No need to spatter sauce all over the
microwave. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE
NIBBLE.

To save cleaning a saucepan, we often microwave sauces in the bottle or jar. Dessert sauces are thick and don’t spatter. But pasta sauces can create microwave spatters that take more time to clean than the saucepan.

Here’s our handy trick: Fold a paper towel into quarters and tie it loosely over the mouth of the jar with twine or a silicone cooking band.

We start at 40 seconds in the microwave, then stir and test. We repeat until it’s the desired temperature. You can do this to your heart’s content: The paper towel cover comes off easily so you can test the temperature, put the towel back on and continue to heat.

Another tip: If you’re pouring it over hot pasta, the sauce itself can be warm rather than super-heated.

And by the way, we enjoyed Monique’s Outrageous Olive & Caper Sauce, shown in the photo, very much.

MONIQUE’S PASTA SAUCES

Monique’s Sumptuous Sauces are part of the Al Dente Pasta line, a NIBBLE Top Pick Of The Week. Company founder Monique Deschaine has this philosophy of sauce: “It has plenty of character [so] you can count on it to come through for you again and again.”

Monique uses the finest, freshest ingredients: plump tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, fresh herbs, fresh garlic and perhaps most importantly, fresh, grated carrots for sweetness rather than sugar or corn syrup.

The result: Monique’s Sumptuous Sauces taste just like homemade (really, really good homemade).

The flavors include:

These gourmet pasta sauces make delicious gifts. Photo courtesy Al Dente Pasta.

At $6.00 per 25-ounce bottle, Monique’s Sumptuous Sauces are delicious and affordable gifts that may open recipients’ eyes to options other than supermarket sauces. Think of them for teachers, nurses, personal care associates and others.

For a slam dunk, package them with some Al Dente Pasta, available in a broad selection including better-for-you whole wheat varieties (12 ounces, $3.49).

You can buy both online at AlDentePasta.com.

And don’t just save the sauces for pasta. Parmigiana dishes (chicken, eggplant, fish), pizza and anything requiring a tomato sauce will be deliciously enhanced.

Find more of our favorite pastas and sauces plus recipes.

Marmalade could become your new signature dish. Photo courtesy Running Press.

Her new book, Marmalade, Sweet & Savory Spreads For A Sophisticated Taste, may inspire you to begin your own marmalade journey.

Charmingly designed and photographed, it inspires a get-together: Make a day of marmalade-making with a friend. It’s quality time together that yields jars and jars of provisions and gifts. Friends and colleagues will clamor for it.

If they tax your generosity, you can simply buy them a copy of the book:

Give a man a jar and he has marmalade for a week. Teach a man to make marmalade and you give him marmalade for a lifetime. And hopefully, there will be gift jars in it for you.

Get your copy here.

Don’t worry that fresh fruit season is waning. There are 11 citrus marmalade recipes as well as fall-winter flavors such as Double Ginger Pear and Quince Raspberry Marmalades.

And you must make lots and lots of the savory Red Onion Marmalade. It goes with sandwiches, burgers and just about every type of grilled or roasted fish, meat and poultry. There isn’t enough onion marmalade in America. It will be an unforgettable holiday gift.

The author also provides recipes for buttermilk biscuits, brown soda bread and popovers to enjoy with your marmalade; and shows you had to use the spread in main dishes such as Marmalade Roast Duck and Glazed Country Ham.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF MARMALADE

Marmalade originated some 2,000 years ago as a solid cooked quince and honey paste, the precursor of Spain’s famed membrillo, served with Manchego cheese as a popular dessert. It was on the tables of ancient Greeks and Romans.

Some time around the 10th century, the Portuguese replaced the honey with sugar. They called it marmelada after the word for quince, marmelo.

Marmelada was a luxury product and a popular gift among noble families. Sugar, produced in the subtropics, was a very expensive import until the 1800s. For example, it wasn’t until 1874 that the British government abolished the sugar tax and made “white gold” affordable to the average citizen.
 
 
WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MARMALADE, JAM & PRESERVES?

They’re related, but different, styles of spreads. Check out our Jam Glossary which explains the differences among these terms and others (chutney, confiture, conserve, curd, fruit butter, gelée, fruit curd and fruit spread).

Find our favorite brands of store-bought spreads.

A cousin of the ice cream sandwich, a cookie sundae is a lot easier to make. Try it tonight!

COOKIE SUNDAE RECIPE

Ingredients Per Serving

 
VARIATIONS

Set out bowls of garnishes—bell pepper, sliced mushrooms pepperoni, olives (eyes)—and let the participants make their own designs.

If your kids are too young to plan a design, you can design the pizzas yourself.

And if you don’t have the time to make your own pizza crusts, you can use frozen cheese pizzas. Here’s how from TasteOfHome.com.

 
PERSONAL HALLOWEEN PIZZA RECIPE

Ingredients: Crust

Ingredients: Toppings

PREPARATION

The biggest task in this recipe is creating the crusts. You can do this in advance and refrigerate overnight or freeze them for up to one month.

1. PREHEAT. Preheat oven to 425°F.

2, MIX. Combine 2 cups flour, undissolved yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Add very warm water and oil; mix until well blended, about 1 minute.

3. ADD. Gradually add enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Dough should form a ball and will be slightly sticky. Knead† on a floured surface, adding additional flour if necessary, until smooth and elastic, about 4 minutes. Divide dough into 8 portions; cover. If using RapidRise yeast, let dough rise for 10 minutes.

5. BAKE. Bake for 6 to 7 minutes; dough will be just set and only lightly browned on the bottom. Remove crusts to a wire rack to cool. Continue with remaining pizza dough (it works best when you use use several baking sheets). You can use crusts immediately or place them in freezer bags and freeze for up to 1 month. If making a day ahead, place crusts in resealable plastic bags and refrigerate.

6. BAKE AGAIN. When ready to serve, preheat oven to 475°F. Spread each crust with pizza sauce. Top with desired toppings to make Halloween designs. At this point in the dinner or party, each guest should decorate his or her pizza. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 6 to 8 minutes, until cheese is melted and lightly browned and bottom of crust is browned.

Alternatively, you can bring baked, undecorated pizzas to the table ready to decorate and eat. The pizzas may will cool during the design process, but that’s what microwaves are for.
 
This recipe and photo are courtesy Fleischmann’s Yeast. This year Fleischmann’s and sister brand Karo Syrup have donated $200,000 to Share our Strength’s No Kid Hungry® campaign. Teach the kids that “together we can make a difference.” Tell them they can donate some of that Halloween cash to NoKidHungry.org.

*If you don’t have a thermometer, water should feel very warm to the touch.
 
†To knead the dough, add just enough flour to the dough and your hands to keep the dough from sticking. Flatten dough and fold it toward you. Using the heels of your hands, push the dough away with a rolling motion. Rotate dough a quarter turn and repeat the “fold, push and turn” steps. Keep kneading dough until it is smooth and elastic. Use a little more flour if dough becomes too sticky, always working the flour into the ball of dough.
 
Find more of our favorite pizza recipes.

But it’s easy to make, delicious to eat and very healthful.

Brandied fruit can be enjoyed on its own; or with a topping of sour cream or yogurt (plain or vanilla), blended with a bit of brown sugar. Add a plate of small cookies and you’ve got a fine dessert.

You can also use brandied fruit as a topping for angel, pound or sponge cakes; and under or over a scoop of sorbet.

Serve it in a pretty glass dish, a goblet, or in a meringue nest.
 
 
BRANDY OR COGNAC

As the saying goes, all cognac is brandy, but not all brandy is cognac.

Cognac is grape brandy, a distillate of wine. It is specifically produced in the region surrounding the town of Cognac, in central France. It is double distilled using pot stills and then aged for at least two years. It must be made from a specific group of white grape varieties, as well.

Grape brandy can be made anywhere, from any grapes (brandy is also made from fruit and pomace), does not require double distillation or long aging.

Cognac is a better product. The double distilling and aging rounds out the spirit and produces more mellow flavors.
 
 
START WITH THE FRUIT SALAD

The best fruit salad is an appealing mix of colors, flavors an textures.

 
Cut larger fruits into even pieces; seed the grapes and pit the cherries. If you’re using fruits that brown, sprinkle the cut fruit with lemon juice. Slice bananas just before serving, as they discolor most quickly.

[2] Don’t use your finest cognac to mix with the fruit, but do enjoy a snifter of it on the side (photo © Hennessy Cognac).

The easiest version is simply to sprinkle brandy over a fruit salad; cover and refrigerate for an hour or more. We actually mix a tablespoon with the fruit juices from the salad; then toss to ensure that all pieces are coated.

You can also add some mint leaves to the marinade. Before serving, remove them and replace with fresh mint leaves.
 
 
2. COOKED BRANDIED FRUIT

You can also brandy a fruit compote, which is mixed stewed fruit. These should be the best seasonal fruits, full of natural sweetness and flavor.

Here’s the recipe for compote.