Delicate herbs (basil, chives, cilantro, dill and parsley, for example) are generally chopped, snipped, or torn and added at the end of cooking to provide the most flavor impact. Don’t add them too soon in the cooking process.

Heartier herbs like bay leaf, oregano, rosemary and thyme can be added earlier in the cooking process to allow their flavors to completely infuse into the dish. They can be added whole and removed before serving.

Except for bay leaf, though, which must be removed before serving (biting into it isn’t appealing), snipping sturdy herbs into the dish leaves green flecks that add to the visual beauty of the dish.

You can tell by looking at rosemary that
it’s hearty. Photo by Kristian Birchall | SXC.

Should you buy organic herbs over conventional herbs? In some cases, yes. Read our article on organic herbs and spices.

With chocolate shoes, one size fits all.
Photo courtesy WoodhouseChocolate.com.

The solid handmade chocolate shoes are skillfully hand-decorated. Chanel would approve. And at $20/pair, they’re a lot more affordable than her shoes.

The shoes are available in dark, milk and white chocolate (which is colored pink for spring fashion).

If you call today, you can still get chocolate shoes by 2-day air for Mother’s Day: 1.800.966.3468.

• Find more of our favorite specialty chocolates.

Daisy also helps the novice Latin cook by explaining the ingredients used in each recipe—their origins, what you can substitute and where you can find them.

Daisy reminisces about traveling around the world with her family and discovering new foods, as well as finding new spins on dishes she’s made for years—the “everyday” recipes that are in this book. To her, eating should be and is a great adventure as well as an education.

We’ve included two popular recipes that we enjoyed mucho. With great flavors and easy cooking instructions, this is a cookbook that’s sure to please.

• Read the full review.
• Make Daisy’s arroz con pollo.
• Make Daisy’s vegetarian stuffed peppers.

Arroz con pollo is a great party
dish. Photo courtesy Simon and Schuster.

Boil, peel and place on a stick. Photo
courtesy SXC.

Place hard-cooked eggs on popsicle sticks and set up a lazy susan with toppings like salsa, flavored salts, hummus, your favorite dips and chopped herbs. It’s creative, healthy fun.

In addition to snack time, serve Eggs On A Stick for breakfast.

• Learn how to make perfect hard-cooked eggs.

It’s easy to bake a batch for Mother’s Day (or any day!). If Mom is a chocolate lover, serve them with chocolate butter.

• Take a look at the recipe for corn muffins and chocolate butter, from Woodhouse Chocolate.
• Go all-chocolate with this recipe for chocolate muffins, from chocolatier Michael Recchiuti.

Both chocolatiers are NIBBLE Top Picks Of The Week.

Bake ‘em, don’t buy ‘em. Photo © Anton Prado | Fotolia.