MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN GRANDMA’S COUNTRY MASHED POTATOES MONDAY 11-21-16
1:31
Thanksgiving just wouldn't be Thanksgiving without mashed potatoes. And today we've got a doozy of a recipe for you.
Over the last week or so we've been sharing some of our best Thanksgiving recipes. Everything from the juiciest turkey to the most decadent desserts. But even with all of that, Thanksgiving just wouldn't be Thanksgiving without mashed potatoes. And if you're thinking, "I don't need a recipe for them," well, think again, because today we're sharing how my grandmother made them. She started by boiling some potatoes that were peeled and chunked up. And if you want, you can leave on the skin, to make them even more home-style. Once they were fork tender, she drained them really well. And a little tip that my grandmother shared with me was to put the potatoes back on the stove ... until all the water was cooked off. Then she added in some melted butter, buttermilk (that too was her secret) ... and, of course, a little salt and pepper. Now the only thing left to do is beat them. And we can do that with an electric mixer or, if you want, dig out a good old-fashioned potato masher like my grandmother did. Let me tell you these will be passed around the table over and over again … along with the gravy. You gotta go online and get the recipe for, "Grandma's Country Mashed Potatoes," so you'll be armed with my grandmother's secret recipe that until now, I never shared. I'm Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we've uncovered the "perfect" way for you to say … "OOH IT'S SO GOOD!!"
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN HOMEMADE CHOCOLATE CREAM PIE TUESDAY 11-22-16
1:23
Looking for a great way to finish your Thanksgiving feast? We’ve got it and is it ever creamy delicious.
We’re on our final few days before what I call the “Super Bowl of Food”, that being Thanksgiving, of course. I call it that since the whole day is centered around food. From the munchies that we nibble on while waiting for everyone to show up to all the desserts. And the one that’s always the first to go in our house is Patty’s homemade chocolate cream pie. It goes together like this. She starts out by combining some sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and salt in a sauce pan. Then she gradually stirs in some cold milk and brings it to a boil. Once it starts to thicken, she takes it off of the heat and stirs in some vanilla extract before pouring this into a pie crust that’s been baked-off. As for the crust, that can be a refrigerated one or one that you make from a secret family recipe. After topping this with some freshly whipped cream and a few chocolate curls, it doesn’t matter how stuffed you are, I bet you’ll find room for a slice, or even two. The recipe for Patty’s, “Homemade Chocolate Cream Pie,” is online now just in time to be the best dessert ever. I’m Howard, with Patty, in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found a “creamy chocolate way” for you to say … “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN CLASSIC PAN GRAVY WEDNESDAY 11-23-16
1:34
If you think gravy is one of the most important parts of Thanksgiving, like I do, then don't go anywhere.
We all know that Thanksgiving is tomorrow, and by now, your turkey should be thawing, and hopefully you’ve got a pretty good jump start on what side dishes and desserts you’ll be making. But what about the gravy? If you're not sure where to start on that one, no worries. Once our turkey is cooked, all we have to do is pour our pan drippings into a large measuring cup and skim off the fat that rises to the top. A gravy ladle works great for this. Now before discarding all the fat, we pour about a half a cup of it into a sauce pan and stir in the same amount of flour. This is what’s going to thicken up our gravy. Just keep an eye on it so it doesn't burn. While that's simmering, we add some chicken broth to the turkey drippings – just enough so we end up with about 4 cups. All that's left to do is stir in the flour mixture and let it simmer for a bit to thicken up. That's it. The perfect homemade gravy that’s ready to drizzle on all of your favorites. Everything from turkey and stuffing to, of course, the mashed potatoes. The recipe for, “Classic Pan Gravy,” as well as a whole collection of last-minute Thanksgiving Day recipes are on our website. I'm Howard, with Kelly, in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen wishing you and your family the best Thanksgiving ever. One filled with great food, health, happiness and of course lots of …“OOH IT'S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN PUMPKIN PIE SHOOTERS THURSDAY 11-24-16
1:25
We’re toasting to a Happy Thanksgiving. While you’re getting ready for the big feast, I have a last minute idea that’ll be very welcome.
Happy Thanksgiving. Whether you’re the one cooking today, or you’ll be simply enjoying the festivities, I want to share a last minute idea that is so good and easy it’s got a pretty good chance of becoming a new favorite. It’s a recipe for pumpkin pie shooters, which are as tempting before dinner as they are with dessert. All you have to do is put a cup of pumpkin pie filling in a blender along with some vanilla ice cream and a bit of half and half. Then give it a good mix, and once it’s smooth, it’s done. Now, if you want to take it over the top, maybe add in a splash of brandy, Irish liqueur, or cinnamon whiskey. You see, it tastes like the creamiest pumpkin pie in the form of a milkshake.
And when you serve these up topped with whipped cream and dusted with nutmeg, I know you’re going to be making a second batch before you know it. The recipe for what we call, “Pumpkin Pie Shooters,” is online now so you can enjoy it today, and right through the end of the year. And since it’s Thanksgiving, I want to thank you for welcoming us into your home every day and allowing us to carry on the tradition that our company’s founder, Art Ginsburg, started more than 30 years ago.
Art, we miss you, and we’re proud to carry on your legacy … a legacy based on …“OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN THANKSGIVING LEFTOVER POPPERS FRIDAY 11-25-16
1:21
If your Thanksgiving leftovers are looking sort of blah, it’s time for a leftover makeover. No worries, it’s so easy and you’ll still have plenty of time to go shopping.
I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving. No matter what you have on tap today, whether it be taking advantage of all the Black Friday deals or vegging out on the couch, we have a way to turn yesterday’s leftovers into a fun favorite that is way better than eating some plain old turkey sandwich.
For this, all we do is flatten a package of refrigerated buttermilk biscuits so they’re almost pie-crust thin. On top of each biscuit, we put a healthy spoonful of stuffing, or mashed potatoes, a bit of cranberry sauce and some chunked up turkey. Then we fold the dough over the filling and place it seam side down on a baking sheet. We’ll brush these with a beaten egg and into the oven they go until the filling is hot and the crust is golden. When these come out of the oven, your whole house will smell like Thanksgiving all over again. Maybe spoon some leftover gravy over each one before digging in. As always, you can find the recipe for our, “Thanksgiving Leftover Poppers,” online just in time to make today’s feast as memorable as yesterday’s. I’m Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found a “magical way” for you to say … “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN TACO SALAD MONDAY 11-28-16
1:31
Salad for dinner? You'll say yes once you see it's no ordinary one. It's coming up next.
It seems like we just got over Thanksgiving and now we have an endless list of what needs to be tackled before the holidays. So besides all the shopping and wrapping and cookie making, we still need to think about what to make for dinner every night. Well, that's where today's recipe fits in. It's quick, easy and definitely hassle-free so it fits perfectly this time of year. We start by browning some ground beef with a packet of taco seasoning until it's cooked through. Once it is, we’ll set that aside and while it cools we’ll get everything else ready. Now, after chopping some iceberg lettuce, we put about half of it in a large glass bowl (or we can even use a trifle dish if you have one) top it with some shredded cheddar and some canned kidney beans - just make sure you rinse and drain them. On top of that goes some cooked ground beef, and some chunked up tomatoes, along with a few sliced olives. After repeating the layers one more time, we finish it off with some crushed tortilla chips.
When it's time to serve, just drizzle on some sweet and spicy French dressing and go to town. It seems so simple, yet the combo of all the flavors makes this one of those dishes that everyone will be asking for over and over. I hope you'll go online to get the recipe for our "Taco Salad," so you can make a hearty dinner that is truly no-fuss. I'm Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found a way to give yourself a break and still have everyone saying… "OOH IT'S SO GOOD!!"
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN GOLDEN CORN PUDDING TUESDAY 11-29-16
1:31
The corn pudding we’re whipping up today is rumored to be quite similar to one that the late President Eisenhower loved. If so, you know it has to be good.
One of our favorite things we do here in the test kitchen is to go through our emails to see which recipes you like best, as well as to see if there are any specific recipes that you’d like us to come up with. One that many of you have asked for is a corn pudding that’ll go great with your Christmas ham or with any of your weeknight favorites. So here’s a creamy one that we just came up with. All we do is combine a can of cream style corn, a splash of milk, a can of whole kernel corn (that we’ve drained), a little sugar, and a couple of beaten eggs. To bind this together we toss in some butter crackers that we crushed mixed with a bit of corn starch. After it’s mixed, we pour it into a casserole dish and top it with more crushed crackers to give it crunch. Next we’ll pop it in the oven for 45 minutes or so until it sort of puffs up and the top gets all golden. This is one of those dishes that’s so quick to throw together you almost feel guilty when you start getting all the compliments. It’s that good. So here’s what I suggest, go on online and print out a copy of what we call, “Golden Corn Pudding,“ this way you’ll have it right at your fingertips. I’m Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found a “creamy and comforting way” for you to say … “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN NOTHING TO IT CHICKEN WEDNESDAY 11-30-16
1:33
When I show you how easy this chicken is to make, you’re going to say there’s nothing to it, because there’s not.
When it comes to making dinner during the week the last thing we want is some complicated recipe that leaves us with a full sink of dishes. So with that in mind, we came up with a fill-you-up meal that all you have to do is mix, pour and bake. There’s nothing to it. We start off by combining bottled parmesan dressing with some chicken broth, a bit of Dijon mustard and a little salt and pepper. We give that a good mix, before we toss in a whole cut up chicken. Once that’s coated, we place it in a baking dish. If you want you could make this with drumsticks or all white meat. That’s really that’s up to you. A little paprika goes on top before roasting it for about an hour. You could even put everything together the day before and just pop it in the oven when you walk in the door. And by the time you open the mail and make a salad, dinner’s done. Maybe serve it up with a veggie and some rice to soak up all that sauce and you’ve got a dinner that’s fit for a king. So do yourself a favor, go online and get the recipe for what we call, “Nothing to It Chicken.” It’s pretty obvious why we call it that. ‘Because there’s nothing to making it. I’m Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found an “easy breezy way” for you to say … “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN NONNA’S SHORTCUT RICOTTA COOKIES THURSDAY 12-01-16
1:18
It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Yup! Our Christmas Cookie Countdown starts today, and you won’t wanna miss it.
Every year at the beginning of December we kick off our annual online “Christmas Cookie Countdown”. It’s one of our favorite times of the year because we share a different cookie recipe with you every day from now until Christmas. So whether you’re planning on giving Christmas cookies as gifts, you want a tray around the house, or you’re just in search of the right cookies for Santa, we’ve got a collection that fits the bill. And since we always get a lot of requests from our viewers for cookie recipes that are super easy, we couldn’t wait to reveal our first cookie. It’s an old-world tasting cookie that couldn’t get any simpler since it starts with a cake mix combined with Ricotta cheese and a few basics. After these get baked, which takes only a few minutes, we finish them off with a 3-ingredient glaze before decorating them. And whether they’re for Santa or all the elves around the house, I know these will disappear quickly. The recipe for, “Nonna’s Shortcut Ricotta Cookies,” which is from our new Cake Mix & More Cookbook, is online now. And while you’re there, why not check out our book, because both of these make great holiday gifts. I’m Howard in the Mr. Food Test Kitchen, where today we found a “sweeter way” for you to say … “OOH IT’S SO GOOD!!”
MR. FOOD TEST KITCHEN CRANBERRY BLISS BREAD FRIDAY 12-02-16
1:33
You’ll experience pure bliss with one bite of the bread we’re making today, and is it ever worth sharing.