The rule of thumb for red wine is usually to serve it at room temperature, which of course overlooks the fact that rooms often have different temperatures: I have a friend who basks in desert-style heat in his lounge all year round, while another removed his antiquated electric heaters three years ago and hasn’t got round to replacing them yet (which is why he ate Christmas dinner in his anorak last year). There are shelves packed with sommeliers’ guides and wine science that provide ideal temperatures for serving wine according to grape, region, vintage and proximity to the vernal equinox (joke) but here are the guidelines I follow at home: bigger, chewy reds with grainy tannins (richer Cabs and Merlots, Shiraz, heavier Italian reds etc) can be drunk at 60F to 63F (lower than you might expect, but this brings out the freshness of the wine’s fruit); lighter, fruitier reds (anything from delicate Beaujolais through to Pinot Noir, lighter Grenache, and various other unoaked wines) show their best side at 54F to 59F – the lighter the red wine, the more inclined I am to treat it like a white, particularly in summer.

If you’re really interested in exploring the effects of temperature on red wine (and possibly if your social life’s going through a rather quiet phase…) then try tasting three glasses of the same wine at different temperatures, say 54F, 62F and 68F. Having sampled the glasses alongside each other, you almost certainly won’t be drinking your red at the warmer end of ‘room temperature’ in the future.

If reds are generally served at a nebulous room temperature, then white wines are frequently stuck in the fridge for a few hours until they’re more chilled than George Clinton having an afternoon snooze by the pool. Serving white wines too cool mutes the fragrance and freshness that are the hallmark of so many vins blancs, delicate green fruit aromas and citrussy zestiness reduced to a bland, neutral ‘crispness’. You can use similar temperature principles for white wines as for reds: for the full-bodied whites, especially those with great dollops of vanilla oakiness or the firm structure of white Burgundies, use a higher temperature, say around 50F to 54F depending on just how rich the wine is. For refreshingly acidic Sauvignon Blanc, lighter Chardonnay, unoaked Chenin Blanc, or Riesling, drop the serving temperature to 45F to 47F. And if you’re serving Pinot Grigio, then hell, chill it as much as you want – a CIA-trained bloodhound would have trouble sniffing out aroma and flavor in most examples of this varietal.

The best way of gauging wine temperature is to use a wine thermometer. These start at about $10 and are available in plenty of wine stores, while Amazon also sell have a big range, including my (slightly pricey) favorite, the Menu Wine Thermometer.

And rosé? Well, that’s a whole blog in itself…

• My budget of $50 per week will feed 2 people 3 meals a day. That is an average of $1.20/serving.
• My goal is to make the most diverse, delicious things I can on my budget, not just ketchup sandwiches and ramen noodles.
• I will not count the most common “pantry” items toward my costs (salt, pepper, sugar), although I will try to estimate price if they are not as common.
• Beverages are not included in the budget, although I am on a month-long booze hiatus anyway, and make coffee at home in the morning to save money (and the environment).

Some of the givens:

• Plan every meal for the week ahead of time.
• Limit meat consumption.
• Buy bulk items as much as possible.
• Keep snacks around at work so I don’t buy $4 pastries from City Bakery
• Always have bread, lunch meat, and cheese around for lunch sandwiches if leftovers aren’t an option.
• Keep a dry erase board on the fridge so I know what I have at all times. Use it.
• Bake a large batch of bagels / scones / muffins and freeze for breakfasts.
• Try to make things from scratch and buy responsibly as much as possible (i.e. organic milk, cage free eggs). Don’t compromise ethics.

Something else to note: When I buy things in bulk and freeze the rest (like chicken, etc.) I am counting the per piece price, not the capital needed to purchase the entire amount. I understand for some people who have severely limited budgets, this is not always possible, but for my purposes I will assume some capital is involved in order to get the best per-piece deal.

When I first moved out of the house, my mom not only gave me lots of advice, but also her old Betty Crocker cookbook.

Like the advice, the cookbook was filled with the tried-and-true for someone just starting out on her own. But unlike Mom’s advice, I outgrew Betty Crocker a few years ago.

Now I almost exclusively rely on The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. If you have room in your budget for only one cookbook, this $23 gem (available at Amazon) is the one to get.

The 1,200+ recipes — broken down into specific categories from appetizers to grilling to frozen desserts — satisfy both the novice cook as well as the gourmet.

America’s Test Kitchen often calls for a few more ingredients or a couple of more steps than Betty Crocker, but the consistently delicious results make the extra, easy effort worthwhile. Best of all, America’s Test Kitchen actually explains how and why these extra steps change the taste and texture of the final product.

Although there are plenty of recipes for the experienced cook, America’s Test Kitchen doesn’t skimp on the classics. I’ve made the fluffiest pancakes, moistest banana bread and chunkiest chocolate chip cookies using recipes from this cookbook.

I’m such a fan that my mom and sister each found a Test Kitchen cookbook under the Christmas tree last year, and now we compare our favorite recipes. This year they may just be getting my second favorite cookbook: The America’s Test Kitchen Family Baking Book. So long Betty Crocker!

These days it seems like everyone is trying to figure out ways to save money. When it comes to wine, sometimes it’s smart to think inside of the box. Wait, I know what you are thinking and I am not talking about Franzia White Zinfandel or the atrocious Merlot usually served at art openings. There is a number of wonderful box wines out there that are a great way to save money without sacrificing quality or taste. Here are a few of my personal favorites. They are all available at Astor Wines and Spirits.

From The Tank, 3 liters $34.99 – Jenny and Francois Selections is a wine importing company that specializes in natural wines from France. Working with the Cotes du Rhone cooperative Estezargues, they have come up with a white and a red that are really incredible. The white is a blend of Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Bourboulenc and Viognier. It’s a big and rich white that has a permanent place in my fridge. The red is a classic, peppery Cotes du Rhone Blend of grenache, syrah and carignan.

Yellow+Blue, 1 liter $8.99 – Yellow and Blue imports Torrontes and Malbec from Argentina made from certified organic grapes. Matthew Cain, an importer based in Pennsylvania decided that bringing wine in a TetraPak or box was not only cheaper, but also better for the environment. The white wine made of 100% Torrontes is light and floral with a pleasant acidity, perfect for spring. The Malbec is medium bodied and slightly spicy with hints of plum and orange rind.

VRAC, 3 liters $26.99 – VRAC is a light and fruity Cotes du Rhone, perfect served with a slight chill in warmer weather. VRAC is a French term referring to something bought in bulk, appropriate for this larger format wine.

These wine are all a great deal and since they come in a box they have a much longer life span than bottled wines. The sizes they come in are also a draw as three liters correspond to four bottles at well under $10 a bottle.

I’m no cupcake slouch. I know a good one when I taste it.

And those at Butter Lane are good. In fact, they’re better then good, and others seem to agree. A recent New York Times article even noted that Butter Lane is on the “street of superlatives,” a block of Seventh Street between First Avenue and Avenue A in the East Village that boasts several eateries that offer some of the best food in their niche.

One thing’s for sure: Butter Lane puts Betty Crocker to shame. Each of the three vanilla cupcakes I’ve tried have been perfect — the cupcake by which you judge all others. Cupcakes often suffer from being too dry or too moist and rely on the icing for flavor. Not these. Best of all, the top of the cake where it meets the frosting is just a little crunchy,which adds a nice texture to every bite.

The cake itself keeps me coming back to Butter Lane for more, but the frosting holds up its end of the bargain well. The American buttercream is sweet and comes in a variety of flavors (like the one I chose, blueberry). In addition, Butter Lane offers a couple of flavors of French buttercream, a meringue-like icing made with egg whites.

Cupcakes are $2.50 to $2.75 a piece. Discounts are available for bulk orders, such as the Ten Buck Taster (four cupcakes for $10) and the Sweet Sixteen (six cupcakes for $15). For some even better deals, I’m a fan of Butter Lane on Facebook.  In the past month, Butter Lane has notified fans of a day-long two-for-one cupcake special, an Owners Night with free champagne, and an icing contest with free samples and icing demonstrations. It can’t get much sweeter than that!

Butter Lane
123 E. Seventh St. (between First Avenue and Avenue A)
New York, New York  10009

The Fairway market in Red Hook bills itself as the home of “the greatest selection of organic foods in Brooklyn.” I don’t know if that’s true, but I do know that if you’re not paying attention, you could miss the organic section’s star attraction: the bulk beans and grains. Push your cart past the granola and you’ll find 47 bins filled with all kinds of rice (jasmine, arborio, basmati, sweet, sushi, etc…), beans (kidney, pinto, navy, lima, lentil, etc…), oats, couscous, kasha and more.

You can even pick up some organic popping corn. It’s strictly do-it-yourself. You not only scoop what you want into a bag, but also weigh it yourself and print your own label. That means you get exactly what you want with no price tag surprises.

I like the convenience of bulk food and the feeling that I’m doing the environment a good turn by forsaking the unnecessary bags and boxes that come with pre-packaged options. And often, that pre-packaged food is more expensive. Elsewhere in the store, I found a 12-ounce container of quinoa for $3.99. For the same price in the bulk food section, I got 4 extra ounces. On my last trip to Fairway, I purchased natural Israeli couscous at $3.49 per pound and red quinoa at $3.99 per pound. Now, I just have to figure out the best way to prepare it — and make it last — until my next Fairway expedition.

A good cookbook reads like a novel, sometimes it’s an adventure story taking you to new lands, other times it’s a historical thriller uncovering a long lost recipe. But cookbooks can be expensive, sometimes running $50 or more.  Though the growth of online book selling has made prices more competitive, buying used books can save you even more.  Here are some money saving tips on how to find your next favorite cookbook.

When shopping on Amazon, be sure to check if there are used copies available.  That information is near the top of the book’s product information page, a few lines below the place where they tell you if the book in stock.  Clicking where it says “used” takes you to a page of third-party sellers offering your book.  Next, click the “used” tab at the top of the list. This shows all the used copies available in order of price, plus shipping.  When you buy used books on Amazon, you’re not buying from Amazon itself. You’re buying from one of their Marketplace or Merchant sellers.  However, you pay through the Amazon website and Amazon guarantees your purchase making it convenient and secure.

Let’s look at an example: At press time, Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics was number 9 on the Amazon Cookbook Bestseller List.  The cover price new is $35, Amazon has it new for $22.30, but you can get it used for $15.25 plus shipping.  That’s almost 50% off just for clicking over to another page.  Another useful web site for hunting down used cookbooks is BookFinder.  It searches over 90 online booksellers in the US, UK and Europe (including Amazon, Ebay, Abebooks and many more) and aggregates the results on one page with prices and estimated shipping costs.  Once you’ve found what you want, click through to the seller’s site and purchase it from there.

If you like old or out-of-print cookbooks, then shopping online is even more economical. The spine has finally cracked on my copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. It’s an old hardcover printed in 1967 that I bought in a used bookstore. According to BookFinder, I can replace it with the exact same edition for $2.45 plus $3.99 shipping.   Another search returned that James Beard’s Theory and Practice of Good Cooking was available for just $1 plus $3.99 shipping.

If it seems silly to pay more for shipping than the book, then try buying in person at a good used bookstore. This also affords you the one thing online booksellers have yet to duplicate, the accidental joy of serendipity that comes with browsing.  Strand Books on Broadway at East 12th Street has the largest selection of used cookbooks I’ve seen in New York, including out-of-print treasures for as little as $5.  They also have new cookbooks at a discount and on the lower level, a small selection of review copies of new cookbooks for 50% off.  You can even order online and pick up your books in person.  The only downside to buying used cookbooks is having to find more bookshelf space.

Happy shopping!

Photo by Gaetan Lee

Step One: Find your local CSA
In New York City, we are blessed with one of the largest concentrations of CSA’s in the country! Check out the map on Justfood to find your closest location. I live in Williamsburg Brooklyn where there are actually 3 different CSA’s all within a mile from my house! I got to choose between the Greenpoint-Williamsburg CSA, the East Williamsburg CSA and the South Williamsburg CSA. Ultimately, I chose East Williamsburg because I was impressed with the information on their farm share site at Hearty Roots Community Farm in Tivoli, NY and their protein partner for eggs and meat Awesome Farm.

If you live outside of NYC, and are looking for a CSA, the Greenpeople and Local Harvest sites have a ton of information about CSA’s all around the country.

Step Two: Understanding How the CSA Works
When you join a CSA, you pay upfront to purchase either a share or a half share from a local farm. Most CSA seasons in New York run from June to November and pickup is every week for the full share and every other week for half. Each CSA has individual details on pricing and pickup dates, as well as the poundage of each average share — my CSA has separate full and half share options for veggies, fruit, eggs and flowers, as well as additional options for whole chickens and whole and half butchers lambs through my CSA in particular. Each week, you would receive the fruits, vegetables and flowers that are IN SEASON — the very best quality produce that this region grows on a weekly basis. My full share of vegetable CSA runs me about $20 per week, which is MUCH less than I pay for vegetables each week. They say the average share is about 10 pounds, which is enough to feed a veggie friendly household of two lots of greens in every meal for one week — perfect! Fruit is $12 per week, eggs are $4.50 per week and flowers are $9.50 per week, etc — check your local CSA for individual pricing.

Step Three: Sign Up!
Select full or half share options for vegetables, eggs, flowers and fruit and individual pickup dates for any number of whole 4 pound chickens and full or half lambs (20-40 pounds of meat!). For most CSA’s, a small deposit is required and the full balance is due by mid-May, except for the meat where a half deposit is due at order and the balance is due at pickup.

Step Four: Eat Thrifty, Healthy, Environmentally Friendly and Adventurously
Starting in May, when the CSA gets rolling, I’ll be highlighting the bounty from each weekly share I receive of fruit, eggs, flowers and vegetables as well as chickens and lamb (that’s right—I got them all!) The interesting albeit intimidating thing about a CSA is the possibility of receiving a large amount of a strange vegetable you know nothing about. I’ll attempt to navigate through the waters of foreign produce and develop some delicious recipes with my CSA bounty that will be sure to satisfy your stomach as well as your wallet.

Now go sign up with your local CSA before it’s too late!

Men love bacon. Gourmets love chocolate. So what do you get if you take bacon and dip it in chocolate? Mmmm… Crunchy strips of chocolate covered LOVE for the gourmet man.

This is probably what Roni-Sue, chocolatiere extraordinaire was thinking when she came up with her unconventional and highly acclaimed Pig Candy. Bacon is deep-fried until crispy, then hand-dipped in Callebaut dark or milk chocolate. Not too salty, not too sweet, this quirky combination of flavors will leave your boyfriend’s taste buds longing for more after each bite.

Excited, curious or skeptical? Head over to the Essex Street market where you can sample Roni’s Pig Candy and other bacon flavored treats like Bacon Buttercrunch and Bacorn (bacon/caramel popcorn).

Pig Candy – Available in milk or dark. $38 per lb
Bacon Buttercrunch – $32 per lb
Bacorn – $5 per bag

Roni-Sue
Mon-Sat: 8pm – 7pm
#11/12 Essex Street Market
120 Essex St @ Delancey
New York, NY 10002
Tel: (212) 260-0421

The first time I shopped at the East Village Cheese Shop, I hustled out of there with my purchase thinking there might have been a glitch in the pricing system. You would too if you were faced with a 1lb wheel of Brie priced at $1.99. Insane! I went back a second time thinking the prices would be back to normal, but much to my surprise, those were the “normal” prices.

Don’t get me wrong. I love a good deal, but what is a French girl to think when French cheese costs less in New York than in the country of origin? I mean, how is this logically possible? I looked into the reasons why cheese could be so cheap and apparently, quality is not an issue to worry about. So, I got with the fact that from then on, East Village Cheese would be my go-to place for cheese in Manhattan.

Forget Whole Foods and other hipster cheese shops! East Village Cheese carries an extensive cheese selection at prices you won’t find anywhere. In addition to cheeses, you can treat yourself to other yummy food items such as artisan breads, deli meats, olives, French patés and imported olive oils.

The Catch: CASH ONLY and minimum purchase of ½ lb for most items
Open: Everyday – 8:30am to 6:30pm
Address: 40 3rd Ave (bet. 9th and 10th) New York, NY 10003
Phone: (212) 477-2601