The Kitchn Archive
2011

The Kitchn Archive: 2011

Kitchn Archive - 2011
Page 2
A Peek Inside Ruth Reichl’s Kitchen
What has Ruth Reichl been up to since the demise of Gourmet? The Wall Street Journal caught up with the former editor-in-chief in the kitchen of her small country home, where she has been busy working on a novel, a cookbook and a new memoir.Read on to learn about her surprising pie-making technique, the best feature of her new kitchen, and the one ingredient she finds overrated.
Anjali Prasertong
Nov 10, 2011
Tech and Tips for Better Coffee
Given all that our coffee gives us, we hate to make a bad cup of joe. We’re still learning, and are certainly no World Barista Champions, but after a time reading and a series of trials and errors we’ve gotten a lot better than the boilerplate mud-water we used to brew. • Read the full
Faith Durand
Nov 10, 2011
What Are the Best Appetizers for Thanksgiving Day?
Q: My mom has tasked me with an appetizer for Thanksgiving. My family is generally pretty un-adventurous when it comes to food, but I also don’t want something like cheese and crackers, or something too filling before the large meal.Any ideas for something that’s light, interesting (for me), and yet not too “scary” (for the rest of the fam)?Sent by ShannonEditor: Shannon, what about a freshened-up relish tray?
Faith Durand
Nov 9, 2011
Throw a Milk And Cookies Baby Shower
Hosting a baby shower can be overwhelming – themes, finger foods, crepe paper, crudite, etc. For all the hard work, just give people what they want. It’s simple, easy and a snap for others to pitch in and help out. Just give them milk and cookies. • Read the full post at Ohdeedoh
Faith Durand
Nov 9, 2011
Recipe: Drunken Molasses Cookies With Ginger
Around the holidays there’s this influx of spices. All of a sudden every coffee shop and bakery has things laced with cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and ginger. Like everyone else I stuff my chubby little cheeks with as much seasonal flavor but when it comes to making snacks for my own home, I’m looking for something more subtle.
Sarah Rae Smith
Nov 8, 2011
15 Unusual Things to Eat With Salsa
For the last several months I’ve had one staple in my diet. Call me boring, call me what you will, but I really love salsa. It can be chunky, it can be blended, it can be hot or just fresh and mild, it doesn’t much matter. I love them all. In fact, I love salsa so much I’ve eaten it with almost every meal recently. And did you know you can eat salsa with more than chips? Here are 15 things you may or may not have thought to try it out on!
Sarah Rae Smith
Nov 8, 2011
Taste Test: Heritage Turkey vs. Conventional Turkey
Heritage turkeys are old-fashioned breeds with smaller breasts, darker leg meat and heftier price tags than conventionally raised turkeys, but many people say the superior taste is worth the higher cost. Bon Appétit’s Test Kitchen put that assumption to the test with a side-by-side blind tasting of both types of turkey. Which one came out on top?
Anjali Prasertong
Nov 4, 2011
Pinot Noir and Thanksgiving Turkey: Excellent Bedfellows
This is the first of a few posts around wines to serve at Thanksgiving. It is on Pinot Noir, and why it is such a good all-round partner for the turkey and all the trimmings.Why Pinot Noir works so well with turkey & ThanksgivingThere is nothing novel or trailblazing about recommending Pinot Noir with turkey. They have been happy partners for a very long time. What is interesting though, is understanding why Pinot Noir remains such a firm favorite and staple at the Thanksgiving table.
Mary Gorman-McAdams
Nov 3, 2011
How to Ripen Green Tomatoes Indoors
One of heirloom tomato plants has 47 green tomatoes dangling from its branches. Sadly, there is pretty much zero chance they will ripen on the vine before our first frost, so I am going to bring the green tomatoes indoors. We will definitely use a few to make fried green tomato sandwiches and green tomato
Faith Durand
Nov 3, 2011
Recipe: Couscous With Chickpeas, Fennel, and Citrus
Have you ever caramelized fennel? Browning this vegetable in a skillet transforms it into something completely different from its crisp, raw state; all but a trace of the anise flavor melts away and the fennel becomes tender, mellow, and sweet. Caramelized fennel melds perfectly with the textures and flavors of nutty chickpeas, succulent olives, orange, and lemon – and spooned over couscous, it makes a quick-cooking, bright yet hearty dish.
Emily Han
Nov 2, 2011
From the Spice Cupboard: Marash Red Pepper
Marash red pepper flakes might just be the most famous spice you’ve never heard of. It’s been used for years in restaurant kitchens, like that of the famous Chez Panisse, though you don’t often see it on the menu.I only discovered the pepper recently after inhaling an appetizer of tuna carpaccioMarash peppers hail from Turkey, where the spice is used extensively in the cuisine. It can be used fresh, but is more often dried and ground into flakes.
Emma Christensen
Nov 2, 2011
Why I Always Have a Bottle of Sherry in My Kitchen
I nearly always have a bottle of dry sherry in my kitchen, and no, it’s not just for tippling while cooking. Here are a few reasons why I keep this lovely, inexpensive wine around all the time: First, a quick refresh of a primer on sherry: Sherry is a fortified wine, meaning that it is fortified with a neutral spirit, which makes it both higher in alcohol and longer-lasting. Sherries range from very sweet to quite dry, and these drier sherries are phenomenally food-friendly.
Faith Durand
Nov 1, 2011
The Ethical Tomato
Willingly or not, we have all eaten an out-of-season tomato. Maybe it was sliced thin on a fast food burger, or perhaps precariously perched atop a salad at a hoighty-toighty restaurant, but sure as sun, it was consumed, likely without much thought to its farm-to-table story. That story, though, is so very, very important. Here’s
Faith Durand
Nov 1, 2011
Backsplash Idea for Rental Kitchens: Removable Fabric
When you’re renting and you want to jazz up your kitchen, the options are often pretty limited. No paint, no appliance switcheroo, no new materials like tile, countertops, flooring. That’s why we jumped at this nifty temporary backsplash idea: Over at Remodelaholic, there’s a tutorial on putting up a DIY fabric backsplash with starch.
Regina Yunghans
Oct 31, 2011
Spooky & Playful: The Best Halloween Treats for 2011
It’s Halloween — which means we’re all supposed to pull out vats of Jell-O and light ’em with black lights, and scrawl spiderweb icing over elaborate cakes. Right? Well, if you’re short on time for such undertakings, or if you want to avoid the sugar overload of too many Halloween treats, check out this roundup.
Faith Durand
Oct 28, 2011
Canning Homemade Soup: Is It Safe?
Homemade soup is so much tastier than the store-bought canned stuff (and often healthier, too). Fortunately, it’s possible to can your own soups from chicken stock to carrot soup to chili, and for the most part it’s pretty simple … but there are a few important guidelines.• Use a pressure canner: Unlike fruits and tomatoes, soup is a low-acid food and cannot be safely preserved using the boiling water bath method (and definitely not the upside-down jar method).
Emily Han
Oct 28, 2011
Product Review: La Chamba Soup & Bean Pot
There’s a lot of praise for the La Chamba Casserole dish to be found on The Kitchn already, but I can’t resist joining in the love-fest with my newest crush, the La Chamba Soup & Bean Pot. I received this beauty as a gift several weeks ago and have been putting it through its paces ever since. Read on for my review.What is La Chamba? La Chamba is a line of clay cooking pots that are handmade in Colombia. The non-toxic clay naturally contains mica which makes it extra-strong.
Dana Velden
Oct 28, 2011
Recipe: White Bean and Roasted Squash Soup with Pistou
This soup is based on a favorite autumn dish where roasted acorn squash halves are filled with a white bean mixture and drizzled with an herby sauce. It’s a delicious and satisfying dish that just happens to be vegan. It also translates well into this soup, a delectable combination of sweet vegetables (roasted squash, leeks) and creamy beans, punctuated with a dollop of fresh, zingy, garlicky, herby pistou.First, what is pistou and why not pesto?
Dana Velden
Oct 28, 2011
Recipe: Curried Coconut Carrot Soup
Gluten-free, vegan, soy-free, vegetarian — odds are someone with a food sensitivity will be sitting around your table enjoying a meal this holiday season. Why not make a soup everyone can love? This carrot soup is creamy, satisfying and flavorful — the hallmarks of any great recipe. Oh, and it takes about 30 minutes from start to finish, making it a welcome, easy recipe to add to the lineup.
Leela Cyd
Oct 27, 2011
Basic Recipe: Roasted Vegetable Stock
Vegetable stock is a great way to add flavor to soups, but it can sometimes lack the deeper aromatic notes of a meat-based stock. One way to bring in some of the missing savoriness is to roast the stock vegetables before simmering them. This recipe makes a nice stock for vegetable-based soups.
Dana Velden
Oct 27, 2011
Throw a Soup Party! A Reader’s Soup Cook-Off
So, we’ve thrown a lot of soup recipes and ideas at you this week. What are you going to do with them all? Here’s one idea: A soup party and cook-off! Reader Barb sent us this cute party that she threw last winter with some friends. And it wasn’t just a party — it was a friendly contest, too! Read on for all the details and more photos.From Barb:We hosted the Big Mouth, Big Bowl Challenge: Soup Edition on a chilly Saturday afternoon.
Faith Durand
Oct 27, 2011
Crock-Pot Cooking: 7 Principles For Making Better Soup in the Slow Cooker
If you’re trying to adapt a regular soup recipe to your slow cooker or improve one you’ve already made, here are a few slow-cooking tips to help you make the best soup ever.1. Ingredients to Add at the Beginning Some ingredients stand up to, and benefit from, longer cooking times more than others. All of these can be added at the very start of cooking.
Emma Christensen
Oct 27, 2011
Play Greengrocer Shop Made from Cardboard
We love this new take on the play kitchen: play green grocer store! LiEr of Ikat Bag makes amazing things for her kids out of cardboard; remember this faraway tree? She’s just completed an amazing green grocer store, and she provides a great tutorial, too. • Read the full post at Ohdeedoh
Faith Durand
Oct 27, 2011
Recipe: Roasted Apple and Winter Squash Soup
I live in a house divided. You see, I adore soup in all its forms and flavors … my partner, not so much. So when he declared that he would gladly sip this roasted apple and winter squash soup on a regular basis, I knew we had a winner.From the harvest ingredients to the kitchen-warming preparation, this soup just embodies autumn.
Emily Han
Oct 26, 2011
5 Tips for Making Perfectly Pureed Soups
No matter what equipment you have in your kitchen or how perfectly creamy you prefer your soups, here are some tips to help you puree your next soup.1. Choose Your Equipment – When it comes time to puree a soup, our main choices are a blender, a food processor, or an immersion blender. Each has their pros and cons:• Blenders – Blenders do a great job of pureeing soups.
Emma Christensen
Oct 26, 2011
What Are Your Favorite Cooking Apps? A Few Picks
(Image credit: Mike Tyson) The iPad/iPhone has introduced a whole new way for people to engage with food. It has been particularly helpful for those who aren’t exactly proficient in the art of cooking, have the courage to expand their repertoire beyond the typical pasta dinner. After the jump we’ve collected a few apps that
Faith Durand
Oct 26, 2011
Stockpiling Your Scraps: What to Save & Freeze for Stocks
When it’s time to make a batch of stock, I don’t head to the grocery store. I just open the freezer. Inside I keep freezer bags full of scraps that by themselves are inedible, but when simmered slowly for hours, transform into the magical elixir that is from-scratch stock. So what should you be saving instead of tossing in the trash? • Bones and carcasses: Whenever I roast a chicken, I wrap up the carcass in foil and store it in the freezer a freezer bag.
Anjali Prasertong
Oct 25, 2011
5 Ways to Do a Green Remodel in the Kitchen
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: the kitchen is often the very heart of the home. It is by far one of my favorite spaces, and that’s saying a lot since the kitchen I call home is a scant ten feet long and three feet wide. It’s there, though, that green renovations
Faith Durand
Oct 25, 2011
Dull Soup? Fix It With Just One Ingredient
Have you ever made a soup that was well-salted and full of flavorful components, but tasted a little…flat? There’s an easy fix you might be overlooking. Just add acid! A small amount of an acidic ingredient like lemon juice added at the end of cooking brightens flavors, especially in long-simmered bean soups or rich meat-based soups. Start with a little bit of acid, taste and adjust, until your soup tastes balanced and bright.
Anjali Prasertong
Oct 24, 2011
Soup Tricks: How to Avoid (and Fix) a Salty Soup
An overly salty soup is no one’s idea of a good meal, and this comes from a self-professed salt fiend! Here are two tricks to get the seasoning just right…and what to do when you realize you were maybe still a bit too heavy-handed.Think about salting at the beginning and the end. The first step of almost any soup is to sauté the vegetables to bring out their flavor and get them started cooking.
Emma Christensen
Oct 24, 2011
Get the Retro Kitchen Look
I’m in the middle of planning my kitchen remodel so I’ve been on a kitchen “kick” lately. I’ve been obsessed with the Big Chill retro appliances for years and now is my chance to go for the look without going over the top. While playing off of a neutral base with the cupboards and countertops,
Faith Durand
Oct 24, 2011
Recipe: Spiced Apple Jellies With Yogurt Mousse
These pretty cups of spiced apple jelly topped with lightly sweetened yogurt mousse taste like apple pie in Jell-O form. But better than Jell-O — this spoon dessert is made with agar instead of gelatin, so even vegetarian dessert lovers can indulge. Combining the very Western flavor of spiced apple cider with the texture of an Asian agar-based jelly, this is a sweet that is both intriguing and comfortingly familiar.
Anjali Prasertong
Oct 21, 2011
Strange Symbiosis: The Fig and the Wasp
It sounds like a rumor on the elementary school playground: figs have digested wasps in them! Except that unlike most grade school legends, this one is actually true. This week The Atlantic shared a fascinating excerpt from the science blog Oscillator, which explains the symbiotic relationship between certain fig trees and the wasps that pollinate them. Figs are technically inverted flowers that store their pollen inside the fruits.
Anjali Prasertong
Oct 21, 2011
Pears! 7 Common Types and How to Use Them
If you’re browsing your local farmer’s market, you’ll probably see more than seven types of pears. You may even discover a totally new (and vaguely unpronounceable) variety that becomes your favorite. But for now, let’s talk basics. What’s the difference between a Bartlett and a Bosc? And which one should you pick up for your afternoon snack? These seven types of pears are what we see most often at the grocery store.
Elizabeth Passarella
Oct 20, 2011
Recipe: Baked Apple Dumplings
As I’ve mentioned here before, I’m a pretty big fan of the Southern restaurant chain Cracker Barrel. Their buttermilk biscuits are the lightest, airiest biscuits around. The chicken & dumplings and hashbrown casserole are pretty rockin’, too. But once in a blue moon I’ll indulge in their most decadent menu item of all, baked apple dumplings. Up until a few days ago, Cracker Barrel’s apple dumplings were all I knew.
Nealey Dozier
Oct 20, 2011
The Misunderstood Prune: 10 Recipes, Sweet & Savory
Prunes need to revamp their image. Most people associate them with the elderly and the infirm, making them possibly the least sexy fruit ever, when in reality they are soft, sweet, deeply flavored — and dare we say sexy? Not only that, prunes are adaptable; they are as good served with duck as they are stewed with sweet port wine and spooned over cake. Prune lover or merely prune-curious? Check out the 10 recipes below!
Anjali Prasertong
Oct 20, 2011
How To Make a Small, Quick Batch of Applesauce
Have you ever made warm, silky, cinnamon-spiked applesauce? It’s the simplest thing in the world, and it’s a good way to use up windfall apples, or ones with brown spots on the edge of going bad. If you’ve never tried this simple cooking DIY, then why not celebrate fall with a little pot of applesauce this week? You only need apples, water, a bit of citrus peel (if you want) and cinnamon (if you’re so inclined).
Faith Durand
Oct 19, 2011
Fall Breakfast Recipe: Coconut Gooseberry Clafoutis
Have you ever encountered the sparkling green or red gooseberry? Commonly found in many parts of the Eastern United States and England, I myself (based on the West coast) had never tried the sweet/sour little fruits. When I bought a can of them 6 months ago, I aimed to throw them into a summer pie or jam. Instead, my forgetfulness inspired this Fall recipe for a clafouti.Have you heard of this divine, rustic breakfast-meets-dessert treat?
Leela Cyd
Oct 19, 2011
Virtual Grocery Vending Machines of the Future
The winners of the Good Design Awards were announced this week and we took particular interest in the tech design entries. While browsing the consumer services category, we came across the next-century vending machine from Tokyo. It got us excited and now we’re anticipating when smart vending machines will become the norm here. • Read
Faith Durand
Oct 19, 2011
Pretty for a Party: Fall Salad Served in Apple Bowls
Want a sweet little presentation for a simple autumn salad? Get out your melon baller.We saw these beautiful salads served in apple shells over at Yummy Mummy. It sounds pretty easy—slice off the top of the apple and scoop out the flesh with an ice cream scoop or a melon baller, leaving a thick edge.The salad inside is so colorful and lush, a mix of avocado, blue cheese, apple, and pomegranate seeds.
Elizabeth Passarella
Oct 18, 2011
How to Store Autumn Fruits
Pears and apples and quince! Figs and persimmons and pomegranates! Grapes and kiwi and fresh dates! Some of the most delicious fruits come to us in the autumn. It can be confusing to figure out how to store them, as every fruit has different requirements. Some ripen on the tree, some afterwards. Some need refrigeration, some don’t. Read on for our guide on how to store autumn fruits.
Dana Velden
Oct 18, 2011
Homemade Concord Grape Soda from Saveur
I usually find sodas to be too sweet and syrupy for my taste. But homemade sodas? I can get on board with those. And when the arrival of Concord grapes at the market coincided with the arrival of this recipe in the October issue of Saveur, I was sold.Now, the Saveur recipe simply calls for a few cups of “pure Concord grape juice.” You can certainly buy this in bottles at Whole Foods and other stores, but with grapes in season, I figured why not go for the real deal?
Emma Christensen
Oct 18, 2011
My Favorite Way to Seed a Pomegranate
If you’ve ever whacked a cut open pomegranate with a wooden spoon or fumbled around with it under water, then you know extracting those lovely seeds (also called arils) is a messy endeavor. But it doesn’t have to be this way! Read on for my favorite way to extract the arils from a pomegranate! Pomegranates are a beautiful fall-to-winter fruit, delicious and full of antioxidants, too.
Dana Velden
Oct 17, 2011
DIY Cleaner and Equipment Checklist
I’m still not a fan of chores, but I’ve found that if I have the tools I need on hand, it’s not so bad. I’ve been making more and more of my own. It’s easy, affordable, and I feel a sense of accomplishment after a good clean with a natural cleaning product made by me.
Faith Durand
Oct 17, 2011
What Can I Do With 100% Cranberry Juice?
Q: I bought two big jars of 100% cranberry juice at a half-off sale, and am looking for some suggestions on how to use them!So far I have just been adding a little to my water bottle, but thus far am only halfway through the first jar!Sent by SaraEditor: Sara, you could try the juice in a holiday cocktail, or you could skip the puree step in this recipe for cranberry squares with walnut shortbread crust, and just use the juice.Readers, what else would you suggest?Next question?
Faith Durand
Oct 14, 2011
What Are the Best Desserts to Follow a Pasta Feast?
Pasta is treat enough for many people — they push back from the table and don’t want a bite more to eat. But what if you’re someone who likes to end a meal with something sweet, even if you just had a big plate of rich pasta? What’s the best dessert to follow a pasta feast? Personally, I feel that something very light is best after a pasta meal. Sometimes I forgo dessert entirely and have a glass of port or another dessert wine instead.
Faith Durand
Oct 14, 2011
Recipe: Double-Garlic Herb Garlic Bread
Some days you just have to go all out. Maybe you have soft cheeses and crackers before dinner, open a bottle of good wine, make spaghetti and meatballs and then decide that garlic bread is also important. When you can’t stop thinking about garlic bread, this is the recipe for you.There are two important things to remember when making garlic bread. First, use a good baguette that you like. I’m not a fan of using squishy white sandwich bread.
Megan Gordon
Oct 14, 2011
How to Make Fettuccine Alfredo
Fettuccine alfredo is one of those dishes that is somehow more than the sum of its parts. Of course, when those parts are primarily butter, cream, cheese, and pasta, it’s extremely hard to go wrong. There are dozens of slightly different ways to make this dish. Parmesan and butter all on their own are traditional, but a splash of cream does have the advantage of making the alfredo extra delicious (not to mention indulgent).
Emma Christensen
Oct 13, 2011