MAY 2023 | Culinary Lifestyle Round-Up
Salt, Aprons, Money Saving Tips, and MORE...!
Each month, I gather helpful and interesting tidbits relating to food, wine, kitchen tools or tips, articles or books, and music that help shape my culinary lifestyle. Use them as guides and inspiration. And, feel free to share some of your own.
I currently receive no compensation for any products or brands listed here. I simply enjoy sharing the information.
FOOD
Kosher and Sea Salt
Kosher Salt
This all-purpose salt comes in coarse or fine-grain options. Culinary professionals prefer to use Kosher salt because it is more cost-effective than sea salt, is additive free, and has a lighter, cleaner taste. It also adheres and spreads evenly, and dissolves quickly. It can be used in any application –
cooking (coarse or fine grain)
baking (fine grain)
brining (fine grain)
Kosher salt is lower in salinity than table salt, but the level of salinity can vary by brand. Morton’s Kosher salt provides approximately 1 1/2 times more salt flavor than Diamond Crystal brand. It is recommended to taste whatever brand of salt you are using beforehand and adjust accordingly in recipes.
The kosher salt brand I use most often is Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt.
Sea Salt
Sea salt is just that, salt that is left behind after evaporating seawater. The crystals can be fine, coarse, or flaky, and can range in color due to local minerals. When tasting sea salt, you’ll find that different varieties bring a variety of flavor characteristics to the table. Some may be more pungent, so less is required. Others may be lighter flavored and work well with more delicate foods.
Sea salt can be used in both cooking and baking, however, because of the flavor and texture variances, it is best used as a finishing salt.
Maldon (Maldon, England)
Sea Love Sea Salt Co. (Wrightsville Beach, NC)
Jacobsen Salt Co. (Netarts Bay, OR and Portland, OR)
WINE
Akarregi Txiki - Txakoli Rosado
Spring and summer are the height of Rose season, and wine stores a flush with various shades of pink and peach-colored choices.
I recently discovered this refreshing, easy-drinking, Spanish rose with classic strawberry and citrus flavors and a touch of minerality. It is a blend of Hondarribi Beltza and Hondarribi Zuri grapes - unfamiliar to me - grown in vineyards overlooking the Bay of Biscay. The under $20 price point is a nice bonus for such a tasty wine.
Pair it with spring and summer vegetables, light soups, salads and pasta, appetizers, fish and seafood, poultry, light to medium-flavored cheeses, and herbed dips and sauces.
HELPFUL KITCHEN TOOL
Aprons can be both a utility tool in the kitchen as well as a transformative costume. Think about what happens when putting one on. At a very basic level, an apron protects clothing. Yet, it can also provide a feeling of empowerment just as a uniform does for many professions, and maybe even lighten one’s mood.
Having a fun and useful apron is definitely part of a culinary lifestyle. And, with many styles available - from basic utility types to colorful, fancy threads - you can certainly find one to fit your personality. If you are like me, you may wish to have more than one (or four…)!
Here are two well-made and very useful basics I recommend to get you started. Keep your eye out at art fairs, makers’ markets, specialty food stores, and other kitchen retailers for more options.
Hedley & Bennett - Cross Back
ARTICLES
It’s nothing new that our food budgets continue to feel a pinch - or let’s get real, more like a large bite. Cooking at home is still one of the best ways to stretch those dollars. Here are a few money-saving ideas you may find helpful.
5 Money-Saving Tips for Cooking at Home by Anne Maloney, Washington Post, Sept 2022
MUSIC
Lighten your day! Take a listen, move to the beat, and maybe add this to your cooking or entertaining playlist.
She Just Wants to Dance - Keb Mo
Have a comment or thought to share about one of these items? I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below.
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