“Never wash mushrooms; they’ll absorb the water.” “Putting an avocado pit in the guacamole keeps it from turning brown.” “Don’t add salt to beans before cooking or they won’t soften.” In his new blog, Bitten, New York Times Dining Section writer Mark Bittman debunks six of “your grandmother’s” kitchen myths.
Ideally, spices should be stored in a way that protects them from the heat, light and moisture that are common in kitchens. When we moved into an apartment with a lovely built-in spice rack right under a skylight, I channeled my inner Martha and took matters into my own hand, replacing all of our unmatched, clear spice bottles with inexpensive 4 oz. tins fitted with a standard label (that can be easily printed from a preloaded Word template).
I am usually reluctant to recommend This Product or That One, but as I’ve mentioned truffle salt in today’s recipe, it is only fair to tell you that it is the rare posh product I’d be sad to live without. We love it in vinaigrettes, on asparagus, with poached eggs, roasted red potatoes, buttered popcorn… and I’m just getting started. My $20 bottle is now into its third year, less than a quarter depleted and pungent as ever.
Last Valentine’s Day, Alex and I had dinner at Prune. Alex wore my favorite suit of his and brought a giant bouquet of roses and a gift, because he’s spoil-me-rotten like that. We had the most decadent meal, but I couldn’t help but go home with the nagging feeling that I had ordered from the wrong side of the menu. You see, chef Gabrielle Hamilton’s menus are an editorial delight, and on Valentine’s Day she went to town with an especially charmingly bipolar one.
The Lovers’ Menu from which we ordered had all sorts of rich and spectacular foods, including homemade chocolate kisses (with tissue paper messages) dolloped out by a friend of mine who was working there as a pastry chef at the time. But the other side, the Cynics’ menu–with its Broken Vinaigrette, Whore’s (Puttanesca) Pasta, Cold Shoulder of Pork and Coffee and Cigarettes, oh and at half the price–well, it was evident that the bitter folks were having more fun. Really, it’s not the first time. Because my Valentine and I have a sense of humor (and also due to my inherent dislike of Special Romantical Menus in general) I couldn’t resist my own recreation of a Not Really Cynic’s Menu Thursday night: Pasta Puttanesca and a Bitter Salad with Broken Artichoke Hearts.
What’s the secret to breaking a butternut squash down into easily managed pieces? In short: a very sharp knife, two peelings, a bevel, several cuts, another bevel, a scoop and a few more slices. I tucked the longer, no-fail instructions over here. Now there is nothing keeping you from a galette, soup or scrumptious salad.
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