Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook & America’s Test Kitchen Cooking School comes to our kitchens

The new Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook just might be the last cookbook I’ll ever need but since I’m a cookbook junkie, it won’t be last I’ll buy. After interviewing Jack Bishop (we went to Oddfellows), editorial director of Cook’s Illustrated and co-host of America’s Test Kitchen for the Dallas Morning News in January, I’ve been faithfully consulting the Cook’s Illustrated Cookbook on a weekly basis – salmon, chicken, cod, beef, veal, veggies… in short everything.

Gourmet Fast Food: Linguine with Lump Crab Meat, Asparagus & Avocado

Making a nice meal doesn’t always have to take a long time. This linguine recipe with lump crab meat, asparagus and avocado lets you create a meal in the time it takes to boil pasta. Now that’s what I call fast food.

Recipe featured on White Rock Lake Weekly

Till our next Happy Meal!

IttyBittyFoodies celebrates 1 year

Lollo & Pikelet

Happy Birthday IttyBittyFoodies! It’s time to have a Birthday Month Celebration! A year ago, I didn’t know if I could write again after taking a hiatus from writing when Lollo was born. Well here we are on our 60th post and nominated for Babble’s Top 100 Mom Food Blogs (please vote here under Cheryl Collett), named one of Dallas Best Blogs on Wherelocalseat.com and was featured on TinyDallas under Moms We Love.

Pikelet is about to turn 6 and Lollo is now 3.

Babble.com Top 100 Mom Food Blogs 2011 – VOTE for IttyBittyFoodies

I’m gushing a little. Maybe not as much as Sally Field in her famous Oscar “You like me” acceptance speech in the 1984 for her role as Norma Rae. I haven’t won anything but I am excited to announce that IttyBittyFoodies is in Babble’s nomination list for Top 100 Mom Food Blogs for 2011.

So please ‘LIKE’ me and vote by clicking on the link here. Just click on view ALPHABETICALLY and search for CHERYL COLLETT of IttyBittyFoodies.

Thank you for supporting IttyBittyFoodies and please share the site using the buttons below with likeminded & very cool (like you) parents.

My 2 year old cooks duck

Here is the easiest New Year’s Eve dinner party recipe - slow roasted duck legs with only 2 minutes of prep time. It’s so simple that my two year old Lollo actually makes it sans putting it in and taking it out of the oven of course. We like the Maple Leaf Farms brand which feature a meatier duck leg quarter but most duck legs will work with this recipe. The results are a wonderfully crisp skin wrapped over moist tender meat that’s almost like a confit. We use green peppercorns for its delicate taste especially for the kids and for the holidays we recommend you splurge and get some pink peppercorns too!  The kids love participating and are supremely proud that they cook duck regularly. This recipe is dedicated to my non-cook friend B.

Eating Pam the Clam – Manila Clams steamed in Shiner Bock

dinner in just a few minutes

I don’t know about your kids, but Pikelet & Lollo love eating food associated with characters in their favorite books – see the Turkey Lurkey Fruit Plate recipe here thanks to the Henny Penny story. Last night’s dinner was clams and bacon steamed in beer and my Itty Bitty Foodies were thrilled they were going to eat Pam the Clam from their Dr Seuss “Tooth Book“.

Thanksgiving idea – Turkey Lurkey Fruit plate

 

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Honeycrisp apples are in season now! A cross between a Macoun and Honeygold apple, we first discovered this tart and sweet crispy gem when we lived next door to Pike Place Market in Seattle, Washington.  The apples burst with flavor and Pikelet & Lollo  have aptly named their favorite breakfast apple, “The Big crunch!”

Jamie Oliver’s Pork Belly at home

Pork belly has been trendy for a quite some time with upmarket restaurants. I’ve had it recently at The French Room, Bijoux restaurant and Charlie Palmer at The Joule. So when I spotted it at the Whole Foods on Park Lane a few days ago, I immediately bought six lbs (cut up and packaged in 1lb packs).

If you’d ever wanted to try Chinese cooking at home, stay tuned…

I’ve just won the lottery! Not really but close!

When you happen to have octopus tentacles in the fridge…

Octopus tentacles - dinner and a new toy...

 

Yes folks. You read it right. Octopus tentacles are what Pikelet and Lollo chose from the seafood counter at Central Market today. Why not I thought. It would be fun. So what next?

What’s ‘Home Made’ at your home?

I’ve added a section called ‘Home Made’. It will document my blogging journey as I’m ‘making’ this blog at home as well as recipes and sometimes… disasters that I try at home with Pikelet & Lollo. I’d love to hear from readers what they’ve been cooking at home for their own itty bitty foodies.

So tell me… what did you have for dinner this week?