Food

In the Northern Hemisphere, right now is the coldest, darkest, most depressing time of the year, which is why we have people doing everything from lighting bonfires, stringing electric lights, and entertaining anyone who wanders by with food and drink...

This, my friends, is an empty plate (now there's a 'no duh' if I ever saw one, right?). It was supposed to be filled up with a favorite cookie, rugelach (which is technically speaking just a crescent shaped rolled up cookie filled with various filling...

Confession Time: Aunt Toby has tried...Lord knows I have tried... to like kale. Kale is one of those veggies that everyone writes glowingly about. It's great stuff, full of B-everything, anti-inflammatory as all get out. Everyone should eat a boat-loa...

One more time into the kitchen my friends! And this time, we are going hard core vegetable, with lentils. (ok…all of you heading for the doors, just give us a moment to go over this, please) Something I learned recently is that for those of us who...

OK..so are we ready, my little starving artisans? Ready for good, yummy, mmmmmmmm good food for just you? With maybe a little bit of leftovers so that you have something for tomorrow or a couple of days from now? Well, you have come to the right pla...

One of the special parts of doing the recent poll were the comments that people included about things that they would find useful. One person commented about smaller recipes for one or two people, things that would be easy to make and so on. So, myster...

In our last episode, it was all about simmering water and softboiled eggs. Today, we're going to continue the discussion about heat and eggs with boiling water, hard boiled eggs and then eggs that are baked, shirred eggs. One of the major difference...

How to know when a pot is simmering. How to make a soft-boiled egg.

Rather than cooking zombies (which, by the way, is easiest during the winter, when they are not moving around and are easier to catch and dispatch. But you knew that already, right?). But in any case, to return to our usual example: You and a bunch o...

Now, you are asking yourselves, “Why bother making apple sauce? I can buy apple sauce.” That’s true. But making apple sauce is as easy as falling off the proverbial log and this way, you know what’s going into it. If you are a package or jar la...

We tend to take apples pretty much for granted here in the US. We grow a lot of apples here and except for the deep deep South and the southwest, we've pretty much got apples covered. And we have our own mythology in terms of the spread of apples in th...

Folks, your Aunt Toby has a batting average on entertaining that hovers pretty far down there (well, I got better at batting when I learned to raise my elbow but that's a story for another time), which is why the most popular birthday party my kids ev...

Anyone who visits here regularly knows that Aunt Toby is a real fan of all things cabbage. One reason is that cabbage is good for you. Another is, for my money, it's more texturally interesting than other greens, particularly the lettuces. The third t...

Well, like everyone else in the summer, we tend to throw the household into 'overdrive' because so many things need to be done and can only get done when a) they are in season and b) the weather is warm and dry enough to do them. So, this week has bee...

My father was a first generation American; his father came from (depending on what period you are referring to) Austria/Russia/the Ukraine, and married a woman whose parents were basically from the same area as he was from (when you come to a new count...

A yummy cake with small amounts of sugar and no frosting? Yes!

Or, it might be meatloaf or mac and cheese. So sayeth the New York Times in a recent article about what's being served at the parties for the fashionables. Comfort food. Not that I blame anyone - when I'm feeling poor, done to, anxious, and sca...

The explosion at the Japanese nuclear power plant makes knowing where your food is grown and how clean it is more important than ever.

Many times, it is worthwhile to make up a whole lot of something if you have a freezer. That way you have dinners already prepared.

When you don't have time, or are just tired of decorating all those holiday cookies, a pound cake makes a really good gift.

How to make the famous "O cookie" and why it works.

Heritage breed turkeys are a whole different beast when it comes to cooking for Thanksgiving.

This past week, my younger daughter put up a note on her Facebook page about smelling ale and it making her want to bake bread. And I thought, “hunh…is there enough yeast still left in beer or ale to do that?” Now, scientifically, what happens wi...

One of the ‘not such a secret' ways to saving money is first not spending it. The second half is actually taking the money you are not spending and putting it in an account someplace so that you aren’t just substituting ‘not spending’ on xxx fo...

There are times during the year when it is cold, miserable, dark, nasty and thoroughly gloomy and Aunt Toby is not in the mood to cook anything that does not have a heapin’ hunk of comfort in it. Tonight was one of those times. It was in the 30s, win...

I feel that as a public service, I have to tell you something: Sometimes, you just have to do things because they are good for you. You may learn to like them later. That is the way it is with kale. Just eat it. Find a way to eat it that works for ...

The DH and I have been at this marriage/housekeeping thing for a very long time, but even we have not done everything. This year, I became very sensitive to the whole ‘is there no food that doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup in it?” thing and...

here's how to pick a cantaloupe.

Pears have a limited time when they are at their best. Here's another thing to do when you have pears that might be a little "past it" but still taste good.

taking a cooking class can give you a whole new perspective on your skills in the kitchen.

what to do when all you see are tomatoes for miles around?

Garlic is easy to grow and easy to put away for the winter.

We're pretty loosey-goosey here at KCE; Aunt Toby doesn't tend to promote or recommend products. A lot of that has to do with the fact that what works here at Chez Siberia just might not work for readers where in particular you are. But I'm making a sp...

I was reading a post on Facebook the other day with regard to farmers markets and one commenter wrote that every town needed one and that her city did not. On the face of it, that sounds like something out of a 'say wha?" sort of experience. Doesn...

All pulled beef looks the same, so I'm not going to give you a photo essay on that. Go here: Pulled BBQ But I do have a totally "Aunt Toby Sticks Her head in the Fridge and Sees What Comes Out" sort of BBQ. We had guests coming on Friday night. I als...

Once upon a time, Aunt Toby and the DH wanted the Little Siberians to learn to eat fish and we made the mistake of introducing them to fish fingers and batter-dipped filets baked in the oven. Yes, it is fish, but it’s fish that is sort of hidden unde...

Nothing like great bbq.

Here are two desserts, one which uses egg yolks and one which uses egg whites, so if you ever find yourself with one or the other left over, here are two things you can make.

Like many folks out there, I’ve been watching the new reality show on ABC, “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution”. And no matter how I feel about how this has been constructed as a program (because it is 6 episodes long and they have to set up the d...

Here's a creative way to find food products that won't have high fructose corn syrup - or even corn syrup at all.

If you lose all your power, you can still cook for your family using a gas or charcoal grill. Here are two ideas to show you just how versatile a grill can be.

At this point in the year, a little light, quick eating might be right up your family's alley. Here are several ways to prepare eggs that are good for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

At this time of year, having a good moisturizer is a good thing; here is how to make several for things you probably already have at home.

How to cook, prepare and keep horseradish.

Add black beans to your cooking - you won't be sorry. Here are a few ideas.

A change of pace for winter dinners: a winter picnic!

Recipes for using ricotta cheese.

Shameless Self-promotion -- I'm a pundit and someone else liked my turkey soup recipe.

Something different for Thanksgiving.

How to make and use crepes that have nothing to do with French cooking.

How to cook lamb.

How to roast winter root veggies.

Things to do with plums.

You'd be amazed just how much sugar is in prepared foods.

Nutritional information about cabbage family veggies.

Good things to do with zucchini.

Nuts have a lot going for them; here's an indepth look.

Three great recipes using oats.

How to 'individually quick freeze' snap peas.

Updates on the chicks, strawberries, et al.

Other strawberry recipes, including wine.

As promised, the DH and I (along with The Boy) went to a local berry farm to augment the strawberry ‘stash’ at Chez Siberia. The DH picked 17 pounds of berries on Friday, most of which ended up being frozen and used as the starter for his strawberr...

Getting started with strawberry preservation.

Introduction to an all-strawberry weekend: total strawberry immersion.

Things to do with fresh local strawberries.

Grass fed meats require a whole different cooking technique. Here's how.

Time to widen your veggie experiences. New vegetable: chard.

Introduction to using a pressure canner

First experiences with canning.

Getting started in food preservation

How to find a farmers market. Taking advantage of what people have to offer at farmers markets.

How confinement raised pork is connected to H1N1.

Shopping at farmers markets.

Here's how to make hummus at home.

Here's how to make a quick, tasty version of Hot and Sour Soup.

Getting your freezer organized and having an inventory will save you money; you will know what you have and what you truly need to buy. Here's how.

Don't throw away those left-overs - here are a few ways to use stale bread.

Want to lift weights for health but don't have a set of weights at home? Here are some ideas.

More ideas for working with cabbage family veggies.

Learn to love cabbage and all of the other members of the same family.

how to start seeds

Meals to make with left-over mashed potatoes.

America's favorite bread is NOT a yeast bread - it's biscuits!!

Making turkey soup out of the left-over holiday bird. Yum.

The very best Christmas fruitcake: Dundee Cake!

A good solid holiday morning breakfast filled with protein, veggies and your favorite Mexican seasonings.

One basic bread dough that you can use to make three vastly different types of bread, from toast to toaster oven bread.

Basic bread making tips.

When is chowder .. chowder? When is chowder...soup? Why is it chowder? Why not stew? All important deep questions to consider.

Great chili and how to make it.

Entertaining on the cheap.

Are you getting your money's worth in terms of the food you are buying? Here's a way to figure it out.

It's easy to feel overwhelmed about what is going on with the economy. The answer is to just do one thing.

Getting through this economy means learning new words and new skills. Today's new word: thrifty.

Growing your own, making your shelter more energy efficient - these things are not just for homeowners. Renters can take some control too.