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Hosted by Barbara J Nosek
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Kitchen Talk – It’s four steps, 10 minutes, and the crowd goes wild. 1} Whisk two 8-oz cartons whipped cream cheese, 1/4 c powdered sugar, 1 t vanilla, and pour into a store-bought graham cracker crust. 2} Carefully spread up to two 12 oz cans {depending on pan depth} apricot filling. 3} Top with Cool Whip. 4} Refrigerate for a couple of hours. And Voila! Apricot Cream Pie from CS. 
Found a recipe for tahini-smothered charred cabbage. The topping was actually a sauce that also stirred in honey, lemon and
seasonings. Pretty good but I think it would be awesome with just tahini. A surprise was how good the cabbage was with the caramelization brought on by the charring. You can see that original recipe here, from Bon Appetit. I made the actor’s Mexican chocolate cookies featured in our 10.01.21 Salon and they are really good. I did half with the pepitas and half without, and actually liked the latter better. Second, I also added a bit of cinnamon, a la Mexican hot chocolate. And the last thing, you could leave out all the Mexi flavors and this would still be an excellent chocolate cookie.
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Shopping Finds – OK, how cool is this for your holiday get-togethers??? Food scented candles! Vanilla you might expect. But how about salted caramel, warm
So, I finally bought the trending Gochujang. Interesting. Sugar sweet, red pepper spicy, mustard tangy, vinegar puckery, all wrapped up with onion and garlic. Think I like it, tasted but yet to use it. Bottle says wings, bbq sauce, dips & marinades. Likely at your supermarket, and of course on Amazon.
This week’s featured item – Fabulous videos galore! Watch then in action – your fave chefs & food shows, movies too. You can also sort by best sellers and best rated. All right here in CS on our Chef, Food, Cooking DVDs page.
Featured Recipes 
Sweet & Sticky Caramel Hazelnut Rolls
Oh my, are those just all the right words or what. From Giada, the prep toasts the hazelnuts, ups the caramel ante with agave, and zings up the whole thing with cinnamon and nutmeg. And nice, it all starts with store-bought crescent rolls. From Food Network
All the usual tasty suspects from the classic salad cozy up to chicken for an easy cheesy dinner. Pan juices and reduced balsamic top it to perfection. From Food Network
Here’s another perfect way to start the day. And if you look at the comments below the linked recipe, you’ll see it’s eminently tweakable. Some added cooked potato, others mushrooms. Some made smaller versions. Some added more cheese on top. I added more cheese in the mix and used poblano instead of bell pepper. The prep even tweaked itself, calling for a baking dish in the directions, a cast iron skillet in the demo. From AllRecipes
What a fab idea. South of the border flavors meet a classic family dish in your muffin tin. Topped with a distant and savory cousin of ketchup. Easy too! Thinking this is one of those preps that can come to the table any time of day or night. From Tasty
Their Best Loved Soup & Stew Recipes
This icon of home and hearth has assembled an awesome roster of what most folks might consider the dual epitome of comfort foods. The soups and stews here come to the bowl as classic preps, ethnic specialties, and veggie transformations. Just some: baked potato soup, vegetarian gumbo, fast pho, sausage & white bean stew, green chile pork stew, seafood stew. From Better Homes & Gardens
Cocktail Hour Buzz 
Sundowner snacks, drinks, talk – whether for a crew, or for two, or just for you
♦ Lunchbox Snacks Kids Will Love So why is this in CHB? Well, looking at the stuff here, thinking we big kids should get in on the fun too. Some that seem an especially good fit for the snack table – Apple chips with honey-yogurt mint dip, Homemade cheddar cheese snack crackers, Cheesy pita chips, Crispy parm chickpeas, Smoked paprika popcorn, Pimento cheese puffs, Miniature corn muffins, Peanut butter and jelly cookie bars. From MyRecipes
♦ Books on wine pairing certainly have their place in our culinary realm, giving us
♦ Food & Wine again talks food {sort of} and beverage here, but overall it could not be more 180 from the item above. Say someone at your Thanksgiving gathering shuns alcohol, but you would like to offer something in the holiday spirit as you all enjoy pre-dinner drinks. Jones Brand sodas, famous for their wacko flavors, has you covered – with their Turkey & Gravy Soda. Yes, you read that right. And wait till you see some of their other “you put what in that bottle???” creations.
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from the same source. Hatch chilies also get in on the act, along with butter, veggies, aromatic seasonings and a full package of bacon. 
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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.
So, I started reading a food-themed novel and not too many pages in realized it sounded somewhat familiar. Aha! The author Joanne Fluke’s books had to be the basis for the 
This week’s featured CS-designed, Zazzle-crafted item
tips, then one for the classic Lorraine, variations, and then helpful resources. 
Need to peel tomatoes? Here’s what I did as an alternative to the dip in boiling water, wait to cool, method. Halved the matoes and placed them cut side down on a plate, covered with a paper towel, nuked for 1 min. Depending on their size may take less or more time. Cooled quick, peeled easy as you can see on the front one. 
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. 
Legendary rolls, breads breakfasts, soups, sandwiches, sauces, desserts and beverages, ethnic specialtes, even Bailey’s, Nutella and Chili’s Baby Back Ribs 
who do not like sprinkles. A glittery upgrade for simple peach ice cream and whipped cream A sparkly update on bagel and cream cheese. And as if donuts aren’t already fun enough, a step even beyond the chocolate frosting. Link goes to Amazon. 
Baked Potato. In a sausage! All can be ordered directly from them. I have to say I’ve never heard of these folks before, but their products are sold at 
Finally found something not only dilly and reasonable but also a brand name. 
Well look what Pillsbury did with its crescent rolls – transformed them into a circle of creamy, spicy goodness. Their 
consolidate your purchases, the link takes you to Amazon and the price there is the same as on the magazine’s site. 
all that goes into them: almond butter, coconut sugar {or brown, which I used}, egg, vanilla, and chocolate chips. 
on its own.
07.17.20, Food Tips for Our Times
05.13.20, Featured Recipe
04.03.20, My Week
07.17.20, Featured Recipe
right in your bread? And just 3 ingredients. In the original sojourn I used French vanilla, then played with some variations. The result is sweeter than bread, less sweet than cake, with a texture kind of between French bread and pound cake. Those subsequent variations – 
10.02.20, Featured Recipe
06.19.20, Featured Recipe 
snacks made with cheese. These minis sounded so good, and then tasted as good as they sounded. Pretty easy too. One of the others that’s now high up on our to-make list is the Filled Parmesan Baskets, and then maybe the Stuffed Artichoke Hearts. If you would like to see the other snacks and their recipe links, just click on the 11.20.20 above. All are from AllRecipes, and there’s demos too. 
09.18.20, Featured Recipe
10.09.20, Featured Recipe
these rich bars have been on celebratory tables in Canada. Rich, yeah! A chocolately, nutty, graham cracker crust, topped with amped up butter cream frosting, topped with a kind of ganache where the cream is replaced by butter. Indulgent! Even so, I played with an alternate, “NaNaNo Bars,” – a bit less complicated, a bit less crumbly, and a bit less sweet, maybe more creamy. You can see details of this version if you want in the 10.09.20 Salon. 
adding serious flavor to any cut of meat,” later noting it can also transform mashed potatoes. There’s a link to the source but it’s incorrect – use this instead, 
with an unexpected ingredient – butternut squash. This 
and found a good home for it in a grilled cheese & tomato sandwich. A really good home. 
favorite chef, Nick Stellino, and the only major difference between my version and that one is that his is a souffle and mine isn’t, and then there are some minor variations in seasoning amounts.