When I do culinary talks, I often hand out a sheet I call “The Art of Refrigerator Triage.” It’s about letting your refrigerator make your dinner-making decisions for you so that the pressure is off both you and your wallet — if you make use of what you already have while it’s still fresh and [...]
Eggs make a lovely breakfast for so many reasons: they’re delicious on their own or mixed with just about anything, you can make them in nearly uncountable ways, and they’re a satisfying way to start the day. Plus, if you don’t want to make your eggs on the spot when you get up, you can [...]
Should you find yourself with leftover turkey this holiday season, rejoice! There’s no end to what you can do with leftover turkey. (Or chicken, for that matter. In fact, just about any leftover meat can be put to a myriad of culinary uses.) This easy-to-make soup includes a host of holiday ingredients: carrots, green onions, [...]
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Traditional tapenade includes the holy trinity of salty garnishing ingredients: olives, anchovies, and capers. It’s an intense blend of flavors and a perfect example of the “a little goes a long way” school of thought. For this batch, though, I’ve decided to go alter the main ingredients and go with the holy trinity of umami, [...]
What do Brussels sprouts, potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms have in common? They were all in my pantry begging to be made into soup. The lentils looked lonely, too, so I threw them into the mix. Hearty soups are best made in the winter, after all, even if the term “winter” doesn’t seem to currently imply [...]
Why taste one thing when you can taste three? Or four or five? Not only are nibbles — or “small plates,” if you want to get fancy about it — usually something quick and simple, if you have enough nibbles on a plate, you have a meal! So the next time you’re in the mood [...]
Continue reading about Unleashing Your Inner (and Thrifty) Gourmet
Greek yogurt is the latest craze in the dairy aisle, and rightfully so: it’s thicker, creamier, and tastier (in my opinion, at least) than standard yogurt. In large part, that’s because it’s double-strained instead of single-strained, which means more of the whey drips out, leaving a more concentrated, full-bodied yogurt behind. Another difference is that [...]
Continue reading about Turning Yogurt into Cream Cheese…and Dipping In!
Marinated mushrooms: those tasty fungi at the end of grocery-store olive bars that pretty much everyone ignores. I must have passed by the garlicky little suckers a dozen times before I even registered their presence. Once I tried them, though, I knew they’d be delicious in a wide variety of dishes … not to mention [...]
Toasting and roasting. Both techniques are simple and add incredible depth to whatever ingredient you’re emphasizing or dish you’re serving. Recently, it occurred to me that toasted nuts have such a deep flavor that they could probably stand in for cheese. I’m a huge cheese fan, but for those who can’t have cheese, toasted nuts [...]
Grill them, stuff them, use them as hamburger toppings … portabello mushrooms are a favorite summer treat. But my favorite way to enjoy them is to slice them very thin and sautée them with extra-virgin olive oil and a pinch of sea salt so that you wind up with portabello crisps. It’s the perfect base [...]
Continue reading about Crispy Portabellos Make the Best Salads
