Welcoming Spring with Strawberries

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By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

The time I’ve been waiting for all winter is finally here: the first of the season’s strawberries.

I’m surprised to find out that many people don’t associate spring with strawberries, but I do. In the South, they always marked the arrival of new spring crops and, of course, lasted well into the summer, when most people think strawberries are at their best. And while I agree with that opinion, I still love the first strawberries, with their slight tartness.

That tartness suits them well to maceration, my favorite treatment for strawberries. Akin to marinating meat, maceration is when you soak a fruit in liquid in order to soften it. How you macerate it and in what liquid is where you can get creative.

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In Love with Meyer Lemons

Enter to win a collection of food items from France, selected by Sandy, along with Around my French Table cookbook by Dorie Greenspan. To enter the sweepstakes, go to http://bit.ly/YGrDyy. Follow Sandy in France on Twitter to keep updated on new goodies for the prize package.

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

Whether it’s the color, the floral scent or the memories of lemonade on hot days that it brings to mind, Meyer lemons are always the fruit that makes me smile widest. Yes, they’re basically just fancy, sweet lemons, but because of that, they’re so much more interesting and attractive.

I definitely never shy away from regular lemons in cooking, and for good reason: their bracing, strong acidity is needed in heavy dishes, both savory and sweet, to cut through the richness. But when Meyer lemons pop up, I like to use them in applications where their sweet, very noticeably floral notes come through clear and bright.

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Easter Food Memories

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

Even though Easter was two days ago, the food memories I have at this time of year always inspire my cooking. March and April are strange months because they’re straddling the line of the last dying winter produce and the new spring arrivals.

When I think back to Easter meals as a child, the ingredients and dishes I remember are the best options for inspiration. Coconut and carrot cake were always staple desserts on our holiday table, so I always incorporate those ingredients into desserts or baked goods that I’m wanting to develop this particular time of year.

For an easy breakfast or afternoon snack, I love muffins. Rarely will I ever admit to liking anything in miniature form, however, these muffins do just the trick. They’re not too sweet and stay remarkably crunchy, thanks to the dried coconut in them.

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Gluten-Free Blood Orange Cakes

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

These days, we all face the issue of making foods for every diet when inviting friends over for a party. While in New York City this week, my partner and I threw a brunch party for over 20 of his friends, and while only one had a special diet, we decided to make a gluten-free dish for her that didn’t take much effort at all, and actually tastes great to those who don’t have an issue with gluten.

With so many natural and flavorful gluten-free cake mixes on the market now, it was easy to find one to use for the blood orange upside-down cakes we were already planning to make. Ripe rings of blood orange, sprinkled with brown sugar, make anything taste great, but especially a gluten-free cake that everyone thinks is not.

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A Last Hurrah for Apples

By Ben Mims
For Cooking Newbie, a blog for beginner cooks

Now that winter is finally on its way out, and spring is almost upon us (quite literally, both in calendar time and with daylight savings time in effect), I wanted to make a last-ditch effort to save the last load of apples I’d gotten from the market and kept around all winter. Because while it’s getting warmer, we’ve still got plenty of cold days and nights ahead, as mother nature likes to remind us this time of year.

My favorite thing to make with apples, and there are many, is a simple apple butter. Although it’s name says so, there is actually no butter in this sweet preserve, best served on biscuits or scones, spread across hot pancakes and waffles, or eaten as a complement to peanut butter on a sandwich.

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