%Gallery-31077% According to canada.com, it seems that a simple typo in a Swedish magazine led to four people being poisoned. See, a recipe for apple cake was posted, and "Instead of calling for two pinches of nutmeg, it said 20 nutmeg nuts were needed." The error was spotted after printing, letters were sent to subscribers, and inserts were added to store issues. But these warnings didn't reach everyone. One group of people still tried out this horrifically over-nutmegged recipe, and the four suffered poisoning symptoms like dizziness and headaches.
How can anyone choose to make that recipe and not question that amount, or not be...
What would a dinner table be without its salt and pepper? They've become so ubiquitous in everyone's kitchen. However, we rarely wonder why. Both were heavily used in cuisine for hundreds of years, but so were several other spices. What made people focus on salt and pepper?
The story begins with salt. In Ancient Rome, it gained popularity as a condiment. Italians during the Renaissance served salted dishes at the same time as sugared dishes. It was not until the 17th century that the French created a salt-sweet divide. Salted foods were eaten throughout the meal because they stimulate the...
Tip of the Day: Keep your herbs and spices tasting fresh
I often buy more spices and herbs than I know what to do with. So, it's not surprising that after several months they begin to lose their best flavors. Fortunately, there are techniques to preserve their unique taste.
There is something magical about saffron. Maybe, it's the striking bright red stigmas that always catch my eye and evoke images of vibrant florid Indian fabrics. Perhaps, I'm struck by its deep aroma that smells of honey with notes of grass and hay. Either way, I'm in love with this spice.
While walking through the colorful Spice Souk in Dubai, I visited several shops where they sell saffron. A merchant showed me different kinds and let me pick up a bundle of the Iranian Sargol saffron from its style, the yellow part of the plant below...
Stylelist assistant editor / former CBGB bartender Phebe Hunnicutt stepped away from the shoe closet for a sec to share her recipe for a crowd-pleasing Bloody Mary. Post your favorite variations in the comments below.
With the possible exception of the Martini, there is no cocktail more personal than the Bloody Mary.Love it or loathe it, everyone seems to have an opinion about this tomato-based drink. After years of bartending and bringing along my personal variation to countless friendly gatherings, I have come up with what I can confidently call a crowd-pleasing mix. If you're already a Bloody Mary-lover there's...
Fleur de Sel is my favorite salt. Sprinkled over a chocolate mousse it incites intense gastronomical excitement. It tastes clean and fresh, like the ocean, and exudes an aroma of bright violets. Unfortunately, unlike most salt, it's not cheap. While you can spend as little as three dollars for three pounds of kosher salt, Fleur de Sel costs approximately 10 dollars for only 5 ounces. But, of course, there is no comparison when it comes to the enormous difference in taste.
The reason why Fleur de Sel is so expensive has to do with its superior quality. To understand...
After typing a post about a wasabi popsicle, I started to think about other spice and and ice combinations. Naturally, I thought of cardamom, one of my favorite spices. A friend of mine recently suggested that we make cardamom ice cream. Unlike wasabi, cardamom is widely used in both savory and sweet dishes, such as rice and pastries. Its deeply aromatic qualities have always attracted me. And now, I'm dying with curiosity to find out its potential with ice cream.
Below are a few recipes you can try...
Spice it up and cool it down with a wasabi popsicle
That's right , a wasabi ice pop to function as both a palate-cleanser and a tart dessert. According to this week's New York magazine, Masaharu Morimoto, formerly on the Food Network's television show Iron Chef, just put this popsicle on his menu at Morimoto. It is made with fresh wasabi rather than wasabi powder which is much spicier.
It's not everyday that you find a spice being used in a dessert that is supposed to cool you down. Could this be the start of a new trend?
I haven't tried this wasabi...
Food Video Finds: Show Me the Curry and Aloo Matar
I've been in an Indian state of mind all day, having picked up some tasty-looking tandoori naan at the store today, and trying to figure out what I want to make with it. Unfortunately, I haven't made too many Indian dishes from scratch, save butter chicken long ago and some recent tasty pakora. Luckily, there's a cooking show that details all sorts of Indian dishes -- Show Me the Curry.
In this episode, Anuja and Hetal make Aloo Matar, a simple dish of spices, potatoes, and peas. This is a recipe that they consider to be one of the easiest...
For love of chillis, and how to keep from searing jalapeno pain
Oh, hot peppers -- they've created a big divide between those who love a little spice in their food, and those who recoil at the littlest bit of tongue sass. Michael Ruhlman is, no surprise, in the former category. He just put up a great blog about the lovely spice of peppers, and said, quite aptly: "These fruity, spicy wonders make life better in so many ways." Indeed! Now if only I could get my friends on board so that I don't get looks of startled pain when I throw a little bit of spice in. (Says the girl who can only handle a strong medium heat...
