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Hosted by Barbara J Nosek
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Kitchen Talk – In our 08.06.21 Salon we brought you a big list of Fresh Summer Appetizers from
MyRecipes, and made and displayed the mini corn cakes with salmon and dill creme fraiche. But . . . with a few “companions” this snack easily upgrades to lunch or brunch. Here we invited in potato salad, tomatoes, pickles and olives. Mmmmm. 
Vegan or vegetarian. Full-time? Some time? Give it time? Taste of Home has you covered with its Plant-Based Guide, mostly taking the mystery out of meat substitutes but with lots of links to other information. If you kick diets to the curb, this is 100% good news. An Oreo Cafe opened last month in Rutherford NJ, where the iconic cookies go wild, and we can only assume more places in the country will also soon be serving countless calories-be-darned twists and turns.
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Shopping Finds – Oh this is good, and a National Bestseller, “The School of Essential Ingredients
.” And those ingredients are almost like characters, showing us not only how to appeal to all our senses but also, as the books says, to “live in our senses.” And as the human characters come to life one by one, we discover 
something else – the varying roles food and cooking and sharing may play within each person’s own individual world. A cover quote says it best: “A delicious, meltingly lovely hymn to food and friendship.” Multiple formats, 4 1/2 stars on Amazon. 
Well how how handy is this. 
Frozen nuggets of crushed ginger, ready to be popped out as needed whenever the fresh stuff isn’t on hand. May not be a one-for-one sub for the actual root, but the fragrance as it melts into hot butter or oil tells you ginger is in the house.
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted item – See our NEW o’clocks. We have designs for lovers of pizza, wine, candy, beer, burgers, coffee, tea, cheese, chocolate, cupcakes, pie, and ice cream. See them on our CS t-shirt page and CS foodie mug page.
Featured Recipes 
Jean-Philippe Ruzé is a first class French guide and keto chef that I am honored to call friend. He regularly posts dishes on facebook that tempt you to reach right into the screen, and a recent one
was such fun I wanted to bring it to you here. Chaffles! Cheese * Waffles = Chaffles. Here’s his recipe to make two: mix an egg with 50 g shredded mozzarella, salt, pepper and some parsley. Divide the preparation into 2 and bake in the waffle iron {Alexa says 50 g is just under 2 oz or about 1/2 cup}. He tops these with butter cooked eggs on a slice of emmental, sprinkled with a pinch of tarragon, salt & pepper You can also tap into his awesome preps at the Instagram link above. From Jean-Philippe
Anything that promises 5 min prep time is a magnet for us. And this recipe can probably live up to it with an ingredients list composed of cooked chicken, canned goods, jarred salsa and shredded cheese. Some nice spices go in there too, all topped with a broth-infused cornmeal crust. {Oops, that crust could stretch the prep time by a couple of minutes.} I’m also thinking this could be good in large individual ramekins. From Food Network
Slow Cooker Pineapple Habanero Pulled Chicken
Those same folks check in with another chicken prep, this one though considerably higher on the “thermometer.” And in case the 1-2 habaneros don’t tingle your tongue enough, there’s also black pepper and hot sauce in the mix. Thank your culinary stars for the pineapple, sour cream and lime juice. Lots of other good stuff in {and on} there too. From Food Network.
Tomato & Bacon Flatbread with Greens
Well this is quite the colorful plate-ful. Ready-made pizza dough means an easy start and the rest moves along pretty smoothly too. A super flavorful vinaigrette seasons the dough and then waits in the wings while the flatbread goes through an initial baking and then back in the oven with the tomatoes, bacon and cheese. Then the mixed baby greens take their turn with the remaining vinaigrette and Voila! ready to enjoy. From Real Simple
Sweet Lemon Desserts You Can Make All Year Long
Cheesecakes and crumb cakes and pound cakes, oh my. And more. Pies, and bars, and cookies. And more. From Southern Living
Cocktail Hour Buzz 
Sundowner snacks, drinks, talk – whether for a crew, or for two, or just for you
♦ Topo Chico? Has this hot topic made its way to your doorstep yet? The short take is it’s a mineral water from Mexico, but the fact is it has quite a backstory. It involves a legend, history, geography, health claims, drink ideas, name origin, and hangover buzz, prevention as well as cure {alternatives
♦ Yeah, we do tend to feature Yearwood creations here a bit, but mercy Trisha just does so much that’s fun, so much that’s tasty. The latter goes into overdrive in her Charleston Cheese Dip, where cheese x 3 meets bacon, scallions and a touch of spice, all creamy-ed up with mayo. I’m in!
♦ A recent episode of “Chopped” on Food Network was themed on “hangry,” though a specific application which is to say hangovers. While as always ingredients abounded, both inside and outside the baskets, these are the ones that both contestants and judges seemed to think best address the issue: eggs, avocados, broth, cheese, noodles, hydrating fruits like watermelon, any kind of bread or crackers, anything creamy whether sweet or savory. For what it’s worth.
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Shopping Finds 
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted item
On the Table 
prep because of the quick dip in the egg/cream mixture and then into the pan. Those who may prefer the more custardy version could certainly let it sit in the drink a while longer. No Nutella? Do what I did and mix melted chocolate chips with cashew butter {or pb or almond butter}. Btw you could make at least two and maybe more given the amount of egg & cream. From Tasty.
culinary bounty.
were new to me, and a little tour on google revealed they’re generally formed from cream cheese or frosting and cake or cookie crumbs, dipped or rolled in other goodies. All no-bake. And they’re fun, the round shape ready to become sports balls, funny heads, bling, and in fact star pastry chef Buddy Valastro turned them into pretty eyeballs. And – no surprise – 
And now how about a shortcut? If you aren’t planning anything fancy with the balls, just pat the mixture into a pan and use the chocolate chips to make a ganache frosting, as seen here. Like the richest ever brownie. 
Some are fun, some pretty, some downright appetizing. Note that you can find a specific food design – hamburger, pizza, ice cream, etc. – by entering it after “balloons” in the search window on the Amazon page. Many multi-packs too of food groupings, like the one shown here. 
We hear more and more that shelters are are so overcrowded as a result of the pandemic. Is there room in your home and heart for a shelter dog{or cat}? If so, spread the word to others. 
as good as they look. While the demo shows that the skin was left on, I did remove the skin and would say no harm done. From Food Network.
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Love this stuff but was curious about other uses. 
to see if they made companion pieces too and Voila! But not just more stuff from Prepara but other makers with other items in similar cool designs. Shown are just two of the many possibilities. 
The Kitchen, and the link takes you to the full recipe. But I put the sauce in the spotlight because once you see it you’ll know immediately that this tasty blend can go a whole lot of places. Here, we actually used it as salad dressing. Note that it is quite zesty, and if you want could tame it down with less of the hot stuff or cool it down with ranch and/or sour cream. From Food Network.
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted item
Take a look right 
Manual & Cookbook
frostings sneak in a bit of spirit, though alternatives are provided. Scroll down to the dessert section on their 
ago. Set in small town Midwest, it tells the tale of three strangers that become bonded over each one’s special circumstances, along with a cast of supporting neighbors that bring the ups and downs into full colorful context. In 
or cupboard, but what we do know is that the new 
tips, then one for the classic Lorraine, variations, and then helpful resources. 
warm the hearts of all Cs-ers. 
alternative.” And yep, the cream sauce prep is there too. 
Shopping Finds
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted item
they look good, but we do have ways to make our own, even if they aren’t quite the same showpieces.
awesome addition to the snack table. 
restaurants nationwide. Now I have no connection to them, but good golly miss molly, just look at this 
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted items
Salon}. But its versatility carries it all over the hours.
much classic lasagna ingredients. It calls for ground turkey, but notes the original used ground beef.
lunch or dinner.
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