Ah, apple crisp. It's my favorite fall dessert and is sublimely simple and absolutely delicious. Apples mixed with sugar, cinnamon, and butter make for an old fashioned, comforting dessert. Apple crisp is tasty when warm, at room temperature, and even cold, so pack it up and surprise your kids or spouse by placing this treat in their lunchbox. It would also make a nice finish to a picnic, and a great addition to a tailgate menu. Get the recipe now when you read more

While children in America continue to burn themselves on Easy Bake Ovens, the children in Japan are going burn-free. They might however, start giving off an odd fish odor.

Toymaker Bandai Namco has created a great new toy to help create perfectly rolled sushi. The Sushi-Rolling Machine works by adding rice and ingredients, and then sealing it up and rolling a piece of seaweed over it.

Personally, I think this would make a sushi party a snap. Imagine if you had a few stations and folks could roll their own?! They were released in Japan this summer, and I hope I can find one imported somewhere soon!

Source: TokyoMango

Can't get an El Bulli reservation to save your life? That's okay, you can create your own magic at home. Here are Ferran Adria's top tips for home cooks. - Chez Pim

I recently moved into a new apartment. My parents have been extremely kind — they helped move me in, gave me kitchen tools, and my dad even stocked the fridge with my favorite beer! — but there is one thing they have forgotten: wine glasses! They aren't big wine drinkers themselves, so naturally they didn't have an extra set of red wine glasses for their entertaining crazed daughter. Reader, can you help me by searching the web for a gorgeous set of red wine glasses? Look for traditional, yet modern glasses that ooze style. Bookmark the wine glass sets in the Yum Market on TeamSugar with the keyword tag Red Wine Glasses. Good luck, I can't wait to see your discoveries!

For more info on how to bookmark, check out geeksugar's guide.

Not sure where to start looking? Be inspired by some of my favorite online stores when you read more

In an attempt to score a lot of viewers, television holiday specials always seem to have the oddest premises — such as the infamous David Bowie/Bing Crosby pairing and the beyond weird Star Wars Christmas special. Well, this Christmas, we can add another "weird-but-amazing" special to the list: the No Reservations Holiday Special.

The Queens of the Stone Age have just performed "Silver Turkey Bells" for Anthony Bourdain's No Reservation special. While Bourdain was cooking up a full traditional meal in his Connecticut home, the Queens were down in his basement rocking out in the finest holiday sweaters. They then joined him for some holiday fun. They won't say exactly what will happen — we have to watch for that — but they have hinted to karaoke, surly adolescents, Japanese businessmen and violence. Or as Bourdain said:

“It’s a traditional Thanksgiving/Christmas meal with turkey, all the trimmings, cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie … some Christmas carols … and a vicious brother-on-brother knife fight.”

I don't know about you guys, but I am counting down the days until this airs.

Source: Rolling Stone - Thanks to geeksugar for the tip!

This weekend folks in Venezuela set a new world record for the largest pot of soup. The government of Venezuela prepared a giant 3,960 gallon cauldron of "sancocho" stew in downtown Caracas. The stew contained 6,600 pounds of chicken, 4,400 pounds of beef and tons (literally) of veggies.

Although the pot officially held 5,413 gallons, workers stopped at 3/4 full due to security reasons. However there was enough stew to serve 60,000 to 70,000 people.

The whole stunt was done to show that despite recent supply problems in Venezuela, the state-run market has plenty of reserves of all products.

Source: Washington Post via Spluch

After paella, tortilla Española is Spain's most well known dish. Similar to an omelette, this tasty dish of eggs, potato, and onion is consumed day and night, hot or cold, all over the country. I've had many tortillas in my life, but none are as good as Santos's famous tortilla. I was recently in Spain and was lucky enough to chat with 80 year old Santos. He still frequents his bar everyday for a slice of the tortilla that's four inches thick.
The balance of the simple egg and onion flavors is sheer culinary bliss. Located next to the historic Mezquita, this crowded bar is a landmark in itself. Santos refused to reveal the secret to his tremendous tortilla, but I'm assuming practice and love are two of the ingredients. To take a look at a recipe and all of the pics from my afternoon excursion to Santos, read more

One of the best things about this time of year is the return of my fave television shows! I'm so excited to find out what will happen on the season premiere of Ugly Betty, that I've decided to invite some friends over to watch the show with me. We will have dinner, tune into the show, and dish about the episode. All this week I'll plan a party which can be adapted to any television show. If you like Grey's Anatomy, host a hospital themed dinner or if you prefer Friday Night Lights, football should be the underlying motif. Since I'm crazy about Betty, Wilhelmina, and the gang, everything at my party will be fashionably geeky including the invitations. To see how I made these tacky chic invites, read more