Q: My husband and I got a bottle of port late in the winter. We haven't used much, and now the weather is quickly warming up. Neither of us likes to drink port in warmer weather. What else can I do with it? Are there any cocktails with port? What about food recipes for the spring and summer?

Sent by Alison

Q: I love caramelized onions, but too frequently I go from deliciousness to burnt onions. I don't know if it's the heat level, time on the stove, sugar, olive oil vs. butter. What are your suggestions to make amazing caramelized onions without turning them into little burnt crisps?

Sent by Lindsay

Q: I recently bought a pound of Trader Joe's bittersweet chocolate with almonds on accident as I did not see the mention of almonds on the label. This didn't work for the recipe I was making, and I'm not sure what else I can cook or bake with it? 

Q: I bought some tamarind to use, but didn't get the concentrate — it is "wet tamarind," which is basically just a big chunk of fruit, seedless, in the package. I tried to use it in a sauce and it was just a gooey, sticky mess. How do I use this ingredient?

Sent by Chris

Q: I use hoisin sauce in stir fries and in a dipping sauce for Vietnamese spring rolls. Are there other ways for me to use this tasty ingredient?

Sent by Zaboo

Q: I bought a type of lettuce I've never seen before at a local farmer's market, and I forgot to write down the name. The leaves are juicier than any other lettuce I've had before, and the flavor is almost salty. Any idea what this is called?

Sent by Jaimi

Q: We go through a fair amount of cheese at our house, and recently we started freezing the rinds. I know that we can simmer these in tomato sauce to give a nice flavor, and we've done that, but the problem is we go through WAY more cheese than we make homemade tomato sauce. 

Q: I was raised in Hong Kong and grew up eating desserts with Chinese and European/British influences. A lot of the cakes back home had this hard layer at the bottom, almost like a cardboard cake round, but edible. There was a thin jam brushed between the cake and the edible round. 

Q: I want to start using coconut oil in some gluten-free baking but cannot find specific instructions. Can you confirm that when a recipe calls for 1/4 cup coconut oil, it means melted to liquid form? Also, is there a good method for liquefying the coconut oil?

Sent by Kara

Q: The lumps you see in the picture were once dark chocolate pieces from one of the top chocolate brands, and had an expiration date of May 2012. They were stored in the pantry all this time and forgotten... Tastes fine to me today (no rancid smell/taste, etc) but I'm wondering if they're still ok?

Sent by Nisha