You’ve decided that you’re going to throw a dinner party. It’s time to gather up your friends and family to spend some quality time together over a good meal. No one wants to spend their entire evening and lead up to the party worrying over the menu, shopping, and preparing the food when they could […]
Category Archives: blog
Aphrodisiac Recipes for Valentine’s Day
You’ve heard the word aphrodisiac before, and often, the first thing that comes to mind is something like oysters. But, truth be told, there are actually more foods that are considered aphrodisiac or aphrodisiac recipes to help you and your partner get in the mood this Valentine’s Day and beyond. What is an Aphrodisiac? Aphrodisiacs […]
10 Unique Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas for 2022
Valentine’s Day is around the corner. So are you ready with something special for your special someone? If you’re feeling a bit stuck as you don’t want to get them the same old thing, here are some unique Valentine’s Day gift ideas to help you find the perfect gift. Subscription Service Why not go with […]
10 Big Game Party Ideas To Make Your Event Memorable
Whether you tune in for the creative commercials or to see the action on the gridiron, there’s nothing like getting ready for the Big Game. No matter if you’re planning on having a more intimate gathering with just a few close friends or a much bigger bash, you want to have a memorable event that […]
Valentine’s Day Menu Special to Impress Your Guests
One of the most amazing things that separate CookinGenie from visiting any restaurant is the variety of the available chefs and their menus. To help you narrow down your delightful choices, we’ll go over some of the best Valentine’s Day Menu we have available for your upcoming date night. To make your Valentine’s Day date […]
Date Night with a Personal Chef?
Valentine’s day is fast approaching, and you know that you want to do something very romantic, but time isn’t always on your side. Have you ever considered a date night with a personal chef? No one wants the hassle of going out to eat with their Valentine, especially lately. The drive to the restaurant while […]
Why Should Busy Families Hire a Personal Chef?
Imagine a typical weekday in your house. First, you have to ensure that everyone gets up and ready for the day. Next, there’s breakfast and lunches to be made. Then, it’s time for everyone to go to school or work. Once work and school are done, there are typically errands to be run, like getting groceries, afterschool activities […]
Personal Chef Vs. Private Chef Vs. Catering Services: Which Option Is Right For You?
It can get confusing when you hear the words personal chef, private chef, and catering services. Are they all the same and can be used interchangeably? The truth is that while these services can all help with meals and special events, they are each different in their own subtle ways. So, before discussing when to use […]
Personal Chef: A Perfect Gift for Anyone
The holidays are upon us, and for some, it means it’s time to go out and buy the same old, same old gift cards and items for friends and family. Or does it? Rather than gifting the exact same thing every year or what everyone else is giving, why not give your family and friends […]
A Complete Process of Hiring a Personal Chef for Your Next Dinner Party
You’ve got a dinner party coming up, and you’re going through all of the different options you have available to you. However, if you’re not considering hiring a personal chef to handle your dinner party’s menu, you may be doing yourself a disservice. Learn more about the complete process of hiring a personal chef for your upcoming […]
How to Save Hours Per Week with a Personal Chef?
At first glance, most people don’t think much about the benefits of hiring a personal chef to come in once in a while to prepare a meal. For many, all they focus on is the fact that they’ll have a professionally cooked meal. However, when you consider having one less meal to cook, you can start seeing […]
What is the difference between a private chef and a personal chef?
For many people, the words private chef and personal chef are interchangeable, and because of that, they equate both services to something that only the truly rich can afford. The truth is that these terms aren’t the same. Each service is different in what’s offered and the cost involved. So let’s deep dive into what […]
How Can You Save More by Hiring a Personal Chef?
Let’s do a little exercise really quickly. What’s the first thing you think of when you hear the words “personal chef”? More than likely, you’re thinking something along the lines of how expensive it must be or how only the very rich can afford to have their own personal chef. Are you ready for a little secret? Lean in a little. Okay, here it is. […]
How to organize a team dinner at home to celebrate a work anniversary?
For some, going through the motions of getting to work and clocking out is as much effort as they want to put into their job. Often, they don’t feel that connection with their coworkers that makes them want to do more than the bare necessities to get their paycheck. For managers and leaders that want […]
How to organize a birthday party at home?
Birthday parties are fun for young and old. However, having a birthday party at your house for your parents, children, yourself, or other loved ones may seem like a hassle, but you can plan a perfect birthday party for the next big occasion if you follow these tips. How To Plan a Birthday Party? It […]
A Complete Guide to Hiring a Personal Chef
In our hectic, fast-paced world, we all need a little help getting through our daily lives. As the work, chores, and tasks pile up, it can be helpful to hire someone to take something off your plate for you. For many, this can include hiring a personal chef to handle their cooking for them. But […]
Elevate your Dining Experience with Your Own Personal Chef
Have a hankering for French food? How about Italian, Mexican, or maybe Korean? Have adventurous taste buds? You might like to try something new, perhaps Peruvian, or Greek? Luckily, there’s CookinGenie, an amazing online service that can bring all those amazing flavors, and more, right to your very own kitchen. CookinGenie has chefs that can prepare foods from around the world, plus […]
What’s the Difference Between Food Allergies, Intolerances, and Sensitivities?
We’re all familiar with food allergies, but nowadays you constantly hear terms like “sensitivity” and “intolerance” to different foods. These three terms often get lumped together, but they’re unique conditions that elicit different responses from the body and have varying levels of seriousness. So, what do all these terms mean? And how should they affect […]
How to Cook for Guests with Food Allergies
Cooking for someone with a severe food allergy can be intimidating. And with food allergies on the rise, it’s becoming more common than ever. You want people to enjoy your food. But you would never want to be responsible for giving someone a severe allergic reaction. Thankfully, with the right knowledge and planning, cooking for […]
A Complete Guide to Cooking Meat Safely
There are many foods that can cause illness when handled incorrectly, but one of the most common instances of serious foodborne illness comes from the undercooking or mishandling of meat. Raw meat is often full of fecal matter from the animal, which can contain a host of bacteria, parasites, and other pathogens. Because of this, […]
Storing Foods Safely to Prevent Foodborne Illness
When we think of food safety, we usually think about cooking foods properly to prevent getting anyone sick. However, storing foods properly is just as important to prevent foodborne illness. Just like the actual preparation of food, all it takes is a little common sense to make sure you’re storing food safely. Keep foods cold […]
September is National Food Safety Month – Here are Some Keys for Cooking and Serving Food Safely
Cooking for friends and family is one of the great joys in life. But without practicing proper food safety, cooking can make your loved ones sick, or in extreme cases, even kill them. Luckily, all it takes to prepare and serve food safely is following a few simple rules and using common sense. In honor […]
Healthy Ingredients—Salmon
These days, lots of us are looking for a better way to get more healthy protein in our diets. We love eating pork, beef, chicken, and other meats, but let’s face it, they’re not always the healthiest. Luckily, there’s one source of protein you already know that’s tasty, widely available, and incredibly healthy. That protein, […]
Why do we Love Spicy Food? The Science Behind the Heat
We all know at least one person who loves their food insanely hot. They insist that their hot wings “aren’t spicy enough unless I’m dripping with sweat.” On it’s face, that doesn’t make sense. Spicy foods cause physical pain, not just in the mouth, but sometime through the entire body. Why would we deliberately eat, […]
Is Air-Frying a Better Way to Enjoy Fried Foods?
In America, we love our fried foods. From chicken wings and French fries all the way to corndogs and mozzarella sticks, we’ll eat just about anything that came from a deep fryer. But as much as we love these foods, it doesn’t take an advanced nutrition degree to tell that something submerged in a vat […]
Holding Events During the Pandemic: Why a Personal Chef is a Safer Way to Celebrate
One of the hardest things about the pandemic is that we haven’t been able to celebrate the significant events in our lives the same way. Gathering for birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays has become much riskier and with restrictions in place, much harder too. With all of those events, one of the best ways to celebrate […]
Meal Kits vs. Personal Chef – Which is right for you
In this day and age, there are seemingly endless options to feed ourselves. One popular method is the do-it-yourself meal kits. There are hundreds of companies offering this service; therefore, a variety of options. Another option, personal chef services, are gaining traction and becoming a trend for their unique and incredible dining experiences. Today we […]
Understanding USDA Beef Grades
When you walk through the meat section at the grocery store, you will often find steaks labeled with a small shield in the right-hand corner, denoting a USDA grade and claiming the steak as prime, choice, or select. But what do these grades really mean? And how should they impact your decisions on what steak […]
Healthy Ingredients – Tahini
If you’ve ever dipped a carrot or pita chip into a bowl of hummus, you’ve likely been the lucky beneficiary of tahini — an extremely common, yet not commonly known ingredient that serves an integral role in middle eastern and Mediterranean cuisines. This incredible ingredient is a tasty, healthy, and versatile food that you’ll want […]
Find Delicious Gluten Free Meals with CookinGenie
The Challenge of Eating Gluten Free For many Americans, trying to find good gluten free meals is a never-ending struggle. It’s estimated that about 30% of Americans follow a gluten free diet. A small number of these people have celiac disease, a rare disorder that causes violent illness after consuming products with gluten, but many […]
Get Dad What He Really Wants with CookinGenie
Let’s face it, Dads are hard to shop for. If your dad is anything like mine, when you ask him what he wants for Father’s Day, he insists he doesn’t want anything, citing the fact that “he already has everything he needs.” While that’s a sweet sentiment, it can put kids trying to do something […]
CookinGenie: A Better Way for Chefs to Manage Their Own Business
If you’re a talented chef, you probably know the rewarding feeling of cooking for friends and family and being met with rave reviews. They might ask you when your restaurant is opening, half-seriously urge you to start a catering business, and proudly proclaim that they would pay good money to eat your food. But even […]
Trying to Eat More Vegan and Vegetarian Food? CookinGenie Can Help
One of the most dominant food trends over the past several years has been the rise of veganism. Back in 2004, there were only about 300,000 vegans living in the U.S. But in 2019, that number was over 9 million, representing a 300% increase over 15 years. Plus, reporting using google search trends shows that […]
Take Your Taste buds Around The World With CookinGenie
In my time as a chef, I’ve been lucky enough to travel around the world and immerse myself in different cultures and cuisines. I’ve learned from amazing local chefs how to prepare traditional dishes and have been awestruck by the sensational flavors that can be found across the globe. Now, with CookinGenie, I can bring […]
Teacher Appreciation Week is May 3-7. Why Not Say Thank You with the Gift of a Home-Cooked Meal?
Can we all just agree that teachers are the unsung heroes of the pandemic? This spring—as the world as we knew it turned upside down—they quickly pivoted to teaching virtually, creating new lessons and mastering new technology with just a few days’ notice, and saying goodbye to their students at the end of the year via Zoom. And then […]
Wondering Which gift Really Makes The Day for mom? A Home-Cooked Meal (That She Doesn’t Have to Make Herself)
“All that I am, or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.” —Abraham Lincoln The second Monday of every May is dedicated to the women (Mother’s day) who take care of us the other 364 days of the year: Moms. And don’t they deserve a day just for them? In many homes, moms are the ones who get it all […]
How to Dazzle Your Dinner Party Guests? A Charcuterie Spread May Be The Answer
Whether it be displayed out at your dinner party, the beginning of date night, or accompanying your favorite bottle of wine, a charcuterie board is a perfect accouterment. Charcuterie (pronounced “shahr–kyut-uh-ree”) is the French word for the art of cookery dedicated to the preparation of preserved meats, typically pork. The name charcuterie dates back to 15th-century shops which sold […]
Meal Prepping for Dinner? Cutting Through The Options
Today, the age-old question of how to meal prep for dinner is more complicated than ever. With a range of different meal delivery services, prepared and frozen foods delivered to your door, and a wide market for takeout, the choices are seemingly endless. Now, entering the fray is a new service, CookinGenie, which rethinks the idea of dining at home by bringing a culinary expert into your home […]
What Makes Bibimbap The Ultimate Korean Feast?
CookinGenie lets you travel with food all around the world. Next stop: Korea. Sometimes, the humblest foods are the best foods. That’s certainly the case with bibimbap, Korea’s answer to fried rice, and—if you ask us—one of the top must-try foods around the world. The word “bibimbap” means “mixed rice with meat and vegetables,” and variations of the dish abound. It’s a dish that […]
Fresh Home Cooked food: A CookinGenie Perspective by Michael Booth
I believe Cleveland’s own Michael Symon says it best: “Cooking and feeding people always makes me feel better and, I think, it will also make everyone else feel a little more normal and better, too.” 2020 has, to nobody’s surprise, devastated the culinary industry around the world. It has left many cooks, chefs, dishwashers, and […]
American as Apple Pie? Not So Fast
There are certain things that just evoke America: – Baseball. – Uncle Sam. – Corn fields. – Apple pie. But what if we told you one of these iconic symbols doesn’t really belong on the list? Turns out there’s nothing all that American about apple pie. In fact, neither apples or pie originated in North America: the ancient Egyptians get the credit for creating […]
A Whirlwind Tour of US Barbecue
“Southern barbecue is the closest thing we have in the US to Europe’s wines or cheeses; drive a hundred miles and the barbecue changes.” —John Shelton Reed, sociologist, writer, and all-around expert on all things Southern. At its most basic, barbecue is meat that’s cooked low and slow over a smoky fire. But barbecue aficionados will tell […]
Romance in The Times of Covid A Novel Way to Celebrate Valentine’s Day
Valentine’s Day has been celebrated since ancient Roman times—it began as a pagan fertility festival to celebrate Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, where goats were sacrificed, and women were paired off with men by lottery. The celebration was “Christianized” by Pope Gelasius I as the feast of St. Valentine in the 5th century, but it […]
Pad Thai: The Noodle Dish that Helped Build a Nation
For many people, pad Thai—the delectable sweet, sour, and spicy stir fry of rice noodles, tofu, eggs, veggies, bean sprouts, crushed peanuts, and an umami-rich sauce that can be found on the menu of virtually every Thai restaurant in the US—is their first taste of Thai cooking. So, it’s interesting to learn that the dish that most Americans think of as the quintessential Thai food didn’t even exist until the mid-20th century. In […]
Tracing Tacos – A Journey Through Time
When thinking about famous foods from around the world, some key dishes come to mind. We’re willing to bet Mexican cuisine ranks high on many people’s lists, with tacos at the top. But, have you ever stopped to wonder how the tasty taco came to be? It turns out, the history of the taco is […]
Food Inc.: Corporations Cooking for Us
A few years ago, an infographic went viral that showed how most of the world’s food brands are owned by just a handful of corporations. Image Source: visualcapitalist Around the same time that this infographic started circulating, a study found that nearly 60% of the calories in the modern American diet come from processed foods. How did we […]
Made to Cook: The Cooking Hypothesis
What makes us human? Some would argue that it’s the act of cooking — whether it’s boiling, broiling, roasting, baking, or barbecuing — that separates us from every other species on Earth. In 1999, Harvard professor of biological anthropology Richard Wrangham published an article in the Current Anthropology journal called “The Raw and the Stolen: Cooking and the Ecology of Human Origins.” Known as “the cooking […]
Ensuring Your Safety
CookinGenie makes enjoying fresh food simple – our Genies shop, cook, and clean, and you get to enjoy! But in the world of COVID-19, what is the risk of having someone else prepare your food, in your home? Ensuring Your Safety CookinGenie takes health and cleanliness seriously. In addition to following CDC and FDA guidelines, […]
What is CookinGenie
What is CookinGenie? CookinGenie is a service where delicious and healthy home-cooked meals come with only a couple of taps on your smartphone. The twist is that the food is cooked right in your kitchen. It’s not catering. It’s not meal kits. It’s not food delivery. It’s not frozen 500 miles away. It’s made fresh […]
A teaspoon a day
The other day, I picked up some ham from an online retailer. It was a premium 8-pound spiral-sliced ham, slow-cooked and smoked for 24 hours featuring a delicious torch-glazed brown sugar crust. Tempted? I certainly was. However, I happened to glance at the nutritional facts & noticed a detail – 41% (990 mg) sodium per […]
61 shades of sugar
Most of us feel pretty confident in our ability to read labels and know what we’re putting into our bodies. But sometimes, understanding food labels can be daunting. We feel like we need PHDs in food science. Did you know, for example, that there are 61 ways in which sugar can be described on food […]
Healthy ingredients – turmeric
Turmeric Demystified.. One of the reasons we are hesitant about trying new foods is lack of familiarity with the ingredients. Today, we would like to demystify turmeric – a key ingredient of most Indian dishes & curries. Turmeric is an ingredient that is derived from the turmeric plant. Wondering what it tastes like? Turmeric has […]
Key success factors as a home cook
So, you’ve been thinking of exploring your options as a home cook, but aren’t quite sure what you need to have on hand. Before you go packing your entire kitchen including the sink into the trunk of your car; let’s explore what is actually needed and expected of you to bring as a home cook. […]
Cooking Gigs – yes that’s a thing now
Gig economy is changing the worker employee relationship. By allowing people to specialize in a specific area of their expertise, it allows many workers to do the thing they are best at. Which can drive prices down and provide an excellent income for many professionals. But how does the Gig Economy work for an experienced […]
Multitasking in gig economies
A friend of mine recently ordered delivery of groceries to her home. The person delivering presented her a business card and offered his services as a home cook. Not only was he willing to purchase her groceries, but he was also willing to prepare her food. Talk about full service! We wanted to applaud this […]
Gig economy (for cooking?)
Gig economy is a term that has been gaining in popularity for the past few years. Also sometimes referred to as the freelance economy. It’s describing a new financial path where workers support themselves with a variety of short-term projects or jobs that do not provide traditional benefits such as healthcare or retirement. This phrase […]
Letting strangers cook in your kitchen
We have spoken about the idea of having someone come to your home to cook for you. How do you ensure that this is safe for you & your family? The idea of allowing someone you do not know into your home and preparing food for you and your family feels intrusive. So today we […]
Food prepared in unknown kitchens
Workarounds to cooking are ubiqitous. From food delivery apps to meal kits. Quietly, unobserved by mainstream food industry, private individuals are selling meals right from their own kitchens. Allowing neighbors to pick up from their homes or offering delivery or meet up options. These individuals can make a decent side hustle providing regular menus and meals […]
Trusting strangers to deliver your food
A recent article released by NPR revealed a startling statistic. It published the results from a Survey by US Foods. That survey interviewed 500 food delivery drivers and 1500 food delivery customers. The results were disappointing to say the least. First revealing that 54% of those drivers found themselves tempted by the smell of a […]
Meal kits – chop chop flop
Do It Yourself meal kits have been around since the early 2000’s and rose quickly in popularity. Globally the business size is well over $2B. So why has this service become so popular? Most of these companies win customers with a free meal or a discount on their first order. With pre measured ingredients and […]
Avoid wasting food: save $1600 per year
Food waste is a growing problem in America. According to a recent study, the average American family of four discards nearly $1600 in discarded produce alone annually. That’s right this post is ode to all those banana’s who never became banana bread. That number is not including dairy, meat or grain waste which are also […]
What eating healthy looks like
In our previous posts, we talked about how challenging it is to manage all our daily priorities (life, work, kids….) & still cook healthy meals from scratch. Healthy eating can be a controversial topic. There are so many options today between organic, vegan, paleo and keto, all claiming to be healthy and offering a totally […]
Eating healthy & fresh – options & workarounds
So many people fight the traffic and come home from work tired and hungry. You want to feed your family well but the idea of chopping and prepping a real meal for your family is daunting. Add hungry kids to the formula and it’s a bigger challenge. Decision time. Few, if any, good options. Restaurants […]
Healthy ingredients – Lentils
Lentils are one of the staple ingredients of Indian (& middle eastern) cuisine and with good reason. Lentils, often referred to as Dal are really any type of split pulses (or legumes) A pulse refers to the dry edible seeds of the pod. (such as lentils, beans or peas) They are typically offered in a […]
Eating healthy & fresh – challenges for a family
You already have a lot on your plate – juggling kids sports, school events, professional schedules, groceries, shopping, and kids’ homework.Exhausting? We think so. Add an early morning or a late evening meeting (OK, make that a corporate firefight) at work & all of a sudden, putting breakfast or dinner on the family table can […]