French Beef Stew
A rich and satisfying stew with all the elements of tender beef, a luxurious sauce and complex flavors. Adding anchovies adds complexity without tasting fishy and the salt pork adds rich body.
Caesar Salad
Caesar salad is one of my most favorite salads, I love the tang of lemon and the salty flavor of anchovies. When I make this dressing, depending on the company I add more lemon juice and mayonnaise. The beauty of this dressing is you can add more or less of one or more ingredients and…
DetailsStuffed Chicken & Herb Gravy
Serve this delicious healthy chicken dinner with polenta and green beans with bacon.
Florentine Lace Cookies
These are tasty beautiful little golden brown disks that start out as candy with cream, butter, sugar and almonds.
Port Wine-Cherry Sauce
With a juicy, well-seasoned pork roast ready for the table, this port wine-cherry sauce will be the perfect accompaniment. A perfect reduction of red wine and wine vinegar.
White Pepper
In Sweden and the surrounding countries, white pepper is often used for seasoning in place of black pepper. The berries, used to make white pepper are the same as those used to make black pepper, but they are harvested at a riper stage. The hulls are then removed and with them go some of the…
DetailsChocolate
When you are baking you will find that you will be using the entire gamut of chocolates: unsweetened, bittersweet, semisweet, milk, and white. What makes chocolate, chocolate is the presence of chocolate liquor, made from roasted, blended, and ground cocoa bean nibs. Unsweetened chocolate is pure chocolate liquor; bittersweet chocolate is a blend of chocolate…
DetailsPorcini Mushrooms
Mushrooms are an important ingredient in Italian cooking and porcini mushrooms are highly prized for their heady, woodsy flavor. Fresh porcini are available just a few weeks out of the year (you would use them like you would any other fresh mushroom), but luckily dried porcini are available year round and can be found at…
DetailsProsciutto
Prosciutto is a ham that has been salted, pressed, and air-dried in the Italian fashion and, unlike many other regional cured hams produced around the world, it is not smoked. As a signature product for more than two thousand years, Italian prosciutto is legally protected and tightly monitored by Italian law – all aspects of…
DetailsPreparing Fresh Coconut
Puncture the three “eyes” on the coconut with a screwdriver or an ice pick and shake out and discard the liquid. Set the coconut in a 400 degree oven on a rack adjusted to the lower third position and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the coconut and let it cool until you can handle it,…
DetailsOther Useful Tools
Knives A paring knife is useful for releasing baked cakes from the sides of pans; making slits in a pie’s crust; cutting apples into quarters, coring, and peeling them; and cutting dried fruits into smaller pieces Chef’s Knife with an 8- or 10-inch blade is useful for chopping nuts and chocolate and for cutting cakes and…
DetailsBaking Sheets
Baking Sheet: Baking sheets, to home bakers, are cookie sheets: large flat sheets, one or both ends of which are slightly raised for handling. The rimless sides make it easy to lift cookies off the sheet with a wide spatula. Since you will be using baking sheets primarily for cookies, you should buy the heaviest…
DetailsBaking Pans
Cake and Pie Pans If you are just starting to build your collection of pans for baking, you will want to start with the basics (and then when you become obsessed with baking like all bakers, you can move on to the fancy molds and beautifully shaped pans that will capture your imagination) Layer cake pans Lightweight…
DetailsAlmonds
The most important thing to remember about nuts, is that they are perishable. They are better kept in their shell than out, and they’ll stay fresh longer if left whole than chopped. Store shelled nuts in the freezer and bring them to room temperature before using. Almonds are sold whole with their skins on (unblanched,…
DetailsBuying Sea Scallops
What to be aware of when buying scallops; look first at their color. Scallops are naturally ivory or pinkish tan; processing (dipping them in a phosphate and water mixture to extend shelf life) turns them bright white. Processed scallops are slippery and swollen and usually sitting in a milky white liquid at the store. You…
DetailsPreparing Mangos
Because of their odd shape and slippery texture, mangos are notoriously difficult to peel. This method ensures long, attractive strips of fruit. Remove a thin slice from one end of the mango so that it sits flat on a work surface. Hold the mango cut side down and remove the skin with a sharp paring…
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