Oprah in your kitchen

Oprah in your kitchen

“O: The Oprah Magazine Cookbook” (Hyperion, $29.95) is filled with tempting recipes from You-Know-Who’s monthly mag. The variety reflects the myriad contributors, from poet Maya Angelou (banana pudding) to French chef Daniel Boulud (curried cauliflower and apple soup). Since it’s summer, the skewered spicy shrimp with grilled watermelon (you read it right!), mango cocktails and blueberry buckle seemed attractive. It’s at Barbara’s Bookstores, some Barnes Noble stores and amazon.com.

Cheese and more

Boursin Garlic and Roasted Red Pepper is a new flavor of this spreadable cow’s milk cheese. Chicago Tribune tasters loved the balance of flavors; it will work with crackers or as a spread on sandwiches. A 5.2-ounce package costs about $5-$7 in the refrigerator case at various grocers, and peapod.com.

Upscale M&M’S

The gourmeting of America has hit a new milestone — M M’S have gone upscale.

Later this month Mars Snackfood US is launching M M’S Premiums Chocolate Candies, a pricier and fancier version of the candy long known for melting in your mouth, not in your hands.

The candies, which sport mottled metallic-like shells, come in five varieties — chocolate almond, mint chocolate, mocha, raspberry almond and triple chocolate.

Grand snack

CT testers kept reaching for more handfuls of the Grand Hotel caramel corn from the famous Mackinac Island hotel. The corn has a tender texture and comes in two flavors: Cinnamon Pecan Butter and Almond and Cashew Butter Toffee. It’s part of a summertime lineup at various markets. A 17-ounce container is $4.

Flatten chicken

Weight a whole chicken under a brick or skillet so that the breast stays juicy and the skin gets crisp. To do it, wrap a clean brick (or heavy cast-iron skillet) in aluminum foil. Sit the chicken upright on your cutting board, and, using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, cut out the backbone. Flatten out the chicken, breaking the breastbone if necessary. If you’re using any herb or spice rubs, add them now, and then grill skin-side-down over a medium-low fire, weighted under the brick. After 15 to 20 minutes, flip the chicken over and finish cooking another 15 minutes. This can also be done with chicken halves in a heavy skillet (use two bricks, then) over medium heat.