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The first time I put on my muffin hat and griddled English muffins, I wasn’t a fan. The sheer labor and logistics involved in making them weren’t fun. They’re not muffins in the “scoop batter and bake” sense. They involve yeast, proofing dough, and griddling each and every muffin. Instead of making individual English muffins, I started forming the dough into loaves that I could bake and then slice. Yes, some of the labor is still there, but it’s less finicky because you don’t have to worry about griddling the muffins in batches....

Espresso Martini As a shameless coffee addict, this is hands down one of my favourite cocktails. I order it when I need a pick-me-up at social gatherings. I order it at nice restaurants to have alongside dessert – or in lieu of dessert. I’d happily order it all night long except that I try (operative word here being try!) to be sensible about my caffein intake so I usually limit myself to two at most!...

I love how this bowl looks like a rainbow of colours. Lots of fresh, bright ingredients like cherry tomatoes, avocado and crunchy red cabbage, mixed together with smoky charred sweetcorn, tender pan-fried fish and roasted red peppers. Of course you couldn’t call it a taco bowl without the addition of some mixed beans and rice – which makes it filling enough for dinner. The dressing totally finishes it off – Greek yogurt with coriander, garlic, lime and honey makes for a creamy-yet-zingy sauce that tastes awesome poured on everything!...

A daiquiri is essentially a mixture of rum, sugar, and citrus – anything after that is just gilding the lily. A frozen strawberry daiquiri, however, is the ultimate refresher for summer days spent poolside or with your toes buried deep in the sand. Video: How to Make Strawberry Daiquiris Fresh or Frozen Strawberries? Many strawberry daiquiri recipes use fresh strawberries, but personally, I find that frozen strawberries help thicken the drink (like a smoothie!...

SAUTEED SPINACH – A QUICK HEALTHY SIDE This is a quick vegetable side that I make ALOT so it’s high time I shared. It’s been pictured on the side of many main dishes that I’ve shared over the years – usually because I’m scrambling for something quick to put on the side to complete a photo! And beyond using this Sautéed Spinach as a prop for photos, this is something that frequently appears in my real life day-to-day cooking for the very reason that it’s so quick with the added bonus that it’s an easy way to eat a huge mound of greens with just a few bites because spinach wilts to much when it’s cooked!...

My friend Arturo grew up near the beaches of Acapulco and learned a way of preparing the garlic shrimp classic with jalapeños and coconut milk. The layers of flavor in this dish are fabulous – chile, shrimp, coconut, lemongrass (or lime). If you get the timing right, this dish cooks up quite fast. What Shrimp to Buy Look for jumbo shrimp (about 20 count per pound) for this recipe. Fresh or frozen shrimp are fine....

What Are Giblets? Giblets are comprised of the heart, gizzard, liver, and neck of the chicken or turkey. They are often found in a small bundle inside the cavity of the whole bird. You can make gravy from the giblets of either a turkey or a chicken, though I think it’s more usual with a roast turkey. The giblets are bigger, and there’s more meat to put in the gravy....

Making glazed carrots on the stove is something I started doing several years ago for lavish special event dinners like Christmas when the (one and only) oven is otherwise occupied with more important things. Like the main event – turkey or ham. Stuffing. Homemade bread. Carrots are not a priority. Sorry! 😉 So this is how I make carrots that look and taste roasted but are made on the stove....

An Allergy-Friendly Cake Everyone Can Enjoy I’ve projected this choice onto my son, Oliver, and have made it for each of his birthdays so far. (Of course when he’s old enough to request otherwise, I’ll happily make what he wants!) Because he’s allergic to eggs and lots of his friends have a handful of other allergies, I thought it’d be fun to develop a cake that everyone could eat, regardless of dietary restriction....

Strawberries: You can use either frozen or fresh strawberries in this recipe. In the middle of summer when they are in abundance, we love to use fresh strawberries. The rest of the year, we stick with frozen. If you opt for fresh, be sure to let your jello mixture cool before incorporating them. Fruit Options in Grandma’s Strawberry Pretzel Salad: You really don’t have to stick with strawberries in this recipe....

So, say hello to these Green Goddess Veggie Burgers! How to Make a Delicious Veggie Burger These burgers are packed with spices such as cumin and paprika and a few other ingredients to keep them together on the grill. I like to start the burgers with a chickpea base, which gives them a great mouth feel—that’s a fancy way to say they feel good, texture wise—and can handle the heat of a grill....

Why Do You Use Nutritional Yeast For This Grilled Cauliflower? Well, if you’ve never cooked with nutritional yeast…you’re missing out! Let’s start there. It has a cheesy, umami flavor that is quite pleasing to the tastebuds. People hear the word yeast and get scared though. Don’t be scared. Nutritional yeast is a deactivated yeast. That means it doesn’t contribute to yeast overgrowth or issues. It’s also rich in folate and B vitamins and even has protein in it....

So, what to do? Grilled Chicken Breast: The Solution (Brine!) One method is to marinate chicken cutlets, or chicken breasts pounded to an even thickness, and quickly grill them on high heat. We use this method for our cilantro lime chicken and it works fine. Another way, which doesn’t require you to change the shape of the chicken breasts, is to brine the chicken first. VIDEO! How To Grill Boneless Chicken Breasts How Long To Brine Chicken Breasts All it takes is 30 minutes in a simple brine solution of 1/4 cup kosher salt dissolved in 4 cups water....

First posted in 2006, I’ve changed it over the years incorporating many of the ideas that commenters have given us after trying the recipe, plus a few ideas of my own. Chicken cutlets are marinated in a lime juice cilantro marinade for a couple hours. They are grilled quickly on a hot grill and served with a simple black bean sauce made with canned black beans, onions, garlic, and oregano....

This is not your basic side salad. It’s jam-packed with big flavors that start with spiced and grilled shrimp, plus grilled peppers and onions (I mean why not, the grill is already hot)—then all these grilled items get served on a base of romaine with lots of fresh vegetables and some Cotija cheese. A tangy cilantro vinaigrette then ties everything together. The salad is filling and light at the same time, if that makes sense....

What Are Plantains? Plantains look like oversized bananas, and they can range from green to yellow and brown, depending on the ripeness. Green plantains are more starchy when cooked, like a potato. The green ones are great for making plantain fries as an example. The yellow and brown ones are more ripe and are sweeter. They are softer and what we used for these ground beef and plantain bowls. We love plantains because they are not only delicious but also a great resistant starch, which is good for digestion....

Haitian cuisine, also known as Haitian Creole cuisine, originated during the colonial times where West African and French, Spanish and some Arabic people were brought together. Creole cuisine itself is composed of bold spicy flavors mainly influenced from the African people. When we speak about the bold and spicy flavors that are a must in Creole cuisine, we are specifically referring to seasonings that marry well together and are used to bring out all the flavors in a dish to make them bold....

True, there is some close competition from white bean and ham soup. Come to think about it, they’re both great! Video: How to Make Ham and Potato Soup Use a Ham Shank or Leftover Ham This recipe is for soup made with ham and potato. You can use either a leftover ham bone and some ham from a glazed ham, or you can use a meaty ham shank. You could even use a ham hock, but the hocks aren’t as meaty as the shanks, so if you use hocks, you’ll likely need extra ham....

It’s one of those feed-a-lot-of-people comfort food salads that makes you look forward to leftovers. How to Use Leftover Ham in Ham Salad Put it in a sandwich (or a slider bun!), eat it plain, or add it to macaroni. The basic components of our favorite ham salad are ground or finely diced ham, sweet pickle relish (sweet works better than dill for ham, in my opinion), and hard-boiled eggs....

Potatoes in many different forms are the basis of my diet in winter. Give me mashed potato, roasties, jacket spuds, gnocchi….. I could go on forever.So here’s another potato recipe to add to the potato repertoire that will impress the whole family! It takes a little bit time up front (we’re talking less than a minute per potato) to make those pretty little slices in the potatoes, but the rest is effortless....