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Lorie Hutson

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A&E >  Food

Reader Food Panel

Chiquita Fruit Smoothie "The effortless way to enjoy a real fruit smoothie." That's how Chiquita describes its new drinks. But c'mon… they're sold in the freezer section and warmed briefly in the microwave before serving. Actually, the food panel thought the smoothies were decent. They gave the strawberry-banana flavor three and a half stars and the pineapple-orange received three stars. "This drink has two qualities we almost never see at the food panel – subtle sweetness and subtle flavor," said taster
A&E >  Food

Reader Food Panel: Food tasters split on smoothies

No blender required. … but strangely, you'll need a microwave for Chiquita's new fruit smoothies. The blended fruit and yogurt smoothies can be found in the freezer section at many grocery stores. Open the lid and pop it into the microwave for 60 seconds. Then, use a spoon to stir until smooth.
A&E >  Food

Ooey-Gooey Buns take time but worth wait

Dear Cook's Notebook: About two years ago there was a recipe for cinnamon rolls that mentioned it was better than Cinnabons. (By the way, it is.) Please see if you can find it. Thank you. – Kathy Lemmons
A&E >  Food

Fresh Sheet : Slow Food supporters set to gather this month

Advocates of the Slow Food movement will host a presentation in Spokane later this month to share what they learned at a recent international conference called Terra Madre. Al Kowitz and Evelyn Florio, members of Slow Food Upper Columbia, attended the conference in Turin, Italy, along with 6,500 delegates from 148 countries.
A&E >  Food

New organic soups met with warm reception

The fresh taste of Muir Glen Organic soups could be mistaken for homemade, some Spokesman-Review food panel members said recently. Others said the recipes could use some tweaking. But overall the soups fared well with the volunteer tasters. Muir Glen's Hearty Tomato Soup earned four stars for flavor, while the Homestyle Split Pea and Savory Lentil each received three stars.
A&E >  Food

Cook’s Notebook: Jalapeño poppers doable at home

Dear Cook's Notebook: It used to be that one could buy delicious jalapeño pepper poppers at Costco at a very reasonable price, but like so many things, Costco no longer carries them. You can buy them at supermarkets, but they are not nearly as good and are twice as expensive. So I've decided to see if I can learn to make them myself, even though I've not the slightest idea how to do that.
A&E >  Food

Lemongrass Chicken Stix a hit with panel

During the busy holiday season, quick-to-fix solutions are always welcome. Fast foods that taste delicious are even better and Kahiki Foods has a hit with its new Lemongrass Chicken Stix, food panel members said. They gave the crispy crepes four stars out of five for taste and value.
A&E >  Food

Spokane boy wins Red Robin contest

Start with crispy garlic toast. Pile it high with thinly sliced Italian sausage, a beef hamburger patty, green peppers, onions and tomatoes and what do you get – a contest-winning recipe for a new Red Robin burger. Spokane's Anthony Graham, 10, entered his creation into Red Robin's "The Next Gourmet Burger Kids Contest" earlier this year when the restaurant asked kids age 10 and under to send in a recipe and a statement about a new burger. Graham's Italian Sausage and Pepper Burger was one of 50 recipes selected from more than 16,000 entries.
A&E >  Food

Fresh Sheet : Wild Game Feast back on NIC menu

Buffalo oxtail soup, quail breast and kangaroo medallions are not on your average Northwest dinner menu. But each year the North Idaho College Alumni Association and Coeur d'Alene Inn Chef Gene Tillman join forces to design a feast that is a bit wild.Tickets are now on sale for NIC's annual Wild Game Feast. It will be held at 6 p.m. on Jan. 27 at the Coeur d'Alene Inn, 414 W. Appleway in Coeur d'Alene.
A&E >  Food

New Skillets have serious shortcomings

Betty Crocker promises crispy potato slices from a box in its new Seasoned Skillets. The problem? When prepared according to the directions on the package, only a few of the potatoes ever reached anything resembling crispiness. The rest were soggy, chewy, greasy and not well received by the Spokesman-Review reader food panel. "Greasy, soggy, nasty, useless, emergency food only," Donald Clegg said, of the Traditional Recipe potatoes.
A&E >  Food

Almond Roca easy in microwave or on stovetop

Dear Cook's Notebook: Years ago a friend gave me an easy recipe for Almond Roca, which I have since lost in a move. All you had to do was butter a cookie sheet, spread almonds on it and after cooking the caramel mixture, pour it over the nuts, then put Hershey bars or chocolate chips on top and spread when melted and refrigerate. Then you just broke it up.
A&E >  Food

Garlic Bread Pizzas find fair share of fans

Crust lovers may find DiGiorno's new Garlic Bread Pizza to be the perfect pie. Those who like a thin and crispy crust will definitely want to steer clear. It's a cross between garlic bread and pizza. Spokesman-Review food panel tasters gave the Supreme four stars for flavor and value, but the Four Cheese fared only three stars out of five. The pizzas also come topped with pepperoni.
A&E >  Food

“Mom’s Big Book of Cookies”

These recipes have been taste-tested and approved by the critics: Author Lauren Chattman's children and their classmates. The author of "Mom's Big Book of Baking," "Ice Box Desserts," and "Ice Box Pies" recently released a new cookbook. It has more than 200 recipes designed to help encourage children to start baking cookies with their parents. There are tips for getting the kids involved, "good excuses" for making some recipes and fun ideas for cookie construction projects on rainy or snowy days. Look inside today's Food section for Chattman's favorite holiday cookie,
A&E >  Food

Let Cena’s workshop save the day

Hunting for holiday meal help this season? Meal-preparation store Cena is offering a seasonal special that will make you suspect they've hired Santa himself. On Dec. 22 and 23, the store is inviting customers to come prepare a complete holiday dinner in advance.
A&E >  Food

Dark chocolate fans in for a treat

Dark chocolate lovers will be happy to find Ghirardelli's new bars on grocery store shelves. Those who like to know just how dark their chocolate is will appreciate that the labels list the cacao content of each bar. They range from 45 percent cacao in the Toffee Interlude flavor to 72 percent in the Twilight Delight bars.
A&E >  Food

Fresh sheet : Gingerbread dream teams set to build

Anyone who has ever tried to shellac and decorate their own gingerbread house during the holiday season knows … it's not nearly as easy as it looks. But the chefs and architects who will build the extravagant gingerbread creations this weekend during the Christ Kitchen Gingerbread Build-Off could inspire you to try again anyway.
A&E >  Food

Books for Cooks: Casserole quick, tasty way to use up leftover turkey

Paula Deen loves Thanksgiving. It's not the turducken on the table, the corn bread dressing or the deviled oysters. It's because the holiday is about more than just food. It celebrates bringing family and friends together, Deen says in her new cookbook, "Paula Deen Celebrates!" (Simon and Schuster, $26, 224 pages)
A&E >  Food

Fresh Sheet: Less heat this time around

Turkey lovers have something to celebrate this Thanksgiving. After years of recommending that turkeys be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees (a practice that all but guaranteed breast meat with a texture similar to sawdust), the USDA has lowered its poultry recommendation to 165 degrees.
A&E >  Food

Cheesecake challenge

Admit it. There is something about cheesecake filling in a plastic tub that makes one's inner foodie want to run screaming from the grocery store. What has this I've-gotta-have-it-now world come to when you can scoop cheesecake innards into a pre-made crust and call it dessert? That's right. This cheesecake requires no advance preparation. The filling is blended and waiting in a cooler near the cream cheese, and graham cracker crusts are just a few aisles down.
A&E >  Food

Fresh sheet : Local wines offer preview for holidays

Want a local Spokane wine to pair with this year's holiday meal? Thinking of sharing a little taste of Spokane with out-of-town wine lovers? This is the perfect weekend to stock up. Spokane wineries will host the second open house of the year Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
A&E >  Food

Kahlua Cream Pie is ‘ohh, so good’

Reader Ruth Carlon recently wrote requesting a Kahlua Cream Pie recipe that appeared in The Spokesman-Review more than 11 years ago. She remembered that it ran in the paper just before Thanksgiving. Unfortunately, because our electronic archive of stories only goes back to 1995, recipes that ran in our pages before that can be very difficult to find. Without the specific date that the recipe appeared, it can be a bit like looking for a needle in a haystack.
A&E >  Food

Tub-o-Cheesecake dazzles

Four-star cheesecake flavor in a tub? You betcha. In a showdown of instant cheesecake satisfaction, the new Philadelphia Ready-To-Eat Cheesecake Filling stacked surprisingly well against the cheesecakes from Costco and Sara Lee.