9 Food Tips

1.       Hard boiled eggs have become the fashion around here. Now that Owen can eat eggs he asks for one at almost every meal. I am here to inform anybody who’s interested that it is far more effective to:

Boil the pot of water, then add eggs and cook at a low simmer for 10-11 minutes. Shock in ice water immediately.

Do NOT:

Put the eggs in cold water, bring to a boil, then shut off heat and steam with lid on for 10 minutes.

I don’t care if that’s what Julia Child says to do, the shell removal process is far worse. (I’ve tested this with new eggs, old eggs, and similarly-aged eggs.)

2.       The only luck Roy and I have had with our own sourdough starter involves these strategies:

100 g bread flour to 100 g water. Mix together, loosely cover with plastic wrap (it’s not a tight seal) and leave on the stove top with the light on. Repeat this process, adding additional flour/water for two more days. If you use the stove to cook/bake with, the extra ambient heat only helps.

3.       Coconut oatmeal cookies are far better when you add imitation almond extract to the batter (imitation for Owen). Chilling the dough doesn’t affect the spread rate of these cookies so bake away!

4.       If you shop at Wegmans, among other stores, make your entire grocery list using their app. Then when you are in other stores (Aldi, Walmart, Topps, etc) you can see the Wegmans prices and do an instant cost comparison.

5.       Foods I’ve recently learned are high in iron: pumpkin seeds, dark chocolate (very dark), Brussels sprouts, oatmeal.

6.       Avocado smashed on toast with a sliced hard boiled egg, a little whole grain mustard, and salt and pepper is to die for. Unfortunately, avocados are at record costs right now.

7.       A blender makes better, far creamier cashew cream sauce than a food processor.

8.       If you use your phone or tablet for recipes in the kitchen Paprika is the BEST app for saving recipes and utilizing in the kitchen. It automatically keeps your phone open so you aren’t constantly having to re-wake it up with floury/greasy fingers. And you can type in your own notes/add nutrition info/categorize/etc, etc, etc. It isn’t free, but it's the most useful app I’ve found in years.

9. The Great British Baking Show Masterclass is like getting the answer key to the show. And Paul and Mary are absolutely HILARIOUS to watch together. Netflix. You're welcome. :)