Meatballs served over pasta are often better in theory than in practice. The bigger the meatball, the more dry and crumbly they tend to turn out. What’s more, they can collapse under their own weight as soon as they hit the pan. We wanted meatballs that were tender and moist and had enough structure to hold their shape.
CHAT Q&A with Christopher Kimball
Check out archives of past live online Q&A sessions. Sign up to be alerted when we schedule the next Q&A with Christopher Kimball.
EQUIPMENT Splatter Screens
Be it bacon, steaks, or fish fillets, pan-frying can be a messy business. That’s where splatter screens come in. These sieve-like mesh or perforated metal disks aim to overlay a skillet and combat grease splatters. But after frying five pounds of bacon, protected by nine splatter screens, it became clear to us that not all models could earn their keep.
WATCH Cook's Country TV!
Cook's Country From America's Test Kitchen takes you inside the test kitchen of Cook's Country magazine to discover the best American home cooking. Join us every week as we bring the pages of Cook's Country magazine into your home. Click here to learn more about our show and to find out when episodes of Cook's Country are airing in your area.
WANTED Recipe Testers
If you're interested in joining a select group of volunteers who help test our recipes before they appear in print, please click here to find out more and register as a recipe tester for Cook's Country magazine.
We've created a Cook's Country forum for you to post your recipe requests and help other members locate lost treasures. Click here to learn more.
GREAT AMERICAN CAKE Daffodil Cake
Angel food cake is light and fluffy, but it isn’t especially exciting by itself. We wanted to extend its appeal by adding crisp orange flavor while still preserving its lightness.
MENU Hearty Winter Breakfast
They sound easy enough, but most recipes for “cloudcakes” don’t deliver the airy texture or tangy flavor that these light-as-air pancakes are known for. For our ultimate version, we beat the egg whites to soft peaks and used a combination of buttermilk and sour cream. Serve with Butter Pecan Syrup, bacon, and home fries for a comforting cold-weather breakfast.
COOK'S COUNTRY EXTRAS Angel Food Cake
Over seven weeks in the kitchen, we baked more than 100 angel food cakes to discover, once and for all, what matters, what doesn’t, and how to achieve perfection. To see the complete Cook's Extras archive, click here.
KITCHEN SHORTCUTS
We’re currently planning our upcoming issues of Cook's Country and are looking for your kitchen shortcuts to share with other readers. If we publish your shortcut, you’ll receive a one-year subscription to Cook's Country. To submit your kitchen shortcut, click here.
