Hello dear readers. I’m hoping you can help Chad and I settle a debate. He thinks we should get a rice cooker — you know, a contraption you plug in, pour in some water and rice and let it cook to perfection. I think this seems like another small appliance we will have to store and don’t really need. Do they really do a better/easier job than cooking rice the old-fashion way, on the stove? One of Chad’s favorite dishes (left over from his bachelor days) is beans and rice; and no doubt we’ll be making a lot of rice once Isadora starts eating food. But really, do we need this? As appliances go, is it useful like a Foreman Grill, or more like a rarely-used fondue pot? Tell me your rice cooker thoughts! If you like them, which one do you recommend? The above one is from Williams-Sonoma. — Angela M.

The other day, this lifelong Yankee decided to try her hand at a Southern delicacy: bourbon balls. Just hearing the name, I was intrigued. So when the invite came to attend my friend Ranald’s birthday party, I knew I had found the occasion. Ranald revels in all sorts of cuisine, especially that of his Southern roots. I found this recipe at About.com and it seemed so easy, it was practically sinful. Basically you mix crushed vanilla wafer cookies with pecans, cocoa, confectioner’s sugar, a touch of bourbon and some corn syrup. Chill for a couple hours then roll into balls, and roll in more sugar. The dough reminded me of cookie dough pie crust — very dense and sweet. The bourbon gives it a hint of playfulness. My only complaint with the recipe is that it says it yields three dozen — and I barely eeked out 24. Perhaps my balls were too big? Nonetheless, they were a big hit with Ranald and a few other Southern foodies. Click here for the recipe. — Angela M.

Not much for cooking myself, I seem to be doing quite well making friends with those who are willing to occasionally feed me! One such person is Megan B., whose culinary skills get a marvelous workout on the fresh seafood available locally. Though I will attest that these crab cakes taste amazing even when you used canned crab. –Mary T.

This dish was born in a tiny hotel room with a kitchenette during one of our first vacations to Seattle (which we now call home). We were fortunate enough to visit smack dab in the middle of Dungeness crab season, and seeing all of those beautiful crabs at the market inspired me to make these cakes. The sweet Pacific crab is what this dish was originally made with, though any crab you can get your hands on will suffice. Trust me, I’ve even made them with the high-quality canned stuff and they turned out super tasty. Make sure you make the relish in advance — in fact, make more. It’s awesome on top of grilled halibut or chicken breasts or just with tortilla chips! –Megan B. Click for Megan’s recipes! (more…)

Have a voyeuristic itch to scratch? We do — peeking into homes far more luxe than ours is both a pleasure and tease. Happily, we found a new source on line for some mighty swanky kitchens. Over at epicurious.com, they’ve posted a few video tours of some famous kitchens of people we’d love to have dinner with (especially if they were cooking). Our favorite is Isaac Mizhari, who gushes about all of his kitchen accessories, including bowls from Target, a chic (Alessi?) bread box and his espresso machine. Click here to hang with Isaac and see more.

The other day, when gearing up to serve the yummy Barefoot Contessa turkey meat loaf, I wanted something new to serve alongside. Yes, I still made mashed potatoes and spinach, but I also served up the best cooked carrots — honest. The recipe is from Cook’s Illustrated, and it’s super easy; takes 15 minutes. Basically you saute carrots in a pan with some chicken stock, butter, honey, fresh thyme and then squeeze on some lemon juice before you serve. Our friend Deborah was over for dinner, and confessed afterwards that when she heard we serving carrots thought to herself, “Oh no, now I have to pretend I like carrots.” But these were so good, she had two servings and asked for the recipe. So there! Eat your carrots! — Angela M. Click through to the next page for recipe! (more…)

It’s not often that hardware stops us in our tracks, but this new Karbon articulating faucet from Kohler did just that. Like something from a hi-tech chemistry lab, it’s designed to move and stick in any position you need it to, for hands-free hosing. The sleek lines make it a thing of beauty as well as beyond practical. This one’s going into our “dream kitchen” file. Someday, someday. Click here to see more at Kohler’s site.

There are a few cookbooks that I turn to again and again for foolproof dishes. One of them is, without a doubt, the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. It’s chock full of staples from roast chicken to chocolate brownies. Among many excellent dishes, my favorite is the turkey meat loaf. It’s so simple: A saute of onion, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, chicken stock and thyme is added to ground turkey mixed with eggs and bread crumbs. Lather the top with ketchup and bake slowly at 350 for an hour and half. I served with basic mashed potatoes (though I wish I had made the parmesan mash from the cookbook) and honey glazed carrots (those were so good, they nearly stole the show. I’ll give up that recipe next week!). Click through to this Food Network link to see the whole turkey meat loaf recipe. — Angela M.

P.S. This recipe makes a HUGE five pound meat loaf. I cut it down by a third and it worked well.

Add a dash of cuteness to your cooking routine with Fred Flare’s new Kawaii in the Kitchen collection. The charming, anime-inspired accessories range from a sweet Mouse Peeler ($12) to a sturdy Panda Bear Skillet ($75) — this price being the exception, as every other piece is under $20. My personal fave is the multi-purpose Kappa Measuring Cup & Juicer ($14) that holds three cups of freshly squeezed o.j. and doubles as a baking essential — saving coveted shelf space in pint-sized city kitchens. The Japanese imports are available in limited quantities at www.fredflare.com, so order soon to get in on the kitchen kitsch. –Ingrid S.

Cooking? Collecting? Just like looking at Pyrex? Head over to White Elephant Vintage for the Pyrex Spectacular! “We’ve spent the past couple of months scavenging for every complete vintage Pyrex mixing and cinderella bowl set we could get our hands on,” say White Elephant’s Hollie and Jane, “and we think we’ve finally amassed a collection big enough to be worthy of the title Pyrex Spectacular.” So take a look — they tell us there’s more to come! (And of course, don’t forget to revisit our posts on collecting.)

Spring is in the air and it’s got me wanting to eat greener and lighter dishes. I pulled out my Great Food Fast cookbook the other day and decided to give roasted salmon with lemon relish a try. With lemon zest, raisins and pine nuts, it had a Southern Italian flair that was sweet and crunchy. First roast some pine nuts (make extra, you can always sprinkle in salads or pastas). Then soak the zest of one lemon in a bowl filled with boiling hot water. Meanwhile, roast the salmon on baking sheet for 8 to 10 minutes at 450. While that is cooking, drain and discard liquid from the raisins and zest. Return to bowl and add lemon juice, pine nuts, parsley and oil. Season with salt and pepper. To serve, make a bed of baby spinach in four bowls. Place salmon fillet on top. Spoon the lemon relish over that. The final dish was so light and yummy. We gobbled up every bite and were left wanting a little more. Click here for full recipe. — Angela M.