Cooking
1. Do you know the difference between "Crushed Tomatoes" and "Ground Peeled Tomatoes"? Muir Glen sells both and to my eye they look exactly the same.
I've been wondering about this for quite some time, but it didn't occur to me until just a couple of weeks ago that I could email my question to Muir Glen. I got a speedy, albeit to-the-point, response: Thank you for contacting us. Because of the higher solids content (higher Brix), the Crushed product is a thicker product. If there is anything else we can do concerning this matter, please let us know. I wasn't familiar with the term, Brix, but I've now learned that it is a measure of dissolved solids, or more specifically dissolved sugars. I compared the nutrition labels on the Muir Glen site and the crushed tomatoes are indeed higher in calories (25 calories per serving vs. 20 calories) and sugars (3 grams vs. 2 grams).
2. Do you eat breakfast cereal? For breakfast? Do you have a favorite?
Cereal is my breakfast mainstay. In warmer weather I have cold cereal with milk and (usually) fresh fruit just about every morning. In cold weather I switch to hot oatmeal with a little brown sugar. My favorite cold cereal seems to change every few years, but for the past several years it has been Nature's Path Multigrain Oatbran Flakes. I like the taste and I like that it's slightly sweet, so I don't need to add sugar. Bonus - the flakes are very sturdy and don't get soggy in milk. :)
3. You're channel surfing and come upon the Food Network. Who would you stop for? A. Emeril, B. Bobby Flay, C. Giada De Laurentiis, D. Ina Garten, E. Alton Brown, F. Oh please, I'd be on the next channel so fast...
Like so many others, I'm of the opinion that the Food Network has gone seriously downhill (it started when they took Sara Moulton's Cooking Live off the air), but hope springs eternal, so I still check the line-up from time to time. I used to really enjoy Alton Brown and didn't mind Giada De Laurentiis, but sort of can't be bothered with either any more. I still stop for Ina Garten though.
4. How much time do you typically spend fixing dinner (not including clean-up) on a weeknight?
Except on very rare occasions, 15 to 30 minutes, tops. It's rare that I do much more than heat up some leftovers on a weeknight. If I'm out of leftovers, it's got to be something I can throw together pretty quick because I'm usually ravenous by the time I get home.
5. I recently came across a recipe that calls for "4 to 5 fresh sage leaves, peeled and finely chopped". Any ideas on how to peel a sage leaf, or do you think it's a mistake?
I was hoping one of you would know the answer to this. I have plenty of sage out in my garden, so gave peeling sage a shot and failed miserably. I can't imagine that it's worth the trouble, even if it is possible, but I'm still curious to know. I'm thinking about sending a letter off to the publisher to see if I can get to the bottom of this.
Thanks to Rachel, Stephanie, Nupur, and Anonymous for playing along! See their answers here. Unfortunately, no one came up with a way to peel sage :) but they had some good guesses on crushed vs. ground tomatoes and I enjoyed comparing notes on cereal, food TV, and preparing weeknight dinners.
- Superfood Cereal Recipe
I love breakfast, but I also find it the easiest meal to skip. I get bored with traditional breakfast foods like eggs and cereal and pancakes day after day. Sometimes I eat leftovers from the previous night's dinner for breakfast but more frequently...
- My Visit To General Mills
Last week General Mills invited around 50 bloggers to come visit their corporate headquarters. I was a little wary. After all, I'm not a big consumer of packaged foods, but the lure of seeing the test kitchens and photo studio proved incentive enough,...
- Product Review: Fruity Cheerios
From time to time, I'm contacted to test and review products. I do this not to make money, or to make a name for myself, but simply because I enjoy trying new things. Recently, I was asked if I'd be interested in Fruity Cheerios. I said yes,...
- Sage Advice
We've finally gotten 'round to working on our garden; getting the earth tilled, and so on (yes, there were whole hours without rain!). We bought plants (I have a three-year old son, three dogs, and a house to take care of; I don't have time...
- "you Can't Call It Cheating, She Reminds Me Of You"...a Breakfast Pizza
(Bonus points if you can name that song!) Monday's dinner was a 'cheat' meal. I so rarely prepare meals using store-bought goods, but (believe it or no) this recipe came from Vegetarian Times! Refrigerated crescent rolls for the crust, topped...
Cooking
My Quiz Answers
1. Do you know the difference between "Crushed Tomatoes" and "Ground Peeled Tomatoes"? Muir Glen sells both and to my eye they look exactly the same.
I've been wondering about this for quite some time, but it didn't occur to me until just a couple of weeks ago that I could email my question to Muir Glen. I got a speedy, albeit to-the-point, response: Thank you for contacting us. Because of the higher solids content (higher Brix), the Crushed product is a thicker product. If there is anything else we can do concerning this matter, please let us know. I wasn't familiar with the term, Brix, but I've now learned that it is a measure of dissolved solids, or more specifically dissolved sugars. I compared the nutrition labels on the Muir Glen site and the crushed tomatoes are indeed higher in calories (25 calories per serving vs. 20 calories) and sugars (3 grams vs. 2 grams).
2. Do you eat breakfast cereal? For breakfast? Do you have a favorite?
Cereal is my breakfast mainstay. In warmer weather I have cold cereal with milk and (usually) fresh fruit just about every morning. In cold weather I switch to hot oatmeal with a little brown sugar. My favorite cold cereal seems to change every few years, but for the past several years it has been Nature's Path Multigrain Oatbran Flakes. I like the taste and I like that it's slightly sweet, so I don't need to add sugar. Bonus - the flakes are very sturdy and don't get soggy in milk. :)
3. You're channel surfing and come upon the Food Network. Who would you stop for? A. Emeril, B. Bobby Flay, C. Giada De Laurentiis, D. Ina Garten, E. Alton Brown, F. Oh please, I'd be on the next channel so fast...
Like so many others, I'm of the opinion that the Food Network has gone seriously downhill (it started when they took Sara Moulton's Cooking Live off the air), but hope springs eternal, so I still check the line-up from time to time. I used to really enjoy Alton Brown and didn't mind Giada De Laurentiis, but sort of can't be bothered with either any more. I still stop for Ina Garten though.
4. How much time do you typically spend fixing dinner (not including clean-up) on a weeknight?
Except on very rare occasions, 15 to 30 minutes, tops. It's rare that I do much more than heat up some leftovers on a weeknight. If I'm out of leftovers, it's got to be something I can throw together pretty quick because I'm usually ravenous by the time I get home.
5. I recently came across a recipe that calls for "4 to 5 fresh sage leaves, peeled and finely chopped". Any ideas on how to peel a sage leaf, or do you think it's a mistake?
I was hoping one of you would know the answer to this. I have plenty of sage out in my garden, so gave peeling sage a shot and failed miserably. I can't imagine that it's worth the trouble, even if it is possible, but I'm still curious to know. I'm thinking about sending a letter off to the publisher to see if I can get to the bottom of this.
Thanks to Rachel, Stephanie, Nupur, and Anonymous for playing along! See their answers here. Unfortunately, no one came up with a way to peel sage :) but they had some good guesses on crushed vs. ground tomatoes and I enjoyed comparing notes on cereal, food TV, and preparing weeknight dinners.
- Superfood Cereal Recipe
I love breakfast, but I also find it the easiest meal to skip. I get bored with traditional breakfast foods like eggs and cereal and pancakes day after day. Sometimes I eat leftovers from the previous night's dinner for breakfast but more frequently...
- My Visit To General Mills
Last week General Mills invited around 50 bloggers to come visit their corporate headquarters. I was a little wary. After all, I'm not a big consumer of packaged foods, but the lure of seeing the test kitchens and photo studio proved incentive enough,...
- Product Review: Fruity Cheerios
From time to time, I'm contacted to test and review products. I do this not to make money, or to make a name for myself, but simply because I enjoy trying new things. Recently, I was asked if I'd be interested in Fruity Cheerios. I said yes,...
- Sage Advice
We've finally gotten 'round to working on our garden; getting the earth tilled, and so on (yes, there were whole hours without rain!). We bought plants (I have a three-year old son, three dogs, and a house to take care of; I don't have time...
- "you Can't Call It Cheating, She Reminds Me Of You"...a Breakfast Pizza
(Bonus points if you can name that song!) Monday's dinner was a 'cheat' meal. I so rarely prepare meals using store-bought goods, but (believe it or no) this recipe came from Vegetarian Times! Refrigerated crescent rolls for the crust, topped...