Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Okay, I have to say I'm kind of a beer snob, but won't those little zyliss stoppers work just fine for wine, too? Am I completely ruining the bottles of 3-buck-chuck I keep around for cooking?

So, I'm stewing venison next week in TJ's wine, but I wouldn't dream of making carbonnade with anything less than a Belgian Strong Dark, preferably Chimay, but Maudite is awfully tasty, too.

Tonight we are having Éphémère Apple with our Tomato Soup and fancy Grilled Cheese. I wanted the Cassis, but it was not to be had, not even for ready money.

That is a great idea, I would recomend against taking Oregeno however.

For wine we use a rubber stopper with a hand vacum pump.

Big problem is the cats think they are for soccer.

I also put the cork back in upside down and it always fits. So far so good anyway.

This tip may be posted somewhere, but here goes anyway. When I cut a pan of brownies or other soft/chewy bars I use my metal pastry scraper. Go straight in and pull straight up. It illiminates all the mess of using a knife and the bars come out with clean edges.

More tips:

Blanch Vegetables In The Microwave: Many recipes which require blanching vegetables before cooking them some other way: blanch then fry green beans, blanch spinach before making a filling, blanch carrots and potatoes before putting them in a quiche, etc. For most of these, you can instead "blanch" the vegetables in the microwave:

1. Put vegetables in large glass or plastic container with lid.
2. Microwave briefly (see below)
3. Immediately lift lid so steam/moisture can escape
4. Use for rest of recipe.

This has three advantages: you don't need to heat up a huge pot of hot salty water on the stove (and wash it), it's faster, and you don't usually need to dry the vegetables afterwards.

When microwaving for this purpose, though, the veggies need to be in small, consistent-sized pieces (no more than 3/4" cubes) and you can't fill the container more than 2" deep, or they will cook unevenly. Also, starchy veggies need to be stirred around immediately after blanching or they will adhere.

Blanching times are short, in my microwave (YMMV):

• Chopped spinach: 25 seconds
• 1/2" potato cubes: 90 seconds
• green beans: 50 seconds

Best tip ever.

Something just redeemed the otherwise sad April issue of Savuer for me: the best prep tip I've read in two or three years. I've already used it twice.

It's how to halve grape tomatoes quickly. We've all cut a basket of grape or cherry tomatoes in half, one at a time. Takes about 15 min, right? Not anymore.

1. Get two yogurt/cottage cheese container lids.
2. Put one lid, upside down, on a thick cutting board, near the edge.
3. Fill the lid with a single layer of grape tomatoes.
4. Put the other lid on top, forming a lid-and-tomato sandwich.
5. Get a really sharp vegetable knife or thin-bladed serrated knife.
6. Cut horizontally between the two lids.
7. Lift the lid and dump out the halved tomatoes.
8. Repeat until basket is empty

I haven't tried this with spherical cherry tomatoes yet, will see how it works.

Dude, that rocks!

Oh dear. I must confess...I'm a cork whittler. (But I thought of it on my own. )

Tip for seasoning fish:

If the fillet you purchased came rolled in laminated butcher paper (recommended) instead of in a foam carton, then there's a way to spice it without getting fish on your hands and having to wash them repeatedly:

1. unroll the butcher paper on the counter and tug on the corners until you can get the fillets to slide to the center of the paper.

2. Sprinkle them with the spices you need for your recipe (e.g. oil, salt & pepper, garlic, lemon & parsley, cayenne & oregano, ras al hanout, etc.).

3. Lifting both ends of the butcher paper, use it to roll the fillets around in the center until they are evenly coated with spices.

4. Roll the paper back up, fish inside, and let sit for the amount of time recommended by the recipe.

Time to bump this again with more kitchen tips:

So, it's time to oil your wooden cutting board, countertop, or knife handle. This means that you want some food-grade mineral oil from SLT, right? For $6 for 8oz:

http://www.surlatable.com/product/lamso ... y=ourPicks

Or even better, John Boos "mystery oil" (as in, "how does he get away with it?"):

http://www.cheftools.com/John-Boos-Myst ... o/06-0725/

Or maybe you could just by some mineral oil from a drugstore for $3.89 / 16oz?

http://www.amazon.com/Vi-Jon-Inc-S0883- ... 001B2RG1C/

It's a recession ... be frugal!

(and yes, it's the same stuff regardless of whose name is on the label ... )