Al Dente

A Saucy Mama Gibson Cocktail Makes Winter Wonderful

Well, maybe a good Gibson isn’t the only thing that makes winter wonderful (I mean, there’s also hot spiked cider and mistletoe), but having a well-made one definitely makes your party more interesting than serving solely Martinis. Though the Gibson is so close to a regular Martini that you’d call them siblings instead of cousins, it doesn’t get near the face time (of course, it doesn’t have the indignity of being made with vodka a lot, either). This is a shame, because the seemingly slight difference between them, the inclusion of a cocktail onion instead of a twist or olive, really does add a lot: a slight saltiness and savory-ness that makes a more rakish drink, one that’s still refined but a touch more dangerous, more Humphrey Bogart and less Cary Grant. The key, naturally, is getting a good cocktail onion. I’m always on the lookout for ideal cocktail onions, and I think I’ve recently found a new favorite: Saucy Mama cocktail onions. They have good flavor, retain their crunch when bathing in gin and vermouth, and look lovely in a cocktail glass. Whip up the below recipe from Good Spirits using two Saucy Mama cocktail onions (they’re that good) and Washington's own Voyager gin (which is made with all organic botanicals and has a complex delicious flavor) at your next holiday gathering, or after a long day of holiday shopping, or anytime at all, and make your winter even more wonderful.

The Gibson

Ingredients:
Ice cubes
2-1/2 ounces gin
1/2 ounce dry vermouth
1 or 2 cocktail onions for garnish

Directions:
1. Fill a cocktail shaker or mixing glass halfway full with ice cubes. Add the gin and dry vermouth. Stir well.

2. Add one or two cocktail onions to a cocktail glass. Strain the mix over the onions.

A Note: This delivers a classically-sized 3-ounce cocktail, the perfect amount for you to drink it, as the saying goes, “while it’s laughing at you.”

--A.J. Rathbun

Add Pizzazz to Your Snacking and Pizza-ing

Having been an Amazon.com Kitchen editor for, oh, about nine years, I’ve seen my share of intriguing and interesting items. But even after seeing lots of these eye-catchers, the Presto Pizzazz pizza oven instantly made me do a double-take the first time I saw it. It just looks a little odd: an oven that’s open to the air for the most part. My first thought was: total gimmick, which probably doesn’t work (well, call me a skeptic). My second thought was: wait, I should try it before being skeptical. And then I forgot about it for awhile (we do have approximately 33,000 appliances after all), until seeing it again, going through the first two thoughts again, and then, this time, picking one up so I could test it out. And you know what? It actually works really, really well. 

What makes it work are the independently controlled top and bottom heating elements. It looks like what’s cooking would just get heat from the top when it rolled under that element, thereby taking more time, but really the heating is happening all the time, and the cooking happens continually. And, it doesn’t have to preheat, which means it tends to cook faster than a conventional oven. It’s obviously shaped for pizza, and the box swears that it works as well for fresh as for frozen, so the first thing I tried was a homemade pizza (I took it for granted that for frozen pizza it would work dandy). I was pretty unsure at first--mostly because I don’t usually watch something cook in an oven throughout the whole process. The end result was tasty though, with a crisp crust and well-cooked toppings. It did take a touch longer than I thought, but no more than cooking it in a regular oven.

I wanted to try the Pizzazz with some snacks, too, as the box also says it’s not solely for pizza and, well, I like snacks. This had me one afternoon dropping a couple of frozen taquitos and cheese-stuffed-and-fried-jalapeño-popper things on the oven and starting it up. Now, here, is where it really shined, as it had the recently-frozen delights cooked and crispy and ready for snacking about 5 minutes faster than the recommended oven-cooking times listed on their boxes. For snack-intensive days (football games, all-day parties), the Pizzazz is a dream.

A couple final notes: first, the heating element does get hot, necessitating that you’re careful when removing items. And definitely don’t touch it. There is a timer, which helps, and an shutoff function hooked to the timer for added safety, and another automatic shutoff feature that kicks in if over-heating occurs. The Pizzazz is a snap to clean, and super-quick to set up--which means quick snacks, no waiting. This is a good thing, because when that snack craving hits, no one wants to wait around.

--A.J. Rathbun

Forget Mashing Potatoes! Rice 'em For Fluffiest Spuds Ever

I recently celebrated a birthday and my husband earned a basket full of brownie points by buying me some thoughtful presents. Even though he absolutely hates cleaning this gadget, he treated me to a new Oxo potato ricer. It replaced one that finally busted after years of use.

I'm a big fan of the ricer for two reasons:

1. It makes the softest, fluffiest "mashed" potatoes you'll ever pile onto your fork. I'm no scientist, but I think it has something to do with the way the starch molecules are left intact. Or something. All I know is the potato flesh drifts out of this contraption like winter's first snowfall. Not only does it make great smashed spuds, the ricer turns out great potatoes for recipes such as gnocchi. (Which, in my wing-it kitchen is riced potatoes plus egg, plus just enough flour to hold it together. Roll 'em, pinch 'em, boil 'em and eat.)

2. When using a ricer, ou don't have to peel the potatoes before cooking. This is why my husband gripes about cleaning it. Because the teeny holes make a perfect catch all for the jackets. Just scrap them out between batches.

Now, for those of you who think getting a gadget as a gift is grounds for divorce, I want to reassure you that my sweet spouse also came through with the present I'd long been dreaming about: My first float plane ride! Yes, it was a thrill.

--Leslie Kelly

How Much Rice Really Comes from a Rice Cooker?

I love my rice cooker (which happens to be the Micom 5-1/2-cup model in stainless steel from Zojirushi), and use it for everything from making plain white rice for my puppy Sookie when she recently had to be put on a very bland diet (after eating something she found buried in the dark recesses of the yard) to making more off-the-beaten-path things like polenta with gorgonzola. But when I was searching out which rice cooker I wanted, I got pretty confused by what the “cup” numbers meant in the titles--such as a 3-cup model. Does it mean 3 cups of rice can fit in it, or 3 cups come out of it? After researching and double checking with some vendors and looking at various models and even a little testing, I finally figured it out.

It should mean how much rice the cooker can deliver, not take in (and if you’re in a brick and mortar store and the clerk tells you different walk away. Same if on an online site). Seems easy enough, right? But it can be awfully confusing, especially as many models look quite similar. Take this Black & Decker rice cooker line, for example (which are dandy rice cookers, from all I’ve seen and from all reports, and I’ve tested this close relative, and like it lots, too). There are three: 3-cup, 6-cup, and 17-cup models (that last one is a lovely monster by the way, especially if you have a big family, or a reunion, or a restaurant). They all visually look similar, only differing if you hold the actual rice cooker in your hand. Even when holding the boxes it can be hard to tell how much they’ll take in or deliver. That’s why you have to remember: the 3-cup one delivers a maximum of three cups cooked rice, the 6-cup one delivers a maximum of six cups cooked rice, etc. The “cup” in the title does not refer to how much you’ll put in the cooker. Whew, it seems simple, but with all the various and random information floating out there, it can be confusing. And the last thing you want is to bring a cooker home for a big dinner and then have half the rice you need. Or to give someone a gift and give the wrong size.

Of course, when making more advanced numbers like a gumbo in your rice cooker (and these really can do so much more than just plain rice), or making Japanese sticky rice, or a rice cousin like risotto, it might be a slightly different yield than the “xx-cup” amount. This is why I would always suggest getting a rice cooker that comes with a good and detailed recipe and instruction book, to help get you started. After using a few of the recipes they provide, naturally you’ll want to branch out and experiment. But without that good bedrock of recipes and instructions, and without knowing going in how much rice can come out of your cooker, you won’t enjoy it half as much.

--A.J. Rathbun

Futuristic Kitchen Gadgets: A Smart Measuring Cup

Not long ago, Priority Designs revealed their SmartMeasure Cup, which features an angled display on the handle so you won't need to hunch over to read measurements on the side of the cup (although they're still there too for you traditionalists). A backlit LCD displays measurements (and does unit conversions for you!), intuitive controls provide easy navigation, and pre-set ingredient measures for common recipes are at the touch of a button. The best news? Taylor Kitchenware has picked up the design, and it's now available for pre-order on Amazon.com! Welcome to the future.

--AndreaLeigh

DeLonghi BQ100 Grill and Broiler: Helpful and Handy Indoors and Out

While it’s really called an “indoor” grill, I gave DeLonghi’s BQ100 grill and broiler a try the other night and  used it outdoors, and found it worked perfectly, there, too. Here’s the thing--it’s really hot right now. It’s the end of July, and the temperature here in Seattle has risen to record-setting heights, which makes it just impossible to want to stand over a hot stove. And while I’m a fan of salads (and eating in an air-conditioned restaurant, for that matter), sometimes even in the warmest weather you want to make a meal at home. Which is why I plugged in the BQ100 outside in the yard to give it a test run.

The grill is sturdy, and has a longish cord, so I set it up on the picnic table and plugged it in to the outside plug and turned the thermostat to Max. The coolest (no pun intended) and unique thing about this grill-broiler combo is right there in the name: it has a heating element in the middle, with a nonstick die-cast grill plate that goes on top of the element and a broiler drawer underneath the element. I think if you were a steak-lover you’d like it even more than I did, because you could sear the steak up top then finish it in the broiler (due to the placement of the heating element, you get to use both at the same time, making it simple). We were listening to the Mariners play while cooking though, and so we made giant Italian dogs, first grilling up a bunch of onions on the grill top. Then, when the onions and dogs were ready, we toasted the buns in the broiler. Delicious.

The grill heated up pretty quickly, and then cooled down nicely after clicking the switch to off. Though we didn’t have to use it (not a lot of grease rolling off the dogs), there is a nice drainage cup built into the grill plate, which drains off excess oil and stuff in a way that helps with cleaning. The BQ100 measures 20-1/2 by 15-3/5 by 7 inches, so it wasn’t tough to transport from indoors to out either--I just picked it up and carried it. Overall, a good summertime cooking experience, not too hot, not a hassle, and tasty.

--A.J. Rathbun

Top 5 New Small Appliances

Want to give your culinary summer a jump start, or just add a little more electrical power to your kitchen? Or maybe you’re just the kind of cook (here’s the category I fall in to) who always desires the newest gadgets to work with? Either way, here are my picks for the coolest and most helpful new small appliances available this season (and, as the Amazon.com home appliances store was just rated the No. 1 shopping spot for small appliances, floor care products, and air conditioners in the leading consumer research magazine for a fourth consecutive year, well, you know it’s a dandy place to shop for these pluggable marvels).

Breville’s The Smart Oven
I love to cook, but sometimes want to be a little lazy about it, which is why the Smart Oven's Element IQ set up is so nice on those keep-it-simple days. It has 9 pre-sets (for toast, bagel, bake, roast, broil, pizza, cookies, reheat, and warm) which deliver the right power at the right time for cooking different things and--this is cool--if you adjust one to personal taste, it remembers the adjustment. Oh, I also really like the ejecting rack, which keeps you from having to reach in, because I was always getting burnt on my last toaster oven.

Back to Basics Electric Ice Shaver
I cannot tell a lie (and my waistline would show I was lying if I tried to), I love Sno Cones and shaved ice. And pretty much any other chilly sweet treat. But for having shaved ice and other chilly bites of deliciousness at home, this ice shaver is ideal--just dump in ice cubes (it comes with ice molds, too), hit the power button, and it starts delivering fine, fluffy snow. You can also pick up Back to Basics’ premium syrup to add, or add your own flavorings.

Krups Intuitive Stainless-Steel 1-4/5-Quart Kettle
Sometimes, it’s just nice to heat up water without any hassle--and this kettle is just right for those times. It comes with a concealed 1500-watt heating element and can get 1-4/5 quarts to a rolling boil in little time, which means that instant coffee, tea, hot chocolate, oatmeal, and more is available quickly. As it’s cordless, it’s good for parties, too, when you might be filling up things across a room or in multiple locations. This may sound a bit hazardous, but there’s a safety unlock button to reduce the chance of accidents.

DeLonghi Programmable 5-Quart Slow Cooker
Okay, it’s summer, and you probably aren’t thinking “I’m going to make up a big batch of something hot for dinner” as much as in fall and winter, but forget that--slow-cooking is dandy even when the temperature’s high, because you don’t have to use the full-on stove, and because you can cook when you’re out of the house, then have it ready as you get home (which lets things cool off when you’re actually there). What's best about this model is its 10-hour countdown timer, touchpad control panel, three cooking modes, and how it goes automatically to "warm" once cooking is done.

Cuisinart Vertical Countertop Rotisserie
This rotisserie looks chic with its brushed stainless housing (and I’m guessing you can tell by now that stainless is a top stylistic choice at the moment), and can roast up to 8 pounds at a time, basting as it rotates. It has easy-to-use touchpad controls, an LCD readout, and five preset temperatures: 325, 350, 400, 425, and 450 degrees F. And, thanks to the viewing window, you can watch the food as its cooks, which I think is a lot of fun (though it goes against the whole “watched pot never boils” theory, your items will get done in here even if you watch them--trust me). This rotisserie cleans up easily and comes with a handy recipe book to get you started.

--A.J. Rathbun

The Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus--Adding Flavor without Fat

I love my Cuisinart food processors and use them for an infinite variety of preparations. Last night, however, I was motivated to extract my Mini-Prep Plus DLC-2A food processor from the garage and put it to work.

With fresh produce at its peak right now, I am trying to work more flavor and less fat into our diet. Hello Mini-Prep Plus! This little gadget costs less than $40 and has a small footprint, making it convenient for even the smallest kitchens.

Although the work bowl is only three cups and the machine can't shred or slice like its big powerful siblings, the Mini-Prep Plus is extraordinarily helpful when I need to crank out a quick tomato salsa, a fresh coriander chutney,  or a cucumber tzatziki. 

The touch pad control buttons offer a chop or grind option. The blade action reverses depending on which button is activated. I use the grind button for pulverizing whole spices, such as toasted cumin and fennel.  The chopping  feature is indispensable when I want to quickly transform a handful of seasonal veggies into a refreshing low fat accompaniment to grilled fish or chicken.

Some knife-savvy folks might argue that it isn't worth using the machine when working in small quantities. I rebut that my counters and floors stay tidier because the mess is contained in the work bowl! With one less counter and cutting board to clean, I am free to tackle the next task at hand.

I also love the size of the work bowl and lid, because they don't hog a lot of space on the top rack of the dishwasher. With three kids cruising around, my dishwasher fills up fast during the day.  And, the streamlined base, with its touchpad controls, is easy to wipe clean.

--Melissa A. Trainer