Category Archives: Cooking

Here you’ll find everything about cooking that isn’t actually a recipe. Tips, techniques, gripes, whatever.

Update: oven hot spots and the BlueStar range

Posted on June 22, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

Reader Tyler Morgan shared an article on Why Your Oven Temperature Is Not Accurate (and How to Fix It). If you suspect your oven temperature is not what you set it at (perhaps because your bread/cakes are coming out underdone … Continue reading →

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Purefoods Filipino Corned Beef recipes

Posted on June 9, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

We found ourselves in possession of a large quantity of Purefoods Corned Beef with Juices. (Not an affiliate link; Amazon doesn’t carry it but Walmart does.) We were prompted to try this Filipino corned beef by this article by Kitchn … Continue reading →

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Uncle Son’s Blue Ribbon Watermelon Pickles

Posted on June 4, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

We recently came across a 30 year old packet of recipes from my mother in Dallas, and among them was Uncle Son’s Watermelon Pickles. This recipe was a perennial blue ribbon winner at the State Fair of Texas so finding … Continue reading →

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Ramps season is here!

Posted on April 30, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

Ramps season has arrived in upstate New York, and we’re fortunate to have a generous supply from our friends at Saratoga Wild Roots. Some will go into the ground in hopes of a future harvest, and then we’lll do a … Continue reading →

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Oscar’s Smokehouse Smoked Pork Chops

Posted on February 16, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

Oscar’s Smokehouse Smoked Pork Chops come from Warrensburg, a town 35 miles north of Saratoga Springs in the foothills of the Adirondacks. It’s a bit far to drive for a pack of meat (though the trip is beautiful on the … Continue reading →

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Food for Thought: Love Kari Cooking

Posted on January 18, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

I came across the Love Kari Cooking Youtube channel because  I wanted to make tamales as my first experience with Masienda artisanal masa. And, since the New Year’s celebration had passed with my potential tamale party participants scurrying to the … Continue reading →

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Food for Thought: Masa and Masienda

Posted on January 7, 2026 by Burnt My Fingers

I received quite a nice Christmas gift: a four-pack of artisanal masas from Masienda, accompanied by Masa*, a beautiful book by Masienda’s founder Jorge Gaviria. It being the holiday season, I immediately dove into the topic of tamales. My 1972 … Continue reading →

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Olivye Salad for New Years

Posted on December 31, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers

Kate at the Sunday Stack shared this very traditional Russian recipe for Olivye Salad which she says is always served at New Years Eve. We were charmed by the family quirks (why would you pat gherkins dry after chopping them?) … Continue reading →

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Indoor Grilling with BlueStar

Posted on December 30, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers

The Old Farmer’s Almanac correctly predicted a bitter cold winter for the Northeast, so I can see myself doing a lot of indoor grilling on the BlueStar over the next couple of months.  It helps that Tom Thibeault of Adirondack … Continue reading →

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Reverse sear prime rib? Not a fan.

Posted on December 26, 2025 by Burnt My Fingers

Yesterday as planned I used the reverse sear method to cook my 5 pound prime rib roast from Hannaford. The meat had been refrigerator aging under a Kosher salt rub since Monday. At 12:30 pm I took it out to … Continue reading →

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