So it is officially summer and you know what that means? BBQ’s, picnics, parties and any excuse to get together and eat! I love a good gathering of my people but I get nervous when I see food sitting out especially in the warmer weather. It is hard to enjoy yourself if you are wondering …
Hollandaise: Mother Sauces Part 5 of 6
Hollandaise. Celebrate. If we took some hollandaise, took some time to celebrate. Just one day out of life, it would be so nice. Sorry, Madonna circa 1983 just temporarily possessed me. When I make hollandaise sauce, I have a tendency to put on too much jewelry and sing my rendition of her Holiday song. Hollandaise …
Tomato Sauce: Mother Sauces Part 4 of 6
Of all the Mother Sauces, Tomato sauce is the one people are most familiar with eating or cooking. I could even dare to say it is the mother of all Mother Sauces. I have never met a person who doesn’t like tomato sauce. The tomato sauce is probably the only mother sauce that can be …
Emulsified Sauces: Mother Sauces Part 3 of 6
To continue my discussion about sauces, I thought that I should talk about emulsified sauces. There is debate if mayonnaise is an official mother sauce or is it a Sister Sauce. A Sister Sauce you ask? Yep, it is like a Mother Sauce but cuter and wittier. (I just made that up to annoy my …
Mini-Thai Chicken Salad Cups
I hope everyone has had a wonderful and safe Memorial Day. I had the joy of attending my brother’s annual “Big A** Barbeque” this year. (He actually calls it Big A** BBQ, I am not making fun of people with big bottoms.) I was a bit concerned about showing up given that my smaller hinny …
Béchamel”t” in Your Mouth Mac & Cheese: Mother Sauces Part II
Why were the Mother Sauces developed? Funny you should ask. In the 19th century, Mother Sauces were prepared as a cost saving measure. Huge quantities were produced and then divided into smaller portions. From there, different ingredients were added to add variety to the meals. Béchamel (or white sauce for people who don’t like fancy …
Espagnole: Mother Sauces Part I
In classic French cooking there are five “building block” sauces or the Mother Sauces. I will make an attempt to talk about all of them over the next few weeks but today I want to concentrate on one, Espagnole Sauce. Sounds like it should be something with Spanish flavors, right? WRONG! I thought that too …
Master of My Romaine
I really wasn’t sure if I was going to post this recipe or not. It includes a subject that some people consider “wrong” or “shameful”. I am not one to hide from controversy so I am going to just toss it out there Seinfeld-style. Yes, you guessed it. I want to talk about maceration. (It’s …
Pizza Rigatoni
I think you may need to sit down before you read the next sentence. I’m not sure if I have admitted this before but there are nights that I don’t feel like cooking. (GASP!) It may happen because I am overtired or under inspired. Either way, I still have to figure out how to put …