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Somewhere between a pinch and a dash is a smidgen, and when it comes to good cooking, a smidgen can make all the difference! Smidgen is the home cooking podcast of Red Stick Spice Company. Join host Anne Milneck as she talks about food, home cooking, how to use spices, and the joy of making flavorful meals that your whole family will love. You'll also get to follow Anne into the Red Stick Spice Test Kitchen for a live cooking session that will give you the meal inspiration you're looking for. 

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  2. Hop On That Meal Train

Hop On That Meal Train

May 12, 2022

What do we bring? When there’s a happy occasion like a new baby or a solemn passing like losing a loved one the time-honored tradition of bringing food to our friends and family is a tangible way to show our care and concern. However, there are lots of food handling practices that come into play when we’re cooking for others. Our inspiration question comes from Terry (after experiencing the digital magazine Pathway) and to help properly answer, Smidgen host and owner of Red Stick Spice Company Anne Milneck  brings on Dr. Wenqing “Wennie” Xu to discuss food handling practices that every home cook can learn and use right away.

After an information packed (and fun!) session with Wennie, Anne pulls on friend and professional organizer Sara Landry West of South Coast Organizers to deal with a current trend—do we bring and leave a dish when bringing someone food? Do we use disposables? How does a professional organizer take on this topic—to pyrex or not to pyrex, that is the question (and Smidgen has the answer.)

Finally, Anne gets to the kitchen to make cassoulet (classic, comforting, delicious) and a 15 minute/5 ingredient salted butterscotch sauce that can top ice cream for a refreshing, sumptuous treat—both would be welcome to let someone know you’re thinking of them.

Mentioned on the show:

- Dr. Wennie has a informative and easy to access video series called Food Safety Bites, created with the LSU AgCenter

- Looking for a new hobby? Both Anne and Wennie collect food thermometers!  Check out the cool ThermoPop instant read thermometer (available in a gorgeous rainbow of colors.) Want readings fast? Thermapen One gives you the temp of your proteins in one second. Wow! Get ultra-fancy with wi-fi and Bluetooth® enabled Signals™ BBQ Alarm thermometer.

- Yum—Fleur de Sel boasts mineral flavors and gives a nice crunch. A delightful salt to use in the butterscotch sauce, and a unique addition to many dishes.

- How do I get the Red Stick Spice Company newsletter with recipes and cooking ideas? Sign up for our newsletter here.

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Hear all Smidgen episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Pandora, or your browser, or your favorite podcast app.  Smidgen is the award-winning podcast of Red Stick Spice Co.