Traditional fats are one of the building blocks of food: they carry flavor, they provide a creamy taste and texture, and they have more nutrients per gram than their cousins carbohydrates and proteins. (When I say “traditional” fats, I mean fats from whole foods — both plant and animal — not man-made, refined fats that [...]
Continue reading about Of Macadamia Nuts, Salad Dressings & Oil Labels
In the world of natural sweeteners — i.e., unrefined sweeteners like maple syrup and molasses — there aren’t as many solid sweeteners as there are liquid ones. Normally, this works out fine when baking, because most baked goods include liquids (which allows you to tinker with the overall total amount of liquids), but some baked [...]
Continue reading about Creating Tasty & Healthy Chiffon Cakes (Amongst Other Things)
Grocery stores ought to have an aisle labeled “Truly Scary Food-Like Substances.” That aisle would contain low-fat flavored yogurt (the majority of which contains a host of unpronounceable sugars and fillers), low-fat salad dressings (ditto), breakfast cereals (up to 40% sugar), breadcrumbs (the ingredient list is the entire length of the can!), and croutons (more [...]
When it comes to most things in life, I think it’s safe to say that the difference between “failure” and “success” is largely a matter of perception. This philosophy is certainly true in the kitchen! It’s even more true when it comes to baking — you never know when breads won’t rise or muffins will [...]
Limes have a certain pizazz that lemons just don’t. Grapefruit doesn’t, either…in fact, not even tangerines can match up to a lime’s potential to play a sweet/sour role as a keynote flavor or background blend. A squirt of lime juice also lends a dish a Mexican or Caribbean flavor that an orange simply can’t provide. [...]
Even though most stovetops have four burners, why not do some creative subtraction and just use one? (Assuming you have a big enough pot.) Dishes based on starches, grains, and vegetables are prime candidates for honing your math skills: just figure out how many minutes each item takes to cook and then subtract them from [...]
One day a pot of simmered and marinated vegetables, the next day a cold gazpacho soup, then finally a luscious pizza topping…it’s just a few days in the life of a leftover. It’s like kitchen magic!
Remember the Moroccan caponata? I’d made such a big batch that I wound up freezing a bowl of it. When [...]
Leftovers can be magic–especially versatile leftovers like roasted red pepper and chicken. Just add a bit of pasta and olive oil, sprinkle with parsley, and poof! you have a delicious meal. With a bit of purposeful overproduction, in fact, you can create your own healthy freezer meals/leftovers. (But be sure to stick with your original [...]
Rather than being a daily chore, cooking can be a daily stress-reliever: you can use your time in the kitchen to express your creativity, to unwind after a long day, to gain immediate satisfaction from serving healthy food to yourself and others…or all three! Here are some tips to help you enjoy your [...]
Aside from “preheat oven to [x] degrees,” the most common instruction you’ll find in baking recipes is “grease and flour an [x]-sized pan.” This can either involve a fair amount of messiness–greasy hands, crumpled butter wrappers, etc.–or it can be quick and easy.
The best way to get an evenly-greased and -floured pan is to use [...]
Continue reading about Flouring & Greasing Pans the Easy Way
