What’s the shelf life of spices?

August 16, 2021 by
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If you are like me, your spice cabinet/drawer overfloweth, the natural result of a large cookbook collection and an insatiable appetite to try new and different cuisines. You may have purchased a jar of spice for a particular recipe and the rest sits unused, patiently waiting until you find another recipe that calls for it. In this instance, patience is… read more

Food news antipasto

August 16, 2021 by
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The famous Bonne Maman advent calendar is back - hurry before they are gone. There are 24 delicious flavors in mini jars featured in this year's edition, including new Cherry with Hibiscus Flower, Sweet Orange and Passion Fruit, Peach with Jasmine, Wild Blueberry with Lemon Balm, and Raspberry with Rose. The fresh styles are included along with the classics everyone loves,… read more

Salt of the earth (and sea)

August 14, 2021 by
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Although sodium chloride is one of the most basic tools in a cook's arsenal, the different types of salt available can be confusing. Food writers and chefs generally write recipes with a particular brand and formulation in mind, and results can vary if you stray from it. In the US, the go-to for most food writers is Diamond Crystal (DC)… read more

Podi adds more than just flavor

August 12, 2021 by
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Spice mixes not only flavor food, they can also help shape a food culture. Blends like za'atar, dukkah, five spice, BBQ rubs all bring to mind a certain region, country, or flavor profile. But for podi, the mix does much more than just conjure an image of culture. As Chandrika Krishnan explains in Whetstone Magazine, the South Indian spice mixes… read more

Another ode to cookbook stores

August 9, 2021 by
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Today is National Book Lovers Day, and to celebrate we are bringing you a lovely article from Thrillist that features several fabulous cookbook stores such as Bonnie Slotnick Cookbooks, Bold Fork Books, Kitchen Arts & Letters, Omnivore Books, Book Larder, and others. Titled "Why Cookbook Stores are the Antidote We Need Right Now," the piece explores the reasons why we… read more

Food news antipasto

August 8, 2021 by
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Fans of the UK's Borough Market will like this tidbit - it's been a while since the Market Life magazine was last published. The magazine stalled at issue #49, so very close to a milestone publication. This week, the Market finally announced the release of issue #50. To mark this accomplishment, they have assembled a special bumper edition, which includes… read more

Online spice buying options abound

August 8, 2021 by
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Before the internet made the world a much smaller place, learning about, finding and purchasing spices that were not commonly found in traditional European cooking was a challenge for cooks in English-speaking countries like the US, UK, and Australia (the exception being India and other former colonial holdings). If you did not live in or near a large city with… read more

Nach Waxman of NYC’s Kitchen Arts & Letters has died

August 5, 2021 by
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One of the best known bookstores dedicated to cookbooks and other food-related tomes has just lost its founding father. We learned that Nach Waxman, who started Kitchen Arts & Letters in New York's Upper East Side in 1983, died suddenly yesterday. Before he became the “patron saint of food writers,” Waxman worked as an editor at Macmillan, Harper & Row,… read more

Paris Hilton’s new Netflix series is all about cooking – sort of

August 4, 2021 by
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Celebrities branching out from singing or acting into cooking (whether through cookbooks or cooking shows) has become commonplace. Some are more successful at it than others - think Chrissy Teigen or Trisha Yearwood - but dozens have given it a go over the years. The latest to score a Netflix special might surprise you, however. Paris Hilton's cooking show 'Cooking… read more

All about miso

August 3, 2021 by
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I did not discover miso until just last year, when the pandemic cooking doldrums spurred me to look beyond my usual repertoire. Several of my cookbooks had recipes that featured the fermented paste, so I ordered some online and started to use it. Miso is one of those ingredients where you wonder how you cooked without it before. If you… read more

Food news antipasto

August 1, 2021 by
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Even though I have pared down my kitchen tool collection, I still have several different whisks. Each handles a particular task better than others. If you're wondering which whisk performs best for different uses, head over to The Kitchn. They have put together a primer on types of whisks and the differences between them. When I make a Caesar salad… read more

Would ‘Lockdown 2.0’ be easier?

July 31, 2021 by
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The Delta variant has thrown us for a loop. It seems that this version of the coronavirus is easier to catch and it can even affect a small portion of people who have been vaccinated. Given the low vaccination rates in some areas, the odds of having another lockdown have increased modestly, if not significantly. If we do have 'Lockdown… read more

The path to better fried foods

July 30, 2021 by
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A few years ago when I wrote a post about the secrets to better frying, I briefly thought about titling the post 'Fear of frying' but thought the title was too esoteric, as not that many people would get the reference I was making. A couple of days ago, I received an email from The Bittman Project where Mark Bittman… read more

Get a gold medal for snacks

July 29, 2021 by
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This year's summer Olympics are unlike any other: first they were postponed for a year, then the spread of the Delta variant of the coronavirus meant that fans would not be able to attend in person. Athletes are contending not only with their competitors but also with heat, oddly quiet arenas and playing fields, and cardboard beds (which are much… read more

How cast iron pans are made

July 26, 2021 by
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Cast iron cookware has enjoyed renewed popularity of late, with people singing its praises in blogs and magazine articles, and crowd-sourced companies adding 21st century flair and technology to the time-honored craft. The technique of making cast iron is not a secret - it's right there in the name - but have you ever witnessed a foundry at work? It's… read more

Food news antipasto

July 25, 2021 by
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Millions of people watched famed chef Jacques Pépin's short cooking videos during the pandemic. Although I never much paid attention to the clothing he was wearing, Charlotte Reilly of Inside Hook took notice. She added him to her list of the 50 best dressed men over 50. Reilly says she was impressed by "how simply and timelessly Pépin is dressed"… read more

Everything you always wanted to know about vanilla

July 24, 2021 by
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Vanilla as an adjective is a synonym for boring, but as a flavoring extract it is anything but blah. Why the term 'vanilla' took on such a connotation is an interesting story in itself, but we're here to talk about the actual product, not its colloquial use. Over at Eater, Jamie Feldmar takes a deep dive into vanilla, explaining what… read more

Why you should add tahini to your pantry

July 23, 2021 by
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When I was growing up in a tiny town in the midst of the US Great Plains, I was not exposed to a wide variety of foods. It wasn't until I left home to attend college that I first experienced items most people would find ordinary, such as avocados, asparagus, and leeks, much less any foods from Asian, African, or… read more

The “Cookbook Queen” of Mar Vista is selling her collection

July 22, 2021 by
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When you have a large collection of cookbooks, determining what to do with them once you are no longer around can be a difficult decision. Some people opt to pare down to the bare minimum when downsizing a house, others make arrangements with libraries or schools to donate their books. Ellin Palmer of Mar Vista, California, is taking a different… read more

Doing the can-can

July 21, 2021 by
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Just as the home gardening trend has continued this year, so has the demand for canning supplies. Last year's shortage of canning jar lids spilled over to 2021, and it is still difficult, if not impossible, to find jar lids in the US - at least if you want to buy US made lids. In late 2020, I scoured the… read more

Food news antipasto

July 18, 2021 by
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The Anthony Bourdain documentary titled 'Roadrunner' was released in theaters on July 15 and is getting mixed reviews from critics. Helen Rosner likes it (but is disquieted by the artificial intelligence used to fabricate Bourdain's voice), while Sean Burns says it is more of a petty tell-all than a true portrait of the revered chef. The film explores Bourdain's life,… read more

Who invented the ice cream cone?

July 17, 2021 by
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When I was a kid, one of my favorite frozen treats was a sundae cone. The combination of crisp waffle cone, cold ice cream, and a tiny chocolate nub at the bottom, was nirvana. To this day, if I am offered one I will not pass it up, despite knowing its calorie, fat, and sugar counts (yowza). The origin story… read more

The cookbook that helped save a language

July 15, 2021 by
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Cookbooks are amazing things: they tell stories, share culinary touchstones for cultures, and provide us with instructions on how to make the most fabulous foods. One cookbook goes above and beyond, however. Gastro Obscura shares the story of Valentin Vodnik's 1799 volume, simply called The Cookbook, which helped to save an entire language. Vodnik was a priest on a mission… read more

Nigella Lawson announces book mini-tour

July 14, 2021 by
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Nigella Lawson's Cook, Eat, Repeat: Ingredients, Recipes and Stories was the perfect tome to bring us through lockdown and beyond. When the book came out last fall, an author tour was out of the question, but things have changed since then. Yesterday Nigella announced some exciting news: she will be doing a mini-tour this autumn, and tickets went on sale… read more

Making the most of mango season

July 12, 2021 by
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Seeing a huge display of mangoes at the grocery store always puts a smile on my face. The tropical fruit gets a workout at my house, finding its way into everything from creamy lassi to piquant salsa. If you are fortunate enough to live in an area that a large selection mango varieties, head over to Saveur to find out… read more
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