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Test Kitchen Top 3: March Madness

March 27, 2013

It's March Madness time! Which means numerous feasts to prepare and photograph, many dishes to wash, babies to play with, and food to eat. This week's test kitchen was a busy one, but as we all know, that means more food to enjoy and more recipes to share with all of you in the coming weeks. And more Instagramming.

Wait. That's what March Madness means, right?

baby

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1. We're mad for babies. Guess who's walking? Clara visited the test kitchen to show off her moves, and we were all pretty impressed. She also ate food, looked adorable, and let us take pictures of her. She should really start charging us for these things.

baguette

2. We're mad for baguettes. Carrying a warm, fresh, crackly baguette to work -- to be shared with coworkers, torn off in hunks, and smeared with avocado or just eaten plain -- is oddly exciting. Refraining from breaking into it on your commute, though, is a serious act of self-control. (PS -- this one's from Bakeri in Williamsburg. It's good.)

doodad

3. We're mad for doo-dads. We discovered these in Amanda's apartment. Some of us had no idea what they were; do you? Share your guesses in the comments!

See what other Food52 readers are saying.

  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames
  • calendargirl
    calendargirl
  • Greenstuff
    Greenstuff
  • China Millman
    China Millman
  • ChefJune
    ChefJune
Marian Bull

Written by: Marian Bull

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7 Comments

AntoniaJames March 27, 2013
And circling back to the photo/caption re the baguette . . . the only thing better than carrying a baguette to work is pulling one, made with a spectacularly flavorful wild yeast levain, out of one's oven. And smelling it bake in the place one lives. I highly recommend it. Seriously. ;o)
 
AntoniaJames March 27, 2013
How funny that you should ask! I thought everyone who entertained owned frogs in all sizes. How on earth do you arrange your flowers without them? Have never thought to use them as ChefJune suggests, although I'd probably buy a new one for that, as I would have no idea how to clean out all those tight little spaces between the (ancient) ones I own. What a good idea! And for the record, I don't use mine that often, because I'm allergic to most flowers, but I can't imagine any home without at least a few of them.
 
calendargirl March 27, 2013
Those doo-dads are indeed for flower arranging, and are called frogs. My mother used both the metal ones with pins and glass ones with holes. Here is some more info:
http://www.ehow.com/about_5393790_frogs-flower-arrangements-called-frogs.html
 
Greenstuff March 27, 2013
Everyone is right about the flowers. They are called frogs, and they used to be common not just for florists but at home.
 
China M. March 27, 2013
I agree - for arranging flowers. And I love @ChefJune's idea for making them more versatile!
 
ChefJune March 27, 2013
Oh I know! Those are the thinks florists use in the bottom of a vase to arrange flowers. I was wishing i had one a few weeks ago when I made Orange Marmalade, and had to poke 6 pounds of blood oranges and Seville oranges all over with a 2-pronged fork.
 
Kenzi W. March 27, 2013
That is brilliant.