Beyond Tasty

On April 7, 2023May 10, 2024 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Topic, UsingLeave a comment

I’m excited to announce that my writing endeavors have been expanding to include several new-to-me publications—and going beyond featuring recipes, cooking techniques, and kitchen tools.

When I started this food blog in 2016, I was primarily working as a freelance editor with a few writing projects for some of my editing clients. After I published my cookbook The Complete Guide to Pickling in 2020, I began writing more pieces for other publications. With the launch of my Twice as Tasty column in the Flathead Beacon in 2021, I continued to spend less time editing and more time writing. In recent months, I’ve begun to work with an even wider range of publications.

You can now find my writing and photography on Kitchn, Taste of Home, and Health.com, even as I continue to write for The Spruce Eats and my weekly Flathead Beacon column.
Learn more about my latest projects

Best Gifts for Foodies

On December 21, 2022December 20, 2022 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Baking, Grilling, Topic, UsingLeave a comment

When I was asked to come up with some categories of gifts for foodies—and ideas to fill them—I didn’t hesitate in saying yes. My work for The Spruce Eats has given me many chances to suggest kitchen-focused gift ideas based on the tools I use every day in my own kitchen. This product roundup let me explore further ideas for specific types of foodies, from cocktail geeks to gardeners.

The piece has just gone live, in time for your last-minute holiday shopping or to keep in mind for upcoming birthdays and graduations. The ideas go beyond tools for the kitchen to include spice blends, infused syrups and oils, lunch kits, and food and beverage subscriptions and gift packs.
Learn choosing gifts for foodies

Kitchen Favorites: Garlic Rocker

On December 5, 2022November 19, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Tools, Topic, UsingLeave a comment

When I was asked to test an array of garlic presses last year, I hadn’t expected to keep any for my own kitchen. I grow and use piles of garlic; I’m just comfortable rock-chopping it for Sourdough Garlic Knots, slicing it for Spanish Shrimp in Garlic Oil, and roasting and squeezing it onto everything. When I owned a garlic press, it just took up space in my utensil drawer, sitting unused far too long before I gave it away.

Then, when I’d finished testing garlic presses, the look, feel, and easy use of the Joseph Joseph Garlic Rocker made it hard to give up. So I tucked it into my utensil drawer, determined to make it useful enough to justify its position in my tiny kitchen. And I’ve done just that, as I share in my latest piece for The Spruce Eats.
Learn about choosing and using garlic rockers and presses

Cranberries and Garlic

On November 19, 2021November 19, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Ingredient, Using3 Comments

Here are three articles that feature two of my wintertime favorites: cranberries and garlic. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
I have three articles to share this week that feature two of my wintertime favorites: cranberries and garlic. They include some family history, some reasons to eat both of these superfoods, and a couple of delicious recipes. You’ll find inspiration for your holiday table and potential items to add to your wish list or gift to your favorite chef.
Learn to make Spinach Salad with Cranberry Sauce Dressing and Immunity-Boosting Garlic Soup

Arugula

On November 4, 2021November 3, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Ingredient, Using4 Comments

Find out how I fell for arugula in my first piece for The Green Room. Learn more at TwiceasTasty.com.
I’m excited to share my first piece for The Green Room, one that’s all about the arugula. I grow my own arugula all summer, and even now a self-seeded fall crop is doing its best to hang on in my cold frame. But not everyone has the time or space to grow their own greens. Fortunately, fresh arugula has been easier to buy year-round than when I first discovered this spicy green—as I explain in my story.

That’s partly thanks to companies like Fifth Season Fresh, which publishes The Green Room and is working toward a more sustainable global food system. Although its products are currently only sold in a trio of states, recipes that use them and loads of other fresh produce are at your fingertips for your next meal.
Learn to use arugula and make Penne with Wilted Arugula

Curtido

On October 28, 2021December 27, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Cookbook, Fermenting, Refrigerating, Topic, UsingLeave a comment

Can you believe that just 1 year ago I announced the release of my cookbook, The Complete Guide to Pickling? More than 6,000 copies have sold over the last year, and I’ve received such amazing feedback from readers. I’m particularly thrilled that I can continue to share some of my favorite recipes from the 125-strong collection. Thanks to Clean Plates, you can now learn more about—and how to make—my Cultured Curtido (Cabbage Slaw) recipe.
Learn to make fermented and quick curtido

Cooking Fall Meals

On October 14, 2021November 19, 2023 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Tools, Topic, Using1 Comment

Several of my projects for The Spruce Eats have gone live in recent days. Even though I tested and researched these pieces earlier this year, the timing of their release works quite well: just in time for cooking up autumn’s last bites.

Of the two cookware sets that I reviewed, one has moved permanently into my kitchen and become our daily-use pots and pans. For the roundup, I dug deeper into the original author’s top picks, answered several common questions about slow cookers and pressure cookers, and interviewed Elizabeth Chorney-Booth, co-author of Best of Bridge: The Family Slow Cooker, for tips on choosing a slow cooker—and what to put in it.
Read more about cooking fall meals

Last Bites

On October 7, 2021October 7, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Topic, Using2 Comments

A portion of my end-of-season harvest lands in my favorite fresh meals. Get the recipes at TwiceasTasty.com.
It’s that time: Time to savor the last fresh bites from the garden. With the first new moon of October, I begin closely watching the forecasted nighttime temperatures. One clear night is all it takes to zap the remaining outdoor vegetables and threaten even the greenhouse goodies. Even though local weather stations recorded 79°F on Tuesday, I could be frantically harvesting before a potential freeze tomorrow night.

Fall’s weather swings are always unexpected, and every year I try—and fail—to time each plant’s final harvest just right. Instead of bemoaning the last round of beans that froze on the vine, I look instead to the boxes of produce all over my little cabin, ripening and waiting to be eaten and preserved.
Read more about enjoying the garden’s last bites

Preserving Onions

On September 30, 2021September 30, 2021 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Cookbook, Refrigerating, Topic, Using1 Comment

Until I wrote the The Complete Guide to Pickling, I rarely pickled onions on their own. I dropped slices into other pickle jars, from refrigerator zucchini to canned bread-and-butter cucumbers to fermented kimchi. They weren’t just garnish and always ended up on sandwiches or in breakfast potatoes. But I rarely devoted pantry or fridge space to jars of pickled onions.

Once I started creating just such onion-focused recipes for the cookbook, I couldn’t stop. There were so many fun variations, flavors, and uses. Now I’m simply making the book’s recipes for my own enjoyment, and if you open my fridge today—you’ll find plenty of onion pickles.
Read more about preserving onions and learn to make Apple-Sweetened Yellow Onions

Kitchen Favorites: Cookware and Canning Cookbooks

On September 23, 2021November 4, 2022 By Julie Laing | Twice As TastyIn Canning, Topic, Using1 Comment

I’m excited to share two pieces I worked on earlier this year that have made it live on The Spruce Eats: one on stackable cookware and one on canning books. The topics may seem to have little in common, but both articles feature favorites in my personal kitchen and will hopefully help you in choosing tools and resources.
Read more about cookware and canning books