More Cakes and Curd

On June 10, 2021June 10, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Baking, Refrigerating, Topic3 Comments

Fruit curds dress up any celebration, for breakfast or dessert. Get the recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
I’ve always been a breakfast girl, regardless of the time of day. So when it’s time to celebrate an occasion like Twice as Tasty’s 5th birthday, there’s no reason to save the special treats for an evening dessert.

This post is prefaced “more” because I’ve already shared one of my favorite cakes and curd pairings: Gingerbread Pancakes with Berry Curd. I make this breakfast throughout the year, using fresh berries in summer and frozen ones in winter. But in spring and early summer, I switch up the flavors to use my most prolific early crop: rhubarb. The tangy flavor of rhubarb balances the richness of the egg yolks and butter in the curd. Its tang also pairs well with my favorite childhood pancakes, made light and bright by a scoop of yogurt.
Learn to make Rhubarb Curd and Yogurt Pancakes

Twice as Tasty Turns 5

On June 3, 2021June 2, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Cookbook, Event, Fermenting, Workshops9 Comments

It’s been 5 years since I began the Twice as Tasty blog, and what a journey it has been. What started as a fun hobby creating a series of recipes read by a handful of friends has led to a shift in my writing and editing business—and it’s growing every day.

Thanks for being part of the adventure. The more you read, the more I research ideas, share new recipes and techniques, and write on the blog and for other publications.
Read more about what’s new with Twice as Tasty

Flavorful Reductions

On May 27, 2021May 27, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Topic, UsingLeave a comment

Cooking a quick sauce or glaze in the same pan as your main ingredient soaks up concentrated flavor. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
As I wrap up my month of cookware testing, I’ve been stretching the limits of nonstick pans by using some of my favorite flavor-building techniques: browning, reducing, and glazing. Stainless steel and cast iron are the more typical materials for these techniques, because some of the point is to suck up the caramelized bits that stick to the pan—those bits that nonstick surfaces are designed to eliminate. But there’s a difference between burned-on food and fond, the caramelized particles left after browning. Even a good nonstick pan generates some of these intensely flavored bits.

It made sense to me to test these techniques in nonstick pans, since I never create them using the standard base ingredient: browned meat. By cooking a quick sauce or glaze in the same pan as your main ingredient, you can soak up that concentrated flavor—whether you started with meat, shrimp, mushrooms, or root vegetables. It really is all about the flavor.
Learn to make flavorful reductions and Mushroom Pan Sauce

Cooking Grains

On May 20, 2021May 20, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Topic, Using2 Comments

Most grains want a fun, flavorful addition, whether it’s stirred in or piled on top. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
Eggs may be the ideal test food for skillets, but grains put saucepans through their paces. Starchy foods like rice, oats, pearly barley, and pasta always tend to get sticky, but everything from type of pot to temperature to water-to-grain ratio can also make them stick or even burn onto the cooking pot. This can leave you not just with a gummy meal but also with a gummy mess to clean up.

So as I’m testing cookware this month, I’m cooking lots of grains. All of them want a fun, flavorful addition, whether it’s stirred in or piled on top, like this week’s new recipe.
Learn about cooking grains and Curried Sweet Potato and Mango

Cooking Eggs

On May 13, 2021March 14, 2022 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Ingredient, Using3 Comments

To put it simply: Testing cookware by cooking eggs is fun. Get cooked egg recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
I have to admit that I’m one of those people who holds onto cookware way too long. After pots are scratched, warped, and showing their age by letting even the simplest foods adhere to their surface, I continue to use them. Replacing cookware, especially a high-quality set, is expensive. So I’ve been excited to set out on a quest for the perfect cookware.

Eggs in many forms are ideal test recipes. They can be delicate yet prone to burning or sticking. They cook quickly, so they’re speedy, easy meals. This time of year, the chickens are laying prolifically. Most egg dishes don’t require a recipe, and many styles can be created just by cracking a fresh egg into a hot pan. But some call for a bit of technique, including endless variations on omelets.
Learn to make A Three-Egg Omelet and other cooked eggs

Quest for the Perfect Cookware

On May 6, 2021July 7, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Topic, UsingLeave a comment

Certain recipes can reveal the true nature of the pans in your cookware set. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
I’m on a cookware kick with The Spruce Eats. After spending a couple of months researching and testing pressure canners and canning supplies, I’ve moved on to everyday cookware. My focus has been entirely selfish: stackable cookware that fits into the one cabinet in my kitchen or packs neatly for our sailing adventures.

The results of my research into the best stackable cookware are up on The Spruce Eats. This month, I’m personally testing and reviewing several of my favorite sets. Those reviews will focus on the features and function of each set, which gives me the perfect opportunity to share some of the meals I’ll be testing here on Twice as Tasty.
Read more about cookware-revealing recipes

Home-Smoked Cheese

On April 29, 2021May 6, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Fermenting, Topic3 Comments

Upgrade mass-market cheese with a simple trick: smoke it. Get smoking recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
Did you make cheese with me this month? Maybe you couldn’t find the time or didn’t track down the supplies. Maybe you’re nervous about making that first batch without my personal help. Or maybe, like me, you eat way too much cheese to rely solely on a homemade supply. That last reason is why I began upgrading mass-market cheese with a simple trick: smoke it.

Home-smoked cheese can easily start with a store-bought block that’s affordable but one-dimensional in flavor. I typically buy store-brand cheese or even giant deli loaves for smoking. It takes just a couple of hours with minimal involvement to impress family and friends. I smoke many types of cheese (usually pairing them with pickles, of course) to serve at parties, gift at holidays, and keep in constant supply in the fridge.
Learn to make Cold-Smoked Cheese and other foods

Best Pressure Canners

On April 22, 2021October 11, 2022 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Topic8 Comments

Gardening season is here, and I have exciting news to share, so I’m interrupting this month of cheese posts to put canning on your radar. One of my goals for this year has been to start writing about food for places other than this blog, and I’ve become a regular contributor to The Spruce Eats. If you’re not familiar with the website, I suggest checking it out: It’s loaded with everything from recipes to videos to cooking tips to buying guides. I’m working with a great editor there and having a lot of fun writing for the site.

My first project was a roundup of the year’s best pressure canners, and I spent last month testing some of my favorites. The first reviews went live this week. My writing for The Spruce Eats focuses on products, so I’ll be sharing a little about what I canned and cooked here.
Read more about what I’ve been pressure canning

Ricotta: Fresh and Aged

On April 15, 2021April 15, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Fermenting, Topic8 Comments

Enjoy ricotta fresh, or salt and age it to take the flavor to a new level. Get ricotta recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
Ricotta didn’t interest me as a homemade cheese until I spotted an aged, salted version in Karen Solomon’s Jam It, Pickle It, Cure It. She described its texture and saltiness as resembling Romano but less complex. That, I thought, is a cheese I could love. Homemade Romano is a cultured cheese that is repeatedly molded, pressed, brined, and salted before it is aged 8–12 months. So a substitute that takes less than an hour of hands-on time and is ready in a week or so seemed perfect.

This aged cheese starts with ricotta made entirely from fresh milk. If you already make Lemon Cheese, the ricotta recipe will look familiar: it’s essentially the same cheese, although I tend to drain it for less time so that it’s soft and moist. Like the lemon version, it can be eaten fresh. I often make a double batch of ricotta, setting aside half to enjoy straightaway and aging the other half into the Romano replacement.

The only ingredient difference between Whole-Milk Ricotta and Lemon Cheese is the acid used to separate the curds from the whey. The ricotta recipe uses citric acid, a powder with a sour, neutral flavor rather than a lemony one. It’s usually easier to find than the cheese cultures in last week’s post; if you can’t buy it from a local natural-foods store, you can order it online from the sources I provided for cheese cultures.
Learn to make Whole-Milk Ricotta and Ricotta Salata

Soft Cheeses

On April 8, 2021April 15, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Fermenting, Topic1 Comment

Learn to make soft cheeses, and you have so many choices. Get soft cheese recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
I’ve always loved the tang of goat cheese, or chèvre. Unfortunately, goat milk is hard to find in my area. Local stores tend to carry one ultrapasteurized brand or a powdered version—neither of which works for cheese. Regulations for selling milk directly to individuals are so strict, convoluted, and enforced that it feels like a black market. I occasionally trade with friends who are milking goats (and have momma and babies willing to share), but mostly I gave up on making soft cheese.

That changed when I took a chance on fromage blanc. I’d written off this cow’s milk cheese as too mild for my tastes. But it has a surprising amount of tang and flavor. Best of all, the technique for soft cheeses really does work across milk types—cow or goat, reduced fat or whole milk or cream. It can be soft and spreadable or drained until it crumbles. It can be shaped or molded, and it absorbs flavors like herbs, zests, and spices. Learn to make soft cheeses, and you have so many choices. You can do it!
Learn to make Homemade Fromage Blanc and other soft cheeses