Smart, satisfying snacks can truly be a busy parent’s best friend. They can fuel our kids for play dates and soccer games, or keep them from getting cranky during afternoon errands.
To get some inspiration, we asked 11 busy moms for the secrets to happy, healthy kid snacks at home and on the go. Here’s what they had to say.
My love of dill started rather recently when I made dill-infused vodka. I found that, compared to the overpowering taste of dill I ate in Scandinavian recipes growing up, when the herb was infused with vodka it provided a light pickle-y flavor that was a great addition to a classic martini. I found that the same can be said when a small amount of dill is added to things like salads, yogurt dressings, and soups.
Dill isn’t something you generally use in large quantities, but you usually have to buy it in bulk. If you’re like me and end up having too much of it in your fridge, here are 10 delicious recipes to use up the rest of your haul.
A slow cooker is a wonderful thing. Get it cooking early in the morning or just before bed and you’re in for a meal that feels like a lot of work, but really wasn’t. Put it to use for a party and you’ve got hot toddies for a crowd that will be just the right temperature all night long.
There’s only one problem: A slow cooker isn’t always known for being the best dressed. But wait! You have options. Your slow cooker doesn’t have to be a bulky hunk of machinery that’s all function and no form. Take a look at these beauties and see if we’ve convinced you.
P.S.: There’s no shame in wanting your slow cooker to look cute. After all, you might not use it all that much if it’s so ugly that you have to keep it hidden away most of the week. And if it’s gonna sit out on your counter (or on a buffet table) while it bubbles away for hours at a time, it may as well be something you enjoy looking at.
I would like to tell you that I made coconut cream pie because after 12 years of requests for it, I submerged my doubts over whether it was my “thing” and finally saw the light. Or that apparently this specific coconut cream pie created by Tom Douglas at Dahlia Bakery in Seattle is so well-known and loved, a previous president would ask for it by name. Or that I made it because I was delighted by the history of coconut in America outlined by Stella Parks in her Bravetart cookbook (which we are already way into), where she explains that the earliest packaged coconut you could get in the US, after the Civil War, was dry and chewy, and not very appealing unless you soaked it in something. That thing became cream for custard, because we have very good tastes. Or that in one of those food holidays I’m a bit dubious of but not above mentioning should the stars/cravings align, apparently May 8th is National Coconut Cream Pie Day, and we might as well begin preparing today.
None of these are true. I actually — in a veritable sad trombone after a build-up like the above — made coconut cream pie because I went so overboard buying coconut for a certain wedding cake I made last summer that I had quite a bit left to use up before its okay-let’s-be-honest-I-blinked-and-missed-it expiration date.
Let’s say someone invites you (yes, you!) to their house for a dinner party. What are the main things you’d usually do in order to make sure you’re a good guest when you’re there? Typically, you’d offer to help with the prep in the kitchen. And clear the plates. Maybe even wash a few things, too, right?
Well, a new survey says those things aren’t all that important. According to the research, the gesture that hosts appreciate the most actually has nothing to do with manual labor.
Banish all thoughts of stringy, tough, sad chicken from your mind. For our chicken salad sandwiches and quick weeknight meals, we want nothing but the best. And for that, poached chicken is definitely the way to go. This method is easy, fast, and foolproof. Totally tender chicken breasts that are as good for dinner as they are for lunch the next day? Not a problem.
Creating an Instagram-ready cake doesn’t mean you have to be a pro with the pastry bag. In fact, you don’t even need to have a pastry bag! Arm yourself with some cereal or chocolate chips and you’ll be good to go.
Here are seven ways to make your cake look over-the-top dramatic — yet don’t require decorating genius to achieve.
Almost every food magazine has a test kitchen where they develop and refine recipes. But there’s nothing quite like America’s Test Kitchen, the powerhouse behind Cook’s Illustrated and Cook’s Country — along with, of course, the America’s Test Kitchen cooking show on PBS, dozens of cookbooks, numerous radio shows, and an ever-growing collection of online content.
We’ve been fans of their work for more than a decade. In the nine years that we wrote our cooking blog, The Bitten Word, countless readers wrote us to recommend different America’s Test Kitchen recipes that had become their “go to” for everything from meatloaf to chocolate chip cookies.
But what’s it like to actually work in America’s Test Kitchen? To find out, we reached out to Jack Bishop, the company’s chief creative officer. Jack gave us a behind-the-scenes look at ATK, including how a recipe gets developed, what it’s like to slice open a Yeti cooler, and why caramel is the bane of the test kitchen.
Here’s a dream many of us have had: Quit that desk job, sign up for culinary school, run off to Paris (Rome is okay, too), and cook for a living alongside a ragtag team of chefs who form love interests, friendships, and rivalries around dinner service. It’s Grey’s Anatomy, but for people who prefer mise-ing to medicating.
We’ve been talking about Joanna Gaines’ new cookbook since we first heard about it back in September. As of this week, it’s finally out! But, if you haven’t picked up (or ordered) your copy yet, you’re gonna want to read this story first.