Jen’s Kitchen Sink Popcorn and Embracing Epic Fails

November 12, 2018

It was Christmas morning. There was a few inches of snow blanketing everything and big fluffy flakes were still falling from the sky. There was a fire blazing in the fireplace. <Okay, ours is a gas fireplace with a switch to flip on the wall next to the mantle, so it’s not exactly a production.> Christmas music was blasting. The dining table was decked out to the nines. I’d made fabulously fragrant monkey bread, and Jacques Pépin’s quiche, and gotten those onto the table along with nice strong coffee and kicked-up mimosas. I just had to finish up my strawberry Santas. I’d taken a shortcut and bought whipped cream in a can. It comes with its own dispenser. Genius, right?! Read More

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I have a massive food crush on Samin Nosrat. Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat.

November 7, 2018

#saminnosrat #saltfatacidheat

I have a *massive* food crush on Samin Nosrat.     She has the enthusiasm and food joy of Julia Child.     She’s a natural teacher.     She doesn’t want to impress you, but rather wants to demystify everything about the kitchen so that you can cook well. And by you, I mean everybody.     She doesn’t want you to follow exact directions.     She wants you to actually understand. That’s pretty powerful stuff! Read More

Derek Bissonnette’s French Onion Soup recipe and Cookbook review: Soup: The Ultimate Book of Soups and Stews

November 1, 2018

#derekbissonnette #soup #cidermillpress

71AlYWqoTvLIs there anything more wonderful when it’s cold outside than a nice hot bowl of soup?! I found the most amazing soup book, Soup: The Ultimate Book of Soups and Stews! It really is the be-all and end-all encyclopedia of soup. If you love soup, you need this. It has everything. It’s got easy peasy soups for kitchen newbies and fabulous gourmet soups for when you want to stretch your culinary muscles. The recipes are perfection. Read More

Veggiewise Floats

October 31, 2018

Happy Halloween everyone! I’ll just leave my sweet little produce sculpture here. Pennywise? No, this is Veggiewise the Clown. Everything floats in ranch dip. Yum.

Jennifer Guerrero

Veggiewise2

We read Stephen King’s It for bookclub, and I was inspired by Pennywise the Clown to make a nice little produce sculpture to take with. Veggiewise the Clown. I cracked up when my friends were really hesitant to sample my little crudite display. He is a little bit more off-putting than our treats of Halloweens past…..

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My Kitchenaid Pro 600 stand mixer stopped working. The planetary gear just stopped turning.

October 27, 2018

#kitchenaid

My KitchenAid pro 600 stand mixer stopped working. It just wouldn’t turn. It’s less than 4 years old. I contacted KitchenAid and they said my options were to buy a new one or pay to have it fixed. What?! The life expectancy of a $500 appliance needs to be more than 4 years. They replied that they have a low failure rate. I thought that they should have no difficulty repairing or replacing the odd lemon if it’s that uncommon. Nope. Read More

Grilled Flank Steak Tacos with Orange Chipotle Sauce recipe and Cookbook review: Mexican Dinner Parties

October 26, 2018

71CP3tIxw+LEver walk out of a good, traditional-style Mexican restaurant and think you wish you could do that at home? I’ve got the book for you, Mexican Dinner Parties!

The author’s mother’s from Mexico and his father’s from Hungary. He grew up in Canada. His mom taught him to cook the family dishes to preserve their family heritage and now the author created this book for his kids as a family heirloom. It’s a charming story for sure, but it makes the book very special in another way. My kids are in the kitchen with me a lot, and they learn so much that way. They get coached and always hear what they’re looking for. The author does that in this book. It shows up mostly in the opening techniques pages. He doesn’t just give you the recipe for tortillas, he shows you photos of what your dough should look like, and also what it shouldn’t look like and why. It has that personal coaching feel. You will absolutely be able to master everything in the book with a little practice. Read More

Yotam Ottolenghi’s recipe for Bridget Jones’s Pan-Fried Salmon with Pine Nut Salsa and Cookbook review: Ottolenghi Simple

October 16, 2018

#ottolenghi #ottolenghisimple #tenspeedpress

Bridget_Jones's_Baby_poster

I was flipping through the book, flagging recipes to try, and read, “This is the dish Patrick Dempsey’s character tells Renee Zellweger’s Bridget Jones that he would have brought her on their imaginary date in Bridget Jones’s Baby. “From Ottolenghi,” says Dempsey, “delicious and healthy!” And easy we might add! What sounded like a bit of product placement on our part was in fact no such thing. The recipe didn’t even exist on our menu, so this is a retrospective acknowledgment.” Okay, I was trying to steer clear of it, and cook absolutely everything else in the book, because it sounds like a one-liner. Curiosity got the better of me. Wowza! Bridget Jones’ Pan-Fried Salmon with Pine Nut Salsa is an amazing salmon dish. lol! Read More