I don’t think I’d ever had anything but canned spinach growing up, and it was pretty bad stuff. Nowadays, frozen spinach has taken over from the canned, and fresh leafy green spinach is still not an everyday commodity. The reason for this, besides perishability, is that not many people think that swishing spinach through three changes of water constitutes a fun time.

Weakfish, a.k.a. squeteague or sea trout, has begun its annual migration in large schools up the Atlantic coast. . . . The name, weakfish, is no slur on its character; it refers to the delicate mouth of this fish, which is easily torn by a hook.

Flowers, with their sweet fragrances and riotous color, are balm for the senses and for the eye. Of late, nouvelle-trendy watering spots have introduced them as stylish garnish and amusing nibbles. Less known is the fact that flowers were a common and popular ingredient in recipes in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries.

Ham is to Easter what turkey is to Thanksgiving and it’s best not to tamper too much with tradition. Of course, lamb is traditional if you happen to be Greek, but ham for Easter has come to be the unshakable custom in most American households.

This is the season when the shad, which usually remain in deep water until they are five years old, return to spawn in rivers and on sandy flat bars at the rivers’ mouths.

That comforting line about Christmas coming “but once a year” might ring hollow in your ears, with Christmas parties and Christmas drop-ins to be dealt with by the genial host. To be always at the ready, there are fortunately some delicious things that can be made in advance and refrigerated and served on several occasions.

Here's a French version of apple pie alleged to have been invented by two spinsters who ran a rustic restaurant in Lamotte-Beauvron, a hamlet not far from Paris.

"Hermits" are chewy, spice-laden cookies that date back to early 19th-century cookery in America, and there are many variations on the basic recipe.

“Poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese." — G.K. Chesterton

Most of the pumpkins dotting the fields with the brilliant orange will get their 15 minutes of celebrity on Halloween night. For although this hardy member of the squash-gourd family grows ubiquitously both in this hemisphere and in Europe, there are few recipes for its use. Too bad, be­cause the pumpkin’s hard rind keeps it usable for many months past the Thanksgiving pie season.

Eggplant seems to be available the year around nowadays, but is more than usually plentiful during the last warm days of September.

There are lots of party foods that can be made in advance at no great expense. The money saved can be used to hire the bartenders and waiters that are essential if the hosts are to have any fun at all and remain on speaking terms with each other.

Mary Emmerling has elected to serve a menu from her newly pub­lished book, “American Country Cooking.” This hors d’oeuvre will lead things off at her dress-in-white summer dinner for ten.

Florence Fabricant decided to take advantage of the lush peaches and excellent blueberries that will be at their zenith in flavor during late July. There are already fine peaches and berries in the market so you can make this right away.

I don't know if herbs have ever before crossed national boundaries in such a massive immigration as they are invading American cookery of the ’80s. Dill used to be Scandinavian; oregano Italian, and the less common anise-flavored tarragon, strictly French. The English were sage; Mexican, coriander, and I don’t know what we were — parsley, maybe. Now they’ve come to an enthusiastic melting pot and American cookery really sings with all these different accents.

All this lamb talk is because we are smack-dab in the middle of “spring lamb season,” which is largely myth nowadays because lambs are born all year round in different parts of the country.

Except for Easter basket bunnies, white chocolate used to be relatively difficult to find, but the Nestle Com­pany produces a “baking bar” carried in most supermarkets.

“True genius always looks simple, and the best of creations are 'obvious.'" — Rudolph Chelminski, “The French at Table.”

Although it’s always been my credo to try to live by the seasons in the Long Island Larder, there are times when the seasons need a little forcing — like dreary February.

Souffles have magic and mystery — they’re always box office even though their simple trickery has long been familiar. This is great for the January blahs when we all need some different, innovative, out-of-the-rut food.