Though most of you will probably celebrate Cinco de Mayo this weekend, I have already marked the occasion by devouring a torta, and looking at the photos again makes me want to eat another one right now. Similar to a submarine sandwich, the torta originated in Mexico, though you can get them at many taquerias in the States. The sandwich features your choice of meat, served on a white roll called a telera or a bolillo and typically garnished with avocado, lettuce, and tomato.
For my first-ever torta, I visited Super Tortas when I was down in Los Angeles. After all, this family business, which has three stores in LA, specializes in tortas, and I figured if I was trying a new sandwich, I might as well start with one that calls itself "super." For more photos and details, read more
Consider making this menu that features grilled sweet potatoes with orange chipotle glaze and fresh guacamole for Cinco de Mayo. — San Francisco Chronicle
Last night on Hell's Kitchen things started to heat up. The chefs clearly showed signs of stress and low morale. They competed individually, each making their own gourmet pizza. The girls won the challenge for the third week in a row, beef wellington was finally mentioned — I was beginning to wonder if Ramsay had taken it off the menu, the dinner service was completed, and Ben looked like a donkey, again. To discuss all of this and more, read more
Keeping up with the Southern style dinner menu, serve guests a classic down home dessert at your Kentucky Derby party. A buttermilk pie has a creamy, buttery filling with a slight tang from fresh lemon juice. It's a humble, but incredibly delicious dessert.
Purchase authentic Bourbon balls and offer guests a chocolate alternative to the buttermilk pie. For the pie recipe, read more
Has the slowing economy and potential food crisis changed how often you eat out? Does it have to be a special occasion, or do you go whenever you feel like it?
Our friends at the Food Section tipped us off to the fact that there's been a rise in the number of home insurance claims involving kitchen accidents. According to the research done by Esure — an online home insurance provider — 14 percent of the accidents involved people trying new recipes. With fast chopping, deep frying and skewering being the most common causes. However, new recipes are not the only cause of kitchen accidents, and often something as mundane as a bottle of oil can cause great harm.
As a reminder to take it easy and pay more attention, I dug up this commercial from South African cellular company Cell C. In less than one minute a woman enters her kitchen, hits her head on a cupboard, slips and falls in some oil, catches her shirt on fire and electrocutes herself with the toaster. While it's extreme and over-the-top, it makes you think twice about kitchen safety. To check out the commercial for yourself just read more
We've all been in crazy situations, and I want to know how you handle entertaining fiascoes and bad restaurant behavior. I'll present a situation and you tell me what you would do. Here's this week's scenario:
You've heard all about Starbucks attempts to improve the quality of their coffee and service so you decide to stop in and treat yourself to a Frappuccino. The drink is delicious and rewarding until you get about half way through when suddenly you realize nothing but giant chunks of ice are left! What would you do?
To see what I would do in this situation — true story, it happened to a Sugar gal! — read more