Q: My boyfriend is in love with quinoa and I am too. I'd like to expand our horizons and get him a quinoa cookbook for his birthday; does anyone have recommendations? If it includes desserts or baked goods, all the better.

Sent by Marla

Q: I bought a rather expensive hunk of cotija cheese for our Cinco de Mayo tacos. What else can I do with it besides add to salads?

Sent by Diane

Q: What are the best dairy substitutes for savory recipes? As in cheese- or cream-based dishes? I've read about replacing milk with almond milk or coconut milk for baking and sweet foods, but they sound like they would be too sweet for a pasta sauce or casseroles. 

Q: I love making homemade salsa, but when I buy cilantro, half the bunch always goes to waste. I use quite a bit in the salsa, but I just don't know what to do with the rest. Are there any good ways to use the rest up?

Sent by Whitney

Q: I have a little tub of duck fat in my fridge — about a cup and a half. What should I do with it?

Sent by Julia

Q: I got a pound of frozen trout in my CSA this week. I'm a single lady on a tight budget, so I don't really want to share my one pound of meat for the week! The trout is pretty frozen so I can't separate the fillets. Any ideas or recipes that will use the whole pound? Ideally something that can be frozen afterwards?

Q: I live in NYC and regularly buy fresh pasta from specialty shops. I love bucatini but have never seen bucatini sold fresh. Is there a reason why bucatini cannot be sold fresh or is there a place I can go to buy some that I have not thought of?

Sent by Mike

Q: I saw acorn starch at my local Asian market. I'm curious to try it out but I know nothing about it. What is it and what can I do with it?

Sent by Traci

Q: What can I do with Adzuki beans? I bought a stockpile of them from the bulk section for no other reason than that they were new and unfamiliar. After getting home, I realized that they're the base for the red bean paste I know and love in Chinese and Japanese desserts, but I have far more than can be consumed through desserts alone.

Q: I have been given tons of beef jerky. As much as we like to it, there's only so much beef jerky one can eat. Does anyone have good ideas on how I could cook with it? Or other ideas for using it?

Sent by Wee