Blog Posts by Sarah McColl, Shine staff

There are certain labor-intensive recipe phrases that can make the most diligent cook roll her eyes. "Do I really have to do that?" we wonder. Leave your Do I Really Have To Do That? questions in the comments and they shall be answered, saving us all a lot of needless trouble.

One of my friends is, as she admits herself, not much of a baker. So when on a whim recently she decided to bake a citrus pound cake but found herself without an electric mixer, she opted to squish together her butter and sugar with her hands. It wasn't a proud (or pretty) moment, but it did the trick, and her cake turned out just fine. But it made me wonder (surely, you see where this is going): do we really have to use an electric mixer at all?

Our detail-oriented friends at America's Test Kitchen said, yes, yes we did. And it all comes down to one of our favorite foods: Butter.

Creaming room temperature butter –– the kind that yields completely to pressure –– makes a flat cake. (OK, now that you mention it, my

Read More »from Using an Electric Mixer: Do I Really Have to Do That?

There are certain labor-intensive recipe phrases that can make the most diligent cook roll her eyes. "Do I really have to do that?" we wonder. Leave your Do I Really Have To Do That? questions in the comments and they shall be answered, saving us all a lot of needless trouble.

Lots of questions come up when we're cooking pasta. How much salt should I add? Should I add a glug of olive oil? Do I really have to reserve some pasta water before draining? We answer all carbohydrate quandaries today with the help of the editors at America's Test Kitchen in our master pasta edition of Do I Really Have to Do That?

Related: Fabio's perfect pasta

DO use more water than you think you need.
For every pound of pasta, you'll need four quarts of water. "This amount of water may seem excessive to some, but pasta contains tons of starch, and if cooked in too little liquid, the noodles will stick together." Ever had a pot of pasta foam up and boil over? That's a sure sign you didn't use enough water.

DO add

Read More »from Do I Really Have to Do That: The Pasta Edition

Shine's going gluten-free this week for National Celiac Awareness month. We'll be serving up smart ideas, solutions, stories, and of course, super-delicious recipes to help you eat sans gluten––without feeling like you're missing a thing.

We are a little obsessed with Kristine Kidd's approach to food. Her recipes are unfussy, fast, and fresh, so  when she says they can be whipped up every night of the week, we believe her. Kidd's newest cookbook, Weeknight Gluten-Free, is the like a touchdown-filled playbook for the gluten-avoidant household. There are no weird fake foods here or War and Peace-length ingredients lists. This is real food, made simple. We're sold, but see for yourself.

Grilled Steak and Fingerlings with Herb Salad

This is a 21st century upgrade to the classic steak and potatoes dinner.

Cumin seeds and coriander seeds, 2 1/4 teaspoons each
Flank steak, 1 1/2 lb (750 g)
Extra-virgin olive oil, 1/2 cup (4 fl oz/125 ml) plus more as needed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black Read More »from Gluten-Free Week: 5 Weeknight Gluten-Free Recipes

My after-school snack was a sacred ritual. I sat on the carpet in my parents' bedroom at a low table, the television turned to "I Dream of Jeannie," and ate a peanut butter and honey sandwich cut into neat squares. I wasn't fussy about crusts. I just loved the sticky pairing of creamy peanut butter with syrupy golden sweetness drizzled from a honey bear in diagonals across the soft white bread. Nothing else--save for maybe apples and peanut butter in a pinch--could have made for as sweet an afternoon, with Nickelodeon reruns stretching into the distance.

This month, the Shine Supper Club is celebrating our nostalgic childhood favorites. Were you crazy for popsicles on hot afternoons? Mad for mac and cheese? Join us by revisiting a classic in your kitchen, and sharing a recipe, photo and a story about just how good it was back then. Here's how it works:

1. Write a blog post telling us about your favorite childhood recipe by Monday 11:59PM PST, May 27th. Be sure to include a photo

Read More »from Childhood Favorites from the Shine Supper Club

There are certain labor-intensive recipe phrases that can make the most diligent cook roll her eyes. "Do I really have to do that?" we wonder. Leave your Do I Really Have To Do That? questions in the comments and they shall be answered, saving us all a lot of needless trouble.

Do I really have to press tofu for stir-fry?

"If you're aiming for springy and crisp tofu, pressing it is an essential step," Mallory Stuchin, senior digital editor at Everyday Food, told us. You know when people say tofu's like a sponge when cooked, soaking up whatever delicious flavors you're cooking with? The same sponge principle is at work when tofu is just sitting in its package.  "Tofu retains a large amount of the water it's stored in, so pressing it will release the excess liquid and allow it to firm up while cooking." Like a wrung-out sponge, the pressed tofu can soak up even more of those delicious ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and scallion flavors in the pan.

What kind of tofu should I use?
"For stir-frys

Read More »from Pressing Tofu for Stir-Fry: Do I Really Have to Do That?

My after-school snack was a sacred ritual. I sat on the soft carpet in my parents' bedroom at a low table, the television turned to "I Dream of Jeannie," and ate a peanut butter and honey sandwich cut into neat squares. I wasn't fussy about crusts. I just loved the sticky pairing of creamy peanut butter with syrupy golden sweetness drizzled from a honey bear in diagonals across the bread. Nothing else––save for maybe apples and peanut butter in a pinch––could have made for as sweet an afternoon, with Nickelodeon reruns stretching into the distance.

This month, the Shine Supper Club is celebrating our nostalgic childhood favorites. Were you crazy for popsicles on hot afternoons? Mad for mac and cheese? Join us by revisiting a classic in your kitchen, and sharing a recipe, photo and a story about just how good it was back then. Here's how it works:

1. Write a blog post telling us about your favorite childhood recipe by Monday 11:59PM PST, May 27th. Be sure to include a photo and a recipe.

Read More »from Favorite Childhood Recipes: Shine Supper Club

Of course we love the excuse to trot out a grand hat, admire the handsome horses, and get swept up in all the Southern charm of Derby Day fanfare, but we have to be honest: we're really here for the drinks. While plenty of mint julep recipes require muddling mint and sugar for each individual drink--a labor of love, to be sure--the official mint julep of the Kentucky Derby offers a handy shortcut in the form of fresh mint-infused simple syrup. Even if you're not a bourbon fan (!?) or if mint make you feel like you just left the dentist, we've got four twists on the classic julep, one of which is sure to suit your fancy (hat). -Sarah McColl, Shine staff

Read More »from The Official Mint Julep of the Kentucky Derby, and 4 Brilliant Variations on the Classic

There are certain labor-intensive recipe phrases that can make the most diligent cook roll her eyes. "Do I really have to do that?" we wonder. Leave your Do I Really Have To Do That? questions in the comments and they shall be answered, saving us all a lot of needless trouble.

Somehow the notion has gotten out that leaving an avocado pit in a bowl of guacamole, however unsightly, will keep your Cinco de Mayo party favor from turning brown. We turned to our pal Kristen Miglore, senior editor at Food52 (which, in case you've already got Mother's Day on the brain, just launched a shop called Provisions, where you can find super stylish kitchen tools.)

"I've never understood the logic in presenting the pit," Kristen said. "How could the guacamole on one side of the bowl know that there's a pit in the other side?"

A fair existential question! The so-called logic is this: avocados turn brown when exposed to the air. Why?, asks the scientist in you. It's because of an enzyme called polyphenol

Read More »from Keeping the Pit in the Guacamole: Do I Really Have to Do That?