Michele says: If you’ve ever made your own creamy salad dressings from scratch, you may have been shocked by the inclusion of up to a cup of store-bought, chemical-filled mayonnaise. Since when does a “from scratch” recipe call for “sauce from a jar”? Moreover, can a salad dressing, potato salad, or tuna sandwich qualify as …
Heather says: Memorial Day has already come and gone, but spring has been a little reluctant and slow this year. Down here in South Carolina, I’m just putting away the menus that focus on the stove and oven and turning my attention to cooler recipes that will keep the kitchen cool. Do you utilize your …
Learning knife skills is a great way to increase your speed in meal preparation. The faster you can complete a meal’s prep work the sooner you can get to the fun part. Don’t get upset if the first few (or twenty) times you attempt to follow these tutorials if you take a long time or …
Dear Home-Ec 101, I am new to your blog and to cooking. I have been married for only 9 months and my husband just got out of the Army and we are staying with my grandparents while he looks for work. We have some money saved but it wont last forever, and we have been …
Brian says: Honing your blade is one of the main aspects of good knife care. But it often gets confused with sharpening, even though they’re not the same thing. To break it down to first principles, sharpening is taking away material, and honing isn’t. Instead, honing is straightening out the edge of an already-sharp blade. …
We’re well into autumn, which means the availability of produce is changing. (Those of you in South Florida, Southern California, and similar areas can hush, the rest of us have these magical things known as seasons that can affect our shopping habits). Butternut squash is one of my favorite fall vegetables, but preparing it for …
Brian says: Whether you’re single or a happily married man with children, there are certain things that we need in our lives to keep us, well, grounded. For some, it’s the legendary and mythical “man cave”, for others it’s a fantasy sports team. For me, though, it’s the unchangeable list of ingredients and sundries that …
Heather says: Earlier this month here and on Facebook, I asked Home Ec 101 readers to submit their questions and concerns about grilling. Erica Mueller asked for tutorials including how to make bacon on the grill. Well Erica, yesterday it was 102ºF and a friend of mine mentioned California Dreaming and I couldn’t get their …
Brian says: Fruits are healthy and very good for you, we all are well aware of this fact, but what you might not realize is when you add flame to your fruit basket, a whole new realm is opened up to both you and your dining partners. Grilled fruits can be as versatile as any …
Heather says: Earlier this week I asked Home-Ec 101 readers to share their questions about grilling. Sandee asked how should I grill a meatloaf? There are several methods out there on these wild, wild interwebz. Some of them are rather unsettling. Foil packets are awesome for vegetables, but what foil packets create is an environment …