cdkitchen > feeddaily blog
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This past week a colleague and I spent a car ride discussing our cooking habits, in particular how she goes about getting dinner on the table each night as a working mother. That she uses the internet as a search tool when looking for recipes was no surprise. I was impressed, however, that she tends toward making up her own version of say, meat loaf, after consulting with several posted online versions rather than printing up one and measuring out each ingredient with exacting devotion to the original. She has openness to experimenting and acceptance of potential failure that I believe...
by
Right now, I am having a love/hate relationship with my tomato plants. For weeks, I could hardly wait for the first one to ripen. Now, at the peak of their harvest, as I lug boxes and boxes of them from the garden to my kitchen every morning, I tell myself that if I never see another tomato it will be too soon. But by December, I will have changed my tune and offer to sell my soul for just one garden fresh, sun-warmed tomato. In its absence, I'll settle for the next best thing: a jar of canned tomatoes from my basement or a bag of roasted Romas from my freezer...
by
"Rufus, what do you have in your mouth? Oh, no...Rufus, give..." I could hear my husband's voice booming across the property. What could that dog possibly have in his mouth this time? Please don't tell me he found another garden snake or a field mouse. As I approached the north side of our vegetable garden, I saw it was much worse than I could have ever imagined. Rufus had committed the ultimate crime. He was eating the first ripe tomato of the summer. Rufus is our five year old German shorthaired pointer who is gifted with a sense of smell that is beyond comprehension...
by
Aside from the changing of the leaves in the fall, one of the best parts of New England is the romance of its coastal summers. In these dog days of summer, little sounds more rejuvenating that digging your toes into the sand, turning your face to catch the sea spray, and getting elbow deep in all the fixins for a good old fashioned New England clam bake. Transporting yourself to that part of the world via train, plane, or automobile may not be in your plans this year, but one crack at a steamed lobster or clam right out of its shell and you might just swear that a...
by
So yes, if you live in the Midwest or the South, you're probably thinking, "Now wait a minute. Sweet potatoes are for Thanksgiving and Christmas. And right now, it's summer. What ARE you thinking, Jerri Manthey?" Growing up, the only time I got to enjoy eating sweet potatoes was at Thanksgiving and Christmas. My mom would bake them, peel them, add butter and brown sugar, lay them out in a shallow baking dish, top them with marshmallows and bake them again until the marshmallows were toasty brown. This seemed to be the only time of year something so decadently sweet...
by
"I'm hungry, Mom." Those must be the most frequently used three words in the English language. Growing kids with growing bodies most certainly experience hunger in a different way than adults, while we are maintaining (and sometimes unfortunately adding to!) our mass. Kids' bodies are doing the miraculous job of creating bone, muscle, brain cells and mass daily. And don't you just know it when a growth spurt hits? Morning, noon or night, the munchies are never far away. And if you're like me, coming up with suggestions - much less...
by
It is a Saturday morning in late June. The weather is perfect. I am standing, eyes closed, inhaling the sweet scent of lavender. I open my eyes to see row after row of tall, majestic purple flowers carpeting the landscape. It is breathtakingly beautiful. Am I in the south of France? No, just a few miles south of Indianapolis! Lavender, sometimes referred to as blue gold by the French, has been grown in the Mediterranean for centuries. Prized for its scent, healing properties and beauty, its use has been historically documented for over 2500 years.
by
It seems in many marriages, for every Ricky there's a Lucy. The age old tug-of-war between the sensible and the spontaneous can affect every aspect of marital life from vacation planning to nightly dinner. The "Ricky" of the relationship knows the family is on a budget and plans dinner accordingly, even if that sometimes means eating the same tuna casserole several nights in a row. Meanwhile, while Ricky waits for his casserole leftovers, "Lucy" has come home from the market blowing half the week's food budget on a lavish weekday dinner for her hubby. As with many...
by
Ah, the things we tell kids to get them to eat their vegetables. Suddenly broccoli becomes "Trees" and raisins and peanut butter on celery sticks become "Ants on a Log." When an unappetizing green thing is given an entirely different personage, it curiously becomes easier to swallow. This was the case, anyway, in my house with Star Soup, where the key ingredient, the "stars," were an unpleasant looking green thing known as okra. Broccoli becomes trees, okra becomes stars, and even the pickiest kid eaters will give their green vegetables a second chance.
by
There are few times I advocate eating food from a can; one of those few foods are tomatoes. That's because the majority of the year, save for the time we are in right now, those hot house grown tomatoes taste like little more than mealy water. Whereas their canned counterparts, for instance San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes, were picked and canned at the height of their sun-ripened summer freshness. A fresh tomato should taste sweet and with a little tang from the acidity, and have a mouth feel of juicy velvet. I am happy to say that after months of sticking to the...
by
"Mommy, I feel like baking tonight." Really! What are you thinking of making? "I'd like to experiment with some sugar cookies. Chocolate fudge sugar cookies." Mmm. Sounds delicious. Would you like to look for a recipe? "No, Mommy - I'd like to try making one of my own." What are you thinking of putting in your cookies? "Butter, flour, sugar and chocolate... what else do you think I'd need?... Can I try making them, Mom... can I?" You get the idea. Who can say no to that?...
by
Picture this scene: the stars have come out on a warm summer evening and your family is gathered around a glowing campfire. Perhaps you're at a campsite or even a tent you have set up in the backyard. Everyone's got a stick or skewer and you're roasting marshmallows to sandwich between layers of graham crackers and chocolate bars for that delicious sweet treat, the s'more. It's a summertime classic. Many people, young and old, go wild for s'mores, for good reason. They are delicious! National S'more's Day is this Tuesday, August 10. The history of the s'more goes...
by
Have you even wondered why diners always serve an orange wedge and a curly parsley sprig with every plate of scrambled eggs and hash browns? It is because even the lowliest dump of a diner understands that the customer starts eating before the food even touches the fork. And that orange slice will go a long way toward making the customer separate the omelet in front of them from the everyday omelet they make at home. It is not so much about the orange and the parsley itself, as what a little visual appeal can do to improve a plate, and by extension, a meal. A plate of...
by
Or don't make this slow-cooker soup. Seriously. If you think that it doesn't matter, I guarantee you'll be writing in to me telling me about this starchy, chewy, just overall-unappealing soup: "How in the world could you feed this to your family?" and other similar, unsavory comments. Not to mention the lost time and money from that grocery store frozen corn (who knows how old it really is?!). Now you may have a very forgiving hubby like me - he'll tell you that he actually likes that chewy corn (what gives?!). But we all know better. Discriminating palate or not, I...
by
There are some things that never go out of fashion on a bistro menu. French onion soup, Caesar salad, tuna tartare. Not just any dish is qualified to become a mainstay. Some come and go seasonally like gazpacho in the summer and harvest salads studded with walnuts and apples in the fall. Rarely a dish transcends the seasons to find a year-round home and near ubiquity. In recent years I would contend that a relative newcomer to the bistro menu, the beet salad, has found just such a perennial menu slot. You know the one that I'm talking about. Bite-sized chunks of...
by
Men are not like tomatoes. I decided a long time ago that I could never date a man who did not fall into the "Live To Eat" category of individuals. When I made this statement to a friend I was dining with, he asked me if I prioritized this above say, attractiveness or intelligence. Without hesitation I admitted that, no, in fact, I am shallow and looks come first. This conversation occurred while eating one of the most hideous looking but lust-worthy foods in the world: an heirloom tomato.
From The Editors At CDKitchen: Feed Daily
by
This past week a colleague and I spent a car ride discussing our cooking habits, in particular how she goes about getting dinner on the table each night as a working mother. That she uses the internet as a search tool when looking for recipes was no surprise. I was impressed, however, that she tends toward making up her own version of say, meat loaf, after consulting with several posted online versions rather than printing up one and measuring out each ingredient with exacting devotion to the original. She has openness to experimenting and acceptance of potential failure that I believe...
by
Right now, I am having a love/hate relationship with my tomato plants. For weeks, I could hardly wait for the first one to ripen. Now, at the peak of their harvest, as I lug boxes and boxes of them from the garden to my kitchen every morning, I tell myself that if I never see another tomato it will be too soon. But by December, I will have changed my tune and offer to sell my soul for just one garden fresh, sun-warmed tomato. In its absence, I'll settle for the next best thing: a jar of canned tomatoes from my basement or a bag of roasted Romas from my freezer...
by
"Rufus, what do you have in your mouth? Oh, no...Rufus, give..." I could hear my husband's voice booming across the property. What could that dog possibly have in his mouth this time? Please don't tell me he found another garden snake or a field mouse. As I approached the north side of our vegetable garden, I saw it was much worse than I could have ever imagined. Rufus had committed the ultimate crime. He was eating the first ripe tomato of the summer. Rufus is our five year old German shorthaired pointer who is gifted with a sense of smell that is beyond comprehension...
by
Aside from the changing of the leaves in the fall, one of the best parts of New England is the romance of its coastal summers. In these dog days of summer, little sounds more rejuvenating that digging your toes into the sand, turning your face to catch the sea spray, and getting elbow deep in all the fixins for a good old fashioned New England clam bake. Transporting yourself to that part of the world via train, plane, or automobile may not be in your plans this year, but one crack at a steamed lobster or clam right out of its shell and you might just swear that a...
by
So yes, if you live in the Midwest or the South, you're probably thinking, "Now wait a minute. Sweet potatoes are for Thanksgiving and Christmas. And right now, it's summer. What ARE you thinking, Jerri Manthey?" Growing up, the only time I got to enjoy eating sweet potatoes was at Thanksgiving and Christmas. My mom would bake them, peel them, add butter and brown sugar, lay them out in a shallow baking dish, top them with marshmallows and bake them again until the marshmallows were toasty brown. This seemed to be the only time of year something so decadently sweet...
by
"I'm hungry, Mom." Those must be the most frequently used three words in the English language. Growing kids with growing bodies most certainly experience hunger in a different way than adults, while we are maintaining (and sometimes unfortunately adding to!) our mass. Kids' bodies are doing the miraculous job of creating bone, muscle, brain cells and mass daily. And don't you just know it when a growth spurt hits? Morning, noon or night, the munchies are never far away. And if you're like me, coming up with suggestions - much less...
by
It is a Saturday morning in late June. The weather is perfect. I am standing, eyes closed, inhaling the sweet scent of lavender. I open my eyes to see row after row of tall, majestic purple flowers carpeting the landscape. It is breathtakingly beautiful. Am I in the south of France? No, just a few miles south of Indianapolis! Lavender, sometimes referred to as blue gold by the French, has been grown in the Mediterranean for centuries. Prized for its scent, healing properties and beauty, its use has been historically documented for over 2500 years.
by
It seems in many marriages, for every Ricky there's a Lucy. The age old tug-of-war between the sensible and the spontaneous can affect every aspect of marital life from vacation planning to nightly dinner. The "Ricky" of the relationship knows the family is on a budget and plans dinner accordingly, even if that sometimes means eating the same tuna casserole several nights in a row. Meanwhile, while Ricky waits for his casserole leftovers, "Lucy" has come home from the market blowing half the week's food budget on a lavish weekday dinner for her hubby. As with many...
by
Ah, the things we tell kids to get them to eat their vegetables. Suddenly broccoli becomes "Trees" and raisins and peanut butter on celery sticks become "Ants on a Log." When an unappetizing green thing is given an entirely different personage, it curiously becomes easier to swallow. This was the case, anyway, in my house with Star Soup, where the key ingredient, the "stars," were an unpleasant looking green thing known as okra. Broccoli becomes trees, okra becomes stars, and even the pickiest kid eaters will give their green vegetables a second chance.
by
There are few times I advocate eating food from a can; one of those few foods are tomatoes. That's because the majority of the year, save for the time we are in right now, those hot house grown tomatoes taste like little more than mealy water. Whereas their canned counterparts, for instance San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes, were picked and canned at the height of their sun-ripened summer freshness. A fresh tomato should taste sweet and with a little tang from the acidity, and have a mouth feel of juicy velvet. I am happy to say that after months of sticking to the...
by
"Mommy, I feel like baking tonight." Really! What are you thinking of making? "I'd like to experiment with some sugar cookies. Chocolate fudge sugar cookies." Mmm. Sounds delicious. Would you like to look for a recipe? "No, Mommy - I'd like to try making one of my own." What are you thinking of putting in your cookies? "Butter, flour, sugar and chocolate... what else do you think I'd need?... Can I try making them, Mom... can I?" You get the idea. Who can say no to that?...
by
Picture this scene: the stars have come out on a warm summer evening and your family is gathered around a glowing campfire. Perhaps you're at a campsite or even a tent you have set up in the backyard. Everyone's got a stick or skewer and you're roasting marshmallows to sandwich between layers of graham crackers and chocolate bars for that delicious sweet treat, the s'more. It's a summertime classic. Many people, young and old, go wild for s'mores, for good reason. They are delicious! National S'more's Day is this Tuesday, August 10. The history of the s'more goes...
by
Have you even wondered why diners always serve an orange wedge and a curly parsley sprig with every plate of scrambled eggs and hash browns? It is because even the lowliest dump of a diner understands that the customer starts eating before the food even touches the fork. And that orange slice will go a long way toward making the customer separate the omelet in front of them from the everyday omelet they make at home. It is not so much about the orange and the parsley itself, as what a little visual appeal can do to improve a plate, and by extension, a meal. A plate of...
by
Or don't make this slow-cooker soup. Seriously. If you think that it doesn't matter, I guarantee you'll be writing in to me telling me about this starchy, chewy, just overall-unappealing soup: "How in the world could you feed this to your family?" and other similar, unsavory comments. Not to mention the lost time and money from that grocery store frozen corn (who knows how old it really is?!). Now you may have a very forgiving hubby like me - he'll tell you that he actually likes that chewy corn (what gives?!). But we all know better. Discriminating palate or not, I...
by
There are some things that never go out of fashion on a bistro menu. French onion soup, Caesar salad, tuna tartare. Not just any dish is qualified to become a mainstay. Some come and go seasonally like gazpacho in the summer and harvest salads studded with walnuts and apples in the fall. Rarely a dish transcends the seasons to find a year-round home and near ubiquity. In recent years I would contend that a relative newcomer to the bistro menu, the beet salad, has found just such a perennial menu slot. You know the one that I'm talking about. Bite-sized chunks of...
by
Men are not like tomatoes. I decided a long time ago that I could never date a man who did not fall into the "Live To Eat" category of individuals. When I made this statement to a friend I was dining with, he asked me if I prioritized this above say, attractiveness or intelligence. Without hesitation I admitted that, no, in fact, I am shallow and looks come first. This conversation occurred while eating one of the most hideous looking but lust-worthy foods in the world: an heirloom tomato.