Here are a few of my favorite culinary handbooks, that I have found very useful in my culinary journey.

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Please shop here, to honor me with Amazon credits, thank you.
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Cooking with Herbs and spices:

Nutritional value of foods:

The science of cooking:

A -very- in depth look at the science of modern cooking:

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On my wish list…….

More science in the kitchen:

A geek-y approach to cooking:

Cooking with flavors and aromas:

When it comes to paleo, and I mean the real deal, there’s nothing much else to use except for what you can pick from a tree. So, here’s a list of pick-able sour foods, and a list of not-so-paleo foods.

• vinegar
• pickles
• wine
• sauerkraut
• kimchi
• soy sauce
• fish sauce
• shrimp paste
• dairy foods such as:

Celtic Sea Salt vs Himalayan Salt

Click here to see a video on the production of Celtic Sea Salt.

Click here to see a video on the production of Himalayan Salt.

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Sodium has sweet salty taste, calcium and magnesium has bitter salty taste

Kosher salt

Flavored salts, finishing salts

Making your own flavored salts

The Modernist Cuisine

On Food and Cooking

Fragrance Technology

What Einstein Told His Cook

What Einstein Told His Cook, 2

How to Read a French Fry

Cooking, the Quintessential Art

I use the net (packaging for garlic bulbs) as a mit, or bag, to scrub fruits and vegetables.

It works well, rinses easily and lasts a couple of months.

Most times I spray:

“Veggie Wash”

on the food item first and then wipe/rub with this net.

Many times, you find garlic for sale in a net bag.

Veggie Wash

Restaurants, eating out

• To waitstaff: “I’m doing a food plan that avoids all cooked foods, please help me by introducing me to items on your menu that are uncooked, raw foods.”
• When I went gluten free I would carry gluten-free bread with me, when I was (nearly) 100% raw for that year, I brought my own wraps (raw tortillas) with me. Establishments understood when I explained my special needs (avoiding gluten, avoiding cooked foods) and I can’t remember any of them saying NO to using my own bread, my own wrap. Most times they gave me the sandwich ingredients on a plate and I assembled it myself, would assemble my own wrap.Wraps travel very well, they are okay with non-refrigeration for a couple of hours, they are flat, small, easy to carry.
• Here’s part of a thread on “RawFoodDiet.com” …. I’ve heard of folks making business cards that they give to the waiter to place their order. The card says:
  “I’m a live food vegan. Please prepare me a basic salad with any of these fresh/uncooked/non canned items: lettuce, carrots, tomato, celery, avocado, onion, bell pepper. Do not add a dressing, croutons, cheese, bacon bits or any other extras to the salad. Thank you.”
  Source:  http://rawfoodsdiet.wetpaint.com/thread/1439098/Easy+ways+to+eat+raw+at+restaurants%21

• For those of you in transition …. here is another bit of info I found online:

“7. What about eating out? This is one of the most common questions asked – and the answer is – it’s completely up to you. You can choose to eat “normally”, to make healthier choices than usual or to ask for a juicy salad with all sorts of things thrown in, but above all, enjoy what you eat and feel at peace with it!”

Source:  http://www.therawfoodcoach.com/start_here.php

 

RAW Restaurant Directory

If you know of one, and they are not on this list, please encourage them to do so.

http://rawfoodsdiet.wetpaint.com/page/Raw+Foods+Restaurant+Directory

Click here for recipes for flavoring the chips.

Here are 6 ways to cut the torts …..

1. The first option is to bake whole. After baking, serve whole or break into pieces. Warning, breaking after it's been baked will create lots of irregular shapes and crumbs... so, it's best to cut it to the shapes you want - before baking.

2. Second option is to cut into large scoops: First, make 4 slices about 2-fingers width apart, just a bit smaller than the width of the mouth. Then, cut once in half.

3. Or, cut into smaller widths, then cut once in half.

4. Cut into small strips for garnishes, or pretzel-like snacking and dipping. Cut the strips, then once in half.

5. Pie-shaped tortilla chips.

6. Triangle-shaped tortilla chips.

Are you running out of ideas, using the same old ingredients?

Want to know how to make a creamy salad dressing? A vinaigrette?

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Nutrient-dense salads,

using healthy oils, vinegars, sweeteners;

with a list of different types of lettuces.

Food storage tips

I wrap produce in various ways, depending on the type, how wet it is and the length of time I’ll need to store it.

1. Top shelf, in plastic bags w/a dry paper towel

Onions, potatoes, broccoli and cauliflower (see image, below, on the top shelf) …I placed’m in a plastic bag with a dry paper towel, to absorb moisture (acting like a desiccant). There was no need to add moisture b/c there was enough in the form of beaded water droplets on the produce. The dry paper towel will absorb and retain the moisture in the plastic bag for a few days.

NOTE: Always check the bag every other day, even if you will not be using the produce. Look for aging spots, which probably indicates too much moisture, or drying spots, which more than likely means there is not enough moisture.

I also store these hard veggies on the top shelf b/c the temperature is too cold for soft leaves. I learned quickly that the cold temps cause brown spots and sometimes forms ice crystals on greens and lettuces, it’s just too cold for’m up there.

Wrap produce in damp towels, and put into a plastic bag, see images, below. On the top shelf: cauliflower, broccoli and potatoes. On the second shelf: in orange towel is spinach, middle is Romaine Lettuce, on right is more spinach. It's best if the towels cover all of the greens, eliminating light and air.

Lower left: broccoli, onions, spinach, romaine lettuce. Back, left: spinach, cauliflower. NOTE: in each bag - of the onions, cauliflower and broccoli - is a dry paper towel, to absorb moisture (acting like a desiccant).

2. Second shelf, wrapped in a damp towel and placed in a plastic bag.

The spinach and romaine lettuce did not have much moisture, so I wrapped them in a damp towel, then put’m in a plastic bag. The damp towels keep the environment moist enough for the leaves to thrive, keeping the greens as fresh as can be. The plastic bag blocks out the circulating air and light, which would otherwise dry out the leaves. If the greens were wet, say from washing them, then I might add a dry paper towel, as mentioned in #1 above. Or better yet, spin dry the leaves so that they have little chance of degrading, getting moldy, etc.

Lay the spinach on a damp towel.

Fold and roll, tucking in the leaves, being careful not to crush them.

Place the rolled towel in a plastic bag.

Place the romaine lettuce bunch on a damp towel.

Fold and roll the towel, making sure all of the lettuce is covered.

Tuck the towel in a plastic bag.

Broccoli storage, coming soon.

This blog post was inspired by: Cooking outside the box, with CSA at Williams-Sonoma.

This is a Tuscan-style Cantaloupe, set apart from other cantaloupes by its deep grooves. The yellow one on the LEFT is ready to eat, the greenish one on the RIGHT will be ripe in a couple of days. See RIPENING tip, below.

Join me at the market! … here is the type of info I will share while at the market with you….    (Recipe links, below.)

What’s the difference between a “cantaloupe” and a “muskmelon” ?

• After researching online, I found no definitive answer, and mostly contradictory information.
• Some sites claim that “cantaloupes” can only be obtained in Europe.
• Cantaloupe is one type of many muskmelons … and other sites say… muskmelon is one type of many cantaloupes.
• Cantaloupe has more defined webbing/netting on the outer skin, and muskmelons have webbing/netting yet is more smooth, not as defined.
• I talked with Caley, at Dulcinea Farms (in Ladera Ranch, CA) – she said they developed their own seed of Tuscan-style Cantaloupe, see image, above, and introduced it in the US, circa 2005. She said the Tuscan Cantaloupe, the one with the green ridges, is the most popular cantaloupe in Italy. Btw – Caley also said their seed is a hybrid variety, and is not GMO.

How to tell if cantaloupe, muskmelon is ripe, how to choose the best tasting cantaloupe, muskmelon.

• COLOR (exterior and interior)

  • A green exterior (under the netting and in the grooves) indicates young, immature, will have a lighter-colored inner meat, not-so sweet. Store on counter (see RIPENING tip, below). Eat when turns yellow/orange (see next tip).
  • A yellow/orange-ish exterior and grooves is mature, will have a deeper yellow/orange-colored meat, and is sweet tasting. Eat within 3 days if at room temp (67-70 degrees). Eat within 2 days if hotter temp. Eat within 4 days if stored in the fridge (see STORAGE tips, below).
  • A white-ish exterior is over mature, will be soft, dimple-ly, will have dull-colored drier sponge-like meat, real musky taste, seeds will start to give off a strong musky odor and taint the flavor of the meat. Eat same day, or cut into pieces – removing the seeds and areas that are white and soft, then store remaning pieces in fridge (see STORAGE tip, below).

• SMELL it

  • A sweet melon aroma will be strongest just after picking where the fruit was attached to the vine. This aroma will dissipate within days of being picked.
  • The blossom-end (opposite that of the stem-end) will have a fragrance, too, and a bit soft to the touch when ripe.
  • The strongest aroma will come from muskmelons that were picked when ripe (yellow/orange-colored).

• LIFT it (the weight)

• • The heavier, the better … it has more water, thus more taste and longer lasting.

• KNOCK KNOCK  or TAP TAP

  (listen to the sound that is produced when you knock or tap on it) 

  Develop your knocking and/or tapping techniques and hone in on your ability to discern the tones of melons:

  • A deeper, dull, dense-resounding thump comes from more water content that sends sound waves throughout the connective tissue (fiber) of the meat, which means this is a good tasting, not too spongy, melon.
  • A tinny, light, quick, not-so-dull thump indicates an unripe melon: the rind is tight, which holds the tone to the outer-most edges of the melon, the tapping sound cannot penetrate throughout the melon.
  • D most likely indicates an overripe melon: the rind has softened from air and moisture escaping, which diminishes the resonance within, the tapping cannot penetrate throughout the melon. The meat is probably quite spongy in texture and appearance (not-so-appealing).

Does cantaloupe, muskmelon ripen after picking? ripen off the vine?

YES, muskmelons and cantaloupes will continue to ripen after being picked, removed from the vine. Place on counter, and like all other produce – avoid direct sunlight. Ripening will be slowed in cooler weather (the fridge), and, ripening will go faster in warmer weather (hot days).

Storage:

Store separately from other produce b/c two reasons:

• they not only release air and moisture they also absorb air/flavors (same as eggs and some other produce).
• they off-gas ethylene (as some other produce does), which will ripen anything else that is close by.

If stored in fridge:

• Wash (with Veggie Spray) and pat dry, put in plastic bag and/or in produce drawer.
• Bring to room temp for 2 hours before consuming for best sweet flavor.

Recipes:

• Fruit Soup w/Almond Butter
• Fruit Skewers w/Sweet’n Sour Almond Dipping Sauce

More info:

• Go to Dulcinea farm’s website for more info.
• Go to Garden Web, you’ll see more info ….about watermelons, too.