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Organic school lunch bags

Diana De Cicco — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 05:41:00 -0700

The healthy, organic food you pack in your kids’ lunches is just as important as the lunch bag and containers you pack the food in. Here are our favorite green lunch bag and food container options to send to school with your kids along with their favorite eco-friendly midday meals.

7 Must-have eco-friendly kitchen items

Diana De Cicco — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 05:35:00 -0700

There are many obvious ways to go green and help the environment, from recycling to reducing your home energy use. But have you also thought about your everyday kitchen and dining items? In addition to efficient use of your stovetop and oven and energy-saving refrigerators and dishwashers, you can make an eco-friendly difference with green cutting boards, cooking utensils and dishware. Here’s a list of everyday kitchen items to help you further your family's eco-friendly quest.

Go green with your kids

Diana De Cicco — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 04:18:00 -0800

You’ve decided to green your kitchen and feed your family organic, locally sourced, in-season foods. Take it as the perfect opportunity to green your kids – the kitchen is a great place to teach them eco-friendly eating and cooking skills. Here’s how to go green in the kitchen while giving your tykes valuable eco-friendly tools that they will take into adulthood.

10 Farmers’ market shopping tips

Diana De Cicco — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 04:20:00 -0800

Frequenting farmers’ markets is not only a fun way to pick up your fruits and vegetables, it is a vital way to support your local farmers and economy. Whether you have many farmers’ markets in your area or your local farmers’ market is particularly large, shopping these fresh-picked food meccas can be overwhelming. To help you get the most from your farmers’ market visits, here are 10 farmers’ market shopping tips.

How to buy organic fruits and vegetables

Diana De Cicco — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 14:05:00 -0800

When it comes to your food budget and your family’s health, you have to strike a fine balance between buying organic and buying sensibly. Certainly, buying all organic produce can get pricey, but the good news is not all fruits and vegetables need to be organic for you to eat safely and healthfully. Here are shopping guidelines for both organic and conventionally-grown fruits and vegetables that will help you make the healthiest and most cost-friendly buys.

Spring wines for Easter

Diana De Cicco — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 09:17:00 -0700

With the delicious selection of spring reds, whites, sparkling and sweet wines, you can pair every course of your Easter dinner with a complementary sip. Here are our Easter wine pairing suggestions.

Italian-style Easter feast

Diana De Cicco — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 16:01:00 -0800

Easter and any holiday for that matter is an excuse to eat a huge feast in most Italian families. Starting with an antipasto platter, soup, pasta, a meat entree, multiple sides, and of course dessert, Easter is a time to indulge after 40 days of Lent. Whether or not you have Italian roots, preparing the following Italian-style Easter meal will make the spring holiday all the more reason to celebrate.

Fabulous fennel recipes

Diana De Cicco — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 04:20:00 -0800

Lovely anise-flavored fennel is a tasty vegetable that is in season now through early spring. This distinctly-flavored crunchy bulb is a star in Mediterranean-style dishes and is uniquely delish as a side dish or as a garnish on soups, sandwiches or salads. Here are a few fabulous tips and recipes for fennel.

How to use dairy substitutes in recipes

Diana De Cicco — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 09:56:00 -0800

If your stomach just can't handle dairy products but you can't live without some of your favorite dairy-filled recipes, here are a few tips to go dairy free without missing out on the foods you love.

Food trend: Molecular gastronomy

Diana De Cicco — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 09:18:00 -0800

Molecular cooking techniques, or molecular gastronomy, used to be solely confined to the professional chef's kitchen. However, with the recent advent of simple molecular cooking kits, you can easily partake in your own kitchen science experiments and make awe-inspiring -- and fun -- culinary creations at home.

Light spring lamb dishes

Diana De Cicco — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:23:00 -0800

Lamb dishes can be notoriously heavy, but in the spring when lamb is traditionally eaten, lighter versions should be on the menu. Cook up these light and delicious lamb recipes to celebrate the spring season.

Broccoli rabe recipes

Diana De Cicco — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 07:37:00 -0800

Have you seen broccoli rabe in your grocery store produce aisle but bypassed it because you didn't know what to do with it? Broccoli rabe is a nutritious leafy green -- that sports what looks like baby broccoli florets -- that is popular in Chinese and Italian cuisine, and can easily become a veggie staple for your healthy spring dishes. Broccoli rabe season is coming up, and we have a few key cooking tips and recipes to inspire you to purchase a few broccoli rabe stalks and get cooking.

Girl Scout cookie desserts

Diana De Cicco — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 15:39:00 -0800

After ordering a few boxes of Girl Scout cookies from my little cousin, I immediately began think about what I should do with them. I love eating them in their natural form, but I seem to get more pleasure out of creating a new dessert featuring the iconic treats. Everything from cakes to pies to ice cream can be made using your favorite Girl Scout cookies, so buy a few boxes and enjoy.

Homemade croutons

Diana De Cicco — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:37:00 -0800

Croutons are easy to take for grantedâ€¦they most often come out of a box and get sprinkled over a salad for added crunch. But making your own croutons gives you the opportunity to add an unexpected and welcome taste and texture to many other dishes. Here are some inventive ways to use croutons and three homemade crouton recipes that are far better than croutons from a box.

Simple braising techniques and recipes

Diana De Cicco — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 05:16:00 -0800

Braising is a very simple cooking technique that results in succulent, tender, juicy meat. Braising typically requires a quick sear on the stovetop and then a long finish in a covered pot with liquid. Braising works very well with tougher and less expensive cuts of meat and tougher vegetables because the long, slow cook time breaks them down into mouthwatering morsels that not only become a tasty dish, but also a meal that is quite cheap. Here are some tips and recipes for braised meats, fish and vegetables.

Pad Thai recipes

Diana De Cicco — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 13:26:00 -0800

If you are craving a simple, healthy, Asian-style meal, look no further than Pad Thai. This delicious dish, made with rice noodles, lots of vegetables, and your choice of protein all combined with a sweet and spicy sauce is satisfying and quick to fix. Here are a few tasty Pad Thai recipes.

Spring cleaning your kitchen

Diana De Cicco — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 15:33:00 -0800

Whether you have a vast kitchen or an efficiently small space, keeping it neat, clean and uncluttered is essential for organization, safety and hygiene. To jumpstart your annual spring cleaning, we've got some organization and cleaning tips and a list of must-have kitchen essentials.

5 Useful kitchen gadgets

Diana De Cicco — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:08:00 -0800

There are scads of useful kitchen gadgets available in department stores, supermarkets, gourmet shops, and online. They all have the purpose of making your cooktime in the kitchen worthwhile. Whether or not they do the job has to do with your own personal cooking style and needs as well as the quality of the products. If you are looking for a few truly useful kitchen gadgets, that won't end up simply taking over space in your cupboards, check out this handy list of the five best cooking gadgets, from the simple to the extreme, that will make kitchen time more enjoyable.

Glitzy Oscar party tips and recipes

Diana De Cicco — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 13:57:00 -0800

Enjoy the glitz and glamour of the Academy Awards with your own fun and fabulous Hollywood style party. This year on Sunday, March 7th, all of Hollywood's elite come together for the biggest red carpet party of the year, giving you the opportunity to host your own Oscar party with star-caliber food, A-list cocktails, and Academy Awards themed games.

St Patrick's Day party menu

Diana De Cicco — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 13:02:00 -0800

Whether you have Irish roots or not, you can still celebrate St Patrick's Day with traditional Irish food and drinks. Throw a St Patrick's Day party with updated Irish recipes to fuel an evening of raucous Irish fun.