Author: By SARA MOULTON The Associated Press
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Perfect nooks and crannies make DIY English muffins worth it
Jasper White, one of my favorite Boston-area chefs and an old friend, likes to tell a story about the time Julia Child insisted he make common crackers (the hard round crackers served with chowder in New England) from scratch. It all started when White (appearing as a guest on Child’s television show) confessed that the…
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Two easy, tasty recipes to help you get to know kohlrabi
You might have noticed an odd-looking vegetable at the farmers market recently. It is shaped like Sputnik, the spherical Russian satellite with spikes coming out of it. It can be green or purple, large or small. I bet you are a bit confused about how to prepare and eat it. I am here to help.…
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Soft-shell crabs have a narrow window of delicious. Seize it
Soft-shell crabs are blue crabs from the East Coast that have shed their hard shells on their way to growing a new shell that’s even harder. Losing that first hard shell takes several days, but the new shell starts forming within hours. It’s during that tiny window of opportunity that the soft-shells are harvested. If…
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Cut summer pies down to size – single serving size, that is
Big, family-sized pies tend to get all the summer dessert glory, but when it comes to picnics and backyard barbecues, I favor single-serving hand pies. Sure, it’s a little more work to make a batch of hand pies than to make one large one, but the little guys are easier to transport and easier to…
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Rid the gluten from your pizza with this easy chickpea crust
If there’s a more basic and universally loved dish than pizza, I can’t name it. Bread, cheese and tomatoes … perfect! Unless, that is, you’re one of those poor souls who is sensitive to gluten. Happily, here’s a pizza that swaps out the traditional Italian wheat-based crust for a chickpea “flour” crust that’s popular in…
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Why buy when DIY produces healthier, cheaper peanut butter?
For many parents, back to school time means back to packing lunch for the kids. And that means it’s time to revisit that old lunchbox mainstay, the peanut butter sandwich. The star ingredient tends to come one of two ways – heavily processed or ultra-natural. The more processed peanut butters generally are pumped up with…
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Getting evenly roasted Brussels sprouts is all about space
Brussels sprouts are the tiniest member of the cabbage family. And I’ll confess that I used to hate them. In the old days they were not only boiled, but boiled to death, which generated a truly unfortunate aroma. Happily, intrepid chefs in recent years have managed to reinvent (not to say redeem) these little stinkers…
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This Easter, master perfectly creamy scalloped potatoes
With Easter on its way, my mind has turned to scalloped potatoes, always a big hit at a holiday feast. And really, what’s not to love? We’re talking about sliced potatoes baked in a cream sauce, then topped with cheese or crumbs or both! Still, it takes some care to ensure that the potatoes are…
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In the Super Bowl of pizza, this DIY beats takeout any day
Why make pizza from scratch for a Super Bowl party when you can have it delivered to your door? Here’s why: Homemade pizza tastes better than anything you can buy and it takes much less time and effort than you would think. Making the dough takes only 10 minutes. Then, during the next hour while…
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Bringing baked Alaska into a healthier, modern era
When it comes to ice cream, I generally feel it’s hard to improve on a simple scoop from the carton. But this time my mind has turned to baked Alaska. Baked Alaska once was the star dessert of cruise ship dining rooms and upscale restaurants. The classic recipe called for vanilla ice cream enrobed in…