In This Issue
	Weekly Specials In Search of the Better Berry How to Bake Easy Focaccia Food and Family Tips Stop the Burning: How to Clarify Butter

In Search of the Better Berry

We love cranberries. We use them fresh and dried in breads, muffins, cookies, and pies. (Try spiking your favorite apple pie with a handful of cranberries.) But dry cranberries tend to get . . . well, dry and we always suspected that the processors pumped a lot of sugar into them. So we went searching for a better berry and found one-superior to anything else that we have tried. Click here to learn more. »

How to Bake Easy Focaccia

This is just about as easy as it gets for some really good homemade focaccia. It doesn't take a lot of time and it's a great project to tackle with the kids. Heres How »

Food and Family Tips

Eat with Your Kids Eating with your kids makes for better kids. Listen to this: "Adolescents who ate with their families at least five times a week were less likely to be depressed or use drugs than teens who ate with their parents only three times per week. The former also had better peer relationships and were more motivated at school." So said Dr. Blake Bowden of the Cincinnati Children's Hospital (as quoted in Family Circle magazine, February 1, 1997). Think what eating with our children every day might do. Teaching Kids to Cook A mother emailed us telling us how pleased she was that her college-aged son enjoyed baking. Another mother emailed recently and said that she was home schooling her children and was going to teach them to bake bread as part of their education. Kids enjoy working with their mom--and dad--in the kitchen. Here's some tips for teaching children to cook. 1. Allow plenty of time. Neither you nor your kids will enjoy the experience if you're fighting the clock. It takes twice as long to bake with kids--it's just worth it. 2. Teach good hygiene habits. Teach them to wash their hands often and to clean and disinfect the counters. Help them use clean sponges and dishtowels. See the whole article... »

Stop the Burning: How to Clarify Butter

When sautéing in butter, foods brown quicker because of the milk solids in the butter. To prevent this, clarify your butter before sautéing. Bring the butter to a simmer over low heat and set aside to allow the foam to rise. Skim the foam off and gently pour the remaining clear butter off the top of the milk solids. Clarifying the butter will make it easier to fry foods without burning. And clarified butter will last longer than dairy butter. Contributed by Chef Kevin Wagner of www.cooking- solutions.com.