[1] Venison meatballs. Venison, along with bison, has the lowest fat of any red meat (photos #1 and #2 © New Zealand Venison).

[2] Ground venison can be used interchangeably with ground beef: in burgers, meatballs, meatloaf, pasta sauce, and more.

[3] Fennel is an underappreciated vegetable in the U.S. Also cut it into sticks for low-calorie snacks and crudités (photo © Good Eggs).

[4] Dill is a member of the same botanical family as fennel. Both are used in this recipe. Check out the differences below‡‡ (photo © McCormick).

[5] Fennel seeds give delicious flavor and scent to breads, curries, stews, desserts, stews, even beverages (photo © Silk Road Spices).

[6] Currants, also called Zante currants, Corinth raisins, and Corinthian raisins, are raisins of the small, sweet, seedless grape cultivar Black Corinth (photo © Food To Live).

National Meatball Day is March 9th, but our order of ground venison for this delicious recipe didn’t arrive in time for dinner the day before. So we made it last night, and are pleased to share the yummy recipe below. It sent to us by New Zealand Venison, which raises grass-fed venison sustainably: no steroids, no hormones.

First, some venison trivia:

 
Naturally lean, venison does not require any trimming of fat before cooking.

There are 20 more meatball recipes below.
 
 
RECIPE: VENISON MEATBALLS

These meatballs go nicely with buttered noodles, with pasta (sauced as you prefer), or on a bed of grains.

Unlike some meatball recipes, which can be fairly simple, this recipe has layers and layers of flavor.

Prep time is 15 minutes, cook time is 1 hour 15 min

 
Ingredients For 4-6 Servings

 
Preparation

1. TRIM the fennel, discarding the stalks but reserving the fronds to garnish. Cut each bulb in half lengthways, then cut into slightly-less-than-one-inch-wide wedges.

2. PLACE the minced venison in a large bowl with the breadcrumbs, onion, parsley, dill, anchovies, fennel seeds, currants, half a teaspoon of salt, and a generous grind of black pepper. Mix to combine, then shape into about 30 golf-ball-sized balls.

3. HEAT the oil in a large sauté pan on a medium-high flame. Once hot, fry half the meatballs for five minutes, turning regularly until browned all over. Transfer to a plate with a slotted spoon, then repeat with the remaining meatballs.

4. FRY the fennel wedges in the same pan for four minutes, turning them a few times, until browned all over. Add the vermouth/white wine.

Once it’s bubbling, stir in the tomatoes, lemon peel, half a teaspoon of salt, and plenty of pepper.

Once the mix comes to a boil, lower the heat to medium-low, cover the pan and leave to simmer gently for 10 minutes, until the fennel is starting to soften.

5. RETURN the meatballs to the pan, stir them through, cover and leave to cook for 30 minutes, until the fennel is soft and the meatballs are cooked. Remove the lid, increase the heat to medium-high and cook for five more minutes, stirring constantly, until the sauce thickens.

6. REMOVE from the heat, sprinkle with the pine nuts and reserved fennel fronds, and serve with a lemon wedge.
 
 
MORE MEATBALL RECIPES

*Horned refers to horns or antlers of a particular family of mammals: antelopes, buffalo, caribou, deer, cows, giraffes, oxen, reindeer, and rhinoceroses. In most species, only males have antlers, but both females and males can have horns [source].

March 10th is National Ranch Dressing Day, which rose out of nowhere (it used to be old-fashioned buttermilk dressing) to become America’s favorite salad dressing and dip. On an earlier National Ranch Dressing Day, we published a yummy article on the history of ranch, a recipe to make it from scratch, and different ways to use it.

One of those ways was a sauce for baked potatoes, and thanks to the Idaho Potato Commission, today we celebrate with Buffalo-Ranch Loaded Idaho Baked Potatoes.

In this recipe, the potato is a full meal: all of the components of Buffalo wings, but with shredded chicken breasts instead of wings.

The classic Buffalo wings recipe serves fried wings (or a baked option) with hot sauce, ranch dressing, carrots, and celery. While the Idaho Potato Commission recipe left out the sticks of raw carrots and celery, we added them back in.

And while they added Cheddar cheese, we preferred Gruyère with ours.

> There are more loaded potato recipes below.
 
 
DIG IN: IT’S FUN FOOD

This recipe gives chicken wings a run for their money, says the Commission. Shredded chicken is smothered in a creamy combination of buffalo hot sauce, Cheddar cheese, and ranch dressing, then stuffed into a hearty baked potato.

More cheddar cheese is sprinkled on top of each potato, and the spuds are put back into the oven for an additional ten minutes, creating an ooey-gooey tater.

The finished potatoes are topped with sliced scallions and crumbled bacon for extra pizzazz.

> The history of potatoes.

> The different types of potatoes.

> The history of ranch dressing.

> Homemade ranch dressing recipe.
 
 
RECIPE: BUFFALO-RANCH LOADED IDAHO POTATOES

 
Ingredients For 4 Servings

 
For The Crudités

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set a wire rack into the baking sheet.

2. WASH the potatoes and dry them completely. Prick the potatoes all over with a fork and coat them in olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper. Space the potatoes evenly on the wire rack and bake the potatoes for 50 to 60 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile…

3. SEASON the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and place them in a baking dish. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes alongside the potatoes, until the internal temperature reaches 165°F. Remove from the oven, let the chicken cool slightly, then shred it with two forks.

4. TRANSFER the chicken to a mixing bowl. Pour the Buffalo hot sauce and ranch dressing over the chicken and toss to combine. Add more hot sauce, to taste.

5. ADD 1 cup of Cheddar cheese and stir to combine.

6. REMOVE the potatoes from the oven and carefully cut a slice down the middle of each, keeping the bottoms attached. Carefully split the potatoes partially open and use forks to fluff the interior.

7. TOP the potatoes with the chicken mixture and the remaining cheese. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes, until cheese is melted.

8. TOP the potatoes with additional ranch dressing and garnish with bacon and scallions. Serve.
 
 
MORE LOADED POTATO RECIPES

[1] This Buffalo-Ranch Loaded Baked Potato recipe is a meal in itself (photo © Idaho Potato Commission).

[2] Here are 4 techniques to shred chicken (photo © Ambitious Kitchen).

[3] You might want to cook extra bacon. There’s always a “taker” for more (photo © iGourmet).

[4] The recipe uses Cheddar (in photo), but we substituted Gruyère, in the photo below (photo © Dairy Farmers Of Wisconsin).

[5] We do like Cheddar cheese, but we like Gruyère and Emmental (the original “Swiss cheese” with holes) even more (photo of Gruyere © Murray’s Cheese).

[1] Spicy crab linguine with crab and Calabrian chiles (photos #1, #3, and #4 © DeLallo).

[2] Jumbo lump crabmeat is the best-looking crab type, but also the most expensive. You can save money with other types (photo © Phillips Foods).

[3] Calabrian chiles in oil. The oil is also a delicious ingredientYou can buy them online from DeLallo.

[4] Calabrian chiles are also great on pizza .

March 9th is National Crab Meat Day, whether you spell crabmeat as two words or one. If you ask most people to name a favorite crab recipe, crab cakes might top the list, followed by crab salad, crab sushi, she-crab soup (a Southern specialty), and maybe the ignominious* Crab Rangoon. Only your grandmother might remember Crab Louie†.

Today, we have something much more contemporary: spicy linguine with crab and Calabrian chiles. (You can use any shape of pasta that you like.)

Inspired by the bold and spicy flavors of Southern Italian cuisine, this garlicky chile and crab pasta is easy to make. Thanks to DeLallo for the recipe.

> The different types of pasta.

> The different types of crab.

> The different types of chiles.

> Pasta history.

> Crab history.

> Chile history.
 
 
RECIPE: SPICY LINGUINE WITH CRAB & CHILES

If you can’t find Calabrian chiles, substitute red pepper flakes.

While jumbo lump crabmeat is the best looking, it is also the most expensive.

If you’re making this recipe for a family dinner, you can save money by purchasing a less expensive grade of crabmeat—lump/backfin, white, or claw crabmeat.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. BRING 5 quarts of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of hot pasta water. Meanwhile…

2. HEAT the extra light olive oil and Calabrian pepper oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the chiles and garlic and cook until soft and the garlic is a pale golden color, about 5 minutes. Remove the garlic and discard.

3. ADD the wine and lemon juice and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the crab and cook until just heated through, about 1 minute.

4. ADD the pasta and some of the reserved pasta water to the pan and cook for another minute. Stir in the parsley, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.

5. DIVIDE onto plates or serve family style.

*Crab rangoon is on our “ignominious list” because it’s a faux Polynesian dish invented at a bar in San Francisco. It consists of dumplings stuffed with crabmeat, garlic, scallions, and cream cheese. Then, the dumplings are deep-fried! It’s often served with sweet chili sauce. It was on the menu at Trader Vic’s in California since 1956 [source]. In our opinion, this dish should have gone out with the 1960s.

The goal of XO Marshmallow is to give nostalgic marshmallows a modern twist, creating handmade, gourmet marshmallows in great flavors. One of them is a limited-edition specialty, Irish Coffee Marshmallows for St. Patrick’s Day. Treat for yourself, give them as a gift, or plan for an upcoming Easter basket.

XO Marshmallow’s Irish Coffee Marshmallows (photo #1) are flavored with a delightful trio of coffee, cocoa, and Irish cream liqueur (rest assured, there’s no alcohol in the final creation, only the Irish cream flavor).

We loved the subtle Irish cream flavor, and after gobbling up the box of 12, we realized we needed more for the uses below, including tossing them into cups of regular and Irish coffee.

> Get your Irish Coffee Marshmallows here.

> The history of marshmallows.
 
 
MARSHMALLOW FLAVORS & SPECIALTIES

XO Marshmallows are all egg-free and gluten-free. No high fructose corn syrup or preservatives are used. All of the marshmallows are made with premium ingredients.

Some flavors are standard, others rotate in limited editions. The team is always creating new flavors. In addition to limited-edition Irish Coffee, currently available flavors include:

 
We’re also excited about:

 
And how about a Cocoa Dusted MarsHalo (photo #3)?

These are donut- (halo)-shaped marshmallows that sit on the rim of a cup of hot chocolate, coffee, or tea, and the heat of the drink lets them melt perfectly into the cup.

They make a great gift with a tin of gourmet hot cocoa.

There’s even a special thank-you gift package (photo #2), and a Happy Birthday set.

And there’s more to discover on the website.
 
 
USES FOR MARSHMALLOWS

 
Ready to create with marshmallows?

Head to XOMaarshmallow.com.
 
 
________________

*As a pie topper, you can melt the marshmallow to create a semblance of meringue. Bake the pie or slices at 400°F for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the marshmallows are toasted and melty.

[1] Irish Coffee marshmallows with an iced latte (photos #1, #2, #3, and #4 © XO Marshmallow).

[2] There are gift packages for birthdays and thank-you’s (above).

[3] These MarsHalo donut-shaped marshmallows sit on the rim of hot chocolate or coffee, and melt right in.

[5] Ooh la-la: pink marshmallows with gold glitter. These are the Rose Gold Rosé marshmallows.

[5] Add a fun factor to a milkshake with a marshmallow on top (photo © Honey And Birch).

[1] It may look formidable with 5 colored layers and fondant icing, but here’s the recipe if you’re up for the challenge (photos #1 and #3 © Wilton).

[2] Making just three layers with stabilized whipped cream frosting is much easier. Here’s the recipe (photo © McCormick) .

[3] Easier still: a simple layer cake (two layers or more) with green buttercream frosting.

[4] Green buttercream frosting plus themed sprinkles make any cake or cupcake holiday-ready. We found these sprinkles on Amazon (photo © Man Vs. Cakes).

[5] Chocolate ganache icing offset by a shamrock for a St. Patrick’s Day cupcake (photo © Georgetown Cupcake).

[6] Royal icing hardens to a shine, and is popularly used to decorate cookies (photo © Eleni’s Cookies).

[7] A lemon bundt cake with lemon icing. Here’s the recipe (photo © King Arthur Baking).

[8] A chocolate glaze on a pistachio chocolate chip pound cake. Here’s the recipe (photo © King Arthur Baking).

[9] A lemon cake made with a box mix, with a thin lemon glaze. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste Of Home) .

Do you have the energy to take on a five-layer ombre cake for St. Patrick’s Day? If so, here’s the recipe (photo #1). But there are other ways to make a cake…or a cupcake…or a cookie, to celebrate the occasion.

As we looked at our collection of recipes, we realized this was a good occasion to discuss frosting versus icing. So many online articles and recipes just get it wrong.
 
The words icing and frosting are used interchangeably, which is not correct, typically by calling frosting by the name of icing.

But check this out, and you’ll know better. Also, see the footnote* below.

> Here’s a source of recipes for many of these cake toppings.

But the big challenge is deciding exactly which frosting, icing, or glaze you want on your cake.

The history of confectioners or powdered sugar, which enabled the first icings, is below.
 
 
FROSTING VS. ICING VS. GLAZE: THE DIFFERENCES

1.WHAT IS FROSTING?

 
Different types of frosting include:

 
 
2. WHAT IS ICING?

 
Icing types include:

 
 
3. WHAT IS GLAZE?

 
Some different types of glaze:

 
________________

*Note that some bakers will substitute confectioners sugar in a frosting recipe and call it icing. Is it or isn’t it? If it comes out fluffy and spreadable, then it’s frosting, not icing. Some recipes, like this brown sugar frosting, use brown sugar and confectioners sugar.
 

Sugar cane has been around for millennia; the cane juice was widely used in India and China from the 4th century B.C.E. Refined sugar appears around 500 B.C.E., when residents of what is now India determined how to crystallize the juice into granulated sugar by boiling it down. Here’s more of the history of sugar cane and granulated sugar.

Confectioners sugar, also known as powdered sugar and 10x sugar (because it is milled 10 times smaller than granulated sugar), came later.

In the colonial period, both refined white sugar and brown sugar were commercially available in the shape of cones or loaves. The cane juice was boiled down into a thick, crystalline syrup, and poured into cone- or loaf-shaped molds to harden (here’s an illustration).

The cones or loaves had to be broken down with a hammer and chisel. For the dining room and tea table, you needed to nip the sugar into neat lumps with sugar nippers (like tongs—here’s a photo) to reduce to usable pieces [source 5].

The cone-shaped sugar loaf was common until the later 19th century. Today, piloncillo and other types of unrefined sugar are still sold in cones.

When powdered sugar was called for in a recipe, the cook had to use a mortar and pestle or a spice mill, to grind it from pieces of the loaf.

The earliest form of powdered sugar, used from the 16th century to the 18th century, was sugar that was grated from the loaves or cones—the way that sugar was sold in that period—and sifted.

Sugar was grated for use in recipes (sugar bowls contained lumps, as in “one lump or two?”), but the grated sugar could then be sifted. The finest grains that fell through the sieve were the first form of powdered sugar [source 1].

The earliest known appearance of the verb “to ice,” referring to cakes, dates from around 1600; the noun “icing” dates from 1683 [source 2].

In all likelihood, the term derived from the blanket of white grains of powdered sugar topping a cake, looking like wintery ice.

Covering cakes with powdered sugar or other decoration seems to have been introduced in the 17th century. According to one source, the first documented record of frosting or icing appears around 1655, made with eggs, sugar, and rosewater. The icing was applied to the cake then hardened in the oven. The frosted wedding cake appeared about 100 years later [source 3].

One source claims that the word “frosting” comes later, in 1750 [source 2]—doubtlessly, the vision of winter frost led to the name.

Yet a third reference [source 3] says that the first published recipe for frosting is found in The Experienced English Housekeeper by Elizabeth Raffald, published in 1769. However, this source further notes, frosting is thought to have been around a least 200 years before the publication.

Tired of using that mallet and tongs to break down the sugar cone? In the 1800s, grocery stores had portable mills to grind lumps of sugar into granules [source 4].

With the advent of the Industrial Revolution (1760-1840) came machine-milled granulated sugar. Powdered sugar, similar to what is available today, was available to the confectionery industry by the end of the 18th century.

As the technology for processing sugar advanced, powdered sugar became affordable to home cooks in the 19th century. It became easy to create icings for cakes [source 1].

Buttercream came later. The first buttercream frosting was made in Germany in 1915 [source 3].