full irish vegan

We appear to have slowed down a little here at mad tasty, if you've noticed, so apologies for that.  I do think Jade's epic post below this does make up for that somewhat, so I won't pity our readers too much.

If you're on the lookout for more tasty eats, do check out Full Irish Vegan for both inspiration and lovely photos.  I do love that the blog immediately tackles that dreaded fear that one could never have a full on fry again.

food stuff: boiling egg fun

in honor of easter (yesterday), i thought i would put up some tips on hard boiling eggs, thanks to the kitchn. it was only a few months ago that i even realized there was a difference between hard boiling and soft boiling eggs - i'd never even thought anyone would want a soft-boiled egg. check out this post about hard boiling egg fun and this post about a tip to date hard boiled eggs for maximum freshness. here is another tip for getting the perfect hard boiled egg. and finally, what to do with leftover hard boiled eggs.

so, this raises the question: did you hard boil eggs to decorate this year? and after you decorated them, did you eat them? or what is your favorite way to eat eggs?

food stuff: cooling hot beverages

today is the first day in about a month that i have had to wear a jacket to work here in northern california. it's sad. and to that extent, i was thinking about how i need to drink some more hot beverages this week - i love me some tea. but, whenever i drink tea, i always have to wait a half hour or an hour for it to cool down enough for me to handle it. that is, until i read this article at the kitchen which details the best ways to cool a hot beverage. it's great! how do you prefer to cool your beverages?

food stuff: all about salt and spices

today, we're all about the spices, including salt. i was at trader joe's yesterday and really really wanted to buy some sea salt, but i couldn't justify it (i'm only tempoarily living here and don't want to move a jar of salt for no reason). and i love looking longingly at spices. i have NO IDEA how to use them properly, but i still like to imagine myself someone who just throws in this and that and knows how it's all going to turn out. here are some fabulous links all about salt and spices to help you become that culinary genius:

• All about salt: how to choose, cook with, and store it
• Five more uses for salt
  
• Quick reference guide to herbs and spices
• How to buy and store spices
• Easy flavored salts and amazing spice shelf
  

[h/t: the kitchn]

food stuff: essential vinegars to have on hand

it never occurred to me that there were a ton of different types of made specifically for different things. if someone told me to buy vinegar, i would probably just buy balsamic because thats what i'm most familiar with. but the kitchn has set me straight! check it out here. what is your favorite type of vinegar?

food stuff: eating by candlelight

i'm a little disappointed that i didn't think of this first, but an excellent survey was posted at the kitchn and i thought we could do our own poll here. in honor of valentine's day, how often do you eat dinner by candlelight?

food stuff: cleaning hot pans

the kitchn has a great post answering a reader's excellent question on how does one clean a hot pan? i have DEFINITELY been burned before so this was helpful for me. what are your burn stories?

food stuff: the ultimate shelf life guide

ever wondering how long things last? here is a fabulous guide on how long to keep things. hat tip: re-nest

food stuff: make your dishwasher run better

it seemed appropriate that during these festive weeks with massive amounts of cooking and eating, that one should know how to improve how your dishwasher works. check out the kitchn for 10 tips to make your dishwasher run better.

did you try any? how did it go? what are your tips for dishwasher use?

need a last minute holiday gift?

Restaurant.com - 80% off your order

Santa probably didn't end up that round by eating salads, but we're not about to complain. As an early - or late - Christmas surprise, you can use code SANTA to take 80% off the price of your order at Restaurant.com! Homecooked meals are a special part of the holiday season, of course, but if you need a night off or a night out, don't be reluctant to treat yourself.

Visit The Bargainist for more.

meat i can support

Some of you may know my fondness for stationary, but please take a moment to ogle the branding genius that is La Charcuterie's business cards and notepaper, first spotted here but brought to my attention here.

food stuff: best way to clean knives

and the knife theme lives on here at mad tasty (see sharp knives and storing knives).
check out this post from the kitchn about the best way to clean knives. very interesting. how good are you at keeping your knives clean?

food stuff: how to segment an orange

i literally had NO IDEA this is how to segment an orange, but now i do thanks to the kitchn. is this a trick you use often or are you like me that even now you know, you probably won't ever think to segment an orange??

food stuff: freezing common vegetables

planet green had a nice article on taking advantage of fresh produce and freezing it - there might not be as much fresh produce these days (because its near winter), but i thought i would still link to it so you can read about it and maybe file for later...
this is to add great compliment to JaBootaay's post on healthy eating and frozen veggies.

containing kitchen mayhem with relish

Via Bargainist, thought I should share this with mad tasty readers. Relish (which is actually at relishrelish.com) is a site that combines meal selection with nutrition, grocery list preparation and a promise that all meals can be made in 30 minutes or less.

Interesting idea, although I have a hard time thinking of what demographic it would appeal to. Perhaps a very specific two working adults with kids, neither has an interest in cooking?

The site promises to soon be launching a free iPhone app to accompany the $7/month service.

Maybe the better question is whether there are any other food apps that you're using. Anyone out there? I know that Shake just got an iphone.... unless that was Bake.

food stuff: knife storage

last week we posted about what kind of knives you should have and keeping them sharp. the kitchn has a good article to follow up on knife storage.
enjoy that article here.

food stuff: sharp knives

this delightful blog called tea & cookies posted a very interesting, if detailed, post about the importance of sharp knives and how to maintain them.


i know nothing about knives and did, indeed, buy the butcher block full of knives that the author suggests NOT doing. now i know better, and you shall, too, after you read this. (oh and posted now because he talks about doing things before thanksgiving...)

food stuff: bb rice krispie and candy sushi

despite being a horrible chef, i love reading about food and food stuff. so i will start posting about interesting food and food stuff i find online. here is the first from boing boing:

rice krispie and candy sushi


how fun is that?? maybe i can get my brothers to start eating this to trick them into eating sushi again...

so...

 

So apparently we're taking a little break.  We'll be back soon.  In the meantime, check out some new tunes over at suck my art or get yer political panties in a twist at Moue Magazine.

everything is better in graph form

NY Times image via Sociological Images.