Smidgen

Honey is more than a sweetener in a jar, hiding in your pantry. On this episode of Smidgen, host Anne Milneck—chef and owner of Red Stick Spice Company —gives us four delicious ways to add honey to our cooking . This episode is to help celebrate pollinator week, a celebration of the buzzing beneficials that help flowers bloom and food grow. (Be sure to follow Red Stick Spice Company on Facebook an...

Who doesn't love brunch ? Whether you are spending time with friends (nibbling and sipping) or preparing dishes you rarely get to enjoy (like quiche or breakfast rolls) brunch is a delightful meal. And the best part? You don't have to go out for brunch! As soon as this weekend, you can make a memorable brunch that will wow. On this episode of Smidgen, host Anne Milneck —chef and owner of Red Stick...

Ina Garten is a cooking icon. Her show, The Barefoot Contessa , has been inspiring home cooks for just over twenty years. Her cookbooks are staples for many, and her knowledge of comfort food cooking; simple but elegant entertaining; and her attention to lovely décor details make her a go-to influencer. It's no wonder that so many love her and her approach to cooking. On this episode of Smidgen, h...

Click here to learn more about Culinary Madrid , the cooking (and eating!) travel experience with Anne Milneck and Red Stick Spice Company: Culinary Madrid You can learn to cook the flavors of Spain this Fall in Madrid, Spain. Join Anne and Lili for a six-day food, wine, and cultural experience. Where did this tour come from, how did Anne and Lili get the idea? On this episode of Smidgen, you'll l...

Click here to learn more about Culinary Madrid , the cooking (and eating!) travel experience with Anne Milneck and Red Stick Spice Company: Culinary Madrid Anne (Red Stick Spice Company owner and host of Smidgen) makes this cake for nearly every family gathering, and you can, too. The Tarta de Santiago has something for everyone according to Anne. Santiago translates to St. James, and this cake, n...

Click here to learn more about Culinary Madrid , the cooking (and eating!) travel experience with Anne Milneck and Red Stick Spice Company: Culinary Madrid Get to know sofrito —a dynamic base that gives a start to Spanish paella and many other Mediterranean dishes that can be made with ingredients that you probably have in your kitchen right now. Anne Milneck —owner of Red Stick Spice Company and...

Click here to learn more about Culinary Madrid , the cooking (and eating!) travel experience with Anne Milneck and Red Stick Spice Company: Culinary Madrid Tapas —delicious small plates—are a wonderful way to experience a variety of flavors, textures, temperatures, without being overwhelmed at mealtime. Tapas are a great way to try out many different dishes at once and a terrific way to entertain....

Thanksgiving is tomorrow! It's Wednesday my dudes. All the prep work will be oh so appreciated tomorrow, but today is about most folks' favorite part of the Thanksgiving meal: the side dishes. Our tasks today, 1 day until Thanksgiving, is to work on the Thanksgiving sides: Ciabatta Sausage Stuffing and Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes . Thanksgiving Side Dishes Do you call it dressing or stuffing ?...

Two days to go! It's Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Time to bake a sumptuous Pumpkin Cheesecake. This two-layer cheesecake is as gorgeous as it is beautiful.  And we don't want to hear anything about "cracked" cheesecakes—that's what the Cardamom Infused Whipped Cream is for. Pies to Make for Thanksgiving It's easy to get Thanksgiving dessert together when you start ahead. Today make Pumpkin Cheesec...

Three days until Thanksgiving , this is a biggie. Monday: Brine the Bird and whip up a delicious batch of Make Ahead Gravy . How to Brine a Thanksgiving Turkey Anne's favorite way to brine a Thanksgiving turkey is to dry brine the bird 3 days before Thanksgiving and store it open in the fridge. Use Red Stick Spice Company Dry Brine. Shop Dry Brine Blend here . If you want to learn more about other...

Happy 4 days until Thanksgiving. It's Sunday. Today: Shake and store a vinaigrette; cook your cranberry sauce; infuse a cardamom simple syrup . Hint: you'll use the simple syrup for whipped cream later on with an amazing pie we're going to make in a few days. Cranberry Sauce for Thanksgiving Make Ginger Pear Cranberry Sauce . You'll love how the ginger compliments the Fall pear and cranberries. It...

Happy 5 days until Thanksgiving. It's Saturday. Today: Prep pie crust and cookie dough . (Have you not heard about fresh cookies on Thanksgiving? It's a tradition at Anne's house. With the recipes ahead, you're going to want start this tradition for your family!) Pie Crust for Thanksgiving Use your food processor to make this Flaky Pie Crust recipe (one batch at a time!) The secret ingredient is v...

On Smidgen, we love to bring you new insight on your favorites. Adding new spices to your standbys can give new life and new perspectives to dishes you prepare all the time. Like tacos? Try them with new chiles for a whole new taste sensation. Like hot chocolate? Mix in this spice for a whole new sipping experience. Want more like this? In this season finale episode, Smidgen host Anne Milneck will...

You can't get more down to basics than olive oil. Don't let the familiarity of olive oil prevent you from finding new and intriguing ways to use (and enjoy!) this kitchen must-have. Besides all the glorious regions that produce a variety of olive oils, there is an array of flavored olive oils to sample and savor (Smidgen host Anne Milneck shares some suggestions for you to try—available from Red S...

We love sheet pans! Sheet pan suppers, sheet pans themselves—if it can be made on a sheet pan, we are here for it. Anne Milneck —host of Smidgen, chef/owner of Red Stick Spice Company , and unabashed sheet pan enthusiast—has four new* recipes for home cooks to try and enjoy. (*New? Maybe not. Anne explains how most sheet pan recipes are actually a combination of techniques. In any case, each recip...

The original food influencer? None other than Julia Child . Between hosting one of the most long-running cooking TV shows (really, we wouldn't have food TV without her) to bringing French cooking to the mainstream American kitchen, Julia Child made an impact. Julia Child's influence is back in a big way with HBO's new show Julia , reinvigorating fan's love for her and introducing a new generation...

Intuitive cook, Improv cook, Recipe cook—which type are you? What are each of these home cook types like, and how can knowing which type of home cook you are help you be a better cook ? In the over 300 cooking classes taught at Red Stick Spice Co., (and YES—Anne's counted them!) the instructors and staff have noticed some patterns… some styles… some types, if you will. Now, this is no criticism, i...

Your pantry is your secret weapon. In this season premiere episode of Smidgen, Anne Milneck shares 5 new pantry staples she is loving right now—each item is a gem you should discover and is chock full of meal inspiration. From a rich (adorably packaged) mayo to a protein-packed rice to a roasty toasty Ginger Garlic Toasted Sesame Oil (made just for Red Stick Spice Company!) plus others—you're goin...

Tea is tasted through an activity called cupping , where tea is sipped at various temperatures and is assessed for color, aroma, and finally taste. One aspect of experiencing tea in this way is having a particular vocabulary of vivid words to describe the way the tea looks, smells, and its flavor. That vocabulary comes from daily practice—which means lots and lots of trying tea. On this episode of...

A simple dredging of melted butter, a beautiful brick red spice blend, and an absolutely scorching hot cast iron skillet are all you need to make tempting blackened fish at home. (You'll also probably need to temporarily disable your home smoke alarm, but we'll get to that shortly.) The question comes up: is the blackening the seasoning or the cooking technique ? There's no one better to answer th...

Baking gluten-free is a bear, even for experienced bakers. A lot of the usual rules don't apply and gluten-free baking has tons of methods and practices that bakers need to know before they can achieve "GF" baking success. We get this episode's question from Connie , who knows her way around an oven; she simply had disaster after disaster trying to bake gluten-free. To help Connie out, Smidgen hos...

What do we bring? When there's a happy occasion like a new baby or a solemn passing like losing a loved one the time-honored tradition of bringing food to our friends and family is a tangible way to show our care and concern. However, there are lots of food handling practices that come into play when we're cooking for others. Our inspiration question comes from Terry (after experiencing the digita...

Salt is essential! Whether it's to enhance flavors or get necessary minerals into our diets, salt cannot be divorced from cooking. But should salt and pepper—often thought of going together—be split up? We're getting salty on this episode of Smidgen, with Anne heading off to the salt mine (so to speak.) JQ Dickenson Salt-Works has been producing salt in West Virginia (you read that right) for over...

We're taking on listener questions this season of Smidgen, and on this episode it's all about BRINE. Wet brine? Dry brine? What proteins can be brined? Our question comes from Caroline and to answer, Red Stick Spice Company store owner and Smidgen host Anne Milneck brings on Rhonda and Danny Titus of Road Toad Smokin' BBQ . Rhonda—known as the "Chicken Queen" is an award-winning griller and she sh...

How do you keep pizza dough from springing back when you're making pizza at home? We get our question from Mary, student of the Pizza Masterclass at Red Stick Spice Company . Mary was trying to stretch out her dough and it would not cooperate, instead the dough wanted to stay in a ball. Smidgen host Anne Milneck brings on pizza expert Cara Peterson of Go Eat Concepts and Rocca Pizzeria in Baton Ro...