The Chopping Block Cooking Blog

Tuscan Salmon: A Weeknight Family Favorite

I was tasked with making dinner the other night, and had absolutely no idea what to prepare. I had fresh salmon to work with, which was a step in the right direction, but when I opened my fridge ...

Achieve your Culinary Goals with Private Lessons

Have you ever wanted to learn how to cook or bake something specific? Perhaps you were inspired by The Great British Bake Off so you watched some how-to videos on YouTube then experimented with ...

How to Make Ghee

Before we get into making ghee, let's discuss what it is, what it is not and why we use it. I want to start by saying what ghee is not, which is clarified butter. Ghee is made using different a few ...

How to Make your Own Ground Ginger

If you have read any of my past blogs you may know I am from a little town in Iowa, Fort Dodge to be exact. Growing up in a rural area, in a small Midwestern town in the 70’s, I had little exposure ...

How to Make Jam without Pectin

I love to make jam; I’m sure in part because I used to watch my mom make it as a kid. Thinking about Mom in the kitchen brings back such fond memories. We primarily grew our own food when I was ...

How to Cook a Steak Accurately

Cooking a steak is one of the most basic skills a cook can learn, and yet it is one that eludes even the best of cooks. Don’t feel bad if you haven’t mastered the art of steak cookery. How many ...

Around the World in 80 Eggs

Eggs are one of the most versatile ingredients in the culinary world. There are by far over 80 thousand ways to prepare and use them. From breakfast, lunch and dinner to dessert they can be eaten in ...

Grilled Artichokes with Garlic Aioli

Being from a little town in Iowa, I had no exposure to whole fresh artichokes growing up. I had never seen one, never eaten one and certainly never cooked one. I had tasted jarred and canned ...

Duck Egg Tagliatelle with Morel Mushrooms and Asparagus

Those of you that follow my blogs regularly know I love to forage for mushrooms. I have to write at least one blog a year on how to forage, clean and cook wild mushrooms. If you want to learn more ...

A Perfect French Omelette to Amaze Your Friends

There are few dishes as shrouded in mystique as the venerated French omelette. Egg cookery in general but especially the ability to make a French omelette has been used as a metric to determine a ...

10 Tips for Sauce Making Part 3: Tomato Sauce

In part 3 of this series, we will focus on the third Mother Sauce: tomato sauce. Tomato sauce is one of the Mother Sauces that many people actually do make at home, and it's also one of the few ...

One Cut of Beef makes a Week's Worth of Meals

I like to think I am a pretty savvy grocery shopper. There are two ways to become one.

Smoke and the City

Food and fire. It’s primal; it’s a dance; it’s carbons bursting to life! It’s a skill. Taming live fire and manipulating it in such a way that the food you’ve placed on top of, beneath, or beside ...