Call it a Dutch oven, a cocotte, a casserole dish, or a cast iron pan -- just don't underestimate it. Once you have one in your kitchen you'll wonder how you've ever cooked without it! Since the entire team at Cooking With Spirits likes to be creative we thought we'd share 5 Reasons You Need A Dutch Oven in your Kitchen.
If you think a dutch oven is just to cook soup, you're not using it to its full potential.
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Our Favorite Blender for Cooking and Mixed Drinks is the Vitamix 5200 blender. You won’t just find the Vitamix 5200 blender in restaurant kitchens. You’ll find it in home kitchens around the world. We use the Vitamix 5200 blender in our test kitchen and at home. The price point is a bit higher than some of the other Vitamix models but the features are well worth it. ...
When you cook with alcohol, the amount that'll remain at the end is hugely variable depending on how you cook it. I know, your cookbook may have promised that alcohol simmers off after being exposed to high heat but that's just not completely true.
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When I first began cooking with wine I'll admit I used cooking wine. I didn't know any better and I thought no one would be able to tell the difference. You guessed it, I was wrong! I know some of our readers may be in the same boat I was so today we're talking about How to Choose the Correct Wine for Cooking. ...
Instead of enjoying a fantastic glass of your favorite fine Italian wine with dinner, consider using the nectar of the gods as an ingredient in your favorite dish. Cooking with wine has never been more popular and endless recipes abound that incorporate all different types of wine into favorite dishes and unique spins on classic cuisine. When you cook with Italian wine, the alcohol evaporates, so the dish will be appropriate for individuals unable to consume alcohol, underage eaters, or individuals who do not wish to imbibe any alcohol....
Superfine sugar is favored for sweetening drinks or preparing a meringue. Caster sugar is the name of very fine sugar in Britain, so named because the grains are small enough to fit though a sugar "caster" or sprinkler. It is sold as "superfine" sugar in the United States.
Because of its fineness, it dissolves more quickly than regular white sugar, and so is especially useful in meringues and cold liquids. It is not as fine as confectioner’s sugar, which has been crushed mechanically (and generally mixed with a little starch to keep it from clumping).
If the recipe calls for superfine, powdered, or brown sugar, you can actually make any of them at home from regular white sugar. "If you don't have it in the house, you don't have to run out to the store—it's totally fine to make it yourself, All you need is a blender (or food processor) and a bit of ingenuity.
f you don’t have any caster sugar on hand, you can make your own by grinding granulated sugar for a couple of minutes in a food processor (this also produces sugar dust, so let it settle for a few moments before opening the food processor). For one cup: Grind one cup and two teaspoons of white granulated sugar in a blender, coffee bean type grinder or food processor for 30 seconds.
Many cocktails, including our lemon drop cocktail, call for rimming the glass with superfine sugar. The rim of the glass is moistened just a bit and then dipped into the superfine sugar. Lightly tap the side of the glass to remove any excess sugar.
Let us know in the comments section if you have any questions or tips related to making superfine sugar at home.
There's no doubt that having the right tools for the job makes any task easier, and there's no better place to illustrate this than in the kitchen, where having the right cooking utensils can be the difference between creating good meals and great meals....
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Before you learn how to open a bottle of wine you’ll need one essential tool, a simple wine bottle opener or corkscrew. They are widely available at most grocery stores and cost around $8-15. You don’t need to get fancy. A simple corkscrew will work just as well as those fancy gadgets. Make sure it has a serrated blade, this will make cutting the foil much easier. Ready to start opening that bottle?...
