Have you ever wondered how a microwave oven works? Or why some things explode faster than others in a microwave? I've been a little afraid of microwave ovens ever since I was in college when I accidentally caught mine on fire while attempting to make popcorn. You see, this was before prepackaged microwave popcorn existed. I had heard that you could pop popcorn in a microwave in a brown paper bag. What I didn't hear was that the bag could actually catch on fire if it got too hot.

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Tags: How To Melt A Microwave, microwave ovens, Robert L. Wolke, The Microwave Demystified

The Progressive Nut Chopperis one of the handiest tools in my kitchen. If you've ever tried chopping a cutting board full of pecans or almonds (or any nut for that matter), you already know that it's no easy task. This is where the Nut Chopper comes to the rescue. I just did a little experiment to prove my point. I measured out one cup of whole pecans (shelled, of course), filled the nut hopper of the Nut Chopper with them, set the timer then started turning the crank handle. I had the whole cup of nuts chopped in less than 30 seconds.

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Tags: Cooking Gadgets, nut chopper, nut grinder, nuts

Cooking a turkey can be an intimidating undertaking! If you're at all overwhelmed or have any questions about cooking that holiday bird, you'll be happy to know that Butterball is ready to help you. Every year in November and December, Butterball employs professionally trained home economists and nutritionists to work the Butterball Turkey Talk-Line (weekdays 8 am-8 pm CST). Call 1-800-BUTTERBALL (1-800-288-8372) or check out Butterball.com for turkey tips and recipes. The website's Thanksgiving Guide has a cool feature that calculates the size of turkey you need (and how much stuffing to make) based on whether you're light or big eaters, you want leftovers, and how many adults and kids will be eating the meal. You can even print out a $2 coupon good for 1 whole Butterball turkey (offer good 11/13/09 through 12/31/2009). Happy cooking!

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Tags: Butterball, Christmas, holiday meal, Thanksgiving, turkey, Turkey Talk-Line

I've tried different methods of making mashed potatoes: squashing with a masher, whipping using a hand mixer or my Kitchenaid mixer, and using a potato ricer. Each method gives potatoes a different texture.

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Tags: chrome finish, fluffy mashed potatoes, Norpro Potato Ricer

Instead of throwing out that stale baguette or partial loaf of sourdough or artisan bread, turn it into breadcrumbs. You can use fresh breadcrumbs in a variety of ways: as a binder in meatballs or meatloaf, as a coating for fried or baked meat (fish, chicken, etc.), or mixed with a little butter and used as a topping for casseroles. Plus, since they're freshly made, they're not loaded with preservatives like the store-bought version. Here's how to make and store fresh breadcrumbs…

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I was just reading the new edition of Better Homes and Gardens (Oct. 2009) and found an excerpt from the book Can I Freeze It? by Susie Theodorou. Here's a few things you may not have known you could freeze:

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Tags: Can I Freeze It?, Handy Hints, Susie Theodorou

Marinating meat in herbs, beer or wine can reduce the carcinogens that form during grilling by as much as 88%.
-from Food Network Magazine, June/July 2009
(sources: Journal of Food Science and Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry)

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Tags: grilling tip, handy hint

When grilling or barbecuing, always use tongs or a spatula to turn meats. Using a fork pierces the flesh and allows juices to escape, which will cause the meat to lose flavor and may cause the fire to flare up.
-from Secrets From A Caterer's Kitchen by Nicole Aloni

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Tags: barbecue tools, bbq, Grilling, Handy Hints

Years ago, a friend gave me some mint that I planted in my front yard by a water faucet. After a season or two and the mint taking over that area, I decided to take it out of the ground and plant something else there. I was successful in removing all traces of the mint from the front yard, but apparently some roots inadvertently got mixed in with dirt in my backyard and now it's gone crazy back there. When you read about mint being invasive, boy, they're not kidding! 

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Tags: In Season, mint

A friend gave me some fresh organic blueberries today. The plump berries looked so good that the first thing I did when I got home was take a picture of them. Then, as I was looking for blueberry recipes, I came across an article by Fine Cooking Magazine with some tips on choosing, prepping and storing blueberries. And did you know that July is National Blueberry Month? Yes, it's true! Now back to figuring out what to make with these delicious berries… 

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Tags: blueberries, In Season, Summer