Make it a healthier muffin breakfast with a yogurt muffin parfait.

• Dice or crumble the muffin—any flavor. Add some muffin to the bottom of a bowl, parfait dish, sundae dish or large rocks glass.
• Create layers with your favorite yogurt and fruit—fresh, dried or a combination of both.
• Plain Greek yogurt is a good counterpoint to the sweetness of the muffin.
• You can slice the muffin into three or four thick pieces and toast it, then dice the toasted muffin for a crunchy effect.

This simple recipe is a good use for day-old muffins that have become dry. The yogurt will remoisten the muffins.

Find more yogurt recipes in our Gourmet Yogurt Section.

Have your muffin and eat it too, with a
muffin yogurt parfait. Photo courtesy
Watermelon.org.

Perky, triangle-shaped chips are a hit. Photo
by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE.

Either way, PopCorners, “the new shape of popcorn,” is sure to please, in Butter Sea Salt and White Cheddar flavors.

Air popped, the chips have the crunch of a chip with the flavor of popcorn. They’re packed in 1.1-ounce, single-portion bags.

The all-natural chips are gluten-free and certified kosher by OU.

We’re happy to crunch on a bagful anytime.

• Find out more at MedoraSnacks.com.
• See more of our favorite popcorn products and other salty snacks in our Gourmet Snacks Section.
• Check out the history of popcorn.

• Rice Salad: Mix with diced chopped onions, bell peppers and other favorite vegetables, fresh parsley and any leftover chicken. Use olive oil to bind. You can also use this filling to make stuffed tomatoes and stuffed peppers.
• Meatballs or Stuffed Cabbage: In the meatballs, rice substitutes for breadcrumbs.
• Fried Rice: Heat oil in a saucepan; add rice, diced onions or green onions, minced garlic and soy sauce. Add diced bell pepper, carrots and any leftover meat or poultry. Tofu is another good addition. If you have sesame oil, add a teaspoon to the primary cooking oil.
• Rice & Beans or Burritos: In the microwave or a skillet, mix rice with canned black beans and some adobo sauce or hot sauce. Serve as a side, in a tortilla for a burrito or as a main dish with sliced sausages or hot dogs.
• Soup: Place a mound of rice in the center of a bowl and surround with soup.

It’s easy to turn leftover steamed rice
into fried rice. Photo courtesy CalRice.org.

• Stuffed Grape Leaves: A great use if you have lots of leftover rice and access to vine leaves.

But perhaps our favorite dish, which takes just two minutes to make, is Rice and Cheese, a variation of mac & cheese. Mix the rice with shredded, grated or chopped cheese and put in the microwave for 30 sections. Season with fresh parsley, chopped green onions or red pepper flakes. Enjoy it as a quick snack or a side dish; it’s great comfort food.

Our second favorite dish is another comfort food: Rice Pudding. Place the rice in a bowl and moisten with whole milk or nonfat milk (enough to wet the rice but not to create a pool of excess liquid). Add a teaspoon of your favorite sweetener and optional raisins or chopped dried fruit, plus cinnamon and nutmeg. Microwave for 30 seconds and enjoy!

You can use white rice or brown rice.

• There’s much more to rice than “white” or “brown.” See the rices of the world in our Rice Glossary.

Don’t have a rolling pin? Use a wine bottle.
Photo by Karen Barefoot | SXC.

You can use a wine bottle to roll dough. It’s a bit more cumbersome, but it works!

Rolling pins are not only made from wood. For centuries, marble, blown glass and ceramic rolling pins have long been used. Hollow pins can be filled with ice water and plugged with stoppers to prevent the dough from sticking to the pin. Earlier in time, long cylinders of baked clay and smooth, peeled branches were used. Today, nonstick silicone-and-metal rolling pins are the state-of-the-art.

The rolling pin seems to have been invented by the Etruscans, who developed a broad range of cooking tools. An ancient and advanced people, they were the dominant society in what is now Tuscany by the ninth century B.C.E. With the rise of Rome, they, and their knowledge of cooking, were ultimately assimilated into the Roman Empire.

How To Use A Wine Bottle To Roll Dough
1. You can use a full or empty wine bottle. Wipe the bottle clean.
2. A chilled full bottle is best, because it has more weight and cools the dough so it doesn’t stick. You don’t have to roll a bottle of good wine: An empty bottle filled with water works just as well.
3. If you’re having trouble rolling out the dough, place it between sheets of wax paper to prevent sticking. Slightly chilled dough works more easily than dough at room temperature.

But if you’re ready to invest in a rolling pin, this red silicone-coated rolling pin is our latest favorite.

*Source: Wikipedia.

Just in time for Labor Day, Bobby shares his nine best tips, tricks and techniques with us.

Bobby also contributed his delicious Ribeye & Anaheim Chile Quesadilla recipe. You’ll love it.

• Go for the grilling tips.
• Check out the ribeye quesadilla recipe.

Find more tips and recipes in our Gourmet Meats
Section.

Flipping burgers and other foods is easier
with this grill basket from SurLaTable.com.