Chris Cooks
4 Courses to Love - Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Raspberry + Mint
Chris Cooks
4 Courses to Love - Homemade Vanilla Bean Ice Cream with Raspberry + Mint
So today we're wrapping up our 4 Courses to Love meal with a tasty ice cream dessert with fruit sauce, and hopefully you've found something useful along the way. And there's one thing I just want to make clear - you don't have to make all four courses! I posted each recipe separately so you could make […]
read more
February 13, 2014
Chris Cooks
4 Courses to Love - Pork Tenderloin and Asparagus Over Dijon Potato Puree w/Pomegranate + Balsamic Reduction
Chris Cooks
4 Courses to Love - Pork Tenderloin and Asparagus Over Dijon Potato Puree w/Pomegranate + Balsamic Reduction
I'm not sure if it's the same for you, but whenever I think "special occasion," filet mignon jumps out at me. And of course, there's good reason for that. Filet mignon comes from a part of the back that cows don't strain too much. Muscles that a cow uses a lot will be tougher, as […]
read more
February 11, 2014
Recipes
4 Courses to Love - Arugula with Pears + Prosciutto
Recipes
4 Courses to Love - Arugula with Pears + Prosciutto
This is the 2nd course in a 4 course meal, designed to be a springboard for your special occasion. See the first course here. Arugula and Prosciutto are not new ingredients on this blog. I use them often because they have good flavor, and aren't really that expensive. Sure, if you look at the "per […]
read more
February 6, 2014
Recipes
4 Courses to Love - Broth Seasoned with Pork + Vegetables
Recipes
4 Courses to Love - Broth Seasoned with Pork + Vegetables
I've heard some people say they (and their significant other) don't celebrate Valentine's Day because they "prefer to show affection all year 'round!" ...didn't realize you had to choose between the two... To each their own, but Jules and I are always looking for an excuse to pamper each other, and what better time than […]
read more
February 4, 2014
Recipes
Braised Beef Short Rib with Mushrooms and Polenta
Recipes
Braised Beef Short Rib with Mushrooms and Polenta
I love beef. Seriously, I'd eat it every day if I didn't care about being around for my daughters' weddings. And when I do have it, any cut that weighs less than 12 ounces just isn't worth my time. Horrible? Possibly. Wonderful? Most definitely. But as much as I love a viking's portion of beef, […]
read more
January 29, 2014
Recipes
Dry-Rubbed Baked Chicken Wings
Recipes
Dry-Rubbed Baked Chicken Wings
This past summer, when I shared my favorite chicken wing recipe, I said that I'd probably share others. Here I am, making good on that. And usually I'm all about a great sauce on my wings, but every so often, we opt for the dry rub. And I have a pretty rockin' dry rub. Check […]
read more
January 21, 2014
Recipes
Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Kale and Prosciutto
Recipes
Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Kale and Prosciutto
Yo peeps! Hope all is well and we're all stickin' with those resolutions. To be honest I've felt myself slipping the past few days. So to combat that, I signed up for a marathon relay in August. Yeah, it's only 5 miles. Yeah, it's 7 months away. But running has always been rough for me, […]
read more
January 15, 2014
Recipes
Light Coconut Curry with Brown Rice - a Healthier Take on Thai Red Curry
Recipes
Light Coconut Curry with Brown Rice - a Healthier Take on Thai Red Curry
Hello e'rbody! Long time no blog. I've had a few questions asking about all the gluten in my cooking recently, and why we haven't been so strict on that. Well, because Jules has been so sick, her doctors told her to just eat whatever she could and they'd monitor her levels closely. For almost a […]
read more
January 7, 2014
Recipes
Slow-Cooked, Tender Ham
Recipes
Slow-Cooked, Tender Ham
There are lots of ways to cook a ham. By far the most popular Christmas ham is a baked, spiral-cut ham with the bone in, coated with brown sugar and/or a range of spices. Why wouldn't this be the favorite? It's delicious. But for my ham this year, I decided to try something a little […]
read more
December 12, 2013
Chris Cooks
5 Gifts a Foodie Would Totally Love But Might Not Buy For Themselves + A Wüsthof Cheese Knife Set Giveaway
Chris Cooks
5 Gifts a Foodie Would Totally Love But Might Not Buy For Themselves + A Wüsthof Cheese Knife Set Giveaway
Most people have things they want that they can't justify buying because they can get by with something not quite as good, that's still functional. Well, I use Christmas as an excuse to buy people the things they really want, not just the practical versions. So while browsing Williams-Sonoma's website the other day, I found […]
read more
December 10, 2013
Recipes
My First Crack at Italian Wedding Soup - Success
Recipes
My First Crack at Italian Wedding Soup - Success
Before marrying Jules, I had never heard of Italian Wedding Soup. Julia's mom is full Italian, and there's a lot of heritage that comes along with that. Honestly I feel like I won the lottery when I married into Julia's family, but that's off topic. This post is about soup. And darn good soup. It's […]
read more
December 5, 2013
Recipes
Thanksgiving Leftovers - Cranberry Turkey Sandwich
Recipes
Thanksgiving Leftovers - Cranberry Turkey Sandwich
Well here we are. The week of Thanksgiving. This is what we've been preparing for! I'm taking it a little easy this week, and getting stuff ready to celebrate my wonderful wife's birthday tomorrow, but I wanted to leave y'all with this quick little gem. Last month, one of our readers asked me for a […]
read more
November 26, 2013
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: Best Storage Options for Kitchen Knives
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: Best Storage Options for Kitchen Knives
Well now that we all know how to properly clean and sharpen a knife, the last and possibly most important is storage. The way you store your knives will have a major impact on how sharp they stay, and how long they last. First, the bad. The worst thing you can do for your knives […]
read more
November 22, 2013
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: The Best Way to Sharpen Your Kitchen Knives
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: The Best Way to Sharpen Your Kitchen Knives
Don't you hate it when people try to tell you, "You're more likely to cut yourself with a dull knife than a sharp knife"? You just want to smack them, I bet. That doesn't make sense, right? How can a dull knife cut you worse than a sharp one? It seems so obvious that sharp […]
read more
November 20, 2013
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: How to Clean a Knife
Chris Cooks
Proper Knife Care: How to Clean a Knife
I'm a firm believer that the right kitchen equipment makes a huge difference in the food you're able to prepare, and the most important equipment is, indisputably, your knives. They are the backbone of your kitchen, and just as important as your oven and fridge. Even still, I have people often say things to me […]
read more
November 18, 2013
Chris Cooks
How to Cook An Entire Thanksgiving Meal In One Oven
Chris Cooks
How to Cook An Entire Thanksgiving Meal In One Oven
Ok, so I realize it's Saturday and we typically don't post on weekends, but we had a question from one of our readers that I thought required a "quick" post. Here's the question, from Rachel: I've really enjoyed the recipes you've shared this week and really want to make some for the big day. But […]
read more
November 16, 2013
Recipes
Light and Airy Pumpkin-Ricotta Cheesecake
Recipes
Light and Airy Pumpkin-Ricotta Cheesecake
There are a lot of pumpkin cheesecakes out there, and I love them all. The first time I had pumpkin cheesecake, it was more of a New York style, with the thick, dense filling. It was delicious, but also very heavy. When working up my own recipe for pumpkin cheesecake, I wanted to find a […]
read more
November 15, 2013
Recipes
Buttery and Crusty Herb-Topped Dinner Rolls
Recipes
Buttery and Crusty Herb-Topped Dinner Rolls
My mom makes amazing rolls. It's actually my grandmother's recipe and they're famous in our family. Any time we get together, those rolls are always requested. They're buttery, fluffy, and a necessity at any of our Thanksgiving get-togethers. Unfortunately, the recipe I'm sharing is not her recipe. No, I'm afraid that recipe belongs to the […]
read more
November 14, 2013
Recipes
How to Roast the Perfect Turkey
Recipes
How to Roast the Perfect Turkey
Ok, I'm not gonna get into a long shpeal about the importance of the turkey on Thanksgiving (also called "turkey day"). Everyone knows the importance of the turkey, and we also know it takes more than gravy to fix a dry, flavorless turkey. There's a lot to go over in this post, but we'll cover […]
read more
November 13, 2013
Chris Cooks
Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Maple and Bacon Vinaigrette
Chris Cooks
Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Maple and Bacon Vinaigrette
I've never cared much for sweet potatoes, as historically prepared on Thanksgiving (marshmallows and all). I think my beef is that they are often overcooked to the point of mush, and lacking in the flavor department. And adding marshmallows, for me, only enhances the mushy mouthfeel. It's like I'm eating baby food, and I've always […]
read more
November 12, 2013
