Why is it that pasta dishes always taste so much better when you eat them out in an Italian restaurant? There is a simple answer, but it's not that a chef made the sauce. It's that any chef worth their salt will salt the water they boil the pasta in. And while that may seem like a fussy step, it's terribly important. Listen in and find our why.

Common Cooking Mistakes: #14: Not Salting Pasta Water

Join us, Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, for weekly episodes all about food, cooking, recipes, and maybe a little marital strife on air. After writing thirty-six cookbooks, we've got countless opinions and ideas on ingredients, recipes, the nature of the cookbook-writing business, and much more. If you've got a passion for food, we also hope to up your game once and a while and to make you laugh most of the time. Come along for the ride! There's plenty of room!

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Let's talk condiments. Our fridge is full. Yours should be, too. We're Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough, veteran cookbook authors who have written and published three dozen cookbooks (and are working on yet another). This is our podcast about food and cooking, our passions in life. We're so happy you've joined us. Here are  the segments for this episode of COOKING WITH BRUCE & MARK: [00:45]	Our one-minute cooking tip: high on the stove vs. low heat in the oven. [03:45]	Let's talk about condiments . . . and why your fridge should be as full as ours. [17:13]	What’s making us happy in food this week: Calabrian passata and high-fiber pasta (without being whole-grain pasta).

WELCOME TO OUR KITCHEN: We're talking condiments!

Hey there. We're Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough. We've written three dozen cookbooks for seven New York publishers (not counting two knitting books for Bruce and a memoir for Mark). We're excited to share our passion about food and cooking with you. We're headed into the kitchen to make some irresistible jammy oat bar cookies. We've got a one-minute cooking tip about storing cheese. And we'll tell you what's making us happy in food this week. [00:57]	Our one-minute cooking tip: wrap cheese in fresh plastic wrap every time you open it. [02:46]	We're making jammy oat bar cookies. Mark has been taking these cookies to his literary seminars all this year. Lots of Cather and Faulkner with lots of cookies. You can't beat that. Here's the recipe: Jammy Oat Bar Cookies Heat the oven to 350F (175 C—no convection or fan) Line a 9 x 13-inch (23 x 33-cm) baking pan with parchment paper. In a stand mixer, beat at medium-low speed until creamy and light (about 5 minutes):¾ pound (3 sticks or 340 g) unsalted butter, cut into smallpieces1 cup (215 grams) packed dark brown sugar¾ cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar
Beat in 1 large egg until smooth. Stop the mixer and beat down the inside of the bowl, then beat in 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, and 2 teaspoons vanilla extract. Beat in 2¼ cups (285 grams) all-purpose or plain flour, 2 1/4 cups (200 g) rolled oats, and 1½ cups (175 grams) toasted walnut pieces, just until the flour is incorporated. Press about two-thirds of this dough into an even layer in the prepared baking pan. Spread with 1½ cups (480 grams) jam, preserves, or marmalade (do not use jelly!) and dollop the remaining dough in small bits on top, pressing them gently into an even layer with some jam showing through. Bake until set and browned, about 45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before turning out and slicing into bar cookies. [15:19]	What’s making us happy in food this week: pretzels with grapes (!) and quince paste.

WELCOME TO OUR KITCHEN: We're making jammy oat bar cookies!

Vegetable pancakes? What an easy lunch, snack, or even dinner! Mark's been cooking much more vegan fare lately, so this recipe is one that he's now made countless times: a richly stocked vegetable pancake, sort of based on Korean vegetable pancakes (yachaejeon or 야채전), but packed with more vegetables and able to withstand many substitutions, based on the types of vegetables you like. No roots, all quick-cooking vegetables, please. And all cut to matchsticks or shredded through the large holes of a box grater. But then you're good to go. We're Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough, authors of three-dozen cookbooks (with a new one due to our publisher within the next month). We love to share our passion for food and cooking with you. Thanks for coming along with us. If you'd like to see our latest cookbook, check out THE LOOK & COOK AIR FRYER BIBLE here. Here are the segments for this episode of COOKING WITH BRUCE & MARK: [00:45]	Our one-minute cooking tip: Toast whole spices in a dry skillet for more flavor. [03:58]	Let's make vegetable pancakes! Here's the recipe: Thinly slice, shred, or turn into matchsticks all of the following: 1 carrot, 1 small peeled onion, 4 or 5 shiitake mushroom caps, and 1 medium fresh jalapeño, stemmed and cored. Also shred or cut 1 medium zucchini into matchsticks, then squeeze these dry over the sink to get rid of excess moisture. Stir in a large bowl 1 cup (125 grams) all-purpose or plain flour, 1/4 cup (28 grams) cornstarch or corn flour, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1 cup (240 ml) water. Add the vegetables and stir until well coated and combined. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, then swirl in a little toasted sesame oil. Add the vegetable mixture and spread it into an even pancake. Cook until golden, even browned, about 6 minutes. Use the courage of your convictions to flip the pancake, then continue cooking until golden-brown on the other side, about 6 minutes. Slide the pancake out onto a cutting board. As it cools, whisk together an easy dipping sauce: 1 tablespoon (15 ml) toasted sesame oil, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) soy sauce, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) unseasoned rice vinegar, 1 teaspoon agave syrup or granulated white sugar, and 1 teaspoon (5 ml) red chili oil. Cut the pancake into pie wedges and serve with the dipping sauce on the side. [18:50]	What’s making us happy in food this week? Mushroom ketchup and a men's game dinner.

WELCOME TO OUR KITCHEN: We're making vegetable pancakes!

Hey there. We're Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scabrough, veteran cookbook authors with three dozen cookbooks under our belts and years writing magazine features and being columnists for those very magazines, including COOKING LIGHT, EATING WELL, and weightwatchers. This is our food and cooking podcast. We've got a one-minute cooking tip about people who want to help you in the kitchen. We're talking about to make sure an internet recipe works . . . and how to look for decent recipes. And we'll tell you what's making us happy in food this week: Bonchon Chicken and veal marengo. Here are the segments for this episode of COOKING WITH BRUCE & MARK: [01:33]	Our one-minute cooking tip: how to handle people who want to help in the kitchen. [06:38]	How to make online recipes work . . . or make sure they work. [18:47]	What’s making us happy in food this week: Bonchon chicken and veal marengo.

WELCOME TO OUR KITCHEN: We're talking about internet recipes!

Hey there, we're veteran cookbook authors Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough, authors of three dozen cookbooks (NOT including those ghost-written for celebrities--now there's a story!). In this episode of COOKING WITH BRUCE & MARK, we've got a one-minute cooking tip about tasting food through the process of cooking. We're taking on some of the most common cooking myths. We can't believe they're still around! And we'll tell you what's making us happy in food this week. We take apart 101 cooking myths in our book, LOBSTERS SCREAM WHEN YOU BOIL THEM AND 100 OTHER MYTHS ABOUT COOKING. If you'd like to get your hands on a copy, click on this link right here. [00:54]	Our one-minute cooking tip: taste what you're cooking during the process of cooking, not just at the end (but be safe!). [04:20]	We're taking on some of the most common cooking myths. [18:14]	What’s making us happy in food this week? "Drunken" rice noodles )with chicken and basil) and Fresno chilis.

Common Cooking Mistakes: #14: Not Salting Pasta Water

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