I was planning to make a Pumpkin Mousse for Thanksgiving. My recipe says to fold the whipped cream into the pumpkin mixture. What does it mean to 'fold' something, and when do you use this technique?--Laurel In cooking, folding is a mixing technique that is used to gently combine ingredients where a more aggressive method would cause one... Read more →

I like to make homemade stocks and soups. Sometimes there is a thick layer of fat floating on the surface after they are made. What is the best way to remove this?--Karen Depending on the amount of time and energy you have, there are several ways to remove the fat. One method is to use a ladle to skim it off. To do this, submerge the... Read more →

My wife makes home made bread and we love it, but she can't seem to get it to rise enough. This is regular dough bread. She lets it rise once then forms it in the pans and lets it rise again, but it doesn't raise enough to suit us. What can we do? There are a number of things your wife can try, or check, that might help. First, be sure... Read more →

I have a problem with Yorkshire pudding that I hope you can help. My recipe is: 1 cup all purpose flour 3/4 cup cold homogenized milk and 4 eggs I put 1/8th of an inch of extra virgin olive oil in the muffin pans, heat the oil up just to the smoking temp then add the chilled batter and bake it for 25-30 minutes. I bake it at 425... Read more →

When roasting a turkey, what temperature should it be cooked to and what is the best way to measure the temperature.--Brenda Ideally, the meat on the breast of a turkey should be roasted to 165°F (74°C) to be at its most tender. However the leg and thigh need to be cooked slightly higher, to between 175°F (80°C) and 180°F (82°C... Read more →

Every time I try to make a Beurre Blanc, it separates into a greasy mess. What is happening, and how can I prevent it? --Meegan A Beurre Blanc is a sauce made by reducing a mixture of wine, vinegar and shallots. Butter is whisked into this to form a sauce about the consistency of heavy cream. Other acids and flavors can be... Read more →

I love to bake home-made cakes, and I always sift my dry ingredients together three times before adding them into the mixer. I do this so that I won't have any lumps and so that I am certain the cake will be well mixed. My mother insists that "over sifting" will make the cake dry and that she has read this in several publications... Read more →

Why do recipes for pastry dough tell you to refrigerate it for a half hour before using?--Ashlan There are three reasons for chilling pastry dough before proceeding. First, and most important, is that during the cutting in of the fat, usually butter or lard, and mixing of the dough, the fat has had a chance to soften. If you were to... Read more →

What is the best way to remove the skin from garlic?-- J.M. There are a number of ways to remove the skin from garlic. To start, break as many cloves of garlic as you need from the head. If the central stalk on the head of garlic is stiff, then you can usually just twist and pull it out, making it easy to break off the cloves. Otherwise... Read more →

What does it mean when a recipe says to blanch something like beans?-- Janice Blanching is the process of rapidly heating a food, usually fruit or vegetables, briefly in boiling water. This might be done to prevent discoloration, to enhance existing color, or to help to remove the skin, as with tomatoes or peaches. The intent is not to... Read more →