I’ve come a long way with focaccia. When it started popping up in sandwich shops several years ago, I could barely order it. Pronunciation has never been my strong suit and my gallant efforts to order it resulted in awkward moments for months. It’s a testament to how much I like the bread that I continued to humiliate myself in such a public way.
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This morning I demonstrated how to cook a healthy and budget-friendly version of New Orleans-style Red Beans and Rice on WCNC’s Charlotte Today show. It was an exercise in resistance. Typically my preparation of red beans and rice involves some serious cooking using an obscene amount of bacon and andouille sausage. Today’s recipe involved a shorter cooking time and the substitution of turkey sausage for the pork. Surprisingly, it was just as delicious.
For those of you who choose to watch the video you’re in for a few laughs. Paul Schadt hosts a morning show for a country radio station here in Charlotte. This week he is a guest host on Charlotte Today. Paul seems like a great guy, but he’s not an adventurous eater. Imagine my surprise when I realized that he had never tried beans or sausage before!
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Tagged Beans, budget-friendly, dinner, dried beans, Food, Healthy, New Orleans, Recipe, red beans and rice, rice, turkey sausage
My husband gave me Mastering the Art of French Cooking for Christmas in 2007. It was our first Christmas as a married couple. My enthusiasm for cooking had been steadily building for years, but that first Christmas together was when my dream of heading to culinary school was beginning to take shape.
The decision to go to culinary school was a huge step for me. I had a great job working for a place that I love. The culinary industry, despite time waiting tables during college, was a complete unknown. Cooking had become an obsession for me, but as I contemplated a huge career change, I wondered if I would like being in the kitchen as much when it became my work.
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Tagged 100th Birthday, Almond, cherry clafouti, Clafouti, cooking, Culinary School, Food, Julia Child, mastering the art of french cooking, Peach, Recipe
I’ve had serious recipe block recently. Everything is so gosh-darn perfect at the farmer’s market that it needs no help. Take corn. It only needs to be roasted and then rubbed with a little butter and sprinkled with salt and pepper. Tomatoes don’t even need vinegar. Simply splash thick slices with a little olive oil and some sliced basil and you have a delicious side. I don’t even want to talk about the peaches which I’ve bought every week this summer with the goal of making peach pie, but instead have eaten fresh as anything else would be gilding the lily.
Perhaps all this perfection was what made me scoop up a couple of green tomatoes yesterday. Tangy and firm to the touch, those unripe tomatoes were something that required my attention; something that for all their goodness could be improved upon.
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Tagged buttermilk, dill, dill dressing, dinner, Food, green tomatoes, Recipe, salad, unripe tomatoes
