The beauty of cast iron, right on Target!

Ah, those beautiful Le Creuset dutch ovens in their rainbow of colors! You have to pay a pretty penny for such beauty, of course. If you’re luck, and live near a Le Creuset outlet, you can score some great deals! But, if you’re even luckier, you have a Target Store close to you and can […]

A ricer is not for rice??

If you’ve ever passed by a potato ricer, you’ve probably wondered how on earth it got it’s name. Truthfully, it has nothing to do with rice – other than the fact when you squeeze the potatoes through, they look like rice. But, this tool serves so many more purposes than making mashed taters! Here are […]

Is frozen spinach worth it?

Frozen spinach is a wonderful addition to many meals. You can process it with your flour to make a spinach pasta, mix it with ricotta to toss in your lasagna, or throw together a delightful spinach dip. Yet, draining that spinach seems to be a huge mess, often leaving your hands as the Green Giant. […]

Leafy Greens

ayllonmom says: Okay, so most of the hype about spinach is over… BUT… I’m must admit I’m still a little leery of spinach. So my question is; Is there another leafy green or a variety of greens that can be used in place of spinach?

Leftovers galore!

Be sure to store those leftovers properly so you can continue to enjoy the meal for days to come! All food should be stored in air-tight containers. If freezing, wrap twice in plastic wrap, then twice again in foil to help protect from freezer-burn. Mashed potatoes can be frozen with great success. Simply reheat, in […]

A Thanksgiving success.

A day later and I am still full – it could have something to do with that midnight snack of key-lime pie. :D It was so great to have all my family together for Thanksgiving and enjoy the fine meal – you know, the one we all spend 20 hours preparing for and one hour […]

That’s just plum crazy!

I tried this new recipe made of whole wheat and plums. I was sure it would be too odd for words. However, it turned out delightfully delicious! The natural moisture of the dried plums provided a nice chew for the bread, which rounded out the usual heartiness associated with whole wheat breads. A combo of […]

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Fresh-baked bread

Really–there is nothing that compares to this! I just pulled two loaves out of the oven and they are cooling on the rack. After rubbing the nicely-browned crusts with butter (helps keep the crust soft), I whipped up a batch of Raspberry Butter. There are a few keys to making the perfect loaf of bread: […]

Butter basics

Only use unsalted butter :: Buying unsalted butter make life a little more difficult in the grocery store, since you’ll actually have to read the labels, but it makes a world of difference in your baking! Unsalted butter is also your freshest option; salt preserves the shelf life of items, so when you buy salted […]

KitchenAid rocks!!

Wow. What a great company! I have my beloved KitchenAid Food Processor, which I really wouldn’t give up for the world. This past Saturday night, I was simply slicing some cheddar; perhaps 4 ounces at most. When I went to disassemble the machine, disk adapter (the white insert that holds the shredding disks in place) […]

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Ask Chef

What’s the difference between yellow and white onions?

DM asks: I see these onions all over the place. Is there a difference in taste? Do you use one in certain dishes but not the other? Does one stink less than the other? Chef replies: Actually, onions stink when they’re old or bruised. Using the freshest onions and a very sharp knife will help […]

Bring on Thanksgiving!

This is the week, y’all – when we forget about all the family and good friends and we frantically waste the day away in the kitchen, slaving over the hot stove, panicking over oven space and how to keep each platter perfectly warm! Well, not this year! Make your plans to do a little each […]

Ignore the beep!

We’ve all done it. You come home, pre-heat the oven, prep your ingredients; as soon as you hear the *BEEP* (or red light turn on), we throw our goodies in the oven to begin baking while we relax for the 18-20 minutes. When we pull out the goodies when the timer dings, our goodies are […]

Oven Thermometer

Simply a tool that no baker can be without! The minimal price tag is worth it’s weight in gold, as you discover your oven temperature has been the cause of all your burnt cookies and uneven cakes! If you want to improve your baking 200%, even with “break-n-bake” cookies, get over to Amazon.com to order […]

Rotate those sheets!

The most important thing you can do is rotate your pans and cookie sheets. If the baking time is scaled at 22 minutes, after 11 minutes, reach in there (oven mitt on, of course!) and rotate the cookie sheet to switch the front to back. If you have decided to cook more than one sheet […]