Spring! It's-a comin'!

I think it's accurate to say that Spring is on it's way...and with Spring comes farmer's markets, and farmer's markets are one of my favorite things! The three seasons out of the year that allow for outdoor markets are a wonderful time of year because ingredients are so fresh, and it's nice to know you're supporting the local economy as well!

from Flickr - by BostonRunner

I'm especially looking forward to the Farmer's Market that sets up shop in Dewey Square (right near South Station, in the Financial District of Boston) on Tuesdays and Thursdays. There are so many booths that sell breads, cheeses, local meats, and beautiful fruits and vegetables. Because I work right near the market, I alter the way I grocery shop during these seasons!

It's so convenient to stop by the market on my lunch break and pick up the freshest of the fresh! Now don't get me wrong, I still go to the grocery store, and I definitely still make a menu...but I pick and choose what I buy at the store, saving myself for those enormous heirloom tomatoes, freshly packed bags of salad greens, and locally-made feta cheese.

from Flickr - by NatalieMaynor

I'll be sure to keep you all posted on my favorite booths at the markets so that you, too, can stop and check out the goods!

As The Salad Spins

A wonderful addition to any budding chef's kitchen is a salad spinner. Have you ever tried to dry lettuce or spinach leaves after a good washing, only to find yourself with a soggy salad 20 minutes later? That's because your leaves aren't dry!! If you pour dressing on already wet leaves, you not only dilute the dressing that you've painstakingly whisked together, but you weigh down the greens, which makes for a sopping, yucky mess!



You've got three pieces to this gadget: a bowl, a basket and the spinner top. The bowl can double as a salad bowl, which is great. The basket fits within the bowl, and this is where the lettuce sits. Rinse the leaves in the basket under some cold water (cold water also firms up any wilt-y leaves and brings out the lovely greenness of fresh veggies). Once you place the top on, and the top could either have a push top, or a pull string, you push/pull so that the basket spins on an axis within the bowl. This spins the water droplets off of the greens!



When you take the top off, you've got a basket full of dried greens in a basket. I usually pour the water out of the bowl, dry it off and pour the dried leaves right back in - who needs to dirty another dish? There you have it, the brilliance that is a salad spinner! Invest in one today and never again have soggy salad ... as long as you don't over-dress!

The Importance of Multiple Cutting Boards

When you start your mise en place, it is imperative that you have a different cutting board for meats and vegetables. There are numerous ways to accomplish this, but you MUST make sure you do it. Meats carry a lot of bacteria before they are cooked, and even if everything is eventually going into the same pot, vegetables can still be contaminated with that bacteria prior to being cooked. For this reason, I make sure to take out a cutting board for each type of ingredient I will be prepping, before I even start. You can do this with color-coded boards, which are sometimes sold in packs.


Alternatively, there are some very cute sets that even have little pictures on them. I have a set of 4, from Sur La Table, with pictures of a fish, a cow, a chicken, and a carrot on them. This set is similar to the one I have: Cutting Boards. These are only $16 and that is a small price to pay for keeping you and your loved ones healthy when you cook. 




This goes for knives as well. I have two favorite knives, so I tend to wash them if I need to cut more than one type of meat, but normally, I've got one set aside for my protein, and the other will prep the veggies and other ingredients. As long as you wash your knife with soap in between ingredients, you don't really need to have more than one. 


Raw chicken can carry Campylobacter, as well as Salmonella, the leading cause of food borne illness. Raw beef can also carry Salmonella and Campylobacter, in addition to Listeria Monocytogenes and Staphylococcus Aureus. Raw fish can carry Anisakis Simplex (or Herring Worm), and Vibrio Species. Now let me clarify - don't stop eating these proteins because of this information. These bacteria can be spread through the improper cleaning and care of raw meats. That's why, if you decide to try making sushi at home, ALWAYS make sure that you are buying sushi-grade fish. This way, you are assured that the fish was handled properly for raw consumption. This is the case with beef too - you CAN eat it raw, as long as it's prepared appropriately. On the other hand, you can NEVER eat chicken raw...don't even contemplate it. 


Finally, I'd like to give an example of a more complicated meal, just to give you an idea of how careful you need to be. Let's say you are cooking an Asian stirfry, with beef, shrimp, chicken and veggies. You need 4 cutting boards for this meal, to be on the safe side. You'll also either need 4 knives, or a sponge and dish soap, to wash the knife in between ingredients. 


Healthy and safe cooking to you all, and to all a good night!