It's all too easy to rely on the grocery store for some staple ingredients. But in reality, things like whipped cream and pickles are so easy to make on your own, you may never buy them again once you've tried the DIY version. Homemade bread, although it takes time and patience, is incredibly rewarding. You'll earn major culinary bragging rights by making any of these eight ideas from Read more

As a native San Franciscan, I can't get enough sourdough bread. While this isn't the only city where you can get a great loaf, it sure perfected the art before artisan bread hit the mainstream. So it was just a matter of time before I took a stab at a homemade version inspired by the town I call home. Every region's sourdough gets its unique flavor from the yeast organisms in the starter. Read more

What if you could simply conjure ingredients out of thin air? It sounds like something out of a Star Trek episode, but it's absolutely possible in one instance: sourdough. This tangy, fluffy bread gets its start as a simple fermented flour and water mixture that pulls its yeast fungi straight from the air! While you can certainly bake delicious bread using the dry active yeast that comes in Read more

When it comes to bread making, it seems that most people like to leave it to the experts. While I see the logic in this (I mean, I will never come close to the perfect crusty loaves that come out of Tartine's kitchen), I happen to like a challenge, so the art of making bread kind of intrigues me. There is something really satisfying about being able to transform yeast, flour, and water into Read more

If bread is the staff of life, then this cook has been wobbling on shaky legs for much of her culinary career. What is it about baking bread that's so daunting? I suppose I've rationalized my bread-baking evasion by telling myself it takes too long and my spaghetti-noodle arms can't knead well enough. But I recognize those are silly excuses, so this week I set about tackling the easiest bread Read more

In her YumSugar Community group, The Dairy Free Diva Recipe Exchange, reader girlA discusses all things vegan. Here, she provides a wonderfully in-depth review of Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pizza Crust. I've been wanting to try gluten-free pizza crust for quite some time now. I'd like to reduce to the amount of gluten I eat, so I was anxious to try this mix from Bob's Red Mill. The mix requires Read more

If you're avoiding eggs because you eat a plant-based diet or simply to limit your intake of saturated fat and cholesterol, you have several options. Some substitutions work better than others depending on the recipe, but a little trial and error will help you determine which one works best with each dish. See the list below to learn which option I used in the vegan Chocolate Cranberry Zucchini Read more

The other day on the bus, I overheard a group of young women talking. "Every time I drink, no matter if it's wine, beer, or liquor, I get a runny nose and start sneezing," one of them said. "Do you think I could be allergic to alcohol?" A recent article in the New York Times may help clear things up for her — literally! The article reports that consuming alcohol can actually worsen the effects Read more