Kim Sunée was born in South Korea, adopted, and raised in New Orleans. Her bestselling book Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home is out in paperback today. She lived in Europe for more than 10 years, was founding food editor of Cottage Living, has been a judge on Iron Chef America and is the host of Local Flavor with Kim Sunée for myrecipes.com. Find some of Kim’s recipes here. Or read more about her at her website.

Sweet or salty?

Salty and then semi-sweet.

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Fleur de sel, extra-virgin olive oil, fresh orange, juice and zest, and an addictive spicy piment d’oiseau hot pepper paste from Cameroon.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

Anything hitting a hot skillet with oil and butter.

What are the qualities you most admire in a dish?

Balance and the desire to satisfy but leaving you wanting more…

(more…)

Domenica Marchetti, a food writer, recipe developer and cooking teacher who specializes in seasonal Italian home cooking, is the author of The Glorious Soups and Stews of Italy (Chronicle Books, 2006) and the author of Cookthink’s bi-weekly recipe column The Soup Kitchen. Visit her web site at www.domenicacooks.com. You can find more of her recipes here.

Sweet or salty?

Saltylicious (a word invented by my husband to describe his awesome smoked ribs).

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano and garlic.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

The sound of chicken cutlets frying in a skillet. Or bacon, for that matter.

What’s your favorite cooking smell?

A pot of gently simmering chicken stock. (more…)

Carla Snyder is a writer and culinary instructor who has co-written four cookbooks with Meredith Deeds, including Big Book of Appetizers; The Take-Out Menu Cookbook: How to Cook In the Foods You Love to Order Out; 300 Sensational Soups; as well as the forthcoming Little Black Dress Cookbook: Stylish Versatile Recipes Every Cook Should Have in Their Culinary Closet. You can see some of their recipes here.

Sweet or salty?

Sweet

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Olives

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

Sizzling butter.

What’s your favorite cooking smell?

Garlic (more…)

Meredith Deeds is the food editor for Better Health and Living Magazine and a cooking teacher and cookbook author who has co-written four cookbooks with Carla Snyder, including Big Book of Appetizers; The Take-Out Menu Cookbook: How to Cook In the Foods You Love to Order Out; 300 Sensational Soups; as well as the forthcoming Little Black Dress Cookbook: Stylish Versatile Recipes Every Cook Should Have in Their Culinary Closet. You can see some of their recipes here.

Sweet or salty?

I prefer the one-two punch of the salty/sweet combo, but if I have to choose one it would be salty.

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Extra-virgin olive oil and salt. I always have several different bottles of olive oil in my kitchen to use for different things from sautéing to salads to drizzling over grilled fish. I do the same with different types of salts. I always have half a dozen I’m playing with at any one time.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

The sizzle of a sauté pan.

What’s your favorite cooking smell?

Peppers roasting on an open flame. (more…)

Carole Walter is the author of Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More. Find some of Carole’s recipes here or read more about her at www.carolewalter.com.

Sweet or salty?

Both

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Butter and flour.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

Deglazing

(more…)

Ann Cooper is the director of nutrition services for the Berkeley Unified School District. Her newest book is Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children (Harper Collins, Sept. 2006), co-written with Lisa M. Holmes. You can find some of Chef Ann’s recipes here.

Sweet or salty?

Salty

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Salt, EVO, balsamic, fresh veggies.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

Sauté — the sizzle. (more…)

It’s been a little quieter in the Cookthinktank post-election, with cooler weather slowing everyone down.

Nevertheless, Jaden gets busy with a TV spot on how to deftly peel a kiwi.

Since the economic climate has everyone conscious about how to use leftovers wisely, Andy removes “boil” from the list of four letter words with a rich Bollito Misto, a one-pot Italian answer to pot-au-feu that breaks down into a week’s worth of dinners. And leftover Halloween peppermint patties become brownies from Coconut & Lime.

Karina lifts her mood with a batch of Pumpkin Pecan Cookies, and Jess fills the post-election void by launching a Bake If You Love America campaign — starting with a beautiful deep-dish pumpkin pie.

(Image courtesy of Karina’s Kitchen)

Betty Rosbottom writes a weekly syndicated column called “That’s Entertaining” for Tribune Media Services, which appears in newspapers throughout the United States. She’s also a frequent contributor to Bon Appétit magazine and the author of several cookbooks including Sunday Soup. Learn more about Betty at her website or check out some of her recipes.

Sweet or salty?

Definitely sweet!

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

I seem to always be pulling cheeses from the fridge, picking fresh herbs from herb patch  outside my back door (in season), and loading up with produce from the farmers’ market.

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

I love the sizzle of a piece of meat or fish being added to a hot sauté pan.

What’s your favorite cooking smell?

I love the smell of coffee brewing and the scent when you open a bottle of top-notch vanilla. (more…)

It’s been a sweet week for the Cookthinktank.

Lauren celebrates Diwali with Kaju Katli, pictured above, an Indian dessert made with cashews and cardamom.

Jaden’s Steamy Kitchen features a luxurious flatbread with figs, apples and gorgonzola, drizzled with honey and perfect for a quick lunch.

For breakfast? A tray of sticky honey buns from Cook & Eat.

Karina’s recipe for vegan and gluten-free pumpkin pie is so good there’s no need to apologize for skipping the eggs and wheat. And there’s absolutely no need to wait until Thanksgiving to give it a try.

Got leftover pumpkin seeds? Try roasting them in a sweet and savory spice mix from hogwash — if you don’t have any, you may want to rush out and buy a post-Halloween pumpkin just to make some.

(photo courtesy of VeganYumYum)

Virginia Willis is the author of Bon Appétit Y’all: Recipes and Stories from Three Generations of Southern Cooking (Ten Speed Press 2008) and writes the Cookthink column Last Suppers. You can find some of Virginia’s recipes here.

Sweet or salty?

Salty

Which ingredient(s) do you use most?

Salt

What’s the cooking sound you most love?

The frizzle when putting a piece of meat in a hot skillet.

What’s your favorite cooking smell?

Ooh, I love the smell of a cake pan lined with buttered wax paper once the cake has been removed. It’s intoxicating. (more…)