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Rustic Italian Salad Makes an Impressive Lunch

YumSugar — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 08:00:25 -0800

During the holidays, it seems I just go from one rich, multi-course family meal to another, so the day after Thanksgiving, I wanted a light but satisfying lunch that would impress even the harshest of family critics.

This salad was just the thing. The pears, grapes and dried cherries added a natural sweetness to the salad that contrasted well with the aged balsamic vinegar and pecorino cheese. The pine nuts added a buttery flavor, and the prosciutto a crispy texture. To make this for your family — mine went nuts over it! —

Sunday Slow Cooker: Fennel and Pear Chicken

YumSugar — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 06:00:40 -0800

If you're in search of a new chicken recipe and you love pears, then this slow-cooked meal is for you.

Dried pears, in combination with pear nectar, truly bring the fruit's nutty, fragrant flavor forward. Add in mildly sweet, herbaceous fennel, and you've got a timeless recipe.

To put this simple meal together,

Fast & Easy Dinner: Spiced Pear and Goat Cheese Salad

partysugar — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 06:45:03 -0700

Just because it's cooler doesn't mean you have to stop having hearty salads for dinner. Fall's fabulous flavors, like pears, dark greens, and nuts, are excellent ingredients in dinner salads.

In this recipe, the cinnamon-spiced pears are roasted in a bath of orange juice. Parsley leaves add freshness and toasted pine nuts provide a delicious crunch. Creamy goat cheese and salty Parmesan cheese finish off the salad. This dish is also a perfect starter for a fancy dinner, so get the recipe and

Fast & Easy Dinner: Chicken With Pear and Leek Sauce

partysugar — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 11:00:23 -0700

Wow your family midweek with this delicious chicken dinner. Flavorful chicken thighs are topped off with a scrumptious leek and pear pan-sauce. Currant jelly is the secret ingredient that gives the quick sauce a smooth texture and rich taste.

If you dislike chicken thighs, feel free to use chicken tenders or breasts, but note that the cooking time will differ. To check out this tasty recipe that highlights some of Fall's fabulous bounty,

Noteworthy Nibbles — Oct. 14-20, 2008

YumSugar — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:00:42 -0700

It's only Tuesday, but I'm already looking forward to the multitude of festivals this weekend.

There are so many in the Bay Area alone that I can't decide whether to hit up the Santana Row Pear Festival, the Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival, or the Monterey Wine Festival. I suppose I might just rock them all!

Have we left something out? If so, please drop us a line in the comments below!

San Francisco, CA: Wine & Spirits Top 100 Tasting — Oct. 14
New York, NY: At the Table: New York — Oct. 14
Torrance, CA: Oktoberfest at Alpine Village — Oct. 14-20
Circleville, OH: Circleville Pumpkin Show — Oct. 15-18
Monterey, CA: Monterey Wine Festival — Oct. 16-18
Tulsa, OK: Tulsa Oktoberfest — Oct. 16-19
Crowley, LA: International Rice Festival — Oct. 16-19
New York, NY: 6th Annual Gourmet Institute — Oct. 17-19
Paso Robles, CA: Harvest Wine Weekend — Oct. 17-19

To see the rest,

Fondue + You = Skewer . . . Dip . . .Yum

YumSugar — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 15:00:04 -0700

On Friday, I caught a quick glimpse of Nigella Lawson on the Today show. She featured a Fall fruit fondue recipe so delicious looking I had to try it! Seasonal fruit (apples and pears) served with a delectable caramel fondue make for a simple but stunning dessert. This unconventional caramel sauce is quick, easy, and doesn't require sugar chemistry knowledge or a candy thermometer! All of the ingredients are kitchen staples except for the golden syrup. Since I was unable to find this common British product, I substituted a mixture of corn syrup and molasses.

Don't be disappointed if initially the cooked sugar and butter have a grainy consistency. Once the cream is added the caramel's texture will become smooth, rich, and sheeny. To try something new with fondue,

Get to Know Pear Varieties

YumSugar — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 05:30:00 -0700

We're well into pear season, and if it wasn't obvious to you already, pears — much like apples — come in many different shapes and colors. Can you tell one from the other? I'll walk you through the different varieties of pears and their differences in taste, texture, and flavor. Let's begin!

Would You Rather Eat Apples or Pears?

partysugar — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 01:30:02 -0700

Source

Would You Rather Eat Apples or Pears?

Apples

Pears

Neither; I prefer ______ (fill in the blank below).

I love both!

Fast & Easy Dinner: Sauteed Pork and Pear Salad

partysugar — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 10:30:09 -0700

A great thing about Fall fruits, specifically pears, is that they can be used as an ingredient in both sweet and savory dishes. In this case, the pears are a crisp addition to a scrumptious salad. The classic pairing is pork and apples, but pears complement the peppered protein as nicely as their crunchy counterpart. A drizzle of a quick honey-mustard sauce finishes off this hearty and delicious dish. To start your weekend with this salad,

Monday's Leftovers: Roasted Chicken With Fall Fruit Salsa

YumSugar — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:15:01 -0700

Lately, I've been stocking up on all the great-looking Fall produce that's at the farmer's market, but sometimes I run out of creative ideas for cooking with it. This entrée is just the solution to my quandary, as it incorporates a flavorful topping with in-season fruits. It's also perfect if you have chicken thighs on hand. To get the hassle-free recipe,

Off to Market Recap: Wedding Favors

partysugar — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:00:29 -0700

Finding the perfect wedding favor is not an easy task. A good wedding favor should spark the memory of the wedding, be representative of the couple, and be somewhat useful. To inspire our blushing brides, I asked you to help me find the internet's most fabulous favors. You bookmarked the favors in the Yum Market on TeamSugar with the keyword tag, Wedding Favors.

My favorite favor was this pear shaped kitchen timer. It's ideal for a foodie fantasy wedding because it encourages guests to get cooking! Serenityspeaks discovered this timer that's functional and fabulous. Take a look at all of the favors below and let me know which one you love!

Don't know how to use the bookmarking feature of TeamSugar? Have no fear, geeksugar has created an easy how to. More ideas for your big day can be found at IDoSugar.

Easy Winter Treat: Pears With Cherries and Chocolate Sauce

YumSugar — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 16:18:11 -0800

Winter isn't the most bountiful time for produce, but the season does bring deliciously fresh pears, which I add to everything from salads to cocktails. In fact, baked pears are one of my favorite desserts to make for a casual dinner party. They're insanely easy and relatively healthy. Plus, pear desserts look and taste sophisticated, so guests are always impressed.

To whip up a pear dessert with local produce, why not try this version with dried cherries and a simple chocolate sauce? It's just a little bit decadent and requires a minimal amount of effort. To get the recipe,

Yummy Link: Pear and Almond Tart

YumSugar — Fri, 14 Dec 2007 01:01:31 -0800

Warm up the house by baking a beautiful pear and almond tart. Just be sure to save the vanilla-infused marinating liquid to use as a glaze! — Spittoon Extra

Fall Side: Pear Salad

partysugar — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 07:19:10 -0700

I recently opened my front door to find my neighbor standing there with a bag of fresh pears. Little did I know that she was a cooking instructor at Sur La Table and that the pears were leftover from a recent class. I immediately thought of delicate poached dessert pears, but when I came across this recipe for a savory side salad with poached pears, I decided to go with it instead. Pair this salad — that also features goat cheese and macadamia nuts — with a creamy gnocchi, meaty lasagna, or baked casserole. This is a salad that you will enjoy well into winter, so get the recipe now, just

Trend Alert: Pears

casasugar — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 10:51:36 -0700

Trend Alert: Pears
Maybe it's just because pears are in season here in sunny California, or because I'm still drooling over bubbly pear cupcakes, but I can't seem to get pears off my mind lately. They seem to be everywhere I look these days, and I'm loving it. Check out the trend.

52 Weeks of Baking: Bubbly Pear Cupcakes

YumSugar — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 07:03:18 -0700

I decided that this week would be a great week for cupcakes. I entered my kitchen with visions of fall colors and flavors, but was sidetracked when I saw a bottle of champagne and several pears. Pears and champagne are nice together, so wouldn't they be nicer in a cute sweet cupcake? I started with a variety of vanilla cupcake recipes and experimented from there. I shredded up the pears, and popped open the champagne. About an hour later, I was left with one of the moistest cakes I'd ever eaten. I've baked a lot of things this year, but this is definitely one of my favorites. I topped them with a good dose of cream cheese frosting, but they were great plain too. To check out the recipe for Bubbly Pear Cupcakes,

52 Weeks of Baking: Pear and Apple Pie Crumble

YumSugar — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 08:01:31 -0700

This week I decided to brave it out, and put my excuses — small kitchen, no room in the freezer, no pastry blender, etc. — aside and bake a pie. My friend Becky had some ripe pears off of her tree, and I still had a few of the apples from geeksugar. So with fresh produce in hand, and a few recipes at my fingertips I decided to roll out some dough and make a pie.

Things were not so great. I'll admit it now, I'm not great with pastry crust. Pie eludes me and while I successfully managed to create a bottom crust, the upper crust was difficult and not easy to work with — I should have put it back in the freezer first. After ruining what was left of the dough, I went into panic mode until I remembered I didn't need a top crust and could make a crumble instead. So I whipped up a few ingredients and sprinkled the crumble on top.

Overall it ended up being a delightful pie — the pears and apples really play nicely together — and when paired with a scoop of ice cream, it was absolutely heavenly. Oh and I know it doesn't quite look like a slice of pie, but like I said, pie eludes me...

To check out the recipe I used,

Fast & Easy Dinner: Pear Salad with Bacon and Sherry-Wine Vinaigrette

partysugar — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 06:43:31 -0700

A simple salad gets taken deliciously to the next level when roasted stone fruit is added. I love combining fresh greens with cooked or roasted vegetables and fruit - the layers of flavor create texture and depth. Bacon will give this salad a much needed crunch and the shaved manchego a nuttiness. This is a scrumptious dinner salad, perfect for a middle of the week meal. Pair with a chunk of crusty bread and a chilled glass of Riesling. You know you totally want to make this, so

Would You Watch Christopher Walken's Cooking Show?

YumSugar — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 05:58:37 -0700

My gal Molly let me in on one of the weirdest things I've seen in a while. Apparently, cult favorite Christopher Walken is looking to host his own cooking show - so much so that he's recorded his own video and put it on the internet. In the amateur video entitled "Man Makes Chickens with Pears," Walken comes across more like someone's grandpa, than someone who would host a cooking show. I'm not sure what to make of the whole thing. I think he's fantastic, but this is a little peculiar. What do you think? Give it a watch and then tell me, would you watch Christopher Walken's cooking show? TMZ

Would You Watch Christopher Walken's Cooking Show?

Heck yah!

Hrmm... maybe.

Uh, no thanks.

On the fence with this one.

Other - tell us how you feel below!

How To Ripen Peaches Faster

YumSugar — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 13:03:45 -0700

Last weekend my friend April and I went to the farmer's market. Along with a lovely batch of fresh strawberries, we both decided to pick up some early peaches too. The only problem was that while the peaches looked great, they were still too hard and unripe. So what could we do? We could sit them on our counter and wait for what seems like an eternity for them to ripen, or we could employ a quick trick and have them ripen in double the time.

To speed up the ripening process in peaches, place them in a loosely sealed brown paper bag on the counter. The peaches give off ethylene gas - a natural ripening hormone - which is trapped inside the bag causing the fruit to ripen faster. You can do this with a plastic bag too, but the plastic doesn't "breathe" as well as the paper, meaning moisture may collect causing your perfectly ripened peaches to rot.

Once ripe, peaches should be refrigerated and used within a few days (although they'll taste better at room temp). Ripe peaches have a sweet fragrance, are soft (but not mushy) to the touch and have a golden undertone.

This ripening trick also works for apricots, nectarines, avocados, bananas, kiwi, mangoes, pears and plums.

Guilt-Free Dessert

YumSugar — Wed, 03 Jan 2007 16:41:15 -0800

After the decadence of the holidays, we have all probably vowed to change our eating habits. In order to support our new year's resolutions, the best thing I can do, is not offer any temptations... well at least not such guilty temptations. So, today's dessert is light and rich, without any butter or chocolate. In many foreign countries they actually eat fruit for dessert because of its natural sweetness, a tendency that I suggest we all adopt. Besides, a fruity dessert is the perfect end to a meal heavy in temptations! To make my recipe for gingered pears,