The Perfect Pantry®

The Pantry Quiz #39

Do you know?

An onion is an onion is an onion, right? Wrong. To everything there is a season, and that includes onions. I've been making batches of caramelized onions lately, sometimes in the slow cooker, to stir into frittatas and strew on pizzas. Which onions are best for caramelizing: onions planted in the fall and harvested in the spring, or onions planted in spring and harvested in the fall? (Extra credit if you know why.)

The Pantry Quiz #38

What is it?

One of my favorite pantry items, considered a yang food by Chinese and Japanese cooks, is sold by the hand. To cook with it, you break off a finger. What is it?

The Pantry Quiz #37

What's In a Name?

Some of my favorite ingredients are toponyms (haven't you always wanted to say that?). A toponym is a name derived from a place. Which country, city or region gives each of these ingredients its name?

1. Mayonnaise
2. Worcestershire sauce
3. Dijon mustard
4. Tabasco
5. Demarara sugar

The Pantry Quiz #36

Multiple choice

Mares eat oats and does eat oats, and little lambs eat ivy. Or so I've heard. Which of these oats packs in the most dietary fiber?

1. Oat bran
2. Oatmeal
3. Rolled oats