Kitchen Shrink
Recipes: How to find the recipes from my show.
Hunting for the recipes from my TV show, Sara’s Weeknight Meals? I still get lots of e-mails asking for the recipes from my show and wanted to let you know that they are all right on this site 24/7. Just select “Shows” in the menu under the title at the…
Here is a Cool Hack I Learned
When I was aboard Vista, Oceania’s newest ship, taking one of their very excellent cooking classes, I learned this little trick: when you are making an individual cake in a ramekin, butter the ramekin well, line it with two long strips of parchment so they are sticking out and then,…
Kitchen Shrink answers, “How can I keep chocolate chip cookies from spreading during baking.”
My answers are based on the assumption that you used the original Tollhouse cookie recipe.There are several reasons why your cookies might be spreading: The dough is too soft. It might have sat out too long on the counter before you baked the cookies, or you might have let the butter…
Green Tomatoes: What can I make with the green tomatoes I just harvested?
Each year as the weather in the northern states gets chilly, I get requests for green tomato recipes. As I learned a few years ago when the first frost threatens gardeners harvest all the tomatoes even though some are green. Some traditional ways to use up all those green tomatoes…
Leavening: What is the difference between baking powder and baking soda?
A new baker recently asked me, “What is the difference between baking powder and baking soda? When do you use each of these two ingredients?” Both baking powder and baking soda are leavening agents; they release carbon dioxide to make baked products rise. Baking soda is bicarbonate of soda. It is an…
Rice: How do you cook rice?
A while ago I got an e-mail from Brent asking, “How long do you cook rice?” I thought I would just send him a link to my recipe for cooking rice and discovered that although I recommend serving my Simple Boiled Rice with several entrées, the recipe wasn’t up on the…
Kitchen Shrink: Is there a way to save lemon rinds after squeezing out the juice?
I received an e-mail from a viewer asking, “Is there a way to save lemon rinds after squeezing out the juice . . . . I hate tossing those beautiful lemon shells.” I put on my Kitchen Shrink apron and thought of lots of ways empty lemon shells could have a…
Kitchen Shrink: How can you make sure fruit pies don’t become too soggy when baked?
I got a question entitled “Soggy Fruit Pies” from Audrey, a viewer. That got my attention! She asked for my best tip for “making sure fruit pies don’t become too soggy when baked.” She particularly asked about blueberry and peach fillings. Here are my thoughts. If you are making a…
Cheese: What are good melting cheeses?
A reader e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink to ask, “Which cheeses can be melted and poured?” While most people know that processed cheeses melt smoothly and easily into sauces, selecting a natural cheese that behaves as well isn’t always easy. Many hard grating cheeses don’t melt well and those known for…
Herbs: Substituting fresh for dried herbs
A viewer e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink to ask, “I am growing my own herbs this Spring and want to use them in all my recipes! However, most recipes call for dried herbs. Is the measurement of dried herbs the same for fresh herbs or should I uses less since the…
Artichokes: How do you cook artichokes?
“How do you cook artichokes?” I have been asked that so frequently that I included my favorite way in Sara Moulton Cooks at Home. I always steam whole artichokes rather than boil them. They lose some flavor and get watery when you boil them. Place a steamer basket in a…
Pumpkins: How do you cook a pumpkin?
Pumpkins can be peeled, cubed, and boiled or steamed, but because they are very hard to cut when they are raw and very easy to handle once they are cooked, my favorite way to cook pumpkin is to roast the whole thing until it is tender. Just rinse it and…
“How can I keep chocolate chip cookies from spreading during baking. I love a plump cookie” 🍪 is a question from Karen McCarthy Pratt addressed to my website column, “The Kitchen Shrink.”
My answers are based on the assumption that you used the original Tollhouse cookie recipe. There are several reasons why your cookies might be spreading: The dough is too soft. It might have sat out too long on the counter before you baked the cookies, or you might have let the…
Cookies: Why do cookies deflate after baking?
Pam recently e-mailed the Kitchenshrink with several questions. With the help of my friend Jean Anderson, I answered one last week and Jean and I will take on the second this week, “Why do cookies deflate when you take them from the oven. Especially chocolate chip?” My thought was that…
Cheese: What causes cheese sauce to have a gritty texture?
Pam recently e-mailed the Kitchenshrink to ask, “When I make a cheese sauce starting with a roux of flour and butter then adding milk and cheese it sometimes gets a gritty texture. What causes this?” I thought perhaps it was caused by overheating but wasn’t sure so I asked my friend Jean…
Potatoes: What is the best way to store potatoes?
I am often asked, “what is the best way to store potatoes?” “Should I store them at room temperature, refrigerate them, put them in an open bowl, or a tight plastic bag?” Potatoes keep best when placed in a well-ventilated container and stored in a dry location, away from sunlight,…
Shallots and Onions: Can they be interchanged?
There are many varieties of both shallots and onions within the species Allium cepa. They vary in appearance in that shallots grow in clusters attached at the bottom and each onion is an individual. But there doesn’t seem to be a consensus as to which is stronger in flavor. Perhaps…
Turkey: Where can I learn how to carve a turkey?
One of the questions I frequently get at this time of year is, “Where can I find out how to carve a turkey?” I have lots of information on the site about cooking and serving turkey and decided that carving the bird was the missing piece. Of the many guides…
Kitchen Shrink answers, “When frying breaded chicken, how do you keep the coating on the meat?”
First of all make sure the chicken pieces are dry, coat them with flour (I like to use Wondra instantized flour) or cornstarch and shake off any excess. Then dip them in beaten egg or buttermilk, or a combination of the two, and finally coat them with bread crumbs, panko,…
Eggs: Perfect Hard-cooked Eggs
This time of year I get a lot of e-mails asking me about the special technique for hard cooking eggs that I learned from Julia Child. When I was writing Sara’s Moulton’s Everyday Family Dinners, I made the process even easier and here it is: Sara’s Hard-cooked Eggs This is…
Meat: How Can I Thinly Slice Raw Meat?
Steve e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink to ask if there was a trick for thinly slicing raw meats for stir fry. As I mention in my recipe for Japanese Beef Fondue, the best way to thinly slice meat without a fancy slicing machine is to partially freeze the meat so it…
Cakes: If your lemon bread sinks in the middle, what went wrong?
I am pleased to address an email I received from Joanne Cambell: “I have a lemon bread recipe which was given to me from a family friend. Every time I make the recipe it sinks in the middle. Do you have any suggestions as to what I might be doing…
Broccoli: What can you do with broccoli stems?
Sandy e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink that she hated to throw away the stems from fresh broccoli and wondered what she could use them for. Broccoli stems are just as delicious as the tops and can be used in either raw or cooked dishes. You should trim off the bottom 3/4-…
Shrimp: How can I cook shrimp so they will stay tender?
Terri e-mailed the Kitchen Shrink to ask for help in cooking shrimp. She said that no matter how she cooks them, her shrimp seem tough. Whether you deep fry, sauté, stir-fry, steam or boil shrimp, they cook to tender, juicy perfection very, very quickly and then overcook. Shrimp should be cooked just…