Category: Food

I came across Maple Joe’s Canadian Grade A maple syrup at the supermarket. So I decided to try it out and do a review. Here’s my take on it.

Yes, beets are supposed to taste like dirt, even after you clean them. Here’s why—and what you can do to tone that earthiness down.

Here’s what those numbers on Barilla boxed pasta mean. And how you can use them to choose the best pasta shape for any recipe.

This simple and powerful trick for saucing your pasta gets the sauce to cling to the noodles every single time. Here’s how.

This supermarket olive oil is made from 100% Italian olives. But is it worth the price? Here’s everything you need to know before buying it.

If you store an opened wedge of Pecorino Romano cheese correctly, it will stay good for 2-3 weeks in your fridge. Here’s how to do that.

Kosher salt, table salt, and fine grain sea salt are three of the best salts to use for baking. Here’s what makes them such a good choice.

Both Detroit-style and Chicago-style pizza are deep-dish pizza styles. But the similarities end there. Here are the differences.

Barilla and De Cecco are two of the biggest pasta producers in the world. But which of them has the better boxed pasta?

Keep baguette bread crispy on the outside and airy on the inside for up to 2-3 days after baking. Here’s how.

Filippo Berio is an aromatic, flavorful, and viscous extra virgin olive oil at a reasonable price. Here’s what else you need to know.

Looking to make a quick and easy pizza? You have two options, store-bought pizza dough or ready-made pizza crust. Here’s the pros and cons of each.

Blue cheese, unlike most moldy foods, is safe to eat. In fact, it can even be good for you in moderate quantities. Here’s why.

Yes, Detroit-style pizza is a rendition of Sicilian pizza, which comes from a snack called sfincione that Italian grandmothers make on New Year’s Eve.

Blue cheese is a moldy cheese traditionally made in Western Europe. It’s also significantly more expensive than other cheeses. Why is that the case?

Yes, you can boil pasta noodles in beef broth (or any other broth for that matter). But it makes less of a difference than most cooks think.

Made bitter carbonara? I’ve been there. Here are the most likely causes of bitterness in this traditional Roman pasta dish.

From nutritional facts to smoke point and uses, here’s what you should know about avocado oil (and how to use it as a cooking oil at home).

From the types of butter sold in grocery stores to how to pan-fry, bake with, and store butter. Come on over to learn more.

Here’s what to do when the taste of the sauce you bought in the grocery store didn’t really live up to what was said on the label.

Shredded cheese contains additives and preservatives that most cheese blocks don’t. Here’s what they are, so that you can decide for yourself.

My favorites are Parmigino-Reggiano, Grana Padano, and aged Asiago. Come over to check out why (and see my top three cheese picks).

Bronze-cut pasta is, by all criteria, higher quality than regular pasta. It has a golden color and a rougher, more porous texture. Here’s why.

Basso’s classic extra virgin olive oil is a balanced blend of high-quality oils from Italy, Spain, and Greece. My score is 7.5/10. Here’s why.

Salt can kill living yeast in a high enough concentration. Here’s the science, the facts, and how to get it right ever time you bake at home.

From naming pasta water in Italian to knowing how to cook pasta al dente, here are 10 words in Italian that every home cook needs to know.

The black spots on your tomato are a plant disease called anthracnose. Cut the infected areas out—and the rest of the tomato is safe to eat.

The answer is all about density. But it’s more complicated and intriguing than some of you may think. Come over and see why.

Those dried and tough white spots on the chicken in your freezer are called freezer burn. They’re safe to eat, but will come out dry and tasteless, no matter how you cook them.

Bacon gets slimy, smells sour, and turns grayish in color when it’s past its expiration date. Here’s what you need to know about bacon.

Yes, you can freeze store-bought pasta sauce. But it’s best to not do it in the glass jar it came with. Here’s what to do instead.

Pita bread is a yeast-leavened flatbread from Greece. It’s made with wheat flour, baker’s yeast, salt, and sugar.

Jarred pasta sauce sold at most grocery store is already cooked, so you only have to reheat it. But you can also make it better.

Traditionally, pita bread is made from wheat flour, baker’s yeast, water, salt, and sugar, which makes it vegan friendly. But there’s a caveat.

To tell if sausages have spoiled, use your senses. If you see any discoloration, smell and unpleasant odor, or feel stickiness, discard them.

Stored in a cool and dry place, canned tomatoes will remain safe to eat indefinitely. But they will lose their freshness and nutritional value over time.

They can cost as much as $8.99 a dozen at the grocery store. Many say the price is 100% worth it. Here’s what makes pastured eggs better.

You see this instruction on nearly every canned and packaged food. But what does it really mean? Here’s the best cool and dry storage spaces in most homes.

No, shortening is no the same as lard. One comes from vegetable oils, the other from pork fat. But you can still substitute one for the other. Here’s why.

Making soup can have a mixed effect on the nutritional value of vegetables. Water washes away some of the compounds while making others more digestible.

Your pasta carbonara came out runny and pooling in the plate? Here’s how to get this simple and delicious pasta dish right every single time.

Once opened, tomato paste in a tube will last for 7-8 weeks in the fridge. Here’s how to best use it (and a neat trick to make it last even longer).

The Monte Cristo is actually a variation of the Croque Monsieur sandwich. Here’s the differences between them (and how to make each at home).

If you opened a carton of yogurt and there was a watery substance on top, don’t worry. The yogurt is safe to eat. Here’s why.

Check out how to substitute plain yogurt for mayo. And learn about the best recipes where this healthier alternative works deliciously well.

Here’s where in Boston to find the staple spuckie sandwich. And my tried-and-tested recipe to make a spuckie at home.

This beer-battered fish recipe, three appetizers, and four drinks will awe friends and family at your fish fry.

Mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, Pecorino Romano, Ricotta, Provolone, Gorgonzola… How to pair them well?