I’m with you! Winter vegetables make me happy too...a mix of sweet potatoes, cauliflower, broccoli, and onion tossed in olive oil, seasoned liberally with salt and pepper and roasted always brings a smile to my face.

Flat leaf parsley is featured in many of our meals- such a versatile flavor! Margaret over on ‘A Way to Garden’ has an article on storing a year’s worth of parsley. Very simple and clever. Keep the great articles on herbs coming as they are the unsung heroes of cooking and are so much fun to grow!

I was dubious of rice cookers since I am a minimalist kitchen type, and then a relative gave me a cooker.....and I’ve never looked back. It cooks more than just white rice, also brown rice, wild rice, barley, lentils, etc. Even veg soup, just throw everything in, turn it on, and go for a run, workout,or whatever, because the cooker takes care of it. Anything that requires bringing to a boil, simmer 20 minutes, and keeping warm works in the cooker.

Thanks for the great information. I like to hear what the restaurant chefs are using; since they are the pros, they know what produces the best results in the most efficient manner.

I love making the ‘no-knead’ recipe- so good every time! Thanks for describing the science of the technique. I place unglazed tiles from the lumberyard on the oven racks and bake the batards on the tiles. A quick spritz with the water spray bottle before baking results in that lovely crust.

James Peterson’s COOKING has been the gift I reach for over and over. It has it all...600 recipes, 1,500 photographs of step by step instructions. It never disappoints.

This is a terrific recipe--thank you!
A chocolate syrup we also find delicious is a creamy version: 1/4c. butter, 2/3c. sugar, 1/4c. cocoa--heat together ‘til dissoved, then add 1/3c. light cream and 1/2 t. vanilla. Take off heat and enjoy.

It’s always a pleasure to read your articles Matthew. Thanks for the fun and the great info!

I ordered a box of parchment sheets (250) from the restaurant supply catalog and split it with my baking friends. I use my sheets mainly for baking my rustic Italian breads.

I’ve had some sauces made with potato starch that were very good--kind of a middle ground between the robust flour sauce and the clear cornstarch sauce. The trouble is, I don’t know where to get potato starch. Any ideas?

Our ‘keeper’ receipes go in a 3 ring binder in plastic sleeves --easy to wipe off spills. The binder is divided into ‘drinks, appetizers, brunch, salads, etc..’. Another 3 ring binder holds the receipes that we want to try, also divided into categories so it’s easy to find. The binders are completely flexible as far as addding or subtracting receipes and the full sheet gives plenty of space to write or print large--nice for these middle age eyes!

A lovely story--thank you. I feel the same when thinking about sending my oldest son off to college. I worry that I haven’t taught him enough about cooking, but as zegg said, ‘if you can read, you can cook..’. My mother hated to cook and rarely did, so my sisters and I learned to cook by reading Betty Crocker and Fannie Farmer,(back in the old days!) and now we are very comfortable preparing any receipe and enjoy showing our love to our families by cooking for and with them. There is such a wonderful abundance of cooking guidance available--books, internet, TV, friends,and classes, that anyone with interest in cooking can learn.

A 12” cast iron skillet is often my choice for raosting a chicken or a pork loin. It makes it easy to transfer the pan to the stovetop for deglazing and reducing those delicious juices and bits.

I’ve heard it said many times--’fat carries flavor’--and it’s true. The Italians are masters of using cheap cuts and making it taste great. Thanks for the article.

a couple of good ol’ boys from the deep south fixed red beans and rice for me...their secret ingredient...Tony Chachere’s Original Creole Seasoning...yum! To make beans ‘fast food’, I cook a large batch in the crockpot and divide into small portions and freeze. Then dinner is just a quick saute of onion, garlic, and veg, and toss the beans in to warm through.