Kids in the kitchen: Cooking away summer doldrums - Los Altos Town Crier |
- Kids in the kitchen: Cooking away summer doldrums - Los Altos Town Crier
- Quarantine Cooking Is Not For Me - Glamour
- I'm cooking guys - Tri County Sentry
- Healthy cooking for the whole family | Lewiston Sun Journal - Lewiston Sun Journal
- Annabel Cohen's Recipes: Creative Cooking for Passover — Detroit Jewish News - The Jewish News
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Kids in the kitchen: Cooking away summer doldrums - Los Altos Town Crier Posted: 17 Mar 2021 07:23 PM PDT 
• Teach children the art of setting the table. This encourages family togetherness and elevates the experience of at-home dining. Setting the table also teaches kids dinner etiquette, where to place utensils and how to use napkins appropriately. •Teach children how to clean up. Have nontoxic cleaning products, compost buckets and sponges nearby so that your young helpers can clean as they go. • Assign jobs to resistant children. Even if your children don't want to cook, you can still involve them in the process by teaching them how to pick out the dishware and bowls, set the table, clean up or pick out recipes they want to try. • Sign up for kids' cooking classes or camps. There are several open throughout the Bay Area, including: - Junior Chef Stars in Pacifica, which introduces students to the nutritional and cultural elements of the culinary arts with fun and intuitive lessons. - Rainbow Chefs in Burlingame, which is dedicated to a safe and secure learning environment, as well as promoting nutritious eating. Blanche Shaheen is a journalist, host of the YouTube cooking show "Feast in the Middle East," cookbook author and cooking teacher. For more information, visit FeastInTheMiddleEast.com.  |
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Quarantine Cooking Is Not For Me - Glamour Posted: 18 Mar 2021 04:30 AM PDT Last March, quarantine cooking made everyone a food influencer. Less than a week into lockdown, friends pivoted from posting their outfits on Instagram to smugly posting their home-cooked breakfast. And lunch. And dinner. Celebrities live-streamed experiments in focaccia. Every other day a new food trend reared its viral head, some far less terrifying than others. "Getting into baking" became the ultimate quarantine cliche. For even the slightly culinarily-inclined, cooking—and more so documenting—became a full-on obsession. Some might say it only got more unhinged as time went on. Remember those first weeks? When those of us privileged enough to be working from home stress-baked cute banana bread between Zoom calls and evening breaks to cheer on essential workers? Kid stuff. In April, sourdough starters became shorthand for just how much time we had in our hands; a concerted effort to kill time in our kitchens.  By the fall, the entire internet was desperate and, apparently, still hungry. We threw our hands up and embraced the most deranged food trend of all time: the "Gotcha" cake. Only a quarantine addled-mind would think, "you know what would be really great this Thanksgiving? A cake that so closely resembles a turkey, everyone involved will be scared for their lives when they cut into it and realize it's made of funfetti." Dark times indeed. A year into the pandemic, I've witnessed the rise and fall of Dalgona coffee, pancake cereal, and picturesque "charcuterie" boards using hot chocolate instead of cured meats. To avoid the viral and, evidently, "life-changing" tortilla hack taking up valuable space in my brain, I had to actively avoid TikTok for the entire month of January. This internet obsession with cooking shows no signs of letting up (I see you, feta pasta). So where does that leave those of us that have zero interest in cooking? The former restaurant-goers, the bodega-snackers, the frozen food enthusiasts? I can't speak for us all, but despite endless free time, social media pressure, and lack of alternatives I still can't really feed myself. I tried for awhile. I bought the lentils, rice, pasta, and pantry ingredients necessary for an impending shelter-in-place order. I did my best to learn how to brown onions (spoiler alert: it's way more labor intensive than expected). Turns out, it's just not for me. The emotional cycle of what it feels like to realize you're a terrible cook, even in the most ideal circumstances, is real Stage 1: This looks fun!"I can cook," I told myself in March 2020. "I just have never wanted to." Wrong. So wrong. I feel the same way about cooking as I do driving—it's somehow boring and stressful, leaving me a nervous puddle by the end. In fact, one of the reasons I moved to New York City is that it seemed like the best possible place to avoid doing both those things. But somewhere, during those first days of lockdown, I convinced myself otherwise. Maybe I'd never tried hard enough, or maybe the circumstances weren't ideal. Maybe if I applied myself, I'd discover a hidden talent. Let's do this! Stage 2: Okay, I'm bad at thisDuring the spring, grocery stores were hell on earth. Lines snaked around the block, walking down the aisle in the wrong direction left you racked with guilt, and people had no idea whether their rubber gloves were doing more harm than good. But, after stocking up on pantry essentials, I spent a few weeks trying and failing to learn the basics. My pasta was flabby, my rice hard, and my chicken depressing (you had to be there). The kitchen became the most miserable space in my apartment. Why is this easy for everybody else? I'm hangry. Stage 3: But, maybe I'm great at baking things?By June, I stopped cooking and started baking. My thinking was such that if I focused on just one recipe and perfected it, I could fool people into thinking I knew what I was doing. The results were mediocre at best. After four tries, my homemade shortbread cookies were only slightly worse than the packaged baked goods I usually buy at my local deli. Stage 4: At least I have my sad couch saladsBy the time September rolled around, I was in a full-on food rut. I continued to cook sporadically with lackluster results, opting often for Seamless or thrown-together salads eaten on my couch between Zoom calls. Bolstered by the dread of an impending election, I stopped trying at pretty much everything, cooking included. My only memory of this time is scrolling through Instagram and saving elaborate retro dessert confections, desperate for even the smallest serotonin boost. Stage 5: Acceptance—and SeamlessIt's official: a year in, I've come to terms with my lack of skill in the kitchen. I have other talents, right? It's hard to admit you're bad at something—like, really bad—when everyone else seems to just get it. But, after a year of trying to learn to cook, I'm left with nothing to prove. I just don't have it in me. What I lost in self-respect, I gained in appreciation for the people around me who found a new love for food and joy at home. If social media is any indication, cooking was how millions of us held it together in scary, uncertain times. What's more, my addiction to takeout may have, in a small way, supported some of the wonderful restaurants and brave workers in my neighborhood. To 2021: A year I hope is full of vaccines and empty of anyone trying to make sugar pasta in the microwave because we have nothing else to do. M Madeline Hirsch is Glamour's former social media manager. Follow her on Instagram at @lady_hadeline.  |
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I'm cooking guys - Tri County Sentry Posted: 17 Mar 2021 05:00 PM PDT By Chris Frost Oxnard-- One of the ways I like to pass the time while I'm waiting for people to get their Covid-19 shots and put an end to this pandemic is by cooking. As most of you know, I spent many years, 32 of them, running restaurant kitchens across America. During that time, I developed menus, recipes, dealt with lots of cooks, and I did it all while I made sure the food cost was appropriate, and the restaurant made money. I left all that behind at age 49 to pursue journalism, but I still like to cook for my family. My first passion is cooking Italian food, and that started when I was a little boy. Keep in mind that my last name may be Frost, but no one looks at me and says, hey, look at the English guy. I look like my mother and grandmother. My grandmother's maiden name was Lucille Conchetta Nitolo, and she came from Brooklyn, New York. I wanted to cook something special for the J-Train this week because she got her Covid-19 shot. She was nervous, so I distracted her. I told her the side effects include a three-octave lower voice and uncontrollable amounts of hair growing on her back. None of that is true, of course, but instead of being nervous about getting a shot, she was all mad at me instead. If you're worried, the only side effect was a sore arm the next day at the shot site, which ended a couple of days later. I made her lasagne, which is a process. A piece of advice, don't buy oven-ready lasagne noodles. They aren't my favorite. If this inspires you to cook lasagne, here are some hints. Don't just slather manicotti cheese across the noodles. Mix it with egg, which will keep it from running all over the place after it's heated. I like to add a little parmesan cheese to the mixture, which adds another flavor element to the end product. Of course, the J-Train thought it would be fun to help until she realized that means work. Task one, stir the sauce so it doesn't burn. Fast forward three minutes, and here it comes. "My arm is getting tired." Okay, I put her in charge of slicing the mozzarella thinly and, well, that doesn't mean giant chunks of mozzarella that she started snacking on at the rate of one piece for dinner and three pieces for her. We ate dinner, and I told her that she should clean the kitchen since I did all the cooking. "But the kitchen is a mess," the J-Train said. Okay, I'm a messy cook, but I did cook, and she should clean. So, here we go; she couldn't get the sauce back in the jar. The J-Train didn't want to use Tupperware because she decided it would stain the Tupperware red. I offered a suggestion and told her to hold the jar, and I'll pour it in. That made the J-Train laugh hysterically. I guess I've become predictable. I put the sauce in a faux Tupperware container that used to hold lunch meat, and if it gets stained, so what. At the end of the day, she offered to clean after she rested from such a heavy dinner, and I cleaned the mess up and slept like a log.  |
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Healthy cooking for the whole family | Lewiston Sun Journal - Lewiston Sun Journal Posted: 18 Mar 2021 01:00 AM PDT Chicken Enchilada Casserole Make this dish in advance and you will have dinner ready in the time to heat it up. It will keep in refrigerator for three days before baking! It's like a Mexican lasagna. Ingredients 1 red pepper, chopped 1 medium onion. chopped 1 teaspoon vegetable or canola oil 1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes (3 cups) 2 tablespoons ground cumin ½-1 teaspoon ground chipotle chili powder ¼ teaspoon salt 8 corn tortillas, cut into wedges 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained 1 cup chopped cooked chicken 1 ½ cups shredded Mexican cheese blend (6 ounces), divided Directions 1.Heat a frying pan with 1 teaspoon oil, then sautee the onions and peppers till soft. 2. Stir tomatoes, cumin, chile powder and salt together in a medium bowl. Coat a 8-by-11-inch casserole dish with cooking spray. Spoon 1/2 cup of the tomato sauce into the bottom of the prepared dish. Arrange 1/3 of the tortilla wedges over the tomato sauce. Top with half of the beans, half of the chicken and half of the pepper mixture. Top with 1 cup sauce and 1/2 cup cheese. 3. Layer on half the remaining tortillas. Top with the remaining beans, chicken and pepper mixture. Top with 1 cup of the sauce and 1/2 cup cheese. Layer on the remaining tortillas, followed by the remaining sauce (about 1/3 cup). Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Cover with foil and refrigerate until ready to cook, up to 3 days. 4. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the casserole, uncovered, until hot and bubbling, 35 to 40 minutes. Comments are not available on this story. filed under:
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Annabel Cohen's Recipes: Creative Cooking for Passover — Detroit Jewish News - The Jewish News Posted: 17 Mar 2021 09:00 AM PDT
Breakfast, lunch or dinner, take your Passover food to a different level — not gourmet, just interesting and pleasing.Passover is a long holiday. And it feels longer because the menu is so limited. Or is it? Don't let food worries color your cooking creativity. These days there are other ingredients such as quinoa (not a grain at all, but seeds) and tapioca flour, for example to cook with. Growing up, my mother made matzah brei during Passover. It was a dish her Polish parents prepared for her family. It was almost the only "traditional" food she made for our family during Passover. She would serve it salty or sweet, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar or spread with fruit jam. It was our tradition. Basically, it is moistened matzah (use water), drained and mixed with eggs (1 pound matzah, 4 large eggs and a teaspoon of salt, mixed together). She fried it in a skillet with oil and it was heavenly. Sure, you can avoid any floury foods (many of us do it anyway), or you can embrace your inner bubbie and look for fun and creative ways to add matzah to your favorite entrees. Breakfast, lunch or dinner, take your Passover food to a different level — not gourmet, just interesting and pleasing. Go ahead — think inside the box (of matzah, of course). Use some newer ingredients and have some fun. Start some new traditions. Quinoa with VegetablesWhat makes this dish extra luxurious are the oodles of sauteed vegetables you can customize to your own tastes — super versatile. You also use it as a stuffing for vegetables, such as bell peppers, zucchini boats or my favorite, semi-hollowed eggplant halves. If you feel like adding a handful of dried fruits or nuts to the mix, feel free. I didn't include them in the recipe because Passover food already has so many recipes with fruits and nuts. Ingredients
Directions Preheat oven to 425º. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Set aside. Combine the quinoa and water in a small saucepan and bring the water to a boil over medium-high heat. Remove the saucepan from the heat and place a lid on the pan. Allow the quinoa to cool in the pan. In the meantime, combine the oil, onion, garlic, mushrooms, carrots and zucchini in a bowl and toss well. Season lightly with salt and pepper and spread on the baking sheet. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the vegetables are just tender. Transfer back to the bowl and add the quinoa and toss well. Adjust seasoning to taste. Makes 4-6 servings.
Brazilian Cheese Bread (Pao de Queijo)As many of you know, my family is Brazilian, and this is one of our favorite treats. They have a sort of gummy texture on the inside, which is what I love about them most. You can purchase these, uncooked, frozen in many groceries or you can make yourself with this easy recipe. Ingredients
Directions Preheat oven to 400º. Brush a 12-cup muffin tin or 24 cup mini-muffin tin with vegetable oil. Set aside Combine milk, salt and butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk the mixture constantly until it comes to a boil. Remove from heat immediately and stir in tapioca flour until smooth. Add the eggs and cheese and stir until smooth. Set aside to cool. Divide among the muffin tins and bake until puffy and golden, 15-20 minutes. Makes 12 large or 24 mini cheese breads. Eat immediately or reheat in a 300º oven for about 5 minutes. Barbara's Matzah BallsMy friend makes matzah balls from, guess what, actual matzah! She uses schmaltz (chicken fat) to make these glorious. She's made them without it and says it's just not the same. These make sturdy, dense orbs, just as her family likes. If you like fluffy matzah balls, this is not the recipe for you. This recipe makes a lot of matzah balls (they freeze well), but halve the recipe for fewer. Ingredients
Directions Place the crumbled matzah in a large bowl and add enough warm water to cover. Allow to sit for 30 minutes. While the matzah is soaking, heat schmaltz in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook until very tender. Transfer the matzah to a colander and squeeze out excess water. Add the matzah to the onions and cook, stirring frequently until the matzah is drier and begins to pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer the mixture to the empty bowl and stir in the parsley. Allow to cool for about 15 minutes. Stir in the eggs, one at a time, until each is incorporated. Add salt and pepper to taste. If the mixture is too soft to hold together when you squeeze it, add the matzah meal. Cover and chill the mixture overnight in the refrigerator. When ready to cook, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Form the mixture into 30-balls (Barbara says "tight-balls") and drop them into the boiling water (I use a slotted spoon). Cook them until they rise to the surface of the water. Remove the balls to a dish and chill until ready to serve. Reheat the matzah balls in chicken soup (or broth) and keep warm until ready to serve. Makes 30 matzah balls. Flourless Chocolate TorteMy friend, Julie, is a fantastic cook. This is her flourless torte that is great all year round. Ingredients
Directions In a double boiler melt chocolate and butter (or combine in a microwave- safe dish, cover with plastic wrap and cook on high for 2 minutes and stir until smooth). Set aside to cool. In a large bowl, beat yolks and ¾ of a cup of sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Gradually beat in warm chocolate and vanilla. Preheat the oven to 325º. In another bowl, beat egg whites until firm with the cream of tartar. Add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar, a little at a time, continuing beating until stiff. Fold egg whites carefully into chocolate mixture until there are no more white streaks. Pour ¾ of batter into an ungreased 9" springform pan. Cover the remaining batter and refrigerate. Bake cake for 35 minutes. Remove and cool. The center of the cake will fall. This is supposed to happen. Spread the remaining refrigerated batter on top of the cooled cake. Place back in the refrigerator and chill until firm. Make whipped cream topping and frost the top and sides of the cake. Garnish with chocolate shavings if desired. This cake freezes beautifully. Makes 12 servings.
Pesachdik Banana Streusel MuffinsIngredients
Directions Preheat oven to 350°. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners or spray well with nonstick cooking spray. Place matzah meal, potato starch, cream of tartar and baking soda in a bowl and whisk well. Set aside. Combine oil and sugar in a large bowl and beat oil, sugar and eggs until smooth, using an electric mixer. Add bananas and mix well. Add matzah meal mixture and mix until just combined – do not over mix. Stir in the chocolate chips. Divide the mixture among the muffin cups. Stir together the topping mixture and sprinkle over the muffins. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the muffins are puffed, golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Makes 12 muffins.  |
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