Author Archive for Patty

Welcome Spring with Brand-New Menus from our Test Kitchen

Tuesday, March 20th, 2012

Patty Rosenthal Welcome Spring with Brand New Menus from our Test KitchenCrabmeat Stuffed Salmon RE  1   Welcome Spring with Brand New Menus from our Test KitchenIt’s the first day of Spring and that means we’re starting to see tulips poking their colorful heads out of the ground, chocolate Easter bunnies replacing all the St. Patty’s day stuff at the store, and I – for some crazy reason – start to cook differently at home. Alright, I’ll admit it may be a bit odd, especially this year when the weather around the country all winter was ridiculously warm.

It’s just something I do. It’s sort of my way of officially welcoming spring.

So good-bye, slow cooker (that will come out again in the summer when I want to keep the kitchen cool) and hello, freshness. This Crabmeat-Stuffed Salmon, today’s TV recipe, is my new favorite go-to quick and easy meal for healthy weeknight cooking. And you can bet I’m tucking away my cobbler and crisp recipes and digging out my favorite Lemon Cheese Bars and Coconut Pecan Parfait. As a matter of fact, let me share with you a few menus that my family will be celebrating the season with in the weeks to come.

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From the Test Kitchen: Cooking Secrets Meant to Be Shared

Wednesday, February 15th, 2012
Cheesy Easy Risotto RE From the Test Kitchen: Cooking Secrets Meant to Be Shared

My favorite secret ingredient is a must inthis dish...

Patty Rosenthal From the Test Kitchen: Cooking Secrets Meant to Be SharedWhen I was growing up I was taught that a secret is a secret and you never share it, pinky-swear.  When my best friend told me she had a crush on the boy down the street and made me triple-promise not to say anything to anyone, to this day I have never broken that promise.

But growing older I learned that it’s okay to share a secret once in awhile. When you get blamed for eating the last cookie and it was your brother who took the last cookie from the cookie jar, or who sipped the milk right out of the carton.

I run the Test Kitchen here at Mr. Food, and think it’s okay to share some of our kitchen secrets. Secrets like, how to tell if your baking powder is still fresh before you use it, so that you don’t have to throw out your cake when it doesn’t rise. Secrets like that are meant to be shared.

One ingredient that I feel is my secret weapon in a lot of what I cook has to be…

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My Favorite Winter Casserole Recipes

Thursday, January 19th, 2012

Patty Rosenthal My Favorite Winter Casserole RecipesClassic Scalloped Chicken RE My Favorite Winter Casserole RecipesIf you’re like me and most of my friends, no matter how much we like to cook, being responsible for dinner every night can become really overwhelming. On those occasions, I’ll turn to some of my favorite casseroles.

These one-pot wonders are so popular because they’re usually quick to throw together, which allows me more time to do some of the other things that I need to tend to as soon as I walk in the door. Now don’t get me wrong, they aren’t the quickest meal to cook in my dinner line-up, but since I can leave them in the oven or slow cooker, they’ve become my best friends.

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Fuss-Free New Year’s Eve Recipes

Tuesday, December 27th, 2011

Patty Rosenthal Fuss Free New Years Eve RecipesChampagne Dessert Cocktails RE Fuss Free New Years Eve RecipesWell, it’s getting close to the New Year and you’re beginning to start thinking how you’re going to eat healthier and lighter. But, before you do, remember, we still have one more holiday to celebrate before we ring in 2012.

New Year’s Eve parties are always a fun celebration whether we go out or stay home. The past couple of years my husband and I like to stay home and have a few friends over. Some of our favorite foods to serve are Party Stuffed Mushrooms, Almond Crusted Brie, Chilled Roasted Tenderloin and of course Rich Chocolate Mousse for dessert.

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My Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

Patty Rosenthal My Traditional Thanksgiving DinnerClassic Roast Turkey RE a My Traditional Thanksgiving DinnerEvery year I get the same question: What am I serving for Thanksgiving? I really think they expect me to say something bizarre and at times I feel like making up something really off-the-wall just to get their reaction.

The truth is, when it comes to the big bird day, I am a true traditionalist. I always host it at my house so I can make all my favorite recipes that I grew up with. I can assure you won’t find a chicken stuffed with a duck stuffed in a turkey. All you’ll find is a classic roasted turkey with pan dripping gravy, real mashed potatoes, traditional stuffing that my mom used to make, and lots of veggies. For me, the day just wouldn’t be special without roasted butternut squash just oozing with butter and brown sugar.

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Fun & Easy Drum Cake

Monday, October 17th, 2011

Patty Rosenthal Fun & Easy Drum CakeDrum Cake RE Fun & Easy Drum CakeAlright, I’ll admit it… I borrowed the idea.

A few months ago I was flipping through one of those fancy food magazines and saw a cake in the shape of a drum. It was adorable, but I also knew looking at the directions and the long list of ingredients that it was not designed to be easily replicated unless you were a trained pastry chef. Forget that!

I immediately knew this would be a perfect kids’ birthday cake, so I decided to make a much simpler version for a friend of mine’s son who was turning 7. What little boy wouldn’t want a birthday cake in the shape of a drum?

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That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles

Thursday, September 8th, 2011

Patty in kitchen OR 300x225 That’s the Way the Cookie CrumblesPatty Rosenthal That’s the Way the Cookie CrumblesIt was just another typical day in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen. Well, now that I’m thinking of it, there are no typical days in our Test Kitchen… icon smile That’s the Way the Cookie Crumbles

I wanted to share a little story that happened the other day when I was testing some new desserts for the website and our TV segment. I made a batch of chocolate chip cookie cups that I was going to  fill with various fillings.  The idea was that you could put just about anything in a cookie cup and it would taste good.

Anyway, the timer went off, I grabbed a pot holder and as I was taking the mini cookie cups out of the oven, the pan slipped out of my hand and and fell onto the oven door. Well, so much for that batch! And so I spent the next 20 minutes cleaning up my mess.

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