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    Home

    Cooking Tips

    Level up your kitchen skills with foundational cooking and baking techniques like using a kitchen scale for baking, mastering a perfect poached egg, how to chiffonade basil, and why you should always preheat your stainless steel pans.

    These kitchen skill guides and cooking tips are my way of breaking down the techniques I learned in pastry school and as a self-taught home cook so that they're easy for anyone to follow.

    • How to Poach an Egg (Tiny Pot Method)
    • 25 Emergency Recipes to Make From Your Pantry
    • How to: Chiffonade Basil and Other Leafy Greens
    • When to Put Fresh Basil on Pizza
    • Do Bagels Need to be Refrigerated?
    • Fried Egg with Perfect Runny Egg Yolk
    • How Do I Store Sourdough Discard?
    • Do I Need to Grease and Flour My Pie Pan?
    • 6 Tips for Feeding and Discarding Sourdough Starter
    • How Many Cookies Are in a Batch?
    • How to Maintain a Small Sourdough Starter
    • How do I Stop My Pie Crust Bubbling?
    • Fluffy Golden Pita Pockets
    • Recipes for Beginner Bread Makers
    • How to Make Ice Cream in a Bag
    • How to Roast a Whole Garlic Bulb
    • Taco Week: a Weeklong DIY Taco Bar
    • How to: Make and Use Brown Butter
    • Why you should heat stainless steel before adding oil
    • 5+ Reasons a Kitchen Scale is Worth It
    • a non-vegan's guide to creating a vegan dinner party menu [LINK]

    Primary Sidebar

    rebecca wearing a black t-shirt with her left hand on her hip and her right hand holding a whisk upright

    Hi, I'm Rebecca! I'm a pastry chef with a home cook mentality. I'm on a mission to make spending time in the kitchen fun and accessible — that's why so many people love my beginner-friendly bread recipes. I'm always looking for new and creative ways to get the most out of my favorite ingredients and flavors!

    More about me →

    Seasonal Favorites

    • cross section of a cranberry orange mini muffin
      Cranberry Orange Mini Muffins
    • a close up of a log of garlic chive compound butter on a sheet of parchment paper with a butter knife nearby
      Roasted Garlic and Chive Compound Butter for Poultry
    • a hand drizzles honey on a pizza slice with a honey wand.
      Hot Honey Pizza with Goat Cheese
    • smoked turkey legs on a plate
      Better-Than-Disney Smoked Turkey Legs

    Get in touch

    Want to work with me? Just have a question? Shoot me an email!

    rebecca@thepracticalkitchen.com

    Treat Yourself

    • the best plus size aprons
      15+ Places to Buy Plus Size Aprons
    • college kitchen basics
      17+ College Kitchen Basics you Actually Need (and What You Don't)
    • 15+ best salt cellars for any kitchen.
      15+ Best Salt Cellars to Keep on Your Counter
    • flour storage containers for 5 lbs of flour
      Flour Storage Containers That Fit Five Pounds of Flour

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    About Me

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    Journalist turned pastry chef, on a mission to make cooking and baking fun and accessible. I'm always looking for new and creative ways to get the most out of my favorite ingredients and flavors! A Pittsburgh native currently calling Boston home.

    My Favorites

    a small bowl of olive oil sauce for white pizza with a spoon in it, lifting minced garlic, shallot, and rosemary out of the oil.
    ciabatta breadsticks.
    slices of challah bread leaning on each other.

    Popular Bread Recipes

    • Loaf pan focaccia
    • Crusty bread
    • Ciabatta bread
    • Everything bagels
    • No knead bread
    • Brioche buns
    • Pretzel bites

    Pizza Essentials

    • Thin crust pizza dough
    • Thick focaccia pizza
    • How to stretch pizza dough
    • White pizza sauce
    • Pizza sauce recipe
    • Prosciutto arugula pizza
    • Hot honey pizza

    Scratch-Made Staples

    • Cold brew coffee
    • Homemade hot sauce
    • Chex mix seasoning
    • Everything bagel seasoning
    • Bagel chips recipe
    • Homemade butter
    • Olive oil bread dip

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