This article was written by Rosemary Wolbert and originally published in The Kitchen Journals When you’ve tasted the first asparagus of the season, simply cooked, maybe spritzed with a bit of lemon and topped with a tad of butter, you’ve just tasted spring. Although good asparagus can be found year-round, it is at its peak
Cooking
Want a Perfect Pizza Crust? You’ve Got to Hydrate.
You wouldn’t build a house on a faulty foundation. So, why build a pizza on a subpar crust? Think back to some great pizza you once ate, and I’ll bet the crust was a big reason why you liked it. A good crust is the cornerstone of a good pizza, and to build a good
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Cooking
Pasta all’Amatriciana
It’s interesting how food can transport us to far away places. My host son Julius studied at the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, Italy where the curriculum required frequent field trips to the farms, vineyards and production facilities responsible for some of the country’s most iconic foods.
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Cooking
Pancake Perfection
If you’re like me, nothing says ‘Sunday morning’ like a stack of hot pancakes, but if you’re still using a box mix, you have no idea what you’re missing. Nothing from a box can come close to the taste of pancakes made from scratch. Let me explain why.
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Cooking
5 Keys to Great Coffee
I began drinking coffee sometime during the seventies; a period in American history which could easily be labelled as the dark ages. (And when I say dark, I’m not referring to the roast.) In those days, cafes were non-existent. Few outside of Seattle had ever heard of Starbucks, and the only place to go for a halfway decent cup was McDonald’s.
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Herbs & Spices
Lemongrass
Lemongrass (Cymbopogon citrates), also known as citronella, is a favorite flavoring ingredient in Asian cuisines, particularly Thai, Malaysian and Vietnamese. This tall, fibrous tropical grass is native to India, Sri Lanka, and Malaysia and has a distinct lemony fragrance that comes from an essential oil known as citral. It has a white fleshy bulbous base where most
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Ingredients
Parmigiano-Reggiano
According to the World Cheese Book, to taste a piece of Parmigiano-Reggiano “is to taste a piece of Italian geological, culinary, and cultural history.” We can think of no other cheese that is more associated with, and reflective of, its country of origin. There is nothing like it, and for good reason. Since 1955, the Consorzio del Fromaggio
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Herbs & Spices
Thyme
Thyme is used widely throughout Western and Middle Eastern cuisines. A perennial garden favorite and a member of the mint family, it is believed to have originated in Mediterranean Europe. Its tender leaves are about ¼-inch or 6 mm, even smaller than those of oregano, and are green or variegated green and yellow, depending on the variety. They have an earthy somewhat peppery