Q:Dear Cooks,
I have had spaghetti sauces that have a sweet taste to them…..almost like a cinnamon taste that I cannot identify. I love this taste in my sauce. Can you tell me what ingredient I am tasting and how to use it in spaghetti sauce or pizza sauces?
Thanks,
Rene Anderson
Illinois
A:Rene,
There is probably added sugar or even brown sugar in the sauce. If you want the sweetness without the sugar, peel a carrot into the sauce early in the cooking process and by the time the sauce is ready to be served, the carrot will have dissolved, leaving a sweetness to the sauce.
-The Cooks
April 14th, 2008 at 8:04 pm
Another trick to try - add a half a banana sliced up when you are browning the garlic, onions etc. Like the carrot, it disolves leaving only a wonderfully complex taste.
April 14th, 2008 at 9:21 pm
LOLOL I MADE THIS SAUCE FOR MY HUSBAND A VERY PICKY EATER 2 CUPS OF SUGAR IN A 3-4 QT SAUCE PAN.WE CALL IT BABY SAUCE BECAUSE THE KIDS WOULD EAT IT,BUT WE WOULD USE MUCH MUCH LESS SUGAR HIS SUGAR IN TAKE INCREASED WITH AGE OVER THE YEARS SO BE CAREFUL.
April 15th, 2008 at 1:04 pm
A little bit of brown sugar gives it a nice sweet flavor as well.
April 15th, 2008 at 5:08 pm
Watch your show when I can and I cannot help to notice how much garlic you use. Why don’t you use a garlic press? I found that it is thw handiest garlic tool in the kitchen.
Rex
April 16th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
I add brown sugar to my sauce as well as balsamic vinegar. That produces a sweet sauce with the vinegar in the background.
April 16th, 2008 at 4:58 pm
rachael the reason why i am writing is because my daughter has givingup on becoming achef once she found out that her grandmother has stage four cancer and there is no cure for her cancer she has been threw enoughshe loves her grandmother so so much and for my daughter promise her grandmother she would be a chef now she wants to give up on becomeing a chef my daughter has wacthed your cooking shows sense she was seven now she wanteds to give it up because her most important thing in the world is her grandmother is dye my husband has watched your cooking shows two and he has stopped watching because of his mom his mom loves you toknow she only has two to three weeks left and she is young i love my motherlaw very vey much she has been the best grandmother and mother motherlaw for seventy years she raised her sons on her own she was a hard working lady she listening to you every day help my daughter do not give up on her dream sincerly lisahanse of agawam
April 16th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Hi.
I love Salmon, but as I eat it alot, can you give me some ideas for different things to go with salmon.
Nikki
April 16th, 2008 at 7:05 pm
A few months ago you held up a book about boys and you said there was one about girls written by the same author.could you please tell me who wrote them. I would like to get them for my grand children. thank you
April 17th, 2008 at 7:20 am
rach,
love your shows… they have changed my eating habits to a more healthy one. i also love your “chop and drop” method.. but i have noticed that everytime you use this there is always something between where you are chopping and where you are dropping (evoo usually, or other things you use… this is causing you to have to lift what you just chopped up high to get over these object. maybe im just anal but it may be easier for you to avoid these obsticals if you would just move them farther back on the counter when you are done. i say this because i have used the chop and drop method for many years, but i also have a bad back and having to lift things higher then neccessary can be difficult on the back muscles… also since i do have a bad back and am on a fixed income(social security) i need to find some recipes that are very very inexpensive…the stoups are a great example… please if you could,show some more inexpensive recipes…
thanks and continued prosperity with your personal and professional life.
steve
April 18th, 2008 at 10:05 am
Rachael…Help! I have been on different web sites looking for a simple marinade that will tenderize the tougher cuts of beef, but have not located one. I don’t necessarily need it to flavor (I can do that separately), but just need a tenderizer of some kind to use before grilling. Can you help me?
April 18th, 2008 at 12:29 pm
Please, please tell me where to get a hand grater like Rachael uses. I have asked several times.
Thanks,
Clare
April 18th, 2008 at 8:15 pm
rachael
i made your “elsa favorite fish” recipe but i usually make a few changes–i didnt have any clam juice so i used beef broth–everything went good until i went to thicken the sauce and i used cornstarch instead of butter and flour–when i poured it in my sauce FOAMED UP-almost overflowed the pan–added my balsamic vinegar and that FOAMED UP-it never thickened!! i added my milk and it never got thick-i even kept cooking it
it tasted good–but it was really thin
WHAT DID I DO WRONG????
is the butter/flour mixer that much different than the cornstarch??
ohh-i also added roasted grape tomatoes to it
PLEASE TELL ME WHAT I DID WRONG !!
I LOVE YOU AND YOUR SHOW
BONNIE
April 22nd, 2008 at 11:05 pm
You can buy one at William And Sonoma
April 23rd, 2008 at 8:49 am
Please help!! I have a receipe for my mother’s bbq sauce that I want to get into production. How do I do this?
April 23rd, 2008 at 10:59 am
omg i love your show but your other website isnt working!!!!!!!!!!!
April 23rd, 2008 at 12:23 pm
Rach, I recently discovered that I love french onion soup. I’ve been with my fiance for 3 years, and also recently discovered my love of cooking, and experimenting and inventing new recipes. I want to learn how to make french onion soup, but normally I dont have a use for white wine. Is white wine mandatory for taste in french onion soup? and do Diners often make it that way too? Please help!
April 23rd, 2008 at 3:24 pm
After I mix all ingredients in the bread salad, should it be refrigerated until serving or kept on the counter. If on the counter how long before it gets “funny”
Thanks.
April 23rd, 2008 at 4:33 pm
When you made the Chicken Fra Divolo dish on 4/22/08. The bakeware that you cooked it in where can I find this item.It had raised handles that had a hole on each side. Thank You
April 24th, 2008 at 9:56 am
Hi Rachel,
Can you forward this suggestion to Leah….
Re: “the bottle Issue…..”
I know that it is very tough to get children off the bottle and I know that Leah and her husband know the reasons why her daughter should be OFF THE BOTTLE so I won’t review ALL the reasons ….so here is what I did!!
And, I tried numerous times to get my daughter off the bottle and everytime it broke my heart and I gave her the bottle…so I can up with this idea..
My children both believe in Santa, tooth fairy etc. So what I did was tell my daughter that the “Bottle Fairy” was coming and she would leave her a present…We got all her bottles (in your case try a few) and we placed them under her pillow. Lo and behold in the morning the bottles were gone and she received a present (my daughter is 21, maybe it was money, I can’t remember). My daughter was so excited…BUT AT bedtime, she became very cranky and wanted a bottle…I just looked at her and said,”whoops, the Bottle Fairy took them”. It took the blame off of me and after 1-2 nights….NO MORE BOTTLES.
Good Luck….
P.S. I was 5 when I came off the bottle, and I remember very clearly my mom telling me that when you go to kindergarten, you WILL give up the bottle because you are a BIG girl now and I did…The secret is…When you are ready and have had enough…it will get done…You have to hit bottom first…
April 24th, 2008 at 11:56 am
I Missed part of the show April 23,2008and don’t know what pancetta is Please let me know Thank you
April 24th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
My husband is a great cook and loves to invent new dishes - one I have suggested is a honey lime tequila chicken with rice but he won’t give it a try - do you have any recipes that fit this description?????
Also what about a ginger chicken recipe?????
Thanks
JamieJ
April 25th, 2008 at 9:16 am
I recentyly went to the Restaurant Ruby tuesdays and had the Salad bbar. They had the most delicious pumpernickle croutons. I was wondering if you would know how they are made. Or you could try to make them Thanks Connie
April 25th, 2008 at 9:35 am
I watched the show with Leah and her struggle with getting her adorable daughter off her bottle. I would suggest she treat it as a pacifier….while most kids have given up their bottle by 3, many have still clung to the pacifier as a comfort object. I told my boys they could have their pacifier whenver they wanted, but they had to get it AND they could only have it in thier bed (work on daytime first). They soon gave it up in order to play and they did it on thier own. Then, at night we emphasized the idea that big boys didn’t need a pacifier and then we had a big ceremony to get rid of them when they were ready. This is a bit different….try giving her a cup with a lid at night if she is thristy and try giving her some other comfort object.If all else fails, and she clings to it at night, she will give it up before high school(I always told myself this about potty training). She really will abandon it when she realizes she is the only one of her group of kids that still has one. But….take things in stages. Good luck
April 25th, 2008 at 11:27 am
hey Rach,
I love you to death thank god for my DVR! I have a problem when making steak no matter what on the grill, oven or broiling it me an dmy boyfriend like are steak med rare. (easier to chew)Every time I make it, is well well done ya know what I mean plus all the marinate flavor disappears. Please help me what am I doing wrong?
Thank you Heather
April 25th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Regarding Leah’s and HER DAUGHTER’s problem
with the bottle: everything I could say is
better stated by Jo, the SUPERNANNY. She was
just on recently handling a similar problem with a kid’s pacifier that the MoM did not have the stength to take away from her grown toddler. Bottom line: the daughter is really ruling the houshold (just like the child stated) and Leah is affected by the crying
tantrums of her daughter, rather than what is in the best interest of the child. SEE JO ABOUT THIS!
April 25th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
To Rene Anderson,
Adding cinnamon to your sauce is a fabulous “secret weapon”….it’s not sugar. Add a teaspoon of cinnamon to about 2 quarts of sauce. I learned this not so long ago from my niece…she learned the “secret” from her husband’s Italian Grandmother who also happened to be a terrific caterer.
April 25th, 2008 at 7:39 pm
To Leah Rimini,
Please be sure to rule out physical or health issues with your daughter before planning your ‘attack’. Diabetes is always a possibility when lots of water is consumed, and I would, also, be very concerned about the volumn of fluids she’s taking in - way too much for a child her size. So your dilemma is not just breaking the bottle habit, there may be some underlying medical issues. Once these are ruled out, be strong, you’re the parent, and she needs to know that. The rebellion will only last as long as you give in to it.
April 26th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
My husband has a family pasta sauce receipe. It is divine- when my husband and I make up a batch in our kitchen we use “the pink stuff”.
April 27th, 2008 at 3:17 pm
I am looking for a recipe for antipasta salad. I would appreciate an email back giving me a recipe for this salad. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,
Shelly
April 28th, 2008 at 10:35 am
To Johanna Yates: Try marinating meat in a combination of equal parts of strongly brewed tea and beef broth. Pour in enough to come to the top of the meat. This tenderizes well anywhere from one hour to overnight in the fridge. Hope this helps. Jaime
April 29th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Hey there….here is how I make my grandmothers sweet spaghetti sauce. Forgive me, I cook like Rachael. A little of this and that….
Brown hamburger and chopped onions. Drain. Add 2 cans of tomatoe sauce and one small can of paste. Add a few (prob. 3) of Worchestire Sauce. Add 2 bay leaves, a few shakes of thyme, and oregano. Add about 1 or two can fulls of water then add salt and pepper and some sugar. Let it start simmering and put a lid on it. After about 30 min’s or so, taste test it. It shouldn’t be sugary sweet but not real italiano??? There should be a right balance. Next thing is to put the lid back on and add water when necessary to keep from sticking but you want the water to eventually cook out and become thick. You may need to add more salt or sugar. Depends on your likings. Then just serve over spaghetti. Try this too. Cook french bread and put grape jelly on it to eat with your spaghetti. Real good.
May 1st, 2008 at 12:28 am
Rene,
I am almost positive that the taste you are describing is nutmeg. You might be confusing it with cinnamon because the two spices are often used together.
I find that a little nutmeg adds a wonderful flavor to many savory dishes.
Stephen,
Foodala.com