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Unless you have a favorite site, searching blindly for recipes online can be frustrating. I’ve found that one of the easiest ways to find recipes on the Web is to search on Pinterest. It’s like an index for the largest cookbook ever. According to business intel- ligence firm RJMetrics, 10.5 percent of all pinboards on Pinterest are categorized under Food, the website’s fastest-growing category. It’s also the category that gets the most repins, generating on average more than 50 percent repins than the second-most reshared category, Style and Fashion. “Pinterest has proven to be a fun, useful, and, let’s admit, addictive space for home cooks and foodies,” said CookingLight. com editor Allison Long Lowery. Cooking Light is one of the most popular boards to re-pin. “We’re excited about the level of engagement it brings to our recipes. As people create beautiful boards of food photography, they are organizing their favorite reci- pes. We love the idea of people planning their healthy meals from favorite recipe pin boards. And don’t believe what you’ve heard: We know decadent, not-so-healthy recipes find a home on Pinterest, but we see enormous interest for healthy recipes that feature seasonal ingredients. “The growth of Pinterest is staggering. For Cook- ing Light in 2012, we saw nearly 750 per cent growth in traffic referrals from Pinterest to our site and the numbers continue to trend up,” Lowery said. Because Pinterest is such a popular place to search for recipes, we decided to look for healthy recipes and asked for help from some local pinners. Hope Arnold of Georgetown is on Pinterest almost daily, she said. “Every night before I go to sleep I spend about 15 to 20 minutes on the iPad checking email and on Pinterest.” From what she finds there, Arnold prepares about one new recipe a month. “I mostly pin things for parties and holiday-themed treats for school,” she said. “I am more likely to pin a recipe and adapt it to something that I can pull out of the pantry. I am terrible about remembering ingredients at the market that are not on the usual weekly to-buy list.” Toa Green, chef/owner of Thai Orchid Café in Lexington, said she pins recipes “as a way to keep up with dishes I want to try and make. It’s a fun way to get ideas for recipes or new dishes.” Carolyn Gilles of Lexington, chef/instructor at The Wholesome Chef, said she likes Pinterest for recipes because it’s so visual. “I like to get inspired by what a dish may look like, colors or even just presentation ideas,” she said. “I don’t follow anyone in particular, but I usually like to search by foods that are in season and find recipes based around locally available foods.” Life + Food Editor Sally Scherer » Phone (859) 231-3303 » Food Writer Sharon Thompson » Phone (859) 231-3321 » Email [email protected] Robyn Stuart of Frankfort is deep into chocolate, getting ready for her biggest role as a candy maker. Stuart, owner of DB Bourbon Candy, will take 3,500 bourbon balls to California next month to be presented to celebrities in the gifting suite at the 85th annual Academy Awards at the Kodak Center in Los Angeles on Feb. 24. “I’ve never been to L.A.; I’m so excited. I’m going early to spend a few days enjoying L.A. before the big event,” said Stuart, who is taking best friend Michele Harper with her. Stuart, left, started the business in 2002, shortly after her mother died. “She did bourbon balls at Christmas to give away to everybody. After she passed, everybody said, ‘I’m going to miss your mom’s candy.’ ” Stuart decided to continue her mother’s tradition “as a way to remember her.” For the name of her company, she chose DB, which stands for Doodle Bug, her mother’s nickname for Stuart. Each candy is rolled and dipped by hand, and Stuart makes about 35,000 a year. She hires someone to help for the orders for weddings and large events, but for small Internet orders, they’re all made by Stuart. She makes thousands for Churchill Downs each year for Derby. Stuart’s candy will be in the swag bags presented to celebrities at the Academy Awards, and she also have the opportunity to personally offer samples to the guests. “We’ll get an immediate response to our products, and see that they like it,” she said. Stuart’s product line, including bourbon cheesecakes and chocolate- dipped fruits, is available at Dbbourboncandy.com. Snack cart needs a name The Lexington Tweens Nutrition and Fitness Coalition is getting a food cart so volunteers can take healthy snacks to places where people play. The “Better Bites — Snack Strong” program provides healthier food choices such as fresh fruit, veggie dippers with light ranch dressing, yogurt par- faits, sunflower seeds, string cheese, popsicles and pop- corn. The cart, which will be at pools, schools and sporting events, needs a name. The name-the-cart contest ends Feb. 15; you may submit a name to Name the Better Bites Cart Contest, 291 Lafayette Parkway, Lexington, Ky. 40503, or email it to Jocelyn.cowen@ uky.edu. The winner will receive $100 and two season passes to Lexington public pools. A delicious duo Woodford Reserve Distillery is serving bourbon and chocolate Feb. 16. Chef-in-residence Ouita SHARON THOMPSON HERALD-LEADER FOOD WRITER TIDBITS Kentuckian is making candy for Oscar’s stars See TIDBITS, B4 Chocolates by DB Bourbon Candy of Frankfort will be among gifts for celebrities at next month’s Academy Awards. COURTESY OF ROBYN STUART Flavored with red bell pepper and green onion, crab cakes can be cooked in a small amount of olive oil, then served with a spicy mustard sauce. PHOTOS BY COOKING LIGHT AND PHOTOS.COM Greens, sprouts and sweet potato salad with a homemade dressing would be a good choice for a light lunch or as a side dish for dinner. THEGLITTERGUIDE.COM Sharon Thompson: (859) 231-3321. Twitter: @FlavorsofKY. Blog: Flavorsofkentucky.bloginky.com By Sharon Thompson [email protected] Shrimp and bacon, two splurge items in my house, the former for the cost, the latter for the caloric toll, come together here for an indulgent-tasting dish. Wanting something fun and special for a night in, I picked up a pound of the biggest shrimp offered at the store’s fish counter. The super-plump crustaceans would be treat enough themselves, but I wanted more. The answer: Sauté the beauties in bacon fat. Yet, using just a little bacon, at about 70 calories and 6 grams of fat per slice, added a lot of flavor without taking the dish over the top. We split the dish between two of us, but a more realistic cook might make the recipe for four diners. (With that in mind, I upped the fennel to two bulbs and increased the amount of rice as well.) The dish turned out so well, and yet was so simple to make, that I’ve revoked its special- dinner-only status. Tip: The precooked brown rice, available at many stores, delivers whole grains in less time. Substitute steamed white rice, if you like. RECIPE Bacon-fat-fried shrimp 3 cups precooked brown rice 2 slices bacon 2 large fennel bulbs, chopped in ½-inch dice, some fronds reserved ¼ teaspoon salt ½ red bell pepper, chopped in ¼-inch dice 1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined ½ cup white wine Heat rice according to package directions. Meanwhile, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium-high heat until crisp, 8 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper towel to cool and drain, leaving fat in the skillet. Add fennel to skillet, stirring to coat with bacon fat. Season with a pinch of salt. Cook until just starting to soften; 3 minutes. Stir in red bell pepper; cook, 3 minutes. (The vegetables should remain tender-crisp.) Add shrimp in a single layer; season with ¼ teaspoon salt. Cook, turning once, until just cooked through, 5 minutes. Pour wine into skillet; lower heat to a simmer. Crumble bacon; stir into skillet. Cook just to heat through. Serve shrimp and vegetables over rice. Garnish with chopped fennel fronds. Makes 4 servings. Nutrition information per serving: 325 calories, 4 g. fat, 185 mg. cholesterol, 45 g. carbohydrates, 26 g. protein, 1,097 mg. sodium, 7 g. fiber. By Joe Gray Chicago Tribune A bit of bacon is just enough to create indulgent flavors Recipes on Page B4 Frying shrimp in bacon fat amplifies their flavor before serving them with vegetables and rice. BILL HOGAN | MCCLATCHY-TRIBUNE LIFE + FOOD WHAT’S COOKING WITH PINTEREST? Popular website can be a healthy source for good recipes THURSDAY, JANUARY 24, 2013 » LEXINGTON HERALD-LEADER » KENTUCKY.COM/FOOD » SECTION B
