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How to freeze cauliflower

How to freeze cauliflower

Cauliflower is a versatile vegetable that’s great to have on-hand for soups, stir-fries, and more. It’s a low carb/keto lovers dream since it can be substituted for for pizza crust, rice, and even mashed potatoes. Cauliflower can stay fresh in the fridge for two or three weeks, but it comes in such large-sized heads, if you don’t have a large family, you might need to save some for later. Also see: How to freeze broccoli. Even if your family snacks on cauliflower all the time, the shape and size of a whole head can take up some serious space inside a smaller fridge. Putting in a bit of prep work to freeze it might help you save money, make less food waste, and have portions of cauliflower florets ready to go anytime you need them. Thawed cauliflower works best in cooked or sautéed. Since it loses a bit of firmness,…

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Seasonal

How to freeze broccoli

How to freeze broccoli

So you bought or grew too much broccoli and you know you’ll never use it up in time. It’s your freezer to the rescue! Broccoli can easily be frozen and its healthy fiber and nutrients preserved for enjoying at a later date. The best part? The process is actually really simple. Here’s how: Also learn about 13 foods you should never freeze. Selecting the best broccoli Broccoli is a cool-weather crop. While any head can be frozen using this method, the tastiest results come when you freeze the ripest, freshest heats. Choose fresh broccoli at the market or at the store in early summer or mid-to-late fall. Or, even better, grow your own! Look for heads that are dense and firm. If buds are showing a hint of opening, opt for another. Prepare broccoli heads Remove any leaves and chop off any tough, woody stalks. You can also use a vegetable peeler to scrape…

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News Bites

10 mistakes you probably make when brewing coffee

10 mistaakes you probably make when brewing coffee_9

You drink a few cups every day, so naturally, you consider your coffee making abilities above average. But regardless of how long you’ve been making morning coffee, you probably often overlook a few of these steps. Fix these 10 flaws with your process and you’ll make the best, boldest, most delicious cup of joe you’ve ever brewed. Mistake #1: You don’t use water that is hot enough Professional coffee shops always reach the ideal 195º to 205º temperature window for brewing, and that’s part of the reason their product tastes so great. Water temperatures in this range extracts the most flavor from the grinds. While you probably can’t make your commercial pot get any hotter, you can switch to the French press/pour over method, where you basically just pour hot water over ground beans and steep for four minutes. A French press will only run you about $30, but it…

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Seasonal

Tips for making the best breakfast in bed this Valentine’s Day

Tips for making the best breakfast in bed this Valentine's Day

On any given weekday, breakfast might mean a simple cup of coffee and perhaps a piece of toast—still warm if you’re lucky—gobbled up as you leave a trail of breadcrumbs to the door. But Valentine’s Day is a special day meant for spending with the one you love—and the food you love—so what better place to cash in on that merriment than in bed cozied up with your better half and your favorite breakfast? Here are a few tips for making the ultimate breakfast in bed. Plan ahead You don’t want to wakeup and find you’re out of OJ, or coffee, or baking powder for your waffle batter, or anything else you had anticipated being available. Get ready for your morning a few days before by planning a menu, making sure you’ll have everything you need, then head to the store to fill in the gaps. go for the good…

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The best way to reheat a baked potato

The best way to reheat a baked potato

Whether you’re serving them oozing with chili and cheese or slathered with butter as a simple accompaniment to a steak dinner, baked potatoes make for a tasty, versatile side dish. But perhaps you found you made too many and now have leftovers.  Don’t pitch that potato. Here’s how you can make sure they taste as great in the few days following as they did when you first pulled them out of the oven. The best way to reheat a potato: The oven No question about it, the best way to reheat a baked potato is in the oven. This method keeps potatoes moist while skin stays crispy and delicious. The downside is that it takes a lot longer than zapping the potato in the microwave, but the extra time is totally worth it. First, remove potatoes from fridge and let them warm up to room temperature. Preheat the oven to…

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How to freeze and thaw bread while keeping it fresh

How to freeze and thaw bread while keeping it fresh

If you’re guilty of wasting one food it’s probably bread. Here’s the all-too-common situation: You just twisted open a basic bag of sliced sandwich bread at home, but then you go ahead and buy an artisanal loaf to accompany tonight’s dinner-for-two anyway. (After all, they are very different breads.) Then you buy buns for grilling burgers later this week and perhaps some bakery rolls for Sunday’s dinner. That’s when you realize, you’ll never get through all of that bread before it gets stale. Can you keep it fresh in the freezer? Thankfully, the answer is yes! Most bread really only lasts about two or three days before it starts to show signs of staleness, or worse, mold, but the freezer can help ward off both. Also see: Is it safe to tear the mold off of bread and eat the rest? How to freeze bread: short-term Short term storage can…

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Seasonal

How to store a cake and keep it fresh

How to store a cake and keep it fresh

Nothing beats freshly baked cakes and cupcakes, but eating them all in one sitting certainly isn’t advised. So how do you go about storing leftovers, or handling those times when you have to buy a cake in advance? Here is how to keep your cake fresh as long as possible. The refrigerator is not your friend If you’re in the habit of thinking the fridge magically lengthens the life of any food, think again. Refrigerating cake actually makes it go stale faster. It has to do with how cooling forces moisture to the surface where it evaporates. Since this process happens faster in the fridge, the cake will harden and get stale prematurely. The best thing you can do, is let your cake sit at room temperature—the same goes for breads and other baked goods too. store 1 to 3 days: Cake goes on the counter If you’re planning on…

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Crave-Worthy Recipes

How to make homemade Nutella

How to make homemade Nutella

I don’t buy Nutella that often because, quite simply, I can’t control myself. That sweet, nutty, chocolatey butter spread beckons me in the middle of the night, and before I know it, I’ve eaten several slices of toast heavily smothered in the stuff. (I could easily kill this 6.6 pound bucket — just hand me the bread!) It’s not super healthy, and it is super expensive (about $5 for a tiny jar!), but when I make my own, it becomes not so bad on either front. Check out this restaurant with an entirely Nutella menu. This homemade Nutella recipe is quick and easy to pull off if you have the right equipment. You’re going to need a high-powered food processor or blender along with a microwave and an oven or a toaster oven. As for ingredients, you’re going to need hazelnuts. They might be a little harder to find than,…

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Seasonal

Everything you need to know about freezing cookies

Everything you need to know about freezing cookies

Nothing is better than freshly baked cookies. But during the holidays when fresh, homemade cookies matter most, we’re also needing to split our time between cooking, hosting, shopping, and celebrating the season, leaving little time to spend rolling out and filling dozens of dainty little cookies. This is when having a magical holiday depends on the magic of the freezer. Freezing cookies or cookie dough now can save you later when you’re just too busy to bake. Just follow these tips and you’ll be good to go. What types of cookies can I freeze? Lots of cookies are great candidates for the freezer. Cutout cookies, slice and bake (icebox) cookies, drop cookies, and biscotti are all excellent choices. Any cookie with a lot of butter or fat will freeze well. Try to avoid freezing cookies that are decorated, filled, or delicate — like meringues — since they would loose a…

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Seasonal

The 6 biggest mistakes you can make when baking pumpkin pie

The 6 biggest mistakes you can make when baking pumpkin pie

Pumpkin pie, with its thick, pumpkin-y custard, fragrant spices, and flaky pastry crust, is about as delicious as Thanksgiving gets. Served with a dollop of homemade whipped cream, there is no Thanksgiving dish that arrives with such anticipation. Yet, even the most seasoned bakers know a truly perfect pumpkin pie is no easy task to pull off. Here are a few mistakes you need to avoid in order to make your best pumpkin pie ever: 1. You use fresh pumpkin I can hear you now, “But such-and-such variety of pumpkin makes a delicious pie, just like my grandma made!” Well, if you have a tried-and-true family recipe that you’re used to, then nothing is going to change your mind — nostalgia looms large on Thanksgiving. But for those who want to make a truly perfect pie every time, it’s important to practice consistency. Fresh pumpkins can vary wildly in size…

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