In Good Taste

Ingredient Spotlight: Six Uses for Chives

I've never been particularly interested in cream cheese (with the exception of pumpkin cream cheese) but lately, I've been all about eating half of a whole-wheat bagel with chive cream cheese in the morning. Fine, sometimes I'm all about eating an entire whole-wheat bagel but you know what? There's no one keeping score here.

This morning I was waiting for my bagel to take a spin through the toaster at the Dunkin Donuts in my building and when the barely-English-speaking toaster attendant who handed me a freshly creased paper bag asked me what chives were.

I mean, I know what chives are. Dana knows what chives are. The delightfully oblivious toaster master? Did not know what chives were and despite the fact that I eat them, cook with them and most recently, spread them on my bagel, I was stumped at how to answer his question.

In my pre-caffeinated state I should have just suggested that he go home and Google it but instead I think I confused him even more and it's entirely possible that I turned him off chives for life. So, I did what any self-respecting food writer would do: I got back to my desk and immediately looked up the definition of chives so that next time I'll be better prepared to answer tough questions.

If You Love Fall: Spiced Ginger Pear Pie (Tea Giveaway)

I'm sorry to all of you summer-holics out there, but I can't wait until this swampy, sweaty, humid, feel-like-fainting-on-the-bus-in-the-morning heat is over and done with. I'm ready for triple-digit heat indexes to be a distant memory and I'm ready for sweater weather.

In short: I'm ready for summer to yield to fall. I love everything about the third season: leaves changing colors, pumpkin-flavored everything, the abundance of apples at the farmer's market and sleeping with my windows open.

Pate Brisee (aka a fancy way to say "Pie Crust")

I am going to come right out here and say that I swiped this recipe from Martha Stewart and I don't feel bad about it. You know what? If you go to just about any other food blog out there, you'll probably see this exact same recipe because there are only so many ways to make a pie crust and even further, there are only so many ways to make a pie crust as good as this one.

Trust Martha.

Trust her Pate Brisee.

Crunchy Red Quinoa Salad with Chai Tea Vinaigrette (and a delicious giveaway!)

During my sophomore year in college I started just about every day with a Chai tea latte. Unfazed by the calories that my daily drink was racking up, I couldn't get enough of the warm, spicy flavor underneath the smooth ribbons of foam.

When I eventually came to my senses and moved on to Starbucks Tazo Chai Filterbags (actually I developed a wicked coffee habit but this is neither the time or place for that discussion).

Baking with Tea: Vanilla Rooibos Biscotti Recipe

One thing I love about cooking is when I set out to make a recipe thinking it's going to be screeching-nails-on-a-chalkboard frustrating and it surprises me by being so intrinsically simple that I could probably duplicate with with my eyes closed and one hand tied behind my back. 

What can I say? I have a flair for the dramatics.

Every time I set out to make biscotti, I dread it a little bit, no matter how satisfying I know the final product will be in the end. You see, you need two bowls: one for the wet ingredients and one for the dry substances. Two bowls = 2 dishes to wash at the end of the day. I mean, directly after I finish cooking, of course. Biscotti also bakes twice - once whole at a higher temperature and once after it's cooled and you've sliced, in a warm-but-not-as-hot oven (that's the technical term).

Now the good news? That's as difficult as it gets.