Chef's Blog, Chef's Notes Plus

How it Works: Ice Cream Ingredients

The key to making perfect ice cream (with or without a recipe!) comes down to an understanding of the primary ingredients and what purpose they serve. The basic ingredients for ice cream are milk, cream, sugar, flavorings, and sometimes eggs. There are two basic types of ice cream. Custard ice […]

Chef's Blog, Chef's Notes Plus

How to Measure Half an Egg

At the CIA, each kitchen classroom is equipped with several scales for measuring ingredients, and we are firm believers in scales for home cooking and baking. Not only are weight measures more accurate, but they can make for quick and efficient measuring (not to mention less dirty dishes to clean […]

Chef's Blog, Chef's Notes Plus

How to Scramble Eggs

Scrambled eggs are one of the most popular ways to enjoy eggs, and whether they were fluffy, dry, runny, burned or underdone, we’ve had them every way they come. Luckily, cooking scrambled eggs is easy, with no need to overcomplicate with unusual techniques or lots of extra ingredients. In fact, […]

Chef's Notes Plus, Family Fun

How To: Scramble Eggs

A person’s favorite food is not necessarily the food a person eats every day. After all, donuts aren’t dinner…most of the time. But if you’re lucky, your favorite foods might be something that you can enjoy often and in a lot of different ways – like baked potatoes or scrambled […]

Salads, Side Dishes

Insalata di Riso (Rice Salad)

Serves 8 to 10 Make this with whole grains such as brown rice, spelt, or barley if you prefer. Increase the cooking time for these grains and cook them long enough to be tender to the bite.

Cakes

Italian Buttercream

Makes about 6 cups Italian buttercream starts with a very stable meringue, making it creamy and light, but also very sturdy. It is almost impossible to mess this recipe up, so don’t panic. If your buttercream appears melted, it means it’s too warm. Place the whole mixing bowl in the […]

Main Dishes, One-Dish Meals

Kimchi Fried Rice

Makes 4 servings Fried rice is the perfect quick-and-easy way to use leftover white rice (you can freeze it until you have enough for this dish!), and adding kimchi gives it an extra punch of flavor and just a touch of heat. For something a little extra savory, render about […]

Desserts

Lemon Curd

Makes about 1 1/2 cups A curd is a fruit juice-based custard. Though lemon is popular, you can replace the lemon juice in this recipe for lime juice, clementine juice, or any other slightly tart fruit juice.

Pantry

Maccheroni alla Chitarra

Makes 1 1/4 lb dough A chitarra is a special tool used to cut pasta. The sheet of fresh pasta is pushed against the wires in the chitarra frame to make long noodles.

Chef's Blog, Chef's Notes Plus

Make a Strata, Without a Recipe

One of the most surprisingly underrated foods is the strata. Made from bread, eggs, milk, and fillings, a strata is a cross between a savory bread pudding and a stuffing (or dressing). It’s an appropriate dish for any meal of the day, endlessly customizable, filling, simple to prepare, and best […]