Perfecting the Apple in your Apple Pie | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

As fall quickly approaches, so do the varieties and plethora of apples at our local markets!

Here is a quick tip for prepping your apples resulting in a delicious pie guaranteed to gather your friends and family around The Table Together in no time!

There are two types of apple pies:

1. Pies whose apples are peeled and cooked before added to the pie shell.
2. Pies whose apples are peeled and added raw to the pie shell.

If you choose to add raw apples to your pie shell, which I personally do, it’s critical that you thinly slice them so they do not steam as they bake.  Steam puffs the dough up creating an unpleasant air-pocket between the fruit and crust.

As far as what apples to bake with, I always use a combination of Granny Smith and either Honeycrisp (when I can find them) or Pink Lady. 

Now with that, let’s get to work and make some pies!

For tips on rolling out perfect pie dough, visit my blog post from Monday, September 7. For a terrific apple pie and pie dough recipe, visit the “recipe” tab at thetabletogether.com.

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

Quickly Drying Salad Greens | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

We all know that washing our salad greens is the first step to enjoying a delicious green salad. However, now we have wet leafy greens…what to do!!!

If you don’t have a salad spinner, which are incredible by the way, consider adding your greens to a clean dry kitchen towel, securing the edges with your hands, and gently shaking to release excess water. If using a large quantity of greens, work in batches to not bruise them.

And with that, we have fresh salad greens ready for tossing!

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together…and delicious salads of course!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

Pronto Whipping Cream by Hand | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

When looking to make a quick whipping cream by hand – let’s say your hand mixer is already in use or you want to impress your guests – here is a quick way to whip up a batch without the electricity!

Place a metal bowl in the freezer with a whisk and allow them to get really cold. When ready, add the heavy whipping cream and whisk as fast as you can until soft peaks form. Add 1 tablespoon (give or take) of powdered sugar and vanilla extract (if using) and whisk again till medium – stiff peaks form.

At this point, you deserve two dollops of whipping cream for the effort. Don’t let me stop you!

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

It's as easy as Pie! Perfectly Slicing Cake (or pie) | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

With all the summer birthdays and festivities, it’s certain either you or someone you know will be on cake slicing duty! It may seem easy slicing cake for a table full of hungry guests, but there is an art to slicing cake like a pro!

• Knife: First and foremost, always use a long cake knife that will slice through the cake in one slice. This will ensure a straight and smooth line.
• Wet Paper Towel: Secondly, always have a wet paper towel on hand to clean the knife after each slice.  This will help keep each cut smooth and clean.
• Cake Server: Have a cake server (usually triangular in shape) that can easily slide under the slice of cake perfectly transferring from the cake stand to dessert plate.
• Technique: And last but not least, when you slice cake, slice straight down and slide the knife out (toward you) vs. lifting up. Lifting pulls all the crumbs with it resulting in a “messy” slice.

I don’t mean to be fussy here as, well, cake is cake, but with these tips, you can easily and perfectly slice and serve your dinner guests.  After all, finishing on a sweet note is one thing, but finishing with a “sweet” slice is frosting on top (pun intended!).

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

Easily Crumbing Goat Cheese | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

The next time you add crumbled goat cheese to your menu, pop it in the freezer for 20 minutes! This way, the cheese easily crumbles and doesn’t leave a creamy residue on your fingers.

Now how is that for genius?

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

Come to a Boil Faster by Lidding your Pot | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

They say, “a watched pot will never boil,” and quite frankly that is true because in order to see the water there probably isn’t a lid on it! Right? Ok, so this may seem obvious but it constantly surprises me with how impatient people are when waiting for water to boil. One simple and effective way to bring water – or any liquid for that matter (see “side note” below) – to a quick boil is simply by putting a lid on it! Your pot or pan doesn’t have a lid? Foil, a baking sheet or even a large sauté pan will do just as well! Just keep in mind that when removing the lid, it is hot so act with caution!

So whatever you want to simmer or boil, tonight is the night to put this new information to test!

As a side note, you should never cover hot oil or alcohol…let that come to the proper temperature naturally with a little patience.

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together, and to getting dinner on the table faster of course!!!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!

Properly Preparing Fennel | Tuesday's Tip of the Day!

For those that don’t have much experience cooking with or eating fennel, it can look a little intimidating.  So, where do you begin? After understanding a few quick tips on how to properly shop for, purchase, store and cut fennel, you can, and may enjoy, finding ways to incorporate more fennel into your diet! So here is the skinny…

Shopping:

When shopping for fennel, the first thing I look for are that the fronds (the leafy green part at the top of the stalk) look bright green and free of blemishes or spotting. Feel it, smell it, heck even taste it – if no one is looking – before placing it in your basket. Secondly, the actual fennel bulb itself – the part you will be eating – should be white without any bruising, cuts or blemishes. Give it a gentle squeeze making sure it is solid without much resistance.

Preparing:

When preparing your fennel, follow these steps:

• Step 1:
  • Remove the stalk by cutting just above where they attach to the bulb.
    
• Step 2:
  • Reserve the fennel fronds for a beautiful garnish. Finding ways to bring the ingredient from inside to finishing touches (i.e. garnishing with its leaves) is a great way to fully represent an ingredient.
    
• Step 3:
  • Cut the fennel bulb in half from top to bottom.
    

• Step 4:
  • Remove the core and stem by cutting a triangle in the bottom.
• Step 5:
  • Depending on your desired purpose, quickly and efficiently thinly slice or chop each half as they will discolor due to oxidation. The most common use for fennel is sautéing, pureeing into a soup or roasting.
    

Now that you know how to shop for and prepare fennel, let’s hit the store! We have some shopping to do.

Cheers to starting a new tradition around The Table Together!

Sincerely,

Tiffany Lewis

Founder and true believer in the power of bringing people around The Table Together!