Making your own tomato sauce for pasta and pizza is really quite easy. You can use staples that you have on hand (canned tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, onion) and save money over costly commercial sauces. Here’s all you need to do:

1. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet. Add 2 minced cloves of garlic and cook until softened. Chop 1 (28-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes. Add the tomatoes (and their juice) and 2 tablespoons tomato paste to the oil. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

2. Use in any recipe that calls for tomato sauce or pasta sauce.

Variations
–Saute 1 chopped onion with the garlic for a more substantial sauce.
–For mushroom pasta sauce, first saute some sliced white or cremini mushrooms in the oil, then add the garlic.

Grandma knew that nothing beats a freshly baked muffin hot out of the oven. Crumbly but not dry, tender but not falling apart, she would serve warm-from-the-oven muffins for breakfast, brunch, or snack time.  Check out her tips for baking the best muffins, and then try them out with some of her great muffin recipes.

1. Most muffin recipes use the standard muffin method: mix your dry ingredients and the wet ingredients separately, then combine them. It’s really important not to overmix the batter when you combine the wet and dry ingredients—mix only until just combined and all the flour just becomes moistened. The batter should remain lumpy!  If you mix until the batter becomes smooth, your muffins will turn out tough. About twelve strokes with your mixing spoon should be sufficient.

2. Be creative in your mix-ins! If you have a favorite blueberry muffin recipe, you can try using blackberries, dried cranberries, or chopped apples in place of the usual blueberries.  Experiment with adding different citrus zests or flavored extracts to muffin batter, or add chopped pecans, macadamia nuts, or sunflower seeds.  There are endless possibilities! When you add mix-ins, toss them with a little bit of flour before quickly mixing them into the batter at the end (remember, not too many strokes when you do add them!). A light coating of flour prevents everything from settling to the bottom of your muffins while they’re baking, so your ingredients will remain evenly distributed throughout the muffin.

3. You can use any size of muffin pan with any muffin recipe. If you want to end up with mini or jumbo muffins instead of standard size muffins, note that mini muffin pans hold about 2 tablespoons of batter per cup, while jumbo muffin tins can hold up to 1 cup of batter. Remember to adjust baking time accordingly—the smaller the muffin, the faster it bakes. Expect to bake mini muffins for about 5 to 8 minutes less than regular muffins, and add 8 to 13 minutes to the standard muffin baking time when baking jumbo muffins.

4. Don’t fill the cups in your muffin tin more than 3/4 full of batter, or you’ll end up with very flat muffin tops.  To get nice domed tops, fill them about 2/3 full.  If you don’t have enough batter to fill up every muffin cup in your tin, put 2 to 3 tablespoons of water in the empty muffin cups to prevent the pan from warping.

5. To make cleanup a breeze, grease your muffin pan very well, and don’t forget to grease the top of your muffin tin, too—if any batter drips there or the baking muffins expand over the cups onto the top of the pan, it will make removing the muffins and cleaning the pan easier. Using paper muffin cups makes removing the muffins from the pan easy, and helps keep them fresh longer, too.

Use these tips when you try these easy recipes for fresh, homemade muffins: 
Blueberry Orange Muffins
Chocolate Chip Muffins
Cranberry Brunch Muffins
Gingerbread Pear Muffins
Ham & Swiss Corn Muffins

Click here for lots more muffins!

Did you know that you can substitute roasted fresh pumpkin for canned pumpkin puree in any recipe that calls for canned pumpkin?

To use fresh pumpkin in a recipe, choose a small (less than 3-pound) pumpkin. Do not use a jack o’lantern pumpkin—they aren’t meant to be consumed. Pumpkins labeled “sugar pumpkin” or “pie pumpkin” are a good choice.

Cut the pumpkin in half and scrape out all the seeds and stringy stuff. Place cut side down in a roasting pan or on a rimmed baking sheet and cover with foil. Bake in a 375°F oven until tender, anywhere from 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the size of the pumpkin. Let cool slightly, then scoop out the pumpkin flesh and transfer to a large bowl and mash with a potato masher. You can also puree the pumpkin in a blender.

Need to know how much pumpkin to cook? A 3-pound pumpkin will yield 2 1/2 to 3 cups of mashed or pureed cooked pumpkin. One 15- or 16-ounce can of pumpkin puree is about 1 3/4 cups.

If you have leftover pumpkin puree, freeze it in a rigid plastic freezer container to make pumpkin pie or pumpkin bread later.

Try using cooked fresh pumpkin in any of these recipes:

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars
Creamy Pumpkin Soup
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie
Gingersnap Pumpkin Pie
Celebration Pumpkin Cake
Pumpkin Chiffon Pie

Here are guidelines for buying and grilling chicken.

 Buying Chicken

How Long Will It Take?
The heat of your grill and the size of your chicken pieces will affect how long it takes to grill chicken, but here are some general guidelines:

Is It Done?
Here are tried-and-true ways to test for doneness:

Safety First

We all know that the best way to enjoy berries is straight off the plant, when the sweet and often puckery-sour fruit is sun-drenched and luscious. But berries are also delicious served with just a dollop of cream or in pies, tarts, muffins, cobblers, ice cream, jams and jellies.

Buying and Storing
Look for plump, firm, fragrant berries with full and even colors. Avoid any that are shriveled, bruised or moldy, and check the carton for moisture, a sign that the fruit may be overripe. The best places to find fresh berries are farmers’ markets and pick-your-own farms—locally grown fruit is more likely to be the sweetest and juiciest.

If refrigerated, most berries stay fresh for up to three days. To store, discard any moldy or mushy berries, then put the rest in a shallow dish lined with paper towels. Keep soft berries (like raspberries) on one layer to prevent crushing. Cover loosely with plastic wrap.

Preparing
Some people don’t wash berries because they’re so fragile that the fruit often falls apart under the pressure of water and loses its perfume. If you do want to wash berries, do it right before eating. Rinse under a light spray, then roll them gently onto a couple of layers of paper towels to absorb the excess liquid. Always wash strawberries before you remove their stems, to avoid trapping water inside the cavity.

Berry Good for You!
Berries generously supply vitamin C and varying amounts of iron, potassium, folic acid, vitamin A and fiber. They’re low in calories—about 80 per cup. Blackberries are thought to help heal mouth and throat infections, raspberries work as a diuretic and blueberries are said to fight harmful bacteria in the intestines and urinary tract.

• When baking, use the best-quality ingredients you can find. Accurately measure them in advance because the slightest variations can make a difference in the end result.

• Accurately measuring the batter and distributing it evenly between pans and cupcake cups are the key to ensure even baking. When filling cake pans, use a measuring cup to make sure that each pan has the same amount of batter. For cupcakes, use a measuring spoon or even an ice-cream scoop to drop the batter by even amounts.

• Preheat the oven to the correct temperature and don’t open the door until necessary—especially during the first half of the baking time—as this can cause cakes to sink in the middle.

• To see if most cakes and cupcakes are done, insert a toothpick into the center and pull it out; if the toothpick is clean, with no crumbs clinging to it, the cake is done. But not all cakes follow this rule, so read the recipe carefully—some will say that the cake is done earlier, when there are still moist crumbs clinging to the toothpick.

• Before frosting cakes and cupcakes, make sure they have cooled completely for the best results. If the frosting becomes just a little bit warm from the cake, it can begin to melt and lose its fluffiness. Try baking the cake the day before you plan to decorate and serve.

• Always use a wire rack when cooling cakes; if air can circulate all around the pan the bottom of the cake won’t get soggy.

Making your own white frosting is a snap and uses ingredients you probably have on hand.

Combine 4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar, 1/2 cup (1 stick) softened butter, 1 to 2 tablespoons milk and 1 teaspoon almond extract. Beat until blended. Start with 1 tablespoon milk and add enough additional to get the consistency of frosting you like. Makes enough frosting for 30 cupcakes or one 2-layer cake.

If you’re looking for a different flavor, instead of the almond extract try another extract (vanilla, mint, etc.), rum, instant coffee granules dissolved in a few tablespoons hot water, or lemon or orange juice and grated zest.

Before slicing, chopping or dicing a bell pepper, you need to remove the stem and seeds. Here’s how:

1. Cut the pepper in half lengthwise.

2. With a small paring knife, cut around the stem at the top; discard the stem.

3. Carefully cut away the white ribs on the inside of the pepper and brush away any stray seeds.

4. Cut each half into strips or small dice, or coarsely chop.

Marinades for beef, lamb, pork, chicken and seafood add more than just good taste. They also tenderize tougher cuts of meat and help seal in juices. In addition, they keep the food from sticking and protect tender food surfaces from intense heat when grilling. The essential ingredients of a marinade are:

1. Acid to tenderize: vinegar, citrus juice, tomatoes, wine or yogurt

2. Seasonings for flavor: herbs and spices, garlic, chilies, citrus zest

3. Oil to protect: olive oil, vegetable oil

To marinate, mix the acid, seasonings and oil together in a small bowl. Place a whole cut of meat or smaller pieces in a shallow dish. Brush the marinade over the whole piece of meat, turn and brush on the other side; if using smaller pieces, drizzle with the marinade, then toss the pieces with a spoon to coat. Cover with plastic wrap. If marinating longer than 1 hour, refrigerate. Turn the meat a few times during marinating.

Timing: The amount of time to marinate depends on the type of food and the size of the pieces. Dense, hearty meats like beef and lamb need a long time to absorb the marinade’s flavor and tenderize the meat. Lighter meats like poultry and pork don’t need as much time as red meat. Lighter, delicate fish and seafood need much less time. Small pieces will need less time than large pieces. Here are some guidelines to help you time it just right:

• Chicken, turkey, pork: 1 to 6 hours

• Fish, seafood: 30 to 60 minutes

• Vegetables: just a few minutes to coat

Safety First: Boil, Don’t  Spoil
Raw juices containing harmful bacterial will seep into marinades while the meat or poultry is soaking. To keep the dish safe, you should not baste the meat with raw marinade during the last 5 minutes of cooking or grilling.  And if you’d like to use leftover marinade as a sauce, you must cook the marinade to avoid any  bacterial contamination:  Simply transfer the leftover marinade to a small saucepan and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer for 3 minutes.

Shortcut Marinades
Doctor up bottled dressing or sauce for easy, in-a-flash marinades:

Italian Marinade: Add 2 chopped garlic cloves and a dash of hot pepper sauce to 1 cup Italian salad dressing.

BBQ Marinade: Chop 1 small onion and 2 cloves of garlic; sauté in a little oil. Stir into 1 cup storebought BBQ sauce. Add 2 tablespoons orange juice, a dash of hot pepper sauce, or 1 teaspoon grated lemon peel.

Secrets to Succulent Grilled Steak
Here’s the inside scoop on cooking the juiciest beef steaks:

1. For even cooking, remove the steaks from the refrigerator about 30 minutes before you’re ready to grill to let them come to room temperature.

2. To seal in juices and keep meat from sticking, seal a crust on the steaks first: Put the steaks on the grill, and then don’t disturb them until a crust forms and the meat easily releases from the grate.

3. Turn the steaks with a spatula and flat-bladed tongs, not a fork. Stabs and jabs make exit holes for juices.

4. Rest the meat a few minutes after cooking to let juices retreat back into the meat.

How Long?
The general rule of thumb when cooking steaks is 10 minutes (total time) per inch of thickness for medium-rare. So a 1-inch-thick steak would be medium-rare after 10 minutes grilling; 1 1/2-inch-thick steaks will take about 14 minutes.  However, no two grills are alike, so watch carefully.

Marinade Magic
Marinating beef is a great way to add flavor and tenderize tougher cuts of beef. Keep these points in mind when marinating:

1. Be sure to follow the recipe’s marinating time—you can overdo it and overpower the steak’s flavor.

2. Stop basting the steaks with the marinade the last 5 minutes of cooking to prevent bacterial contamination. If you want to serve the leftover marinade as a sauce, bring it to a boil in small saucepan, reduce the heat, and simmer for 3 minutes.

3. Freezing steaks for later? Douse them with a marinade first, transfer to heavy-duty plastic bags and then freeze. The meat will soak up the flavors as it thaws.

Grandma’s Best Grilled Steak Recipes
Grilled Asian Flank Steak
Grilled Steak with Bearnaise
Grilled Beef Kebabs

The delicate sweet scent of fresh basil is enticing to the senses. This member of the mint family has a warm, zesty flavor with a slight licorice accent. Most of us first tasted basil in Italian cooking, where it’s an essential ingredient in pesto, and often matched with tomatoes.

Buying Basil

Fresh basil is sold year-round, but you’ll probably pay less for a bunch (and get a much bigger bunch) in the summer. Choose basil that looks healthy—the leaves should not be limp or black around the edges.

Storing Basil

In the fridge: Fragile basil will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator. Store it either between damp paper towels in a plastic bag or stem-down in a jar of water with a plastic bag over the leaves.

In the freezer: Basil can be frozen with remarkably good results if you’re planning to use it cooked, not raw. Freezing basil darkens its color but doesn’t affect its taste. Rinse the leaves and thoroughly pat dry. Place in plastic freezer containers or bags and freeze for up to one year. There’s no need to thaw before using—just add to the food you’re cooking.

In oil: Finely chop the leaves and add enough olive oil to make a thick paste. Refrigerate or freeze in small quantities.

Cooking with Basil

You can use whole basil leaves (especially the smaller ones) or chop them with a knife or tear them with your hands (tearing instead of chopping helps to preserve the herb’s oils). When cooking with fresh basil, add it at the last minute—its fresh flavor disappears quickly when heated. One surefire technique is to add about half the amount called for in a recipe during the last stage of cooking; use the rest as a garnish.

Recipes that use fresh basil:
Classic Pesto with Linguine
Skillet Potatoes & Tomatoes
Three-Cheese Herb Pasta
Herb Buttermilk Biscuits
Herb-Crusted Tomatoes
Tomato & Cheese Salad
Herbed Vegetable Medley

Perfect pasta should be served al dente, which means tender, yet firm to the bite. It’s important to cook pasta in lots of fast-boiling water. Bring the water to a boil, add a tablespoon of salt and the pasta and stir once to prevent sticking.

Use the time indicated on the pasta package only as a guide, keeping in mind that those times are often longer than needed for true al dente pasta. So start testing the pasta for doneness well before the indicated time.

To test, remove a piece of pasta, run quickly under cold water, then bite into it. If it’s tender, but still firm, and there’s no hard sections left, it’s done. Then simply drain the pasta in a colandar and serve it quickly before it cools.

Herbed butter, sometimes called compound butter, is simply softened butter with herbs and other seasonings mixed in. A small pat of herbed butter adds a nice finishing touch to steaks, chops, vegetables, and baked potatoes and is also a great way to make an herb-y garlic bread.

Here’s how to mix up a log of herbed butter:

1. In order to mix in the herbs, the butter needs to be quite soft. To soften, simply take the butter out of the fridge and let it sit on the counter for half an hour. Don’t try to hurry things up by softening in the microwave: It takes almost no time for a stick of butter to go from cold and hard to melted and runny.

2. Place the softened butter in a bowl and mash with a fork.

3. Add minced fresh herbs and salt and pepper and mix with a wooden spoon until blended. You can use most any herb you like: Parsley, basil, chives, thyme and mint all make a delicious butter; or try a combination of two or three herbs. You can also add other seasonings such as minced garlic, minced shallots, a touch of red wine vinegar or grated lemon zest.

4. Place the butter on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Run your hands under cold water for a few minutes so they are cool to the touch (warm hands can melt the butter). Shape the butter into a log with your hands and then tightly wrap the plastic around the log, twisting the ends together. Refrigerate for at least half an hour or up to 3 or 4 days.

5. When ready to serve, simply unwrap the herbed butter and cut into thin pats. Rewrap and refrigerate any leftovers.

Herbed Garlic Bread: Mix minced fresh parsley, minced garlic, salt and pepper into softened butter. While the butter is still soft, spread it on the cut sides of a halved loaf of French or Italian  bread. Put the cut halves back together and wrap the loaf in foil. Bake in a 400F oven for 15 to 20 minutes.

So here’s how you store leftover rice: Make sure that your rice is cool enough to handle. Use your spatula to break up any clumps and separate the grains a little bit, then spoon the rice into a sealable plastic bag. Place in refrigerator overnight (or longer, up to 3 days). When you are ready to make your fried rice, take that bag out and while the bag is still sealed, use your hands to massage the rice a bit to break up any clumps. Ideally, each grain of rice should be separate.

If you are running out of time and don’t have the luxury of waiting overnight for the rice to dry out, here’s another method.  Take your freshly cooked rice and spread it out on a baking sheet to let it cool. Put the baking sheet into the refrigerator and let the rice chill, uncovered. This will help the rice dry out quicker. I’ve also done this in the freezer for emergency fried rice…and if you must know what emergency fried rice is, it has to do with two hungry children and only a bag of frozen peas and carrots in the freezer. Speaking of frozen vegetables, feel free to use them in your fried rice. I always have a pack of frozen mixed vegetables on hand and in a pinch, I can make an entire meal with leftover rice.

I love cooking brown rice not just because of the health benefits of brown rice versus white rice, but more because of the nutty taste and chewier texture. When you pair it with tofu, it makes the most excellent vegetarian meal in itself (just omit the oyster sauce). Of course, you can use the same recipe with white rice, no changes needed.

Fried Brown Rice with Tofu
Serves 4

2 tablespoons cooking oil (divided)
6 ounces firm tofu, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 stalks green onions, minced
1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup sliced fresh shitake mushrooms
2 eggs, beaten in a small bowl
4 cups previously cooked leftover rice, grains separated well
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
salt and pepper

1. Heat a large sauté pan or wok over high heat. When hot, add just 1 tablespoon of the cooking oil and swirl to coat. Add the tofu cubes to the pan in one layer. Cook for 1 minute until golden brown and then flip the tofu to the other side to cook another minute. Remove the tofu from the pan to a plate, keeping as much oil in the pan as possible.
2. Return the pan to the stove on medium-high heat. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. add the green onions, bell pepper and the mushrooms. Sauté until vegetables are fragrant and softened a bit, about 1 minute. Push the vegetables to the outer edge of the pan to clear the center. Pour the beaten eggs into the center and cook until the eggs begin to firm up. Bring the vegetables back to the center of the pan and mix well with the eggs.
3. Turn the heat to high and add the rice to the pan and use spatula to break up any clumps. Toss and mix very well with all of the ingredients. Add in the cooked tofu. Pour in the soy sauce, oyster sauce and the sesame oil. Mix thoroughly and spread the rice around the surface of the pan. Let the fried rice cook, undisturbed, for 30 seconds. Flip and spread all over the surface again. Let cook for 30 seconds. Repeat until each grain of the rice is heated through completely. Taste and season with salt, pepper and additional soy sauce if needed.

Jaden Hair is a food writer, television personality, and food photographer living in Tampa Bay, Florida, who specializes in global flavors. See more of her great recipes at www.steamykitchen.com and in the brand new Steamy Kitchen Cookbook that includes 120 easy Asian recipes and over 200 color photographs.