Author: By SARA MOULTON The Associated Press
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Tips for getting the most flavor – and juice – out of lemons
Fresh lemon – including the juice and the peel – is one of my favorite ingredients, in part because it’s so versatile. It can be the star of the show or a brilliant supporting actor. It’s indispensable in fish dishes and pairs well with all sorts of vegetables, raw and cooked. The great thing about…
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The fresh flavor of white asparagus is worth the search
Here in America we think of white asparagus as the pink elephant of the vegetable world – not even a rumor so much as a hallucination. It has been a staple in Europe for centuries. These days, happily enough, I’ve been spotting white asparagus more often on our side of the pond. White asparagus is…
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A little beer is a lot of flavor in these Super Bowl sliders
Big provisions are required to watch the big game, and nothing is more substantial than a burger, even in its mini form – the slider. If you plan to serve a variety of dishes for the Super Bowl, sliders are more sensible than the full-sized guys. But they happen to be a little trickier to…
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Ditch the dairy to make the most flavorful, creamy soup
With the cold weather, I love to serve soup for supper. It’s an easy sell at my house. But with a soup this good, I believe you can sell anyone on it. The trick is to amp up the flavor, vary the texture and make it substantial. Here I started by roasting – not boiling…
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Great potato salad comes down to how and when you season it
I’m not a fan of potato salad that tastes like a bunch of spuds smothered in mayo. I want more. At the very least, I want to taste the potatoes. Trouble is, potatoes are pretty bland if not properly seasoned. They also need to be seasoned at the right moment during the cooking process. Here’s…
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No room in the oven for sweet potatoes? Take them topside
One of the challenges of producing a big meal is figuring out how to cook all of the various dishes and land them on the table at the same moment. It’s not easy, especially when there’s a big roast of some kind hogging the oven for hours. The part that annoys me most is that…
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A cheesy, spicy cracker that’s good enough to give as gifts
When I was a kid, my parents sometimes brought home tins of delicious cheese crackers. All these years later, the flavor of those crackers – richly cheesy and spicy – remains burned into my memory. This recipe is my attempt to resurrect them. The ingredients and technique for making these crackers are similar to those…
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Bring stuffed mushrooms into the modern era (and to a party)
When I was a kid and my mom was throwing dinner parties, I noticed that one of her go-to appetizers was stuffed mushrooms. The fungi in the spotlight were plain old white cultivated mushrooms stuffed with a mixture of buttery chopped mushrooms stems, onions, breadcrumbs and a little dried thyme or cheese. Those button mushrooms…
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Don’t settle for dull gravy. Learn how to crank the flavor
Just because Thanksgiving mostly is about tradition doesn’t mean that we aren’t open to going off script when it comes to side dishes and exactly how to cook the big bird. But the gravy? It’s where innovation goes to die! Generally, we’re content to just pour some store-bought chicken broth, along with a little butter…
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Entertaining a gaggle of ghouls? Time to dress up popcorn
It’s that time of year again, when gaggles of little ghosts, goblins and ghouls expect sweet treats. This year consider ditching candy in favor of an easy treat you can cook up yourself. I’m talking about popcorn. It’s not only tasty, filling and easy to prepare, it’s versatile too. Make it sweet, and it’ll win…