If there's a better way to impress your friends than with cocktails, I don't know what it is. Some nice glasses, quality spirits, and a recipe that doesn't involve pre-made margarita mix, and you'll automatically look suave. However, the most overlooked cocktail accoutrement (and the coolest, in both senses) is the ice.
There are rules that cooking in general always follows: cakes should be fluffy. Steaks should be heavily seasoned, and nowhere near a bottle of steak sauce. Every stock should start with aromatics (onions, carrots, & celery). And, until very recently, meringues should always be made with egg whites.
In my opinion, there is nothing in the culinary world as satisfying as cutting into a steak, and seeing that you've cooked it to perfection. Even if you're one of those bizarre people that prefers their steak medium or well done (hey, no judgement... okay, fine, a little bit of judgement), it's culinary heaven when you realize that you achieved the perfect doneness on your steak.
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.
Most primary cocktail ingredients just sound delicious. Lime and tonic water? Yes, please. Bitters and simple syrup? Sign me up. Egg whites and... wait... egg whites? In a cocktail?
Here's a fact that everyone knows: avocados are delicious in guacamole, salads, and sandwiches. Here's a fact that's less commonly known: avocados are delicious in desserts, too.
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...
Summer cookouts and barbecues come with a lot of delicious foods, but to me, there's nothing better than dishes heaped with avocados. From guacamole to simply eating an avocado right out of its skin, I devour this fruit constantly—but it's one that can be tricky to find perfectly ripe.
I'm human, so it goes without saying that I love bacon. You're human too, which means chances are pretty good that you also love bacon. Yet as beloved as bacon has always been, it's just now experiencing a culinary renaissance, which I love. Bacon chocolate? Heck yes. Bacon donuts? Bring it on. Bacon booze? Now we're talking.
It's a basic law of cooking: whenever you're really craving something, you don't have it. All you want is a glass of wine? Chances are you finished the bottle while braising meat last night. Want nothing more than a sandwich right now? Yep, you finished the bread with breakfast. You'd kill for a steak? They're all in the freezer, and you don't want to wait while they thaw; you want your steak now.
It happens to even the most avid cereal eaters: sooner or later you open a box, unfurl the crinkled plastic bag, and find that the cereal inside is stale. Maybe you forgot about it, maybe you ate it too slowly, or maybe you just found a new, better cereal and left it behind like Andy left Woody. Either way, the crunchy goodness is now stale, and you grab the box and walk to the trash can. Stop!
My morning just doesn't start without a cup of coffee and an incredibly hot shower. There's nothing better than sloughing off sleep with a dose of warm, cleansing water. Except, as scientists are pointing out, our habit of showering daily isn't exactly the healthiest choice. Though it feels great, if you have a shower-a-day habit like I do, you're showering all wrong.
Easter may have come and gone, but my love of hard-boiled eggs sure hasn't. Yet as much as I love hard-boiled eggs, I hate making them; I have to work in small batches to have consistent results, and they're always a little overdone, crumbly, and sometimes even green.
Meringues are a French and Swiss dessert made of whipped egg whites and sugar, and they are light, sweet, and crispy confections. To make traditional meringues, you beat egg whites into soft foamy peaks, and then keep whipping as you gradually add sugar until the peaks become stiff. Once you've reached the right consistency, you bake them at a low temperature in the oven for a long time. They take both technique and time.
One lump or two? That was the age-old question with sugar cubes, which used to be a staple of any tea salon or dignified household this side of Downton Abbey. These days sugar isn't really used in cubes much except in bars and restaurants, and that's a shame. Cubes are a lot less messy than granulated sugar, and you can measure the exact amount you put in your drink no matter what.
As a kid, my favorite part of Easter were the days leading up to the holiday, when my family would dye eggs. This became an enormous event in my household, as dozens and dozens of perfectly white eggs would become little oval canvases for arts and crafts.
There are lots of great reasons for going out to a fantastic coffee shop for a cuppa. Coffee shops have a lovely ambiance, are a perfect place to meet with friends or do some work, and are a great excuse to get out of the house. Seeking out a perfect cup of coffee, however, shouldn't be one of the reasons that you hit up your local café.
Scented candles tend to magically turn a house into a home. The light flicker of the flame gives a relaxed or romantic tone to the atmosphere, and keeps the space smelling fragrant for hours. The only problem? Wax melts, and the candle becomes worthless after the wax is all gone. So how do you keep the flame going for more than a few hours? Simple, just remove the problematic ingredient—don't use wax!
Even though we love taco salads and bread bowl soups, edible bowls and dishes have now gone far beyond those oldies-but-goodies. Using food as serving dishes helps with cleanup, reduces food waste, and makes your spread more creative and interesting.
On mobile devices, the Notification Center received a huge facelift when iOS 8 was released, but it wasn't until Yosemite that its Mac OS X counterpart received the same amount of love—especially the much needed ability to add custom widgets, like a FaceTime dialer.
It's pretty logical for your MacBook to sleep when you close its lid, but under certain circumstances, you may not necessarily want this feature to kick in.
A great Halloween party depends on the right spooky ambience. Having some shrunken heads in strategic locations is an easy, fun way to get your guests in the right (frightened) frame of mind, and they require items you can easily find in your kitchen or at the local grocery store.
I don't deep fry food that often, mostly because it uses a ton of oil, which is expensive, and the cleanup is a son of a mother. (That oil really splatters everywhere.) Plus, no matter how careful you are, you will get hit by hot oil at some point and it will not be pleasant.
Your status bar is a hub of essential information, displaying things like battery life, signal strength, and missed calls and texts.
Silence can therapeutic at times, but unsettling at others. When I'm in bed at night, I need some sort of background or white noise to help me fall asleep. Pure silence just does not do it for me. Whether it's a fan oscillating left to right, or the TV playing, I need background noise to soothe me to sleep.
Are you staying up longer than you want to? Do you fidget with your tablet late at night before bed? Maybe you're using it to read or to watch something to help you knock out. If so, this may actually be keeping you up.
70 degrees, 8 mph winds, and sunny clear skies. That's the current forecast here in Los Angeles and I can't really complain. However, if you don't live in Southern California, checking the weather may be the difference between getting stuck in a snowstorm or remembering to bring an umbrella.
If you're a dedicated Instagrammer, you're probably well aware of the humblebrag hashtag #NoFilter, which expresses to other users that your photo is just so damn awesome that it looks like you added filters to it, even though you really didn't.
Ethylene is an invisible, odorless, naturally occurring gas that aids in the ripening process of fruit. As a fruit produces more ethylene, it begins to create enzymes which help break down cell walls and starches, making the fruit softer and sweeter over time. If it weren't for this small hydrocarbon gas, the shelf lives of most fruits could last well over a year.
Winter is coming... and if you don't get that Game of Thrones reference, it's okay, you're still cool in my book.
Did you know that there's a way to start a fire by squishing air? In this project, I'll show you how to build a tool that does exactly that—and I'll give you a sneak peak into the principals of how a diesel engine operates!
Summer is here, and temperatures are rising. Instead of shelling out for an expensive new air conditioning unit, why not build one yourself with a few bucks worth of old computer parts?
In this tutorial, Tom Howard shows us how to bleach jeans the proper way. This is far better than just placing your clothes in the washing machine the normal way. To do this the correct way, put your water level low (for one item) in your washing machine. Now, make sure the temperature is around 50 degrees give or take 5 degrees. Now, add 1/2 c of chlorine, adding more if you want your jeans to be lighter. Now, leave this is to soak for about 20 minutes and wash your jeans for 30 minutes. Mak...
Last year, your iPhone's Weather app received some great features, but things are even better now with the latest iOS 17 version.
Feeding birds isn't the same as feeding ducks. Ducks are practically fearless when it comes to filling their tummies, but other birds aren't as brave, especially when it comes to baby birds. Baby birds sometimes fall from their nests, and sometimes are knocked out by storms or other natural causes. If you find a baby bird, here’s how to feed it.
The delicious key lime pie martini can be made easily by using the following instructions. First by using your shot glass pour four counts of Stoli Vanilla into your martini shaker. Then, Pour two counts of pineapple juice, and two counts of lime juice into the martini shaker. Next, add one teaspoon of Coco Lopez. The Coco Lopez should be in liquid form. If you had stored it in the refrigerator, take it out about an hour before so that it can reach room temperature. Now add about two or three...
If your cray fish or crawfish has tiny tiny worms crawling over the shell, watch this how-to video to fix the problem.
Bake some delicious chocolate chip muffins that your kids will love. This how to video shows you a quick recipe for chocolate chip muffins that are supper easy to prepare.
In this series of how-to videos, home improvement expert Amelia Tallman shows you step-by-step instructions on how to install a new power outlet in a wall of your home. She demonstrates how to strip the existing wires, drill holes and properly install a new box for a new outlet. She also shares tips for improving your home by installing insulation using a blower, which should help you save money on energy costs by maintain temperature. By following the advice and techniques shown in these fre...
Marinate your pork chops before grilling to really make them tender and flavorful. Your family won’t be disappointed when they sit down to a dinner of hot chops just off the grill, so fire up the grill and get started.
