quietly stepped what I saw. Aunt Jessie didn’t care much about to the side and looked down when passing a white categories, except for me, her million dollars. person. But several looked Aunt Jessie right in

lawellphoto.com

NEIGHBORS

by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Date Nights Favorite traditions

W

hen a couple gets a chance to have a true date night – not a party or group dinner, a “just-the-two-of-us” outing – it can be a great recharge. While some couples might prefer a quiet night in, some might enjoy getting dressed up and dining at an upbeat restaurant or heading out for a sporting event.

What suits one couple might differ from the next.

Date nights (or days), even if just a Sunday drive, are the heartbeat of a relationship and the roadmap to connection. This month, in honor of the holiday that celebrates love, we asked couples what their favorite date spots have been in the past, have become now, or even desire to be in the future.

O

mar and Mikhal Abou-Sayed have been married for 13 years but their first date was more than 25 years ago. The couple’s favorite date spots have evolved over the years – through raising their three children (Adan, 11, Joaquin, 9, and Alina, 7), and Covid times and juggling busy work and school schedules.

Omar, CEO and founder of Advantek Waste Management Services, and Mikhal, an attorney, love good food and have always enjoyed delicious meals, both at home and at restaurants.

Date nights that involve great food have been a big staple of their pre-kids and present-day favorite date nights.

Pre-kids, before any babysitter or childcare logistics, their dates usually consisted of grocery shopping together for ingredients and cooking an intricate meal at home together. Once the kids arrived, and they started to hire a babysitter, Omar said that they would intend to go to dinner to have “adult conversations” and catch up about all things non-kids. “Then we’d end up talking about the kids anyways,” said Omar, laughing.

Over the years, and throughout Covid times, their favorite date nights changed from dinner out at a restaurant to walking around Highland Village, playing Pictionary on the touch screen in the car, or picking up food from Himalaya and having a picnic at Levy Park.

The couple added a fun twist to a date night: kid date night. “With three kids, we have found BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 10

TIME FOR US Omar and Mikhal Abou-Sayed, who have been married for 13 years, have a regular date night – even if it is cooking dinner together at home.

that we really need one-on-one time to connect with them and make them feel like they are getting quality time, so we instituted the kid date nights,” said Omar.

Each week, they alternate taking each of their three children on a one-on-one date, alternating kids between Omar, Mikhal, and the grandparents who live nearby (Omar’s parents, Kadreya and Ahmed, and Mikhal’s mother, Maria). This way, the kids get quality time with each parent or grandparent.

The kid dates can take place anywhere, from a Rockets game, to Alina’s favorite spot Sweet Paris, or all three kids’ favorite place: Bedrock City Comic Company.

If the kids’ school schedules get too busy during the week, they improvise and bring homework to a restaurant. They have worked on school speeches at the Cheesecake Factory.

They keep their date nights a priority and make the time that is needed.

C

athy and David Herr, married for 18 years, knew when they first met that they had found their life companion. The couple became engaged within six months of meeting and married within 15 months of meeting. They are now raising their three children, Hudson, 13, Lauren,

11 ½, and Declan, 6.

Their schedules keep the Herr family busy, but Cathy and David make sure that they take time for each other and sneak away for a date when the kids are at school or busy with activities.

Before having kids, Cathy recalls the times when they were more flexible with taking date nights.

“Our date nights could go late and we could sleep in,” said Cathy. When the kids arrived, and with no family living near them, they hired highschool-aged babysitters to help watch the kids so they could make one-on-one time a priority.

“Our current favorite date is an impromptu lunch or dinner at Kata Robata,” Cathy said. They enjoy traveling just the two of them, but it can be hard to get away. “We try to travel and have experiences together as much as possible, but with three kids, it definitely can be challenging,” said David, vice president of Blackline Midstream.

A more memorable date night was the time they went out to dinner, pre-kids, and came home to discover a bat flying around in their bedroom. “It was not funny at the time, but every time we tell the story, it gets funnier and funnier,” said Cathy. “I saw David flailing a broom in one hand and a tennis racquet in the other,” she said. The couple called pest control and confirmed no rabies (continued on page 12)

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 11

KID DATE NIGHTS Parents Omar and Mikhal Abou-Sayed implemented a tradition of weekly “kid date nights” where they alternate taking each of their three children on one-on-one outings. Clockwise, from upper left: Omar and Adan; Omar and Alina; and Mikhal and Joaquin. (continued from page 10) shot was necessary and

that all was clear.

Their secret to enjoying date nights is to always make them a priority, even if they must BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 12

figure out childcare logistics or take time out of their week. “We try to always put one another first and not forget what attracted each one of us to each other before the craziness of kids’

schedules, our volunteer roles, et cetera,” said Cathy. David said a quiet dinner with a nice bottle of wine is always a winner, along with dates for watching sports (continued on page 14)

2022 was a great year! We would love to help you in 2023!

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Dave Rossman

JUST THE TWO OF US These Buzz couples take time out of their busy lives for regular date nights. Clockwise, from upper left: Ellie and Michael Francisco rooting for the Astros during Game 6 of the 2022 World Series; Cathy and David Herr at the Best Cellars wine dinner, benefiting the Martell Foundation; and Charity Yarborough Cox and Wally Cox at Tony’s, their favorite spot to enjoy dinner and live music. (continued from page 12) games like the Astros, the

Chiefs – and “Cathy’s Aggies,” he said.

C

harity Yarborough Cox, a real estate broker with Compass Real Estate, and Wally Cox, a custom home builder, are newlyweds, and full of energy in their 60s and 70s. The couple married in March 2021, blending their two families, and have been relishing date nights.

Charity said that since they are newlyweds, they like getting dressed up for nice dinners, enjoying live music, and having a fun evening out of the house. They love the music from live entertainer Lou Carrington, who has performed at Tony’s for years. “We never miss it or make other plans,” said Charity.

They like to be seated near the fireplace where live music is performed each week. “It is the most amazing music,” said Charity. They visit, order wine and their favorite dish, the Greenberg salad.

They also travel around three times a year to their favorite city, New Orleans, for an extended BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 14

weekend getaway. The couple enjoys staying at the Windsor Court Hotel, and date nights out in New Orleans at Galatoire’s Restaurant.

They have now started a new tradition with their combined families – dining at Tony’s for Christmas Eve dinner, some of which include Charity’s grown children, Mollie and her husband Andrew, and her son Patrick and his fiancée Lauren. Whether together just the two of them or with their family members, date nights are a constant source of togetherness.

M

ichael and Ellie Francisco have been married for 31 years, and together for 33 years.

Their children are grown and married now – Joe, 29, and Gregg, 36. Now that their children are adults and they are not busy juggling school schedules, they are enjoying dates that can come together more spontaneously. “Planning for two instead of checking on everyone’s schedules is easier now that everyone is grown,” said Ellie.

Ellie, an event planner and founder and president of Francisco+co, said their current favorite

date spot is going for a drink downtown at Potente and walking across the street to Minute Maid Park to catch an Astros game together. The couple recently attended World Series Game 6 – the date night of all date nights. Another perk of grown children? “We really have the freedom to go at a moment’s notice and now we only need to buy two tickets to the Astros World Series games,” said Ellie, laughing.

The couple enjoys travel, particularly to Napa when they can get away. They also enjoy attending shows at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. “But the thing that has not changed is the person we are happiest to spend time with is each other,” said Ellie.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all the lovebirds out there; and here is to hoping that you can spend some quality time together this month, even if it is at a grocery store.

Editor’s note: What is your favorite go-to date?

See this story at thebuzzmagazines.com to share with our readers.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 15

NEIGHBORS

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Reunited After 50 Years lawellphoto.com

From elementary school to the ‘Old Geezers Walking Club’

SUNDAY SUNDAY The Old Geezers Walking Club in action at Memorial Park. The group gathers weekly for a five-mile walk, sometimes dividing up based on pace, followed by coffee and breakfast together. Conversations cover a variety of topics and always include a lot of laughter.

R

ichard Seline (a.k.a. “Ricky”) and his wife Eleanor had lived away from Houston, in DC and San Antonio, for more than 35 years. Upon their return about a year ago, Richard started running into old friends.

“I was over at [Congregation] Beth Israel and bounced into a bunch of guys I’ve grown up with and have known forever and ever. Brad Rauch, the first one, asked me, ‘Are you still running?’

I said I don’t run, but I walk. He says, ‘Sounds great, let me know when you’re going.’ Then I see Stuart Weil, who I know walks. It was basically kind of like I’d see somebody and say, ‘What are you doing next Sunday?’”

Now, for six lifelong friends, the answer is the BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 16

same: they’ll be walking.

Richard walks three miles every day. Now he has dubbed his Sunday men’s walking group “The Old Geezers Walking Club.” When The Buzz asked if we could photograph the group during one of their Sunday walks, Richard assured us, “Our usual walking gear of Speedos and flip-flops will not be present. Though I have received an offer from Lululemon [to be] a sponsor of the Young Geezers Walking Club.”

That sense of irreverent humor is the connecting force that has brought seven elementary school friends back together after many years living separate lives.

The Old Geezers Walking Club includes a neurosurgeon (Stuart Weil), two lawyers (Brad

Rauch and Alan Aronowitz), a homebuilder (Steven Finger), a men’s clothier (Murray Penner), an executive search professional (Mike Kahn), and a resilience innovation and investment advisor (Richard).

Everyone brings their own game. “Alan’s got the most robust historical memory,” Richard says. “Brad and Stuart have the most robust list of restaurants. Steve Finger contributes interesting music. We chat about everything from politics to movies – or what’s on Netflix – to restaurants and family.

“Oh, and there’s a fifth topic: old man health issues. I’ll leave it at that. Or what body part at 63, 64 is not working. Well let me rephrase: they are all 63 or 64. I’m actually 23. To some degree

lawellphoto.com

BACK TOGETHER These friends have known each other since elementary school at Kolter and are now getting back together for weekly walks. Pictured (front row, from left) are Murray Penner, Stuart Weil, Alan Aronowitz, Mike Kahn; (back row, from left) Brad Rauch, Steven Finger, and Richard Seline.

I don’t know what my age is and I don’t care.

I’m not going to stop working until I get a tag on my toe.”

Needless to say, there’s a lot of laughter among the group. But there’s also a serious side.

“We also talk about our feelings about getting older,” Brad says. “It’s nice to have that outlet.

My kids don’t want to hear it!”

Alan adds, “We’re all in the same walk of life, kids are getting married, we have older parents, there’s a grandchild or two. It’s good to hear how other people are dealing with the ups and downs of the middle years.”

T

he guys gather on Sunday mornings at 7:30, rotating their walks between Memorial Park, Hermann Park, Buffalo Bayou via Allen Parkway, and White Oak Bayou, with Richard typically suggesting the location. “Besides being the connector, the guy’s just one of those people who commands respect. Or disrespect,” Alan quips, describing Richard. “When we were growing up, he was one of those very connected young Republicans.” Richard himself says classmates used to call him “the senator” in high school. “He tends to take the lead on where we’re going, and we’ll react. Since we are all opinionated, we’ll probably break up at some point, but right now we’re mostly in the honeymoon period.”

Richard describes the walks: “Some of us are a little bit taller than the rest,” he says. “The joke is, Brad and I are hip-to-foot so long that our speed exceeds everyone else, which makes it kind of fun so we divide up based on pace and don’t all walk like some gang.”

They walk five miles, then sit down together at a nearby restaurant for coffee and breakfast.

Recently, coffee was at Mo’ Better Brews near the Museum District. “I got a picture of all of us and posted it on Facebook,” Richard says. “The number of people who have responded to it!

People we were in elementary school with saying, ‘If I’m in Houston am I allowed to come?’

The answer was hell yes!”

The group started at Kolter Elementary, but there’s more. “We are all connected somehow,” Richard says, “through Meyerland, or Indian Guides [the YMCA father-son program that is today called Adventure Guides], or bar mitzvahs. And sometimes high school, and sometimes college. In some way or another, our parents, not all of us but the majority, hung out together. We’ve probably talked about Alfred’s Delicatessen three or four times.

It’s, ‘What day of the week would you go with your family?’ then that brings up, ‘Oh I remember your family sitting at that table,’ then someone says, ‘Do you remember when we went to Astroworld together?’ Alan

Aronowitz doesn’t forget anything. He’s, ‘Do you remember when we were at so-and-so’s birthday party in fifth grade?’ We’re talking about restaurants and politics, and then suddenly we’re walking down memory lane.”

“It’s almost like having a new group of friends, although I’ve known them for 57 years,” Brad says. “But it’s almost like having a new friend group because we haven’t really connected in that interim.

“With a little bit of maturing – I won’t say age, but maturing – we have so much in common.

I’ve never had a group like that before. I never thought I needed it. Well not that I need it, but it fills an open spot in my life to have this group of friends who I’ve known so long and to reacquaint myself with them. The walk is good physically but also psychologically.”

“Women will talk about anything, but men are not supposed to be like this. We’re huntergatherers. We’re not supposed to talk about our feelings,” Richard says.

He adds, “Often, men don’t have outlets, except humor. There are things this group is thankful for, like the fact that there weren’t cell phones around when we were in college, or we’d all be in jail. We still tell the same stories over and over again. Sometimes they’re accurate. But there’s this trust and openness. I’m fortunate to be a part of this group.”

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 17

FOOD

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Love in the Form of Chocolate Dylan Aguilar

One family’s special cake

CAKE AND MEMORIES Phoebe, Jake, Yvonne, and John Cosgrove are hooked on the taste – and the memories – of Yvonne’s mother’s chocolate cake.

H

ow does a chocolate cake achieve cult status? In Yvonne Cosgrove’s family, the answer to that question is not clear. Nobody knows how or why her mother’s chocolate cake became the family favorite. They just know that’s the cake they’re likely to find on the table for most any birthday or celebration.

“It’s pretty much the birthday cake,” Yvonne says. “Everybody had this cake for every birthday, in every picture. It is just our go-to.”

While Yvonne was growing up in West University – the same neighborhood her dad, Henry Rosenblum grew up in – her mom, Phyllis BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 18

Rosenblum, baked a lot. “She baked, and her mom baked. Baking was a big part of growing up,” Yvonne says. (Phyllis passed away 25 years ago.) “But I don’t really know why she started making this cake. All I really remember is my parents were so into cooking. They were part of a gourmet cooking club, and they would come up with these huge, themed dinners. They were really big early foodie people. Gourmet magazine was delivered to the house.”

Henry, who lives in Washington, DC, now – “I came to visit my son about 10 years ago,” he quips – remembers the gourmet group fondly.

“We called it HOGS, Houston Original Gourmet Society,” he says. “Who named it? All I know is it wasn’t me. There were probably 30 of us in it. We still get together, but now we’ll meet out instead of someone’s house.” They recently planned a get-together at Brennan’s.

“When Phyllis and I married in 1964, one of the wedding gifts we got was Craig Claiborne’s The New York Times Cook Book. He was the New York Times food critic for a long time. I think we got two or three copies of the book.”

Yvonne has one of them. “This recipe is specific to the 1961 edition,” (continued on page 20)

Dylan Aguilar

FAMILY TRADITION Yvonne Cosgrove makes the cake her mother, Phyllis Rosenblum, made for all the family’s special occasions.

Dylan Aguilar

CAKE STORIES The chocolate cake; Yvonne taught her husband John to make the cake; Yvonne remembers her mother baking the same chocolate cake for birthdays that she now bakes for her children (daughter Phoebe is pictured, bottom left, eyeing the cake during one of her earliest birthday celebrations). (continued from page 18) she says. Since it was first

published in 1961, the book has become a classic, likened to Julia Child’s The Joy of Cooking, and has sold more than 3 million copies.

“That cake from the cookbook became the chocolate cake,” Henry says of Claiborne’s Sweet Chocolate Cake. “We made it once and followed the recipe strictly.” After that, Phyllis switched out the Coconut-Pecan Frosting with Chocolate Cream Frosting from the same book.

“Maybe that was her unique spin on it, that she found this cake and put it together with this icing that she liked,” Yvonne says.

“I’m going to disappoint you a little bit,” Henry admits. “I did bread, and Phyllis did sweet. I never made a cake in my life, and actually my favorite dessert is lemon meringue pie.

But this was the cake. And I do like that cake with a big glass of cold milk.”

Yvonne remembers her mother baking it.

“There was a lot of production leading up to the cake, and then having it,” she says.

Yvonne has learned to make the cake, and so has her husband John, a residential real estate appraiser. “I must have taught him over the last 25 years!” she says. “There was a lot of pressure making the cake, and sometimes I was like, ‘You make the cake.’ Or he’ll make it for my birthday.

It’s not a secret, it’s literally in the New York Times Cook Book. But it’s sort of a production cake, sort of complicated. So it was special partly because it’s a lot of steps to make.”

At times, Phyllis made another version of the cake involving a marshmallow icing covered with colorful gumdrops. “My grandmother and sister loved that version, but there’s something BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 20

special about the chocolate icing with that cake, so I was not as big a fan,” Yvonne says. “But it was spectacular; she would decorate the whole thing. I don’t know where the white icing came from, but I would love to make it now.”

As it stands, the original chocolate cake – with Phyllis’ frosting switch – is the only one Yvonne’s family, including 20-year-old Jake and 19-year-old Phoebe, needs. “I have explored other cakes,” she says, “but this is always the one we come back to. If you ask my kids, ‘What cake do you get for your birthday?’ this is it. And that’s true in my brother’s and sister’s families.

It’s hard to make, but there is no other cake you would make.”

Phyllis never met her grandchildren. But through her cake, they have gotten to know her. “It’s just a showstopper cake,” Yvonne says.

“It was such a special cake for us growing up. To be able to pass that down to our kids is really special.”

Sweet Chocolate Cake From Craig Claiborne’s New York Times Cook Book, 1961 edition 1 4-ounce package sweet cooking chocolate ½ cup boiling water 1 cup butter, at room temperature 2 cups sugar 4 eggs, separated 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 ½ cups sifted cake flour 1 teaspoon baking soda ½ teaspoon salt 1 cup buttermilk Chocolate Cream Frosting, recipe below

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Melt the chocolate in the boiling water.

Cool.

Cream the butter, add the sugar and cream until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the vanilla and melted chocolate and mix until well blended.

Sift the flour with the baking soda and salt.

Add the sifted dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk to the butter mixture, beating after each addition until the batter is smooth.

Fold in the stiffly beaten egg whites and pour the batter into three 8- or 9-inch greased layer pans, lined on the bottom with waxed paper.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes. Cool.

Frost the top and between the layers with desired frosting. Do not frost the sides of the cake.

Chocolate Cream Frosting 1 cup (6-ounce package) semisweet chocolate pieces ¼ cup water 1 teaspoon instant coffee ¼ cup sugar 4 egg yolks ½ cup butter In the top of a double boiler heat the chocolate, water, coffee, and sugar. Stir occasionally until the mixture is smooth.

Beat in the egg yolks one at a time and cook over boiling water 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cool to lukewarm and beat in the butter bit by bit.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 21

NEIGHBORS

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Whirlwind Love Journey to Ireland, marriage, and parenthood

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he past couple of years have felt like whirlwinds for most of us, but there aren’t many for whom the whiplash has been as strong (in a good way) as it’s been for Robin and Mark Renucci.

Robin Wagner and Mark Renucci started off a worldwide romance as sweethearts who met at a bar in Houston.

Robin remembers the night they met in 2016: “We ended up hanging out and talking most of the night.” Explaining how she fell for Mark, she says he rolled up a sleeve and shared a tattoo with her: “It was an actual tattoo of a dog paw of his dog who passed away from cancer.” She kind of swooned. “Tattoos aren’t my mom’s favorite thing, and they aren’t necessarily my cup of tea, but it was so meaningful and sweet.”

The couple’s first trip together had been to Fredericksburg in January of 2017. “We kept talking about wanting to go again, but my work was crazy and his work was crazy,” she says.

“Finally, he booked a weekend in April [2019] and was like, ‘This is the one weekend we can do it.’ I was supposed to give an AP exam that weekend – I was a counselor at St. Thomas, and spring is finals, AP exams, helping kids with final steps of where they’re going to college. But we went.”

That was a good decision on Robin’s part. It was on that second trip to Fredericksburg that Mark proposed. “He said we needed to talk, which is not usually the best thing,” Robin says.

“So I’m thinking he’s brought me to Fredericksburg to make telling me he doesn’t want to be with me easier on me, but then he starts talking about how I’m smarter than he is and I probably knew the next step before he did, and I’m like, ‘We’re getting a puppy?’ and he’s like, ‘No, we’re not getting a puppy. Eventually yes, but not today.’ And then he got down on one knee!” That’s when Robin and Mark started dreaming about weddings.

But white dresses and Brides magazines fell by the wayside when JP Morgan asked Mark to move to Dublin to set up a financial technology team there. At first, Robin says, she and Mark “joked about how crazy that would be to just uproot and move to Dublin. We both have a BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 22

strong sense of adventure, but we didn’t expect it to be something to really consider.”

Robin loved her job as a counselor at St. Thomas High School, and both she and Mark loved their lives in Houston.

But Mark was born in Scotland and has family there and in the UK. (He moved with his family to Virginia when he was a baby, and to TAKE ME TO THE COURTHOUSE Robin Wagner and Mark Renucci in Dublin, Austin when he awaiting their flight to the States and their courthouse wedding in July 2020. was in middle to take shape.” The wedding would be May 16, school. His parents are still in Austin.) Living 2020, at the Petroleum Club. abroad wasn’t a totally foreign idea. Slowly, the Meantime, Robin and Mark took advantage reality of what could be a grand adventure sunk of their new expat status, exploring Ireland, in. “What an incredible opportunity to see the London, Edinburgh, Brussels, and the Canary world,” Robin says. “Weekending in Paris, St. Islands, all before their first Christmas abroad.

Patrick’s Day in Dublin, and eating paella in “We could fly around Europe in the same Spain all seemed like quite the draw!” amount of time it takes to drive from Houston Robin’s mom, Cathy Wagner, a retired to the Hill Country,” Robin says.

BeautiControl executive, wasn’t so sure. “I was Then 2020 happened, and havoc ensued. shocked,” she says, adding that she and Robin Although wedding invitations had been are very close. “I can remember saying, ‘Nooooo, mailed, it became clear that a May 2020 wedI can’t believe it!’” ding would be impossible due to the pandemic.

That didn’t stop Robin and Mark: in the fall “The week before St. Patrick’s Day, Mark realof 2019, they made the move. And started planized things were getting serious,” Robin says. ning a Houston wedding from Dublin.

“The pubs closed.”

“That girl knows what she wants,” Cathy says.

Robin and Mark reluctantly mailed “change“We communicated practically every day, and the-dates,” and everything was rescheduled for if she knows what she wants, I just say, “Fine.’ two months later, in July. But the original May She had it all planned out.”

16 date didn’t go unnoticed. “Mark arranged a Robin says that’s due to help from her mom. surprise Zoom with our families, wedding party, “I never could have planned a wedding from an and a few friends,” Robin says. “He also had dinocean away without her support,” Robin says of ner delivered from a favorite Dublin restaurant.” her mother. “I relied on her for all ‘boots on the As July neared, Robin says, “It was not a matground’ information. I had visions of a downter of if we could have the wedding, but should town wedding overlooking the skyline with we?” Their answer: no, they shouldn’t. “It was bright stars and twinkling lights. It had all begun

Dark Roux Photography Dark Roux Photography

NEWLYWEDS Robin and Mark Renucci enjoyed a “minimoon” around the Ring of Kerry in Ireland; Robin and Mark at their wedding celebration in 2021, outside at the Houston Arboretum; Robin and Mark finally celebrate with her parents, Jon and Cathy Wagner, at their 2021 wedding celebration.

absolutely crushing, a constant limbo of hurry up and wait.”

“That’s when they decided to go to the courthouse and get married,” Cathy says.

“We kept our airline tickets for the July wedding and booked a time slot at the [Houston] courthouse to get a marriage license,” Robin says. “We could both go inside to get the license, but only one of us could bring it back in after we

got married. So I called our longtime friend Joey Massey, who I knew was ordained, and he met us in the courthouse parking lot.

“The courthouse staff cheered and pronounced it the fastest turnaround of any wedding!”

Robin’s parents hosted a surprise drive-by champagne celebration in their front yard, with all the wedding party driving by. “It was finally a little bit of wedding cheer amidst all of the

delays,” Robin says.

The couple returned to Ireland as happy newlyweds, with Mark continuing to lament the still-closed pubs.

Finally, in 2021, Robin and Mark planned a wedding celebration outside at the Houston Arboretum. They remarried in front of family and friends (and livestreamed it all for Mark’s UK family who still (continued on page 24) BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 23

because of Covid). “Even though we had been legally married for a year at this point, something felt unfinished until we could share it with our nearest and dearest.”

The day-after brunch brought a new level of celebration and excitement. Mark calls it “the surprise sequel to the Wagnucci (Wagner and Renucci) celebration.” They announced that Robin was pregnant with a baby boy. “I was adamant that the focus of this long-awaited wedding would be just about the wedding,” Robin says. “None in attendance were any the wiser, thanks to a skillful tailor and discreet bartenders with non-alcoholic wine!”

Baby Maverick was born in Dublin in October 2021. “He is a very expressive master babbler,” Robin said on the phone from Ireland, baby Maverick giggling in the background.

To the great pleasure of Robin’s parents Cathy and Jon, an attorney, the threesome uprooted once again and made the move home to Houston in October 2022.

“We were eager to introduce Maverick to Tex-Mex, barbecue, and our great city,” Robin says, reminiscing about the wild ride of the past couple of years. “The baby’s been wonderful through the move, an absolute champ, maybe partly because he traveled everywhere with us when we were overseas.”

Since returning home, the Renuccis have lived in two apartments, one corporate. “How strange is it for Maverick that he hasn’t had a stable place since we left Dublin?” Robin wonders. “But it’s too early for him to make memories. We’re just not positive where we want to live yet. We haven’t had to consider school districts before! So we’re giving ourselves a little bit of a buffer to figure it out.”

Meanwhile, the benefits of having family close by are not lost on Robin and Mark. “My mom probably sees [Maverick] two to four days a week, and my dad once or twice a week,” Robin says. “They’re absolutely adorable grandparents. They have a playpen in the middle of their living room, and they’re always on the floor and playing. If I’ve got a lot of work or even a haircut, I can bring him to my mom. But I didn’t want to move back just for the help. I wanted the day-to-day interaction, which is super sweet to see. Having that be part of his life is beautiful.

“In Dublin, we just didn’t have the same network. Now we are not only coming back to our friends, but we’re coming back to friends who know how to be parents. They know the good days to go to the Children’s Museum, where’s the best park. It’s a very different life than when we left Houston and were going to concerts and comedy shows all the time. Now it all centers around the little guy.”

In her third year of pursuing her doctorate in higher education administration and working fulltime as a graduate assistant in her department at St. Cloud State University, Robin is a busy BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 24

lawellphoto.com

(continued from page 23) couldn’t travel to the US

BACK HOME Baby Maverick, Mark, and Robin Renucci are happy to be home in Houston.

working mom. Mark is back at work too, and only missing the Irish pubs a little bit. “There’s just nothing quite like that here, people just wanting to sit and chat with you,” Robin says.

Still, Robin and Mark are excited to be planting roots. “The stores have held all of our registry gifts for us since we got married during the

pandemic,” she says. “That’ll be really neat to get all of our wedding gifts and settle down a little bit, make a more permanent home.”

It’s been quite a journey, but Robin wouldn’t change a thing. “If we hadn’t been through every single crazy step, we wouldn’t be where we are.” Which is a very happy place.

KIDS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

Buzz Baby

Sweet Valentine’s ideas

Buzz Baby is a column about life with little ones.

Writer Annie McQueen is a mother of four children under the age of 8.

T

his month, with Valentine’s Day right in the middle, is a sweet time to slow down and show some love to your children while also exploring your creative side.

Mom-of-three Michelle Corrington says that she never passes up the chance to celebrate a holiday with her kids. She and her husband Sean, president of Furniture Marketing Group, are raising 3-year-old twins Avery and Aubrey and 2-year-old Sutton. Life with girls 17 months apart is rarely dull – sprinkle holiday crafts and activities in and you are sure to stay on your toes.

They recently moved to Houston from Plano last summer for Sean’s job. The move allowed Michelle, who worked full-time in the commercial interiors industry, to move into the role of a stay-at-home mom along with making custom sunglasses on the side.

Michelle’s goal as a mom of three, including one child with special needs, is to keep everyone engaged and excited. “Having a child with a disability – and three toddlers – requires a little more organized activities,” she says. Although, she also says she is learning to be spontaneous. She embraces all things holiday, searching the internet throughout the year for fun ways to celebrate each holiday, even the random “holidays” like Pretzel Day or Jellybean Day. “But Valentine’s Day is my favorite transition into the New Year and all things pink for my girls,” she said.

She says her ideas have evolved and she has learned how to recycle décor from different holidays. “One thing we did this year was invest in a pink Christmas tree,” said Michelle (a 7-foot pink tree can be found on Amazon for around $100).

Michelle says that not only was the pink tree used at Christmas in their household, but it is great for Valentine's Day and even Easter. Michelle and the girls made a heart-shaped garland and repurposed their Christmas red ribbon to decorate it.

The Corringtons have taken to baking lots of delicious cookies with a recipe from Michelle’s mother-in-law, Linda Corrington. Michelle says that baking cookies can be a wonderful and easy BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 26

GIRL GANG The Corrington sisters – 2-year-old Sutton and 3-year-old twins Aubrey and Avery (pictured, from left) – celebrate Valentine’s Day at home with crafts and cookie-baking sessions.

way to sprinkle in some learning. “I'm always trying to incorporate fine motor skills, and anything to help educate while still having fun,” she said. “This particular recipe allows all of the girls to crush graham crackers, while Sutton and Aubrey measure and pour ingredients, and Avery sorts the M&M’s.” She buys candies in a rainbow of colors to keep Avery busy.

A pro upcycling tip from Michelle: Stock up on the holiday candies when they are on major clearance after Christmas for use on Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day. They can be marked up to 80 percent off if you check the afterChristmas sale aisles.

Another crafty project Michelle creates every year is a photo collage frame of the girls for Sean’s office. The frame has the letters D.A.D. on the front and, every year, she rotates in a new picture of each of the girls.

Michelle feels the love, too, each year and

reflects on her own experiences growing up.

Valentine’s Day is not only a time to celebrate love with children, but spouses too can show it in little or big ways. “My father was a single parent to me growing up until he remarried when I was in middle school,” she said. “I was fortunate to have a loving home with an amazing father figure. He always got me flowers on Valentine’s Day and my husband has done the same for me and my girls each year.”

In the future, Sean is looking forward to taking their girls to their first daddy-daughter dance. He has already enjoyed stepping in as “dad” at daddy-daughter dances for the daughter of a family friend (who’s a single mom). “I knew from the moment we met he was going to be a great father,” said Michelle. “Little did he know we would have three girls,” said Michelle, laughing.

Michelle says that not every craft they attempt is Pinterest-worthy – some are chaosfilled but there is always laughter. “We roll with

HOW SWEET IT IS Mom-of-three Michelle Corrington shares creative ideas on how to show love on Valentine’s Day. Clockwise, from upper left: the girls’ homemade Valentine’s Day cookies; the sisters patiently waiting for their holiday cookies to bake; Aubrey working on a Valentine’s Day craft; Avery helping sort M&M’s by color for the cookie recipe. Pro tip from Michelle: Stock up on the holiday candies when they are on major clearance after Christmas for use on Valentine’s Day and St. Patrick’s Day.

the punches and just make memories amongst the mess,” she said. “I might post the pretty pictures online most days, but I have also got a camera full of outtakes that I love to look back on and I still always smile,” said Michelle.

Valentine’s Day crafts do not need to be overthe-top to be special. Even if it just assembling store-bought Valentine’s Day cards, or reading conversation hearts, it is sure to bring joy to your child to spend time together.

Holiday Treasure Cookies 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk 1/2 cup butter, softened 1 1/3 cups coconut flakes 1 cup mini M&M’s 1 cup holiday bits/nonpareils or mini kisses.

(Can interchange holiday bits for any occasion.)

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Stir together graham cracker crumbs, flour, and baking powder. Set aside.

Beat condensed milk and butter until smooth, then add crumb mixture, mixing well.

Fold in coconut, holiday bits, and M&M’s.

Drop by rounded tablespoon on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool one minute on cookie sheet and then move to wire rack. Cool completely and store in airtight container.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 27

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by Cindy Burnett, staff writer

Buzz Reads

Cindy Burnett

ARTS

Five picks for February

Buzz Reads is a column about books by reviewer Cindy Burnett. Each month, Cindy recommends five recently or soon-to-be released titles.

B

.F.F.: A Memoir of Friendship Lost and Found by Christie Tate (memoir) – B.F.F.: A Memoir of Friendship Lost and Found is Christie Tate’s follow-up to Group, a 2020 Reese’s Book Club Selection. This time, Tate performs a deep dive into why female friendships are a struggle for her. With her friend/mentor Meredith by her side, she begins to examine why she cannot maintain friendships with other women and what the source of the trouble might be. As she reflects on why certain past relationships fell apart, she comes to realize that she viewed friendships as relationships that should just magically happen – no effort or work required. As Tate begins to reframe how friendships work, Meredith becomes seriously ill, and Tate is once again evaluating her self-sabotage mentality and how she must find a healthier path forward. This book will appeal to all women whether they struggle with friendships or not, and readers will want to explore their own approach to friendships.

B.F.F. is such a compelling read. Author Tate grew up in Texas and went to Texas A&M. Code Name Sapphire by Pam Jenoff (historical fiction) – After escaping Nazi Germany following the murder of her fiancé in 1942, Hannah Martel boards a ship for the United States. But when her ship is turned away in Cuba, she lands back in Brussels where her cousin that she hasn’t seen in years, Lily, lives. Anxious to leave Nazi-occupied Europe, Hannah agrees to help an underground network called the Sapphire Line in exchange for receiving new papers that will grant her a way out.

But when her cousin’s family is arrested and headed to Auschwitz, Hannah must decide how much she is willing to risk for the family with which she has reconnected. With Code Name Sapphire, Jenoff continues to shine a light on untold World War II stories about courageous women.

The House of Eve by Sadeqa Johnson (historical fiction) – Set in 1950s Philadelphia, The House of Eve follows Ruby Pearsall, a 15-year-old who plans to be the first in her family to head to college, regardless of the lack of familial support.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 30

But when she gets drawn into a forbidden relationship, she threatens to destroy her future before it even starts.

Meanwhile, Eleanor Quarles moves to Washington, DC, where she meets and falls in love with William Pride at Howard University.

But William’s family is one of DC’s elite Black families, and his parents have other ideas for William. Eager to integrate into the Pride fam- WHAT TO READ This month’s selections include two contemporary novels set in New York City and London, two historical-fiction novels, and a memoir ily, Eleanor decides a about friendship and the work it takes to maintain relationships. baby will help her feel with another stellar tale. Three women come more accepted by his parents. When the two together to care for a baby that is not theirs and women’s lives unexpectedly collide, they must plenty of comic hijinks ensue. Lauren and her contend with choices that will impact them both family move into a beautiful brownstone with a for years to come. In The House of Eve, Johnson classic dive in the basement called The Sweet brings 1950s Philadelphia and Washington, DC Spot. But several days after they move in, Lauren to life while demonstrating what it was like to be accidentally sets in motion the divorce of a coua Black woman during that time period. I highly ple she doesn’t even know. Melinda’s husband, recommend this one. who never wanted a child, has now jettisoned her Maame by Jessica George (fiction) – for Felicity, and he and Felicity are expecting a Maddie’s father struggles with late-stage baby, causing Melinda to publicly express her Parkinson’s and her family has designated her as anger in a manner that is broadcast all over social his primary caregiver with no input from her and media. In an effort to end the situation, Olivia very little help. Her mother spends most of her creates her own drama and is subsequently fired. time in Ghana while constantly giving Maddie In the midst of all of this drama, the new loveadvice about how she should live her life. Her birds flee the city, leaving the three women with boss makes her job unpleasant, and Maddie is their new baby. With her signature humor and tired of serving as the sole Black person in every engaging characters, Poeppel has created a meeting. When her mom finally returns to delightful tale of modern life and the importance London from Ghana, Maddie decides to spread of human connection. her wings and experience what others her age are doing: she rents an apartment, goes out with coEditor’s note: Southside Place resident Cindy workers, and dips a toe into the crazy world of Burnett also writes our weekly Page Turners colinternet dating. Maddie stumbles along the way, umn at thebuzzmagazines.com. She hosts the but ultimately comes to understand who she award-winning Thoughts from a Page Podcast, is wants to become. I both read and listened to this co-creator of the Houston literary event series beautiful coming-of-age tale and feel the audio Conversations from the Page, runs the Instagram enhances the experience of the book. account @thoughtsfromapage, and regularly speaks The Sweet Spot by Amy Poeppel (fiction) – to groups about books.

Amy Poeppel, one of my favorite authors, returns

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 31

TRAVEL

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by Tracy L. Barnett, staff writer

Travel Buzz

Inside Mexico: Mexico City, Oaxaca, and Puebla

F

or Liz and Warren Wilder, Mexico was a place that kept getting kicked down the bucket list. After the Covid-19 pandemic cleared away they were anxious to see something new, and Mexico City rose to the top. They finally decided to go for it this past spring, and they were pleasantly surprised at what they discovered.

“I was delighted at how lovely it was,” said Liz. “We had no idea Mexico City was like going to Portugal or Barcelona with just a two-hour flight.”

For Susan and Mickey Branisa, Mexico wasn’t new; their penchant for adventure travel had taken them to border towns and tourist towns – Puerto Vallarta and Cozumel – and to Central America: to Guatemala, Costa Rica, and Belize.

But a recent trip to Oaxaca was their first to the country’s interior.

Olivia Thomas and husband Richard Schechter had been traveling to interior Mexico for years; this time it was Puebla, another culinary capital and the center for the traditional Talavera tiles and pottery that lured them southward. For all three couples, the richness of the experience left them wanting more.

Europe South of the Border The Wilders had traveled widely but more on the other side of the globe, having lived for a time in Saudi Arabia, where a quick getaway to Lebanon was more feasible than one to Mexico.

Not long after returning to Houston, the Covid19 pandemic broke out, and they were grounded until last spring, when they began looking around for interesting international destinations close to home.

They started by browsing the site of Small Luxury Hotels of the World (SLH) (slh.com), a collection of independent hotels that describes themselves as “anti-chain and anti-same.”

They’d enjoyed staying at SLH accommodations in other countries and this one was no exception.

The immaculate Belle Epoque-era Brick Hotel in the trendy Roma Norte neighborhood was atmospheric, historical, and excellently situated.

Staying in the neighborhood of La Roma gave them a taste of urban Mexican life. “Roma Norte is a family neighborhood with sidewalks and dog walkers, wrought-iron balconies, and BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 32

little boutiques. It felt a lot like West U but in Mexico.”

It also has its share of Michelin-starred restaurants, a highlight for Warren. Often they were PERUSING THE PYRAMIDS Warren and Liz Wilder were impressed with the fully booked, but Warren “massive scale” of the ancient city of Teotihuacán and its complex of temples and pyramids. Compared to the Great Pyramids complex in Cairo, Liz said, “there's so had a strategy. “Our first much more to see and interpret.” day he simply walked in about 30 miles northeast of the city and home and explained that we’d be happy to eat lunch at to the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of 3 or dinner at 5, we promised not to linger for the Moon, among many others. hours, call it whatever meal you like, and he got us “We just enjoyed seeing the massive scale of reservations.” Standouts were Rosetta, Maximo the ancient city,” said Liz. “We’ve seen the pyrBistrot, and Blanco Colima. amids in Egypt, and these are so different, Most days they went for a long walk, explorbecause in Egypt, the pyramids are surrounded ing neighborhood parks, people-watching – dogby the city of Cairo. Teotihuacán stands apart watching, too, as people do love their dogs in as a whole complex of temples, pyramids, and Mexico City – and absorbing the atmosphere. ceremonial ball courts. There is so much more One day they walked a little over half an hour to see and interpret, and our guide explained to the historic Bosque de Chapultepec, a nearly everything,” said Liz. 1,700-acre park with museums, a lake, and a casFinally, they went to Mass at the tle on a hill – formerly the home of Mexican Metropolitan Cathedral, Mexico’s largest, on presidents, and now a history museum. the city’s central plaza or Zócalo. As practicing Highlights of their visit included a Ballet Christians, they like to attend a religious service Folklórico show at the spectacular Palacio de of some kind when they travel.

Bellas Artes, or Fine Arts Palace, in the historic “We're not Catholic, but we sat quietly in the center, and with a walk afterward in the adjaback. We’ve done this all over the world,” she cent Alameda Central, created in 1592 and recsaid. “I mean, a church is designed for worship. ognized by historians as the oldest public park And so going in with a selfie stick and treating in the Americas. They visited the Soumaya it like a museum is a different experience than Museum, with more than 66,000 art pieces sitting for an hour and listening to the music and spanning 30,000 years, in the curvy silver Plaza experiencing it as a sacred space, as it was Carso building. They toured the massive and intended to be used – even if you don’t speak world-renowned National Anthropology the language.”

Museum, with four square kilometers of exhibits in 23 exhibition halls. As they perused the A Taste of Oaxaca exhibits, they were witness to a quintessential Susan and Mickey Branisa’s trip to Mexico Mexico City experience. The ground began last October was born of a desire to taste the flatrembling beneath their feet, and they realized vors of deep Mexico, and Oaxaca had been on it was an earthquake. their radar screen for a while. The Oaxacan chef “They just calmly told us to all assemble in the at Elote Café, a favorite restaurant in Sedona, courtyard, and we waited for it to be over. And Ariz., first whetted their appetite for his homethen we went back to see the rest of the exhibit. land’s rich and ancestral cuisine. The fantastical It couldn’t have been more orderly,” said Liz. art and traditional textiles of the region, as well They hired a driver to take them to the as its natural beauty, were also a big draw. archaeological site of Teotihuacán, one of the And then Glassell School of Art, where largest ancient cities in the Americas, located

FOLLOWING THEIR FANCY The Wilders and the Branisas each planned their own itineraries in Mexico and left plenty of space for exploring. Clockwise (from upper left): The Wilders go for a walk in the oldest public park in the Americas, Mexico City's Alameda; Warren and Liz enjoyed the “amazing food and ambiance” of Maximo Bistrot; Susan and Mickey Branisa stopped for a selfie in the Oaxaca town of Tule, home to the world’s widest tree, on their road trip to the geological marvel of Hierve el Agua; Mickey learns to make handmade tortillas, mole, and a traditional dumpling soup in their private cooking class.

Susan sometimes takes classes, planned a trip to Oaxaca. Mickey wanted to go, too, so the two of them decided to do what they’d done many times and make the trip on their own.

They flew into Oaxaca City, rented a car, and made their way to Pug Seal, their colorful, indigenous Zapotec-themed boutique hotel in a neighborhood slightly removed from the tourist area. Highlights of their four-day stay included a private cooking class with a Oaxacan chef, browsing the city’s art galleries and museums,

and walking the streets enjoying the city, decked out for Day of the Dead with bright orange marigolds, colorful alebrijes (fantastical animal sculptures), and fancily dressed skeletons.

Oaxaca City itself was a marvel, lively and filled with colorful art, architecture, and music.

They witnessed a calenda – a traditional Oaxacan parade with towering papier-mâché puppets and a brass band, used to celebrate birthdays, baptisms, and in this case, a wedding. For Susan’s birthday, they dined at the highly rec-

ommended Tr3s 3istro on a balcony overlooking the main plaza, one of a variety of restaurants they enjoyed featuring Oaxaca’s flavorful cuisine.

They followed the recommendation of their host and booked a private class with a chef half a block from their hotel. She asked them what they wanted to make, offering a menu of choices; they chose a traditional Oaxacan vegetable soup with dumplings and a chicken mole, with mole sauce made from scratch. She had a special pan used to char various (continued on page 34) BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 33

SIGHTS, SOUNDS, AND SABOR Left: Olivia Thomas and Richard Schechter, in front of the Great Pyramid of Cholula, on the outskirts of Puebla; mostly buried under a hill, it is considered to be the world's largest pyramid by volume. This is a part that has been uncovered. Right: a mole sampler plate includes the traditional black mole (with turkey), red mole, yellow mole (mole amarillo), and mole verde with pepitas. (continued from page 33) types of chiles, tomatoes,

onions, and other ingredients.

“You can see how labor intensive it really is to make these sauces – I’m glad I did it, but I don’t think I would do it again,” Susan said with a laugh. They were glad they chose the chef they did – “we saw several cooking schools that looked more like tourist traps,” she said. “This was something a little more personal.”

Venturing further afield, they took a road trip to a natural marvel known as Hierve el Agua (translation: “The Water Boils”), a formation of calcified travertine waterfalls. They made stops along the way at the famous El Árbol del Tuleor Tule Tree, said to be the widest tree in the world; and at the Tlacolula Market, one of the region’s largest and most authentic (Susan: “they groom the vegetables like you’re in a florist shop”).

One of the things Oaxaca taught them is that the best things don’t have to cost a lot. One night, instead of dining in, they decided to sample the street food and chose tamales, moist and spicy, wrapped in banana leaves in the Oaxacan style. The price: $1.

“It’s the best dollar you can spend,” said Susan. “That was my favorite food, and it was just cheap street food.”

Puebla, the tiled city Olivia Thomas and Richard Schechter are great lovers of Mexican culture and have been to the country many times – before they married, and then together. So when they discovered in October 2021 that none of their grown children would be visiting for Thanksgiving, they started looking around and found a direct flight to a city that had long been on their list.

Olivia collects pottery and ceramics, so Puebla’s heritage as the home of the famous Talavera had long called to her. And those who know Mexico are aware of the UNESCO-recognized city’s role as a major gastronomical cenBELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 34

ter – the birthplace of the famous mole poblano, chalupas, and chiles en nogada, among others.

“The food culture is really outstanding; they take a lot of pride in that,” said Olivia. “Even though we didn’t have a roast turkey [on Thanksgiving], we didn’t miss it because we ate so well.”

They sampled several kinds of moles, including a black mole with turkey. Mole, for the uninitiated, is “the opposite of fast food,” according to Olivia, “a wonderful sauce that can have dozens of ingredients,” from chocolate to sesame to peanuts and pumpkin seeds – and, very importantly, a variety of chiles, with every region having its own style. The mole from Puebla, or mole poblano, is the best-known.

The architecture is outstanding as well. With more churches per capita than any other Mexican city – about 70, according to one count – the city has been called the birthplace of Mexico’s unique baroque style. Its highly ornate colonial architecture, much of it dating from the 1700s and early 1800s, is often decorated with the brightly colored azulejos or tiles that the region is famous for.

One tiled gem that particularly enchanted Olivia was the Biblioteca Palafoxiana, “an incredible library, like something out of Hogwarts.” Recognized by UNESCO as the first public library in the Americas, the Palafoxiana is lined with towering hand-carved wooden bookshelves, holding more than 40,000 volumes, thousands dating to the 15th century.

Also enchanting was the extremely ornate goldwork-lined Capilla del Rosario, a 17th-century chapel within the Santo Domingo Church.

They stayed in the Azul Talavera Hotel, decorated with blue tiles and centrally located, so they walked almost everywhere.

They hired a driver for a trip to Cholula, an archaeological site and a colonial church on top of a hill – which covers an enormous pyramid, believed to be the world’s largest, that had been

nearly forgotten after being abandoned in the eighth century.

One of their most enjoyable forays was a Taste of Puebla guided street foods tour.

“People come early and bring all their ingredients and a propane stove, and the people stand there eating what they give you, which looks like a quesadilla wrapped in paper,” she said.

Each stop was with a street chef known for a particular special dish, or at small establishments like a paletería, with locally made fresh-fruit popsicles called paletas, or the rich regional sweets.

The tour included fried queso treats, and fresh handmade tortillas filled with a wide variety of guisados, preparations made of meats, vegetables, and sauces with recipes going back generations.

It was a culinary treasure hunt, tucking into places they’d have normally walked right past. “We realized we never would have found these places without the guide – and wouldn’t have known each place served something unique,” said Olivia.

Their guide took them to places that featured a taste of the Middle East, with stacked slices of meat turning on a spit – the cuisine of the Lebanese community who began settling here more than a century ago.

They started their moveable feast at 11. “By 3 or 4 (the guide) was going to take us out for drinks, but we’d eaten as much as we could.”

The couple spent four days soaking up the culture of the place and are already thinking of their next foray into Mexico’s rich and varied interior: Chiapas, perhaps, or Guadalajara.

“The trip reminded us how much we enjoy Mexico and how much more there is to see than the coast,” said Olivia.

Editor’s note: Buzz travel columnist Tracy L. Barnett is a Lowell Thomas travel journalism award winner and longtime travel and environmental writer. Email her at info@thebuzzmagazines.com to share your own travel tales.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 35

Becca Wright

DINING

by Dai Huynh, staff writer

Chef’s Corner F

You rise, they shine: Bacon, eggs, and more

ebruary is the month of love. If you’re looking for a date idea with your beloved – or, for that matter, your besties or family – how about a breakfast to impress?

These days, there is no shortage of breakfast places, starting with national chains, including La Madeleine, the Toasted Yolk, Snooze, an A.M. Eatery, Flying Biscuit Café, Another Broken Egg, Le Peep, and First Watch. But Houston, with its global dining scene, boasts a bevy of local morning eateries to start the day.

With so many egg-centric options, deciding which to highlight was a challenge. In the past couple of years or so, breakfast is suddenly everywhere in Houston, from Tout Suite (2001 Commerce St.) and London Café (2310 Highway 6) to new kids on the block EaDough Pastries & Provisions (3204 Polk St.) and Cucharita (315 Fairview St.), the brand-new baby sister of Montrose mainstay Cuchara.

Adair Kitchen recently opened a second location at Buffalo Speedway and Westpark Drive, and there are now multiple Dish Society and Common Bond locations as well. Then there are veterans such as The Breakfast Klub (3711 Travis St.), Kenny & Ziggy's New York Delicatessen (1743 Post Oak Blvd.), and NY Deli (9720 Hillcroft). Adventurous diners also can try Vietnamese, Chinese, Ethiopian, or Lebanese breakfasts. So, how do you choose?

Below, we offer a small sampling – just the tip of the iceberg – of distinctive, local destinations for morning fare. Not sure how bacon and eggs can spark romance? Just ask 33-year-old chef J.C. Ricks and wife Sarah Lieberman, who met and fell in love at Sarah’s Dandelion Café, a breakfast go-to for Bellaire residents. Now the duo are the proud parents of two adorable girls.

About six years ago, Sarah opened Dandelion Café (5405 Bellaire Blvd.) as a coffee shop with a limited selection of croissants, muffins, and bagels. But her Bellaire regulars kept asking for more substantial bites. She and chef J.C. Ricks decided to cautiously expand the menu to include breakfast tacos and focaccia French toast sticks topped with blueberry compote, lemon curd, candied lemon peel, and whipped cream.

Both were hits, and today, the cheery eatery – BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 36

festooned with bright, oversized colorful paper flowers – draws a crowd with a full breakfastand-lunch menu that includes brioche French toasts, pancakes, buildyour-own omelets, chicken chilaquiles, and oven-fresh golden biscuits with made-fromscratch pork sausage gravy.

Breakfast establishTEAM EFFORT Following the success of Dandelion Café, Sarah Lieberman and ments that approach husband J.C. Ricks are opening a second location later this year. cooking the way chefusually are surprised by the stellar budget-frienddriven restaurants do are few and far between in ly Mexican breakfasts at this below-the-radar, Houston. But with his fine-dining background nondescript taqueria. But then the lightbulb – from the River Oaks Country Club to the switches on when they learn that it is helmed defunct UB Preserv – chef J.C. couldn’t imagine by restaurant veterans Rene and Yolanda not grinding his meat for his breakfast country Hidalgo, who introduced many Houstonians to pork sausage and chorizo.

Mexico City cuisine in 2002 – long before it The fruit compote and salsa? Homemade. He became mainstream. The couple traded in their curdles whole milk to make buttermilk for the Mexico City showcase inside the loop for a lowspot-on fluffy pancakes. And he breaks down a budget, off-the-beaten-path space. But they whole turkey for the sage-kissed Creole turkey made no compromises when it came to their sausage, using the skin for added flavor. food. They still make everything from scratch, Since launching breakfast, Dandelion has using quality ingredients, from blue corn sope experienced a surge in business, attracting 600 topped with fried eggs, to huevos rancheros. to 800 diners on weekends. As a result, J.C. and Vibrant (1931 Fairview St.) didn’t miss a beat, Sarah are planning to open a second location even though it shuttered for a year to remodel. with a bigger kitchen later this year.

The revamped Scandinavian-inspired space and Since 1984, the Sunday crowds have packed menu appeared better than ever when it into the Buffalo Grille (4080 Bissonnet and 1301 reopened in mid-November. Chef Patti Delgado S. Voss Rd., plus a new location in Galveston at approaches wellness foods and drinks with even 13 Evia Main), known for its signature cinnamon more vigor, emphasizing functional and anticoffee, migas, huevos rancheros, and homemade inflammatory benefits with superfood and plantpancakes. The best part? Its flapjacks come with based ingredients such as fresh, in-house almond hot syrup. Operated by a seventh-generation flour and sweet potato cassava tortillas for tacos.

Texas family, this neighborhood fave is noted for You won’t find refined sugars, soy, peanuts, or its Texas-sized portions. dairy here: She makes her own pecan-cashew Cielito Café (1915 Dunlavy St.), in a bluemilk for coffee drinks. Meats and eggs are pasand-white Montrose bungalow, entices guests ture-raised. Pastries are made daily and are vegan. with its charming millennial-inspired décor and Morning options include salmon lox toast, sweet Mexico City breakfasts. But if you’re on the potato hash with fried eggs, and sorghum waffles hunt for a diamond in the rough, head to topped with coconut yogurt probiotic cream, Tamales Don Pepe (3816 Link Valley Dr.), a blueberries, and elderberry-rosehip syrup. hidden jewel of foodies in the know. First-timers

Marlen Mendoza Steven A. Perez

A SWEET START Top photo: Dandelion Café’s signature focaccia French toast sticks with homemade blueberry compote, lemon curd, candied lemon peel and whipped cream. Bottom photo: The Buffalo Grille's hearty Texas breakfasts, including its signature cinnamon coffee and Texas-sized pancakes topped with fresh strawberries and blueberries.

Vibrant has one of the most inviting outdoor spaces, particularly when everything is blooming. Bebidas (2606 Edloe St.) boasts equally verdant surroundings and several sprawling ancient oak trees that provide shade and intimacy. Allday salad and sandwich options bolster the breakfast menu of tacos, smoothies, and juices.

Further north in Greater Heights, there are

myriad breakfast spots, including Onion Creek (3106 White Oak Dr.), Lola (1102 Yale St.), and the venerable Teotihuacan Mexican Café (1511 Airline Dr.). But we must give a nod to Kraftsmen Baking (611 W 22nd St.) and its founding chef Scott Tycer.

Why? The success of Kraftsmen Baking and its sunlight-filled café helped set the stage for the

chef-driven restaurant boom to come in the next decade in the Heights area. In 2008, Scott relocated his then-six-year-old wholesale bread operation to the historic Oriental Textile Mill, with its majestic ivory clock tower. Two years later, he opened a café and bakery in the same complex. And Kraftsmen’s rustic farmhouse setting appeals to diners near (continued on page 38) BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 37

baked goods and traditional breakfasts, egg tacos, and quiches.

On the west side of town, business folks are sipping Katz’s coffee and forking into quiches and omelets at White Elm Brasserie (14079 Memorial Dr.). Looks like the power breakfast is starting to come back, says owner Christopher “Chico” Ramirez, who recently rebooted the fast-casual café into a full-service restaurant.

Meanwhile, at We’re-Dough (6437 Westheimer Rd.), families speaking Arabic, Egyptian, Lebanese, and Turkish convene around brass-accented tables covered with pitas, olives, and eggs cooked in traditional clay skillets. The bustling hotspot opens early and specializes in mainly Lebanese breakfast dishes, but it isn’t the only one.

Low-key, homey Abdallah’s Lebanese Restaurant and Bakery (3939 Hillcroft) stands head and shoulder above competitors with its superb fragrant Middle East flatbreads – still warm from the oven – paired with either flavorful shakshouka eggs scrambled with spices and fresh tomatoes, or foul moudamas, a traditional breakfast stew made with fava beans, olive oil, herbs, and spices. But the must-try is the outstanding msabaha, served with fresh mint, tomatoes, onions, and pickles. Lush and rich with peppery olive oil, this warmed, smashed chickpea dish is like hummus, but more robust. It’s also decisively chunky.

One of the best things about Houston is its international food scene, which improves annually with more options. Take Pondicheri (2800 Kirby), whose hand-crafted Indian morning thalis are in a league of their own. You also can fill up on South Indian breakfast staples at Flying Idlis (9411 Richmond Ave. and 720 Rusk), which specializes in savory steamed idli rice cakes and crispy dosa crepes made with fermented rice and lentil batter.

For an Ethiopian breakfast, visit Bahel (6509 Chimney Rock Rd.). Down the street, French Riviera Bakery Café (3100 Chimney Rock) long has been well-known for serving traditional French breakfasts, quiches, and brioches.

You also can slurp beef or chicken pho in the morning, as is the tradition back in Vietnam, at such early birds as Pho Dien (11830 Bellaire Blvd.), Pho Binh Trailer (10928 Beamer Rd.), and Pho Saigon (2808 Milam St.).

Bao Shi Yi, with multiple locations, specializes in steamed dumplings and vegetable- or meatfilled buns, which are breakfast standards in China and Taiwan. Simultaneously, TJ Food Truck (6348 Corporate Dr.) is known for its crispy wonton-stuffed Tianjin-style egg crepes and soy milk – the ultimate Chinese street food breakfast.

Speaking of on-the-go breakfasts, nothing says “I love you” better than breakfast in bed.

There are plenty of to-go places, such as the hard-to-beat egg tacos wrapped in tender flour tortillas from Bellaire’s Cedar St. Café (215 5th St.), authentic, superlative French croissants from Magnol French Baking (1500 N. Post Oak BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 38

Adair Concepts

(continued from page 37) and far seeking artisan

GOOD MORNING Top photo: Bebidas’ avocado toast with radishes and sprout. Middle photo: Kraftsmen Baking’s almond custard pastry with fresh raspberries. Bottom photo: Abdallah’s traditional Lebanese breakfast with hot mint tea, scrambled shakshouka eggs with tomatoes, chickpea msabaha, oven-fresh pita bread, and fresh herbs and olives.

Rd.), and glazed doughnuts and boudin kolaches from the 30-year-old institution Queen Donut (1806 W. 18th St.).

Editor’s note: Buzz dining columnist Dai Huynh is a James Beard food-journalism award winner and longtime Houston-based restaurant writer.

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SPORTS

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by Todd Freed, staff writer

SportzBuzz I

n the wake of a sensational career for the Kinkaid Falcons, senior Micah Bell received the Offensive Player of the Year award at the Touchdown Club of Houston’s Private High School Awards Dinner. Remarkably, Bell follows in the footsteps of his older brother Dillon, who won the very same award just last year.

Dillon Bell is now a standout running back for the Georgia Bulldogs while Micah will play football next season for Notre Dame. “It’s just an amazing feeling to win this award,” said Micah Bell. “I just knew that if I had a good season after being named to the pre-season offensive team of the year that I would be here today.”

On the other side of the line of scrimmage, St. Thomas Eagles linebacker Jack Ward received the Defensive Player of the Year award.

“I think it’s just a testament to the hard work that myself and our entire team put forth beginning in the off-season,” said Ward. “We grinded day in and day out and I think that’s a big reason that I’m being recognized here today along with many of my teammates who are player of the year finalists.”

In a season in which he was on the field for virtually every offensive and defensive play, Second Baptist Eagles lineman John Dearing received the Ironman Award for his outstanding play on both sides of the line of scrimmage. “It’s very special to win this award,” said Dearing.

“We had a great season and knowing I gave my best on every play, this means a lot to me.”

Along with Dearing, Second Baptist place-kicker and punter Charley Schwinger received the Specialist of the Year award. “Winning this award was very special to me because it rewarded all the obstacles I’ve had to power through to become the player that I am today,” said Schwinger.

Meantime, the Episcopal Knights continued their rich tradition of producing sensational offensive linemen with Knights senior Hutch Coward receiving the Touchdown Club’s Lineman of the Year award. “Hutch is the ultimate team player who played at a level way above his size,” said Episcopal football coach Steve Leisz. “He was an absolute lock down offensive guard who moved bodies then flipped to defensive tackle or defensive end.”

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 40

DEFENDING CHAMPS Standout Bellaire senior Brenda Castro (#7) is one of seven senior starters returning from last season’s undefeated district championship team. Castro will play college soccer at Southern Nazarene College in Oklahoma.

I

n soccer, it has all the makings of another tremendous season ahead for the Bellaire Cardinals girls’ soccer team. The Cardinals return 11 seniors from a squad that captured an undefeated district championship, while marking the Cardinals’ ninth consecutive district title.

“The expectations are definitely high,” said Cardinals head coach Kelli Tomlinson. “This has been the class we’ve been especially excited about since these girls started here as freshmen.

It’s a special group and we’re looking forward to taking our game to a higher level.”

The senior dominated lineup includes seven senior starters led by collegiate soccer signees Anneliese Switzer (University of Louisiana at Lafayette) and Brenda Castro (Southern Nazarene College in Oklahoma).

“Anneliese is our leading scorer with 62 career goals while Brenda is also a huge offensive threat,” said Tomlinson. On defense, Tomlinson said the Cardinals boast a “dynamic duo” with Hadley Wormser and Grace Ritchie. In addition, the super senior lineup includes standout midfielders Peyton Tan and Cecilia Duno as well as defender Isabel Valenciano.

T

he Memorial Mustangs girls’ soccer team has its sights set on a bounce-back type of season after finishing an uncharacteristic third place in district last season. The Mustangs advanced all the way in the UIL state semifinals

just two seasons ago and back in 2018 won the UIL 6A State Championship.

Leading the way for Memorial is the return of standout senior and Oklahoma State signee Adelhia Ghonda. “Adelhia was coming off a serious injury last year, but she’s now back to full strength,” said Memorial head coach Lindley Amarantos. “Not only is she strong, fast, and possesses great footwork, but Adelhia is also extremely versatile.”

The Mustangs also welcome the return of standout senior Logan Patterson, who’s been on varsity since her freshmen team and was part of the Mustangs state semifinals team two years ago. “Logan is a team captain who is super technical and also extremely versatile,” said Amarantos.

Another major contributor for the Mustangs should be senior midfielder Zoe Seeley. “Zoe has an amazing shot with both feet and can strike the ball form anywhere,” added Amarantos.

“Our girls are really athletic and I’m just excited to see what we do this season.”

Editor’s note: Todd Freed is the host and executive producer of H-Town High School Sports, which airs Saturday at 10:30 p.m. on CW39 and Monday-Thursday on AT&T SportsNet SW. To submit high school sports news for possible inclusion in SportzBuzz, please email todd@thebuzzmagazines.com.

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SPORTS

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by Annie Blaylock McQueen, staff writer

SportzBuzz Jr. W

elcome to SportzBuzz Jr., a column spotlighting neighborhood athletes in elementary and middle school.

Tournament champs In basketball news, Pin Oak Middle School seventh-grade boys recently competed in the West Briar Middle School Basketball tournament. The boys played a tough game and finished the tournament with a win. Their final game against Tanglewood Middle School ended in a tight matchup and a final score of 50-44. The players were thrilled after a long, hard-fought season. Pictured (from left) are Syon Mukherjee, coach Daryl Grantham, Milkias Asefa, Jesse Gordon, Kai Lancelin, Hunter Hazen, Javen Simon, Rush Armstrong, Sidney Battle, Jackson Suminski, Oliver Broach, Rylan Lim, and coach Philip Neal.

Pershing LAX The Pershing Middle School girls’ lacrosse team recently played in the Cy-Fair Burning Flower tournament in Hockley. These seventh- and eighth-grade girls kept up their momentum, playing in several games over the weekend tournament, which was also their first tournament of the year.

Pictured (from left) are Sarai Farrell, Nathalie McDaniel, Taylor Vondenstein, Alejandra Jasso, coach Nina Ignatiev, Ava Tran, Tessa Spencer, Karahlyn Lee, Izzy Pham, Kaitlyn Pham, Izzy Boyle, Bethany Rutherford, and Valentina Perez. The Cy-Fair Burning Flower Lacrosse Tournament (Remembering Julia) was held at Zube Park in honor of 13year-old Julia Marie Briggs. Julia was a former Cy-Fair Iron Maiden lacrosse player, who unexpectedly passed away from a very rare and aggressive cancer, Mediastinal Lymphoma.

B.I.G. Love Recently, a West University Elementary School student accomplished an exciting feat and set some new goals for her upcoming year. Mira Su Whaley (pictured) ran a 5k in the B.I.G Love Cancer Care fundraising race. The race took place around the holidays and therefore was called Santa’s Dash. West University Elementary School families participate in fundraising for the event every year by collecting toys and games for the cancer patients who are supported through the charity. The race took place in Pearland and many onlookers cheered the participants on. This year, Mira Su raced in two triathlons and two 5k races. She has been practicing with coach Amanda Jehn of WUES since August. She is scheduled to race in the Texas Kids’ Triathlon in the spring. After that, her goal is to run a 10k race.

Editor’s note: Send your best high-resolution photos and behind-the-scenes stories about young local athletes, in both team and individual sports, to SportzBuzz, Jr. at info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Include all contact info, names, ages, grades and schools. Featured athletes must live in Buzz-circulation neighborhoods. Items will be published on a space-available basis.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 42

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BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 43

KIDS

Lydia Tong

STUDENTS MAKING MOVES Bellaire sophomore Melanie Fung is a reporter for our online School Buzz blog and a member of eMotion Dance Company. She wrote about their fall show, American Dream. Pictured (from left) are Breakdance members Eric Li, EJ Brotamonte, and Jeffery Gao in the dance Surround Sound, choreographed by Jeffery.

by Melanie Fung, age 15

Buzz Kidz

20 Years of eMotion

O

n Friday, Nov. 18, Bellaire High School’s eMotion Dance Company held their fall show, American Dream, celebrating its 20-year anniversary. The company was started in Bellaire High School’s cafeteria in 2002, when a group of high schoolers decided that they wanted to dance together.

They came together to form what is now around 50 dancers putting on yearly shows, going to dance competitions, and even hosting their own community concert to invite other groups to perform at. “It’s really amazing how far this team has come since then,” said eMotion founder Sanja Korman, who made a special appearance at the end of the show.

Currently run by Artistic Director Paris Kent, eMotion Dance Company is one of the two

dance groups of Bellaire High School. The dance company has won numerous awards with student choreography in different dance styles including jazz, breakdance, hip hop, lyrical, and modern. They also won first place at the MA Dance Competition last year. The team itself is split into three groups: Modern, Breakdance, and Hip Hop, with the majority of dances choreographed by students. The dancers have a wide variety of dance backgrounds but are also required to be passing in all their classes in order to perform or compete. They practice every school day and commit themselves to the team. eMotion Dance Company is a place where the dancers all feel like family, contributing hard work, creativity, patience, practice, and effort to make eMotion into the team it is.

This year, eMotion Dance will be attending the Ascension Competition and MA Competition again. Their next performance will be their Spring Show in April 2023 in the Bellaire High School auditorium.

This article was originally written for our School Buzz blog online. To see more pictures from the eMotion fall show, check out thebuzzmagazines.com.

Want to be a Buzz Kid? Email approximately 350 words, a high-resolution photo and caption to info@thebuzzmagazines.com. Or mail it to The Buzz Magazines, 5001 Bissonnet, Suite 100, Bellaire, Texas 77401.

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Leftover 529 plans 529 qualified tuition programs offer a tax-exempt way to save and invest for college. Start when the future scholar is a baby, and time and tax-free growth can turbocharge that nest egg.

The IRS limits contributions. A safe harbor regulation caps total contributions by Grandma, Mom, Dad, and other contributors to a single beneficiary’s plan to five years’ tuition, required fees, and room and board at the most expensive school in the plan, e.g., private out of state. Some plans that started with $250,000 limits now allow $550,000.

There’s no penalty for contributing the safe harbor amount even if the beneficiary goes to a less expensive school, e.g., a public school in-state, or if market returns lift the account balance far beyond the initial contributions.

Tax-free withdrawals are generally limited to qualified expenses not already covered by other tax-free assistance, e.g., a scholarship or Lifetime Learning Credit. Sorry, no double-dipping.

Grandma can always revoke Grandson’s account and get her remaining money back. However, she takes the earnings into income and pays a 10% penalty. The penalty is waived for refunds on Grandson’s death or disability or because of Grandson’s scholarship.

If Grandson’s not going to use all the money for college, save it for Grandson’s graduate or professional school.

Grandma may roll over the plan to a different beneficiary within the “family” (Grandson’s children or other descendants, siblings, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles, parents, cousins, stepparents, Grandson’s spouse’s parents and siblings, and any of their spouses). Some plans require

complete distribution within 30 years of high school graduation, a consideration before rolling over from a 22-year-old to a 62-year-old beneficiary. Family rollovers to a younger generation are treated as taxable gifts from Grandson. All rollovers outside the family are taxable gifts. With a $12,920,000 transfer tax exemption this year, few beneficiaries actually pay tax on these rollovers; they just have to report them.

Don’t roll over a plan too soon. 529 plans may count as assets on financial aid applications. It may be an unforced error to roll over a plan to a beneficiary that’s not ready yet, e.g., an undergraduate on a needs-based scholarship that could use help funding professional school later but not now.

Beginning in 2024, Grandson can roll over his old and cold 529 to his Roth IRA, a bit at a time. The Roth IRA annual contribution limits apply ($6,500 for 2024), a lifetime rollover limit applies ($35,000), contributions within the last 5 years cannot be rolled over, and no rollover is permitted from a 529 plan less than 15 years old.

We write wills and go to probate court. Foreign nationals and international families welcome.

Russell W. Hall, J.D., LL.M. (Tax), Board Certified – Estate Planning and Probate Law, Texas Board of Legal Specialization, 6750 West Loop South, Suite 920, Bellaire, Texas 77401, 713.662.3853, bellaireprobate.com/blog

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 45

PETS

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And even though my fur is white, it magically stays clean almost all the time. Mud and dirt just don’t stick to me. I love my family, and I follow them everywhere. I don’t like when they leave. I do not like being by myself! If my family needs to leave, they make sure I have a bone to keep me occupied. I have two sisters and a brother who play with me. I like to play fetch, although I have trouble understanding that I have to drop the ball before you can throw it again. If you see me, say hi! I might bark, but that’s just because I can’t speak human. I’m trying to say “I wanna play!”

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BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 46

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R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Sesame Food allergies can be a terrifying issue for those affected and their loved ones.

As of January 1, 2023, the US Food and Drug Administration is acknowledging the importance of sesame allergy and its prevalence, risk, and significance. The US FDA is adding sesame to its list of major food allergens defined by law.

Sesame joins eggs, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, soybean, wheat, and shellfish.

This addition has been under consideration for several years. The formal addition comes as a result of the Food Allergy Safety Treatment Education and Research Act, or the FASTER Act, which became law in April of 2021.

Adding sesame to the list means foods containing sesame will be subject to specific food allergen regulatory requirements including those regarding labeling and manufacturing.

The FDA conducts inspections and sampling of food products to check that major food allergens are properly labeled and to determine whether food facilities are preventing allergen cross-contamination.

Sesame allergy can cause hives, swelling, cough, shortness of breath, wheezing, trouble swallowing, abdominal symptoms, and/or a drop in blood pressure. It is estimated that 1.6 million Americans are allergic to sesame.

Prior to its inclusion on the list of major allergens, sesame only had to be declared on a label if whole seeds were used as an ingredient. Labeling had not been required if sesame was used as a flavor or in a spice blend. So a product such as tahini, which is made from ground sesame, did not have to list it!

The FASTER Act requires labeling as of January 1, 2023. Unfortunately, foods produced and labeled before that can stay on store shelves. So those

with a sesame allergy still need to be vigilant.

Sesame is often used in Middle Eastern and Japanese dishes as well as vegan dietary options.

Sesame avoidance should always include avoiding it by varied other names. (A list of some include: Benne, benne seed, benniseed, Gingelly, gingelly oil, Gomasio (sesame salt), Halvah, Sesame flour, Sesame oil*, Sesame paste, Sesamol, Sesamum indicum, Sesemolina, Sim sim, Tahini, Tahina, Tehina, and Til. (*Sesame oil: Studies show that most people with specific food protein allergies can safely eat highly refined oils made from those foods (examples include highly refined peanut and soybean oil.) However, sesame oil is not highly refined and should be avoided by people who are allergic to sesame.)

The doctors at The Allergy Clinic have been treating food and other allergies for over a half century. We can help sort out what is triggering yours.

No one nose allergies like we do.™ Note: Information contained in this article should not be considered a substitute for consultation with a board-certified allergist to address individual medical needs.

Anthony J. Weido, M.D., The Allergy Clinic, 7707 Fannin, Suite 100, Houston, Texas 77054, 713.797.0993, *1200 Binz, Suite 1400, Houston, Texas 77004, 713.522.9911, www.allergyclinic.com, *Operating as Houston Allergy and Asthma Clinic

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 47

Kati Hewitt

NEIGHBORS

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by Angie Frederickson, staff writer

Buzz About Town Earl Selzer turns 95

and they have three children, Elyse Schultz, Billy Selzer, and Linda Lang, seven grandchildren, and he recently became a great-grandfather to two grandbabies born eight weeks apart.

After the party at Brookdale, Earl continued the celebration at NRG Stadium and watched his Cleveland Browns defeat the Texans.

A garden wedding

MD Turner Photography

Family and friends gathered at Brookdale Galleria to celebrate Earl Selzer’s 95th birthday.

Son-in-law Howard Schultz, daughter Linda Lang, birthday boy Earl, son-in-law Michael Lang, brother Jerry Selzer, and daughter Elyse Schultz (pictured, from left) all enjoyed the milestone occasion with a special Earl-themed happy hour. Earl is a member of Brookdale’s weekly Flex Your Brain club, so his family created a trivia game with questions all about the guest of honor. Winners were treated to prize baskets filled with all his favorites: Oreo cookies, Hershey’s chocolate bars, popcorn, and Coke.

Earl, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, was married to his late wife, Janice, for more than 66 years

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 48

Sarah Garde and Benjamin Little married at The River Oaks Garden Club. The weather was perfect for the outdoor wedding, dinner, and dancing under the stars. Both native Houstonians, Sarah is the daughter of Jill and Timothy Garde, and Benjamin is the son of Leslie and David Little.

The ceremony took place in the beautiful central garden, followed by cocktail hour in the west garden with live harp music. Guests then enjoyed dinner inside the ballroom of the historic Forum of Civics building before returning outside to dance to music provided by the Horizon band.

The evening wrapped up with a unique exit dance, La Tarantella, that is a tradition for the bride’s family. Pictured, from left, are members of the wedding party: Emily Rice, Ross Kiatta, Miranda Whitlock, Stuart Peterson, Lauren Garde, Sarah Little, Benjamin Little, Allison Willis, Matthew Little, Stephanie Moates, and Corinne Kelly.

A proposal in Round Top Returning to the site of their first date was the perfect way for Wesley Hill (pictured, left) to propose to Amanda Taylor (pictured, right).

While visiting Round Top, Wesley popped the question under a beautiful oak tree at Amanda’s aunt and uncle’s farm, and the couple are planning a spring 2023 wedding at the Houston Arboretum. After a champagne toast in Round Top, the couple returned to Houston to celebrate with friends and family, including the bride’s parents Gina and Keith Taylor, and the groom’s parents Terri and Loren Hill, at the Buffalo Bayou Brewery. Amanda is enjoying sharing her wedding season with her two best friends, Lexi Pappas and Lizzie Bettis. The trio, who met in kindergarten on the Condit Elementary playground and have remained close through the years, are all getting married within a few months of each other.

Married among the redwoods Dylan Cox and Sarah Sandberg were married, surrounded by family and friends, among the majestic redwoods in northern California. The groom, son of Carla Buerkle and Ralph Cox, grew up in Bellaire and graduated from Bellaire High School. The bride is from Edina, Minnesota. Dylan and Sarah met in Seattle through a dating app, and he proposed during a fishing trip at a favorite spot in Montana.

Because the bride and groom’s families live thousands of miles from each other, the couple wanted a wedding weekend that would help everyone get to know each other. A camp with rustic cabins, hiking, and s’mores by the campfire was the perfect setting. Pictured with the happy couple are bridesmaids (from left) Shelby McKeever, Ellen Stowe, Natalie Allen, Hannah Stephan, and Allison Virigilio, and groomsmen (from left) Connor Cox, James Marria, Jonathan Ward, (continued on page 50)

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Successfully navigating challenging markets for 27 years.

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Watch Their Smiles Grow

Oral healthcare for the growing & developing child Joel J. Vela, D.D.S. Bellaire Pediatric Dentistry, P.A. 6750 West Loop South, Suite 795 713.661.1100 • www.bellairesmiles.com

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 49

Alexa Lei Photography

(continued from page 48) Sam White, and Dave

Hill. Dylan and Sarah now live in London.

Cruisin’ with Frankie Avalon

Roselle and Glenn Kammerman (pictured, from left), along with friends Anne and Rick Frachtman, took a trip down memory lane aboard the Malt Shop Memories Cruise. A ’50s and ’60s music-themed cruise on the Holland America Line Nieuw Amsterdam featured sock hops, prom night, saddle shoes, poodle skirts, and plenty of nostalgia. The Kammermans and Frachtmans sailed to St. Thomas, Puerto Rico, and the Bahamas while attending live performances on board from ’50s and ’60s musical icons including Frankie Avalon. The cruise took place during the Astros run for the 2022 World Series title, and the couples encountered some unpleasant Phillies fans in the ship’s bar.

Fortunately, the Astros’ win made the cruise even more memorable.

A friend to remember The Buzz Magazines is saddened to learn of the passing of Douglas “Doug” Wayne Wildenradt, BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 50

who was featured on the cover of the Bellaire Buzz’s December 2019 issue. Doug is remembered for his gentle spirit and infectious smile by his family and friends, as well as by communities he impacted for many years. He is survived by his sister Amy Spencer, her husband Joe, and their sons John, Graham, and Wilson; his sister Ann Voss, her husband Jim, and their children Grace and Ben. A 30-year charter resident of Noah’s House, an independent living community for adults with intellectual disabilities, and a dishwashing employee of Memorial Hermann Health System for 38 years, Doug touched many lives and brightened countless days. One of Doug’s supervisors called him the “hardest working man alive,” and Doug took pride in a job well done. During his 66 years of life, Doug was deeply committed to his family and treasured time together for holidays, graduations, and vacations. He will be especially missed on Christmas mornings when he played the role of Santa Claus and distributed gifts to the family.

Doug would be proud of his nephew, Ben Voss, who has taken over the tradition. Gifts of

remembrance for Doug can be made to Noah’s House (noahshousetx.org).

Match made in Bellaire

Raj Salhotra (pictured, left) proposed to Ekta Bery (pictured, right) on the rooftop of the Glenn Hotel in Atlanta, Georgia, where Ekta grew up and works as a (continued on page 52)

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 51

Daniel Bissonnet

(continued from page 50) pediatric neurologist. The

couple met in 2021 after Raj's mom Poonam Salhotra met Ekta’s aunt Anuja Mehta through a local book club during the pandemic. The two ladies got to talking and decided to set up the two singles. Ekta and Raj hit it off and dated long-distance for 16 months. Raj proposed during a November trip to Atlanta after organizing a series of dates at their favorite spots. His parents Poonam and Atul Salhotra and sister Pooja Salhotra, along with Ekta's brother Amit Bery, flew in for a surprise celebration. The icing on the cake was the Astros bringing home the World Series win on the same night.

Clip clop, clip clop

As a special holiday treat, Marcie Rench brought some joy to her Bellaire neighbors when she arrived with miniature horse, Bear, and gave rides to adults and kids on a beautiful, sunny day.

Bear is one of Marcie’s miniature horses who she trail-drives on farms in the Waller area. She has provided this holiday fun several times over the years and loves to see neighbors smile when they look out the window and spot a furry little horse.

Bear drew a crowd of neighbors into the streets for fun and buggy rides and was rewarded with a favorite snack of carrots. Pictured are Marcie with neighbor John Grandstaff.

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 52

Hanukkah with Alex Bregman

Dads can sing

Congregation Beth Yeshurun hosted Astros third baseman Alex Bregman (pictured, center) and KPRC 2 Houston sports reporter Ari Alexander (pictured, right, with Rabbi Steven Morgen, Rabbi Sarah Fort, Reagan Bregman, and infant Knox Bregman) for a Hanukkahthemed Q&A session. Alex and Ari, along with Reagan and Knox Bregman, helped Rabbis Steven Morgen and Sarah Fort light the candles for the fourth night of Hanukkah. Alex talked about baseball and also touched on his childhood in New Mexico, his Hanukkah memories, his role as a public figure to speak out against antisemitism and other forms of hate, his new food ventures, and his foundation, Bregman Cares. At the end of the Q&A session, Alex invited the kids in the audience up to the stage for a group photo, and then took additional photos and signed autographs.

The Horn Elementary Dads Club (pictured) got together for the annual tradition of performing holiday songs to wrap up the fall semester and send the kids off to start their winter break from school. Students, faculty, staff, and families all look forward to the fun event and listening to a variety of holiday favorites. Kids scanned the stage to look for their dads who were dressed in all sorts of holiday hats, tacky sweaters, and even a red Christmas tree-themed suit. After the dads performed for the enthusiastic crowd, the event ended with a singalong for everyone to belt out tunes together.

Be seen in Buzz About Town. Send your high-res photos and community news to info@thebuzzmagazines.com.

Items are published on a space-available basis. Also share your upcoming-event listings on thebuzzmagazines.com.

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BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 53

NEIGHBORS

.

by Andria Frankfort Dilling, staff writer

Back Porch

The Notes Section: A little spicy

BELLAIRE BUZZ FEBRUARY 2023 54

behance.net/runamokstudios

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hyllis Rosenblum’s recipe for chocolate cake was a personal patchwork of a couple recipes from the 1961 The New York Times Cook Book – one for cake, one for frosting (read Love in the Form of Chocolate, in this issue). But because she was baking pre-internet, her recipe notes were her own. Had she been baking in 2023, she would probably be checking out – or sharing on – “Notes” on the NYT Cooking website, where more than a million subscribers look for recipe reviews and suggestions from fellow cooks.

But don’t think NYT Cooking Notes is merely this would benefit from flaky salt sprinkled on top.

Quips and comments like Life is too short to massage kale and Fear not the fat! make this section of the site entertainment unto itself, so much so that it’s been the subject of numerous articles, and even a few Instagram accounts. Here, passionate cooks who have never met – nay, who don’t even know each other’s real names – engage in heated debates and revealing monologues.

Like mez2 whose comment on Baked SpinachArtichoke Pasta took a turn: Well this was delicious. Although I thought I had artichoke hearts, I didn’t. I’ll use cannelloni [sic] beans, I thought. So I opened a can and it turns out I grabbed kidney beans.

Guess what, it was great…Then RBG died and I was devastated and crying and we ate the whole thing because we needed it and it was that good.

The same recipe received this note from Rinka2: Whoever suggested Greek yogurt and said it was better than using heavy cream, I hope you perish.

Sydne Newberry5’s comment on Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies has an internet life of its own: This has been my go-to brownie recipe for 30 years, even after going to baking school!...In the 80s, an cquaintance [sic] in Germany to whom I brought some of the brownies, and who considered herself a great cook, asked for the recipe but was never able to get it to work. She kept asking me what she was doing wrong and I was never able to solve her problem. Eventually, she moved to the US and stole my husband!

To which Roy Russell5 asked the question everyone wondered: but did he know how to make the brownies?

There’s George5 who reviewed Foolproof Pie Dough: This is a good crust recipe. But a correction

PASSION NOTES Cooks on the NYT Cooking site share all kinds of thoughts – recipe-related and otherwise.

needs to be made about who created this recipe....My grandmother had almost the same recipe in her box dated 1973…

Leslie5 wrote back: No, I think it was my Uncle Ferber from the old country who brought the recipe over in the sole of his shoe when he came over on the S.S. Nitpicker in 1889.

Marcella Hazan’s Bolognese Sauce received this from Kim4: I cannot comment of the taste of the sauce. It was cooling and I ran a short errand… my 8 year old Labrador Retriever, Jake, (who had never, ever bothered anything in the kitchen) somehow got the pot off of the cooktop and ate all of the sauce. The worst part was that I had tripled the recipe, so Jake ate 3 pounds of Bolognese sauce! I am certain he would rate the sauce a 5. We had to go out for dinner, but I will make the recipe again and post relevant feedback! PS Jake is fine.

On Dorie Greenspan’s Swedish Almond Cake, Cate2 wrote: Hazardous variable is the time required to prepare the topping, which must be tracked and then subtracted from total cook time…Set two timers instead, one for 45 minutes for total cook time and

one for 20 to begin fixing topping…add topping when cake timer shows 15 minutes remaining.

Wendy2 shot back: I like to use four timers: a third one to keep track of the total time elapsed for the first two timers, and then a fourth timer to keep track of the total time it took me to set the first three timers. Oh, and sometimes I set a fifth timer, just to remind me when it’s time to take another Xanax.

And then there’s the big debate: beans or no beans in Texas Chili? KD Feedback says no: This is not even close to “Texas Chili.” You should change the name to New York Chili immediately, they write.

GARY writes: Whatever this is, it’s certainly not Texas Chili… Cannellini beans? Are you kidding?

To the same recipe, Jean louis LONNE5 summed it up: I am retired and until I read all these hair-splitting commentaries and changes to this recipe, I thought I had nothing much to do.

We love hearing from readers about your experiences with recipes featured on our own online “Back Porch Table” every Friday…no stories about cake and ex-spouses yet, but who knows? We can only aspire.