A “Bento” Mentality

By Marilyn Hunter

Let’s face it, making lunch for two boys five days a week can be pure drudgery, for us and for them. The risk is feeding our kids the same uninspired foods, day after day after day, thus creating uninspired eaters.

So in our house, we’ve adopted a “bento mentality.” We went to a Japanese hardware store and bought reusable bento lunch boxes with snap-on lids. They’re great for portion control, waste reduction and safe eating adventures.

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Hard Boiled

By Lori Powell

At this time of the year, I begin to run out of options on what to do with my larder of multiplying eggs from 16 heirloom chickens. Chickens, like a lot of people, respond better to sunlight and are rather productive during the long days of summer. As the days grow shorter, my supply begins to diminish.

I try to keep up with the incoming eggs by making them outgoing. I use various cooking techniques or just give them away to anyone who has done me the slightest good deed or favor. Actually, it’s pretty handy, like the virtual gift closet (yes, like Martha I do have one of those as well) but perishable and possibly a little more personal and homey.

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How to Cook Perfect Bacon – It’s Easy!

By Katie Barreira

Boiled or smoked, dried or fresh, it’s mighty hard to come across a bad slice of bacon. But there is such a thing as the best bacon and it’s all in the preparation.

Don’t get me wrong; starting with a quality product is always the way to go, on both sensory and ethical grounds. But I’ve happily chomped on some decidedly mediocre bacon in my day and the lowest common denominator is that cured pork belly = gooood.

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Too Expensive to Eat Out? Try These Super-Simple Homemade Meals

By Sandy Hu

According to NPD’s Crest research as reported in Nation’s Restaurant News , young people between the ages of 18 and 34 are cutting back significantly on restaurant dining. And no wonder. The unemployment rate for adults under 30 is 19.5 percent, compared with 9.5 percent for the total workforce.

So if they’re not dining out, these young people must be in the grocery store. But they’re probably not shopping for potatoes and other food ingredients. They are buying frozen entrees or ready-to-eat meals from the deli or the prepared foods case.

At Special Fork, we believe it’s not hard to cook something simple, tasty and interesting. You save money by doing it yourself, you know your meal is fresh, and you know what you are consuming without having to check an ingredient label.

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Anyone can make this Yummy Crisp

By Sandy Hu

There’s nothing more inviting than Blueberry Apple Crisp baking in the oven, filling the kitchen with irresistibly delicious aromas. This is a very simple dessert that anyone, including cooking newbies, can make successfully. It’s guaranteed to win raves.

To make the crisp, peel, core and cube 4 cups of apples – you’ll need about 5 apples. You can use a potato peeler to peel, and a melon baller or paring knife to cut out the core. That’s the hardest part.

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