To me there are very few foods that can be either so good or so bad. The difference between a perfectly ripe, sultry sweet and tasty tree ripe pear and the meally slushiness of one that has been asked to ripen in the refrigerator is one of the food worlds greatest dichotomies. Here are a few tips on selecting a great pear.

As delicious as it is nutritious spaghetti squash is one of the true gems of the fall harvest. In this video tip of the day you will learn an easy way to prepare whole squash that yields an ingredient for a myriad of dishes. As simple as tossing with your favorite marinara sauce to scenting with ginger and asian flavors this versitile squash has a suble taste and unique texture that stands up to any number of preperations.

Whith a crisp yet tender texture, sweet flavor and brilliant color spaghetti squash is as fun to cook with as it is nutritious. The orange and ginger lend a fresh and alive flavor that is always welcome at the Thanksgiving table. Be sure to watch the video tip for step by step instruction on how to cook and remove the flesh from a whole squash.

Let’s face it we all take the simple things for granted and mashed potatoes are no exception. To get the most out of this side dish icon you need to apply a great trick to unlock evrything that an Idaho russet potato has to offer. In this tip of the day you will find out how to unlock the flavor from the part of the potato that often only finds its way to the compost pile.

The Purple Peruvian potato is an heirloom variety from the South American Andes’ highlands. It is said that the less modern farming practices of the region are the cause as a cross polenation of beets and red potatoes resulted in this colorful tuber. Unlike many brightly colored vegetables purple potatoes keep virtually all of their pigment after the roasting or boiling making them a great visual addition to any entree plate. In this episode of the Video Tip of the Day chef Jon Mortimer discusses this “gem of the Andes”.

It’s always great to have the tools of a professional chef. I was in Norway doing a pastry appreticeship in my young twenties when I was taught how to make gravlox using smoked sea salt. The delicate flavor of these naturally made salts gives a distant smoky appeal without overpowering the food that you are using to season with. How the salt is made and some different uses for it are all part of this tip of the day. To watch the video click on the picture of the salt above.

Garlic can be a very wonderful thing, but most people don’t want to have garlic breath for three days after enjoying it. One way to soften the effects of this is to roast the garlic. In this video tip of the day chef Jon Mortimer demonstrates this easy process and explains that the roasting process can allow the garlic to be a complimentary part of a dish without taking over the entire flavor profile. Click on the garlic bulbs to watch the video.

Anyone who’s looked at a honeycomb absolutely marvels at its structure. Typically, each piece of the comb is hexagonal (six-sided), with a precise 120-degree angle for each side. This can bend a bit when the comb is cut or processed, but the pattern is almost identical between one hexagon and the next. People are amazed at the precision with which bees build each section of the comb, but the size is important for the bees. They store food there, excrete honey into the comb and use each comb to raise young bees. You can find honeycomb at natural foods stores, some specialty markets, and sometimes at local farmer’s markets. It’s definitely worth trying. As a food for people, honeycomb does have some practical applications when still loaded with honey and one of my absolute favorites is to simply enjoy it with a piece of flavorful cheese. Just Click the honeycomb to watch the video.

Buddy Borne describes the creation of Bacstrom Imports as “one of those rare light bulb moments”. In 1981, having recently moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, he was preparing bouillabaisse for a party. Searching for the key ingredient, saffron, led Buddy to Oh’s Fine Foods, one of those great old world family stores with sacks filled with grains and legumes and spices. The owner told Buddy that he was also having trouble finding saffron. Instinctively, he turned to him and said, “I’ll see if I can find you some.”
 
Buddy …