Cooking Little

    IN (the Kitchen)  

Cooking Little is a kitchen shopping and tips blog for urban dwellers and anyone who cooks in a small kitchen. Beyond the kitchen, we feature diversions such as culinary travel spots, classes and tasting events.

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Cooking Little takes a Break


A hiatus is in order to work on other types of food writing. But since you are here, please feel free to look around the archives. If you have a cooking, food, or culinary travel story idea, please email katie at planbnyc dot com. For continued food and cooking musings, please follow Cooking Little on Twitter.


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IN (the Kitchen)
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Folds Flat, Works Great


Don't be skeptical. This is a well-designed improvement on a classic. By squeezing the sides of the masher the disc swivels and locks into place for mashing. Flip it back for storage. This is a winner and an exclusive at Sur la Table. Or you can buy it direct from the Prepara web site, makers of all manner of herb contraptions and the salad prep set.


$20. AT SUR LA TABLE


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lucer wall_edited-1.jpgWinning Groves

For four generations the Lucero family has been growing and selling olive oil very locally. In 2004, they expanded beyond their lucky circle of friends in Northern California and started marketing their heritage extra virgin olive oils, mono-varietal extra virgin olive oils, flavored oils and traditional balsamic and flavored vinegars. Once the Lucero products officially hit the market they started collecting awards from the California Olive Oil council and fans such as the folks a Dean and Deluca and William Sonoma. Anthony's Blend from Lucero is now the house oil at William Sonoma. This is not surprising since the olive oils are are all rich and buttery and the vinegars have bright and complex flavors. Anything from the Lucero grove would make a satisfying gift for someone with an educated palate or at least one that is eager to learn. For full immersion into everything Lucero has to offer try the sampler. Shop at the Lucero web site and you can purchase single bottles or fill customized gift boxes according to individual tastes.  Just click on a picture of a bottle and it pops into a box. (Several people on our lists are getting what we are calling the "Mission Fig" custom box -- Fig Vinegar matched with the Mission Oil.) Single 8.5 oz bottles start at are around $8.00, the sampler is $40., the custom boxes are priced as you mix and match bottles. 


starting at $8.00 AT LUCERO OLIVE OIL


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Cast iron cookware has been popular for decades because it is inexpensive, conducts heat well and is long lasting. Recently, cooks have been embracing pre-seasoned cast iron as a safe nonstick alternative. Among all the hardworking pre-seasoned cast iron pieces made by Lodge, the 5 qt Double Dutch Oven stands apart. The lid also functions as a 10 ¼ skillet or bake pan that is terrific for cornbread, tartin, frittata and anything that you may start on the stove and finish in the oven. Pot and lid together create the “oven in an oven” system used in Jim Lahey’s no-knead bread technique, and if pictured on the cover. Shop around for this one because prices vary from $35 to $55.  


$37.96 AT WALMART.COM


IN (the Kitchen)
cookinglittle on November 11, 2009 9:12 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)



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Thanks to this book, and the tenacious curiosity of baker Jim Lahey that gave way to its contents, tables all over the country are studded with home baked loaves of bread made with his revolutionary no-knead method. Here, in Brooklyn, it is THE thing to bring to a dinner party. Handing your host a wrapped loaf of homemade bread made from Lahey’s no-knead method, is simultaneously showy and humble. It looks like more work than it was and it probably set you back less than the $2.50 subway ride you took to the party. There is also something hugely restorative to making a loaf of bread. If you haven’t made yeast bread for a while or never done it, My Bread, is for you. The primer no-knead recipe, made famous by Mark Bittman, is a straight forward whole wheat boule. The Coconut-Chocolate Bread is a spectacular end to a meal as part of a cheese and dessert course or simply accompanied by a strong cup of coffee. This book is a wonderful gift for anyone who appreciates fine food, even the small-kitchen cook. If your kitchen can accommodate a full sized cooking board, you can make pretty much any bread in this book. Starting November 2nd Barnes and Noble is offering the member price on select books to non-members. Save $12 off list price on My Bread now. 


$17.51 AT BN.COM


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Stand Up Gifts


Sure they stack, but even if you give a gift of just one jar of something wonderful from Vervacious it still rates as a stand up gift. This is because the flavors in their cheese complements, savory preserves, finishing salts, table sauces and mignonettes are transformative. High praise, for sure, but when we sampled the black truffle pineapple conserve with goat cheese and dark bread, we paused for a moment of silence. If you know someone who is fond of nibbling shards of parmesan cheese then the Espresso Balsamic Drizzle is a must. Vervacious also offers loose teas and spiced cocoa mixes with low-sugar. And you can mix and match a stack of flavors to suit your taste or be guided by the wide variety of gift sets such as Spain Favorites, Best of the Med or Caribbean Grill Stack. If you feel like going big,  there is the Vervacious Explorers Club for $300. This is a year of monthly surprises from the Vervacious to inspire your kitchen adventures. 


from $6.50 AT VERVACIOUS


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Make an entrance at your next potluck dinner with the industrial chic of the Round Baker from the All-Clad. This nine inch pan is the right size for cakes, fruit crisps, frittatas, gratins, small roasts or a pair of Cornish Game Hens. Try it for one-pot oven recipes such as the Caramelized Onion Butternut Squash dish, a vegetarian Thanksgiving side-dish classic in the making from the Veganmonicon cookbook. For petite baked dishes, the All-Clad Soufflé/Soup Ramekins, also from the Gourmet Ovenware collection, are right for individual baked entrees, onion soup or a small shared side dish. Pair the round baker with the ramekins and you have an oven-to-table set – think main dish cooked and served in the round baker and the garnish and finishing sauce warmed in the ramekins. If it is a late night dessert that you are after, the ramekins stand in beautifully for the bulky fondue pot that you don't have room for anyway. They measure 4 1/2 by 2 1/4 inches and, if you have one handy, will sit squarely on a votive candle stand. The All-Clad Soufflé/Soup Ramekins come two in a set and cost around $54 and make enduring vessels for those homemade food gifts that will soon be delicious memories.


$89.95 AT SUR LA TABLE


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Built NY Original


Built on the utility of neoprene and pared down design, Built NY has been delivering fantastic products for toting food, drink and gadgets for years. Long before our collective minds turned to reusable grocery bags for environmental reasons and bringing lunch from home for recessionary reasons, Built NY was there designing the way. So, I loathe saying anything less than glowing, but as cute as they are I will not be partaking in the fishnet two-bottle wine totes that are such the rage. My loyalty will remain with the original two bottle tote in "Ski Patrol Red" for nostalgic reasons and for this item’s unrelenting usefulness. The first year they were available the two-bottle wine tote saved me at Christmas time. Every wine fan on my Christmas list got one, filled with two of their favorites decorated with a ribbon and a card. The gift and the gift-wrapping in one. Since then I’ve learned that the two-bottle tote is much more than a smart gift for a wine lover or a discrete, clink-free way to carry wine to a dinner party. The two bottle tote can also pull its weight when trying to travel light. It's a no brainer for packing wine discovered on vacation for the ride home. Pack a baguette sandwich on one side and thermos or water bottle in the other. And it also makes quite a resourceful ice bucket for chilling drinks and an ice pack for minor first aid. Still, the fishnet totes are adorable… nope, it is the original for me.


$15.95 AT WRAPABLES.COM


IN (the Kitchen)
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Small Kitchen Joy


The Kalorik Espresso Maker is an outstanding gift for anyone with a micro-kitchen. In a tiny six by nine inch footprint, this intuitively designed, 3.5 bar boiler pressure espresso machine uses steam to make 2 to 4 cups of espresso in a flash. The swivel jet frother is simple to use and makes substantial froth. For the price of about a dozen specialty cuppas from a coffeehouse, one can have a daily espresso or cappuccino for years. If your typical morning demands that copious amounts of coffee are ready and waiting for you and you have some extra space, the Kalorik Coffee Maker Grinder Combo is worth a look. It grinds and brews 10 cups of coffee in a nine by twelve inch footprint.


$43.00 AT AMAZON.COM


IN (the Kitchen)
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Digital Thermometer


Don’t kill the Flavenoids! Be precise about tea temperature and strength to get your perfect cup of tea along with the optimum health benefits. This tea thermometer is easy to use. It comes with battery installed and 18 preprogrammed temperatures for popular tea types such as green, black, white.  You just adjust the setting according to the strength that you prefer. Works with cups, pots, loose tea, tea balls and tea bags.


$19.95 AT COOKING.COM


IN (the Kitchen)
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Urban Accent Spices


Yes, October is when I clear out the spice rack to make way for fresh herbs and spices for the holidays. It is also a great time to experiment with new spices to learn some new moves for entertaining. Urban Accents is a line I came across at the Fancy Food show and I’m experimenting with now. Well, actually, it was hard to miss, since it was show award winner. The Mango Masala Seasoned Salt has proved to be a good transitional seasoning from summer to fall. It blends Greek sea salt, curry and mango. The first time using it the idea was to season pineapple with the spicy salt and grill. We found that dousing the fresh pineapple with the salt before eating resulted in the best flavor; spicy but still refreshing. With curry and mango flavors it is natural in most Indian inspired dishes. True, but after keeping a dish on the table I’ve learned it does quite well in less complicated settings. Sprinkled on eggs cooking in olive oil right before they go over easy, and the oil, spice and salt create a warm liquid glaze over the eggs. It really blends well with avocado whether mashed on toast, in a salad or in a slightly curried guacamole. This weekend’s green market experiments will match Athenian Dryglaze -- a sugar, spice and sun dried tomato blend -- with butternut squash or whatever autumn vegetable is in its prime and the Gourmet Gobbler Kit, a brine and rub kit for a 20 lb turkey. In the meantime, there are plenty of gourmet gift ideas at the Urban Accents site. Right now they are running a buy three of the same and get 10% off” promotion. (So far, I love their products, but 10% off the same three is not the incentive that 10% off any three would be. Oh well.)


$7.50  AT URBAN ACCENTS


IN (the Kitchen)
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from Spain & Italy


If the summer of Julie and Julia has left you with a yen for epic cookbooks, then investigating 1080 Recipes and The Silver Spoon, both published by Phaidon Press, might be just what you need. Each book is the beloved bible of authentic home cooking for their countries, Spain and Italy respectively. Sitting on a stoop in Brooklyn, alternating sips of wine and page turns, it is easy to feel a sense of solidarity with the home cooks that have done the same for decades. A romanticized view? The wine helps. Nevertheless, regional recipe collections, as a rule, serve the daily plebeian needs of the home cook, act as a lifetime reference, and inspire the family heirloom versions of local food traditions. Now that both 1080 Recipes and The Silver Spoon are available in English, others can enjoy a full immersion cooking experience. At nearly three inches thick, these tomes demand a commitment of shelf space and plenty of time to discover its recipes -- each is worth the investment. Not being able to resist the colorful and rustic illustrations on the cover and nearly every page, I have spent more time with the 1080 Recipes. A fan of simple Spanish food, particularly salt cod, I think this cookbook a joy. Others may find the minimalist approach unsatisfying. Numerous recipes feature the same main ingredients and recipe titles that double as the shopping list. But this is the way it goes with indigenous food collections – what is found is what is favored. Originally, the book, most likely included multiple asparagus recipes, for example, to help the Iberian home cook work through a bumper crop. The English version seems right for the times offering kindly inspiration for working through the “bumper crops” yielded from recession triggered victory gardens or from zealous acquisitions at grocery store sales. These collections honor, and in part, elevate the traditional everyday cooking of Spain and Italy to admirable lifestyles that our recently revised menu planning can emulate. 1080 Recipes and The Silver Spoon also offer a smattering of celebratory recipes keen for family special occasions or company and desserts to make any afternoon a party, but the thrust is about how to live everyday. If you are looking for a modest but memorable wedding gift, 1080 Recipes and The Silver Spoon are wise choices, even if they are not listed on the wedding registry. Years into the marriage, when the couple has lost their lust for the shiny blenders and other things that lined their wedding registry, they will thank you enthusiastically for their well-loved and homey cookbook that they read on their porch with a glass of wine.


under $30 AT AMAZON


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