Product choice: garlic

I'm a busy woman.  I do NOT have time to peel and mince fresh garlic cloves every time I cook, and slicing raw garlic makes my eyes sting.  So call me plebeian, but I use this stuff:

Spice World minced garlic

The conversion for recipes is trivial: 1 clove minced fresh garlic = 1 teaspoon prepared

Product choice: dried pasta

My dried pasta-in-a-box of choice is Barilla.  They make a nice variety of sizes and shapes, it doesn't stick together, and it holds up to sauces.

I always try to keep my pantry stocked with one box each of these:

• spaghetti
• linguini or fettuccine
• rotini
• penne

http://www.barillaus.com

Product choice: chicken broth

Whenever I refer to "chicken broth" in my recipes, I'm always talking about this stuff:

Swanson's reduced sodium chicken broth is incredibly versatile.  I buy it in the 48-oz. cartons and use it for everything.