Rachael Ray

Those of us familiar with the fabulousness that is tahini may know it as that rogue jar of peanut butter-ish spread that we pull out every few weeks to make hummus.  I promise you, though, that this staple of Middle Eastern and North African kitchens has a wealth of potential far beyond a run-of-the mill cracker spread. Tahini is an Omega-3 & Omega-6 rich paste made from ground sesame seeds that can often be found in the same area of the supermarket where olives, capers, and salad dressings are shelved.  Don’t be alarmed if you pick it up and it looks separated – that’s completely normal!  Just like natural peanut butter, the solids will separate from the oils over time.  What [...]...

As if lunch duty isn’t hard enough… Parents also have to master the art of the after school snack. And as most of us will attest, it’s harder than it sounds. Snacks have to be fast and easy because the clock is ticking. Homework, chores, sports and other activities are all demanding attention from your child (and probably you). They have to be nutritious because… Well, they just do. And they have to strike the right balance of fueling your kids through the rest of the afternoon without leaving them too full for dinner. For all those reasons, my No. 1 go-to after school snack for my son is yogurt. It’s healthy, filling (but not too filling), fast and easy (he can [...]...

My daughter turned 13 earlier this month and when a friend said to me “how is that possible that you have a teenager?” I looked in the mirror and was not at all surprised. I am so pleased by the person she is becoming - lovely, sensitive, funny, generous, kind. All of the work that my husband and I put in early on seems to paying off - with all three of our children. They are (usually!) fun to be around, pleasant company - I think at its simplest, that’s really the gist of parenting - raising kids who are good people. My newly teenaged daughter loves chocolate, but she also loves my lemon squares, and I don’t make them very [...]...

Now that the temperature is going up it is salad season. I try to eat salads all year long but there is something about putting on a pair of short short that makes me what to ban the bread and get on the fresh band wagon. So here is one of my favorite fresh, tasty and filling salad ideas that are just perfect for the season. And because Salmon is just as tasty served room temp this one could be great for entertaining out-of-doors! Salad Baby arugula, 1lb Mushrooms, 2-3 generous handfuls, sliced thinly Cippolini onions, 3-4, coarsely chopped 1 cucumber, quartered 1 container of cherry tomatoes, halved 1/2 head of garlic, minced Black cherry balsamic vinaigrette, 1 tbsp Olive Oil Salt and pepper to taste Watercress Sauce 1 large bunch of [...]...

I’ve been thinking deeply about grilling. I mean deeply! I am working on a new recipe for a milk-braised pork loin that I want to finish over hot coals, with some kind of milky glaze of a kind never yet invented. I was planning on writing about it here, with a recipe at the end, when I realized that a lot of people were asking me grilling questions, and none of them were about bizarre, complicated dishes. They wanted to know how to make burgers; how to make steaks; most of all, they wanted to know how not to screw up, especially with all their friends and family looking on. So I am calling an audible. I will get around [...]...

If time is a measure of success, than classic beauty looks that have lasted the ages are a great example. From a classic haircut to red nail polish, there are some beauty looks and products that work just as well in 2013 as they did in 1994. Here are some classic looks to take inspiration from today. Brooke Shield’s Bold Brows Bold brows have been having a moment on the catwalk for a few seasons now, and Brooke Shield’s was the original brow girl. We first got a glimpse of these famous beauties in Blue Lagoon, and while the ‘90s saw us all plucking everything we had, it looks like Brooke had the right idea all along. Grace Kelly’s Nude Nails Grace Kelly was [...]...

I love Spring and our kiddies love it even more then we since they can frolic to the heart’s content in the great outdoors.  So whether your child’s favorite activity is riding their bike, rolling in the grass, playing in the mud or enjoying a chocolate ice cream cone, when they come home smiling they also come home dirty from head to toe. Baths await, laundry looms and some tough stains remain. Here are simple ways to pre-treat some of spring’s most common stains that unite we moms coast to coast and child to child that will help save their clothes and our manicure. Firsts a few stain removal tips: o Treat ASAP o Never rub, blot unless otherwise noted o Test hidden area [...]...

Sometimes, you just don’t want a full on dish for dinner. Whilst tucking in to a meal works well most nights, there are some nights you want a little freedom. Perhaps a beer and some think that doesn’t require a fork and knife. Last Wednesday was an evening like that for my husband. He wanted to chill and munch on something right form the couch. Salmon was already on the cards, only, instead of doing my Asian preparation, which involved oyster sauce and sticky rice, I decided to make fish sticks. These were no ordinary fish sticks that were flour-dredged, egg-dipped, bread-crumbed and fried. These sticks had so much oomph that he didn’t even need ketch-up or hot sauce on [...]...

Lunch duty is a trial-and-error (and trial by fire) sort of thing. Sometimes you just need to try things and hope you learn something along the way. So in that spirit, here are seven highs (and lows) I learned last week over at LunchBoxBlues.com. Purchased crepes only sound like a good thing. You know the ones I’m talking about. The grocers sell packages of them in the produce section. Got me thinking how creative and delicious it would be to wrap a few of those around some fruit and pop them in a lunch container. Except they act like sponges when wrapped around anything moist. Which means you end up with a big pile of mess by lunch. If you want [...]...