This is a collection of useful tips, measurements, methods, cooking notes etc that I like to keep handy.
Shredded Cheese Weights
It drives me crazy when recipes specify grated or shredded cheese amounts by volume instead of weight.
1 Cup Grated Parmesan cheese = 3.53 oz = 100 grams
NOTE: The above measurement is fairly consistent, However, Cooks Ill says it varies depending on grate:
1 Cup Coarse Grated Parmesan cheese = 4 oz = 113 grams,
1 Cup Medium Grated Parmesan cheese = 3 oz = 85 grams,
1 Cup Fine Grated Parmesan cheese = 2 oz = 57 grams,
1 Cup Shredded semi-hard cheeses (cheddar, mozz, etc) = 4 oz
= 114.4 grams
Basil by weight: 38 grams = 2 cups. Useful when making pesto or other recipes that insist on providing the amount by volume. One cup of basil could be anything, depending on how tightly or loosely it is packed.
Dry roasting or toasting pecans: This is from Sunnyland Farms, the place that I buy pecans from. For dry-roasted, preheat oven to 330 deg (well, that's what they say), put parchment paper on a baking sheet and spread out pecans. Roast for 10 - 14 minutes or until golden brown and aromatic. For "toasting" pecans, follow the same method except first toss pecans with melted butter, 2 ozs of butter per lb of pecans. Their section on "toasting" (versus dry-roasting) says to always toast pecans before using.
Best way to quickly aerate red wine (ATK): pour from one pitcher to another 15 times.
Best temperature for grilled scallops (ATK): Kind of a strange note but they said scallops are best when their centers reach 115 deg (carry over heat will take it to an ideal 125 - 130 degrees).
How to Scale a Cake Recipe to Fit Any Pan - from Serious Eats.
Egg sizes / weights and scaling
Cooking with Canned Tomatoes (Cook's Illustrated) - Description of different types of canned tomatoes (whole, diced, crushed, etc) and how they're used.
How to Make a Parchment Paper Lid for Stews and Braises - From Serious Eats, creating a round parchment paper lid to put on braising foods. You have to read the article to find out why the heck you'd want to in the first place.
Tips on Deep Frying from Cooks Illustrated
How To Cream Butter - Sounds stupid but it turns out minor variations in creaming butter and sugar together has major impact on some recipes, like chocolate chip cookies.
Storing Maple Syrup and Honey
How to Clean Your Dutch Oven to keep it "looking new" (ATK)
Don't. If you use it it shouldn't look unused. However, if it has a cream-colored interior like Le Creuset that starts getting really dark, make a solution of 1 part bleach to 3 parts water and let it sit in the pot overnight (may have to repeat if it's in really bad shape).
Thanksgiving - Sort of a diary I've kept over the years of making Thanksgiving meals.