Is this you? As a journalist, you can create a free Muck Rack account to customize your profile, list your contact preferences, and upload a portfolio of your best work.
Claim your profile
Articles by Don Mauer
The secret to going gluten-free? A great rice pasta
Timing is important when cooking with rice pasta; you want the pasta to go into your dish immediately after draining. Courtesy of Don Mauer Some readers wonder why I seem to steer clear of wheat and prefer gluten-free products. Good question. Surprisingly, it’s not about gluten. Yes, there is a heightened public awareness concerning gluten sensitivity. However, that’s not me. Gluten-free products cannot contain any wheat flour.
Bacon gives sweet corn a Southern sensibility
Corn and bacon combine to make a nearly perfect flavor combination in this easily adaptable side dish. You can use fresh or frozen corn, and serve it warm or cold. Courtesy of Don Mauer Corn on the cob is at its best when it’s in season and fresh. As you may know, once an ear of corn’s been picked, its sugars begin turning to starch. That means it slowly loses its sweetness as the clock ticks. We can still get Illinois-grown corn. Yes.
Fewer ingredients makes a simple broccoli salad even easier
With only seven ingredients, this Broccoli, Peanut and Raisin Salad comes together quickly. Courtesy of Don Mauer I love broccoli. Yes, yes, I do. I’ve loved it since I was a kid, the way my Mom always served it, topped with a dollop of mayonnaise. Before you go: “Ewww …” hear me out. In earlier times, some folks liked to dress their broccoli or asparagus with hollandaise sauce. Hollandaise is, essentially, warm mayonnaise made with butter instead of oil.
Rethinking hard-boiled eggs, again
Making a tiny hole in the egg before steaming or boiling doesn't help them peel easier, Don Mauer found. Courtesy of Don Mauer, 2022 • This is a best of Lean and Lovin' It column, first published April 27, 2022. Don Mauer is taking some time off. Six weeks ago, I thought that writing about peeling a hard-boiled egg was so mundane a topic that I came close to not writing about it. As you may recall, I wrote about it anyhow. Astonishingly, I got more emails about that column than I had in a long time.
Poppy seed dressing an instant time machine
Don’s Poppy Seed Dressing aims to re-create a taste from his childhood. Courtesy of Don Mauer My family, and all four of my grandparents lived in Evanston. Nana, my maternal grandmother, loved a fancy little tearoom on Davis Street in downtown Evanston called The Dominion Room.
What makes a good brownie great? Quality ingredients
Using quality ingredients like natural high-fat cocoa and einkorn flour can take your brownies from basic to melt-in-your-mouth. Courtesy of Don Mauer Over the years, I’ve shared several low-fat, low-sugar, or low-carb brownie recipes — all of them good. Recently, Nan came across a very old, stained handwritten recipe card for Lillian’s Brownies. Originally procured from a colleague of Nan’s nearly 50 years ago, the recipe had the look of one that had been made many times over the years.
Caesar-style salad dressing has staying power - and no added sugar
Re-create a classic with a bed of Romaine topped with Caesar-Style Salad Dressing, homemade garlic croutons and Parmesan cheese. Courtesy of Don Mauer Has the classic Caesar salad lost its appeal? At one time, Caesar salad was a popular part of an upper-tier dining experience. After selecting a Caesar salad, a service person would roll a salad bowl on a cart over to your table and create the dressing (using a raw egg) and then assemble the salad using Romaine, croutons, and fresh Parmesan cheese.
Milk Street’s latest cookbook an adventure through Italy’s back roads and kitchens
Pasta alla Papalina (Spaghetti with Prosciutto, Parmesan and Peas) is a lighter, brighter riff on classic carbonara. Joe Murphy, Courtesy of Voracious, Little, Brown and Company As a column reader, you may have noticed that you’ll rarely read about new cookbooks here. Instead, shared recipes almost always come from food-centric websites, believing most of us do just that — turn to the internet for recipes.
With care, cast-iron can serve for a century
A well-kept cast iron skillet is perfect for creating one-pan dishes such as this Asian Hot Slaw. Courtesy of Don Mauer Editor’s note: Don Mauer is taking some time off. This column originally ran May 1, 2019. It's no secret. I love my 12-inch, beautifully well-seasoned, cast iron skillet. I bought my skillet new and unseasoned so far back I don't remember the year. Today it has a deep black patina and gets used at least once a week, usually more frequently.
Colorful cold chickpea salad a great way to get legumes on your plate
This cold chickpea salad uses canned organic chickpeas as the base for less hassle and easy cleanup. Courtesy of Don Mauer Other than baked beans with burgers, I have a difficult time incorporating beans (legumes) into my food plan. Yes, beans are excellent in a number of ways: They’re high in vegetable protein, fiber and several B vitamins. I like bean salad a lot, especially during the summer when I roll out my version of sugar-free, three-bean salad.
Sheet pan chicken gets dinner on with only 10 ingredients
I began my late-afternoon thinking about what to do with a large head of organic cauliflower (it had been on sale) and a package of boneless, skinless organic chicken thighs. Wanting to do something different, I headed to the internet to look for a way to cook them both together. I found a recipe at mashupmom.com and I decided to use it as a very loose guide to get dinner done quickly, but with a new twist. The recipe’s ingredient list was short — 10 ingredients, including salt and pepper.
Famous peanut butter chocolate chip blondies get low-sugar makeover
A brown sugar substitute made with erythritol and stevia prompted this makeover of a favorite blondies recipe. Courtesy of Don Mauer Who doesn’t like chocolate and peanut butter? If you asked the fans of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, their answer would be: “No one.” Years ago, I found an excellent recipe for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Blondies that, according to then-current beliefs, had too much fat. Back then, mistakenly, sugar was not an issue.
Making chicken Marsala with my own twist for my sweetie
Serve chicken Marsala over some spaghetti with a vegetable, such as sautéed green beans with almonds. Courtesy of Don Mauer My sweetie, Nan, loves chicken Marsala and orders it every time it appears on an Italian restaurant menu. Since those restaurants are so good at making it, and because I don’t normally stock Marsala wine, I’ve never tried making it; until now. I bought a bottle of real Marsala wine, not cooking wine, and began searching for a recipe.
Quick cannellini bean and bacon soup warms and delights on a cold day
Canned cannellini beans and store-bought chicken broth make soup preparation a flash. Courtesy of Don Mauer What a surprise, cannellini beans are also called white kidney beans. Are you familiar with the famous Italian soup Pasta Fagioli (pronounced paa·stuh faa·jow·lee)? Yes, I mispronounced it as pasta faa-zool for years. Either way, it’s a very tasty cannellini bean-based soup. Not all white beans are the same. Cannellini beans are larger than other white beans and firmer in texture.
This chilled asparagus side dish goes the distance
Cook fresh asparagus for about two minutes before shocking it in ice water. Courtesy of Don Mauer January is not the best time for fresh asparagus. Late spring, at my local farmers market, is when I find stellar fresh asparagus. If I lived in Peru, now’s the time for good asparagus, which is what I found in my local supermarket today. I was surprised, after traveling as many miles as it had, that this asparagus looked as good as it did.
Holiday gift ideas from Don Mauer’s kitchen, to yours
If you have a ham bone in the freezer, you can easily turn it into lentil soup. Courtesy of Don Mauer The gift-giving holidays are upon us, and here are a few ideas. What I am reading may interest others who love to cook. My recommendation is not a new book, but one that I’ve loved from the first time I read it (now on its third read): Ruth Reichl’s “Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table.” Reichl was the restaurant critic for the LA Times first, and then The New York Times.
Walnuts, orange add zest to no-sugar-added cranberry relish
This No-Sugar-Added Cranberry Relish comes together quickly and tastes amazing; so much better than any canned product. Courtesy of Don Mauer For many, cranberry sauce or relish is an absolute necessity on a Thanksgiving dinner table, which was true for most of my young life. Every year, our family had two Thanksgiving dinners since my folks couldn’t choose between either of their families. Cranberry sauce resided on both dinner tables.
Brother’s memory inspires this twist on a lettuce wrap
Here are the ingredients needed for Don Mauer’s A Twist on Lettuce Wraps. Courtesy of Don Mauer I tried my first lettuce wrap at lunch at my brother’s home 10 years ago. It was both delicious and difficult to eat. Tom was a superb chef, and the Asian-flavored ground chicken filling was an amazing amalgam of layered flavors. The issue: I had to cut it and eat it on the plate since the filling was so hot and the leaf lettuce wrap was so thin the heat went right through. Ouch.
With some inspiration and recipe help, Don Mauer turns his favorite dish into a special soup
Burger Boy’s Cheeseburger Soup is a welcome change for fall. Courtesy of Don Mauer My close friends have a nickname for me: Burger Boy. The reason may seem obvious, but it is my longtime love of hamburgers. Some local restaurants make really good burgers, but the best burgers are made in my kitchen. What makes a good hamburger? It all starts with using the best ground beef with the right fat level.
It’s a joy when a new baking cookbook offers something exciting
This loaf cake comes together quickly and easily, and boasts a remarkably deep color, intensely rich flavor and a plush, velvety crumb. Courtesy of Joe Murphy Where do you find new recipes? My path used to be a direct line to my large cookbook collection, where I could find a cookbook, such as Italian or bread, and start reading. Today, my path is nearly all electronic. In the past, receiving “review copies” from a new cookbook’s publisher was one of the benefits of being a food columnist.
An experiment in the kitchen results in accidental triumph
Give Don’s “Blackened Chicken Thighs” a try. If the smoke alarm goes off, lower the heat and open the windows. Courtesy of Don Mauer New Orleans Chef Paul Prudhomme invented blackened redfish in the late 1970s. Prudhomme’s fish turned out to be so popular that, for a time, redfish were overfished, with a rumor that it could lead to extinction. It did not happen. Sometimes, popularity may not be such a good thing. What about “blackened” chicken thighs”? Here’s my story.
Relish a sweet and sour corn relish for a change
Corn relish is the perfect accompaniment to salads and even hot dogs. Courtesy of Don Mauer Who relishes relish? If you live in the Chicago area, you know that pickle relish (sometimes a very bright green) dresses Chicago’s very tasty hot dogs. Which is what I was talking about with a not-from-Chicago friend. He knows where he lives that ketchup should not be drizzled on a hot dog. EVER. Pickle relish? A definite “yes” from me and a raised eyebrow from him. Yellow mustard? Lay it on.
One simple technique turns turns this stir-fry recipe into a winner
Finding fresh, locally grown shiitake mushrooms made this beef stir-fry extra special. Courtesy of Don Mauer Who knew that our readers wanted to know how to brown ground beef? And with the bonus of retaining moisture and not ending up with a puddle of gray water in the skillet. The emails I got and the fact that column at one point was the third highest trending on dailyherald.com told me. It was truly surprising.
Who knew there was a trick to browning ground beef
Don’s tender and flavorful ground beef helped make his partner Nan’s 3-bean chili look and taste delicious. Courtesy of Don Mauer Are you tired of gray-looking cooked ground beef? I know I am. There is a reason why most recipes instruct the cook to sauté ground beef until it loses its pink color. Reaching that point is a fairly accurate way to know that the ground beef has reached a safe temperature. What recipe writers like me do not want to write is cook the ground beef until it is gray. Ugh.
A bean salad without the added sugar still a sweet treat
Organic stevia is the key to this not-too-sweet three bean salad. Courtesy of Don Mauer This column was first published Aug. 23, 2017. When is a net weight not a net weight? Or, how to make 7.3 ounces seem like 14.5. Here’s my story. Friends invited us over for a summer dinner where they would do most of the cooking and we would bring a salad. I opted to bring a no-added-sugar version of a classic three bean salad.
Cannellini beans at heart of this cool, crisp salad
This summer, Don Mauer has focused on cool, crisp and nutritious salads, like this cannellini bean salad. Courtesy of Don Mauer I love cannellini beans (sometimes called white kidney beans). Whenever a recipe calls for white beans, cannellini is my go-to due to its firmness, whereas navy beans and great northern beans seem too soft. No matter the bean, whether for chili, soup or salad, if it’s canned, I go for organic.
Make this refreshing bean and corn salad for summer celebrations
Don Mauer adapts a supermarket chain’s recipe into his Celebration Bean and Corn Salad. Courtesy of Don Mauer For July Fourth, I’m making a bean and corn salad using frozen, organic sweet corn just in case fresh corn is unavailable. Why organic? It is hard to believe that fresh, sweet corn can be GMO (genetically modified organism). Before it gets too complicated, almost all (nearly 100%) field corn (not fresh) grown in the U.S. is GMO.
Fresh cucumbers transform into creamy summery salad
This summer salad gives you fresh cucumbers' clean, crisp, sweet aroma. Courtesy of Don Mauer If you like fresh cucumbers with their sweet, clean aroma and crisp texture, now’s your time. Last weekend at my local farmers market, I found and bought some young, seedless cucumbers. I could not help myself. They looked beautiful, and this was the first I had seen them this season. Of course, I didn’t know what to do with them.
Roasted corn is the key to this refreshing summer salad
Don Mauer’s recipe for Roasted Corn Salad is adapted from a recipe in seriouseats.com that mirrors Mexican street corn (elotes). Courtesy of Don Mauer Backyard barbecues on Memorial Day are as traditional as winter holiday gift-giving. For me, grilled burgers, perfectly sliced ripe tomatoes, homemade potato salad and corn on the cob always make a classic backyard meal. For the Fourth of July, you can snag some southern Illinois-grown corn on the cob.
A favorite salad dressing gets an organic no-sugar-added makeover
Don Mauer makes his Thousand Island dressing with no-sugar-added avocado mayonnaise, ketchup and sweet relish. Courtesy of Don Mauer Thousand Island salad dressing has been a favorite since I was a kid. Yes, I like Caesar dressing (especially my homemade), classic oil and vinegar today. If given a choice with lettuce waiting to be dressed, it’s Thousand Island all the way. My Mom’s homemade Thousand Island dressing, to which, oddly enough, she added cottage cheese, was my long-ago favorite.
Don’t hesitate to make that recipe you’ve been saving
For the best flavor, SeriousEats.com suggests starting with dry white beans. But Don couldn’t wait to try this salad, so he used organic cannellini beans, sometimes called white kidney beans. Courtesy of Don Mauer Over the years, I’ve read many white bean and tuna salad recipes and, due to a longtime love of tuna, wanted to make one. I never did it, though, until now. Seriouseats.com’s picture of their White Bean and Tuna Salad inspired me to finally make it.
When an easy flavor-packed salad is also salsa
This recipe for Low-Hassle Black Bean and Roasted Corn Salad requires some slicing, dicing and chopping, but the fresh ingredients make it well worth it. Courtesy of Don Mauer Is it salad, salsa or both? While shopping at my local grocery cooperative (members financially support the store), I came across a storemade Black Bean and Corn Salad. It looked delicious and made with Don-friendly ingredients, like olive oil, not vegetable oil, so I bought a pint.
Lean and lovin’ it: A splurge-worthy dish of old-fashioned chicken and rice
Don Mauer usually swaps in riced cauliflower for rice to keep his carb intake low. He broke out the real basmati rice for this recipe for Chicken with Rice Casserole. Courtesy of Don Mauer A few decades ago, chicken and rice casserole was a family dinner staple. The main reason was that chicken and rice were inexpensive, making this a cost-conscious meal.
A new cut of pork is a step beyond the average chop
These pork collar steaks are seared in a tablespoon of organic bacon fat in Don’s trusty iron skillet before finishing in the oven. Courtesy of Don Mauer Recently, in a brief chat with my butcher, he mentioned I might like to try pork collar steaks. Pork collar steaks? Never heard of them, but I was about to become very familiar with them. My butcher explained that collar steaks (sometimes called pork shoulder steaks) are cut from, you guessed it, the pork shoulder.
Salmon is king for a switch up for classic tuna salad
A drizzle of balsamic vinegar adds a punch of flavor to salmon salad. Courtesy of Don Mauer Salmon may be my favorite fish. More than 30 years ago, I broiled salmon fillets seasoned with salt, pepper and dried dill for dinner nearly every Friday. What a treat. Over the years, I’ve learned a lot about salmon, which is honestly disheartening. Wild-caught salmon still ranks up there as a healthy fish, rich in natural omega-3 fats. Farmed salmon has some serious issues.
Ingredients matter no matter how simple the recipe
Don’s EZ-PZ Oil and Vinegar Dressing is made with champagne vinegar. Courtesy of Don Mauer Brewing an excellent cup of coffee requires only two ingredients: water and coffee. And that is the rub: which water and which coffee? For some, tap water is flavorless. It’s just water. To others, there can be tastes (like a chlorine note) that come through. Fortunately, I have an under-the-sink water filter system that produces flavor-neutral water.
Beef fat makes a triumphant return to a balanced diet
Grass-fed beef and beef fat can make a huge impact as for adding flavor to a dish. Courtesy of Don Mauer This column was first published on March 7, 2018. The original name of this column was going to be: Low-Fat and Loving It. That's because, back in the early 1990s, fat was our dietary devil. At that time, I never thought that fats would ever be considered even a small part of a healthy food plan.
There’s nothing like fresh Catalina dressing on a salad
Fresh-made Catalina dressing without all the sugar and soybean oil. Courtesy of Don Mauer One of my favorite lunches at Grandmother Mauer's house was a half canned peach with cottage cheese scooped into its center, served on lettuce leaves and drizzled with Kraft's Catalina dressing. After Grandma Mauer passed away, I still made this salad from time to time. My partner, Nan, makes a fresh spinach leaf salad with sliced hard-boiled eggs and drizzles it with an Aldi version of Catalina dressing.
A few tweaks and Nana’s casserole moves into the 21st century
Tuna Noodle Casserole moves into the present. In 2008, I shared a low-fat version of tuna noodle casserole based on my memory of what Nana (my maternal grandmother) used to make. I cut as much fat as I could using low-fat cream of mushroom soup, skimmed milk, low-fat noodles and water-packed tuna. It was marginally similar but not nearly the same. The flavors were muted.
Think cauliflower not potatoes for a low-carb side for Thanksgiving Original
The column was first published on Nov. 13, 2019. Holiday dining is just around the corner, and I'm getting a touch nervous. If you're like me, you hang with friends who are better-than-average cooks and like to rollout some of their very best during this season. What a bunch of showoffs. They're not health foodies or on a weight-loss diet. Some make the best sweets I've ever sampled; homemade caramels topped with ground toasted pecans come to mind. Jiminy.
Discovering a classic chicken Vesuvio to make at home
My friend, who does not live in Illinois, asked me: "What is chicken Vesuvio, and where can I try it?" That question brought long-ago memories flooding back. Here is my story. The last time I'd been in a restaurant that served chicken Vesuvio was a few decades ago with my parents. When they were alive, my folks loved a little hole-in-the-wall Italian restaurant in Northbrook aptly called Francesco's Hole in the Wall that made an excellent chicken Vesuvio.
Almond flour tortillas stand in for wheat perfectly in these enchiladas
When it comes to tortillas, in my opinion, wheat is the best: soft, chewy, wonderful. Corn tortillas aren't bad. They're just not wheat tortillas. I've steered clear of wheat-based foods, like bread, for three years. It's not a gluten issue. It's that, for me, wheat triggers a strong path to overeating. Earlier this month, a friend called me from Costco and asked if I wanted him to pick up a Costco-size package of gluten-free almond flour tortillas. I eagerly said yes.
Chicken Scarpariello the perfect protein for casual dinner party
It was my turn to host a friend's group we call The Four Chefs. Quite simply, it's four couples where the men are really good home cooks. Calling us The Four Good Home Cooks seemed accurate, however not quite a reflection of our capabilities. All four men love to cook, and their significant others love to let them. We get together every three months, rotating homes, where the host provides the protein, beverages, appetizers and bread. The remaining three chefs bring anything they want.
A simple yet flavorful new potato dish does the trick
Posted9/27/2023 6:00 AM Luckily, one of the farmers at my local farmers market had some beautiful small yellow new potatoes available. These potatoes came with several big pluses. First, these golden nuggets had been grown without pesticides or herbicides. Second, they had not been treated, as some supermarket potatoes are, with CIPC (chlorpropham -- an herbicide), the most commonly used sprout suppressant.
A craving for mac and cheese sparks creativity when eating gluten-free
Posted9/13/2023 6:00 AM Lately, I've been hankering for baked macaroni and cheese. For me, baked macaroni and cheese's biggest issues are the macaroni and the cheese sauce, both usually made with wheat flour. Uh-oh. Nearly 30 years ago, I was (and still am) a bread addict: one slice is too many, and a loaf is not enough. I'm the guy that, when dining in a restaurant, always asked to have the breadbasket refilled before my entree arrived.
A flavor-packed turkey lettuce wrap is a low-carb winner
Posted8/23/2023 6:00 AM A few years ago, when visiting my brother Tom, the chef, he made some lettuce wraps for lunch. If you're unfamiliar with a lettuce wrap, it's similar to wrapping a filling in a wheat tortilla, except Tom used a soft lettuce leaf, like bibb lettuce. Tom was doing this to help reduce calories and carbohydrates. It was terrific. Since he passed away last year, I regret not getting Tom's recipe. So, I took it upon myself to create a lettuce wrap of my own.
Recipe shocker: Zucchini adds moisture, flavor to meatloaf
This column was first published on June 9, 2015. Zucchini's about to burst out of gardens all over the place. If you're growing zucchini, what're you gonna do with it all? Over the years, I've shared several zucchini recipes to help you use up some of your rapidly multiplying and quickly maturing zucchini and summer squash.
An essential summer cookout staple: the perfect potato salad
Many weeks of overheated summer remain, and everyone who can will continue their cookouts until it is too cold. For many, though, cooking outdoors never stops, even when it snows. Three items in my world are essential for Summer-food: home-grown tomatoes, corn on the cob, and potato salad. My garden has loads of herbs, like basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme, but no vegetables. That means heading to my local farmers market, where I found some amazing ripe tomatoes that are sweet and ready to eat.
Finding a standout slaw is a feat for a true connoisseur
There are more cabbage slaws than any other in my salad recipe collection. I love cabbage slaw, especially creamy, mayonnaise-based slaw. Oil and vinegar slaws come in a distant second. KFC leads my list of favorite commercial, creamy slaws. Unfortunately, duplicating KFC slaw at home remains elusive. These days, my weekly kitchen to-do list almost always includes making coleslaw, usually about 3 pints.
Creating a dense, moist chocolate cake with Einkorn flour
Einkorn flour? It's not a brand; it's flour milled from a type of wheat: einkorn wheat. Do not be surprised if you have never heard of einkorn wheat. Einkorn is an ancient wheat. In fact, Einkorn is the oldest known wheat and, according to einkorn.com, is: " ... considered man's first wheat." Einkorn.com also states: "Einkorn is the most primitive form of wheat on Earth.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Don
Contact Don, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack