Marginal Utility

The mai tai has many recipes, but the ones that stay true to the original drink are typically based off of (or are) the original recipes used at Trader Vic’s. I must emphasize the word original, since even at Trader Vic’s today the bartenders will use a mai tai mix unless you specifically [...]

Realizing that I had everything in the refrigerator to make a pastrami reuben, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity. It’s just about as easy as heating up leftovers, and certainly a whole lot more delicious. The only regrets are that I didn’t have Russian dressing or a better rye bread on hand. I substituted Thousand [...]

I like my sangria a little on the tart side, and this version is pretty much as basic as it gets. No peaches, pineapple, or melon. Just wine, brandy, citrus fruit, juice, and sugar. Peaches are okay*, but once you get beyond that, it really starts to take on the character of punch [...]

This recipe comes from Paula Wolfert’s excellent exploration of French regional cuisine, The Cooking of Southwest France.  A great many famous dishes come from this corner of the country, including cassoulet and countless preparations of duck; however, I wouldn’t have thought to make this ice cream* had I not had it at the [...]

A wok is a very versatile piece of kitchen equipment. While frying is its most common use,  it’s also deep enough to hold oil for deep frying, and water for steaming.  Another measure of a wok’s value comes from cleanliness. In an apartment it’s important to control oil spray, and cooking in a [...]