Thanksgiving recipes are delicious throughout the fall season

October 6, 2018 by
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Monday marks Canadian Thanksgiving, and the US holiday is right on its heels, landing on November 22. That means it is time to gather the family favorites as well as check out new items to try for this year's feast. Whether you are looking for last minute ideas before the big day or are a meticulous planner who likes to… read more

How to make ingredient substitutions that work

October 5, 2018 by
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Have you ever read a comment on an online recipe that made you shake your head? The ones that get me are those where the person gives the recipe a bad review, but notes in the comments that he or she substituted one of the main ingredients with something that (in my mind) would obviously not work for the type… read more

Have you thrown any cocktails lately?

October 4, 2018 by
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There are few things more satisfying to a cocktail aficionado than the sound of a drink being shaken over ice. Shaking cocktails is a time-honored tradition, but there is another way to mix drinks that predates this method. It's called throwing cocktails, and bartenders across the US are beginning to embrace it.  When I first heard the term, I envisioned… read more

An unsung winner works to rebuild her success

October 3, 2018 by
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If you have ever had dreams about participating in and eventually winning a reality cooking show but never made it past the application stage, you understand disappointment. But your chagrin at not making the grade likely pales in comparison to that of Vallery Lomas. She won a televised cooking competition, but no one was ever allowed to see it. Lomas… read more

Change is coming to the Beard Awards

October 2, 2018 by
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"If every restaurant team had an equal number of men and women, what effect would that have on the work environment? On the service? On the food? What if racial equity were the norm in kitchens and dining rooms across the country?" Those are the questions posed today by the James Beard Foundation in a blog post announcing changes to… read more

Perfect your butter-basting technique

October 1, 2018 by
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Have you ever watched professional chefs on a cooking show cooking a piece of meat in a skillet, scooping liquid from the pan in deft strokes and pouring it over the steak or chop? This technique, called butter basting, is beloved by many chefs. Although it requires a bit more finesse than some other techniques, Daniel Gritzer shows us how… read more

Classics are classics for a reason

September 30, 2018 by
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While I find it exciting to challenge myself by trying new recipes, sometimes I just want the old 'tried and true' dishes. Whether it's because I am tired at the end of the day, I don't feel well, or because something reminds me of a favorite treat, I will defer to a classic recipe over a novel one.  Classics have… read more

Bring the flavors of fall into your cocktails

September 29, 2018 by
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Fall has begun in earnest in many parts of the Northern Hemisphere, with crisp morning temperatures, crystal clear days, and gorgeous displays of color. Along with the change of the season comes a change in foods, with warm comforting items taking center stage. In addition to entrees, appetizers, and desserts, the flavors of fall can be extended to cocktails too.… read more

You might just flip for these pancakes

September 28, 2018 by
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Pancakes have been a breakfast staple for centuries. Over the years regional specialties emerged, but restaurants have tended to go for the standard buttermilk pancake topped with syrup or fruit. As Bon Appétit reports, today restaurants are venturing into new territory by making pancakes with diverse ingredients such as alternative grains, coffee flour, and sourdough.  Chef Jason Wilson, of The Lakehouse in Bellevue,… read more

Do you wear an apron in the kitchen?

September 27, 2018 by
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In addition to cookbooks, I have other kitchen obsessions: Bundt pans, ramekins, vintage food tins - and aprons. Ever since I was given an apron for my college graduation (along with a copy of Joy of Cooking), I've been hooked on having aprons on hand to keep my clothes from being splattered.  As much as I adore my beautiful and… read more

Political turmoil can follow you into the kitchen

September 26, 2018 by
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It seems there is no escaping politics in today's world. Even if you try to escape by retreating into the kitchen to do some cooking and baking, political issues can still creep in. Food and agriculture are playing huge roles in global trade disputes, which show no signs of relenting.  The argument over a revision of NAFTA, the free-trade agreement… read more

An ode to the public library

September 25, 2018 by
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While I have a decent-sized cookbook collection, I realize that I simply cannot have every new cookbook that catches my eye, nor can I collect every worthy classic. There is only so much shelf space and budget available, even though Jenny's monthly review always tempt me. However, I have a way to deal with this situation: visit my local library. … read more

It only takes one recipe

September 24, 2018 by
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Everyone has a food that he or she just doesn't like. Many times the dislike reaches all the way back into the person's childhood. However, these preferences are not carved into stone, and you can turn from someone who despises a certain food into a person who really enjoys eating it. Sometimes all it takes is one recipe to bridge… read more

Take a trip to the ranch

September 23, 2018 by
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Few things fascinate me as much as food history. It's always interesting to find out the origins of food, and usually the stories say as much about the people as they do the foodstuff themselves. Julia Moskin recently dived deep into the history of an iconic American food: ranch dressing. Unlike many other foods, the history of ranch dressing isn't… read more

Good Eats: Reloaded heading to Cooking Channel

September 19, 2018 by
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Alton Brown provided his fans with a bit of good news earlier this week, when he posted a status update about Good Eats to his Facebook page. In it, he announced that he's "revisiting the Good Eats library and renovating some classic episodes by adding new scenes, new science and new recipes." The first revamped episode of what is being… read more

Bonnie Benwick on downsizing a kitchen

September 18, 2018 by
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There are many reasons that people downsize their homes, the most obvious being retirement or divorce. If you have a kitchen filled with gadgets and cookware (not to mention a study stuffed with cookbooks), the thought of moving to a much smaller place might give you cold chills. But getting rid of things isn't always bad, as food writer Bonnie… read more

Nigel Slater reminisces about ‘How to Eat’

September 16, 2018 by
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Some cookbooks age much better than others. After a couple of decades, what's left of the 'unicorn food' books are going to littering vintage shops, with shoppers making snide comments about how silly people were back in the teens. Other volumes, however, have timeless appeal. When you are lucky enough to find a copy in the resale store, it will… read more

Use your instant read thermometer for more than just meat

September 15, 2018 by
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If you have an instant read thermometer, there's a high likelihood that you purchased for its speed and accuracy when measuring the temperature of large cuts of meat like steaks, whole chicken, roasts, and chops. However, the uses for this nifty device don't end there, as The Washington Post explains. It's also handy for many other foods, too.  Delicate items… read more

Cooking Light ends subscription print publication

September 14, 2018 by
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Over the course of my cooking career I have subscribed to many different food magazines: Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Saveur, and Cooking Light to name just a few. In the past few years, these elder statesmen of culinary journalism have faced the mounting pressures that are devastating most of the print magazine industry. Gourmet was the first to succumb, folding in… read more

Check out the new ‘Cookbook Love’ podcast

September 13, 2018 by
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Although the traffic is terrible, the worst part of my long daily commute is that it wastes time that I could be spending reading cookbooks. Until now, there has not been much to fill that time that is even cookbook-related. But a new podcast called Cookbook Love is changing that. CookBook Love was started by author, editor, and coach Maggie… read more

Is Food Network bringing sexy back?

September 12, 2018 by
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Food Network and People Magazine are teaming up to redefine the phrase "it's so hot in the kitchen". They are set to produce a new one hour special which will bring together ten of "the country's most beautiful and talented male chefs" for a competition to determine who is the sexiest chef alive.  The hour-long program, which will be broadcast on… read more

Netflix announces lineup for the next two seasons of ‘Chef’s Table’

September 11, 2018 by
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The Netflix series 'Chef's Table' has been one of the best streaming food shows around since its debut in 201x. The streaming service recently announced which chefs would be featured in seasons five and six of the popular series.  The program is being more inclusive than past years, when it featured mostly white, male, Euro-centric chefs. Upcoming chefs are more… read more

Hamilton and Merriman out at The Spotted Pig

September 10, 2018 by
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In June, we reported on chef Gabrielle Hamilton and her wife Ashley Merriman's surprising  plans to take over The Spotted Pig, a NYC restaurant that suffered a huge blow amidst allegations of sexual assault against its owner, Ken Friedman, and investor Mario Batali. It seems that Hamilton and Merriman were not able to effect the change they had hoped to… read more

When a cookbook doesn’t live up to expectations

September 9, 2018 by
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Oh, the thrill of a new cookbook: cracking open the cover, leafing through the pages, and marking the pages of the recipes you want to try first. You gather all of the ingredients and proceed on the maiden voyage. And the results? Eh, it wasn't what you were expecting. You shrug it off, thinking 'not every recipe can be a… read more

How to keep your wooden cutting board in tip top shape

September 8, 2018 by
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Everyone knows that proper seasoning is the key to great cast iron, but what you might not realize is that the same holds true for wooden cutting boards. Over at indexed website Serious Eats, J. Kenji López-Alt gives us great advice on how to season a new cutting board, and how to keep it working (and looking) good for years.  The… read more
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