February 2010


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The New Joy of Cooking: Introducing the Endless Simmer Recipe Index

recipes

If you’re under the mistaken impression that all we do around these parts is stalk Padma Lakshmi and miserably fail in the kitchen, then you should be aware that since launching in 2007, ES has published a whopping 245 recipes. Can you believe that ish?! That’s a lotta freaking meals, and we finally realized we shouldn’t just leave all those valuable instructions lying half-haphazardly around the Interwebs.

So we’ve created the Endless Simmer Recipe Index, a forum where you can find every single recipe that has ever appeared on these pages. From Black Truffle and Coca-Cola Glazed Wild Boar to Tropical Sloopy Bleep Bleep, if you’ve read it on ES, you’ll find the recipe here, measurements and all (well, sometimes).

So click on over to our new recipe collection, or just jump to what you need: appetizer recipes, dip recipes, sandwich recipes, soup recipes, vegetarian recipes, salad recipes, meat recipes, fish recipes, pasta recipes, dessert recipes, breakfast recipes and drink recipes.

The Endless Simmer Recipe Index

P.S. This is a big new project, so if you notice anything off — broken links, mis-categorized recipes, etc… — don’t get mad, just give us a shout, please.

in Recipe 1 comments
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Pour Some Sugar On Me

hgvanilla

Alton Brown changed my mind about vanilla. Vanilla gets a bad rap, he insisted. We shouldn’t be comparing boring, plain things to vanilla. Vanilla is a unique flavor. It’s extremely labor-intensive to grow, making it the second most expensive spice, after saffron.

Most of us consume food flavored with a vanilla doppelganger in liquid form. That’s not actually vanilla. I’m too lazy at the moment to find my bottle, but I’m guessing there’s HFCS in that little guy. A baker I am not, I will admit to never fiddling with a real bean. But I am a fan of Häagen-Dazs’ new gimmick: real ice cream.

All-natural ice cream crafted with only five ingredients for incredibly pure, balanced flavor… and surprisingly less fat!

Their “five” has been out for a few months now, but I just recently purchased a pint of their vanilla.   I usually go for the crazy ones with multiple flavors going on: brownie chunks with espresso and caramel swirls in cinnamon oatmeal ice cream. Or something like that.

Anyway, HG’s vanilla contains only: skim milk, cream, sugar, egg yolks and vanilla (vanilla bean flakes, vanilla extract). It’s fucking delicious. It does taste different than other vanillas. It’s bolder. Thicker. It’s familiar, but better than you remember.

But more, I like this trend. Pepsi came out with a “throwback” version featuring, wait for it, real sugar. Mountain Dew is also on the bandwagon. And the version of Coca-Cola sold in Mexico — with sugar — is gaining popularity in the States.

Now it’s not like these are suddenly health drinks, but it is nice to know that the big companies recognize that consumers want the real thing, even if it’s still not all that good for us.

in Desserts / Drinks / Trends 7 comments