Infrared ovens are a convenient, money saving, way to prepare all kinds of dishes. Not only that that, your food will be done much faster than if you had used a traditional oven. Here are just a few tips to help you get the most out of your Nuwave or similar infrared oven.

Depending on the recipe, you can cook your food right on the liner pan or rack. You can also use any cooking vessel you use in your regular oven. If you are baking cookies or rolls, it’s best to use a dark metal pan.

When cooking meat, anything greater than one inch thick should be turned halfway through its baking time to ensure the most even browning. All meat, poultry and seafood can go right from the freezer, into the oven.

Since most infrared ovens come with a one inch high and four inch high rack, you can ‘stack’ foods to make a complete meal, in one cooking session. As a basic rule, it is best to choose recipes that cook in the same amount of time. This will avoid over or under baking.

Convenience foods should be cooked on HI and typically take 25% less time to cook than baking instructions indicate.

I hope you take a minute to read my original post on infrared ovens. You’ll wonder how you ever survived without one!

A few days ago, I wrote about Play and Freeze Ice Cream Balls. I think these are SO neat, a great summertime activity for the kids.

After doing a bit more research, I stumbled upon the following information which I found quite helpful.

If you have smaller children who will be using the ice cream ball, you might want to go with the pint sized version. Why? The small ball weighs 7 pounds, when full. The mega (quart) size ball can weigh up to 10 pounds, when full.

It’s very important to remember that you need to leave at least an inch of ‘free space’ in the ball to allow for expansion.

You can use almost any type of cream in this ice cream ball. Lighter varieties, such as half and half, will take a few minutes longer to freeze and will produce a lighter ice cream.

For those of you who have never purchased rock salt, it is inexpensive and easy to find. I buy mine at grocery store. It is usually located in the spice and seasonings aisle.

The basic vanilla ice cream recipe, for the pint sized ice cream ball, is as follows:

• 1 pint heavy cream
• 1 ½ t. vanilla
• 1/3 cup plus 2 T. sugar

That’s all there is to it. What could be easier? You can, of course, add in whatever extras you’d like.

Photo by: Francis Bourgouin

I don’t know about you, but I absolutely LOVE fresh pineapple. My only issue, with it, has to do with how to cut it up.

It seems I’m not alone. ‘How to cut pineapple’ is one of the most popular Google searches relating to the fruit.

I’m sure that the majority of folks cut it up with their favorite kitchen knife. But, I think I’m going to take the plunge and pick up this Norpro Grip EZ Melon and Pineapple Cutter

It looks like it comes in quite handy and is even available in three nifty colors… green, yellow and tangerine.

(Ok, who else is humming the melody of ‘Green Tangerine, now? Please don’t tell me I’m the only one.)

As the name implies, this particular pineapple cutter would also work wonders for your favorite variety of melon, as well.

If you don’t want to purchase this tool, you can cut a pineapple as follows:

• Cut off the stalk
• Cut off the top & bottom (so pineapple will sit flat)
• Cut the skin off the sides, in strips
• Lay pineapple on it’s side and cut into slices
• Carefully core each slice and enjoy, enjoy, ENJOY!

Now you know how to cut a pineapple, But, don’t eat it all before you read my post on homemade pineapple ice cream.

Several months ago, I used and reviewed a popular crock pot liner on my personal cooking blog Merry’s kitchen.

Since it continues to be one of the most popular posts, I decided to do a bit of research to locate a similar (less-expensive) product.

Imagine my delight, when I found EZPANS Crock Pot Liners. They are much more affordable than the name brand I tried and look as though they will do the job just as well.

(Considering, today’s economy we need to save money whenever we can, right?)

Whether you use your slow cooker all the time or occasionally these EZPANS liners will save you tons of cleanup time, not to mention elbow grease. The best news is that they can be used in other size pans, as well.

The bags are constructed from nylon and can withstand temperatures up to 400°. They are available for, both, restaurant and in-home use.

It stands to reason that large restaurants could easily use fifty to a hundred EZPANS liners per day. This could be a real water saver, because there would obviously be fewer pans to wash.

I gave the name brand crock pot liners a five-star recommendation. The only reason I have not used them more is because of the price.

I’ve already placed my order for the EZPANS brand and suggest that you do the same. You’ll be surprised by the economical price. I sure was!

Happy slow cooking!

Spiral hams will grace thousands upon thousands of holiday tables, this year. It’s no secret that my family prefers ham over turkey, any day. Since these ‘porkers’ tend to be a rather expensive menu choice, it is important to prepare them properly.

You’d be surprised at how many people like to eat their spiral ham at room temperature or even cold. B-R-R-R-R-R! If that’s not the case, at your house, the best thing to do is to follow the heating instructions on the package.

If instructions aren’t available, it is recommended that you bake your spiral ham in a 300 degree oven for 12-15 minutes per pound. (A meat thermometer should read 140 degrees.)

If you will be glazing the ham, it should be returned to a 400 degree oven after glaze has been applied. For something different, try cranberry or honey mustard glaze. YUM! Remove ham after 10-15 minutes. Glaze should be hot and bubbly.

Allow it to set 10 additional minutes, before serving.

Glazing is a very simple way to ‘jazz up’ almost every type of meat. Do you have a favorite glaze recipe that you are willing to share with us? It’s time to say no to glaze-less ham!

Do you love Bundt cake? Unfortunately, I think I fall under the ‘I love it more than I should’ category. But, the good news is, I’m learning to accept my downfall and am actually thinking about starting a 12-Step program for Bundt Cake Junkies. I’ll keep you posted.

If you’ve never made this type of cake before, there is no need to feel intimidated. Even though the finished products sometimes look as though they took HOURS to make… they really don’t.

Follow these tips and you will be well on your way to making the perfect Bundt cake. The hardest part will be choosing one of many cool pans.

Because so many of the pans produce cakes with intricate details, it’s important to properly prepare them. Spray with a cooking spray such as Bakers Joy. (It has flour in it.) Next, using a pastry brush, distribute the spray evenly into all of the little crevices.

Say no to air bubbles! For best results, slowly pour batter into pan, from one spot, allowing it to flow naturally around entire area. Gently tap pan on counter, to release any remaining bubbles.
Fill the pan three quarters full and spread batter up the sides a bit, into the crevices. This will help to ensure that the cake turns out as detailed as it should be.

Cool cake for at least 10 minutes, before turning it out on a platter. Glaze as desired.

I never liked Brussels sprouts as a child. Honestly, I didn’t start eating them with any frequency till my late 20s. Now, what seems like a million years later… I can hardly get enough of them.

No one can specifically pinpoint when Brussels sprouts came to be. It has been suggested that it was 16th century Brussels Belgium, where they remained a local crop until WWI.

It’s interesting to note that almost all of the ‘little cabbage look-alikes’, purchased in the US, are grown in California. (Move over California raisins!)

Brussels sprouts are not only great as a side dish they make a tasty, not to mention nutritious, snack as well. They are high in Vitamin C and rich in fiber. (When you are dieting, fiber rich foods are a good choice because they are quite filling.)

Pregnant women should consider adding these yummy veggies to their menu, because they are high in folic acid. One cup contains approximately 94mgs.

Brussels sprouts are easy to prepare. Prior to cooking they should be soaked in a bowl of cold water, to remove and dirt or small bugs that might be hiding in the leaves. Discolored leaves should be removed.

My preferred method of cooking is simply boiling them in water, till tender. I add salt, pepper and a bit of garlic powder.

Uncooked sprouts can be refrigerated for roughly 10 days… even longer if stored in Debbie Meyer GreenBags.

Photo by: x-eyedblonde

Since I’m on the subject of comfort food, there’s no better time to talk about meatloaf. It is such a versatile dish; you can easily prepare it every day for a year and not make it the same way twice.

No matter what extra ingredients I add to my meatloaf, I always top it with three or four slices of bacon. I love the flavor it gives to the finished dish… not to mention the taste of the crunchy bacon itself.

Another thing I usually do is add shredded cheese to my meatloaf. I mix up the recipe and split it into two portions. I pat half into my pan and cover generously with cheese. (The variety I use depends on the other ingredients in the loaf.) Finally, I cover the cheese with the remaining meat mixture and top with bacon, as mentioned above. Delicious!

I’ve always added ketchup or some other ‘saucy’ ingredient to my meatloaf, as well… something I learned from my Mom. This makes it very moist and gives it the best flavor. I’ve used BBQ sauce, chunky pasta sauce and even Alfredo sauce, in place of the ketchup. Again, I choose this ingredient to compliment the rest of the recipe.

What special ingredients do you add to your meatloaf? I’d love to expand my ‘meatloaf horizons’.

Photo by: su-lin

Mashed potatoes are probably my favorite comfort food. I could eat them every night of the week and never get tired of them.

You can do a lot to’ jazz up’ plain mashed potatoes. You are really only limited by your creativity.

Hopefully, the following tips will help you in your quest to making the perfect squashed spuds. With food prices on the rise, potatoes are still a good value. When in doubt, grab your masher!

Three medium potatoes yield about 2 cups mashed. To cook potatoes quickly, dice into equal sized pieces. If you are using red skinned or Yukon Gold potatoes, leave the skins on for added flavor… YUM!

During the mashing process, don’t add any liquid to the potatoes until they have reached your preferred consistency. Adding the liquid actually ‘sets’ the potatoes. For a yummy sour cream like taste, use buttermilk in place of regular milk.

If you love potato bread, you can use leftover potatoes to make your own. (Read this post to learn more about my Zojirushi bread machine.) Mashed potatoes can be successfully frozen for up to nine months. Freeze in small portions, to make bread baking even easier.

Last but not least… if you will be cooking for a crowd, you can prepare your mashed potatoes early in the day and keep them warm in a crock pot. This works wonders at holiday meal time.

Photo by: K. Santos