Baking Pans: Size Matters

Rebecca McKinney

I was born a foodie. My dad is a chef, baker, and restaurant owner and my mom might as well be because she owns whatever kitchen she walks into. I grew up working in my family’s restaurant and bakery in Pawling, New York – McKinney and Doyle. I started behind the bakery counter at 12 years old after begging my parents to let me start working. At 16 I worked as a hostess. By 18 I was serving tables and training behind the bar where I then worked every other weekend throughout my college career. Even now, when I am visiting my family in New York, I help out where I’m needed. To make a long story short, the food and restaurant industry has been my life for as long as I can remember.

I wanted to create this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, to share tips, tricks, and knowledge about the food and beverage industry in general but also to help people see a different side of the restaurant world. Every restaurant has a totally unique culture and world within it. I want to help open people’s eyes to more than how fast the service is or how easy or hard it is to secure a reservation.

So, thanks for stopping by! I welcome your ideas, input, and feedback and hope you enjoy!

Eat well & travel often,

Becky McKinney

Latest posts by Rebecca McKinney (see all)

We’ve all been there. A recipe calls for a square pan but all you have is a 9×13. “I’ll just decrease the baking time and it’ll be fine.” Come on, you know you’ve said it. I hate to break it to you (and to myself),size matters but actually, the pan isn’t just a suggestion. In baking, the best tip I can offer to you is to follow the recipe exactly. Cooking is different because you can play around with measurements and get creative but baking is more like a science and even the pan size makes a difference.Continue Reading

10 Thanksgiving Hacks for Your Best Turkey Day Yet

Rebecca McKinney

I was born a foodie. My dad is a chef, baker, and restaurant owner and my mom might as well be because she owns whatever kitchen she walks into. I grew up working in my family’s restaurant and bakery in Pawling, New York – McKinney and Doyle. I started behind the bakery counter at 12 years old after begging my parents to let me start working. At 16 I worked as a hostess. By 18 I was serving tables and training behind the bar where I then worked every other weekend throughout my college career. Even now, when I am visiting my family in New York, I help out where I’m needed. To make a long story short, the food and restaurant industry has been my life for as long as I can remember.

I wanted to create this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, to share tips, tricks, and knowledge about the food and beverage industry in general but also to help people see a different side of the restaurant world. Every restaurant has a totally unique culture and world within it. I want to help open people’s eyes to more than how fast the service is or how easy or hard it is to secure a reservation.

So, thanks for stopping by! I welcome your ideas, input, and feedback and hope you enjoy!

Eat well & travel often,

Becky McKinney

Latest posts by Rebecca McKinney (see all)

In just two short weeks, we will all be knee deep in turkey and carbohydrates. I couldn’t be more excited, though for me, the excitement is geared towards the carbs (I’m not 12246734_10154327565770898_7143389020818750825_nreally a turkey fan). Anyway, as fun as it is to stuff our faces alongside our loved ones, preparing the feast is always a challenging and time consuming task. In an effort to help make things just a little bit easier for everybody getting ready to feed their families, I wanted to share 10 Thanksgiving hacks to help you host your best Turkey Day yet.Continue Reading

The REAL Way to Enjoy “Fun Sized” Candy This Halloween

Rebecca McKinney

I was born a foodie. My dad is a chef, baker, and restaurant owner and my mom might as well be because she owns whatever kitchen she walks into. I grew up working in my family’s restaurant and bakery in Pawling, New York – McKinney and Doyle. I started behind the bakery counter at 12 years old after begging my parents to let me start working. At 16 I worked as a hostess. By 18 I was serving tables and training behind the bar where I then worked every other weekend throughout my college career. Even now, when I am visiting my family in New York, I help out where I’m needed. To make a long story short, the food and restaurant industry has been my life for as long as I can remember.

I wanted to create this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, to share tips, tricks, and knowledge about the food and beverage industry in general but also to help people see a different side of the restaurant world. Every restaurant has a totally unique culture and world within it. I want to help open people’s eyes to more than how fast the service is or how easy or hard it is to secure a reservation.

So, thanks for stopping by! I welcome your ideas, input, and feedback and hope you enjoy!

Eat well & travel often,

Becky McKinney

Latest posts by Rebecca McKinney (see all)

Why are the mini versions of candy bars always called “fun sized?” Who wants a tiny candy bar? Giant versions … now that is fun. I mean if you think about it, it makes

Grown Up Twix
Photo from Epicurious

perfect sense: mini versions for children and extra large versions for us grown-ups, right? Well, if you agree with me then unfortunately, it’s going to be tough to find extra large varieties of some of our favorite Halloween treats but fear not because we can make them ourselves.Continue Reading

To Salt or Not to Salt? The Answer is Both

Rebecca McKinney

I was born a foodie. My dad is a chef, baker, and restaurant owner and my mom might as well be because she owns whatever kitchen she walks into. I grew up working in my family’s restaurant and bakery in Pawling, New York – McKinney and Doyle. I started behind the bakery counter at 12 years old after begging my parents to let me start working. At 16 I worked as a hostess. By 18 I was serving tables and training behind the bar where I then worked every other weekend throughout my college career. Even now, when I am visiting my family in New York, I help out where I’m needed. To make a long story short, the food and restaurant industry has been my life for as long as I can remember.

I wanted to create this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, to share tips, tricks, and knowledge about the food and beverage industry in general but also to help people see a different side of the restaurant world. Every restaurant has a totally unique culture and world within it. I want to help open people’s eyes to more than how fast the service is or how easy or hard it is to secure a reservation.

So, thanks for stopping by! I welcome your ideas, input, and feedback and hope you enjoy!

Eat well & travel often,

Becky McKinney

Latest posts by Rebecca McKinney (see all)

Let’s be real for a second. Salt is the spice of life. We use it in cooking and baking because it goes with sweet and savory. It balances out a meal, livens up other flavors, and turns a bland dish into something worth writing home about. An under-salted dish is extremely underwhelming yet an over-salted dish can often be deemed inedible. To salt or not to salt?Anyway, before I go off on a tangent, I think we can all agree on the fact that salt plays a really important role in our kitchens. But there are more ways to add salt to a dish than throwing another pinch into the pot. Today I want to talk about three ingredients that you can add to a dish to kick the salt level up a notch without adding actual salt.Continue Reading