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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You Say Sweet Potato…

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

...I say yam! There’s so much confusion about which one is which, I’m not sure anyone truly knows the difference anymore, or that the difference much matters. Part of the confusion is that both tubers come in different shapes, sizes and colors, and often look very similar in their diversity.

So whether I’m right or wrong, the tuber I call a yam is misshaped and gnarly with a dark red skin. I always pick the ones that are about the size of my fist because I think they’re sweeter and less fibrous than their bigger kin.

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Winter Salad

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

Yes, salad can be a year-long feature! It’s not just relegated to summer anymore.

I think most people think of salad as being a cold dish. But the best pasta salads are actually served warm – you combine the hot drained pasta with the rest of the ingredients so that the pasta absorbs all of the other flavors more easily.

Winter salads can be served on the slightly cooked and warm side. The greens and vegetables that are available at this time of year are hardier and can stand up to heat and a stronger and sweeter vinaigrette to balance out their earthy flavors.

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