Al Dente

Weekend Recipe: Tuna and Green Bean Salad

I rarely find a recipe on the Food Network website that's surprisingly good. For the most part, their recipes are good, but they're very safe. This one, from Giada De Spanno Laurentiis, was surprisingly good and would be perfect for a Labor Day party. It's light, easy to make, easy to share, and easy to adjust (quantities, spices, etc.). I made it for the real Mrs. Spanno this week and she just kept saying how great it was--and she never does that.

Giada's Tuna and Green Bean Salad

Ingredients:
1 1/2 pounds slender green beans, trimmed, halved crosswise
3 teaspoons salt, plus more to taste
2 large red potatoes, diced
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
9 ounces canned tuna packed in oil, drained

Directions:
Cook the green beans in a large pot of boiling water until crisp-tender, stirring occasionally, about 4 minutes. Using a mesh strainer, transfer the green beans to a large bowl of ice water to cool completely. Drain the green beans and pat dry with a towel. Add 2 teaspoons of salt to the same cooking liquid and bring the liquid to a simmer. Add the potatoes to the simmering liquid and cook until they are just tender but still hold their shape, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the potatoes to the ice water to cool completely. Drain the potatoes and pat dry with a towel.

In a small bowl, whisk the lemon juice, garlic, oil, oregano, 1 teaspoon salt and 3/4 teaspoon pepper. Place the tomatoes, basil and parsley in a large serving bowl. Add the tuna and toss gently to combine. Add the green beans and potatoes and gently combine. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss to coat.

--Spanno

Food Myths: Gateway to a Happier You

Last week as I was eating a slice of pizza I went through an age-old argument with my two selves. The self that is slightly (and I will only claim to "slightly") healthy argued that I do not need a Coke with my pizza--there's already a lot of calories in the pizza, and I need to drink more water anyway. The other side--the side that makes it hard for me to deny myself anything--argued that in fact drinking Coke with my pizza is essential and if I'm already having a bunch of calories, why not enjoy them even more with an ice-cold, refreshing Coke. This argument went back in forth for a while, as if I were in an episode of Herman's Head. And then it happened. My hedonistic self declared: Well, you really need to have that Coke to counteract all the fat.

A few minutes later, Coke in hand, I pondered the debate that had occured. I realized that, like House says, everybody lies. Well, to themselves at least. I have several food-based myths I perpetuate and the object of lying to myself about these self-invented myths is to give myself the thumbs-up to eat something I shouldn't or to allow myself to eat more than I should. Here's my Top 3 list:

1. It is necessary to drink Coke with fast food or fried foods in order to counteract all the fat entering my system. All the acid is particularly effective against cheese. It will save me later from a fried-food hangover.
2. If a candy bar includes peanuts (such as Snickers) it is a healthy snack. All those peanuts provide a lot of extra protein.
3. It's important to eat dessert after every meal because sugar aids in digestion. (I have no idea where I picked up this one...)

Anyone else with me on these? Got your own food myths? Add a comment and make me feel better.

--KitchenMaus

Morning-Friendly Kitchen Gear: Panasonic SD-YD250 Automatic Bread Maker

Something about the encroaching fall is making me think of homemade bread, which is then made into homemade toast, with a little butter on it. The toasty homemade bread and melted butter makes those chilly morning a little bit easier to handle. But who really has time to make homemade bread (I tend to ask myself)? Which is why I was excited recently to test out Panasonic’s SD-YD250 bread maker. And, you know, it fit the bill perfectly, because of its 13-hour timer, which lets the bread be fresh in the morning, waiting to take the edge off waking up. It has a host of other features (including giving you the ability to make white, whole wheat, multigrain, French, and other breads, and giving you 3 loaf sizes to choose from), which are nice, too, but really, having homemade bread in the morning is the best. As long as it’s great bread--which it is.

“Of course,” you’re thinking, “he’s going to say that, he works for Amazon.com, where this very bread maker is sold.” But, for another view, check out the image of the bread on the left, which was uploaded by “JR Mommy ‘Super mommy’” a customer that bought the SD-YD250. That’s a good-looking loaf. Waking up to a piece of toast from that would make any morning better (and think of lunch, too--a good grilled cheese with homemade bread is tasty). Really, it’s not all the fancy features (though they’re a kick, too) that matter with a bread maker, it’s how good the bread is. And the Panasonic SD-YD250 passes the bread test with flying colors.

--A.J. Rathbun

Happy Hour Drink Recipe: The Oriental

This life-saving cocktail will make you all kinds of happy, with a jolt of rye (which, thankfully, is much more available today than even two years ago) shaken up with sweet vermouth, orange curaçao, and a touch of fresh lime to bring it all home. It’s an older drink now forgotten by most, but I’ll bet it can make even the worst weeks seem a bit better (and it's fun to introduce such a pleasant combo to friends, too).

Ingredients:
Ice cubes
1-1/2 ounce rye
3/4 ounces sweet vermouth
3/4 ounce orange curaçao
1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice

Directions:
1. Fill a cocktail shaker halfway full with ice cubes. Add everything. Shake well.

2. Strain the mix into a cocktail glass.

--A.J. Rathbun

Don't Forget to Pack Your Back-to-School Cupcake, Sweetie

OK everyone, how cute are these cupcakes?! There do seem to be endless examples of too-cute-to-eat cupcakes out there, but I thought these ones were worth sharing. I love how they use chocolate-covered graham crackers for the chalkboards and white Good & Plenty candies for the chalk. Check out the instructions over at FamilyFun.com. In addition to these Blackboard Cupcakes, they also feature several other back-to-school cake styles:

• Book Cupcakes using Fig Newtons for the books
• A Pencil Cake made out of brownies
• A School Bus Cake featuring both wafer cookies and mini doughnuts
• Individual School Bus Cupcakes using sugar wafers to construct the bus shape
• A Soccer Cake where you can prop up photos of each player

Check out more cute ideas for school lunches and snacks. Absolutely do not miss their too-adorable pretzel-based School of Fish recipe. Almost makes me want to be a kid again! Good thing I have a little one to try all these fun recipes out on!

--KitchenMaus

WALL-E Stars in His Own Bakeware Line

While I did see the Dark Knight twice in theaters this summer (once on IMAX), my favorite movie of Summer 08 will go on record as being WALL-E. Seriously, I don't know how those folks at Pixar do it--they're geniuses! Whoever came up with that spork bit, well, give him or her a raise!

I've got a 15-month-old son, and as I gather up ideas for future birthday parties or fun days in the kitchen, I often look to Wilton for inspiration. Their website has so many fun ideas for baking! I was excited to find out that they actually make a WALL-E cake pan. My son was too young to see WALL-E this summer (and definitely too young to appreciate it), but I have hopes for a future WALL-E-themed birthday party--and this cake will definitely be the centerpiece! I also just noticed that they make the most adorable WALL-E icing decorations. They would be SO cute on cupcakes! I'm going to have to have them.

Now, I know that making this cake look as beautiful as pictured will be an endeavor. One thing that's really great about Wilton is that they give you all the instructions needed to reproduce their detailed decorating. Unfortunately they don't also give you the steady hand necessary for all that fine icing work, but I'm working on that...

--KitchenMaus

Dining in Dungeons: Weird and Creepy Restaurants

Thanks to weburbanist for pointing out the 15 weirdest theme restaurants in the world. Highlights include Buns & Guns in Beirut, where everything is military-themed including constant helicopter sounds in the background, Cannibalistic Sushi in Tokyo, where your meal is an edible body (thanks, but no thanks), the Hellfire Club in Manchester, which is basically a haunted 19th century dungeon, and the Vampire Cafe (also in Tokyo), where you can sip red cocktails amid coffins, skulls, and crosses. Call me crazy, but none of these scenarios have quite managed to whet my appetite.

--AndreaLeigh

The Bacon Cup: Waste Not, Want Not

Who needs a cupboard full of salad plates anyway? Plus, do you really want all those extra dishes to wash? Create no waste in your home (but possibly some longterm health problems) by switching to the completely edible bacon cup for your next salad. And really, this tasty new tableware isn't just for salad! Weave the bacon tightly and make little bowls for baked beans at your next barbecue! Or, how about serving up poached eggs in bacon cups for brunch? The possibilities are endless, and delicious!

Hop on over to notmartha.org for instructions on making your own bacon cups. Plus, check out the step-by-step photos--they are not to be missed!

--KitchenMaus

The $15 McDonald's Double Pounder

Most birthdays invovle large amounts of birthday cake and possibly some heavy drinking. A guy named Houmer ended his 25th with a 2-pound McDonald's cheeseburger. This monster concoction consisted of eight 1/4-pound patties and eight slices of "cheese". What better way to spend $15 on your 25th birthday?

From flickr.

--Spanno

Weekend Recipe: Lemon Bundt Cake

Last week, when I was looking for a new recipe to try with my unicorn silicone baking mold (check out my post on this product), I ventured onto Allrecipes.com for a little something lemony. Despite being a pretty serious from-scratch baker, I also absolutely love the books from the Cake Mix Doctor, so the lemon bundt cake recipe submitted by Phyllis on Allrecipes caught my eye. I was especially intrigued by this recipe because it included lemon-lime soda as one of the (five) ingredients. So, I baked it up in my unicorn pan (the pan takes two boxes of cake mix, so I doubled the recipe), and I have to say, this is one of the most moist and delicious cakes I've ever made. I shared it around our Amazon Kitchen team, and it won rave reviews! This recipe is definitely a keeper!

Lemon Bundt Cake

Ingredients:
1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix
1 (3.4 ounce) package instant lemon pudding mix
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 cup lemon-lime flavored carbonated beverage

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix, then stir in the oil. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the lemon-lime soda.
3. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes on a cooling rack, then unmold cake. Cool completely before serving. Store in an airtight container once cooled.

Makes approximately 14 servings.

--KitchenMaus