Ihsan Gurdal, the owner of Formaggio Kitchen in Cambridge, Massachusetts (a specialty food shop and the first place I worked after college), grew up in Turkey. He introduced me, and probably many other American cooks, to baharat, a Turkish spice blend that’s typically used as a seasoning for ...
We will be extra busy cleaning and preparing to host communion services here in three weeks, so I decided to get an extra column written. It’s always nice to be a week ahead when my schedule looks full. I decided since it’s 22 years ago this month that Joe and I and our six children made ...
Buying colorful carrots and adding spinach parsley pesto gives roast carrots a simple, lively upgrade on the Easter table. AP food writer Katie Workman suggests buying multicolored carrots, though straight orange ones also work. She says you slice them in half, coat them with olive oil, salt ...
DEAR ANNIE: My spouse and I chose to raise our kids in a neighborhood with excellent schools and a strong sense of community. The downside is that it’s also a very affluent area, and many of the families around us are far wealthier than we are. We work hard and live comfortably enough, but we ...
The Rascals will play the Robins Theatre in Warren on June 12. The band’s hits from the 1960s include “Good Lovin’,” “Groovin’,” “People Got to Be Free” and “A Beautiful Morning.” Ides of March will open the 7:30 p.m. show, and tickets go on sale 10 a.m. Friday.
The ~Nois Saxophone Quartet, one of America's premier chamber music ensembles, will visit Youngstown State University's Dana School of Music Wednesday for two free events, both open to the public. The Chicago-based quartet will lead a masterclass at 4 p.m. in Room 2200 of Bliss Hall, followed ...
Traci Manning makes her living sharing true stories from the past as director of education with the Mahoning Valley Historical Society. She’ll share some history in a different venue by directing Lauren Gunderson’s “Silent Sky,” which opens Friday at Hopewell Theatre in Youngstown for ...
Jackie Popovec can’t wait to open the “Trap Door.” “Trap Door” is the new album by The Vindys, a record that’s been at least two years in the making and comes nearly five years after the group’s last studio album, 2021’s “Bugs.” It will debut on streaming services on April ...
The engagement and approaching marriage of Kayla Kapel and Santino Bianco, are being announced by the couple’s parents, Greg and Marriane Kapel of Lyndhurst, and Tina Bianco of Girard. The groom-elect is also the son of the late Philip Bianco. The bride-elect is employed as a registered ...
Mr. and Mrs. J. Ralph and Marilyn Seidner III of Salem, celebrated their 71st anniversary on Dec. 6, 2025. J Ralph and Marilyn Seidner III were married Dec 6, 1954. Their life together has been a rich tapestry of adventure, creativity, family and unwavering devotion. Their life spans states ...
Daniel and Kathy Glozer, lifelong residents of the Youngstown area, celebrated their 50th anniversary on Sept. 13, 2025. Mass was held at St. Luke Catholic Church and dinner at Alberini’s Restaurant, both attended by immediate family members. Daniel Glozer and the former Kathy Gromada ...
Charles and Gail Ann Holquist, of New Middletown, held a 70th anniversary celebration on Aug. 30, 2025, at Welker Park in New Middletown, hosted by the couple’s three children. Charles Holquist and the former Gail Ann Osborne were united in matrimony on Sept. 10, 1955, at Chapel of Friendly ...
Glance out the window to see what the weather’s doing. Good. Now peek again. Sure, it’s only been a few seconds, but that’s long enough for northeast Ohio to throw us another curve ball. The temperature may have changed by 20 or 30 degrees. If it was sunny, now it’s raining. Or ...
In 1956, filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock released one of his masterpieces, “The Man Who Knew Too Much.” It was a film full of suspense, intrigue and not knowing what was really going on. Seventy years after Hitchcock’s movie, we’re now “The People Who Know Too Much.” Our lives are ...
About 150 miles south and a tad east of Normal, Illinois, sits the village of Oblong. I know this because once upon a time, I wrote for a newspaper in Decatur, Illinois, which was a little closer to Normal than Oblong. One day, the society page of our newspaper carried this headline: ...
You can’t hide from The Joke Lady. I met Marcie “The Joke Lady” Danyi of Niles by U.S. Postal Service back in 2020, shortly after some annoying virus was making its rounds in the news — and the world. Marcie was 78 back then (“My mind still thinks I’m 25,” she told me. “My ...
So here we are — mid-March, just a day past the astronomical first day of spring, the vernal equinox in the Northern Hemisphere. Whether our weather decides to cooperate with what we call spring is another story entirely. Around here, spring tends to flirt more than it commits. One day ...
Holy cow — can you believe it? We made it to St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Or, if you’re someone around here who treats it like a full-on holiday season (and honestly, many do), St. Patrick’s Day week. And in my humble — very biased — opinion, this area has always done St. ...
Now that Valentine’s Day is behind us, I feel like I can say this without causing a family meeting. Valentine’s Day has always been my holiday to dote on my family. Not in the dramatic, rose-petal, rom-com way — but in the way that makes sense for us. This year included teenage boys, ...
So clearly, I have not been the only one hunkering down at some point or another this winter. If January had a cheerleading squad, it would be chanting over and over again: “Brr! It’s cold in here! I said there must be some Toros in the atmosphere!” Yes, that’s right — I just ...
In my earlier years of gardening, I was attracted to and purchased unusual plants. Many of those didn’t survive beyond their first year. As I have “matured,” I have redirected my purchases toward the easy-to-grow natives that feed our local pollinators. The hotter, drier summers have ...
Here are upcoming gardening events through the Ohio State University Mahoning County Extension Office. Contact the Extension Office, 490 S. Broad St., Canfield, at 330-533-5538. For a complete list of events, visit https://mahoning.osu.edu/events. Plant and Pest Clinic What: Stop by to ask ...
As I watched a woodpecker banging away at a tree, it made me think, why don’t woodpeckers get headaches or suffer brain trauma from all that drumming? So, I looked it up. Once again, nature has created a miracle that does not allow the woodpecker to get headaches or become dizzy. ...
Our temperatures have continued to fluctuate, but our winter weather will eventually remain colder and the darkness will cause us to bundle up, keeping ourselves warm. The days are gaining minutes of light in the morning and evening, but it will be a couple of months before we notice ...