Chilly cookies
DEAR HELOISE » When I bake cookies, I like to chill the dough first. So after mixing the dough, I put the dough into a gallon freezer bag with a ziplock closure. I then roll the outside of the bag with a rolling pin so the dough is spread out inside the bag and evenly flat. I then chill the bag with the dough. When I’m ready to bake the cookies, I cut open the bag and use a cookie or biscuit cutter and place them on parchment paper on a pan. The cookies look very professional that way! I have started to use the freezer bag technique on pie crusts too.
— Reader, via email
Marinade
DEAR HELOISE » Have you got a marinade recipe for beef cooked on a grill? We have friends coming for dinner, and my husband wants to do something a little different from the usual way beef is prepared so that it’s tender and tasty.
— Jean in Minnesota Jean, yes, I have a yummy recipe suitable for beef, veal or lamb, and here it is! You’ll need: 1 cup dry white or red wine ¼ cup cider vinegar 1 cup salad oil 2 teaspoons salt ½ teaspoon black pepper 1/8 teaspoon tarragon 1 bay leaf, crushed in small pieces
½ teaspoon thyme or marjoram
1 large clove of garlic, finely chopped
Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and use as you would a commercial marinade.
Nutrient loss
DEAR HELOISE » I like a lot of your recipes I see in your column and thought you might be able to answer a question for me. For a recipe that goes into the oven, are the nutrients in them destroyed by the heat?
— Allan B. in Virginia Allen, although some methods of cooking foods can lead to a reduction in nutrients, cooking in an oven does not have much of an effect on most vitamins and minerals, except vitamin B. But the longer the cook time at a high temperature, the more nutrients that may be lost.
Leftovers
DEAR HELOISE » I always seem to have a lot of leftover mashed potatoes. I save them for breakfast. I mix them with a little flour, cheddar cheese, onion flakes and salt and pepper. Then I form patties and fry them. My family loves them and nothing is wasted.
— Susana in Rhode Island
Write to Heloise at P.O. Box 795001, San Antonio, TX 782795000; Fax 210-HELOISE; or email Heloise@Heloise.com.