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Ham 101: What to Know Before Buying a Ham

When I first started cooking ham, all the different kinds of hams, all the terms for hams, they were so confusing! It took awhile to sort out what curing is, and smoking, let alone fresh hams, green hams, country hams and even city hams. (Did you know that the number one ham is a city ham? Ever heard of a city ham before? Me either.) Here’s my explanation, everything you might want to know about ham. Ham 101 is published today along with my favorite way to cook a ham for holidays and parties, it's a Twice-Smoked Ham .

Easy Baked Fish Recipe with
Red Pepper & Cucumber Salad

Thank you, Lent, for the reminder that fish makes for a fast and healthy supper, not just for a few weeks in late winter but year-round. This recipe relies on a handful of pantry ingredients. Quick-quick, it's on the table in 30 minutes. Weight Watchers, you're going to love this recipe! ~ Skip Straight to the Recipe ~ Observing Lent with Children Careful readers might wonder what's growing in the dish behind the plate? That's Lenten grass , an old Finnish tradition, one of my favorite ways to observe Lent. The Sad State of Fish Fries During Lent My home of St. Louis is a bedrock of Catholicism. Catholic schools abound, some 123 of them, their playgrounds filled with rambunctious kids in plaid-jumper and khaki-pant uniforms. It’s not so rare to meet faithful parishioners like my neighbors who have been married 58 years this month and still walk to Mass every morning. During Lent, many parishes host Friday-night fish fries, attracting throngs of hungry

Chicken & Wild Rice Soup or
Turkey & Wild Rice Soup Recipe

On these last chilly days of late winter, there's nothing like a big bowl of hearty soup to warm our innards. I'm so pleased with this soup, a hearty mix of leftover chicken or turkey, wild rice and butternut squash – and, preferably, good homemade stock. The Conversation: Do you roll your eyes when recipes read, "preferably homemade"? Yeah, me too. COMPLIMENTS! "It's wonderful!" ~ Anonymous “Preferably homemade”. My eyes roll at the sight of these words in recipes, do yours too? They just sound so foodie-elitist. I fear they put home cooking out of reach, setting a threshold that sounds unattainable for working families with busy lives. And yet. And yet. The first batch of this soup last fall was short on wild rice and long on mushrooms, but it was still so good – as in lip-smacking, let’s-make-another-pot-on-the-weekend good. The reason? The stock was clear and golden, like a cupful of savory wine. After Thanksgiving, the turkey

Julia Child's Soubise Recipe
(Onion & Rice Casserole)

Call onions the steady-eddies of cooking, we cook them every day but rarely take notice. Thanks to this classic French side dish called "soubise" [pronounced soo-BEEZ], we'll never take onions for granted again. Soubise combines thin ribbons of onion with rice and a little cream and cheese. Dreamy. Heavenly. Ethereal. Addictive. Yes, it's that good. Whole Food, Simply Prepared. Budget Friendly. Weeknight Easy, Weekend Special. Extra Perfect for Special Occasions. Vegetarian. Naturally Gluten Free.

Cut-Out Spice Cookies

My Favorite Recipe for Roll-Out Cookie Dough for Thirty (yikes) Years Roll-out cookies are too pretty to save for Christmas! This is my all-time year-round favorite cut-out cookie dough recipe, for easy-easy handling, yes, but also for flavor, think lively gingerbread spices kissed (but just on the cheek!) by a little chocolate, a little lemon. Cut-Out Cookies Made from Scratch. Festive for Year-Round Holidays, Not Just at Christmas. Easy to Handle Dough. A Signature Recipe for Years and Years. Great for Food Gifts, Cookie Swaps and After-School Treats.

Football Fever!
Fun Recipes for NFL Playoff Games
& Superbowl Parties

Updated with New Recipes & Party Ideas! Who knows all the February holidays? The shadow of Groundhog Day, the romance of Valentine's, the Washington and Lincoln birthdays, sure. But the Superbowl is February's favorite "holiday" with a rowdy, enthusiastic, go-Chiefs! go-49ers! fanbase, when even genuine football stars and what's-a-punt? clueless fans convene before the big-screen. Here's a special collection of fun, football-friendly recipes . Party on! Whole Food, Fresh & Fun. Potluck & Party-Friendly Fare. How to Throw a Great Superbowl Party.

Fast Roast Chicken: My Signature Recipe

The Recipe: How to roast a chicken fast – in an hour – but speed isn’t what makes this my signature roast-chicken recipe. It's the simple ingredients, just a fresh chicken, salt, pepper and a hot oven. It’s the crispy, salty skin. It’s the moist and tender breast meat and the juicy succulent dark meat. One more thing? Roast chicken is the perfect meal for unexpected company. Tis a wonder, this roasted chicken. The Conversation: How to feed a crowd on a whim, roast chicken and a fall menu. ~ Skip Straight to the Recipe ~ COMPLIMENTS! "... so fast & easy & the best roast chicken I've had!" ~ Anonymous "... what a great recipe it is! ... Mmm!" ~ Charlie How to Feed a Crowd in Two Hours The heads-up arrived at five o’clock. “Some people are coming for supper.” How many? I asked, guessing two, maybe six, as many as twelve. He hesitated, then began to count out loud. "Fourteen, I think," was the answer. Now, this man