Cooking

Subcategories

Recipes

The Crab Cake Doctrine

Text by Jon Davies | Published March 1st, 2013 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

What makes a superior crab cake? For the truly crabby, only Blue Claw Crabs will do. Enjoy my award-winning crab cake recipe.
How Martha Stewart Ruined Christmas for Everyone

Text by Jon Davies | Published December 1st, 2012 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Keep it simple. The holiday meal is more about the people around the table than the food on the table.
Cape May summer cocktails you can make at home

Text by Jessica Keeler | Published July 1st, 2012 in Recipes • Taste of Cape May

We asked a few of our favorite watering holes for summer drink recipes to help you beat the heat.
Prawn Stars

Text by Jon Davies | Published June 1st, 2012 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Everybody loves shrimp. Put shrimp out at a party and see a Pavlovian reaction from your guests as they swarm en masse to the sweet pink crustaceans. Recipes for Cajun Bar-B-Que Shrimp, Bacon-Wrapped Shrimp, and Tarragon Shrimp.
Strawberries – The Fragrant Fruit

Text by Lorraine Kiefer | Published June 1st, 2012 in Garden Talk • Recipes

There is something about the fragrance of a field of strawberries with the warm June sun, the blue skies and butterflies floating lazily over the berries that stays in one’s memory.
Fried Chicken & Soul at the Chalfonte Hotel

Text by Karen Fox | Published May 1st, 2012 in Cape May Magazine • Chefs • Recipes

At the Chalfonte, Cape May’s oldest continuous operating hotel, the Magnolia Room’s southern menu has been a tradition for 101 years.
Taking the chaos out of the kitchen

Text by Jon Davies | Published November 1st, 2011 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

The real challenge to the party host is how to put out an excellent meal and not be chained to the kitchen.
Lily of the Kitchen

Text by Jon Davies | Published May 1st, 2011 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

The onion rarely stands alone on the plate. Rather, its flavor and texture enhances the food it accompanies. The different types of onions have their own unique flavor profiles, from pungent Spanish onions to sweet Vidalias. Recipes: Apple-Onion Soup, Spinach Salad with Shallot-Sherry Vinaigrette, Goat Cheese Leek and Tomato Tarts
The South Shall Fry Again

Text by Jon Davies | Published March 1st, 2011 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Fast food has taken away our desire to cook and our ability to distinguish good food from mediocre food. Proof was established when Zagat’s named KFC as America’s best fried chicken. Have our standards of taste fallen that far? It is time to dust off our skillets put down the McNuggets and get back to the kitchen. Try recipes for Fried Chicken, Collard Greens, and Buttermilk Biscuits
Dandelion – Really the bad boy on the block?

Text by Lorraine Kiefer | Published March 1st, 2011 in Garden Talk • Gardening • Recipes

Most folks would laugh if someone said they planted this common weed in their garden, yet today’s supermarkets buy vast amounts of dandelion from farmers who grow it for market.
Memorable Meals

Text by Jon Davies | Published February 1st, 2011 in Cooking • The Persnickety Chef

One of the biggest obstacles in preparing comfort foods is the persistence of memories. Food whose essence fills a room with tantalizing smells enveloping our olfactory senses and transporting us back to Grandma’s kitchen. Try Persnickety’s recipes for Chile Verde (video) and Chicken and Dumplings.
A Little Something on the Side

Text by Jon Davies | Published November 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Like a good character actor in movies, a tasty side dish can steal the spotlight from the main course. The primary item in a side dish is usually plain or non-descript in flavor. Cooks should think of those items as a blank canvas that they can enhance with a palette of flavors. Rice, potatoes, grains, [...]
Octobeer Fest

Text by Jon Davies | Published October 1st, 2010 in Cooking • Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

The love for Beer and Bratwurst immigrated to America with German immigrants and has become part of the national fabric. American cuisine owes a debt to Germany for introducing hot dogs, hamburgers and beer to us. Re-visit traditional favorites like Jaeger Schnitzel with braised green cabbage and spaetzle, and a Persnickety tribute to the marriage of food and beer – Cheese Soup.
F is For Football!

Text by Jon Davies | Published September 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

My Sundays in the fall revolve around three F’s – Football, Food and Friends. It is always the food that ties the other two together. As you get ready to kick-off your football season, try the recipes for Raging Red Beef Chili, Red Curry Chicken Wings and the Ultimate Patty-Melt.
Rubbing it in: Barbecue Rubs

Text by Jon Davies | Published August 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Barbecue is an event for all the senses. It can be smelled before it is tasted. As you get closer to the smoker you can hear the sizzle of dripping fat like rain on a hot tin roof. A peek inside reveals food that has honored its source and your salivary glands kick into overdrive. The taste would make Rhett Butler give a damn.
It Came From the Garden: Squash Blossoms

Text by Jon Davies | Published July 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Unlike the zombie green zucchini, squash blossoms are a golden orange color that looks like captured sunshine. Recipes: Spaghetti with Squash Blossoms, Squash Blossom Frittata, Crab Stuffed Squash Blossoms
Respect the Fish

Text by Jon Davies | Published June 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

Fish intimidates some cooks because it varies so much from species to species as to flavor profile and appropriate cooking techniques. Recipes: Pan-Seared Salmon with Bacon-Braised Lentils and Porcini Cream; Grilled Bluefish with Tomato Basil Salad and Roasted Garlic Polenta; or Pan-Seared Flounder with Lobster and Crimini Mushroom Cream Sauce.
Roasting Meat – A Juicy Subject

Text by Jon Davies | Published May 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

This month it is time to sink my teeth into a juicy subject. Roasting meat. Roasting meat is probably the most ancient form of cooking. Forest fires and slow deer combined to give our ancestors their first taste of roasted meat. In the 20th century roasting came to mean cooking in dry heat in an [...]
Eggstranoeus Information

Text by Jon Davies | Published April 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

The egg has often been called the perfect package. Delicate, yet sturdy. Encased in the porcelain white shell is a bundle of flavor and texture. No single food is as versatile as the egg. A staple for breakfast, it is also a key component in sweet and savory dishes. Recipes Avgolemeno, Coconut Custard Pie, and Angel Food Cake with Seven Minute Frosting
Culinary Hardware

Text by Jon Davies | Published March 1st, 2010 in Recipes • The Persnickety Chef

For specialty kitchen equipment, thinking outside the box can save you money. After your trip to the hardware store, head into the kitchen with these recipes for Crème Brûlée and Cedar-planked Salmon.