Woodland strawberries, native berries, were very small and often bitter, so strawberries were not that popular a fruit like we know it. It was not until the 18th century, when coincidence created the modern strawberry. In 1714, a French engineer was sent to Chile and Peru to monitor Spanish activities after the conquestadores invaded in these countries and settled into administrating. He “discovered” a native strawberry that was much larger than those grown in Europe. He brought many samples back to French botanists to plant. These plants did not originally flourish until a natural crossbreeding occurred between this species and a North American strawberry variety that was planted in a nearby field. The result was a hybrid strawberry that was plump and large, juicy and sweet, and one that quickly grew in popularity in Europe. It is the ancestor of our hybrids today.

Selecting Commercial Berries at the Grocery

Look for bright red berries with fresh green caps on. When you remove the caps you tear cells in the berries, activating ascorbic acid oxidase, an enzyme that destroys Vitamin C. Visually check each package, making sure there are no signs of mold growth. If one berry is molded, mold spores will have traveled throughout the entire package. This is new info for me.

When purchasing strawberries by the pound, one-and-a-half pounds equal one quart. This will yield about four cups of sliced strawberries.

According to the Environmental Working Group’s 2010 report “Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides,” strawberries are among the 12 foods on which pesticide residues have been most frequently found. Around 200 species of pests are known to attack strawberries both directly and indirectly and a host of diseases. Therefore, individuals sensitive to pesticide-associated health risks may want to avoid consumption of strawberries unless they are grown organically.

Handling & Storage

Like all berries, strawberries are very perishable, so great care should be taken in their handling and storage. Use strawberries as soon after harvesting (in case you do a pick your own or grow them in your garden) or purchasing as possible. Refrigerator storage does not improve the quality of fresh strawberries.

Strawberries are very heat sensitive and warm temperatures cause a browning effect in strawberries. This is why often strawberry recipes use the berries raw instead of cooking like other fruits. Make sure not to leave strawberries at room temperature or exposed to sunlight for too long, as this will cause them to spoil. Berries should not be left at room temperature for more than a few hours.

Before storing in the refrigerator, remove any strawberries that are molded or damaged so that they will not contaminate others. Replace unwashed and unhulled berries in their original container or spread them out on a plate covered with a paper towel, then cover with plastic wrap. Store unwashed berries loosely covered with plastic wrap in the coldest part of your refrigerator for two to three days at most. Do not wash berries until ready to use. Strawberries will keep fresh in the refrigerator for one or two days.

To wash, place berries in a colander and rinse under cold running water. Do not allow berries to soak in water as they will lose color and flavor. After washing, remove the green cap with a plastic-tipped vegetable peeler or paring knife without removing any of the fruit.

To freeze strawberries, first gently wash them and pat them dry. You can either remove the cap and stem or leave them intact, depending upon what you will do with them once they are thawed. Arrange them in a single layer on a flat pan or cookie sheet and place them in the freezer. Once frozen, transfer the berries to a heavy plastic bag and return them to the freezer where they will keep for up to one year. Adding a bit of lemon juice to the berries will help to preserve their color. While strawberries can be frozen whole, cut or crushed, they will retain a higher level of their vitamin C content if left whole.

Two of My Very Favorite Recipes

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Old Fashioned Shortcake Biscuits with Grand Marnier Strawberries

Don’t mess with my strawberry shortcake. I like it traditional. Genuine fruit shortcakes are an American summer passion.  It is the balance of sweet, juicy fruit, fluffy whipped creams, and crumby, rich biscuits that make them irresistible.  This version serves them up with Grand Marnier Strawberries and Crème Chantilly, the fancy name for whipped cream, the brainchild of my baker-friend, Janet Gentes, who was the first baker at one of my favorite haunts, The Country Gourmet.  Start with lots of ripe berries, then whip the cream with just a dash of sugar and a splash of liqueur for a hint of flavoring.  The biscuit must be impeccably fresh, crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. You can substitute orange juice for the liqueur if you want; it will taste just as special.

Makes 8 shortcakes

Ingredients

Biscuits

• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

• 2 tablespoons sugar

• 1 tablespoon baking powder

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces

• 1 egg

• 2/3 cup cold milk, cultured buttermilk, or heavy cream

Grand Marnier Strawberries

• 3 to 4 pint baskets of ripe strawberries, washed, dried, and hulled

• 3 tablespoons orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier

• 3 tablespoons superfine sugar, or to taste

Crème Chantilly

• 2 cups cold heavy cream

• 2 tablespoons superfine sugar

• 1 to 2 tablespoons orange liqueur, such as Grand Marnier

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

1.            Preheat the oven to 400º.  In a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.  Cut the butter pieces into the dry ingredients with a pastry blender or 2 knives until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal laced with small chunks of butter.  Combine the egg and milk, buttermilk, or cream in a measuring cup.  Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until moistened, adding additional milk, buttermilk, or cream 1 tablespoon at a time if the mixture seems too dry.

2.            Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and gently knead a few times just until the dough just comes together.  The dough will not be totally smooth.  Roll out to a thickness of 1 inch and cut into 4-inch circles, squares, or hearts.  (Individual shortcakes can be made as small as 1 1/2 inches or formed into 1 large biscuit that can be filled and cut into wedges to serve).  Place the individual shortcakes about 1 inch apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

3.            Bake in the center of the preheated oven until the tops are brown and firm to the touch, about 15 to 18 minutes.  Cool on racks.

4.            In a large bowl, crush 1 pint of the strawberries.  Mix in a tablespoon of the orange liqueur and 3 tablespoons of sugar.  Slice or halve the remaining berries and add to the crushed berries.  Set aside.

5.            To make the Crème Chantilly:  In a chilled bowl with an electric mixer, whip the heavy cream with the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 to 2 tablespoons of the orange liqueur until soft peaks form.  Cover and chill until serving.

6.            To serve, cut the warm or room temperature biscuits in half horizontally with a serrated knife.  Place the lower portion of each biscuit on an individual serving plate and top with a spoonful or two of the prepared Grand Marnier Strawberries.  Cover with the biscuit tops, another spoonful of berries and a big dollop of chilled Crème Chantilly.  Serve immediately so the biscuit doesn’t get soggy.

Excerpted from The Best Quick Breads, by Beth Hensperger. (c) 2000, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

This is my baking mentor Barbara Hiken’s mother’s recipe for fresh strawberry pie. We used to make the pie at the restaurant and people loved its homey goodness. It is not too sweet, the berries carry the flavor, and it is popular in the late spring when the glorious fresh berries are in stores, farmer’s markets, and roadside stands. This is a very old fashioned pie and a big favorite. Use your favorite pie dough or get a frozen pre-made one, pre-bake it and jump right to making the filling. It is important it is thoroughly chilled so that you get clean slices; use a sharp small chef’s knife and a pie server for the neatest service. Whipped cream is a must.

Makes one 9-inch pie, serving 6 to 8

Ingredients

• 1 9-inch single pie crust, pre-baked and cooled

• 3 pint baskets (6 to 7 cups) fresh ripe strawberries, washed and hulled

• 3 tablespoons cornstarch

• 2/3 cup granulated sugar

• 1 tablespoon butter

• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Instructions

1. Prepare the filling: Set aside the best whole raw strawberries for decoration. You will use about 1 1/2 pint baskets. Mash the remaining 1 1/2 pints strawberries with a potato masher in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add enough water to the berries to make 2 cups total. Make a slurry with the cornstarch and some of the water, and add it to the berries with the sugar. Cook, stirring constantly over medium heat, until sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a simmer. When the mixture is thick and glossy, after about 3 minutes, remove from heat and stir in the butter and lemon juice until the butter is melted. Set aside to cool slightly.

2. Fill the pie shell: Arrange remaining hulled, uncooked strawberries decoratively to fill the pie shell. Place them in the pie shell, pointed side facing up and fit side by side. Fill in any empty spaces with halved or quartered berries. Spoon the warm filling over the berries and pour into all the gaps. Allow it to set in the refrigerator for at least 2 to 4 hours. Serve cold wedges with lightly sweetened whipped cream. Store leftovers, covered loosely with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator up to 1 day.

folding the edges of a parchment package ready for cooking/directions in step 2

This is the first recipe introducing you to the newest member of the Not Your Mother’s family of cookbooks–Microwave Cooking, which was published this spring. This book is about fast, easy, soul satsifying, nutritious home style cooking that rivals fast food and frozen entrees timewise, but using instead fresh and pantry ingredients instead. I collected recipes that do what the microwave does best, from vegetables, potatoes, and hot breakfast cereals to sauces, custards, jams. Never made candy? Now you can and get it right first try. How about a tomato sauce for pasta in under 10 minutes? Fish cooks better and with the least fuss in the microwave than any other method. Please don’t miss a yummy hot chocolate for a pick-me-up, and range of really special hot teas.

cover photograph of salmon in parchment by joyce oudkerk pool

Cooking fish “in parchment,” is so simple you can assemble the packets in a few minutes once you have your ingredients. The edges are folded to create a little cooking bag which becomes an airtight steaming pouch. It is one of the fastest methods for cooking fish with the least cleanup. You want a full one-quarter cup of each vegetable for each packet. In this recipe, the salmon and vegetables with be in their own creamy sauce. You will cook 2 packages at a time. This is the recipe featured on the book cover. It is remarkably simple to prepare and you can adapt this recipe to other firm fleshed fish, such as halibut, and use sour cream or plain Greek yogurt in place of the creme fraiche. Do not leave the microwave unattended while the fish is cooking since it cooks so fast. Please note the cook time is tailored to the wattage of the microwave. If you have a lower wattage, you will add some cook time.

Overview

Cookware: 10-inch Pyrex pie plate or ceramic plate

Microwave Wattage: 1,100 to 1,300

Cook Time: About 3 minutes

Standing Time: 2 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

• Four 12-inch-square sheets parchment paper

• 2 tablespoons soft butter

• 4 (6- to 8-ounces each) 3/4- to 1-inch thick salmon fillets, skin on

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• 8 tablespoons crème fraîche

• 4 teaspoons chopped fresh dill

• About 1 cup julienne zucchini

• About 1 cup sliced white mushrooms

fresh salmon fillet which can be cut into portions

Instructions

1. Fold the parchment in half to form a crease. Spread butter liberally below the crease. Place the salmon fillet on the buttered parchment. Season. Top each fillet with 2 tablespoons crème fraîche, then sprinkle with dill. Divide the vegetables equally between the 4 fillets and season lightly again

2. Fold over the top of the parchment. Starting at the right side of the fish, fold 1/2-inch of the parchment over in 2-inch increments, crimping the edges making sure the previous fold is covered a bit with succeeding fold to securely wrap the salmon airtight. Place 2 packages on the pie plate or plate side by side.

3. Place in the oven and microcook on HIGH for 3 minutes. Test for doneness; unwrap salmon which will just flake at the touch of a fork. If not, rewrap and microcook in 20 second intervals and testing again. Remove from the oven and transfer bags with a spatula to individual dinner plates. Let stand 2 minutes or while you cook the other pair of packages.

4. To serve, using a steak knife or scissors, let each diner tear open their own bag of fragrant salmon with creamy vegetables.

photo courtesy of alamy

Excerpted from Not Your Mother’s Microwave Cooking, by Beth Hensperger. (c) 2010, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

the emile henry traditionally shaped ceramic tagine

A Tagine, also known as a Tajine, is a traditional cooking vessel as well as the name of the dish cooked in them and method of cooking found in the North African cuisines of Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. Usually the traditional Tagine pot is formed entirely of a heavy clay which is sometimes painted or glazed. It consists of two parts; a base unit which is flat and circular with low sides, and a unique large cone or dome-shaped cover with a top knob that looks like a pointed hat for handling that rests on the base during cooking. The cover is so designed to promote the return of all condensation to the bottom. The lid allows the steam to circulate above and around the contents while cooking, thus infusing the dish with flavor. With the cover removed, the base can be taken to the table for serving.

Morocco is located in the northwestern corner of Africa, across the Gibraltar Strait from Spain, so there is strong Spanish and Moorish influences. Morocco is slightly larger in area than California, and its territory has three different regions: The northern coast along the Mediterranean Sea is made up of fertile land that rises to elevations of about 8,000 feet and center of the local agriculture. The Atlas Mountains run between the Atlantic coast in the southwest to the Mediterranean Sea in the northeast. Finally, the semiarid area in the south and east known as the Western Sahara connects Morocco with the vast African Sahara Desert, home of the nomadic tribes.

The most well known tagines are considered Moroccan cuisine and are slow-cooked

tagines cook especially well in the round shape slow cooker

stews of chicken or lamb with chickpeas braised at low temperatures, resulting in tender meat with aromatic vegetables and sauce. While simmering, the cover can be lifted off without the aid of a mitten, enabling the cook to inspect the main ingredients, add vegetables, move things around, or add additional braising liquid. The tagine is also nicknamed the “Moroccan crockpot”.

The sweet/savory nature of the cuisine flavors tagines with lemons and oranges, olives, figs, dates and prunes, and almonds, including the spices saffron, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger, and ground red pepper. Mint tea is served with every meal in Morocco. It is sweetened while it is still in the pot.

The Dutch oven is an alternative to the special tagine cooking vessel, but the slow cooker has also shown itself to be the best alternative to the traditional cooking vessel originally designed for use over an open cook fire. It is able to be used with excellent results to make the tagine braised stews on the countertop–the modern method for an ancient sytle of cooking. The slow cooker replicates the slow low temperature necessary for proper cooking, as well as the ceramic cook pot material and the conservation of the precious moisture during the cooking process.

Many of the recipes in Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker books have braises that reflect this north African style of cooking and specific flavor combinations, which has become incredibly popular in the last few years in Western cuisine. We have a library of cookbooks that are devoted to tagine cuisine, by food writers Paula Wolfert and Kitty Morse for example, and a Western culture that is intriqued by the exotic flavor alchemy of north African desert cuisine, but the real culprit in opening up the cuisine of Morocco to America is the Oldways Slow Food movement, which held a food symposium there some years ago and food writers have been in love ever since.

Here are two of my favorite tagines made with chicken. Exotic is a few hours away in your kitchen…

Recipes

Moroccan-Spiced Tomato Chicken with Almonds

Moroccan Chicken Thighs with Garbanzos and Cumin

open air markets are a traditional way of shopping in Morocco/photo by Cory Langley

This is really a simple tagine, or stew, sort of Moroccan daily home cooking.  We kept this one less spicy, traditionally speaking, although you can add some chopped preserved lemons is you like.  It is sort of like a simple chili.  Serve with a salad with sliced fresh oranges and radishes. End the meal with some Moroccan Mint Tea.

Overview

Cooker: Medium or Large Round or Oval

Machine Setting and Cook Time: Low Heat: 6 to 7 hours

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 16-ounce cans garbanzo beans, drained

• 1 15-ounce can plum tomatoes, cut into 1″ cubes

• 1 large red bell pepper, seeded, cut into 1″ squares

• 1 medium red onion, chopped

• 1/4 cup golden raisins

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• 2 tablespoons water

• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

• Pinch of sweet paprika

• 4 boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1″ cubes

• 2 tablespoons peanut butter, almond butter, or cashew butter

• 3 tablespoons chopped cilantro

• Hot cooked couscous or brown rice

Instructions

Place the garbanzo beans, tomatoes, bell pepper, onion, raisins, tomato paste, water, cumin, and paprika in the crock; stir well. Scatter the chicken pieces over the top of bean mixture. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 7 hours, until chicken is tender and cooked through. Stir in the nut butter. Serve hot sprinkled with the cilantro.

Excerpted from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook, by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. (c) 2005, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

Here is a totally different flavored chicken laced with some subtle spices, currants, and honey in a tomato based sauce that uses cooked salsa. It is a brilliantly simple recipe that tastes like a whole lot more and is adapted from one of all my friends’ favorite recipes that appeared in one of the best cookbook series in print, The Best American Recipes by Fran McCullough (Houghton Mifflin). This came from year 1999.  Serve with couscous to be authentic.

Overview

Recommended Size: 1 1/2 to 3 quart cooker

Machine Setting: Low

Cook Time: 2 to 2 1/2 hours

Serves 2, maybe with leftovers

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil

• 2 tablespoons slivered almonds

• 1 clove garlic, minced

• 4 (3/4 to 1 pound) boneless, skinless chicken thighs, rinsed and dried

• 1 cup tomato salsa (Mexican-style: I use Salsa de Luna or Newman’s Chunky)

• 2 tablespoons dried currants

• 4 teaspoons honey

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• Salt, to taste

Instructions

Spray the cooker with nonstick cooking spray. While the couscous is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add almonds and cook, stirring, until golden, 1 minute. Remove from skillet with a slotted spoon and set aside to drain on paper towels; coarsely chop. (Alternatively, you can just use packaged toasted sliced almonds.)

Add garlic to skillet and cook, stirring, just until fragrant, about 20 seconds. Add chicken thighs and cook, turning once, until lightly browned, 4 to 5 minutes. (Alternately, you can broil the thighs.) Transfer to the crock. Combine the salsa, currants, honey, cumin, and cinnamon and pour over the thighs. Cover and cook on LOW for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until the chicken is fork-tender and the juices run clear when pierced with a fork. Season to taste. Serve over couscous, topped with the toasted almonds.

Excerpted from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook, by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. (c) 2005, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

Makes one 9-inch cheesecake, serves 10.

Graham Pecan Crust

Ingredients

• 4 whole graham crackers

• 1 cup raw pecan halves or pieces

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 5 tablespoons melted butter

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350º.  Line the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment.  Place the crackers, pecans, and sugar in the food processor and grind fine.  Add the melted butter; process just until clumps are formed.  Remove from the bowl and press evenly into the bottom and one inch up the sides of the pan until firmly packed.  Refrigerate 30 minutes.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling

Ingredients

• 12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate

• 1 1/2 pounds (3 8-ounce packages) cream cheese, room temperature

• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

• 1 cup sugar

• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

• 3 large eggs

Instructions

Melt the chocolate slowly in a double boiler, remove from the heat and cool slightly. Preheat the oven to 350º.

Beat the cream cheese, heavy cream, and sugar in an electric mixer until smooth.  Add the vanilla, cocoa powder, and slightly cooled melted chocolate.  Add the eggs, mixing well after each addition.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl.  Mix just until blended, about 30 seconds; do not overbeat.

Set the pan with the prepared crust on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold up to cover the bottom and sides of the pan to catch any batter that might leak.  Pour the batter into the pan and bake in the center of the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 325º and bake an additional 30 minutes.

At the end of the hour, turn off the heat and with the oven door slightly ajar, leave the cake in the oven for 1 additional hour (set a timer).  Remove from the oven and set on a rack to cool completely to room temperature.  Remove the foil. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.  Remove 1 hour before serving.  Run a thin knife around the edge of the pan to loosen the crust and carefully remove pan rim.  Decorate with rosettes of cocoa whipped cream (recipe follows) topped with a chocolate coffee bean if you are making for a party. Otherwise, you can just serve slices with a dollop of the ever so delicious cream.  Transfer to a cake platter.

Cocoa Whipped Cream

• 1/4 cup granulated superfine sugar

• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

• 3/4 cup heavy cream

Place the sugar and cocoa in a bowl and aerate by stirring with a small whisk.  Add the heavy cream and stir to combine.  Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.  Whip until firm peaks are formed and decorate immediately.  Makes about 1 1/2 cups.

Beth Recommends: How to Melt Chocolate

Chocolate is widely used as an ingredient in sweet yeast and quick breads, as well as fillings and sauces.  The trick to melting chocolate successfully is to melt it slowly over low heat stove top or in the microwave; chocolate responds quickly to changes in temperature.  Whatever method you use, first coarsely chop the chocolate for even melting.  It burns very easily, so keep the temperature below 125°F.  If overheated, chocolate will become grainy and taste scorched.  Water causes chocolate to seize, so be sure the container in which it is melted is dry.  Different types and brands of good-quality chocolate melt at different rates and have different consistencies.  Make certain to allow for sugar in a recipe calling for unsweetened chocolate or cocoa, as it contains none.  Semisweet, bittersweet, and milk chocolates tend to hold their shape when melted and must be stirred with a whisk or rubber spatula to create a smooth consistency.

• In a double boiler

Place coarsely chopped chocolate over hot, just below simmering, water.  Let stand until melted, stirring occasionally.  Because milk and white chocolates are so heat sensitive, after the water is hot, remove the double boiler from the heat and let stand until the chocolate is melted.

• In a conventional oven

Place the chocolate in an ovenproof glass or other ovenproof dish in a preheated 300° to 350°F. oven.  Check every 5 minutes until melted.

• In a microwave oven

Place coarsely chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe container and partially cover with plastic wrap.  Microwave at 50 percent power for 2 to 4 minutes, depending on the amount, until shiny and slightly melted.  Stir at 1-minute intervals throughout the melting process until completely melted.  Milk and white chocolates take less time than dark or unsweetened.

• To substitute cocoa powder for baking chocolate

Use 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon vegetable oil or butter for every one-ounce square of unsweetened baking chocolate.

Recommended Brands of Chocolate

ScharffenBerger bulk chocolate and chips

Once difficult for the home baker to procure, my supermarket offers small baking bars of Valrhona Le Noir Gastronomie Bittersweet chocolate from France, Swiss Lindt Excellence, and Callebaut from Belgium, Ghiradellhi from USA, Guittard 61% or 65% Semisweet Chocolate from USA, and ScharffenBerger Extra-bittersweet (now owned by Hershey’s), but Bakers’ semisweet is easily found and has been the chocolate of choice in many tastings. Remember that different brands of chocolate, as well as the percentage of cocoa butter, will vary in taste, so experiment with different chocolates. You want bar chocolate rather than chocolate chips, which have an additive that help maintain its shape for baking and melts different than bar chocolate.

You can really have your choice of brands, any of the major brands are competitive–Rival, Kitchen Aid, Cuisinart, Hamilton Beach, but for families you want the size. That is the super size 6 1/2 to 7 quart model. This will give you some leftovers and still feed a family. A lot of cooks go for the 5 1/2 quart as well. The larger cookers usually come in an oval or rectangular shape now to fit the most food in the smallest of spaces. The round cookers, shaped like a flower pot and the original shape, are more limited in the cuts of meat, they need to be cut in half to fit, but are great for cooking beans, stews, and chili. I am reluctant to name specific models since the genre is evolving with new models constantly. I find you have to check out what the store you are shopping at has available. If shopping online, check out the different brands and find one that appeals to you.

2. What should moms keep in mind when shopping for a family slow cooker?

Get a color you love since it will be sitting on the counter and you have to look at it. then all the considerations in question #1. I like the glass lid, but Cuisinart has a metal lid and no one complains about it since the machine is so good.

3. What’s your favorite gourmet/high-tech slow cooker (specific brand/model)?

I am a Hamilton Beach gal and find the three main cook levels work for me, but other people love the integrated digital control panel. This All Clad slow cooker has a 6 1/2 quart capacity, up to 26 hours of cooking time and three heat settings. If you are out of the house all day, this will be the ticket for convenience and flexibility.

4. What are some fun and/or new features to look for when shopping for a higher-tech slow cooker?

The electronic temperature management and digital control panel and some even have recipes programmed in, which I don’t need. But if you planning to cook and leave it all day while you are at work, the 8 to 10 hour timer is helpful. The lids are coming with rubber seals now, which keep in the moisture like never before. The by far most popular new wave is the removable crock that can be used stove top for initial browning, then placed back in the cooker so that you dont need any extra pans. All the pros I know use this feature and love it. Westbend has that the heating and serving base move to stove top, oven, refrigerator, or freezer. And the base doubles as a non-stick mini-griddle. Rival has the double crock so you can make two different recipes at the same time. There is a stand that fits three small slow cookers designed for table service, which is great for an appetizer party for hot dips.

5. What’s the best slow cooker for beginners (specific brand/model)?

Really it doesn’t matter. You can get wild here and be spontaneous by picking whatever you fancy…round or oval, color, stainless steel, or chrome, flat black, features. If this is your first one, buy an inexpensive model and try it out (you can get a great slow cooker for around $25). You can always upgrade to the more expensive later and have more than one machine (you will be surprised how convenient it is to have more than one machine). Just get the size that you think you will use most. If you have a family, get a large one; if you are cooking for one or two, get a medium. The simple three cook levels-High, Low, and Keep Warm, is great for starting. You first have to figure how big you want it depending on how many people you are cooking for. If you get hooked on this style of cooking, consider having 2 or 3 different sizes…a small 1 1/2 quart for dips, a medium 3 1/2 to 4 quart, and the large 6 to 7 quart. You always want that the machine will shift automatically to Keep Warm if you can. Dont ever get one that doesnt have a removable crock and just an on/off by putting the plug in and out. these are obsolete now and one wonders how cooks managed since cleaning is such a hassle. Go for a Hamilton Beach or Rival, the stalwart reliable brands. Rival is the original crockpot. Other brands are Breville, Cuisinart, Kitchen Aid and ALL CLAD.

6. What should beginners watch out for when shopping for a slow cooker?

See #5.

7. What’s the best budget slow cooker (specific brand/model)?

Hamilton Beach and Rival, all basic models.

8. What’s a great way to save money when slow cooking?

Saving money is sort of intrinsic to the slow cooker style of cooking. You can make any type of dish in any model machine as long as the food fits in there. You can utilize the cheaper cuts of meat and experiment with all sorts of braised dishes, which are historically the economical home foods. Get comfortable with making beans from scratch. There is a wide variety available with wonderful flavors. You don’t need expensive, hard to find gourmet ingredients to make great food.

9. What are your top 10 favorite tips for cooking with a crockpot?

My Slow Cooker Tips

While we often think of the slow cooker for those long cooked winter stews, the slow cooker is the premier tool for summer cooking as well. It generates very little heat so your kitchen will stay cool without the added heat of the oven or stove top. Here are a few tips for using your slow cooker during the long hot days of summer.

•Consider buying two or three slow cooker in different sizes. You can then make the main dish and side at the same time if you wish. I suggest a 3 or 3 1/2-quart oval, and a 5-to 6-quart round or oval as a start.

•The slow cooker is user-friendly and very economical, utilizing about the same amount of energy as a 75-watt light bulb.  It takes much less electricity to use a slow cooker than a conventional gas or electric oven.  On the HIGH setting, you will use less than 300 watts. It is an excellent alternative method of cooking on extremely hot days when energy alerts recommend reduced use of electrical appliances and won’t add heat to your kitchen like an oven does. In some new machines, you might find 400 watts cook temp now.

•There are two cook settings on a slow cooker: LOW and HIGH. The LOW setting uses 80 to 185 watts and and cooks in the temperature range of 170º to 200ºF.  The HIGH heat setting is double the wattage, 160 to 370 watts, and cooks at a temperature of 280º to 300º, with slight variables due to size of cooker, temperature of the food, and how full the crock is. There is a KEEP WARM setting, but that is not for cooking or reheating of food.

• Some of the best dishes to make in the slow cooker:

-3 hour boneless chicken breasts

-meatloaf

-lasagna

-roasted winter squash

-beans and baked beans

-chili

-corned beef and brisket

-turkey breast or thighs

•Certain foods are NOT suitable to slow cooking. These include tender steaks, large loin roasts such as prime rib, recipes that quickly sauté meats or wok cooking, poultry with the skin on (this triples the fat content of the dish), pies and cookies, layer cakes, pasta (except for orzo and some recipes for small tube pastas that specify no cooking), regular rices, except for converted rice (which holds its shape during long cooking), fresh delicate seafood, cheese and dairy products like milk and sour cream (use evaporated milk or else add regular dairy products during the last hour of cooking).

•Get in the habit of spraying the crock with nonstick vegetable or olive oil cooking spray before every recipe to prevent sticking and to facilitate easy washing of the crock.

•Hard heavier vegetables (such as carrots, winter squash, potatoes, turnips, onions) take longer to cook than meat, so place them on the bottom of the cooker and set meat or poultry on top and pile up around the sides. Unskinned potatoes keep their shape better and smaller pieces cook faster than larger chunks and whole potatoes. Cut all different vegetables in one dish into uniform bite-sized pieces so they will cook evenly. Lighter vegetables (such as corn, peas, and summer squash), can be layered on top or added halfway through the cooking time.

•Always be aware of how much liquid you are using in a recipe, especially if adapting from a traditional oven or stove top recipe. Only add the amount of liquid listed in the recipe, even if it seems like not enough since a lot of juices from the ingredients will collect. The slow cooker does not evaporate any liquid so less liquid is needed.

•If you are leaving the slow cooker unattended all day or night, it is best to cook on the LOW setting. That way there is no chance your food will overcook. Most pot roasts, stews, soups, and chili all cook best on LOW.

•If you are not at home during the entire cooking process and the power goes out, throw away the food even if it looks done. If you are at home, finish cooking the ingredients immediately by some other means: on a gas stove or on the outdoor grill. If the food was completely cooked just as the power went out, it should remain safe up to two hours in the cooker with the power off.

•If you are pressed for time, prep ingredients the day before cooking by chopping vegetables and storing separately in sealed containers or plastic storage bags. Cover cut potatoes with water to prevent discoloring. Ground meat can be browned and refrigerated overnight as long as it is fully cooked (browned roasts, cubed meat, and poultry all need to be prepped just before cooking for safety since they are not fully cooked). Fresh poultry pieces can be quickly grilled on an outdoor grill, then immediately frozen for later use. Ingredients, except for meat and poultry, can be assembled in the crock and refrigerated, covered, overnight; in the morning, you just pot the crock into the housing and turn on the machine.

•Unless noted in the recipe, thaw frozen foods before placing in the slow cooker so that the food temperature can reach 140º as soon as possible.  This is very important since frozen foods can slow the heating of the cooker and leave your stew or braise at too low a temperature for too long a time to be safe to eat. I never place frozen foods in the slow cooker unless a recipe specifically calls for it as it throws off the heating of the contents. Never thaw foods of any type in the slow cooker.

•You will see lots of instructions that say never to lift the lid during the cooking process.  On one hand, that is a good rule; on the other hand, that is impossible.  As the contents of the slow cooker heats up and create steam, of a natural water seal is created around the rim of the lid as the vacuum is formed.  The rim of the lid will stick in place when gently pulled.  This is important for the even cooking of the food within. Check your dish for doneness halfway or near the end of the cooking time, especially if it is the first time you are making the dish.  When you place the lid back on, it takes 20 to 30 minutes for the internal temperature of the contents to come back to the proper cooking temperature.

•Taking your full slow cooker to a buffet or picnic as a handy serving container? If you do not have a lid latch, wrap the lid with foil to secure it in place. The cooker can be wrapped in a clean, thick towel on the car floor or in a box in the trunk, or placed in an insulated cooler (with towels wrapped around to prevent slipping while driving) to retain heat for a long journey. Upon arriving at your destination, plug in and set to KEEP WARM or LOW up to 2 hours before serving.

• DO NOT use the slow cooker crock in the microwave or on the stove top unless your manufacturers manual says it is designed to do so. Do not store cooked food in the refrigerator in the crock; it will not cool down and chill the contents properly.

Beth Bytes

This is a fabulous article that appeared in the March 2010 issue of RachelRay magazine. I have done an article for them some time back and they are wonderful to work with and real slow cooker enthusiasts, even though I am a Hamilton Beach/Proctor Silex gal. This article was written by Vivian Jao, who did a good deal of excellent solid research for the first time slow cooker shopper. I LOVE the photo.

photo by Kang Kim for RachelRay magazine

1) CUISINART PSC-350 3.5-QUART SLOW COOKER
$60, cuisinart.com
(The Entertainer/Home Cooking Favorite)
UPSIDE Ideal size for soups, beans, dips, oatmeal and even cakes; LCD screen shows countdown; programmable timer; automatic keep-warm setting.
DOWNSIDE Expensive for its small capacity; hard-to-hear cooking completion signal; hard-to-read temperature indicator.

2) HAMILTON BEACH SET ’N FORGET 6-QUART PROGRAMMABLE SLOW COOKER WITH SPOON/LID
$60, amazon.com
(The Frequent Potluck Attendee/Family Home Cooking Favorite)
UPSIDE Easy-to-read LCD screen; thermometer probe for setting meat temperatures; automatic keep-warm setting; tight seal on lid, with side clips and extended handles for safe and easy transport.
DOWNSIDE Probe can be awkward to position; bulky for storage; short cord.

3) CROCK-POT 7-QUART SLOW COOKER
$45, crock-pot.com
(The Big Family on a Budget)
UPSIDE Inexpensive for its capacity, which can feed up to 10 people and hold up to a 7-pound roast; includes travel bag.
DOWNSIDE Short cord.

4) PROCTOR SILEX 4-QUART ROUND SLOW COOKER
(The College Cook/First Home Cook/Wedding Gift)
$25, proctorsilex.com
UPSIDE Inexpensive; compact; ideal size for soups, beans, dips, oatmeal and even cakes. Go for an oval too.
DOWNSIDE No “on” indicator light; short cord.

5) WEST BEND 4-QUART CROCKERY COOKER
$30, westbend.com
(The Small Frugal Family)
UPSIDE Inexpensive; stay-cool plastic handles for carrying; oval shape is compact, yet can fit a whole chicken.
DOWNSIDE Inner crock is not ovenproof like the other winners.

illustration by Betty MacKensie Dew/note the Windsor baby high chair

The American Colonial period dates from about 1620 to the end of the American Revolution. Popular furniture styles included the familiar designs of Jacobean, Queen Anne, and Chippendale. Most commonly, Colonial American furniture is based pretty extensively on the Jacobean style of English furniture. It is named after James I of England, and covers the period of the reigns of James I and both Charles I and Charles II, 1603 – 1688. It is easy to get confused since there is also Indian Colonial furniture and style, as well as British Colonial, which is Caribbean. Federal describes after the revolution (think Duncan Fyfe rather than Ethan Allen).

Starting in the late 16th century, England, Scotland, France, Sweden, Spain, and the Netherlands began to colonize eastern North America. On the eve of the Revolution, Americans were still quite close to England in terms of native identity. They aimed to make their cities, homes, and bodies as British in appearance as possible. Wealthy merchants and farmers were able to import furniture from England since they wanted to decorate their homes in the British manner, but most middle-class and less affluent folks (most of the original immigrants were indentured servants and convicts) depended upon local craftsmen to create their furnishings. They were importing tables, chairs, fabric for clothing and upholstery, liquor, and all manner of fancy goods. Their desires compelled American craftsmen and artists to compete with and imitate things English. Naturally, American craftsmen used the English imports as inspiration. With typical American inventiveness, they enhanced their creations with their personal artistic vision, and within a few decades regional “personalities” developed in major metropolitan areas like Boston, Philadelphia (ie the Windsor chairs as in this photo said to be designed by Thomas Jefferson, who was also a trained architect), and Savannah.

Genuine early American antique furniture is much sought after today, but is a limited commodity. The quality of the local forested woods and the quality of the craftsmanship make it superior in many ways to British antiques of the same era. However, demand exceeds supply, and in-good-shape authentic early American antique furniture is expensive and often hard to find. Most home makers content themselves with finding one or two valuable pieces, and supplementing them with reproductions, which are very affordable and easy to find on the East Coast. I remember my mother scouting in antique stores for beat up authentic pieces and my grandfather working refinishing them in the garage. This augmented her vast house full of more sleek reproductions, which were accumulated piece by piece when I was a child. My mother’s sister, Aunt Joan, had similar taste and when I recently watched a CD of old family home movies, here was the landscape of each room filmed, like a dreamscape replete with the decorative spinning wheel in the corner, that confused me momentarily whose house it was.

Reproduction furniture is made, often by hand, in the same style and uses the same woods as the genuine antiques, thereby blending in well and creating an attractive decor effect in which history, collecting valuable pieces, and comfort all have their part. Almost all Jacobean furniture was made of oak, a wood well-suited to the massive sturdy style, while its American counterparts would be made of lovely local woods including pine, maple, cherry and walnut. My mother’s favorite craftsman was Mr. Frueller, who had a workshop in northern New Jersey. I even went to visit him once with my parents and saw his workshop.

When I saw this dining room, I was sent back through the years to my growing up. My mother was a Colonial furniture lover and our entire home was furnished with early American antiques. While this is not exactly our kitchen dining area, all the elements of I remember are in this photo.

Convenience and comfort are key in a kitchen. Our family kitchens (we moved most every year while I grew up so there were lots of them) doubled as eat-in areas and multifunctional family tv hangouts, a standard feature in small houses. This kitchen dining area photo really brought back my childhood surroundings with the reproduction standards–bowback Windsor chairs, highly polished maple dropleaf table, built in bookshelves and cabinetry, double lamp chandelier, and oak plank floors (real ones, not veneers, with pegs instead of nails), even the clay moonshine crocks up on the top shelf. All we are missing is the baskets hanging from an eave. The early American colonial furniture leaf table with an oval top, compact and easy to move, was much more suited than its long counterpart to the smaller, more intimate domestic settings of the late 17th century and afterwards. We always had rectangular harvest tables for seating the family of 8 in the kitchen area. My mom still has her classic Queen Anne table and chairs for the dining room. In perfect shape, I might add, after almost 50 years.

The Colonial-style room always has wooden floors. Often they sported a large oval braided rug or more luxurious knotted Persian or Oriental rugs (although I like no carpet under an eating area for easier cleaning). Originally early American carpets were imported from Persia through Venice. With the discovery of the maritime trade route to India, the Portuguese brought Indian varieties, which came through Amsterdam and Antwerp, then the mart of the world by Dutch trading companies (Britain vied for this in later centuries, breaking up the trade monopoly).

Colonial style focuses on the hearth, which is really neat sitting eating dinner in front of a fire. Life in the days of the early American settlers revolved around the fireplace – the only source of warmth in those bitter winters without any kind of heating system. Any type of furniture that provided a shield from the cold drafts was popular, which is how wing-backed chairs evolved. The originals of the “bowback” Windsor chairs are typical of the work of Joseph Henzey of Philadelphia, circa 1765-1780. Rarely has a piece of furniture enjoyed such wide popularity as the Windsor chair. Virtually every period American chair maker produced them and a goodly number of design variations were developed. Most native craftsmen saw the inherent appeal in the Windsor chair’s broad seat and supportive spindled back which provided remarkable comfort. In The Story of American Furniture, there is a photograph of a Windsor chair that was a schoolroom style writing desk off one arm that belonged to Jefferson. The photo is captioned “The cradle of the Declaration of Independence.”

mom's blue willow china is considered early American

I lived my early life in rooms with this atmosphere (four poster beds with the canopy), and the only things that were not colonial, I think, were the baby playpen and stuff in the garage. While it was a bit overkill at the time (think the American eagle watching down in various rooms and an upholstered gold high back chair covered in the “in God we trust” eagles with talons encircling a globe) and we kids used to joke about it since we were not allowed our own touches of personal photos or knicknacks even in the bedroom to destroy the ambiance of stylized arrangement. But now I own some of the castoffs (including a square pine dropleaf table and ladderback chairs from an earlier incarnation when our family was only 4) and I am quite comfy with them as part of my mix and match decorating hodgepodge, which is far less orchestrated and more spontaneous a style that suits me.

Recipe

Welsh Rabbit with Broiled Tomatoes, Colonial Tavern Style

Colonial reproductions can be the focal point of a very different type of dining room with a mixture of country style furniture plus the painted chairs. I love this table. It would make a good computer desk as well.

courtesy of the Marchi Group kitchen designers

Andrew and Betsy Wyeth’s dining room at Oar House, their summer home off the coast of Maine. The side fireplace oven, used for baking bread and Boston baked beans, is off to the right. The corner cabinet is a Colonial touch; stressed painting is a favorite refinish. Maine is known for its fabulous antique stores, as well as lobster roll shacks. Notice both rooms have as focus the Colonial style dining table and reproduction chandelier.

courtesy of architectural digest

Welsh rabbit, or rarebit, has no bunny rabbit in it.  Rabbit is an old name for Old English Cheddar cheese, produced near the Welsh border, that was melted and poured over toast, and well, the name just stuck.  It is a traditional, stick-to-the-ribs British dish and is called caws pobi in Wales.  I loved this as a kid (use milk instead of the beer for the young diners) for lunch or dinner over toast points.  When topped with a poached egg, it is called a Golden Buck.  This recipe comes from Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia, where it is winter tavern fare with mugs of cold ale. The dry mustard is a must and cayenne can be substituted for the Tabasco.

Overview

Cooker: Medium Round

Machine Setting and Cook Time: High Heat: 30 minutes, then Low Heat: 1 1/2 hours

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 cup beer, divided

• 1 tablespoon butter or margarine

• 1 pound medium or sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

• Dash Tabasco sauce

• Dash Worcestershire sauce

• 1 teaspoon Coleman’s dry mustard

• 1 large egg, beaten

• 4 to 6 thick slices fresh tomato

• 8 to 12  slices French bread, toasted, crusts trimmed

• Hungarian ground paprika, for sprinkling

Instructions

Pour the beer (reserving 2 tablespoons in a small bowl) and butter into the cooker and turn to HIGH, uncovered, for about 30 minutes to evaporate some of the alcohol and melt the butter.  When the beer is hot, add the cheese by handfuls, Tabasco, and Worcestershire sauce.  Reduce the heat to LOW and cover.  Cook until the cheese is melted, about 1 hour.  Moisten the mustard with the reserved beer and stir to make a paste; add the beaten egg.  Add to the melted cheese, stirring constantly with a whisk.  Cover and cook another 30 minutes.

Place the tomato slices on the rack of a broiler pan, and broil for 1 minute, or until lightly browned on one side.

To serve, place the toast slices on the bottom of an oven­proof gratin dish or in individual gratin dishes. Pour the cheese over the toast (plain or buttered), sprinkle with paprika, and then top with the tomato slices. Place under the broiler and broil until the cheese is bubbly and brown. Serve immediately.

Buck Rabbit (aka Golden Buck)

This is a variation of the above recipe. Cook as before but place a lightly poached egg on top of each slice of Welsh rabbit–as you cut into it, the yolk runs over the cheese mixture to give a rich golden orange color and a wonderful combination of flavors and textures.

English Rarebit

This is a more elaborate version of the traditional Welsh dish. Although the cheese mixture is prepared and cooked in the same way, the toast is soaked in red wine before the addition of cheese. This dish is hundreds of years old.

Serving Suggestions

Welsh Rabbit is good on its own. Served with salad, it becomes an acceptable light lunch or supper dish. With a poached egg on top it becomes a little more substantial, but when served with cold ham and baked beans it becomes a meal on its own!

If you are spending a day outdoors in cold weather, Welsh or Buck Rabbit makes a yummy, satisfying breakfast. Serve it as part of a cooked breakfast with crispy bacon and grilled tomatoes and a mug of hot tea or coffee. It also goes particularly well with smoked salmon or pan-fried trout. Welsh Rarebit with tomato soup is a winner. Try making your Welsh rabbit with different cheddar cheeses, add some finely chopped onion or chives if you fancy, sprinkling the top with minced bacon, or a sprinkling of fresh sage or basil.

Adapted from Not Your Mother’s Slow Cooker Cookbook, by Beth Hensperger and Julie Kaufmann. (c) 2005, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

hothouse-grown stalks of fresh rhubarb

I spied the first field-grown rhubarb in the produce section the other day and that means local grown rhubarb will be showing up at the farmer’s market as well. What a treat for the seasonal pie maker. If I don’t have time, I will make a crisp, even a small one for two.

If you grew up in a rural area in Wisconsin or New England and had a garden, chances are you grew clumps of ruby-red rhubarb. If not, rhubarb is exclusively a supermarket produce special, bridging the gap between winter citrus and summer stone fruit. Hothouse-grown rhubarb shows itself year-round, has a milder flavor, yellow-green leaves, and pinkish stalks that cook up to a not-so-pretty. But the pale pink sticks are far different from fresh rhubarb gathered in a spring garden. They are taken from roots, lifted from fields in autumn and laid out in dark, warm and cavernous buildings where the stems extend prematurely.

But spring is the time for the more flavorful field-grown. The thick, celery-like stalks of rhubarb (which is really a vegetable) can reach up to 2 feet long. There are two distinct kinds of spring rhubarb—one the red and the other green, which has fatter stems. The leaves of the plant must be discarded before cooking, as they contain oxalic acid and are therefore toxic (they can be made into a potent tea and used as an insecticide). Rhubarb has long been considered a medicinal and it is so fibrous it even makes a beautiful, earthy paper for calligraphers.

Here are the tips for home gardening:

•Trim leaves from stalk immediately.

• Don’t use stalks from frost bitten plants.

• Wash the stalks well.

• Children should be taught to eat only the rhubarb stalks, preferably under supervision

Easy field crop: Grown in a forcing pot or in the open, all rhubarb needs is fertile soil

Cooking with rhubarb also is a breeze, involving none of the messy time consuming extra step of peeling or stoning required by apples, peaches, and cherries. Known as “pie plant” in some areas, rhubarb is always combined with a fair amount of sweetener to tame its natural tartness. Rhubarb is quite astringent-sour, hence the combining with the likes of strawberries, cherries, raspberries, and blueberries to sweeten it up or softening it during cooking with sugar. It has a natural affinity to orange, so you will see lots of orange zest, juice or liqueur as an additional ingredient, as well as ginger and apples. It is a favorite for country style jams, compotes, and chutney. Desserts are the most popular way to enjoy rhubarb, and it is quite delicious made into pies, cobblers, and crisps. It is also good added just chopped raw in rustic cakes and muffins. Stewed rhubarb anyone? It’s the quintessential compote ingredient. Rhubarb is now used a lot more in savory dishes, especially acidic sauces for poultry, game, and pork spiked with jalapenos, onions, mustard, balsamic vinegar, or port wine.

To prepare for cooking: Cut off the inedible leaf (Never eat the leaves on rhubarb, cooked or raw, because it can lead to an upset stomach.), then chop the stalks into bite-sized pieces and you are ready to go forth into the recipe.

How to buy: Flat stalks should be straight and crisp, like celery. Avoid limp stalks, especially if they’re curled up at the ends. For sweeter rhubarb, choose the darkest stalks. The small, paler, thinner stalks are hothouse varieties, available in supermarkets, and don’t need to be peeled and have a more delicate flavor. Store in the refrigerator in a plastic bag for 3 days before it begins to loose its crispness.

I am lucky to have foodie friends who are spectacular, and generous, cooks. Peggy Fallon, also known as Foodie Peg on the ProjectFoodie website, makes a favorite crisp with all rhubarb and a walnut topping. “I don’t want anything distracting from the taste of the wonderful rhubarb,” she said. “So it is a pure rhubarb crisp with no added berries or other fruit. It’s divine.” Dolores is Dolores Kostelni, familiar as the Happy Cook radio host in Virginia. I asked her how she ended up with a crumb crust and she said it was just one of those days she didn’t have time to make a regular rolled out crust. Well, the results are splendid in her strawberry rhubarb pie. I share them both with you here.

Recipes

Peggy’s Rhubarb Crisp

Dolores’ Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Pie in a Skillet Crust

Ingredients

For the Crust:

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 cup sugar

• 3/4 cup butter

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Fruit Filling:

• 1 1/2 pounds fresh rhubarb stalks, trimmed of leaves and sliced crosswise 1/4 inch thick (about 4 cup)

• 2 heaping cups hulled and thick-sliced fresh strawberries

• 3/4 cup sugar

• Juice of one lemon

• 1/4 to 1/3 all purpose flour (if your rhubarb stalks are small, use the larger amount of flour–if they are large or older, they are drier, use the smaller amount of flour)

• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Instructions

1. For the Crust: Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl and set aside.

2. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium to low heat; when it is melted, stir in the vanilla. Turn off the heat and stir in the flour and sugar mixture with a wooden spoon; this may take some time, but be patient and keep stirring until you have a pan full of evenly mixed crumbles. Set aside to cool for 5 to 10 minutes.

3. When the crumbs are cool enough to handle, transfer about 2 cups of the crumbs to a 9 1/2- to 10-inch deep-dish pie pan. Press them into the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Reserve the remaining crumbs.

4. Preheat oven to 350º F.

5. For the Fruit Filling: In a large bowl, mix together the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar, lemon juice, flour, cardamom, and ginger; allow to stand for 10 minutes.

6. Turn the filling into the pie shell and level it with the back of a spoon. Crumble the reserved crust mixture over the pie evenly, and press it down gently with your hand.

7. Place the pie in the center oven rack and bake for 30 minutes. Rotate the pie pan 180 degrees and immediately turn the heat down to 325º F. The front of the pie pan will now face the back of the oven. Slip a piece of foil onto the rack below the pie to catch any drips.

8. Bake for an additional 40 to 50 minutes, until the topping is golden brown and the juices bubble thickly up around the edges of the crust.

9. Remove from oven to a rack, and allow to cool at least 2 hours before serving. (This is important–the filling thickens up as it cools. If you try to cut into it before it is at least just barely warm, it will fall apart. This pie is excellent made the day before, as the flavors meld.

Excerpted from Pies, by Ken Haedrich. (c) 2005, used by permission from the Harvard Common Press.

Serves 10 to 12

Ingredients

Cinnamon-Walnut Topping:

• 1 1/4 cups chopped walnuts

• 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

• 1/2 cup (packed) dark or light brown sugar

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder

• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Rhubarb Filling:

• 3 pounds fresh rhubarb

• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

• Dash of salt

• Finely grated zest of 1 California-grown orange

• 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread nuts on a baking sheet and bake, stirring once or twice, until lightly browned and fragrant, 5 to 7 minutes. Let cool.

Using an electric mixer or a wooden spoon, mix together the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until creamy and well blended.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Whisk gently to blend. Gradually mix into the butter mixture until just blended. Stir in the walnuts. Loosely pack the mixture into a bowl or a heavy-duty plastic food storage bag. Freeze until very firm, at least 4 hours or as long as 1 month.

Baking Day: Preheat oven to 350º. Grease a 2 1/2 to 3-quart shallow baking dish. Rinse rhubarb stalks under cold running water and discard any leaves. Cut stalks crosswise into pieces 1/2- to 3/4-inch thick. (You will have 9 to 10 cups.)

In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, flour, salt, and orange zest. Stir in orange juice. Add rhubarb, tossing to coat with sugar mixture. Scrape into the prepared dish.

Use a large knife to chop the frozen topping; then scatter the chunks and bits over the fruit. Bake until the topping is golden and the rhubarb is tender and bubbly-hot, 45 to 55 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm, at room temperature, or lightly chilled.

You've come a long way baby/remember when electric mixers looked like this?

Home bakers usually all have a portable hand mixer in their equipment pantry; it is an essential tool since it makes the task of beating mixtures a snap.  But hand mixers, which are perfect for whipping a cup of heavy cream, frosting for one cake, or mashed potatoes for six, have their limits due to their low power output.  You can’t mix stiff cookie and bread doughs, or a large quantity of batter, or the mixer will slowly labor until overheating.  Once you get to the point requiring a larger, stronger mixer, and get over the feeling you might never figure out how to use it, you won’t be satisfied until you own one.

It is not unusual with the first upgrade to reach for a familiar name brand, such as Sunbeam or Cuisinart.  But even though these are mixers attached to a stand, their capabilities are still in the lower power range of hand mixers.  That means looking to the world of the higher-end, more durable mixer: the heavy-duty, professional quality electric stand mixer.  A mixer of this caliper will not only make your baking more pleasurable and efficient performance-wise because of its powerful motor and larger bowl capacity, but since it is high quality, the machine has a long, long life.  That means you will only have to buy one.

Heavy-duty stand mixers not only whip the cream and mashed potatoes with ease, but perform versatile duties from beating the most delicate egg whites to kneading bulky, sticky bread doughs with all the cookies, cakes, biscuits, fluffy buttercream, pastry doughs, stiff marzipan, and quick bread batters you can imagine in between.  Professional pastry chef Regan Daley says a stand mixer will “whip faster, beat longer, knead more evenly, cream tirelessly, and basically do everything you do” with your hands or hand mixer, while freeing up your hands to do a second job.  Whether it be greasing your baking pans and chopping nuts, or just cleaning up, once you start using a stand mixer, you will wonder how you ever managed in the kitchen without one.

There are several brands available on the market from which to choose. One of the qualities worth seeking in good everyday kitchen equipment design is understated efficiency melded with ease of use.  These mixers provide that along with a striking visual design form, and often lovely pungent or tranquil colors, contributing to the purpose of the cooking and baking preparation at hand, at the same time demanding and stimulating attention in the workplace. They also boast alot of power. The Kitchen Aid is the most familiar and widely available, but the British Kenwood and Swedish Magic Mill DLX are in the same category.  Each differs in design, functionality, and capacity, so it is important to know what your needs are to choose the proper machine.  Each comes with three mixing attachments, consisting of a flat beater (for mixing cakes and cookies), balloon wire whisk (for whipping cream and meringues) and bread dough hook (specifically for kneading yeast doughs), which is all you will ever need to do a full range of tasks.  All offer a staggering array of attachments that have you stuffing your own sausage, grinding whole grains and meat, juicing, or making pasta and baby food, if you so desire.

Kitchen Aid in stunning black

The American-made KitchenAid stand mixer has been around for decades.  Anyone who works in a commercial restaurant or bakery kitchen of any size knows the name Hobart.  Today’s Kitchen Aid electric stand mixer was designed in the 1930s and dubbed the “little pro.”  It has become one of the most beloved cross-over kitchen tools in the history of small kitchen appliances.  People who love to bake and are considered “amateur professionals” consider buying one of these Kitchen Aids immediately when shopping for a mixer. It is not unusual to see a Kitchen Aid from the 40s or 50s still working in a home kitchen, although looking a little beat up.

The stand mixer is reasonably priced and widely available with a new sweep of marketing into upscale culinary equipment venues like Macy’s and Williams-Sonoma, even warehouse shopping stops like Costco.  All of the mixers are similar in their functionality, but differ in motor power and bowl size.

The Classic 250-watt K45SS 5-speed mixer, descendant of the first mixer, has a 4 1/2-quart screw-in stainless steel bowl and tilt-back head that makes for easy access to the beaters and the mixture in the bowl.  This was my first stand mixer, in ulitarian white. In the same line, the Ultra Power KSM103, the Custom KSM110PS, and the Ultra Power KSM90 go up a notch with a 300-watt motor, same bowl size but include a second 3-quart bowl for second jobs, which is tremendously convenient for cutting down on washing in between multiple tasks. They are all equipped with the trio of basic mixing attachments.  They look real pretty sitting on the counter, coming in an array of colors like flat gray, cobalt blue, empire red, and onyx.  The KSM 90 comes in stunning cooper, chrome or brushed nickel models.

Kitchen Aid Artisan in chrome finish

The next step up is the 5-quart 325-watt K5SS and 350-watt KSMC50S Commercial.  These are designed more like a miniature pro mixer with the bowl with a handle and brackets for snapping onto the stand and a lever that raises and lowers the bowl.  This style is good for manipulating very heavy mixtures, like bread doughs, and are a common addition to small restaurant kitchens.  For the gourmet, there is a beautiful copper mixing bowl insert just for egg whites and a water jacket that fits under the mixing bowl, that is great for filling with hot water to beat the eggs for a genoise batter.  The original 5-quart Kitchen Aids, the runaway popular stand mixer recommended for all-purpose baking and the smallest budget, run about $125 to $150 retail. But Kitchen Aid didn’t stop there with their most popular and functional models.

Kitchen Aid at work doing what it does best-mixing

The latest additions to the Kitchen Aid family are the state-of-the-art Epicurian (Model KT2651X), with a 475-watt motor, and the PRO 6 (Model KP2671X), with a 525-watt motor and lovely burnished steel attachments, 10-speed control, hinged attachment hub cover, and an ergonomically designed bowl lift handle that is unbelievable smooth to operate.  Both have a built in sensor that adjusts the precise speed in relation to the load so while you are mixing a heavy dough, your mixer won’t slow down.  The bowl snaps onto the stand commercial-style.  The extra-large 6-quart work bowl has a handle that is softly rounded; there are no sharp edges and is delightfully easy to grasp and pull off the base with slippery hands.  The plastic pour shield has a new design; it is extra wide so you can easily fit your hand while maneuvering the measuring cup.  These machines hold double the volume than smaller models and are most efficient for larger jobs rather than smaller ones with only a few cups total.  The professional line of Kitchen Aids are priced about $370 to $400.

gunmetal grey finish Kenwood

Europe’s version of the KitchenAid is the Kenwood KM800 Major Classic or Chef Classic.  If you shop in cookware shops and department stores in Great Britain, France, or Germany, the Kenwood Major or Chef line is what you will find. Delonghi acquired Kenwood and expanded the line to include their own label tilt-head DSM-7 manufactured in Italy with 1,000 watts and a 7 quart mixing bowl. Bakers with home businesses love this countertop mixer.

You will ooh and ahh when you see this sturdy gunmetal-gray (it also comes in white and an array of colors now) cast aluminum body with its 650-watt motor.  Where the Kitchen Aid and the DLX have rounded bodies, the design on the Kenwood is more square–it absolutely looks like the ulitarian tool it is meant to be.  The engineering on the flat paddle, called a K-beater since it has a K design cast in the center, and the flexible balloon wire whisk, are most impressive, as well as downright sculpturally beautiful. The unique

Delonghi DSM800 Cucina Stand Mixer 7 quart with bonus blender (formerly sold as Kenwood KM800 )

mixing action (called “planetary action”) is the motion where the beater moves in one direction while the shaft rotates in the opposite direction, mixing the entire batter evenly.  The near 7-quart capacity mixing bowl that screws onto the base can whip 2 quarts of whipping cream into a fluff in minutes.  There is a stainless steel bowl, but two Kenlyte plastic mixing bowls, one with handles and contoured like the steel bowl, the other in a “D” shape for easy pouring access; with this mixer all three bowls would be nice.

the British kitchen workhorse: Kenwood KMX line

The Kenwood makes mixing enjoyable and can efficiently handle small, medium, and large batches of cake batters, cookies, and heavier doughs with ease just like the Kitchen Aid.  The speed dial is located on the side of the machine body.  It can beat 16 eggs whites into a meringue as perfectly as it will one egg white, which is because the bowl is long and deep with a dimple on the bottom.  Where the Kitchen Aid enables you to double standard recipes, the Kenwood lets you triple them.  You can make 4 large loaves of bread (13 cups of flour total), 10 pounds of fruitcake dough (obviously important in merry old England), a triple batch of cookie dough, and up to 15 cups of flour in a cake mix or cookie dough. In addition to the standard fixture for inserting beater, whisk, and dough hook, Kenwood mixers have three other outlets (concealed when not in use) to accommodate some 25 attachments such as a potato peeler, juicer, slicer/shredder, pasta maker, and sausage maker, and a transparent, hinged splash guard (and dust cover) for easily adding ingredients during mixing. The Kenwood tested as having the loudest motor noise of the three machines.  It is the machine of choice at the New England Culinary Academy.

the supersized bowl capacity is the trademark of the Magic Mill

Electrolux DLX-2000 Magic Mill Assistant Stand Mixer is a superb dough kneader and that is what I use it for. The Magic Mill “Assistant” has been manufactured since the 1930s by Electrolux (of vacuum cleaner fame).  It is for serious bakers who want the largest quantity capabilities.  Relatively unfamiliar in America, it is a beloved appliance in Scandinavian kitchens and is just getting wider marketing in this country, mostly by word of mouth.  It has alot of extra power, a capacity that can feed a family of 16, and a surprisingly quiet motor.  It is a mixer in a category of its own because it is the largest capacity machine on the market today for the home baker, sort of an intermediary step between a professional kitchen and the ambitious home cook.

There is one stainless steel bowl at a full 8-quarts that is as deep as it is wide.  It has a totally different look than other electric mixers because the transmission is set on the bottom of the unit, instead of overhead, and the attachments are shaped differently.  The bowl moves while the steel arm on top positions the roller-beater attachment, which looks like a grooved pestle for massage, and moves back and forth with the dough as it mixes.  It has a sensor that automatically adjusts the torque to the load.  There is a separate rubber spatula scraper that sits alongside the inner edge constantly cleans the sides of the bowl and prevents splattering while the mixer is working.  You will love the 12-minute automatic timer; all you do is load the bowl, then set the speed and time.

The beater attachment is completely unique and is designed to replicate hand kneading, making small, medium, and large batches of yeast doughs with equal efficiency.  It has a capacity that easily handles a full 7-pounds of flour and 23 cups of flour.  It accommodates recipes for four to six loaves of yeast bread in a snap.  There is usually a bit of hand kneading to finish off a load of yeast dough, but not here.  It also creams cookie and cake batters just as beautifully.  There is a secondary mixing bowl made of hard plastic with a deeper design especially for whipping.  The plastic bowl stays stationary while a set of double beaters makes quarts of whipped cream and dozens of egg whites in meringue in minutes.  The mixer is turned on its side for the multiple attachments.  The Kenwood and DLX each run about $500 retail.

Each machine at about 10 inches in width takes up about the same space on the counter, are 13- to 16-inches in height, and weigh between 25 (the DLX and Kitchen Aid) and 29 pounds (Kenwood).  Kitchen Aid and Kenwood have 1-year warranties, and the DLX has a 3-year.

Kitlchen Aid Pro

Heavy-duty stand mixers are available in department stores, telemarketing commercials, modest kitchenware shop and well-stocked hardware stores, specialty high-end kitchen cookware shops like Williams-Sonoma and Sur La Table, and at restaurant supply stores (check your local yellow pages).  They are also conveniently available through online mail-order companies like King Arthur’s Baker’s Catalog (800-827-6836/www.KingArthurFlour.com), Chef’s Catalog (800-338-3232/www.chefscatalog.com), and Sur La Table (800-243-0852). There are new models constantly entering the field, so you might want to upgrade, or own two machines. The best holiday or birthday or Mother’s Day gift ever to a cook.

Other brands of stand mixers that have entered the market include Viking, Hamilton Beach, Cuisinart, and the Bosch Universal. But that is another story.