Nutella Fondue

By Andrew Hunter
For The Family Table, a blog for busy families

Fondue was one of the special dinners I had growing up. I don’t remember what kind of an occasion prompted my folks to pull out the fondue pot, but it was fairly often. The first pot I remember actually used little cans of Sterno to heat the broth.

But then a new avocado green electric version showed up, evidently meaning the Hunter family had “made it!” My mom would heat broth, and sometimes oil, in the pot and surround it with meat and vegetables for cooking. But for truly special occasions, she would make rarebit (melted beer cheese with toasted bread) from her well-loved James Beard cookbook.

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Mediterranean Roast Chicken Thighs

By Lori Powell
For One or Two Bites, a blog for singles and couples

Who doesn’t love a good roast chicken? The crispy skin…the delicious pan juices…what’s not to like?

During the week, cooking up a whole bird, although not hard to do, might just take a little too long. So I go with my favorite part, the thighs. I love thighs because of the juicy dark meat and ample skin that tops the bone-in version. Plus, it only takes about a fourth of the time to roast thighs, as compared to a whole bird.

Another win is that you can buy just the amount you need. (But who would roast just enough for one, when cooking for one takes just as much time as for three!) Leftovers will yield some killer roast chicken sandwiches or can be used to top a salad for lunch. Or, use it for a quick chicken noodle soup or pasta dish the second night for dinner.

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A Sweet Surprise

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

As anyone who knows me well will attest, I have a weakness for sweets. I love to keep them around at all times in case a craving hits. But often that means candy or chocolates since those keep well for days. Very rarely do I come across a cake or a pie that will keep for over two weeks, enough for me to enjoy a small slice here and there until it’s gone.

But the other day, I remembered that my banana bread recipe does keep for over a week, actually improving with age. Eager for pumpkin cake this time of year, I decided to adapt my recipe using pureed pumpkin in place of the bananas. After I baked it, and it cooled, I cut into it and was shocked at how dry it was. I almost threw it away, but wrapped it in plastic wrap and kept it on my counter, thinking I would just eat it with tea to revive it when needed.

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Lemon Sponge Pudding

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

Years ago, when I was the food editor of the Honolulu Advertiser, I saved a recipe for Lemon Sponge Pudding from a news wire story. I hadn’t run the story but must have liked the recipe, because I just found it recently in an old recipe binder. So after decades, I thought I’d try it out.

Lemons have been on my mind recently because Dave bought a new house that came with a bonus lemon tree. Delighted to receive the bounty from my son, I grated the peels and juiced the lemons to store in my freezer.

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Almost Foolproof Fish

By Sandy Hu
A new video for Video Friday

If you're a little leery about cooking fish, worried that it might turn out dry, here's a good recipe to try. It just requires marinating salmon steaks in citrus juices to give the fish added flavor, and then simply baking them in the oven.

The only caution is to keep from overcooking the fish. The rule of thumb is to cook fish about 7 to 8 minutes per inch thickness. At that point, remove the fish and use the tip of a knife inserted in the center of the fish and peek around the cut. The flesh should be opaque and no longer translucent, but still moist.

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