kathrine's Profile

One easy thing to do is take a cardboard box, cut out the sides and top and tape thin white paper over the holes. You can use the box outside or place a light source near it. The white paper diffuses the light and makes picture taking easy.

Here are instructions:

http://desktoppub.about.com/od/scanninggraphics/ss/lightbox.htm

I'm going to sound like a huge nerd but I get Saveur, Cook's Illustrated, Cook's Country, Vegetarian Times (a gift), Mutineer, and Food Arts. All of them are good in different ways.

@jess pith and @lillies

Yes, brine while soaking! It works great.

In a NY Times column, Harold McGee, the food chemistry expert, weighs in on this long standing controversy:

Q: When should I add salt when cooking dried beans? I’ve heard not to add salt too early because it slows down the cooking. However, when I add salt towards the end, the flavor seems a bit flat.

Harold McGee replies: Salt does slow the softening of dried beans, but adding it early also gets salt into the bean interior, while adding late leaves most of the salt on or near the surface. If you’re thinking ahead early enough to presoak the beans, salt in the presoaking water actually speeds the cooking, in addition to salting the beans evenly.

er Cascadia.....

@oofs

"i'm wondering if the maggot cheese is just an urban legend. it has such an urban legend feel to it. those crazy sardinians! there isn't really anything else we eat that has animals jump up at us from them."

There is an episode of Anthony Bourdain where he eats it on camera. It is definitely not an urban legend!

How in the world would you sharpen that thing??

Oh hey! Use a knife.

I have a suribachi that i use quite a bit, and bought at an Asian grocery for cheap. Most of the spices I buy are whole, and it seems like a waste to get out the spice grinder when you only need 1/2 teaspoon of ground cumin. I just use the suribachi instead. Easy to clean up too!

Honeycrisp! The name kind of says it all.....

Salt kills germs and nothing can grow in it. I wouldn't worry too much about contaminated salt. Worry more about touching the outside of your salt or pepper container with poultry covered hands.