Gizmos for Cooks

News: Google Does It Again…

greenmeadows — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:55:25 +0000

How many times have you said, “There’s nothing to eat in this house,” only to find yourself standing in front of a pantry that’s chock full of possible ingredients? Same goes for the fridge. What if you could pop a few of those items into an online search engine and come up with a plethora of entree ideas? Now you can, thanks to the new Cookin’ With Google feature. Still in the Beta testing phase, this new Google module will let you search for recipes based on the type of main ingredients you have available, as well as the type of cuisine, meal type, prep time, amount of saturated fat and season or occasion you have in mind. Learn more about the feature and its origins here, or go straight to the Beta version of Cookin’ With Google here. Then get cookin’!

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Chill…Just Chill…

greenmeadows — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:44:03 +0000

With July 4th rapidly approaching this week, you might just be planning an al fresco meal for friends and family members, courtesy of your charcoal or gas grill. Well, to keep the meats and veggies you plan to barbecue fresh and sheltered until they hit the heat, consider having the Chill Out on hand. Complete with a base, stainless steel tray and hinged clear cover, this useful contraption also features a cooling element that you store in the freezer and then place in the base to keep food chilled between the kitchen and the porch or patio. No more need to depend on flimsy paper plates that barely hold the weight of the cookout-worthy cuisine you and your pals will enjoying. And that in itself is worth celebrating.

Price: $29.95 from Herrington Catalog (*This is a great deal — half off this week!)

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Burn(er) It Up

greenmeadows — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:44:24 +0000

If I had my druthers (and a whole mess of money), I would love to outfit my kitchen with an induction cooktop. Not only is it more energy efficient, but it also makes cooking faster and easier (allowing you to feel like a professional chef every time you get ready to whip up a dish). Alas, I must stick with my trusty old gas cooktop for now. Until then, I wouldn’t mind having the Fagor Portable Induction Burner somewhere on my counter. The burner features easy-touch controls and six temperature settings, and it stays cool to the touch while it’s in use, thanks to the fact that there are no flames or smoke produced as you cook. You can boil water quickly and even handle more delicate tasks, like melting chocolate or butter without a double-boiler. And clean up is easy to boot - just wipe off the glass when you’re finished and get ready for your next meal.

Price: 199.95 from Sur la Table

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Recipe of the Week: Spicy Chipotle Turkey Burgers

greenmeadows — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:32:11 +0000

Recipe courtesy of All Recipes

INGREDIENTS
1 pound ground turkey
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, finely chopped
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
4 slices mozzarella cheese
4 hamburger buns, split and toasted

DIRECTIONS
Preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat, and lightly oil grate. Place the ground turkey, onion, cilantro, chipotle chile pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, seasoned salt, and black pepper in a mixing bowl; mix well. Form into 4 patties.
Cook the hamburgers on the preheated grill until the turkey is no longer pink in the center, about 4 minutes per side. Place the mozzarella slices on the patties 2 minutes before they are ready. Serve on the toasted buns.

Prep time: 25 minutes

Cook time: 10 minutes

Yields 4 burgers

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Class of the Week: Guys Get Grilling - June 26, 2008 (Alpharetta, GA)

greenmeadows — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:15:13 +0000

Thursday, June 26

Guys Get Grilling!

Whole Foods - Alpharetta, GA

7 - 9 p.m.

$35 (demonstration)

Instructor: John Wilson of Culinary Vacations, Inc.

Guys, it’s time to light the fire and clear the picnic table - bold summer flavors are bursting onto the scene! Join Chef John Wilson as he shows how your grill can handle more than just hamburgers and hotdogs. He’ll take you through a delicious summer menu complemented by refreshing local brewed beers. Learn the best techniques for grilling vegetables, making the tastiest kabobs, and grilling up an incredible western-style flank steak. Isn’t it time for a guys night out?
On the Menu:
Grilled Corn with Green Bean and Grape Tomato Salad
Grilled Balsamic Red Onions
Western Rubbed and Mopped Flank Steak
Grilled Fresh Kabobs

For more information or to register for this class, visit the Whole Foods Website

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This Spud’s For You…

greenmeadows — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 18:01:32 +0000

I am a potato junkie. I love all versions of this starchy wonder, from baked to roasted to mashed. Of course, if you want to leave the skin on for whatever recipe you’re preparing, you have to find an appropriate (and hopefully easy) way to clean your potatoes. Enter an amazing little tool that costs a few dollars and more than pays for itself the first time you use it. The Potato Brush is a simple, low-tech little gizmo, with nylon bristles that allow you to scrub away any grime that makes its way into the crevices of everything from an Idaho to a Yukon Gold. And the potato-shaped grip is not only cute, but it actually makes the brush quite ergonomic. It’s the perfect little convenience to have around, and it hardly takes up any space at all. I actually have two, just in case I wear out the first one (which is about to happen). At a mere $4, it’s an investment I don’t mind making at all.

Price: $4.00 from Sur la Table

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Oh Baby!

greenmeadows — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 17:39:04 +0000

This nifty gadget is going to have to make an appearance in my kitchen as soon as possible. The Beaba Babycook allows you to prepare delicious and nutritious meals for your little one with great ease, steaming veggies, fruits and meats in less than 15 minutes and then pureeing them to the proper consistency. The machine gives you total control over what goes into the food your baby eats, as well as the sense that you’re doing something really great to start them off right in the diet department. The bowl and cooking basket that come with the Babycook are dishwasher safe, and the size of the gizmo should make it simple for you to find room on the counter for it — since you’ll definitely want to keep it within easy reach for use every day.

Price: $139.95 from Williams-Sonoma

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Recipe of the Week: Sunburst Carrot Salad

greenmeadows — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 18:27:45 +0000

Recipe courtesy of 101Cookbooks.com

2 bunches carrots, preferably spring carrots
extra virgin olive oil
fine grain sea salt
1 green chile (serrano), deveined and minced
1 lemon, zest and juice
1 cup cilantro, chopped
1 cup green pumpkin seeds (pepitas), toasted

Start by washing the carrots. Use a vegetable peeler to shave each carrot into wide ribbons. If your carrots have beat up, dirty skins, peel them first before making ribbons.

Heat a big splash of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a big pinch of salt and stir in the carrot ribbons. Saute for just 20 seconds or so - barely long enough to take the raw edge and a bit of crunch off the carrots. Quickly stir in the chiles and lemon zest. Remove from heat and stir in the cilantro, about one tablespoon of lemon juice, and then most of the pepitas. Taste. Add more salt and/or lemon juice if needed. Garnish with remaining pepitas.

Serves 4 to 6.

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Produce Cleaning Made Easy

greenmeadows — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 18:24:15 +0000

We all know that fresh fruits and vegetables are part of a healthy diet, but how often do we grab something easy out of the pantry or the freezer instead of taking the time to wash off an apple for a snack or clean and chop some unprocessed veggies for dinner? Well, now is the time to make a change — thanks in large part to the fact that Solutions Catalog has recently introduced the Produce Cleaning Net. Just take the fruits and vegetables you want to clean, drop them in the “floating” net, fill the sink with water, submerge the net, and let the items soak so any soil or dirt can be released. As the net does its magic, you can be doing other things around the kitchen or the house. And moments later, you’ll have fresh, clean produce ready to eat or cook. It doesn’t get much easier than that.

Price: $9.95 from Solutions Catalog

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Micro Has A New Meaning

greenmeadows — Mon, 26 May 2008 19:12:45 +0000

The Sharper Image has a great way of making technology portable so you can apply it to all aspects of life. Here, with the new iwavecube Personal Microwave, the innovation giant allows you to take the convenience of a microwave oven (once only appropriate for the kitchen) and put it just about anywhere — another room in the house, your office, an entertainment or media room — you name it. This tiny microwave weighs a mere 12 lbs., takes up less than a cubic foot of space and features a built-in carry handle and view-through door. And because it plugs into a standard outlet, you can have popcorn, a perfectly heated cup of soup or warmed up java from earlier in the day any time, any place. It’s the epitome of practicality.

Price: $129.95 from The Sharper Image

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