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When I agreed to follow in Faith's and Emma's footsteps and share my ten most-used kitchen tools, I had no idea just how difficult it would be! But after considering all the candidates, eliminating anything I hadn't touched in the past week, and reflecting on my daily cooking habits, this was the collection that emerged.

With Thanksgiving around the corner, we have been contemplating gratitude not just for the good food in our lives, but also for the farmworkers whose unseen hard labor brings this nourishment to our tables. We just watched a new online documentary on this subject, called Fair Food: Field to Table, and highly recommend it.

Last week, we gave you alternatives to traditional Thanksgiving sides like sweet potatoes, green beans, and cranberries. Here's another: pearl onions. If your only encounters with pearl onions have been the creamed or defrosted-from-a-box-of-frozen-peas variety, the appeal of those little white orbs might have eluded you. But these five updated, jewel-toned recipes are sure to put pearl onions in a whole new light.

When we included pasta measuring tools on our list of 10 Most Useless Kitchen Gadgets, many of you chimed in that you actually find them helpful. Well, if you own an iPhone, here's a tool that allows you to measure pasta without cluttering your kitchen drawers.

As Sara Kate just reminded us, one doesn't really need a recipe to roast vegetables. A simple drizzle of olive oil and salt are quite sufficient … but sometimes a few inspired additions turn into a recipe worth sharing. We think sweet potatoes roasted with star anise, ginger, and lime is one of those.

Yesterday we featured some edible bouquets. How about edible utensils? Check out this appetizing project from French blog Dessine moi un objet.

From the President's pastry chef to a green bean taste test, here's the latest in food news and features…

How are you enjoying the abundance of apples this season? Alongside the fifteen apple recipes we featured yesterday, we have been making batches of apple chips. Most of them are destined for snacking, but here are five other ways we like using apple chips to add a bit of natural sweetness and autumnal flair.

When Daryle Dutton's local food co-op was shut down to make way for high-rise condos, he and his neighbors found themselves having to get in the car and drive 30 minutes just to pick up a tomato for dinner. With the goal of bringing fresh, local food back to the community, Dutton opened Tempe Farmers Market, a new indoor market in downtown Tempe, Arizona. We stopped by last week to check out the store and pick up some regional specialties.

We have been experimenting with persimmon recipes after bringing home a bagful of Fuyus from the Joshua Tree farmers' market last weekend, and we're ready to declare these baked persimmons our favorite of the bunch.

A couple we know recently asked us to settle a debate. He always peeled carrots before cooking; she thought it was wasteful and unnecessary. We told them what we do, but we're also curious to hear from our readers. Do you peel your carrots? What about other fruits and vegetables, like cucumbers, eggplants, and squash?

Bisphenol A (BPA), a chemical found in plastics and food packaging, has made headlines in the past couple of years as it has been linked to heart disease, diabetes, breast and prostate cancers, and reproductive abnormalities. Many of us changed our water bottles due to BPA concerns. A new study from Consumer Reports suggests we might want to check our pantries, too...

Have you ever thought of pairing pumpkin with strawberry? How about soy sauce with cranberry or broccoli with milk chocolate? Would you substitute Gruyère and coconut for butter? A Belgian Web site suggests all of these intriguing combinations and more...

On Saturday mornings, nestled into the foothills of the Mojave desert, the Joshua Tree farmers' market welcomes everyone from free-spirited locals to military base families, park rangers, and tourists. We paid a visit to the market last Saturday, picked up some gorgeous persimmons, pomegranates, and other fall gems, and soaked up the friendly, community-oriented vibe.