Carma's CookeryCarma Spence has been experimenting in the kitchen since she was four years old and loves trying out new recipe ideas. She is the author of Bonkers for Bundt Cakes and Your Perfect Pie, as well as author and contributor to several more non-food-related books. With Carma's Cookery, she is taking her passion for empowering people and blending it with her passion for cooking, gift-giving and entertaining.
Well, if you don’t have old clippings to peruse yourself, you’ve got the next best thing: Reminisce— North America’s top-selling nostalgia magazine.
They currently have a post that takes a look back at baking ads from the 1950s. Some of the ingredients these ads push may be hard to find to day, others are still staples on our grocery store baking shelves.
To view the full vintage ad slideshow, go to: www.reminisce.com/1950s/vintage-ads-we-do-the-work-you-bake-the-pie.
Well, this year is different. I’ve promised myself that I will make all 12 recipes this year and last night I made my version of January’s recipe: Impossibly Easy Pizza Bake.
Here’s what my experience was:
1. The recipe calls for pepperoni, which doesn’t agree with me … so instead I substituted sausage. I browned a package of Farmer John’s mild pork breakfast sausage and used that.
2. The recipe is so easy and only took about 10-15 minutes to prepare, and it only took that long because I used a can of pasta sauce instead of a jar of pizza sauce (extra time to open a can compared to a jar) and I grated my own cheese rather than purchase it already grated (extra time to grate the cheese).
3. It took a little longer to bake than suggested, but that may be my oven. I’ve found that to be a trend.
4. Absolutely delicious — I had three pieces last night for dinner and another for brunch today. This recipe is definitely a keeper!
Did you notice how I followed the spirit of the recipe but still made it mine? You can do that, too. Here’s my thought process in modifying this recipe.
1. Switched out pepperoni for sausage.
This is a pizza bake, right? What other toppings go on pizza besides pepperoni? I like sausage, so I used that. But you could put any of your favorite toppings instead. I’m thinking of adding broccoli, olives and/or sun-dried tomatoes next time.
2. Switched out a jar of pizza sauce for a can of pasta sauce.
Frankly, I just couldn’t find a jar of pizza sauce when I went out. But you could use any kind of sauce that you like on pizza — it doesn’t even have to be tomato based! A nice pesto sauce would have worked well, too.
3. Grated my own cheese.
Cheese is cheese and it doesn’t matter who grates it — you or the manufacturer. I did use mozzarella, but I could have used any kind of melt-y cheese I wanted, such as jack, cheddar or gouda, for that matter!
When you think of recipes as guidelines and make substitutions in a parallel fashion, you can begin to gain confidence in your ability to apply your creativity in the kitchen.
One more note, I’m lactose intolerant, so I rarely have cow’s milk in my home. So, in this recipe I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk and it turned out fine. Now, there are cases where non-dairy milk won’t work, so be careful with this kind of substitution.
Every month there are days, weeks and even the entire month, set aside to recognize something … even food! Here is a list of Regional, National and International food and beverage related observances for January 2015, c/o Brownielocks.com/.
January 2
January 3
January 7
January 8
January 9
January 13
January 19
January 22
January 23
January 24
January 25
January 26
They arrived while I was on vacation, so I’m not sure how long they sat at my front door, but when I opened the package, everything looked fine … just slightly flattened.
What I liked about O’Coconut:
These snacks are made from organic, fair trade coconut and have only 60 calories per snack. They are lightly sweet, so they don’t overpower your palate.
I was sent samples of both the Classic and Hemp & Chia snacks. The classic was just that — it tasted like a less-sweet macaroon. The Hemp & Chia is where the flavor got interesting. The press material described the flavor as “nutty” — but my experience was closer to blue cheese.
I know, weird, huh? I checked the ingredients … nothing in there that should taste like cheese, blue or otherwise. So take that comment with a grain of salt.
I enjoyed both of them and was happy they sent be two of each!
What I didn’t like about O’Coconut:
They’re so small! They truly are bite sized! I wonder if they’d consider making a larger, say 100-calorie, version?
My recommendation:
I enjoyed them. They both had a slightly unconventional flavor that I appreciated. I also like that they are made with organic ingredients, which is important for many consumers, and that the coconut is fair trade, which means that the coconut is grown sustainably with an eye toward being better stewards of the land. Fair trade also means that standards are in place to protect human rights and deal fairly with workers and their families. All good in my book.
So, yes, I’d recommend these handy little snacks. You can find them at Whole Foods Market locations, as well as at Nutiva.com and Amazon.com.
New Orleans, La., home of some of my favorite dishes such as beignets and fried catfish, ranks #7. To see the complete list, go here. The 150 most populated U.S. cities are ranked in order of Overall Rank, which is determined by “Wallet Wellnes” and “Diversity, Accessibility & Quality”.
You can also find on that page the following ranked listings:
This recipe was created and submitted by Jenny Engel and Heather Goldberg of Spork Foods, a Los Angeles-based gourmet vegan food company. The recipe is nutritious, gluten-free and vegan. To make the dish even faster, substitute the pistachios and dried cranberries with four Pistachio Chewy Bites.
* To make the dish faster, use 1/3 cup packed organic brown sugar and substitute pistachios and dried cranberries with four diced Setton Farms Pistachio Chewy Bites.
© Spork Foods, 2014
This recipe is courtesy of Chef Laura, Head Chef at Just salad, an international healthy fast food chain focused on green living through healthy diet and lifestyle.
Southwestern satisfaction is just a salad away with Romaine, Iceberg, Cajun Grilled Shrimp, Avocado, Tomatoes, Black Beans & Corn, Onion Crunch and Pepper Jack Cheese paired with Chipotle Vinaigrette.
Just toss together and enjoy!