I Want To Cook

Baked Oatmeal Is Way Better Than Mush

Really, I have nothing against oatmeal. I’ve been known to cook up a batch several times a week. Heck, I even regularly incorporate it into my homemade dog food.

But let’s be honest: Oatmeal can be boring. It can be mushy. It can be bland. Nutritious, yes. But something you look forward to come breakfast time? Probably not.

Baked oatmeal, however, changes the game. Baked oatmeal uses the same main ingredient as oatmeal — oats, of course — but has a totally different texture. Instead of being mushy like porridge, baked oatmeal has a delightful firmness to it.

The oats on top get golden and delicious, while the interior remains soft. And it can be tailored to your specific tastes with the addition of nuts, fruits, and spices. Here is my baked oatmeal recipe that will make breakfast anything but boring.

Homemade Bechamel Is Your Gateway Sauce

Bechamel is one of those fancy-sounding culinary words. It might bring up connotations of a French restaurant or perhaps a snooty waiter derisively explaining the ingredients in today’s special.

And bechamel is indeed important. So important, in fact, that it’s among the five “mother sauces.” The other four are hollandaise, sauce tomate (tomato), espagnole, and veloute. They’re called mother sauces because they are foundational to others. Think of them as the parent to another sauce.

But here’s the good news: Bechamel is stunningly simple in both its ingredients and how it’s made. If you’ve got a pot, a whisk, and less than 10 minutes, you can make bechamel.

Last-Minute Thanksgiving Survival Guide

Here it is upon us once again and all too soon: Thanksgiving.

You know what that means? Well of course it signals several helpings of turkey and a tryptophan-induced coma in front of the television soon after. It also means that those other holidays — Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Chrismukkah — are just a blink away.

As things in the kitchen move into high gear, it’s good to slow down and remember to enjoy the process. If you can think of what you are doing as an expression of love instead of a load of work, it will make the day that much more enjoyable.

It’s also a good time to remind about basic kitchen safety of the fowl variety. Undercooked turkey, as we all know, does not make for good eats or safe eats. Here are some tips and facts to remember if you are cooking the bird yourself in the oven.

Tapenade Is Totally Easy To Make

Tapenade: It’s a recipe that has a fancy name and one that you may think is hard to prepare, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. If you have a can opener, a food processer, and 10 minutes, you can make tapenade.

Tapenade is an olive-based dish that can be served on top of crusty bread, as a dip for vegetables, or even as a spread on sandwiches in place of mayonnaise.

Most tapenades are made with regular black olives like those commonly found in cans, but by all means, if you love green olives, give it a whirl. Kalamata olives could also make a delightful version. You can also combine different types of olives for more pizzazz.

Yes, You Can Cook and Eat Cactus!

There are some things that one can’t help but bristle at upon the notion of eating. Sure, we’ve all heard about the “delicacies” involving insects and offal in other countries, but what I bring to the table here is much simpler in nature yet can be just as confounding for the uninitiated: Cactus.

That’s right — those desert-loving plants known for their sharp spines can actually be eaten.

Two of the most popular edible portions of cacti are the pads, called “nopales,” and the pears, cactus fruit that in Spanish are known as “tuna.” The former are the flat, broad portions that look like paddles. Once their needles are removed, they can be grilled, baked, or simmered.

Cactus pears, also called prickly pears, can be peeled and eaten as is. Their delicious fruit is surprisingly sweet, with a texture that’s a cross between a kiwi and a pear. Fresh cactus pads and cactus pears can be found at Hispanic markets as well as some well-stocked mainstream grocers. Thankfully, the work of removing the needles has usually already been done.

Glazed Carrots Are Glorious

Psst! Want to know how to get your kids — or yourself — to eat carrots?

Glaze ’em.

Glazing is a process that will turn the humble orange root into a side dish that will have you and your friends and family gobbling carrots like rabbits.

The technique can be done in a single pan, and it only takes about 10 minutes. The results are carrots bathed in a sweet glaze of liquid that might just make this side the star of the meal.

You can make this recipe a family affair by having the kids or your spouse peel the skins off the carrots, and as a bonus, you’ll even learn how to make a reduction sauce in the process. I’ve only got one word to describe the whole thing: Sweet

Like Sriracha? Then You Gotta Try Gochujang

Like many of you out there, I’ve long been a fan of sriracha. The bright red sauce made of ground chilies and garlic is a staple in Asian cuisine, yet like so many other condiments it’s a multicultural star that enlivens everything from eggs to hamburgers.

But it was on a trip to South Korea years ago that I found something even better: gochujang. Like sriracha, gochujang is a condiment made from red chilies.

You’ll Go Crazy For Homemade Couscous

Pasta with raisins and nuts? The very notion may sound like that last ingredient, but trust me on this. The first step is expanding your notion of “pasta.”

Couscous, which is a traditional North African dish and the main ingredient in today’s recipe, is actually a tiny form of pasta. You may have had couscous before either warm or at room temperature and thought you were eating rice, but the soft little granules are most often made of coarsely ground semolina, the same stuff used to make spaghetti.

Couscous is great to build recipes around because it’s very versatile and can be made in about 10 minutes. As for ease of cooking, it doesn’t get much simpler than this.

Truly: If you can boil water, you can make couscous.

Homemade Coleslaw Recipe: Skip The Deli!

Coleslaw is a go-to side dish come summer or all year long, whether it’s served alongside an entree like fried chicken or as part of a potluck or picnic. But for most people, coleslaw comes from behind a deli counter rather than a home kitchen. I hope to change that.

Yes, that deli stuff is cheap and convenient, but it turns out that making coleslaw yourself is absurdly easy and costs even less. We’re talking the price of a head of cabbage and a carrot, plus a couple of items you probably already have on hand such as mayonnaise, cider vinegar, and some sugar.

Tapenade Is Tops For Taste

Across backyards everywhere this past Memorial Day, grills blazed at the unofficial start of summer. And while I enjoyed some grilled delights myself, my thoughts – and taste buds – turned to something much different yet absolutely perfect for this eating season: Tapenade.

Tapenade is an olive-based dish that can be served on top of crusty bread, as a dip for vegetables, or even as a spread on sandwiches in place of mayonnaise.

It’s a dish that has a fancy name and one that you may think is hard to prepare, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. If you have a can opener, a food processer, and 10 minutes, you can make tapenade.