A History of Sandwiches and a Sandwich Recipe
Filed Under Cooking Videos, Food History, Kitchen Tips, Recipes Italy, USA
It's national sandwich day, and we're asking ourselves: do sandwiches exist in the cuisine of every country in the world? What defines a sandwich? Does a wrap count? What about a sandwich in pita? A burrito? A spring roll? A crepe? Let's make things easier and say that to be a sandwich, it has to have something 'sandwiched' between two pieces of bread. One piece of bread folded over doesn't… Read
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Travel Memories: My First Trip to Italy
Filed Under Destination Features, What's Up at TIK Italy
It's hard not to wax nostalgic about travel these days. As the effects of COVID-19 keep us all at home, with no clear indication of when we'll be able to travel again, those of us with wanderlust turn our minds to fond memories of trips past. I have been thinking increasingly of my first trip to Italy, when I was a university student taking part in a study abroad program… Read
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Changing the Lives of Women One Box of Aprons at a Time
Filed Under Interviews, What's Up at TIK India, USA
Today we're featuring an interview not with one of our fabulous chefs or tour guides, but with Theresa VanderMeer, the founder of the company that makes our aprons, totes, and document holders. If you've traveled with us on one of our multi-day cooking vacations, you've received one of these textile goods with your documents package, and we hope you noticed the tag on it that explains that your item was… Read
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Delicious Berry Clafoutis for National Dessert Day
Filed Under Recipes, Special Occasions France
Today is evidently National Dessert Day, and we'll take any excuse to do a little baking! We have featured tons of desserts in our blog in many different categories, from tarts to cookies, from cakes to custards, from doughnuts to ice cream. But one dessert we have not yet featured is the classic French clafoutis! You sometimes hear it pronounced cla-FOO-dee, but the accent should be (as always in French!)… Read
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Autumn in Italy: Creamy Mushroom Soup Recipe
We eat soup year round, but there is something about soup in the fall and winter that is particularly appealing. And if you pair that with autumnal produce – in this case mushrooms – it is a match made in heaven! Our favorite fall soups feature what you would expect from the fall harvest. Mushrooms of course, but also plenty of squash, root vegetables, and even apples! This soup is… Read
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A History of Coffee for International Coffee Day
Filed Under Food History, Special Occasions
It's international coffee day! And although I drink it every day and love it in many forms, I realized I didn't know very much about it. What is coffee? Where did it originate? Where is it grown today? How is it drunk around the world? What Is Coffee? We all know coffee comes from beans, and that they are roasted. The beans actually come from trees - if coffee trees… Read
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Indulge Yourself! Food & Wellness Tour in Spain
Filed Under Destination Features, What's Up at TIK Spain
If you're like most of the world these days, you're more in need of self care than ever. Treat yourself to something to look forward to, like our fabulous food and wellness tour in Spain! The dictionary defines "wellness" as "the state of being in good health, especially as an actively pursued goal." But we think it's more than that, it is, in our opinion, being of sound body and… Read
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The History of Baba Ganoush, and a Recipe
Filed Under Food History, Recipes Israel, Turkey
We've talked before about eggplant and what an amazing vegetable we think it is, and one of my favorite preparations is in baba ganoush. Also spelled baba ghanoush or baba ghanouj/ganouj/gannuj, this eggplant spread is ridiculously easy to make and exceedingly tasty. Originally a dish of Levantine cuisine (more on that here), its etymology is a bit opaque. "Baba" is an endearment and also the Arabic word for father, while… Read
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Homemade Hummus and Pita Bread
Filed Under Recipes Israel, Turkey
There is nothing as easy as homemade hummus, and homemade pita is surprisingly easy as well. I am always amazing when I make it how delicious it turns out. Of course, you could just make the hummus or the pita, but I pretty much always make these two recipes together. You can make pita of course during one of our fabulous cooking vacations, including our Cuisine & Culture of Israel… Read
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Grilled Lamb Kofta Kebabs with Garlic Yogurt Sauce
Filed Under Recipes, What's Up at TIK Israel, Turkey
Is it just me, or do you get tired of cooking the same meats all the time? During summer grilling season I cook a lot of hamburgers (my burgers are famous in several states, thank you very much), chicken, and fish. When I'm having company maybe steaks, pork, or sausages and hotdogs. And of course, for holidays I might go all out and smoke ribs or pulled pork. But one… Read
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