If you’ve been thinking about buying a pellet smoker, you should really check out this story on our parent site written by Mike Stines. He goes into great detail all about them.

Every once in awhile, it's a good idea to for us to run a straightforward, nuts-and-bolts recipe for staples of the chile cuisine world. This is one of those posts. Continue reading →

One thing I love to do at the Fiery Foods Show is prowl the floor looking for new ways to combine products. This Spicy Chocolate Frappe is the best result I've ever had. Continue reading →

Authors, publishers and literacy groups will convene with hundreds of books for the first Southwest Book Fiesta May 10-12, 2013 at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Continue reading →

I found this Honest Cinqo De Mayo graphic at happyplace.com, one of my favorite humor websites. Enjoy!

Who doesn’t love meatloaf? Well, plenty of people, actually — especially kids. The other issue is making it healthy enough to feel good about serving to your family. As the mom of three kids under age 4, I also need quick and easy techniques for getting dinner on the table fast. These are some of my favorite tricks to use (bonus, these work for meatballs, too):

1. Use organic whole oats in place of breadcrumbs in your favorite meatloaf recipe. Or combine half breadcrumbs with wheat germ to boost the nutritional value of your binder.

2. Add extra veggies. If your recipe calls for cooked onions or carrots, add 1/2 cup chopped frozen spinach, thawed, or finely chopped peppers. Neither will be detected. Even simpler: Just double the amount of veggies in the recipe.

3. Make it miniature. I always cook several small meatloaves instead of one big one. Everything is done (and smothered with ketchup) within 35 minutes, and everyone gets their own meatloaf.

Try this recipe: Food Network Magazine‘s Mini Skillet Meatloaves (pictured above)

Charity Curley Mathews dreams of raising kids who eat (and enjoy) real food. A former VP at MarthaStewart.com, she’s a contributor to The Huffington Post and heads up Foodlets.com: Mini Foodies in the Making…Maybe. Together with her husband and three small children, she now cooks in North Carolina.

To have a little summer fun with some of our favorite Food Network chefs, we challenged two prestigious groups — Chopped judges and Food Network Star winners — to a recipe showdown. All summer long, we’ll present head-to-head matchups of mouthwatering summer recipes from each team — from refreshing cocktails to fresh farmers’-market salads to the juiciest backyard burgers. By voting each week here on FN Dish, you’ll determine the winning recipes.

At the end of the summer, the team that tallies up the most wins will celebrate with an all-star Labor Day party menu. Who will prevail as Summer Showdown champion — Star or Chopped?

We’re kicking off the heated competition with three summer all-stars: frozen drinks, grilled steak and corn on the cob. Who made it best? Cast your votes below!

Frozen Drinks: Jeff Mauro’s Spiked French Vanilla Milkshake vs. Alex Guarnaschelli’s Blackberry and Gin Slushie

Jeff’s decadent milkshake offers nostalgic flavors with a grown-up twist. It’s made with French vanilla ice cream, malted milk powder and a raspberry coulis spiked with raspberry liqueur.

Alex blitzes macerated blackberries, gin, club soda, lime juice and ice in the blender for a cool adults-only summer treat.

Whose chilled, blended drink are you craving?

Grilled Steak: Geoffrey Zakarian’s Rib Eye Steak With Romaine Marmalade vs. Guy Fieri’s Tequila-Lime Flank Steak

Geoffrey’s grilled steak is amped up with a bright sauce made with romaine, watercress and cilantro. He crowns each juicy rib eye with a pat of butter for an Iron Chef-worthy summer dish.

To take his grilled flank steaks to Flavortown, Guy makes a tequila-spiked marinade, reserving the extra for a tasty sauce. He serves the sliced steak with warm tortillas so everyone can wrap it up, fajita style.

Who wins this steak-off?

Grilled Corn on the Cob: Melissa d’Arabian’s Spicy Grilled Corn vs. Aarón Sánchez’s Corn With Chile-Lime Butter

Melissa gives her corn a kick by coating it with butter mixed with smoked paprika and red pepper flakes before grilling it in foil.

Aarón takes this summer staple to the next level by slathering the corncobs with a chile- and lime-spiked butter and charring them on the grill.

Who makes the better side?

For more favorite summer recipes, check out Food Network’s Grilling Central. Head back here to FN Dish next week for a new Summer Showdown matchup! 

The secret to making this week’s Most Popular Pin of the Week, Giada’s five-star tiramisu, is layering the ingredients so that the raspberry jam and mascarpone-cream mixture turn crunchy lady fingers into soft, cake-like bites.

For more everyday recipe inspiration, visit Food Network’s Let’s Cook: Recipe of the Day board on Pinterest.

Get the recipe: Giada’s Raspberry Tiramisu

There are a variety of non-dairy “milks” and products ranging from “cheese” to “ice cream” to “yogurt” available at most mainstream supermarkets. Depending on your reasons for choosing them in place of conventional cow’s milk, you may need a refresher on the difference between dairy-free and lactose-free products.

Lactose-free milk and milk products are beneficial for people suffering from lactose intolerance. Lactose intolerance is very common, especially in adults. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, about 30 million Americans have some degree of lactose intolerance by the age of 20. Lactose is a type of sugar found in milk products. In order to digest lactose properly, the body produces an enzyme called lactase. In people with lactose intolerance, the body stops producing adequate amounts of lactase, causing symptoms such as bloating, gas, cramps, diarrhea and nausea. Individuals with lactose intolerance may find that they are able to eat small amounts of products that contain lactose without experiencing symptoms. Sometimes they may be able to tolerate products such as yogurt or goat’s milk more easily than cow’s milk. Lactase tablets are also available for lactose intolerant individuals to help them digest lactose.

If a product is labeled lactose-free, that does not mean it is necessarily dairy-free. People who seek dairy-free products may be vegan or have an allergy to dairy. Vegans avoid all animal products, including eggs and dairy, for a variety of reasons, including health, religious or ethical views. Individuals with a dairy allergy are allergic to either one or both of the milk proteins, casein and whey. Milk allergies are more common in children and some people grow out of them. Symptoms may include hives, wheezing and vomiting, and in some severe cases, anaphylaxis. The only sure way to avoid an allergic reaction is to avoid all products containing dairy. Vegans and people who have or are caring for someone who has a dairy allergy should become comfortable with reading food labels because whey and casein are often present in unexpected places, including some canned tuna, certain protein powders and some non-dairy cheese products.

When it comes to purchasing lactose-free and diary-free foods, it’s best to read the ingredient list on the food label so you can identify things like casein in a product. However, once you know what ingredients to avoid, it can be fun to try the various lactose- or  dairy-free options your grocery store has available. Experiment with coconut, almond, soy or hemp milks, ice creams and yogurts like So Delicious products (a personal favorite; I avoid diary due to lactose intolerance) which offer a variety of dairy-free frozen dessert options, as well as milk and yogurt options and Silk products which offer a variety of dairy free milk options. There are also a variety of sliced, shredded and cream cheese products available like those  from GoVeggie! which come  in lactose-free and dairy-free options which are color labeled depending on the line. This makes for easy, worry-free purchasing.

What are your favorite lactose-free or diary -free products?

You heard it here first: Food Network Star is kicking off an all-new ninth season on Sunday, June 2 at 9pm/8c, and returning judge-mentors Alton Brown, Bobby Flay and Giada De Laurentiis will be there at the helm. This year the mentors are tasking 12 hopefuls with weekly Mentor and Star Challenges in the ultimate multi-month interview for the chance to earn their dream television job: their own show on Food Network. While the contestants bring with them a mix of backgrounds — including culinary school, restaurant management, private chef and food blogging — they have but one dream, which is to become the next Food Network Star. From now until next month’s premiere, Star Talk will introduce one finalist a day until you, Star fans, meet them on camera during the show.

Andres Guillama, 26, was born into a traditional Cuban family and grew up working at his father’s restaurant. After struggling with his weight, Andres changed his daily habits and lost 150 pounds. Now living in Waynesville, N.C., he’s a childhood obesity prevention coach working with children on the basics of nutrition. He’s eager to show viewers that healthy food is indeed deliciously satisfying, and he looks forward to showing them how to prepare it at home.

Click the play button on the video to watch Andres’ casting video.

Visit the Food Network Star Headquarters for more exclusive interviews, plus behind-the-scenes images and videos of the finalists and mentors, and tune in to the Season 9 premiere on Sunday, June 2 at 9pm/8c.