If you’re fond of making cheese omelets, chili, pizza, quesadillas and other dishes requiring shredded cheese, you may have noticed that shredding semisoft cheeses can be more taxing than it should be. Cheese gets stuck in the large holes of the box grater, requiring ongoing unclogging.

Here are two solutions:

 
How To Use A Box Grater
 
1. Place the grater on a plate.
2. If the piece of cheese is too large, cut off a manageable piece.
3. Rub the cheese up and down across the holes of the grater. Watch your knuckles!
4. If cheese gets stuck in the holes, use a pastry brush or other brush to remove it. We purchased a nail brush from the drug store for this and other kitchen tasks.

What’s New In Box Graters

After 20-plus years, we finally traded up our old, dented box grater—a hand-me-down from Mom—for a 21st-century model. Some of the newer box graters have comfortable, non-slip handles and nonslip bottom rings that make a big difference.

 
If you don’t have a box grater, you can pulse the cheese in a food processor. Cut the cheese into 1-inch cubes. Spray the blades with non-stick cooking spray and pulse in small batches. You won’t get the longer shredded pieces, but if you’re melting the cheese, it won’t matter.
  

Along with our Top Pick Of The Week—hibiscus iced tea—try this hibiscus punch, known in Egypt as karkadé (pronounced kar-kah-DAY).

It couldn’t be easier to make the punch. If you can boil water, strain out the hibiscus leaves and add sugar, you’re there.

This recipe in the video doesn’t contain alcohol—Islam, the state religion of Egypt, doesn’t permit alcohol.

You can enjoy it as is, add your favorite white spirit (gin, vodka or tequila, for example), or substitute ginger ale for the alcohol.

Ingredients

 
*Look for them at Latin or Caribbean markets. Also called roselle, flor de Jamaica and red sorrel, among other names. You can also buy it in an affordable bulk size online.

Preparation
1. Bring water and ginger to a boil. Remove from heat and add hibiscus flowers.
2. Slowly stir in sugar until it has dissolved. Let steep 15 minutes.
3. Strain into a large pot or a gallon pitcher. Add lime juice and set aside to cool.
4. Refrigerate. When ready to serve, transfer to a pitcher. Serve over ice.

NIBBLE TIP: You can make ice cubes from some of the punch, so the ice doesn’t dilute the drink.

Given that bacon is a favorite breakfast food, why not try bacon in a morning muffin?

Kimberly Reiner and Jenna Sanz-Agero, authors of Sugar, Sugar: Every Recipe Has a Story, have created this yummy maple bacon muffin.

The muffin itself contains maple bacon and maple syrup, topped with maple frosting and a piece of bacon.

Summer saké punch with strawberries and
cucumber: delicious! Photo courtesy
Geikkekan.

Party drinks like sangria and punch are popular, affordable and easy to make.

For a fun fusion, make them with saké.

Saké, which many people think of as rice wine (we’ll skip the technicalities for now), can substitute for conventional grape-based wines in these recipes.

How about saké sangria, an Asian twist on the Spanish original? Refresh yourself with:

The key difference is that punch isn’t chock-full of fruit like sangria, and typically has effervescence added via soda water or ginger ale. Recipes include:

 
FOOD TRIVIA: The word “punch” is adapted from the Hindi word, “panch.” In India, panch was made from five different ingredients: sugar, lemon, water, tea or spices and an alcoholic spirit. The word for “five” in Sanskrit is panchan–hence the name. After carbonated water (soda water) became mainstream in the late 18th century, it was added to the punch for some effervescence.

A friend tells us that her Golden Retriever loves to eat the shells.

Shrimp shells can also lower your cholesterol levels.

Give it a try!

Save those shrimp shells! Photo by Leonardo
Menezes | SXC.