This Way to Your Table, Please

WELCOME.
inaugural edition :)

Welcome to the first edition of Dash! As a reminder, I’m Professor Pepper, your kitchen assistant. I’m here to improve your cooking experience & help you become the best chef you can be.

I’m so excited to share this very special issue of the newsletter! Let’s get into it.

TIPS & TRICKS.
take your pizza & bread making to the next level

Rather than a baking stone, try a baking steel: a sheet of food-grade stainless steel that you place in your oven. Preheat your oven with the steel on the middle rack for at least 30 minutes at your highest oven temperature. When it's scorching hot, slide your pizza or bread dough directly onto the steel.

The steel's conductivity means it gets even hotter than stones, yielding an incredible crisp crust with a delightfully airy, chewy interior in breads and a wonderfully charred, pizza parlor-style crust every time. Just a few minutes is all it takes for that pizza or focaccia to have the bubble-pocked crust of your dreams.

Give it a try next bake day and get ready to be amazed!

COMPLIMENTS TO THE CHEF.
this chef is on fire

Chrissie Hart is a truly special home cook in the Pepper community. She focuses on turning traditional dishes into T2D (Type-2 diabetes) and CKD (chronic kidney disease) friendly recipes. Give her a follow if you’re looking for delicious, health-conscious recipes!

FAVORITE RECIPE ON PEPPER. “It'd have to be my mom’s spaghetti gravy and meatballs recipe! That’s the one I’m literally most proud of in my entire life. From another Pepper chef, it’s Tineke Younger's The Best Mac N Cheese.”

BEST COOKING STORY. “This past summer when my sisters and dad visited from out of state, I had the opportunity to cook with my 2 little nieces Brooke (10) & Avery (8) and teach them how to make my famous spaghetti gravy and chicken cutlets. They learned so quickly and it was a core memory for all of us!”

HOW SHE LEARNED TO COOK. “From a very young age and growing up with a house full of 5 kids, 2 parents and a whole lot of friends over all the time, my mom would be in the kitchen making literal masterpieces out of nothing. So I gravitated towards the kitchen and was her little sous chef for years. I learned all the basics and then some from her!”

BEST COOKING TIP. “When cooking burgers on a stove top, lay the patty down on the frying pan and then use a knife and make a little slit in the center of the patty (from top down) to ensure the inside cooks at the same time as the outside.  Also, use Pepper to search for amazing recipes! It's helped keep me motivated and creative in the kitchen!”

FEATURED RECIPE.
january is for the soups

As the winter chill sets in, there's nothing quite like savoring a delicious, steaming bowl of soup. This month, we're excited to highlight one of our favorite soup recipes on Pepper: Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup by Chef Bryan Asher.

FROM THE CHEF. “It’s soup season. Here’s an easy one pot tomato tortellini soup. It’s loaded with fresh basil, crushed tomatoes, fresh spinach, and cheesy tortellini. Packed full of flavor and perfect for those chilly evenings!”

CHALLENGE TIME.

1. Cook Bryan’s Creamy Tomato Tortellini Soup by February 29th.

2. Using the ‘Share the finished product’ feature on Pepper, share your work of the recipe.

3. Tag SoupTime and we’ll choose a special winner to receive Pepper merchandise!

BEHIND THE SCENES.
kicking off 2024 with some spice

2024 is going to be a BIG year for Pepper. Here’s a few highlights in the months to come:

1. New Product Updates to Help YOU Become Your Best Chef. Our mission at Pepper has always been to improve the cooking experience. We’re so excited for all the amazing updates we have planned throughout the year: Leaderboards, Communities, and more!

2. Launching Pepper’s Culinary Council. We’re so excited to partner with incredible cooking creators in the new year. We’ve got some amazing things planned, from marketing campaigns to digital and IRL events. We can’t wait for you to get to know them!

3. New Social Media Content. We recently released new content series across our social channels in line with our updated branding, fun with food. If you don’t already follow us, here’s our TikTok and Instagram channels!

Have feedback/ideas to improve Pepper or curious about anything else happening behind the scenes? Email our COO at [email protected]!

SAVED BY THE BELL (PEPPER).
trivia time

In the land where crocuses bloom so fine, a spice we find, a treasure to define. From stigma dried, a flower’s secret sworn, can you tell me which spice is gently born?

A. Saffron, the golden dawn

B. Cinnamon, a bark to fawn

C. Turmeric, a hue reborn

D. Paprika, a dance till morn.

Send your response to [email protected] and we’ll choose a lucky winner to receive Brodo chicken bone broth!