Here are a few items that caught our eye over the last month.
Flexible Skewers: Here to Save the Grilling Day?
Flexible skewers are showing up all over the place, but we first saw them in the June issue of Food & Wine. The idea is that by using a flexible skewer, you can maximize your grill space, making the skewer whatever shape works best for your grill and the other things you're cooking.
Being gadget geeks, we were interested in trying them out. But then, lo and behold, the most recent Cook's Illustrated arrived and the skewers are reviewed in their Equipment Corner. Their verdict? The skewers are hard to flip and the food tends to fall off. Plus, there were concerns about bacteria that we don't really want to get into. So our flexible skewer dreams are, perhaps, dashed.
If you want to give them a go, you can order a set of 4 on Amazon for $19.
Smoke it!
In the same issue, Food & Wine also featured the Pinzon box, designed by Tom Douglas, the owner of Seattle-based restaurant Serious Pie. The idea is that you fill the box with wood chips and set it on the grill grates, so that whatever you're grilling gets a wood-fired flavor. It's awfully pretty. We might have to get one for ourselves (available for $13 on Amazon.com).
After the jump: Salt Plates, Pig and Absinthe!
Would You Like a Little Meat With Your Salt?
Food Network mag features a product we've never seen before: a Himalayan salt plate.
The idea is that you set the plate (made of salt) directly on the grill, and your food seasons and cooks at the same time.
Has anyone used one? We're intrigued. It's on sale for $31 at SurLaTable.com.
Classy Napkins to have with your Absinthe
Leave it to Martha Stewart Living to turn up the classiest-looking paper towels we've ever seen by showcasing the MYdrap cotton napkins and placements that come on a role.
They're reusable and come in a variety of colors and patterns. A roll of 20 is $14.91 at this site.
The same issue highlights absinthe saucers -- adorable little plates on which absinthe drinkers would leave their tips. There's a wide variety of these saucers available on eBay.
Is This the Perfect Puff Pastry?
If you've made your own puff pastry, you're more adventurous in the kitchen than us. When we need puff pastry, we typically buy the Peppridge Farm variety. In their June issue, one Martha Stewart Living food editor touts DuFour Puff Pastry as "the best."
It doesn't seem to be available at our supermarket, but we're going to be sure to keep an eye out for it.
Have you used it? If so, we'd love to hear what you think.
Pig: King of the Southern Table
We first heard about author James Villas' new book, Pig: King of the Southern Table, in Fine Cooking.
Since then, we heard Villas on The Splendid Table and then Clay received the book as a gift from Zach's mom for his recent birthday.
The book is a collection of more than 300 recipes showing the myriad of ways Southern cooks have used the humble pig in their cuisine.
We just flipped open the book and the first recipe we turned to? Bacon Grease Hush Puppies. Yes, please!
What to do in a Bitters Shortage?
If you read many other food blogs or publications, you've no doubt heard about the recent bitters shortage, due to Angostura's temporarily ceasing production this spring. It is possible to make your own bitters, but really, who has quassia bark laying around?
Fine Cooking features a new brand of organic bitters from Urban Moonshine. Their bitters come in three flavors: original, citrus and maple. If your Angostura is running low, you can buy a sample pack of all 3 on Amazon.
Our Favorite Magazine Features This Month
There are two really stand-out features in the June issues of food magazines. First, we highly recommend that you check out Food & Wine's "Best New Grilling Essentials." It's a beautiful spread filled with nearly 20 mouthwatering dishes. The photography is beautiful and the dishes look amazing.
Martha Stewart Living has our other favorite magazine feature for June -- a really cool spread about tarts in which the pastries are sitting on "plates" that have been sewn into tablecloths. It's one of the most inventive food spreads we've seen in a long time.
