Depending on where you live, Spring is here, or at least just around the corner. The change of seasons is a great time to do some basic maintenance around the house, tackling easy-to-overlook housework that we all often ignore - or avoid - most of the year. These relatively easy tasks are above and beyond the weekly vacuuming, dusting, bathroom cleaning, floor washing, etc. you are (hopefully) taking care of, but once completed, you will notice your house will be brighter and fresher. Pick one room at a time (each day, every few days or even each week) to break down spring cleaning into manageable...

Let me tell you something about a hamburger. I’m willing to be it’s a hamburger you never heard of. It’s technically not even a hamburger. Maybe it’s something better. Who knows? All I can tell you is that it’s great, it’s easy to make, and I have fallen hopelessly, irretrievably in love with it. The name of this hamburger is the Maid-Rite. The Maid Rite is a regional hamburger variation, a so-called “vernacular” hamburger cooked up by a butcher in Iowa only a few years after the invention of the hamburger itself. In it’s simplest form, it’s merely a loose ground beef...

The red carpet. It’s nothing you ever get used to, having been on both the receiving and the giving side of the gawking, it is a surreal experience. The cameras, the yelling, the well rehearsed poses. It lives in the intersection between weird and fabulous. During Fashion Week I was a gawk-ER not a gawkEE, but a gawker for a good cause. One of my absolute hands-down favorite events of Fashion Week is the Red Dress Event. I love it because despite the fact that the event is to bring awareness to a very serious topic, Heart Disease in Women, it is...

If there were any doubts in your mind from this seasons runway buns, strong parts and feminine flowing hair, I’m sure it has been put to rest after watching this years 82 Annual Oscar ceremony. The red carpet bombarded us with these looks! At least, we know we’re in good company. Here are some of my favs and a couple who didn’t get it quite right. All in all, they looked nice. Although, I must say everyone played it very safe! I think it is time to push the envelope red carpet, don’t be scared of the Monday morning negative...

Our dear friends recently moved to England and my two daughters (ages 7 and 9) and I went to visit them last week. The trip was great in all aspects and if I learned nothing else, it’s that when sightseeing with kids, less is more. While planning the trip, I shared some books on London with the girls (side note - my 7 year old picked up on the British use of “Cheerio” as a greeting and started to use it - incessantly) and was up front with them as far as what much of the trip would consist of -...

Dear Rachael - Just a line to say how much I like your stocks.  I use them all the time, especially the chicken.  I prefer them over any other brand…excellent flavor and not too much sodium.  Thanks for this product, and all your great recipes.   Sincerely, Joanie I. (Fort Myers, FL) Thanks Joanie! Rach’s stock is available at stores like Wal Mart and online at www.rachaelraystore.com. Here are a few of Rachael’s delicious recipes that use stock as a main ingredient: Special Sausage and Kale Soup Toasted Orzo Chicken Soup Wild Mushroom Barley Soup Lemon Risotto Ancho Chicken Tortilla Soup Lemon-Garlic Chicken Noodle Soup Chicken with Tarragon Cream...

Don’t ya just love cake. Think about it gang, of all the diverse foods, flavors, cooking styles, spices, herbs, and seasonings in every culture in the world past or present, there is at least one food all cultures share, CAKE ! Everyone can probably say they have an aunt, grandmother, mom, friend or someone whom when thinking of them instantly brings a memory of a great, best ever cake. Cake is royalty and muffins and cupcakes are the little princes and princesses. You find it ornately decorated and at the center of every important celebration, b-days, weddings, graduations, anniversaries,...

So, it was my dear friend Deanne who called to tell me the news. For one of the very first times in my life since the 5th grade spelling B, I had won something! The Soup had nominated our crazy Halloween Ewok segment for a 2010 Soup Award (their version of the Oscars) for “Most Traumatic Today Show Moment.” The competition was stiff, but Joel McHale announced us as the winners! Woo Hoo! Problem is, I never received the award, a really nifty can. I have nothing to show for one of the proudest moments in my life, no Award Can...

It is almost time to turn the clocks forward which means that Spring is right around the corner.  For those of you who can’t stand to bundle up in the Winter (not me, I love it), this is the time to crack open the windows and let that warmish air into your home and start thinking about planting a garden.  I just ordered some organic seeds from the Italian Seed and Tool website and I am looking forward to trying these imported seeds this year to see if there is a difference in quality and taste. If you don’t feel like...