Blood Oranges

I got lucky twice in one day yesterday. I finally found time to check out the new MOM’s (My Organic Market) in my neighborhood (score) and while there I picked up my first blood oranges of the season. (Double score.)

Blood oranges are a delicious variety of orange marked by a telltale crimson flesh. Their dark color is caused by an extra pigment that regular oranges don’t have. Flavor wise, blood oranges are often slightly sweeter and if you’re lucky you’ll taste subtle undertones of raspberry or strawberry. They’re available in winter and spring, from December to April or May, and can be used like standard oranges. Their bright reddish color is striking in salads, sauces and even cocktails.

Trivet? Hot Plate?

Over the summer I was lucky enough to spend several days lounging around the pool with my great friend, Kathy. (I suppose if I were younger or hipper I’d refer to her as my BFF.) We were talking food (of course) and making plans for the cookbook we plan to pen together when the word trivet came up…and a debate ensued.

I had only known the word to be used to describe either a small raised stand used to rest hot dishes on to protect your table or countertop; or vegetables stacked on the bottom of a roasting pan used to perch meat or poultry on in lieu of a roasting rack. Roasting meats or poultry on a trivet of vegetables has a few added benefits. First, it allows you to roast foods well, even if you don’t have a fancy roasting pan with a rack. It also elevates the meat, allowing air to circulate more evenly. The vegetables will give your meat a bit more flavor and will help keep it moist. Plus you’ll get to eat the deliciously-flavored vegetables once you’re done.

Kathy’s family had always referred to the trivets on her mom’s counter as hot plates, which I thought were the dorm-room contraband my college roommate and I used to boil water for instant oatmeal or Top Ramen. Upon further investigation it turns out we’re both right (of course). You can continue to call you trivet a hot plate (even though it’s really NOT) in peace.

(Readers, I see the stats so I know you’re there even, though you’re a comment-shy bunch, but I beg  you to leave a comment to let me know where you stand on the trivet debate.)

How to Make (and use) a Slurry

Holiday How To — Day 21 — Each day leading up to Christmas I’ll post a bit of holiday know-how that will help make your season a little easier.

Lumps and bumps and clumps better scurry, when I whisk them up in my slurry. Forgive me. I couldn’t resist, but knowing how to make a slurry may come in handy as you cook soups and sauces for your holiday meals.

A slurry is a mixture of a starch and a liquid stirred together until the starch dissolves. Slurries are added to sauces, soups, stews or any cooking liquid that you want to thicken up. Starches tend to form lumps when added to liquids. So combining them with a small amount of liquid to form a thin paste makes them easier to incorporate.

Water is the most commonly used liquid, though you can certainly substitute stock or any liquid that will complement your sauce. A slurry made with flour requires a longer cooking time to activate its thickening power and allow the raw flour taste to cook out.  Cornstarch has twice the thickening power as flour and works almost immediately after heating.

Once your slurry is added to your food, you’ll need to heat your sauce or soup up in order to release your slurry’s thickening power. As soon as it’s reached the consistency you’re looking for, remove it from the heat. Overcooking your slurry can cause your sauce to lose its thickness and thin out.

If you make your slurry ahead of time, be sure to give it a whisk or stir before adding it to your food. If left unattended the starch will settle in lumps at the bottom of your bowl.

How to Choose Between Wax Paper & Parchment Paper

Holiday How To — Day 19 — Each day leading up to Christmas I’ll post a bit of holiday know-how that will help make your season a little easier.

I’m not sure I knew what parchment paper was before I went to culinary school. (I’m excluding my middle school history projects that involved soaking paper in watered down coffee to mimic the stuff our nation’s forefathers wrote on.) And even if I had seen it listed as ‘special equipment’ for a recipe in Martha Stewart Living, I’m certain I had no idea how parchment differed from wax paper. In an effort to save you thousands of dollars in culinary school tuition, here are a few of the differences between parchment and wax paper.

Wax paper, as its name implies, is coated with a super thin layer of food grade wax. (Food grade means it’s been declared safe for use on food.) The wax helps prevent sticky items from sticking (think taffy or caramels). You can use wax paper to line pans, so long as the paper is covered COMPLETELY by the food. If left exposed, the wax will melt and the paper will smoke and burn. So it’s fine to use for lining cake pans, where the batter will cover it, but not so much for your cookie sheets where the spaces between the cookies will still be exposed.

Parchment paper is like wax paper on steroids. Its thin silicone coating makes it impervious to both water and grease. It’s nonstick, which makes it perfect for lining pans and cookie sheets. It costs more than wax paper, but is much more versatile. It can withstand higher cooking temperatures and you can use it to cook foods en papillote (fancy French term for cooking food in paper), but that’s another post for another day.

How to Choose the Right Dairy for the Job

Holiday How To — Day 16 — Each day leading up to Christmas I’ll post a bit of holiday know-how that will help make your season a little easier.

Earlier this week I posted instructions on how to whip your own cream, noting that nonfat/nondairy/skim milk/cream/half & half won’t work. It occurred to me that an explanation of why those products won’t work is in order. So here’s a quick Dairy 101 to help you choose the right dairy for the job.

Cream is the thick, creamy fat (sorry, there’s no other word for it) that rises to the top of milk. The different types of cream are classified by the amount of fat they contain.

Heavy Whipping Cream (also known as Heavy Cream) contains no less than 36% fat, while Whipping Cream is made up of at least 30% fat. The extra fat will give your whipped cream its full, fluffy texture.

Half and Half is a mix of equal parts whole milk and cream. It contains at least between 10-18% fat. It’s most often used in beverages and does not have enough fat content to whip.

Table Cream (also known as Light Cream) is usually reserved for baked goods, soups or coffee. It’s fat content ranges between 18-30%.

Evaporated Milk vs. Sweetened Condensed Milk

You’ve seen them sharing space on grocery store shelves, both flaunting the name ‘milk’ on their labels, but neither tasting quite right in your Cheerios. Evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk are both technically milk, with a few modifications.

Both are the result of removing about 60% of the water content from whole milk — think milk concentrate. With evaporated milk, you can reconstitute it by adding an equal amount of water and use it as you would regular milk. You’ll likely notice a different taste and darker color if you try this, as evaporated milk is heated slightly to extend shelf life and prevent bacteria growth. Survivalists everywhere will appreciate the fact that evaporated milk doesn’t require refrigeration until it’s opened.

In addition to having 60% of its water content removed, sweetened condensed milk has added sugar, giving it a darker color, sweeter flavor and thicker consistency. It can’t be reconstituted and used like regular milk, but is usually reserved for adding richness or creaminess to desserts. Like evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk must only be refrigerated once opened.

And there you have it, the difference between evaporated and sweetened condensed milk.

Tips for Tuesday

I’m teaching a knife skills class tonight at L’academie de Cuisine in Bethesda (www.lacademie.com) so I thought I’d share a few tips to keep you sharp in the kitchen.

1. Always cut on a cutting board. Smooth, slippery surfaces, like marble, metal or glass, can damage your knife’s blade or cause it to slip as you’re cutting.

2. Place a damp paper towel underneath your cutting board to keep it from moving while you chop.

3. NEVER put knives in a sink full of water. Water, especially sudsy water will hide the knife and an unsuspecting dishwasher can cut themselves if they don’t know the knife is there.

4. NEVER try to catch a falling knife. A wise person once said, “a falling knife has no handle,” meaning it’s more likely you’ll grab the blade instead of the handle in your attempt to catch it. If you drop your knife, take one big step back, put your hands in the air and no one will get hurt.

5. Dull knives are dangerous. You are far more likely to cut yourself by trying to force a dull blade through your food than with a nice, sharp blade. If you’re unskilled at using the whetstone to keep your blade razor-sharp, leave it to the professionals. Many kitchen supply stores will sharpen your blades while you shop.

Safe chopping!

Yellow Watermelon

I love a good surprise and I got one recently in the produce section – yellow watermelon. The bright yellow flesh caught my eye and into my reusable canvas grocery sack it went. The second surprise came later when I tasted my discovery. It tasted exactly the same as its red-fleshed cousin!

Yellow watermelons are one of more than 1,200 types of watermelon grown in 96 countries. They’re available year round, thanks to Mexican imports, but melons from California and Arizona are in season from May to October. The yellow flesh is due to the absence of the antioxidant lycopene, which gives tomatoes and other watermelons their red color.

Get Your Chicken On!

I couldn’t let the last day of National Chicken Month go by without sharing some random tidbits about our favorite feathered fowl. Here they are in no particular order.

1. Skin Color

The color of a chicken’s skin, which can range from white to yellow, is directly related to the chicken’s diet and not necessarily an indicator of quality.

2. Free Range

Chickens are typically raised indoors in houses that can hold tens of thousands of birds. Free range birds are permitted to move about freely outdoors as much as they’d like. They’re also usually fed vegetarian diets, without antibiotics that are often added to chicken feed to speed up the birds’ growth so they’re ready to sell sooner.

3. Determining Doneness

Poultry should always be served fully cooked, until well-done. Because it becomes dry, tough and stringy when overcooked, it’s important to cook it just until it’s done and no longer. Here are a few ways to determine a chicken’s doneness:

1. Temperature – Chicken should be cooked until it’s 165°-170°. When using a thermometer, make sure to insert it in the thickest part of the meat, away from any bones.

2. Color of Juices – When a sharp knife is inserted into the chicken, any juices that run out should be clear in color, not pink.

3. Touch – Much like beef, chicken flesh will toughen up as it cooks. When touched, cooked chicken should spring back quickly.

4. How Long Can I Keep it

…in the freezer?

According to the USDA, if wrapped properly, a raw, whole chicken can be frozen for up to a year. Raw chicken parts can be frozen for up to 9 months. Cooked chicken should only stay in the freezer for up to 4 months.

…in the fridge?

Raw chicken, whole or parts, should not be refrigerated for more than 48 hours. Cooked chicken or leftovers should be eaten within that same timeframe.

If you have any questions about how to safely prepare, package, cook and store chicken or any foods, visit the USDA’s Food Safety Education website at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Food_Safety_Education/usda_meat_&_poultry_hotline/index.asp

Dark Meat? White Meat?

It’s National Chicken Month and to celebrate, many of my posts over the next couple of weeks will focus on – you guessed it – chicken! First up, the difference between white and dark meat.

Dark meat. White meat. Dark meat? White meat? I can remember as a kid hearing these words tossed around while standing in line at KFC. I had no idea what it meant then, only that it somehow affected how many drumsticks – my personal favorite – ended up in the bucket. At some point I figured out that white meat referred to the oft-overcooked chicken breast and wings and the moist, juicy legs and thighs were the dark meat. And here’s why…

Dark meat’s darker in color due to the presence of a protein called myoglobin. Myoglobin supplies oxygen to the chicken’s muscles, so the more the muscle’s used, the more myoglobin in the muscle. Chickens don’t fly so the breast and wing aren’t put to much use, requiring very little myoglobin. The thigh and leg muscles, however, are worked frequently, (all that running around like a chicken with its head…well, you get the picture) requiring more myoglobin.