Cooking & Baking Articles

Article / Updated 05-09-2023

Vegetable purées are simply cooked vegetables (usually boiled or steamed but sometimes roasted) that are mashed, blended, or processed to a thick consistency. Starchy root vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, rutabagas, parsnips, and carrots generally make the best purées, but broccoli, cauliflower, and roasted red peppers are also wonderful, especially when mixed with a dense root vegetable. Thick purées make a great side dish. When thinned with water, broth, or sauce, they make delicious toppings for meat, potatoes, pasta, or rice. To make a purée, put any soft-cooked vegetable or combination of vegetables in a blender or food processor with a bit of water or broth, and purée it. Serve it warm (you can reheat the purée in a saucepan over low heat if it’s cooled off too much). Or use an immersion blender and purée the vegetables right in the pan where you steamed or boiled them. Season with salt and black pepper and your favorite herbs or spices, or in the case of sweet potatoes or winter squash, a bit of honey, maple syrup, or cinnamon. Mmm, comfort food!

Article / Updated 05-03-2023

Appetizers that require marinating are a good way to start a meal. Their acidic freshness primes the palate for what's to follow. This spectacular recipe, Salmon Marinated in Ginger and Cilantro, can be prepared several hours in advance and has a tangy, herbaceous flavor that teases the palate without filling the stomach. Don't substitute powdered ginger for fresh ginger root in this recipe; the same goes for the cilantro. The fresh ingredient tastes entirely different than the dried herbs do. Marinating fish can be tricky business. The acid in the marinade — which comes from the lime and vinegar — actually "cooks" the surface of the fish. Be sure to leave the fish in the marinade only as long as the recipe indicates (4 to 5 hours, in this case). Salmon Marinated in Ginger and Cilantro Preparation time: About 15 minutes plus marinate time Yield: 8 servings 2 pounds skinless, boneless salmon fillets 1/2 cup fresh lime juice 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar 3 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger root 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes Salt and black pepper Lettuce for garnish Slice the salmon thinly (1/4 inch or less) widthwise, leaving strips about 2 inches long. Place the strips in a large bowl. Add the lime juice, onion, vinegar, oil, cilantro, ginger root, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir gently and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 4 to 5 hours. Taste for seasoning. If you need more salt, blend it in thoroughly. Line small serving plates with the lettuce of your choice and place a serving of salmon over the lettuce. Discard the onion-marinade mix. Per serving: Calories 174 (From Fat 76); Fat 9g (Saturated 1g); Cholesterol 62mg; Sodium 68mg; Carbohydrate 0g (Dietary Fiber 0g); Protein 23g. If your salmon pieces have any small bones, use a pair of tweezers or your fingers to remove them before starting to prepare this dish.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 05-02-2023

You start a recipe and suddenly realize you’re missing an ingredient! Oh no, what can you do? Before dashing out to the market, check out this Cheat Sheet for simple substitutions when you’re in a baking jam. Or, perhaps, you want some great resources for help when you’re baking. You’ve come to the right place.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 02-07-2023

Cooking for yourself is a skill anyone can do, whether you are 16 years old or 96 years old. Making your own meals from scratch can be immensely satisfying while also saving you money, allowing more control over your nutritional intake, and providing an outlet to express your creativity. Being able to shop, prep, cook, and feed yourself is the ultimate in self-sufficiency that will bring you energy and joy for the rest of your life.

Article / Updated 12-05-2022

Not another kitchen gadget, right? Overall, I am a fan of an excellent knife and solid cutting board for most salad recipes. Tools can help with storage and preparation techniques, and they can enhance your use of ingredients. When you’re making a salad, you don’t need much — just a good knife, a solid cutting board, and a fun way to serve your salad. Those are the basics. But if you want to create some cool cuts or create salads that have roasted or spiralized vegetables, you may want to grab some more tools. If you love stocking up on kitchen gadgets, use this list as your excuse to cut loose! But you don’t need all the fancy tools to make a successful salad. Useful tools for great salads You can find each of the following items (listed roughly in order from most important to least important) at Williams-Sonoma or on Amazon: Chef’s knife: A 6- or 8-inch chef’s knife is ideal for many tasks when you’re making salads. Top-rated knife brands include Mercer, Opinel, Victorinox, Wüsthof, and Zwilling. Keep in mind: One good knife is better than a bunch of cheap knives. Cutting board: Many people keep a couple of different colored cutting boards on hand to identify what they use them for — for example, green for produce, red for meats, and white for breads.The advantage of plastic cutting boards is that they’re usually dishwasher safe. Wood cutting boards are my favorite, though, and I oil mine with mineral oil every couple of weeks to keep the boards in top shape. IKEA has inexpensive wood cutting boards; if you keep wood cutting boards oiled, they’ll hold up to heavy use. Plus, wood cutting boards break down in landfills, unlike plastic. Paring knife: A paring knife is handy for smaller knife skills or hand peeling. Tongs: A variety of sizes exist. In my kitchen, I keep three sets of tongs on hand for turning meats or tofu in a frying pan, grilling, and tossing salads. Salad spinner: Salad spinners really help prolong the life of your greens. Wash them as soon as you get them and spin them dry to have lettuce ready any day of the week. OXO makes a small salad spinner that’s a great starting point. Food processor: Whether I’m whipping up a dressing or slicing vegetables, I regularly use my food processor. I’ve had a Cuisinart food processor for almost 30 years, and it still works well. You can find less expensive brands and more expensive brands — just consider your budget and what works best for your kitchen space. Bread knife: A well-made serrated knife is great for slicing your favorite crusty French bread to serve with your salad. Vegetable peeler: A multifunctional peeler can help with finite cuts, such as a julienne. The Deiss PRO Dual Julienne and Vegetable Peeler is well rated and can be found on Amazon. Mandoline slicing tool: I have owned both a giant mandoline and a hand-held version, but I prefer a simple hand-held mandolin. The OXO Good Grips Simple Mandoline Slicer is easy to use and is dishwasher safe. Be mindful and use the guard when using a mandoline — even experienced chefs have cut the tips of fingers on a mandoline. Spiralizer: You can make zoodles (vegetable noodles) or curly fries in an instant with a spiralizer. The Spiralizer 7-Blade Vegetable Slicer has earned top marks but is bulky and large. Look for one that fits in your kitchen and works well for your preferred vegetables. Read the reviews before making a purchase. Blender: Blenders can be good when whipping up larger batches of dressings or blending soups. If you have a food processor, you may not need a blender. Sheet pans: While I was living in Europe, I fell in love with cast-iron and heavy black steel pans. I like how these are versatile and can be used on the stovetop, on a grill, or in the oven. Cast iron also heats evenly. Aluminum pans are lightweight and easy to use in the oven. USA Pan Bakeware is a good brand for lightweight baking sheets and can be found on Amazon. Digital thermometer: Many people still cut into meat to check for doneness, but I always encourage the use of a meat thermometer to check for doneness instead. A digital thermometer is inexpensive (ranging from $15 to $30) and quickly registers temperature, giving you an accurate measurement of the food’s internal temperature. Taking advantage of a multicooker Rice, grains, and legumes — important parts of many salad recipes — can be made to perfection in a multicooker, like an Instant Pot, for example. Making grains or legumes in bulk and freezing them will help future meals come together quickly. Multicookers are particularly useful when making bowl meals, which often have a grain, a legume, and raw and roasted vegetables with a dressing.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 11-15-2022

Listen to the article:Download audio When crafting that perfect salad, you need to know how to select the best green for the bowl and whisk up a simple and delicious salad dressing. If you’re in a hurry, you need tips for pulling together a quick and easy salad, too. Get your salad bowls ready — here are some tips to get started!

Cheat Sheet / Updated 10-20-2022

Cooking Persian food at home is exciting and easy! All you have to do is say yes to adventure, new flavors, and new techniques. After you’ve learned about advieh (Persian spice mix) and understood the building blocks of a khoresh (Persian braise) and polow khoresh (Persian-style rice), you’ll be putting one together in no time at all. Having the right ingredients commonly used in Persian cooking at hand, as well as some essential tools, will make the process fun and consistently successful.

Article / Updated 07-28-2022

Recipes that feature fruits and vegetables often ask for you to slice or pare them. For example, to create a the all-American apple pie, you need to first pare and then slice the apples. Slicing fruits and vegetables Slicing is the most common — and most important — knife task. There are really only two things to keep in mind: If you’re slicing a hard, round vegetable, like an onion or a winter squash, trim one side flat first so it doesn’t roll around on the cutting board. Take your time to assure evenly thick pieces, whether you’re slicing an onion or a pineapple. Doing so makes the food look better and cook more evenly. The figure shows how to slice a scallion. As you can see, you can slice with the knife straight in front of you or at a slight angle with the blade moving away from you. Paring fruits and vegetables Paring is one of the only cutting tasks you perform while holding the ingredient in your hand. Don’t worry — you don’t need the first-aid kit nearby! Your hands are designed for this kind of work. Paring means to remove skin from fruits and vegetables as well as to sculpt them into decorative shapes. They can be small items, like shallots and garlic, or larger ones, like apples and tomatoes. Above all, a paring knife must be razor sharp to perform well. To pare an apple, for example, hold it in one hand, barely pressing it into your palm, with fingers bracing the surface (outside of where the cutting proceeds). Pierce the skin of the apple with the paring knife and carefully peel it toward you, slowly turning the apple with your thumb. Spiral all the way to the bottom. Although fruits and vegetables come in different shapes, this technique of holding food and slicing toward you is the same.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 04-27-2022

Cooking with cast iron is a satisfying experience that bridges the days of hardy pioneers to current value for efficient, non-toxic cookware. If you’re new to cooking with cast iron, you need to know how to shop for and season your cookware. And, for cooking in general, it helps to have lists of ingredient and measurement equivalencies as well as ideas for spicing up your recipes in general. Cast-Iron Cooking For Dummies gives you all that and more.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 12-15-2021

If you’re like most people, you waste your fair share of food. And you may think that food waste is an inevitable part of modern life. In Zero Waste Cooking For Dummies, you learn how to use every last bit of what’s in your fridge, freezer, and cupboard to make delicious meals, save money, and do your part for the environment. Keep this handy Cheat Sheet as a reference for the basics of cutting down on food waste. It includes food staples to keep around for quick meals, how to organize your pantry, how to make a zero-waste grocery list, make the most of leftovers, and how to store cold foods to avoid unnecessary waste.