Posts tagged recipe
Turmeric Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are one of my favorite side dishes, especially when the weather cools down. Because we eat a lot of mashed potatoes at my house, I thought this dish would be the perfect vehicle for some extra-nutritious add-ins. Enter turmeric - the tasty spice that is an extremely powerful antioxidant.

In Chinese Medicine, turmeric (Jiāng Huáng) is warm, spicy and bitter, and enters the Spleen, Stomach, and Liver meridians. It breaks up blood stasis, moves Qi and eliminates pain, and expels wind and promotes the movement of blood. It is especially good for shoulder pain, abdominal pain, and menstrual pain.

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My Grandmother's Cookbook

My mom's mom, Irene, was quite a lady - the daughter of Dutch immigrants, Irene was the perfect combination of hard-working, wise, and loving. Having 9 children of her own, Irene never wasted a single ingredient in the kitchen - her children testify that she could make "something out of nothing" and was well-known as an excellent cook in her town. Irene passed away when I was in high school, and I begged my mom to have her cookbook.

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I Might Make You Fall In Love With Me...

Crunchy rice. Until I met my husband, I had never heard of such food. I always thought the browned rice left on the bottom of the pan was burned rice, due to my lack of rice cooking know-how. But crunchy rice is much, much different than burned rice. My husband made me crunchy rice when we were dating … and let me tell you, it changed my world (and, perhaps made me fall in love with him!)  Known by different names in various parts of the world -  socarrat in Spain, nurungji in Korea, rasguño in Latin America, and tahdig in the Middle East - the toasty and golden layer at the bottom of the pan is an intensely flavored treat (think corner sides on a brownie pan or crunchy edges of a baked casserole). Crunchy rice only requires the same ingredients you would use to make regular rice - the true alchemy is in the technique.  Allow me to change your world and teach you how to make crunchy rice….no promises that you won’t fall in love with me! 

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