Once again, you've found yourself inviting comrades, companions, and compatriots over for beverages on a Friday evening whim... but alas, your alcohol cabinet is looking rather meager, and your skills are lacking. No worries—just utilize these 10 tricks and spice up your at-home mixology game. Your friends will be none the wiser (and swear that you are a cocktail-concocting genius).
Dried fruit makes a great snack or salad topping, but after a while, they tend to become fossilized, rock-hard versions of their former selves. At this point, most folks probably just toss them out, as they're unpleasant to chew on when eaten raw and even more unpleasant to eat in bread or cooked with other ingredients.
Chicken breasts have gotten a bad rap. Dry, flavorless, boring... poor white meat gets no love, and dark meat gets all of the credit for being sinfully flavorful and delicious. But the truth is, even though chicken breasts are lower in fat and calories, they can also be incredibly versatile and full of flavor... if they're prepared correctly. You're probably familiar with poaching, which is a technique that gently cooks more delicate meats such as chicken or fish fully submerged in a liquid b...
Whipped cream is one of the most iconic dessert toppings around, but the full-fat version is not the most forgiving when it comes to fat content. With the holidays just around the corner, learn how to spare yourself a few calories—especially if you love the creamy texture of whipped toppings!
The peanut butter and jelly sandwich has officially left the building. When you eat this every other day in elementary school, you've sort of reached your limit. The thing is, peanut butter itself is delicious and quite versatile if used in the right way. Let's explore this kitchen cabinet staple and showcase it via the three dinner courses.
There is no greater food to master than steak. If you can make a steak that's only marginally better than your neighborhood Applebee's, you'll still have friends waiting outside your door for steak night. And if you can make steak as good as that expensive gourmet steakhouse you went to for your birthday? Well, your popularity is about to increase dramatically.
When summer rolls around, I think of two things: grilling and ice-cold beverages. To me, nothing beats loading up the grill with charcoal, letting the smell of smoke get stuck to your clothing, and imbibing the most refreshing drink you can find.
Ice pops are like summer on a stick, with all the sweetness and stickiness of July and August. Store-bought popsicles, although refreshing, are never as good as homemade. So it's time to up your popsicle game with some of these beautiful creations, including some boozy pops (poptails) for adults.
Rather than reaching for aspirin the next time a headache strikes, try grabbing a drink of lemonade instead. Not only can it help ease your head pain, but it can also help relieve stress, anxiety, and depression. But not just any old lemonade will do the trick—reach for the lavender lemonade.
Don't leave your tongs out by the grill, as they are one of the most useful and versatile cooking tools to have in your kitchen. In my house, they come in a very close second to chopsticks, which I cook with everyday. Like chopsticks, they make it easy to delicately flip and turn food with precision. But unlike chopsticks, there's no learning curve, so anyone can use tongs for easier, simpler cooking.
"Does bottled barbecue sauce even taste that bad?" a friend of mine asked. Well, truthfully, no. But it also doesn't taste that good, especially if you've had truly great barbecue or even your crazy uncle's homemade sauce at a holiday cookout.
Food can smell great before, during, and after cooking. A pot of stew simmering away on the stove will tantalize you all afternoon, and there's nothing better than the smell of fresh-baked cookies lingering in the house for hours.
Paula Deen of Get Cooking will show us how to make peach cobbler. Ingredients are as follows: 1 1/2 cup self-rising flour; 8 tablespoon or 1 stick of butter; 1/2 cup of water, 2 cups sugar, divided; 4 cups peeled sliced peaches; 1 1/2 cup milk; ground cinnamon
With portable devices being a necessity in modern everyday life, they may be subject to overuse, improper charging, or normal wear and tear. For those people who carry around their smartphone or iPod with them all of the time, how many times have you been out and about just to have your portable device die on you?
Clam chowder is a flavorful soup that is a great starting course or a whole meal in itself. You can make make a pot of this wonderful seafood dish at in the comfort of your own home and have enough to use for several meals.
Life stinks. Literally. Daily living leads to lots of lingering smells. Household odors from cooking, kids, pets, bathrooms, and guests can accumulate. Get rid of them with some simple remedies.
Baked beans have been a camping favorite, it seems, from the beginning of time, but with this recipe, we take them to a whole new level. Using vegetarian baked beans makes it a super healthy, protein packed, lunch for vegetarians. With a few adjustments, it is a winner with kids as well. This visually appealing open sandwich, with its perfect blend of sweet, tang and spice, is sure to please everyone. Watch this how-to video and learn how to make an Indian style open sandwich with baked beans.
We used to view homemade dressings as something whose variables of flavor and texture outweighed our desire to make them up on the fly. We often found ourselves nervous that they'd come out too runny or too tart or even too thick.
The spice selection at Trader Joe's is both inexpensive and truly top-notch. According to their site, they deal with some of the highest-quality spice manufacturers in the world and, in working with them directly, they eliminate hidden costs spent on promotions, brand-building, and advertising. This allows the customer to experiment with new flavors and build up their spice rack—without the usual limiting factor of high cost. If you don't have access to a Trader's in your culinary neck of the...
I love it when peaches are in season! It means it is cobbler time. This simple peach cobbler recipe will sure to impress your friends and family, it is super easy to make, and it is pretty darn cheap as well. Let's get baking!
A few years ago I went hog-wild trying to achieve a zero-waste lifestyle. I didn't succeed, but the experiment taught me that we throw away things we could—and should—be using more.
It's hard enough to keep tabs on the battery life of one device, let alone all of the different gadgets that a typical consumer owns in this day and age. Say your smartphone is running low on juice, so you switch to your tablet only to find out that it's almost dead as well. Better hope your laptop is fully charged, right?
I love me some salad, but I'm also kind of a big baby when it comes to eating them. The greens have to be perfectly crisp and fresh, which is why I'm such a nut about storing them properly, including rethinking how I use my refrigerator, using a paper towel or dry cloth to wrap them, or even puffing a little CO2 into the plastic bag to keep them fresh. I've even developed an arsenal of tricks to restore life to soggy greens.
Sometimes, figuring out what to cook for dinner takes longer than actually cooking it. I can't tell you how many times I've gotten excited about a recipe, then realized that it requires marinating for twelve hours. When it's already 6 p.m., that just isn't going to work.
Good day! This post will be about cleaning your favorite jewellery. You have to take good care of your treasure, especially if it belonged to your ancestors. And, if it's worth a lot, so much you would not trade it for anything in the world, if possible. Keep it safe in your jewellery box.
In this video, we learn how to make an easy smothered pork chop. First, take four thick pork chops that are bone-in. Then, slice one large onion and sprinkle poultry seasoning onto the pork chops along with salt and pepper. Then, brown them on both sides in a pan over medium-high heat with vegetable oil. When finished browning, put them on a plate and pour off the excess oil. Now, put butter in the pan with the onion and a big pinch of salt. Brown these for 15 minutes until they are really da...
This video describes how to make an asparagus dish. First, a frying pan is put on the stove over medium high heat. Secondly, olive oil is added to the pan. Next, pieces of prosciutto ham; the speaker suggests that other types of ham will do just fine in this dish. After a couple minutes of cooking, the asparagus is added to the pan and rolled around to coat in oil. The asparagus is cooked for awhile before water is added and the dish is covered for one minute to steam. Afterwards, the lid is ...
Steak fajitas start with marinating the meat with 3 cloves of mashed garlic, one tablespoon of vegetable oil, one teaspoon of dried cilantro, one teaspoon of cumin, one half teaspoon of red chili flakes, and one teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce. Add the juice of two limes and one quarter cup tequila to the marinade. Put the whole flank steak int he marinade, and then place the container in the refrigerator to marinate for twenty four hours. The other ingredients for the fajitas are two jalape...
John Kass from the Chicago Tribune and Gary Wiviott, author of Low & Slow, demonstrate how to make perfect ribs. The first step is to run them under cool water and rinse them with cider vinegar to clean them off. Second, coat them with mustard. This holds the rub on the rib. By holding the rub on, you will get more bark (the spicy, smokey, crusty exterior) on your rib. Gary's rub is a mix of 7 different toasted Mexican peppers, paprika, salt, black pepper. Make sure to place a good layer of r...
This video shows you how to prepare Peach Cobbler. To begin, prepare the crust. Stir together flour, salt, and sugar. Add cold butter and butter flavored Crisco shortening. Mix together with a fork or a pastry blender. Add cold water. Stir with a spoon. Place dough in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Make fat-free, guilt-free turkey for you and the family. A delicious Holiday center piece, a recipe you'll be enjoying for years to come.In this video, Betty demonstrates how to make a Christmas roast turkey breast.
In this video, we learn how to mix a version of the Rum Runner drink. Traditionally, the Rum Runner is made in a blender, which we are not going to do. Instead, we are going to crush the ice and give it a slushy taste and consistency. Start out with a collins glass and a shaker tin, and put ice in the shaker. Use a muddler to crush the ice and make it slushy, then pour that crushed ice into the collins glass. Now, ice up the shaker tin. Put in three-quarters of an ounce of Captain Morgan Spic...
This tutorial video will teach you to make Shabu-Shabu. Shabu-Shabu is a Japanese beef hot pot served with porridge.
A long time ago I was reading an issue of Saveur and saw an article about a trendsetting bar in Portland. The bartender at the joint had started making enormous blocks of smoked ice for his cocktails. When a patron ordered a drink that called for the smoked ice, the bartender would chip off a large chunk and place it in a glass with the booze. Then, as the ice slowly melted, the drink would take on more and more smoky notes, and the flavor profile of the beverage would change with every passi...
Tequila, peach schnapps, vodka, amaretto, orange juice, and pineapple juice make up the Beach Bum cocktail. Follow along with slighty deranged bartender Stephanie as she gives step by step directions for how to mix up this specialty drink. Watch this video beverage making tutorial and learn how to mix the Beach Bum cocktail.
With a name this dirty, it's a refreshing surprise that this cocktail is so sweet. Tequila, mango vodka, coconut rum, gin orange liqueur, sweet and sour mix, orange juice, and pineapple juice make up the Dirty Sanchez cocktail. Follow along with bartender Milan/Christine as she gives step by step directions for how to mix up this fruity specialty drink. Watch this video beverage making tutorial and learn how to mix the Dirty Sanchez cocktail.
Tequila, pineapple juice, cranberry juice, sweet and sour mix make up the Papi Chulo cocktail. Follow along with bartender Jack as he gives step by step directions for how to mix up this specialty drink as either a martini or on the rocks. Watch this video beverage making tutorial and learn how to mix the Papi Chulo cocktail.
Tequila, pineapple juice, and lime juice make up the Oro Azul tequila matador cocktail. Follow along with bartender John as he gives step by step directions for how to mix up this specialty drink. Watch this video beverage making tutorial and learn how to mix the tequila matador cocktail.
Seasoned urad daal aka sukhi (dry) daal is a very unusual dal so think outside the box and give it a try. Just another fantastic and tasty way of getting your share of proteins. Watch this how-to video to get the recipe and instructions on how to make urad dal.
In this tutorial, we learn how to make Indian chaat: Batata vada. To make the vadas, you will need: 2 lbs peeled and mashed potatoes, 1/2 tbsp ginger, 1/2 tbsp green chili paste, 1 tsp roasted cumin powder, 1 tsp sugar, salt, `.5 tbsp lemon juice, and 10 sprigs cilantro. To make the batter you will nee: 1 c chickpea flour, 2 tbsp rice flour, 1/8 tsp asafetida, salt, 1/4 tsp baking soda, red chili powder to taste, 1 tbsp oil, and 1/2 c + 2 tbsp water. For the seasoning you will need: 1 tbsp oi...
