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Q: I bought some beef cheeks from my farmer's market. How would you prepare them?
A: The typical way to prepare beef cheeks is by braising them. Here is a standard recipe: beef bones, beef cheek, 2 cloves garlic, 4 medium carrots, 4 stalks celery, 1 small onion, thyme, rosemary, 1 bay leaf, olive oil, salt, coarse ground black pepper. Roast beef bones in oven for 15 minutes. Mince 1 clove garlic and chop 2 carrots and 2 celery stalks. Place these and the bay leaf in a large pot, add enough water to cover well, begin to simmer. Add the roasted beef bones and more water to cover. Bring pot to a slow boil and cook for 1 hour - add water as necessary to keep liquid from boiling away. Remove the beef bones and bay leaf from the pot - the remaining ingredients are your stock. Salt and pepper the beef cheeks. Chop the onion and the remaining carrots and celery, mince the remaining garlic, and saute all of these in olive oil with good dashes of thyme and rosemary, until onion is translucent. Add the sauteed ingredients to the stock pot, stir thoroughly, and then add in the beef cheek. Braise for at least 1 hour. Test with a fork - continue to braise until the beef cheek is very tender. Serve beef and stock together.
Q: When are artichokes in season and how can you determine if they are ready to cook?
A: Artichokes are in season from March - May. Artichokes are ready to cook when they are compact and heavy for their size. Don't choose artichokes that are slightly purple in color or budding - these are signs that they may be over ripe.
Q: Can granton-edge knives be honed like regular knives, or does maintaining their edge require a special tool or technique?
A: Knives with granton blades (hollow-ground with oval recesses to create air pockets that reduce the friction between the blade and the food) can be sharpened and honed in the same way as any standard knife blade. The life of a granton-edge knife extends well beyond that of the crescent-shaped hollows of its blade.
Q: How is pastry flour different from cake flour? What types of recipes does it work best in?
A: Pastry flour is a soft wheat flour with a protein content between those of all-purpose flour and cake flour. Pastry flour is often used in pie crust and tender pastries. Pastry flour and cake flour are both made from soft wheat flour, but cake flour is usually bleached.
Q: I just got a mandoline for my birthday, but I don’t really know what it’s used for. Can you help me??
A: A mandoline is a manually operated vegetable slicer. It has 2 adjustable blades, one plain and one grooved. A mandoline is used to slice firm vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, cabbage, etc., into julienne strips, french fries, waffle cuts, etc.
Q: What does cumin go good with?
A: Cumin pairs well with foods such as asparagus, carrots, chicken, grains, green beans, fish, lamb, peas, pork, potatoes, and spinach.
Q: How do I substitute regular flour for whole wheat flour?
A: Any recipe calling for all-purpose flour may use ½ whole-wheat flour and ½ all-purpose flour. If wanting the product to be 100% whole wheat, substitute 1-cup whole-wheat flour minus 1-tablespoon for every cup of all-purpose or bread flour the recipe calls for. To create a lighter whole-wheat loaf, add 1-tablespoon gluten flour and 1-tablespoon liquid for each cup of whole-wheat flour.
Q: There are so many kinds of pasta available!! Are there certain types of sauce that work better for certain types of pasta?
A: Thin delicate pasta should be served with light, thin sauces. Thicker shapes work well with heavier sauces. Pasta shapes with holes or ridges are best for chunkier sauces. Some shapes have ridges in which to hold sauces better.
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