Inside this life-size gingerbread house: a
dining room waiting for you! Photo
courtesy The Great Wolf Lodge.

Nibble, nibble little mouse. Who’s that nibbling at my house?

You may remember those words from Hansel and Gretel. They also gave birth to the name of THE NIBBLE webzine and blog…

Not because there’s a cannibal witch living here, but because Hansel and Gretel couldn’t believe their eyes when they saw the big gingerbread house, decorated with the confections of their wildest dreams. Every week, we at THE NIBBLE also go wide-eyed when we discover something new and fabulous.

You don’t have to enter a fairy tale to nibble in a life-size gingerbread house.

All you have to do is head for Niagara Falls, Ontario.

It takes more than 300 hours, hundreds of pounds of gingerbread, chocolate, cookies, pretzels and candy to build the house. During construction the entire lodge is filled with the sweet aromas of gingerbread and chocolate (no extra charge to inhale all you want!).

On the 24th, families will be able to walk through the front door of the gingerbread house and sit down for a holiday meal. Dining reservations are available to the public, as well as to Great Wolf Lodge guests.

Each year, diners make a charitable contribution via a $20 reservation fee (which is apart from the cost of the meal). This year, the recipient of the donations is Child Advocacy Centre Niagara, which helps abused children.

For gingerbread house dining reservations, call 1.905.354.4888 ext. 5718. Select holiday dining times are available. through January 9th, 2012. If you go, send us some photos!

Onions come in all shapes and sizes, not to mention a variety of colors. Their textures and flavors can be quite different. Different types of onions can’t necessarily be substituted for one another.

So how do you know which onions are best for which dishes? From French onion soup to succotash, the onion varietal you use does matter.

To help get your onions in order, we’ve created an “onion glossary,” explaining the differences among green onions (scallions), leeks, pearl onions, red onions, shallots, sweet onions, yellow onions and others.

Know your onions! Head for the onions.

Find more of our favorite vegetables and recipes in our Vegetable Section.

Consider replacing wood cutting boards with
acrylic boards. Cutting board set from
Farberware.

To prevent the cutting board from slipping, place a moist paper towel underneath it.

If you have slippage problems, try it.

When you’re done slicing and dicing, wash the cutting board and use the paper towel to wipe the counter.

Cutting boards can deteriorate over time, as they develop deep knife grooves that can harbor bacteria. Then, it’s time to replace them. Rather than toss them in the trash, seek ways to repurpose them—for example, underneath houseplants, as a cutting surface for crafts and other projects, and as a surface protector when using glue.

Instead of wood, select acrylic cutting boards. We use these cutting boards, from OXO Good Grips.

Lastly, to prevent cross-contamination, you need to thoroughly wash cutting boards with soap and hot water after cutting raw meat or seafood. To address the contamination problem, some companies are producing color-coded cutting boards. But we haven’t yet seen a set that’s large enough for serious cooking.

Acrylic cutting boards can go right into the dishwasher, for a thorough sanitizing.

Here are some tips from the experts at Eight O’Clock Coffee and THE NIBBLE:

 
Consider A House Gift Of Coffee

While many guests bring a bottle of wine, consider bringing a bag or two of coffee. You can make the gift special by choosing a seasonal blend for Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Especially if you’re one of the caffeine-conscious, feel free to BYOB (bring your own bag) of decaf.

COFFEE LOVERS: Check out our Coffee Section for recipes, reviews and lots of great information on brewing and serving coffee.

This week, everyone’s focused on the turkey.

But let us present a crowd pleaser that you can whip up in a jiffy when the turkey’s gone: roast marrow bones.

Marrow bones, you say? Aren’t they a treat for the dog?

Lucky dogs and lucky humans both eat marrow bones. Humans cook them first, and enjoy them on toast points. No less a gourmet than Anthony Bourdain has said that if he could choose his last meal, it would be roast marrow bones.

While we previously thought that bone marrow was pure cholesterol, according to Wikipedia, bone marrow is high in monounsaturated fats that are known to decrease LDL cholesterol levels, resulting in a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease.

It does sounds counter-intuitive! Bone marrow also contains a high proportion of vital nutrients: protein, B complex vitamins, calcium, magnesium and zinc, among others. It was a prized food in hunter-gatherer societies.

How To Serve Roasted Bone Marrow

Serve the bones standing upright on a plate. If you have espresso spoons, they’ll fit more easily inside the bones to scoop out the marrow, which you can then move straight to your mouth. Otherwise, use a dinner knife to spread the marrow on toast.

Another way to serve the bone marrow is as a steak topper. Remove the marrow from the roasted bones and mix it with gremolata, a combination of three minced garlic cloves, 1/4 cup finely chopped parsley and minced lemon peel (remove the peel with a vegetable peeler).

Atop a warm steak, the marrow will melt into the meat and the gremolata will add bright flavors.

Pour some hearty red wine, and you’ll be in heaven.

In addition to buying beef bones for marrow, you should also enjoy the marrow from braised beef shanks. You can enjoy the marrow from any bones. Our dad liked to crunch on chicken bones for the marrow.

Let us know how you enjoy marrow.

Find more of our favorite beef recipes.