Recipes

New Year Resolution: Cook like my great-grandmother

alice

I'm something of an industrial-size resolution creator. I love the huge, sweeping type of resolutions that involve dismantling my normal way of thinking or operating in the world — and I don't reserve them for New Years, although that's a traditionally fun kickoff for some of them. 

 

Even though there are approximately 5,000 blog posts out there right now about how resolutions don't work, I think the inclination to make these simple vows is tempting for a reason. Who doesn't love a fresh start, a sense of improvement, a brighter way forward instead of gloomy regrets? I do agree that some types of goals seem almost thwarted from the start, particularly those that are too vague — "I'm going to be a better person this year!" — or perhaps too ambitious or restrictive. 

 

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All Treats, No Tricks: How to de-junk Halloween for kids

halloween kid

With jumbo candy bags for sale everywhere right now, and ads blasting sugary treats to give out next week, it's easy to associate Halloween with "fun size" giveaways. But what I've discovered in teaching cooking to kids is that they can definitely be swayed away from that deluge of junk — you just have to get them in the kitchen.

 

When kids make up their own treats, they quickly catch on to the idea that it's okay to have them in moderation, especially if you create savory foods at the same time. Even in my adult classes, I've found that having a larger variety of dishes is most popular, leading to guilt-free portion sizes for desserts. 

 

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Root Vegetables: Slow-roasted goodness

turnips2

If you find fall root vegetables unfamiliar and baffling, you’re not alone. Turnips and rutabagas are often big and unwieldy; they’re hard and seem to need forever to cook. Celery root can be shaggy, dirty, and mottled green. And sunchokes look like — well, like nothing else in the market. They’re knobby and woody on the outside, like bloated ginger root. Once you get past their looks, however, there is plenty of delicious local flavor to be unlocked in these fall vegetables.

 

Rutabagas and turnips are like siblings who are constantly being mistaken for one another. In fact, what Americans call a rutabaga or a Swede (to the great amusement of the rest of Scandinavia) is called a turnip in some other English-speaking countries.

 

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Kitchen DIY: Homemade corned beef

homemade corned beef

Even though St. Patrick’s Day is half a year away, I’m going to try to convince you to make your own corned beef. 

 

The word “corned” was originally a term used for the word grain or kernel. It refers to curing beef with “grains” of salt. We eat this dish every couple of months. It’s so good that I can’t possibly make it just once a year in celebration of my husband’s (very minimal) Irish heritage. And for the record, this version is the best corned beef I’ve ever tasted. Full stop.

 

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Absurdly Easy: Chai tea, with a kick of spice and sweetness

chai tea

I've come to find that certain situations are handled best with a hot beverage. Waking up to a gray morning, for instance, or stretching out on a quiet afternoon with a book in hand. Or, say, after getting caught in a warm August rainfall on a Sunday walk (hey, since when does it rain around here?). My beverage of choice for these times: a steaming cup of chai tea.

 

There’s something endlessly soothing about the warmth and spiciness of chai tea. The heat of ginger and spices – cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and peppercorns – steeps with black tea to create a rich, spicy concentrate. Mix this in equal parts with milk, and you’ve got a rich, creamy drink that’s unlike anything else.

 

I’ve ordered chai at coffee shops all around town. My favorite versions have a strong punch of spice and just a hint of sweetness. But why shop around? It turns out that the perfect cup of chai can be made right in your own kitchen.

 

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Summer's Last Hurrah: Curried corn and zucchini fritters with cilantro mint chutney

corn and zucchini fritters

Recently, I realized that there's only a few weeks left of my children’s summer vacation. It was a punch to the stomach. Only a couple weeks left to get out there and drink in the summer, to make memories. They are seven and five, and for anyone that has or has had children of these ages, you probably understand why I feel that these ages are perfect.

 

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Kitchen DIY: Homemade ricotta cheese

ricotta bruschetta

If the ultimate DIY project is one that is surprisingly easy, and drastically better than the store-bought stuff, then I’ve got the world’s greatest food project for you: homemade ricotta cheese. 

 

Ricotta cheese was never a serious player in my food repertoire. It had typically been a background note, layered in lasagna, stuffed into pasta shells, stirred into a casserole. Never did it stand out as a main ingredient to celebrate.

 

But then, recipes for homemade ricotta started popping up on the Web. And, some of my favorite bloggers were singing its soft, creamy praises. I’m always up for a cooking project, so I decided to see what all the fuss was about.

 

And here’s what I learned: wow, it’s easy, and wow, it’s good.

 

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Tomato Season: The joy of homemade ketchup

tomatoes for ketchup

Although I come from a tomato-eating family, I didn't really care for tomatoes when I was a kid. Maybe I was too finicky or it was the stewed tomatoes that would make an appearance occasionally. I never understood why my aunt and grandmother would make such a fuss over picking ripe tomatoes and eating them right off the vine, and my great-grandmother used to plant 70 to 80 tomato plants a year and can all of it for later use. Now that I'm older, I have a garden of my own, and I finally understand what they were talking about.

 

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Under the Husk: Discovering the mysterious ground cherry

ground cherries

I had to laugh knowingly last weekend at the Kingfield Farmers Market as I stood behind a woman in the Gardens of Eagan booth. In front of her was a bowl spilling over with these little papery beige spheres and a sign inviting shoppers to try one.

 

“Ground cherries?” she said, ducking away from them like they might possibly explode. “What are they? I don’t think I’ve ever seen them before. Are they cherries? No stems…Hmm. How do they grow? What do they taste like?”

 

A market pro, the gentleman working was not fazed by this barrage of questions. He deftly explained that, related to tomatillos, ground cherries grow on bushes and are often compared in flavor to strawberries, pineapple, and sometimes even butterscotch. 

 

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DIY Craft Cocktails: Hello, summer drinks

summer drinks

I maintain that making cocktails should be as spontaneous and improvisational as regular cooking. This is particularly true during the height of summer, when backyard gardens and farmers markets are producing an almost overwhelming amount of vegetables and fruit.

 

For example, there are few things as pleasant as drinking cold Vinho Verde in a friend's backyard, then plucking a couple fresh raspberries and dropping them into your glass. (Berries can also be frozen and later used as ice cubes in cocktails throughout the summer.) Additionally, just-picked tomatoes (roughly chopped and salted) form the base of a spectacular Bloody Mary, one that can be garnished with a sliver of fresh cucumber.

 

Summer drinks should be refreshing, easy, and made with ingredients you already have on hand. The following recipes are for drinks I've been enjoying this summer, and are basic guidelines/suggestions that can be adapted to whatever is available.

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