Category: Food

If you’ve ever ordered a salad from a restaurant before, then you’ve probably noticed that salads always seem to taste better when somebody else prepares them for you. Recreating a restaurant-style salad recipe at home just never seems to work out, does it? 

If you’re looking to elevate your at-home salad experience, we’ve got a few practical tips that can help.

1. Invest in a Salad Spinner

Nobody likes soggy lettuce. If you don’t already have a salad spinner, grab one from your local home goods store. These are ideal for removing excess moisture after you’ve rinsed your lettuce and before you start assembling your salad. This results in crisper, fresher, and more delicious greens.

2. Think Beyond Iceberg

Speaking of lettuce, it’s time to think outside the box when it comes to your salad ingredients. If you tend to grab traditional iceberg lettuce to use in your recipes, it may be time to switch things up a bit. While there’s nothing inherent wrong with iceberg lettuce, you’ll get a lot more dynamic flavor if you incorporate some other types as well. Consider options like romaine, arugula, spinach, and even kale to take your salads to the next level.

3. Use Local Ingredients

Whenever possible, using locally grown ingredients in your salads can seriously elevate the flavor. Rather than grabbing your salad ingredients from your local chain grocery store, consider hitting up a local farmer’s market and purchasing things like lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers directly from nearby farmers. You’ll notice the difference in taste and you’ll be supporting local farms. It’s a win-win!

4. Make Your Own Dressing

If you’re looking for a way to seriously transform your next salad, try making your own dressing from scratch. Compared to a store-bought bottle of salad dressing, making your own dressing can pack more of a flavor punch while allowing you to customize your dressing to your own tastes.

If you’re feeling unsure about DIYing your salad dressing, it’s easier than you think. This is especially true if you stick to a basic vinaigrette, which typically includes no more than olive oil, vinegar, and some basic seasonings like garlic, salt, and pepper. Once you try making your own salad dressing for the first time, you may never want to go back to store-bought again.

5. Give It a Toss Before Plating

One of the best things about enjoying a restaurant salad is when you don’t even have to do the work of incorporating the dressing into the salad yourself. Many restaurants will take the time to toss dressing into a salad before plating it, which ensures that each individual leaf is perfectly coated in dressing. Give this a try at home and taste the difference for yourself!

Dig Into a Crisp Salad Today

After reading these tips, aren’t you craving a fresh and delicious salad? Instead of ordering from your usual restaurant, why not use these tips to whip up your own yummy salad at home? With a little time and care, your homemade salads can be just as delicious (if not more delicious) than the ones you order at your favorite eatery! 

Is there anything more satisfying than cutting into a delicious loaf of freshly-baked bread? Perhaps the only way this could be more satisfying is if you’ve prepared and baked the bread from scratch. Of course, the idea of making bread can be intimidating—but it’s something that many of our ancestors did without giving it a second thought.

If you’re looking to get into bread-baking (or just want to give it a try), there are a few important fundamentals to keep in mind.

1. Precision is Key

First, understand that when you’re working from a bread recipe, there really isn’t any room for error. While you may be used to taking some liberties with other types of recipes, bread recipes are very precise. This means you’ll need to be especially careful when measuring and adding your ingredients; being off by even a small amount could result in catastrophe while baking bread.

2. Don’t Over- (Or Under-) Knead

Kneading is an important step in nearly any bread recipe (unless you’re following a no-knead recipe), but it’s common for beginning bread bakers to over- or under-knead their dough. When you knead the dough too much, you’ll end up with bread that is heavy and dense. Not kneading it enough, on the other hand, can prevent it from rising.

As a general rule, you should knead bread dough until its consistency is similar to that of chewed bubble gum (not the best visual, but it’s accurate!). 

3. Invest in a Mixer With a Dough Hook

If you plan on making bread even a few times a year, then investing in a stand mixer will probably be worth it. Specifically, a stand mixer makes incorporating ingredients much easier and can save you time in your recipes. Even more specifically, a stand mixer with a dough hook will save you a great deal of time and energy compared to mixing dough by hand.

4. Keep Extra Ingredients On-Hand

When you’re getting started baking bread, you’re going to make mistakes. It happens. This is why it’s a good idea to keep plenty of extra ingredients (especially yeast and flour) in your pantry. This way, when you inevitably make a mistake and have to scrap your dough, you can start over immediately without having to run to the store to pick up more ingredients.

5. Don’t Kill the Yeast

Last but not least, remember to treat yeast delicately; your recipe relies on yeast being activated in order for the dough to rise. Too much heat can kill yeast, so be sure to always use lukewarm (not hot) water when adding water to a bread dough recipe. How warm is too warm? Generally, most yeast can withstand temperatures of about 120-130 degrees. Anything hotter than that and you’ll risk killing it off.

The Final Word on Baking Bread

Keeping these bread-baking fundamentals in mind as you get started can make all the difference in your success. By following these tips, you don’t have to be a professional baker to serve up delicious home-baked bread. From rolls and baguettes to brioches and more, you’ll be impressing your loved ones with your new-found baking skills.

We’ve all heard of pregnant women eating weird things. Who hasn’t heard stories about some poor guy having to run out in the middle of the night to get his pregnant wife ice cream and pickles? (And yeah, that’s a weird combination).

But pregnancy cravings are a real thing. It’s not just an uncomfortable soon-to-be mom being picky. Cravings are actually a symptom that can be caused by a few changes going on in the pregnancy, like a heightened sense of smell and taste, hormonal changes, and nutritional needs. If the baby or mom is lacking in something, they’ll get a huge craving for foods that have that nutrient.

For instance, lots of pregnant women crave peanut butter. Peanut butter is loaded with good fats, iron, vitamin E, and calcium. So it may be that the baby (or mom) really just needs to increase one of those things. Plus, peanut butter is delicious.

There are also old wives’ tales that go with cravings. For instance, when a pregnant woman is craving sweet things, they say she’s having a girl. If she craves salty things, they say she’s having a boy. And some women believe that the craving is really something the baby wants. Many moms swear that the things they craved during pregnancy were the child’s favorite food once they arrived. It’s not science-backed, but who knows?

5 Weirdest Pregnancy Cravings

Weird is subjective, but these five things definitely hit the “not normal food groups” for most people.

1. Pickles and Ice Cream. This just sounds gross. Though many pregnant women through the years would tell you not to knock it until you tried it. Craving pickles usually has something to do with needing salt. The ice cream might just be sweet to counterbalance it or the mom/baby might need more calcium.
2.  Rare Meat. This isn’t necessarily weird, but a lot of pregnant women who don’t like red meat normally crave really rare (or even raw) steak and red meat. 
3. Peanut Butter and Pickles. There are the pickles again. There are all sorts of combinations of pickles and peanut butter with other things. But the two together are probably the weirdest tasting concoction you’ll hear about.
4. Chalk. You read that right. A lot of pregnant women get cravings for things that are not even food! Chalk is high on the list. But they might also crave paper and even dirt. A lot of people think these cravings have something to do with settling nausea, but craving non-food items is also a condition called Pica.
5. Chocolate and Beef Jerky. A lot of pregnant women crave chocolate with a variety of things. This might be a take on salty and sweet, but it still seems weird to us. Ever get the craving to smother your beef jerky in chocolate sauce? 

There are a lot of other cravings that are common, too. Some things are more healthy than others. For instance, many women crave fruits, certain vegetables, and even ice. And you don’t necessarily need to indulge in all of these cravings, especially if they are things that are unhealthy during pregnancy.

Brunch is the best! If you’re committed to serving a good brunch, whether that’s a party for friends or a meal for other members of your household, there are many things you can do to make brunch one of the best meals in your home. Here’s what you need to know. 

1. Make Homemade Waffles

Make homemade waffles instead of buying waffles from the grocery store. Use whatever batter recipe you like best, but add vanilla extract to your batter for an extra kick.

If you have time, make your own homemade berry syrup by combining berries, hot water, corn starch, sugar and lemon juice. Prepare your berry syrup the night before to allow it time to cool.

Top your waffles with syrup, homemade whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. For extra fun, buy a new waffle maker that makes waffles in special shapes, like hearts, stars, flowers or even characters. 

2. Serve High-Quality, Specialized Coffee

Drip coffee is fine on a Monday morning, but not on a fun brunch day! Make stovetop coffee from a percolator, buy a French press, or make a cappuccino from your home espresso maker (if you have one). Flavored coffee syrups can add a special touch to you coffee. These syrups go perfectly with waffles! 

3. Offer Savory Lox and Bagels on a Board

Lox is meat from a salmon that’s been cured in salty brine. Served on bagels, lox makes a perfect brunch food. Assemble your lox on a board with bagels of various types, and include other bagel toppings of various kinds, including cream cheese, tomato slices, avocado slices, capers, boiled eggs and more. The best part about a lox board is that it looks beautiful before the bagels are eaten, making your board the perfect centerpiece for your meal. 

4. Make Creative Mimosas

Mimosas are a traditional brunch drink enjoyed by adults. A traditional mimosa is made from orange juice and Champaign, and a touch of sugar around the rim. However, Champaign goes with a variety of juices.

Strawberry juice, blackberry juice, pear juice, apple juice, mango juice – all of these juices can be mixed with white or pink Champaign to make a delicious brunch-time beverage. For a finishing touch, top your drink with fresh berries like blueberries, blackberries or strawberry slices.  

5. Try Pancake Skewers or Chocolate Chip Cast Iron Pancakes

Pancakes are a traditional and expected part of brunch, but they capture the taste buds and imagination when they take on different forms. Consider baking your pancakes in the oven, in a favorite cast-iron pan. Mix chocolate chips into the batter for a tasty treat.

Seeking something even more unusual? Cook up mini pancakes in a skillet, then make pancake kebobs by putting them on skewers, separated by strawberry slices. Pancake kebobs look lovely and taste fantastic.   

Enjoy!

The most important thing to remember when you’re serving brunch is to have fun. Brunch is a delicious meal that should be enjoyable to serve. Practice makes perfect, so if you’re not happy with the brunch you just served, you’ll do better next time.

There is any number of reasons that you might have food cravings and quite often it really has little to do with the actual type of food. It could be a simple reason you can easily remedy, or it could be something serious that you should not ignore.

Here are some reasons for cravings and what you can do about it.

Physical Reasons for Your Cravings

Hormonal imbalance is a common physical cause of cravings. When your “hunger hormones,” ghrelin and leptin, are not balanced it can cause overeating and cravings. Lack of sleep, even low-level sleep deprivation, has been linked to overeating, cravings, and obesity in several studies. Poor gut health and an overall unhealthy diet can also be the culprit.

Women may experience cravings during pregnancy, PMS, and during their menstrual cycle. This is typically caused by hormonal changes in the body.

Psychological Reasons for Your Cravings

Stress is a huge cause of cravings, along with other eating problems. When you experience stress, your body begins producing cortisol, the stress hormone. When cortisol levels are high, it can trigger cravings and overeating. Your mood can also cause cravings. For instance, if you are sad, angry, anxious, or feeling worried, you may turn to comfort foods.

If you have the urge to grab some popcorn when you watch a movie or eat while watching TV, your brain may be creating links between certain foods and certain activities. This is called eating context. It is possible to rewire your brain. Don’t eat anywhere else but at the table, but if you must snack while watching TV, choose fresh fruits and vegetables.

Health Reasons for Your Cravings

Some cravings can signal an underlying health condition. If you notice any of these cravings, talk to your doctor because they could be warning signs that you shouldn’t ignore.

Water. If you crave water it could be an early warning sign of diabetes. Excessive thirst coupled with excessive urination should be addressed with your doctor.

Ice. Craving water in its frozen form could point to another serious health concern – an iron deficiency. Bloodflow to the brain is increased when you chew ice which gets rid of the sluggishness that an iron deficiency causes.

Fries. Craving high fat foods like fries could be a signal that you aren’t getting enough Omega-3 fatty acids in your diet. Put down the fries and pick up some avocados, olive oil, seeds, salmon, or nuts for a healthier option.

Salt. There is a common misconception that people crave salt because they need the sodium or iodine that is found in iodized salt. The truth is, there’s no merit to that. However, extreme salt cravings could indicate Addison’s disease and that could be a problem.

Chocolate. If you crave chocolate there could be a reason other than you just love chocolate. It could be that you have a B vitamin or magnesium deficiency.

Sugar. If you crave sugar, you might be dehydrated. Sugar cravings have been linked to low-level dehydration so instead of picking up that sugary treat, grab a glass or two of water.

Do You have a Food Addiction?

Food addiction is very real. It is possible to be addicted to a certain type of food like fat, sugar, or salt, but compulsive overeating may not focus on just one thing. However, people who are addicted to food get the same “high” as people on heroin and cocaine. For them, food triggers the same pleasure and reward centers in the brain that drugs do. If you think you might have a food addiction, talk to your doctor.

Maybe You’re Just Plain Hungry!

At the end of the day, food cravings could be just that – food cravings. Maybe you’re just hungry. While it is worth taking a minute to analyze your craving, also assess your situation. Have you eaten today? When did you last eat? How much did you eat? Is it possible that it’s time for another meal or snack? If the answer is yes, then choose something healthy and carry on.

Let’s have some fun with weird science that you can apply to your cooking and create tasty recipes.

Methylcellulose

Methylcellulose, derived from plants, is a hydrocolloid. A hydrocolloid is the weird science name for a substance that turns into a gel when heated and melts back to a liquid as it gets colder.

This property is thermoreversible, which means that you can cycle back and forth between hot temperatures causing the cellulose to become more solid, and colder temperatures, causing it to melt.

Chefs in fancy restaurants use this ingredient to make hot ice cream and some fancy meringues.

If you want to try this ingredient in your recipes, you can find it for sale online. Be sure to buy the premium-quality food-grade type.

Liquid Nitrogen

Liquid nitrogen is used for flash freezing. The advantage of freezing something very quickly is you avoid forming large ice crystals, which can degrade the taste and texture of the frozen food. Sushi restaurants use flash freezing to preserve fish in perfect condition until thawed, sliced, and served raw.

Use liquid nitrogen flash freezing if you want to make ice cream that is smoother and more creamy. Using liquid nitrogen will also avoid the grainy taste from unwanted large ice crystals in the ice cream milk mixture.

Vacuum-Packed Hot Water Bag

The French cooking technique used to heat food perfectly and evenly is called “sous vide.” Food packed in temperature-resistant plastic bags is placed in hot water.

You can cook food at the exact temperature you want by regulating the hot water temperature using a thermometer. This method is a fast and convenient way to heat or reheat food, and the results are also perfectly cooked and delicious.

Once you learn to cook food using this method, you will rarely use a microwave to reheat food. It is impossible to overcook food or dry it out using this method. Moreover, you avoid the taste-changing oxidation that may come from the exposure of the food to the air while cooking.

Bobo Tea Balls

Have you ever wondered how they make those wonderful gelatinous balls found in bobo tea and other similar drinks?

The process uses sodium alginate, a chemical found in seaweed that gives the plant its flexibility.

Use flavored liquid with the correct amount of sodium alginate. Drop it into a calcium salt bath, and voila! You have bobo tea balls through a process in weird science called spherification. A stable gel sphere forms around the flavored liquid to create a ball with a delicious taste and squishiness.

Flavored Foams

A foam is a liquid with bubbles of air trapped inside. To create a tasty culinary foam, you can use a water-based flavored liquid, a whisker to put air bubbles in it, and an emulsifier like soy lecithin to keep the bubbles from popping.

Soy lecithin added to the flavored liquid lowers the surface tension of the bubbles, so they will not pop as easily. This ingredient helps the foam stay foamy.

Let’s Get Cookin

You may think these techniques are only for fancy restaurants, but you can do them at home too. And what would a weird science topic be without a weird science name? When you learn these techniques, you will be an expert in molecular gastronomy.

When you think of the perfect pancake, what do you see? A big stack of ultra-fluffy, golden brown pancakes served with all your favorite toppings? Bingo! But, if you don’t take the right approach, your pancakes may come out flat, soggy and altogether disappointing batch after batch. Luckily for you, we’re here with the top five secrets you need to make the pancakes of your dreams every time. Check it out.

Buttermilk is Not Optional – Ever

Fluffy pancakes start with buttermilk. Period. Milk alone cannot achieve the thick and fluffy texture you crave.

Buttermilk can work its magic due to its high acid content. As its acids hit the baking soda in the dry mix, the chemical reaction bubbles up the batter to add height while breaking down the gluten. On top of that, the buttermilk adds a richness unmatched by its milky counterpart.

Don’t have buttermilk on hand? You can often get away with adding one tablespoon of white vinegar to a measuring cup and filling it whole milk to the one-cup mark. Then, stir and let it sit for about five minutes. You won’t get the richness, but your pancakes will rise to the occasion, for sure.

Whip Your Egg Whites into a Frenzy

If you’re not whipping your egg whites into a frenzy, then you’re missing out on cloud-level fluffiness in your pancakes. When whipped to the stiff peak stage, the egg whites bring tons of air into the equation to fluff up each delightfully delicious disc.

To do this, simply separate your egg whites and yolks for the total number of eggs needed for your recipe. Then, add the yolks to the batter like normal before turning your attention to the egg whites.

After that, you just have to use an electric mixer to beat the whites until they create stiff peaks when you pull the beaters out. Once that’s done, gently fold the egg whites into your otherwise complete batter.  

Mix to Combine, Not Beat into Submission

Pancake batter definitely benefits from a gentle touch. Otherwise, your batter will toughen up, creating chewy, dense pancakes that will leave you full of regret.  

To avoid that, you just have to mix all your dry ingredients first to combine them well. Then, add all your wet ingredients – minus the egg whites, of course – and mix just until everything looks well combined.

Lumps are perfectly fine and normal, in fact, so don’t try to get rid of them. After it’s combined, reduce your intensity even more to fold in your egg whites without taking the wind out of their sails.

Use a Dry Pan – But Be Ready for Sacrifice

Although it’s tempting to use oil for your pancakes, it’s ill-advised. The oil just soaks into the pancake, weighing it down and ruining its lightly sweet flavor.

Instead, you have to use a completely dry pan. While that might sound scary, it’ll only cost you one small sacrifice: the very first pancake. After that, the rest of the batch won’t dare stick to the pan, especially after seeing you gobble up that test pancake with glee.  

Add a Not-So-Secret Banana to the Equation  

Bananas in your pancakes? The horror! Well, not really, not if you like bananas, that is. So, if you’re a fan of these tasty fruits, slice one up and toss it in your batter before folding in the egg whites. The fun additions can add interest to every bite, letting you come up with all new recipes to share with the world.

If you’d like savory pancakes, bacon, shredded cheese, and chives can get you there. Prefer to keep it fruitylicious? Strawberries, mangos, pineapple and coconut, and the list goes on. The sky is the limit in what you can make if you put your mind to it.

Now that you know how to create pancakes to remember, it’s time to get cooking! Just be sure to make a trial batch to nail down your newfound techniques before inviting the whole crew over for your soon-to-be award-winning pancakes.

Fun fact: About half of people in the U.S. eat a sandwich of some sort daily. This versatile meal was probably one of the first foods you ever learned to make on your own as a kid. And, chances are, you can spout off your favorite sandwich layers in nothing flat. But, there’s a sandwich and then there’s a perfect sandwich. What can you do to such a simple concoction to lead it to culinary perfection? Here are five simple and genius tips for the top-of-the-line sandwich. 

1. It all starts with the best bread … 

The perfect bread can be a matter of preference, no doubt. However, if there is one thing any chef will tell you when it comes to building a good sandwich, it’s that the bread you use means everything. Some would even say that if you’ve got the perfect bread, you’re already halfway to the perfect sandwich. Bread should taste good enough to eat all on its own with very little intervention. If not, find another type. 

2. Condiment placement means everything 

From mayo and mustard to olive oil and butter, condiments are a must with any perfect sandwich, but they should also be used the right way. The goal is to get a bit of that flavor with every bite. This means every bite will be just as flavorful and moist as the next. Remember this goal as you construct your sandwich—the usual method requires adding a thin layer to each slice of bread. If you’re using more than one condiment, don’t be afraid to slather a thin layer on the cheese or protein pick either. 

3. Treat your veggies right 

Whether it’s a basic leaf of iceberg lettuce or thin cucumber slices and tomatoes, the veggies on a sandwich should be handled just so. Wash cold veggies first with cool water. This adds that bit of crispness you crave in a sandwich bite. Make sure to handle them gently when layering them in place. Don’t be afraid of adding seasoned, warmed veggies either—this can make a sandwich much more dynamic. For example, shredded carrots sautéed in a bit of garlic and olive oil give a sandwich a new layer of flavor and texture. 

4. Always opt for thinly sliced meats 

Whatever type of protein you choose—turkey breast, pork tenderloin, ham, tofu—make sure the protein is sliced thinly. A sandwich should be easy to eat. No one wants to take a bite and pull away with all the protein in their mouth because it didn’t fall apart easily. 

5. Layer sandwiches with intention 

When it comes to sandwich perfection, never go at it haphazardly like you’re just throwing a bunch of stuff in the mix. How you layer matters. The general rule is to place your protein first and then build from there. Next comes the cheese, then comes the veggies and added garnishes. If you’re working with hot protein, such as warmed roast beef, consider adding cheese under and over the meat with the rest of the ingredients on top.