Food Facts & Fun

Any parent who's planned a festive first birthday party only to have the guest of honor sleep through the proceedings or seem a little lost and forlorn will love the idea of a smash cake celebration. Let your child dig in -- literally.

By Sara Elliott

Tomatoes are wonderfully versatile when it comes to preparation. They can be stewed, stuffed, baked, broiled, pureed, pickled, deviled, glazed, grilled and fried. But how do you match the tomato to the meal?

By Jessika Toothman

It's easy enough to peel food at home with hot water and a pan -- but surely the world's canned produce is peeled by some faster means? What is flash steaming, and how fast does it work?

By Jessika Toothman

The noble art of mixology goes a long way past alcohol. These five kiddie "cocktails" are perfect for parties, special occasions or just a hot afternoon. The days of raising plastic cups of milk to toast are gone for good.

By Gallagher Flinn

Holiday cheer and colorful cookies just seem to go mitten in mitten. Not only are they a hit at any soiree, but they also make great gifts. So, if you plan to deck the halls with trays of cookies, why not go the extra mile and decorate them yourself?

By Emilie Sennebogen

From the early days of scooping out ice cream floats at soda fountains, sundaes now have become a household treat that you can make for yourself and your family. So, why not make Sunday a fun day for making ice cream sundaes at home?

By Emilie Sennebogen

Autumn is a beautiful time of year when a crisp coolness fills the air. So bundle up and visit a pumpkin patch or get lost in a corn maze. It's time to enjoy all that mother nature has to offer.

An apple a day will keep the doctor away! Did you know that approximately 2,500 varieties of apples are grown in the United States? Apples are a delicious fruit that is available year-round and they are full of vitamins and nutrients.

The key to low-calorie desserts? Smaller portions, natural sweetening from fruit and low-fat dairy. These five desserts keep the calorie count low while still satisfying your sweet tooth.

By Debra Ronca

To some of us, growing a crop in the shade is a perplexing concept. But for crops like coffee, shade is a good thing -- for the environment, for biodiversity and even for your cup of joe.

By Julia Layton

Spice pictures will delight you with brilliant colors and aromas from around the world. Check out our spice album and learn how to flavor your food.

By Candace Keener & Marie Bobel

If you love history, mystery and happy endings, you'll enjoy learning about autumn apples. One of the earliest cultivated fruits, the apple has come a long way from its crabapple-like ancestors. Most apples have long and respected pedigrees.

By Sara Elliott

Cider is the signature beverage of autumn, but you may be a little confused about the difference between apple cider and apple juice. Don't worry, it's a common question and has an answer that differs all over the United States.

By Sara Elliott

Steamy summer days and yellow ears of grilled corn are behind us. The produce aisle is stocked with red and blue Indian corn. Can you actually eat it? What's the story behind those colorful ears?

By Victoria Vogt

Depending on how you look at it, the practice of genetically engineering crops is either a boon for civilization and the greatest hope to feed a hungry world, or a dangerous interference with nature that threatens both our health and our ecosystem.

By Emilie Sennebogen & Gallagher Flinn

From using seawater to grow crops in the middle of the desert to helping us colonize distant worlds, greenhouses are undoubtedly going to be an integral part of humanity's future.

By Chris Obenschain

S'mores are the stuff memories are made of. But who created this ooey, gooey, chocolatey sandwich?

By Victoria Vogt

What's the opposite of fast food? Slow food -- food that's been prepared from locally grown ingredients and reflects a certain culture and its history. It's the kind of food you savor, not scarf down in your car on the way to your kid's soccer game.

By Debra Ronca

Rich in vitamin C and low in fat, cranberries have been used for centuries in everything from medicine to a dye for clothes and fabrics. But what are some of the myths surrounding this popular fruit? And what can you do with it today?

By Emilie Sennebogen

Even if you can't tell the difference between a potato peeler and a paring knife, chances are there's some type of canned food in your kitchen pantry. And having a good mix can be beneficial to you.

By Sara Elliott

We may take canned food for granted. Certainly, there's nothing simpler than popping open a can of chicken soup and nuking it in the microwave for dinner. But we owe this dinnertime solution to French chef Nicolas Appert.

By Chris Obenschain

If you're a smart grocery shopper, you can hit the market once a week for perishables and stock up just a few times annually for canned and boxed goods. These perennial items have long shelf lives, but will one last longer?

By Chris Obenschain

You can't judge a book by its cover, but can you judge a brand of pasta by the box it comes in? Food packaging makes an environmental, marketing and nutritional impact. What are the basics of the jugs, bags and boxes?

By Chris Obenschain

The food industry has become all about creating an abundant supply of food for less money, and this is where fillers come in. But what are they, and why are they in your food?

By Emilie Sennebogen

It's hard to beat a loaf of freshly baked bread; the aromas that fill your house, the steam rising off the right-out-of-the-oven loaf. Here are some easy recipes to get that yummy goodness from scratch, without the machine.

By Emilie Sennebogen