cdkitchen > feeddaily blog
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There is a Caribbean recipe that my sister recently introduced me to "Ropa Vieja" an aromatic, seasoned shredded beef dish that is often served over rice with a side of beans, which has a very intriguing history. I immediately took a liking to this dish as much for its name as for its great flavor. It helps that my sister is an incredible cook, but this is a dish that can be simply prepared even by a novice chef. Ropa Vieja, which means old clothes, is a reference to meat that frays on the ends as it cooks, just like the fabric of old clothes.
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When something in the grocery store catches my daughter's eye, I usually try to stop and listen. That's when I catch a glimpse of what life looks like through her eyes, what appeals to her 8-year-old soul. What's most interesting to note is that her choices usually include her learning a new skill - or all of us trying a new taste or food that we hadn't had before. In this case we were in the dollar store, of all places, stocking up on some household odds and ends, and by the checkout they had little wrapped packages of blueberry muffin mix: "Just add milk!"...
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When I informed my friends and family that I would be writing a column on 30 Minute Meals, I felt compelled to preface the announcement with a "Just don't call me You-Know-Who." Not that there is anything wrong with the perky woman who first allowed the average television viewer to make an entire family dinner in the time it took to watch her show. In fact I thank her for giving home cooks permission to make dinner themselves, in the shortest amount of time possible. It is just that to hold myself to her standard of excitement and talent for clever catchphrases is mildly unrealistic...
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There are so many different ways to cook. It is essential to learn and understand the basics in order to be a competent cook, which will make cooking efficient and fun. There are six key methods of cooking meats: grilling, broiling, sautéing, roasting, poaching and braising. With a mastery of these techniques, you will widen your repertoire and improve your cooking skills. Concentration v. Extraction: There are two general ways we cook meat: concentration or extraction. Concentration is the method of cooking in which you lock in, or concentrate, the juices...
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That's right folks, no baking involved for this one. This recipe has been listed elsewhere as "Boiled Cookies," but I think that just sounds disgusting. It's great for bachelors who don't have an oven in their apartment, but maybe have a hot plate. It's perfect for last-minute treats for those summer BBQs (although better for indoor buffets so as not to be left in the sun). Complete satisfaction for chocolate lovers, peanut butter lovers, and people who just can't seem to get cookies quite right--this is THE cookie recipe everyone should have. This was another recipe I...
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This may surprise you, but I'm not a gadget person. Especially not a kitchen gadget person. Oh, I have a food processor, a blender - and you already know how we love that toaster oven - but I find that even with a fair amount of counter space, appliances tend to clog up the open area and then I end up shuffling and rearranging instead of actually working on what I wanted to. Not only that, but I've found that some appliances actually make more work than they eliminate. What, you say? How can that be? Well, if it takes only one knife and a cutting board to slice some...
by
When you want to add a special touch to a cut of meat, poultry, or a piece of fish, nothing beats a marinade. A marinade is a seasoned liquid containing an acid and herbs or spices. Sometimes it will also contain oil, onions, and/or garlic. Its purpose is to add flavor to the item being marinated and, in some cases, to tenderize it. Most marinades can be made in a matter of minutes with ingredients that all of us usually have on hand in our pantry or refrigerator. Whether you use a marinade for flavor or tenderizing, there are a few simple points to follow:...
by
Have you become bored with the humdrum routine of shopping at your giant chain supermarket? The same old sterile looking produce is offered each and every day of the year, no matter what happens to be in season at that moment. Most of it is freighted and trucked from far-off lands for long periods of time, traveling thousands of miles from field to plate. Perhaps you are looking to add more fresh, seasonal flavors to your cooking. Well it's time to enter the land of the local and make a weekly stop at the farmer's market part of your normal routine. You can freshen up...
by
The salad dressing is just as important to the flavor of a salad as are the other ingredients. The right salad dressing can make basic greens and tomatoes taste seasoned and refreshing. Whether creamy and thick, or juicy and thin, salad dressing should be used somewhat sparingly - just enough to lightly coat each component of the salad. Salad dressing should never weigh down a salad, nor should they turn a fresh salad "wet." They are not sauces, but more like wet seasonings for your greens. The most classic and basic is, of course, vinaigrette. What...
by
Writing about the necessity of tools in the kitchen a few weeks ago got me thinking further: call this Kitchen Equipment Article Part II. Except this is about one item in particular. I was thinking that if I was stuck on a deserted island and could choose one kitchen tool to bring, what would it be? Well aside from a knife, which is pretty much a given, my answer might surprise you. As much as I love my KitchenAid standing mixer (let's assume there is electricity on this deserted island), the stainless steel AllClads and enamel Le Creuset that fill my cupboards, I would trade it all...
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I was going through my piles of cookbooks and I ran across a cookbook from Britain, On Baking by Sue Lawrence, a renowned Scottish baker and author. As I leafed through the pages, I pondered the fact that even though we both speak English on either side of the Atlantic, there are some vast differences in our use of language. Particularly in food is where some of the biggest differences stick out. British desserts and baked goods have funny names. I'm sorry. They just do (I expect an article on the same from a counterpart over there!). And they don't call it dessert...
by
'Tis the season of encased meats. Nothing indicates the arrival of summer more than the smell of kielbasa cooking on a stand outside of Costco or the sizzle of hot dogs grilling at a neighborhood cookout. Be it hot dogs or sausages, encased meats are really a year-round staple food item. But there is something about the warm weather and the firing up of the grill that really gets one excited about tubular meat. Encased meats are one of the original forms of prepared food, first recognized as being made almost 3000 years ago in what is now Iraq. Cured encased meats were...
by
Get this: A family sets off on a vacation in their motor home - they fill it with all sorts of junk food that they love (and can't imagine living without!). It's not long before the motor home breaks down and won't take them any further. Attached and dependent upon their quick fixes - food in bags and boxes, their digital devices and laptops, they don't know what to do when they can't get pizza delivery. Along comes a farmer to step in - and save the day. They end up eating with his farming family and living on the farm for awhile, all the while learning about where...
by
Are you trying to come up with a festive and unusual party theme this summer? Why not go tropical and throw a Polynesian style luau? In Hawaii, luaus are a customary way to celebrate special occasions such as birthdays, weddings, or graduations. This tradition began in 1819, when Hawaiian King Kamehameha II brought an end to the practice of men and women eating apart from one another, with a symbolic feast. Luau Chicken, a favorite Hawaiian dish of chicken and taro leaves and simmered in coconut milk, is what gave the luau its name. Luaus are still a...
by
I just returned from a quick jaunt in southern Florida where I enjoyed a few days of sunshine and rest with my sister, Nicole. Nothing relaxes my soul or feeds my senses like a soft sea breeze, the ocean's salty spray, or the tropical flavors of a beach vacation. We stayed in Key Biscayne, a small island just a few miles off the coast of Miami. We swam in the bay, played tennis, and dined on local Cuban delicacies like ropa vieja. It was a marvelous trip, and a much needed respite. The only thing missing was a bite of the classic Floridian dessert, key lime pie. How...
by
One of the easiest and tastiest summer suppers around is chicken salad. It's so simple to mix some cooked chicken together with dressing and a few add ins, all without heating up your kitchen. The leftovers are delicious for lunch the next day too. It's taken awhile for me to warm up to this cool salad and sandwich filling however, since I've had a love hate relationship with chicken salad all my life. While it can be really, really good, just as often some of what passes for chicken salad has seen better days. Growing up, my mom would make chicken salad...
From The Editors At CDKitchen: Feed Daily
by
There is a Caribbean recipe that my sister recently introduced me to "Ropa Vieja" an aromatic, seasoned shredded beef dish that is often served over rice with a side of beans, which has a very intriguing history. I immediately took a liking to this dish as much for its name as for its great flavor. It helps that my sister is an incredible cook, but this is a dish that can be simply prepared even by a novice chef. Ropa Vieja, which means old clothes, is a reference to meat that frays on the ends as it cooks, just like the fabric of old clothes.
by
When something in the grocery store catches my daughter's eye, I usually try to stop and listen. That's when I catch a glimpse of what life looks like through her eyes, what appeals to her 8-year-old soul. What's most interesting to note is that her choices usually include her learning a new skill - or all of us trying a new taste or food that we hadn't had before. In this case we were in the dollar store, of all places, stocking up on some household odds and ends, and by the checkout they had little wrapped packages of blueberry muffin mix: "Just add milk!"...
by
When I informed my friends and family that I would be writing a column on 30 Minute Meals, I felt compelled to preface the announcement with a "Just don't call me You-Know-Who." Not that there is anything wrong with the perky woman who first allowed the average television viewer to make an entire family dinner in the time it took to watch her show. In fact I thank her for giving home cooks permission to make dinner themselves, in the shortest amount of time possible. It is just that to hold myself to her standard of excitement and talent for clever catchphrases is mildly unrealistic...
by
There are so many different ways to cook. It is essential to learn and understand the basics in order to be a competent cook, which will make cooking efficient and fun. There are six key methods of cooking meats: grilling, broiling, sautéing, roasting, poaching and braising. With a mastery of these techniques, you will widen your repertoire and improve your cooking skills. Concentration v. Extraction: There are two general ways we cook meat: concentration or extraction. Concentration is the method of cooking in which you lock in, or concentrate, the juices...
by
That's right folks, no baking involved for this one. This recipe has been listed elsewhere as "Boiled Cookies," but I think that just sounds disgusting. It's great for bachelors who don't have an oven in their apartment, but maybe have a hot plate. It's perfect for last-minute treats for those summer BBQs (although better for indoor buffets so as not to be left in the sun). Complete satisfaction for chocolate lovers, peanut butter lovers, and people who just can't seem to get cookies quite right--this is THE cookie recipe everyone should have. This was another recipe I...
by
This may surprise you, but I'm not a gadget person. Especially not a kitchen gadget person. Oh, I have a food processor, a blender - and you already know how we love that toaster oven - but I find that even with a fair amount of counter space, appliances tend to clog up the open area and then I end up shuffling and rearranging instead of actually working on what I wanted to. Not only that, but I've found that some appliances actually make more work than they eliminate. What, you say? How can that be? Well, if it takes only one knife and a cutting board to slice some...
by
When you want to add a special touch to a cut of meat, poultry, or a piece of fish, nothing beats a marinade. A marinade is a seasoned liquid containing an acid and herbs or spices. Sometimes it will also contain oil, onions, and/or garlic. Its purpose is to add flavor to the item being marinated and, in some cases, to tenderize it. Most marinades can be made in a matter of minutes with ingredients that all of us usually have on hand in our pantry or refrigerator. Whether you use a marinade for flavor or tenderizing, there are a few simple points to follow:...
by
Have you become bored with the humdrum routine of shopping at your giant chain supermarket? The same old sterile looking produce is offered each and every day of the year, no matter what happens to be in season at that moment. Most of it is freighted and trucked from far-off lands for long periods of time, traveling thousands of miles from field to plate. Perhaps you are looking to add more fresh, seasonal flavors to your cooking. Well it's time to enter the land of the local and make a weekly stop at the farmer's market part of your normal routine. You can freshen up...
by
The salad dressing is just as important to the flavor of a salad as are the other ingredients. The right salad dressing can make basic greens and tomatoes taste seasoned and refreshing. Whether creamy and thick, or juicy and thin, salad dressing should be used somewhat sparingly - just enough to lightly coat each component of the salad. Salad dressing should never weigh down a salad, nor should they turn a fresh salad "wet." They are not sauces, but more like wet seasonings for your greens. The most classic and basic is, of course, vinaigrette. What...
by
Writing about the necessity of tools in the kitchen a few weeks ago got me thinking further: call this Kitchen Equipment Article Part II. Except this is about one item in particular. I was thinking that if I was stuck on a deserted island and could choose one kitchen tool to bring, what would it be? Well aside from a knife, which is pretty much a given, my answer might surprise you. As much as I love my KitchenAid standing mixer (let's assume there is electricity on this deserted island), the stainless steel AllClads and enamel Le Creuset that fill my cupboards, I would trade it all...
by
I was going through my piles of cookbooks and I ran across a cookbook from Britain, On Baking by Sue Lawrence, a renowned Scottish baker and author. As I leafed through the pages, I pondered the fact that even though we both speak English on either side of the Atlantic, there are some vast differences in our use of language. Particularly in food is where some of the biggest differences stick out. British desserts and baked goods have funny names. I'm sorry. They just do (I expect an article on the same from a counterpart over there!). And they don't call it dessert...
by
'Tis the season of encased meats. Nothing indicates the arrival of summer more than the smell of kielbasa cooking on a stand outside of Costco or the sizzle of hot dogs grilling at a neighborhood cookout. Be it hot dogs or sausages, encased meats are really a year-round staple food item. But there is something about the warm weather and the firing up of the grill that really gets one excited about tubular meat. Encased meats are one of the original forms of prepared food, first recognized as being made almost 3000 years ago in what is now Iraq. Cured encased meats were...
by
Get this: A family sets off on a vacation in their motor home - they fill it with all sorts of junk food that they love (and can't imagine living without!). It's not long before the motor home breaks down and won't take them any further. Attached and dependent upon their quick fixes - food in bags and boxes, their digital devices and laptops, they don't know what to do when they can't get pizza delivery. Along comes a farmer to step in - and save the day. They end up eating with his farming family and living on the farm for awhile, all the while learning about where...
by
Are you trying to come up with a festive and unusual party theme this summer? Why not go tropical and throw a Polynesian style luau? In Hawaii, luaus are a customary way to celebrate special occasions such as birthdays, weddings, or graduations. This tradition began in 1819, when Hawaiian King Kamehameha II brought an end to the practice of men and women eating apart from one another, with a symbolic feast. Luau Chicken, a favorite Hawaiian dish of chicken and taro leaves and simmered in coconut milk, is what gave the luau its name. Luaus are still a...
by
I just returned from a quick jaunt in southern Florida where I enjoyed a few days of sunshine and rest with my sister, Nicole. Nothing relaxes my soul or feeds my senses like a soft sea breeze, the ocean's salty spray, or the tropical flavors of a beach vacation. We stayed in Key Biscayne, a small island just a few miles off the coast of Miami. We swam in the bay, played tennis, and dined on local Cuban delicacies like ropa vieja. It was a marvelous trip, and a much needed respite. The only thing missing was a bite of the classic Floridian dessert, key lime pie. How...
by
One of the easiest and tastiest summer suppers around is chicken salad. It's so simple to mix some cooked chicken together with dressing and a few add ins, all without heating up your kitchen. The leftovers are delicious for lunch the next day too. It's taken awhile for me to warm up to this cool salad and sandwich filling however, since I've had a love hate relationship with chicken salad all my life. While it can be really, really good, just as often some of what passes for chicken salad has seen better days. Growing up, my mom would make chicken salad...