[2] Slicing perfectly even julienne carrot strips (photo courtesy Kitchen Expert).

If you don’t have a mandoline slicer, it’s time to think seriously about getting one.

A mandoline (man-doe-LEEN) is a kitchen utensil that makes thin, even slices, from juliennes to crinkle-cuts and waffle cuts. Even chefs with top knife skills use one to ensure the perfection of every slice. Very thin slices can be made very quickly with minimal skills.

A vegetable, fruit, meat (think sausage), firm cheese or other food is slid along the surface until it reaches a razor-sharp blade that makes the cut. The process is repeated until the entire potato, carrot, etc. is cut.

Perhaps most importantly, the item that is sliced is held by a safety food holder, to ensure that fingers aren’t julienned along with the potato.

The bigger the holder, the better. The style shown in the photo, that looks somewhat like a brimmed hat, is the best. Mandolines that scare us have a flat plastic plate that fits in one’s palm.

After trying some mandolines so flimsy that we were scared to use them, we’ve settled on the Microplane Adjustable Slider Food Slicer.

The stainless-steel blade effortlessly slices cheese, fruit and vegetables, adjusting from paper-thin slices to 1/4-inch cuts. The handle is ergonomic and the feet are non-slip feet (not so with the feet of some other units—another scary factor).

Get a mandoline and try your skill by whipping up a batch of paper-thin potato chips or sweet potato chips.

MANDOLINE HISTORY

According to Chef Harvey, the first known illustration of what became known as the mandoline was published in 1570 in a cookbook by no less than Pope Pius VI’s cook.

The illustration shows a small board with a central cutting blade and perpendicular blades to cut vegetables into thin sticks.

 
________________

*He did not invent the device. Here’s the scoop.

You can also muddle a kiwi and then add the spirits. Here’s a suggestion from Corzo Tequila:

Ingredients Per Cocktail

• 1-1/2 parts silver tequila
• 1 kiwi, peeled, plus second kiwi for garnish
• 1 teaspoon simple syrup
• Ice

Preparation

1. Muddle kiwi in a cocktail shaker. Add other ingredients and shake well with ice.
2. Strain into a Collins glass. Garnish with a kiwi slice.

If you want the cocktail to be as green as the kiwi, add a sparse drop of food coloring. A little goes a long way.

Find more of our favorite cocktail recipes.

Beyond cocktails, think green garnishes for St. Patrick’s Day: herbs, green veggies, green condiments (gherkins, herb or wasabi mayo, wasabi mustard).

Use green garnishes for St. Patrick’s Day.
Photo courtesy Corzo Tequila.

What’s in store at the Festival? Perhaps
some chocolate cappuccino cups. Photo
courtesy Oregon Chocolate Festival

If you need a weekend getaway, and if chocolate combined with the great outdoors rings a bell, consider the Oregon Chocolate Festival.

The 7th annual Oregon Chocolate Festival will be held this weekend, March 4th through 6th. It will showcase more than 40 of Oregon’s great chocolatiers and specialty food producers. Some 1,500 chocolate lovers are expected.

The festival takes place in Ashland, at the south end of the Rogue Valley, home to some of America’s great food producers, from Lillie Belle Farms to Rogue Creamery. It’s just 15 miles north of the California border.

Ashland, with its small-town charm, is located in the foothills of the Siskiyou and Cascade mountain ranges. So if you have time to stay longer, there’s plenty of opportunity to hike off those chocolate calories.

Head to the festival website for more information.

Despite the predictions of certain experts that cupcakes are on the way out—to be replaced by pie shops—we think that cupcakes will be around for some time. Heck, there wasn’t even enough interest in pies to keep the great show, Pushing Daisies, on the air.

So this tip focuses on how easy it is for you to put stellar cupcakes on the table. You don’t even have to bake. Just focus your talent on decorating cupcakes you’ve acquired. (If you’re having a party, convince someone else to bake the cupcakes for you to decorate and share the kudos).

Then, all you need is a concept. Think of what you can do with:

• Colored sugars are more sophisticated, but sprinkles do the trick.
• Crushed hard candies are an easy option. We love peppermints on chocolate cupcakes, butterscotch on vanilla cupcakes and coffee candy on just about anything.

Simple but elegant: A non-pareil and a
light dusting of cocoa powder. Chocolate from
Guittard. Photo by Corey Lugg | THE NIBBLE.

• Other candy store favorites, from gummies to malted milk balls. Sprinkle malted milk on the icing before planting the malted milk ball.
• Colorful jelly beans and gumdrops can be used for edging or to make a flower design.
• Chocolate in its various incarnations is always a hit. You can shave or grate dark, milk and/or white chocolate; use chocolate curls; or take the easy road with chocolate chips (we use them in multiple flavors and colors, including siblings butterscotch, mint and PB chips). Or, make a statement by adding a piece of chocolate—a Hershey’s Kiss, a non-pareil, a square or broken wedge from a chocolate bar, a miniature PB cup, etc.—to the top of the cupcake.
• Coconut: Shredded or flaked, coconut is delish. You can tint it to any color by shaking it in a sealed plastic bag with a few drops of food color. Spread it on a plate to dry.
• Fresh berries create an elegant touch; dip them in chocolate for an indulgent touch.
• Dusting & More: Even if you’ve got nothing else in the house, dust the cupcakes with cocoa powder, cinnamon and/or confectioners’ sugar, using a fine mesh sieve. See what else is in the pantry: marshmallows? Cookie pieces? Fresh flowers (that haven’t been sprayed with pesticides)? You’ve got it covered.

See more cupcake decorating ideas with beautiful photos.

Our vote goes to these bacon-and-eggs
jelly bean cupcakes by Eileen E. Photo
courtesy Jelly Belly.

Are you ready for The $10,000 Jelly Belly Cupcake Challenge?

The challenge is to create the “world’s most creative cupcake,” using Jelly Belly jelly beans as the decoration.

The winner will receive a check for $10,000, so it’s worth a bit of thought. There are also “instant win” prizes, just for uploading a photo of your cupcake.

The top five cupcakes will be selected by What’s New, Cupcake? authors Karen Tack and Alan Richardson. Fans will then vote to determine the overall $10,000 grand prize winner.

Baking cupcakes from scratch is not a requirement. This is a cupcake decorating contest, so cake mixes or store-bought cupcakes are fine.

The online contest runs through July 31, 2011. For additional information, visit JBCupcakeChallenge.com.

Find our favorite cupcakes and recipes in our Gourmet Cakes Section.