Happy Valentine’s Day

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

Steve and I have enjoyed many Valentine’s Days together, having been married since we were 23. But we don’t have a special way to celebrate.

Sometimes we go out to dinner, sometimes we cook dinner together at home, and sometimes, when the kids were young, we’d have a family dinner, with small gifts for everyone. When your husband will make you a latte every morning or breakfast in bed for no special occasion, do the grocery shopping and pitch in on all the household chores, every day is Valentine’s Day.

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Go-To Dinners: Meals in Under 30 Minutes

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

Twitter is a terrific way to observe how people are reacting to the dinner hour each day. I check in around 3:30, which is getting on to dinnertime on the East Coast, and then periodically as the West Coast starts cooking.

I offer suggestions from our Special Fork recipe database to people who are bemoaning their dinnertime dilemma: what to cook now!

Some people are musing about whether they should make dinner or get takeout. The answer is, it’s often easier and faster to cook something at home. Not to mention healthier, tastier and cheaper.

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Some Products to Try from the Fancy Food Show

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

Last week, I blogged about visiting the Winter Fancy Food Show at San Francisco’s Moscone Center. For three days, I walked the floor, tasting a variety of specialty foods and posting my food favorites on Instagram and Twitter (@specialforksndy).

A body can only try a limited number of disparate food items in a day. I started out each morning with breakfast at home so wouldn’t be tempted to overindulge at the show. And I kept my focus: Since Special Fork is primarily about quick dinner solutions, I concentrated on ingredient products that will make your cooking easier or better.

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A Visit to the Fancy Food Show

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

As you read this, I’ll be in my comfy shoes, notepad and iPhone in hand, trekking through San Francisco’s Moscone Center, well into my second day at the Winter Fancy Food Show. More than 200,000 square feet of exhibit space have been dedicated to 1,300 exhibitors showcasing 80,000 food, beverage and related products.

Of course, it would be madness to try to see the whole show. Despite my best efforts, I’ll just touch a small sampling over two days.

I’m looking for interesting food products to tweet, Instagram and blog about for Special Fork. I’ll be nibbling on cheeses, paté, and prosciutto. I’ll be tasting sauces from around the world, condiments, meal kits, exotic grains, salad dressings, vinegars, cookies, chocolates, frozen treats, seasoned nuts, fancy snacks…and more.

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Bad Toaster Karma

By Sandy Hu
The latest from Inside Special Fork

My toast took a flying leap, catapulting out of the toaster, splat onto the kitchen floor. This is not the first time my bread has shot out like a cannonball, soaring past the counter, ending up in the garbage.

In our house, we have bad toaster karma.

This is our third toaster in recent times. The one we had before lowered our toast into the slot electronically. It was fun to watch the bread majestically descend. The only problem was that the machine wouldn’t make toast!

Once the bread disappeared into the slot, instead of the heat being activated automatically, as advertised, we’d have to stand there and hit the “toast” button several times. After months of aggravation and cold bread, we returned that one.

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