Whatever you call these plates with a slot to hold your wine glass, you've got to admit they're useful. They allow your guests to mingle, shake hands, and even gesture, all while holding both their wine glass and something to eat.
They avoid the dreaded crush around the buffet table, or perhaps worse, people not having their full because they don't want to deal with the hassle.
Here's some of our favorites:
Dads who cook get short shrift. While talk around Mother's Day centers around the recipes that Mom taught us, and all the lessons we've learned from her, the best Dad gets are some *hot* new tools for the grill, or an ugly tie.
But for those of us whose fathers know a thing or two about the kitchen, and would rather have a new set of carving tools than carpentry tools, Father's Day is as good a time as any to thank Dad for what we've learned from him.
Just a few months ago, we told you about a food film festival happening in NYC. So when we heard about yet another food film festival, we said yeah, yeah, this is becoming a trend, and didn't pay it too much mind.
What a mistake, because this film festival looks really promising.
There aren't many foods that you'll see in the lunchbox of a kindergartner and on the fanciest hors d'oeuvre platter. But the simple pleasure of pimento cheese is a way of life for many southerners, appearing everywhere from funeral spreads, to tea party menus, and picnic blankets.
Daydreaming and knives are two things that should never go together. But there we were, washing our new fabulously sharp knife, thinking about what makes a great meal.
10 seconds of daydreaming is all it takes for an accident to happen - fortunately, in this case, the injury was relatively minor, and easily bandaged. The worst injury ever to happen in this kitchen? It started with that Zuni Cafe Chicken.
What makes a great meal? The food world likes to wax rhapsodic about huge masterpiece feasts and scientific discoveries in the kitchen. A great meal somehow entails new flavors dancing across palates and luxury ingredients from far away places.
But the truth is, some of the greatest meals we've known have been much simpler. Friends gathered around in chaotic jumbles, happily gobbling up our homespun fare and laughing from somewhere deep within their bellies. The first juicy peach of summer, enjoyed on a hilltop with a view. The chicken soup that welcomes home a beloved friend from a long hospital stay.
That's why we loved this quote from La Brea Bakery and Pizzeria Mozza's Nancy Silverton.
July's Saveur celebrates the great American road trip, with a poignant look at the charming mom-n-pop eateries that dot the country's roadways. Editor-in-chief James Oseland and food editor Todd Coleman focused on a few classic spots that have endured, surviving for 40 years or more, as their compatriots have faltered around them.
But as gas hits $4 a gallon, perhaps it is the road trip itself we should be savoring as a dying breed.
Today and tomorrow, Jews around the world are celebrating the harvest festival of Shavuot by studying, decorating their homes with greenery, and eating holiday meals full of dairy, especially cheese blintzes. Normally a blintz isn't something we'd pass up for anything, but it is blazing hot in New York City today. The last thing we want is a heavy, fried dish.
So instead, we whipped up this light and refreshing strawberry lassi to provide some hot day relief.
We're confident in our abilities to make a pretty gosh-darn good cocktail, but our creations look pretty humble when compared to the potables from the mixology wizkids at NYC's poshest bars. They bring back classic creations and use unusual ingredients to create sublimely balanced drinks.
So we're excited about two upcoming classes at the Astor Center, which incidentally, might make a pretty good Father's Day gift.
While you're busy getting your drink on with all the fun summer cocktail recipes we've given you, don't forget to look cute, and hold a stylish glass.
Even if you have a garden full of arugula and other healthy greens, summer eating doesn't have to be only about virtuous salads. You've got to balance those greens with a decadent grilled cheese sandwich.
You know that we love basil, so of course we love pesto too, especially during the summer. But pesto is a little high in fat to be eating every day.
So we've been challenging ourselves lately to make a low-fat pesto that we love as much as the real thing.
The problem with most low-fat pesto recipes is that they just don't have that punch of basil flavor, or they aren't very creamy. Most of them replace the oil with something less caloric, but yogurt is too tangy, and chicken stock doesn't have the rich mouth feel that we love so much.
Many people already use easily-dissolving Wondra Instant Flour for lump-free gravies and sauces. This wheat flour has been pre-cooked and then dried (much like instant rice), so it dissolves without seizing up when stirred into a hot liquid.
But its low-protein content and baby-powder-like consistency also make it great for other uses. It's one of those little secrets to keep in your back pocket.
When artichoke season begins in cold and damp March, we're eager to warm up with comforting braises and bakes. But now, at the tail end of the season, we're looking for light dishes that celebrate the artichoke while still being perfect for warm weather.
So last weekend, we pulled out the mandoline and riffed on the classic Italian white salad.
Southerners take cornbread seriously. There are long impassioned debates about whether or not to include eggs and buttermilk, what kind of fat to use (and how much), and even whether it's best to bake it in a skillet or a pan.
But, at least amongst the southerners we know, one thing that's generally agreed upon is that sweet cornbread is for yankees.
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