RESEP MASAKAN ORIENTAL

This chocolate egg cream video was inspired by our recent trip to New York City , where my wife Michele and I enjoyed them on several occasions. As I watched the expression on her face while she sipped this unique treat, I knew I had to film a quick how-to as soon as we returned. Contrary to the name of this New York City soda fountain classic, chocolate egg creams do not contain any eggs or cream. What is does contain is Fox's "U-bet" chocolate "flavor" syrup. This uniquely American ingredient hails from Brooklyn, New York, and despite the picture of the woman on the label (why is she looking at me like that?), I love the flavor of this syrup. If you can't find it, I'm sure a certain brand from Pennsylvania will do just fine. Along with the chocolate come the simple additions of milk and seltzer water. The magic of this d rink is how the minimalist design produces such a rich, yet refreshing chocolate beverage. In fact, one of the reasons the beverage ...

“Agua Fresca” translates to “Fresh Water,” which is kind of funny, since it’s made mostly from fresh fruit. Sometimes I do extensive research into why something has a certain name, but this time, because it's too nice to stay inside surfing on a computer, I’m just going to speculate. I’m guessing that back in the day before modern plumbing and refrigeration, water may not have always been the best tasting beverage around. Drinking wine and beer all day is a fantastic alternative, but not necessarily when you have things to do, and empires to build. So, they took some stale, tepid water, and freshened it up with some nice cold, sweet fruit. You have to admit, that sounds pretty plausible. Anyway, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. The bottom line is, there’s really nothing quite as restorative and refreshing on a sweltering summer day. I hope you give this delicious agua fresca a try soon. Enjoy! To make 2 quarts Watermelon Agua Fresca: 5-6 cups freshly scooped watermelon 2 cu...

Michele and I are still in steamy Chicago, where the temperature is about 95, but the humidity makes it feel more like the sun. Man, could I go for an iced coffee right about now. I’ve been interested in trying this cold-brewed coffee technique for a while, but it was this lovely post on An Edible Mosaic that moved me into action. Of course, the glamor shot (formally referred to as the “money shot”) is of an Affogato – the ultra-simple, Italian coffee dessert – but the real star here is the amazingly easy iced coffee concentrate recipe. Apparently, since the flavors are extracted without heat, the results are a smoother, less acidic, less bitter product, which supposedly offers a purer coffee experience. All I know is that it made the best tasting iced coffee I’ve ever had. This would’ve been a complete success just for that fact alone, but that it also made possible this incredibly refreshing affogato, puts it way over the top. You can use the coffee concentrate straight on ice cream...

The media cannot live on heritage breed meats and sustainably farmed vegetables alone. While I was primarily in Aspen to collect and share content regarding the all-star line-up of chefs, and their dizzying array of food, it was a perfectly made cocktail that may have left me with my most enduring taste memory. The cocktail was called As the Night Falls , and was being served exclusively at Chateau de Grey Goose , Grey Goose Vodka's beautiful Aspen lair. I was invited to a cocktail party to meet its creator, François Thibault (pictured here with Dimi Lezinska, left), and taste the intriguingly named concoction. In the spirit of full-disclosure, let me say that I'm not a vodka drinker, nor do I regularly frequent cocktail parties. My wardrobe and personal style pair much mor e naturally with beer, but as I stood in front of the marble bar watching my As the Night Falls being muddled, measured and mixed, I was getting genuinely excited to taste this drink. It was love at first...

Michele and I are still mid-remodel, so this easy, breezy, strawberry syrup recipe was a welcomed addition to the video schedule. I have my friend Jen Yu from Use Real Butter to thank for that, since it was her gorgeous post that inspired this answer to all those “summer drink” food wishes I’ve been receiving lately. Jen publishes one of the best blogs around, and if you want to see how this beautiful beverage should really be photographed, check out her original post . Jen's fine food blogging prowess is only eclipsed by her photography skills. Speaking of which, don’t miss her photos of the recent eclipse ! I can’t think of many summer drinks this wouldn’t be great in, but for me it doesn’t get any better than a simple strawberry soda. Give me a big icy pitcher of this blush brew, an Adirondack chair, a little SPF 100 for my bald spot, and I’m ready to happily take on any heat wave. Of course this is only going to be as great as the strawberries you use, so bide your time until...

My friends at Allrecipes.com posted this very intriguing video for what they’re calling “ Coconut Oil Coffee .” As some of you may know, I’ve recently admitted to having a coconut oil and coconut milk obsession, so I really want to try this, but before I do, I thought I’d find out if any of you have tried this strange brew yet. Well, have you? If so, I’d love to hear what you thought. I’ll probably try it anyway, but thought it’d be fun get some of your opinions first. Thanks in advance!

When I was in culinary school, I worked at a Mexican restaurant called Casa del Sol (Spanish for Casa "of" Sol). I was a line cook, but on weekends the owner let me get some extra hours working behind the bar on the restaurants outdoor patio (you can see the umbrella in the old photo below). I didn’t have any bartending experience, but luckily 95% of the orders were for beer, simple mixed drinks, and the Casa del Sol's famous margarita. The food was very, very good - the owner had actually sent the chef down to Mexico for a month before opening to taste the real thing - but, the restaurant's claim to fame was its perfectly concocted margarita. Like many bars that feature the margarita as the signature drink, the recipe was a secret. Not only was the recipe a secret, but the owner, Ha rry Tucker, would make the mixture across the street in his home, and carry over a bucket to the bar when needed. It was quite a show (done intentionally, no doubt) - we would "run o...

I just heard that today is National Margarita Day ( thank you, Twitter ), and so I thought I’d repost this ancient video recipe I did for About.com. Please keep in mind that this isn’t a Food Wishes video, so there’s a few things you may not be used to. I had to be under 3 minutes; it couldn’t contain inappropriate humor; and maybe worst of all, I was forced to show my “face for radio.” In fairness, I do get better looking after a few of these. Enjoy! 

There’s an old Valentine’s Day saying that goes, “Candy is nicer, but liquor is quicker.” It’s really a lovely sentiment, but implies you have to choose one or the other. Hopefully this beautiful and delicious homemade cinnamon liqueur will prove that you can use both. This is dead simple to make, and I was pleasantly surprised at how delicious it came out. As I mention in the video, the candy’s spicy cinnamon flavor and sweetness really mellows the burn of drinking straight 80-proof booze. This makes for some very smooth sipping, but at the same time demands at least a modicum of restraint. I enjoyed mine neat, but imagine this would be great over ice, maybe with a splash of soda. I’m also wondering how it would be in a mug of hot cider, and by wondering, I mean obsessed with finding out. Stay tuned. I’d like to extend a very special thanks to my friend, and fellow food blogger, Sean Timberlake. Sean publishes Hedonia and Punk Domestics , and he’s the one who turned me on to this ...

My friends at Allrecipes.com created this unique drink to celebrate the Seattle Seahawks, their garish team colors, and their borderline-insane running back’s favorite candy. Seattle is well known for having the loudest, craziest fans in the league, and if this drink catches on, it will certainly prove the later. I live in San Francisco, and will be rooting for the Niner’s, so there won’t be any of this freaky fluorescence flowing at my Super Bowl party, but if you are a ‘Hawks supporter, I invite you to watch the video and give “ Beast Mode Vodka ” try. That way, if your team loses, at least you’ll have a horrible hangover to look forward to! Enjoy!