• The amazing Heidi Swanson has just released a new cookbook, and if it is as amazing as this recipe for Ultimate Veggie Burgers, then we're all in for a treat. - 101 Cookbooks
• Just in time for St. Patrick's Day comes this recipe for a Chocolate-Whiskey Cake with Fluthered Cream (btw, fluthered is Irish slang for drunk) - Chow
• Apparently the new trend is ridiculously expensive foods. Here we have the $1000 pizza and the $100 Coconut Cake. - Serious Eats
• Can you write a great jingle? Then enter the Jingles for Pringles contest. The winner gets to go to the American Idol finale. - Slashfood

  

• Looks like Ruth Reichl's (former restaurant critic for the NY Times/current editor for Gourmet magazine) third book is being turned into a movie. - Megnut
• I keep meaning to talk about how freaky it is that all the bees are disappearing. If you're interested, check out this article with a link to an interesting podcast. - eggbeater

The rambunctious holiday tradition of wearing green and guzzling beer is just a few days away. For most of us that means hitting the bars and drinking green beers, but wait! Do you think true Irish drink beer? No way, they drink Guinness (although, a friend was just telling me about an article stating that more Irish are drinking wine instead of beer, but that's a whole other story...)! And apparently they're not alone because 13 million pints of Guinness are poured across the planet, that's more than 150 pints every second!

So to ensure that your pint is poured just right, Guinness Brewmaster Fergal Murray has some great tips:

• Use a clean, dry glass -- preferably an Imperial 20-ounce pint with branded logo
• Hold the glass at a 45-degree angle and never allow the spout to touch the beer or glass
• The Pour: Pull faucet down and allow beer to fill glass. You will see the surge commence
• The Settle: Allow the nitrogen bubbles create the theater and wonderful surge event, creating the beautiful creamy head
• The Top Up: The beer has settled (there is a distinct gap between dark liquid and head) and the glass is topped up slowly to create a domed effect with the head proud of the glass
• The Presentation: Give the creation of the perfect pint to the adoring customer

Oh and speaking of Guinness, their online webstore has a bunch of things you never knew you needed, including Guinness T-shirts, salt & pepper shakers, awesome posters, socks and underwear. Yes, they even have underwear.

Source: KSAT

Although the weather has been lovely here in California, I have a feeling it's the usual pre-spring tease. Unfortunately in San Francisco, even if it's a beautiful day, at some fateful point in the afternoon the fog comes rolling in over the bay. On days when I arrive home freezing from the unexpectedly cold winds, I am always in the mood for a hot drink that warms me to the bones. A great alternative to tea is hot apple cider. A steaming cup is full of antioxidants and the fragrant spices will give your house a cozy smell. Use the best apple juice or apple cider you can find when you make this perfect cool afternoon treat. For the recipe, read more

This weekend we made a Guinness Beef Stew (although why we were making stew on such a gorgeous day is beyond me...) and I figured that a good hearty Irish Soda Bread would be a nice accompaniment. So I dug out the trusty Baking Illustrated and gathered up all my ingredients.

Since the stew took over 8 hours to make, and since I am the world's greatest procrastinator, I kept saying, "Oh I'll make the bread in a little bit." The boyfriend kept asking when I was starting and I kept saying, "soon, soon..." Then suddenly, the stew was almost done, the bread was just a pile of ingredients, the butter was beyond room temp (it was really hot out and I didn't pay attention, I highly recommend room temp butter and nothing more) and I needed to get cracking!

So I pulled out the ol' mixing bowl and got to work. It was barely done in time (it could have used a little bit longer to set) and an old friend I hadn't seen in over a year arrived while I was halfway done (translation: this bread did not get my full-undivided attention). I guess the bf was right, I should have started earlier in the day...

At any rate, the bread held up really nicely and paired fantastically with the stew. If this is what I get with haste and negligence, I can only imagine what a real loaf would be like (translation: this recipe is easy and hard to screw up). For step by step pictures and the full recipe, read more

In an attempt to help you become the ultimate hostess, I have created the Ultimate Bar. Each week I'll feature an essential item for the ideal at home bar. You may not know what a bar measure is (I didn't until my friend Sonia gave me one as a hostess gift), but once you do, you'll wonder how you ever lived without it.

A bar measure is a tool that bartenders and mixologists use to measure liquids. A measuring cup is to a baker as a bar measure is to the cocktail-er. This tool is especially helpful to the bartending beginner. Until you learn more about ratios of alcohol to mixers, I recommend following the amounts stated in your recipes. You don't need anything fancy, this bar measure also serves as a shot glass and for only $2.99 the functionality will beat out the price in a week. The one Sonia gave me is similar to this glass, but is a little bit larger and I use it every time I try out a new cocktail recipe.

If you're in the mood for something a little more snazzy (your guests could see this while you are entertaining!), look at these other options. read more

Thanks to everyone who joined us in the YumSugar chat room. Today we chatted about St. Patrick's Day parties, beer, cookies (the tollhouse vs. adapted versions) and outdoor vs. indoor parties.

Be sure to join us next time!

In case you need more dessert options for St. Patrick's Day, be sure to check out these four-leaf clover shaped cookie cutters. Now all you need to do is whip up a batch of green icing to go with the cookies you make. And at only $1, you can't really go wrong.

Source: Cooking Gadgets

I love it when I find a recipe that incorporates an ingredient in a way that I had never thought of using it before. Like using lemonade concentrate to make lemon cookies or enchilada sauce as the base of a tortilla stew as this recipe does. This is a great versatile stew to have in your repertoire because you can easily enhance and tweak it to your liking. Throw in a can of black beans and some diced potatoes for a heartier meal, or garnish with grated pepper jack cheese, fresh salsa, and sour cream for an impromptu Mexican themed fiesta. Take a peek at the recipe, read more

This week I'm killing two birds with one stone by hosting a half birthday St. Patrick's Day dinner party. It's my half birthday on Friday and St. Patrick's day on Saturday so I've combined the two celebrations and invited over a group of friends for dinner before we venture out for a night on the town together. I'm of Irish descent and love celebrating St. Patty's, so I am taking the steps to make my party fabulous, memorable, and successful. The drinks and menu are planned, and today I am decorating my house with shades and textures of green. Creating a look for St. Patrick's Day is quite simple because it's all about celebrating the color green and the rebirth that it symbolizes. To see how I'll transform my house with luck and leprechauns, read more