Please don’t diet! Just enjoy!

Adkins diet – low-carb or no carb – whole grains – trans fats – will it ever end? It seems, rather unfortunately, that the “world” has turned eating into a necessary evil. How tragic! Eating is a celebration of memories and family! It shouldn’t be a second thought as you’re rushing out the door to […]

I have too many recipes!

Recently, while at Cook’s of Crocus Hill, I heard a student of the cooking school mention probably one of the best recipe organization tips I’ve ever heard!! Sorry, I didn’t catch her name to give her credit for this tip. But, if you find yourself snipping so many recipe ideas out of magazines, or printing […]

KitchenNut will return shortly –

Sorry for the delays – my kitchen has been under construction for the last week, inhibiting me from any cooking or baking. My husband has noted a small depression in consequence, noting that we should never cut me off from my kitchen again. :) I will return shortly with lots of new, fun thoughts! See […]

Going bananas!

It seems so often that poor, lonely bananas are deemed the fate of banana bread. Poor banana bread – always the afterthought of the leftover, uneaten bananas. So, what do you do when you have a banana bread craving? Wait until your bananas go bad? And, what if you have bad bananas, but you don’t […]

The age of Trans Fat

If you have read anything about trans fats lately, you’ve probably read enough to know their not good for you. Truthfully, this really shouldn’t come as a shock, though. It makes me laugh, however, as there are so many things that scientists have once tauted as good for you, then later, oops! This, being one […]

You get what you pay for, right?

Who hasn’t heard this before?? To me, it’s always been relative to larger purchases, such as cars, electronics, etc. So, where does food fall into this category? Is the vanilla sold at Williams-Sonoma for $12 better than the vanilla sold at Target for $4? So many brands and varieties of tomatoes when you’re at the […]

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Oven-made Pancakes

A cake by any other name would taste just as sweet, right?? Of course! After all, cake is cake, right?? Recently I discovered that I can make one giant pancake, which for those of you who find yourselves hovering over the stove flipping pancakes for a seeming eternity, this is a handy tip! Preheat your […]

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Do I need to thaw meat before cooking?

Reta H. asks: [My daughter-in-law] had a call the other Sunday morn as she was about to fix that Sunday dinner. She wanted to cook a ham but it was frozen? Did it need to be thawed before she cooked it? also, the same thing about chicken while we are asking. Chef says: ALWAYS, ALWAYS, […]

Substitute egg sizes

With so many chefs and the “freedom of speech” thing going on in the U.S., there’s no hard-fast rule of what size eggs must be called for in a recipe. So, if your recipe doesn’t specify, go for “large.” But, if it calls for medium or extra-large, here’s a little chart to get you through: […]

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Heavy Cream Substitutes

Many recipes call for milk, but aren’t so good about specifying which type. And, uh, while we’re at it, what’s with all the “half-n-half,” “heavy cream,” “whipping cream,” etc. Boy, there are just too many milks to choose from! Well, when it comes to baking, fattier is better! I mean, really, if you’re on a […]

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Stuck on you

The invention of paper muffin cups came as such a joy to the modern domestic person in the early 1900s. However, I think over time we have forgotten exactly why they were invented – it was in the days of cast iron pans and cast iron muffin molds. To clean these pans is a beast, […]

Greatest thing since sliced bread!

Ever wonder why store-bought bread lasts forever, while homemade bread can only be enjoyed for three to four days? Well, if you want to be disgusted, read the ingredients on the side of your bread bag. My personal thought – any chemicals that can be added to bread to make it last weeks, makes me […]

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Alcohol Substitutions

There are many chefs who don’t consume alcohol and so many recipes which call for it – what’s a chef to do? The common myth (yes, myth) that alcohol burns off during cooking won’t work in this game. Okay, to clear the myth before I go on – yes, a large portion can burn off–if […]

Will I really get worms?? [can I eat raw cookie dough?]

Memories of tip-toeing through the kitchen to snag a pinch of freshly-made cookie dough before Mom caught you – I’m pretty sure we all have that memory! If your Mom went to the same school as mine, the condemnation was usually: “You can’t eat cookie dough! You’ll get worms!!” I used to wonder how bad […]

Midnight munchies

Mmm. Nothing like a midnight munchie of chocolate chip cookies—nice and warm, right from the oven! However, hovering around the kitchen at Midnight is just plain nutty–kitchennutty, that is! So, how do we solve this problem of munchie attacks, when you just don’t want to bake? Thank goodness for the modern freezer! Next time you […]