Cooking Technique: Caramelize

Vegetables like onions are pretty hard to eat raw (except for in salsa right?!) but are a really yummy when caramelized! 

Caramelizing is when you cook food until its sugars (or carbohydrates) turn brown. Go ahead, cook an onion on low heat for a little while and watch it turn brown and soft. This usually takes about 10-20 mins depending on your heat setting. 

Take a whiff and then a bite — we’re talking CARAMEL. If you missed it the first time, that’s SUGAR! and it’s a natural sweet flavor from a whole food that’s A-OK for your body!

Cooking Technique: Blanch

Some veggies, like broccoli or cauliflower just don’t taste great raw. 

If you want to take the raw edge of a veggie, you blanch it. Boil some water, then throw in your veggies for just a minute or so, and it brings out better color, flavor or texture. As soon as your veggies are a little cooked, you may want to SHOCK them – that’s when you stop the cooking by throwing them in ice water. Shocking your veggies let’s you store them and they won’t get mushy. Then you can reheat them later or eat them cold with our homemade Ranch Dressing! 

Cooking Technique: Acids

You know when you taste a soup or sauce and it’s just missing a little something but you can’t quite figure out what? There are times when seasoning more with more salt, pepper and herbs just isn't the answer. For those times, the missing ingredient is usually a dash of Acid. It’s an acidic ingredient such as: 

• vinegar
• wine
• citrus juice (lemon, lime, or orange)  

A few drops can go a long way for flavor!