While I'm all for making delicious cocktails with 100 percent fresh ingredients, sometimes certain occasions call for a little help from the grocery store. For example, at my Big Game cocktailgate, I bought my favorite mixer, Stirrings, to make these delicious Tangerinis. Stirrings has tons of different flavors that aren't too sweet or overpowering. I prefer the tangerine because it's tart and a teeny bit fizzy. To see how I made these cocktails, read more

Last weekend when making YumSugar's lamb — which was to die for! — my dad and I ran into a little problem. After toasting the cardamom seeds, the recipe asked you to grind them in a spice grinder. Yum used her mortar and pestle, but our mortar was missing! How on earth were we supposed to grind spices without a spice-grinding machine or a mortar and pestle? The solution is super simple, something that you can do at home! To find out what we did, read more

By now, you've probably heard about Missy Chase Lapine — aka The Sneaky Chef — and her war with the Seinfelds, but did you know that the author of the popular children's cookbook has two other books in the works?

The first sequel, Sneaky Chef: How to Cheat on Your Man (In the Kitchen!), comes out this Spring and will feature recipes that cater towards sneaking healthy food into "man food." It includes recipes like "Macho Meatballs," "Love Me Tenderloin," and "Champion Chili."

Apparently all the publicity — or pending lawsuit — with the Seinfelds isn't hurting Lapine any. Her publisher has just announced a deal for a third book. The third volume has yet to be titled and will feature family-friendly recipes that hide healthy ingredients inside.

So what I want to know is, do you think we'll see Jessica Seinfeld's Deliciously Deceptive Food For Your Man?

Tonight I'm off to the vacation house for the long weekend! There is bound to be traffic leaving the city, so I've already got the groceries to make a quick and delicious meal upon arrival. The house will be extremely cold, making a warm and filling stew a must. The canned ingredients — beans, tomatoes, and chicken broth — make this one pot meal come together in less than a half an hour. The recipe is easily adaptable so if you dislike ham feel free to substitute cooked chicken or turkey. To make this simple, yet satisfying stew for dinner tonight read more

With the writers' strike putting a pause on my favorite television series plot, I've started watching repeats of Gossip Girl. I recently caught the pilot and came across a scene in which Chuck feeds a drunk Serena a grilled cheese sandwich from his hotel's kitchen.

Not your ordinary grilled cheese — it's actually on the New York Palace Hotel's restaurant menu — this sandwich costs $50. So what makes it so divinely delicious and extra expensive? Thick-cut housemade bread, imported Italian Fontina cheese, and fresh shaved black truffles. To take a look at a clip from the episode and check out the recipe, read more