5 Great Things to Do with Watermelon: The Ultimate Summer Food
Filed Under Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes, Special Occasions USA
Today is National Watermelon Day, and in honor of one of our favorite summer foods we're featuring five amazing ways to use this summer staple. Of course, the best way to enjoy watermelon might just be the old fashioned way - slice by slice - but we've found a number of ways to jazz it up on a hot summer day. #1 Watermelon Salsa Ingredients: 2 cups watermelon, cut into… Read
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Piña Colada Recipe for National Piña Colada Day
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes, Wines & Spirits USA
Tomorrow, July 10, is national piña colada day, and in honor of it we're all about piña coladas, including an authentic recipe straight from Puerto Rico. Did you know that the piña colada was invented in Puerto Rico? That much is certain, although there is still a lot of debate over who specifically invented it. Most people think it was invented at the Caribe Hilton Hotel in the 1950's, but… Read
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How to Make Homemade Ricotta & Making Cheese on a Cooking Vacation in Italy
Filed Under Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes Italy
One of our culinary travelers' favorite activities when they participate in our Italy cooking vacations is making cheese. This is not part of every itinerary: it depends on the region and the specific cooking vacation. But many of our culinary tours in Italy include cheese making, or at least a visit to see how cheese is produced. But did you know you can easily replicate the thrill of cheesemaking in… Read
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Tlacoyos Recipe
Filed Under Destination Features, Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes Mexico
When trying to describe tlacoyos to my kids, I said they were a cross between a tamale and an empanada. They have the thick, corn-masa breading on the outside, like a tamale. But unlike a tamale, they aren't steamed in corn husks, they are cooked on a hot griddle (with our without oil) or, sometimes, deep fried. Their shape is also unique, like a football that has been flattened by… Read
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Types of Cocktails & Mixed Drinks
Filed Under Food History, Kitchen Tips, What's Up at TIK, Wines & Spirits
Happy National Cocktail Day! We don't think one really needs a reason to enjoy a nice cocktail, but we don't mind having one. So what exactly is a cocktail? A cocktail is a mixed alcoholic drink that includes one or more spirit and some type of mixer. Not very specific, is it? cocktail (noun): an alcoholic drink consisting of a spirit or several spirits mixed with other ingredients, such as… Read
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Recipe for Tagliata di Manzo "alla Roberto"
Filed Under Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes Italy
Last week we featured our friend Richard di San Marzano's recounting of his past year during lockdown in the Umbrian countryside near Spoleto. As you might expect, it featured plenty of good food! We shared one of Richard's family recipes, for Five Leaf Pesto, earlier in the week. Now we're turning up the heat with a classic "tagliata di manzo," as made by Richard's friend Roberto. "Tagliata" means "cut," or… Read
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