Fix and Carry

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

BBQs are the hit of the summer season. What to bring when someone invites you?

Well, your dish needs to be seasonal, tasty and something that can sit outside for a bit without perishing in the heat (so not dairy). Bonus points if you can make it ahead and double bonus points if it’s inexpensive to fix.

Bean salad is the order of the day! The classic is a three bean salad, but why not more than three?

I grew up on jarred three bean salad and absolutely loved it since it’s a cross between a pickle and a salad (and I have never met a pickle I didn’t like). Add beans to pickles and you up the health factor.

Combining the crisp texture of lightly cooked green beans with the creaminess of a white or red kidney bean, and the crunch of sweet corn, along with a hit of mustard (salty), honey and vinegar, is a winning combination. This salad also pairs well with all of the usual offerings at a summer BBQ as it gives welcome freshness and textural relief to the grilled meaty burgers, hot dogs and chicken.

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Quick Fig Jam

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

For my last post before our summer break, I wanted to leave you with one of the best things I’m eating right now: my quick fig jam. Not only because the figs at the market right now are bursting with sweetness and color, but this is just a great condiment to have on hand.

It couldn’t be simpler to make either. I stir the figs together with sugar, honey, and lemon juice and let them macerate for an hour or so to let the sugar bring out the juices in the figs. Then I gently heat it and cook it down until it’s naturally reduced and thickened; no fooling around with pectin or other gelling ingredients. It’s all-natural, and when refrigerated, will last for weeks, although I doubt you’ll have it around that long.

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See you After Labor Day!

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

Special Fork is going on hiatus after Friday; we’ll return on Tuesday after Labor Day. Posting a blog a day, Monday through Friday, is ambitious for any site, and all Special Fork bloggers are looking forward to this summer break.

In the meantime, just like on TV, we will be posting “reruns” that you might have missed. Given that we’ve begun our fourth season, we have a large repertoire of good posts to choose from to share with you again.

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Entrepreneurial Spirit

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

Last week, I wrote about the premiere of Lifetime’s all-new competition series, Supermarket Superstar and my role coaching the contestants as R&D Mentor. This week, I’d like to tell you a little bit more about the process.

Shooting a TV show is an exhausting and exhilarating process. Even when the pilot’s been “picked up,” there’s doubt about whether the network will like the series and if viewers will watch. So it’s hard to believe that the Supermarket Superstar premiere aired and episode two is in a few days … I think the season will be over before I know it!

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No Cooking Tonight

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

Hot, hot, hot is all I have to say! We have so much amazing produce and fruit in the market, there is simply no reason to get hot in the kitchen. The stuff that is coming out of the ground right now is super-sweet and needs no heat intervention.

Okay, call me crazy but go ahead and blanch your beans, if necessary. But there is simply no quicker way to heat up a room than to set a saucepot of water to boil. Take my word for it. I live in the kitchen and just one of the reasons I love my refrigerator…instant air conditioning.

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