We just reviewed delicious honey-sweetened truffles (honey-sweetened chocolate) from Catskill Provisions as a NIBBLE Top Pick Of The Week.

If you’d like to make your own honey truffles, Chef Alex Guaranaschelli shows you how easy it is in this video.

You may enjoy truffle making so much that you’ll have solved your year-round gift giving challenge.

The History Of Chocolate Truffles.

The Truffle Confusion: Why Other Types Of Chocolates Are Also Called Truffles.

Truffles Versus Pralines

How much do you really know about keeping food safe? Here are some common myths about food safety, courtesy of the Kansas City, Missouri Department Of Health. This is Part 1; Part 2 will appear tomorrow.

Myth #1: “Food prepared at home is much safer than restaurant food. If I get a food borne illness, it is probably because I ate something bad at a restaurant.”
In fact, it’s typically the opposite. In general, the majority of professional food handlers are knowledgeable about how food is to be prepared, cooked, and stored. Restaurant chefs and kitchen workers) have been trained and certified in safe food handling techniques.

Poor food handling practices at home are more likely cause food borne illnesses than in a restaurant.

Myth #2: “My kitchen is clean: I am always wiping things down with a dishcloth.”
Reality: Actually, using dishcloths could be doing more damage. Every time you clean your kitchen, you could be spreading germs throughout your kitchen.

It is best to use paper towels to clean up and/or to start off each day with a clean and dry wiping cloth. You should not use sponges in the kitchen (they harbor bacteria like you wouldn’t believe!)

Myth #3: “Microwaving food kills all bacteria, so the food is safe.”
Reality: When re-heating food in the microwave, you still must heat to at least 165°F or the bacteria may not be killed. Use a food thermometer to verify that the temperature has been reached.

Tips for cooking or reheating food in the microwave:

You can’t be sure that your cooked food is safe without a food thermometer.

Myth #5: “I can’t put hot food into the refrigerator. The food will spoil if I do.”
Reality: The leading cause of food borne illness in the United States is improper cooling, including leaving cooked foods at room temperature. Cool food as quickly as possible to avoid growing harmful bacteria.
 

Proper hand washing requires warm, soapy water; a clean paper towel; and 20 seconds of scrubbing between fingers, under nails, and up to your wrist.
 
Myth #7: “Using the same utensils, cutting boards and plates for foods eaten at the same meal is safe as long as they start out clean.”
Reality: Not quite. Raw meat and other foods contain bacteria that can cross-contaminate other foods if not kept separate. Use these tips to ensure you are using safe food prep practices:

 
Myth #8: You can tell when food is spoiled because it looks or smells bad.
Reality: Most of the time, you can tell if food is spoiled; but not always. Bacteria are invisible and you can’t always tell if they are present by appearance and aroma. It’s best to adopt the motto “When in doubt, throw it out.”

 
Head to Food Safety Myths, Part 2. We take on coolers, eggs, mayonnaise, mold and turkey.

Serve the Deviled Eyeballs with Eyeball Martinis.

Makes: 16 halves
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 15 min for eggs

RECIPE: “DEVILED EYEBALLS,” HALLOWEEN
DEVILED EGGS

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. BOIL. Cook and peel eggs (cooking instructions). Cut in half lengthwise. Remove yolks to medium bowl; arrange whites on serving platter.

2. COMBINE. Add avocados and lemon juice to bowl with yolks; mash until smooth, mixing well. Stir in horseradish, salt and black and cayenne peppers.

3. FILL. Fill egg white halves with heaping tablespoon of mixture, piling high.

4. DECORATE. To make devilish eyes, thinly slice roasted red peppers to create veins on the “eyeballs.” Top with sliced black olives.
 
Find more delicious avocado recipes at AvocadosFromMexico.com.
  

[1] Chicken cacciatore served with pasta (photo © Evan Joshua Swigart | Wikimedia).

[2] Classic Chicken Cacciatore (photo © Australian Chicken Federation).

[3] If you want to save money, buy a whole chicken and quarter it yourself (photo © Good Eggs).

October 15th is National Chicken Cacciatore Day.

Chicken cacciatore (cah-cha-toe-ray) is Italian country fare. Cacciatore means hunter, so the dish is “hunter-style” (in Italian, pollo alla cacciatora).

The recipe is below.
 
 
CHICKEN CACCIATORE HISTORY

For families who lived on farms or elsewhere in the country, dinner was often a hare, pheasant or other animal shot in the surrounding woods.

The game that the hunter brought home that day (father, son, farm hand) was braised in olive oil with garden vegetables.

Remember, back in the day before refrigeration, in most homes kitchens weren’t stocked with more fresh food than could be eaten in the short-term.

 
The game was served in a light tomato sauce made with garlic, herbs, onions and bell peppers, plus wild mushrooms and a bit of wine (white wine in the north, red wine in the south).

The wild mushrooms were foraged in the forest by the hunter, so at least he didn’t come home totally empty-handed.

Chicken Cacciatore has been called a “hunter’s solace,” with poultry from the yard or market replacing the pheasant or hare that got away.

The hunter who came home without game would pick a chicken from the yard. The chicken was prepared the same as the hare.

The dish has its roots in in central Italy in the Renaissance and has many variations, both there and throughout the country.

One of the more unusual is salamino cacciatore, made with a small salame.
 

RECIPE: CHICKEN CACCIATORE

Ingredients For 4-6 Servings

 
Although it isn’t a tradition, we like to add green olives to this dish.

1. SEASON. Sprinkle chicken pieces with salt, pepper and flour.

2. BROWN. Brown the chicken in olive oil. Remove from pan and set aside. Add onion, garlic and mushrooms. Stir until onion turns yellow.

3. COMBINE. Return the chicken to the pan. Add wine or sherry. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes. Remove garlic. Add tomato paste.

4. ADD. Add crushed tomatoes and herbs. Simmer for 45 minutes. If the sauce is to thick, thin with chicken broth, tomato juice or water.

Serve atop noodles or rice.

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*Use wild mushrooms if possible. You can also use dried wild mushrooms, reconstituted.

You can bake your own tart shells of course, and even freeze a batch for ad hoc use. You can also make or buy a filling for the tart. Then, just top it with fresh fruit.

SWEET TART FILLINGS

Garnish

You may not need a garnish, but it never hurts to add one for color, flavor or general decor:

Savory tarts can be served as a first course; tartlets (mini tarts) can be served as hors d’oeuvre or with the salad course. Top the filling with:

 
Savory Tart Fillings

Garnishes

 
Let us know your favorite no-bake tart combinations.

Find more garnish ideas in our article, Garnish Glamour.