[1] A hot feta dip, with a bit of honey and thyme (photos #1, #2 and #3 © Murray’s Cheese).

[2] You can serve it with as many accompaniments as you like.

[3] Greek feta cheese. See the footnote* for an eye-opener about feta.

[4] Dried herbs are convenient, but there’s nothing like the flavor and aroma of fresh herbs (photo © Karolina Grabowska | Pexels.

March 25th is Greek Independence Day.

We love Greek food, and always have a selection of mezze in the fridge: babaganoush, feta, hummus, kalamata olives, tabbouleh; cans of grape leaves in the pantry; and pita in the freezer.

So we’re ready for Greek Independence Day, with a bottle of Assyrtiko, a Greek white wine.

The grape is indigenous to the island of Santorini, where it grows in the volcanic-ash-rich soil.

This year, we’re adding this warm, salty-sweet baked feta dip or spread.

The recipe is adapted from one by Murray’s Cheese—our favorite online resource for the best cheeses and accompaniments.

> The History Of Feta Cheese
 
 
RECIPE: BAKED FETA DIP

Prep time is 10 minutes, bake time is 20 minutes.

Ingredients For 4-6 Servings

 
For Serving

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the to 400°F, and preheat the boiler for Step 3 [or use the oven broiler]. Lightly toast the pita bread and transfer the feta to a small ovenproof dish or pan.

2. COVER the feta with olive oil and bake in the oven for about 8 minutes, until the cheese is springy to the touch but not melted. Then remove from the oven. Meanwhile…

3. MELT the honey in the microwave or over a pan of simmering water. When the honey is fluid, spread it over the top of the feta with a pastry brush, and put the feta under the broiler.

4. BROIL the feta until the top of the cheese has browned and begins to bubble. Remove, season to taste with black pepper, garnish with thyme leaves, and serve with the pita and other accompaniments.
 
 
HOW TO STRIP THYME LEAVES

We have a kitchen scissors with a hole at the top of the blades. It’s meant to strip leaves off herbs: Simply pull the sprig through the hole.

But there’s another way: Use your fine-mesh strainer.

Simply pull the end of the thyme stems (photo #4) through a hole (you may have to expend some energy). The leaves will stay in the strainer.

This works with any woody-stem herb: marjoram, oregano, tarragon, thyme and rosemary.

Tip: If you don’t want to throw away the stems, stick them in the freezer.

Both woody and soft herb stems can be used to flavor broths, soups and stocks.
 
________________

*Surprisingly, say the experts at Murray’s Cheese, only 2% of feta consumed in the U.S. actually comes from Greece, Murray’s sources authentic Greek feta (photo #3): pure sheep’s milk feta, directly from the ancient Greek regions of Thessaly and Macedonia. Artisan cheese makers follow the original, millennia-old recipe. The cheese is aged in wooden barrels for sixty days, resulting in a creamy texture and tangy, citric flavor— unparalleled among other fetas. Treat yourself!

March 24th is National Cheesesteak Day, honoring an iconic sandwich from the City of Brotherly Love.

Other cities may have cheesesteak, but the original concept came from Philadelphia in the 1930s.

Here’s the history of the Philly Cheesesteak.

You can also find creative ingredients and recipes to have a cheesesteak party. There’s even a vegan cheesesteak recipe.

Today’s recipe takes the cheesesteak out of the bread, and into a baked potato.

The recipe is from the Idaho Potato Commission. It was created by Kita Roberts of Girl Carnivore.

The baked Idaho® potatoes are topped like a signature Philly cheesesteak: loaded with sautéed peppers and onions, shaved ribeye steak, and a creamy cheesy sauce.

It’s a hearty and delicious or lunch or dinner, with a green salad.
 
 
RECIPE: PHILLY CHEESESTEAK BAKED POTATO

Ingredients For 5 Servings

For The Baked Potato

 
For The Sauce

 
For The Cheesesteak Filling

 
Preparation

1. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F. Wash and dry the potatoes. Prick the potatoes with a fork several times on all sides. Rub the with oil and a liberal coating of salt.

2. PLACE the potatoes on a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until the potatoes are 210°F internally and easily pierced with a fork. Meanwhile…

3. WHISK 2 tablespoons butter in a small pot over medium heat until melted. Add the flour and whisk until combined. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds longer.

4. SLOWLY WHISK in the milk, making sure no clumps form. The sauce should be smooth as the milk is whisked in.

5. ADD in the ranch dressing and chives. Stir to combine. Add the cheese, melting a little at a time, until completely incorporated. Remove from the heat, but leave the pot on the stove to keep warm.

6. HEAT a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining tablespoon of butter and swirl to coat the pan. Add the onion and pepper and sauté until soft and the onion is translucent and beginning to brown. Remove from the skillet and set aside.

7. SET the same pan over medium heat add the shaved steak, Worcestershire sauce and steak seasoning. Break up any clumps of meat and spread evenly in the pan, tossing as needed to brown on all sides. The meat will cook quickly.

8. REMOVE from the heat immediately and toss the peppers and onions back into the pan. Stir to combine. Check the seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.

9. SPLIT each potato down the middle and fluff the inside with a fork. Top with the meat and veggie mixture. Drizzle with the cheese sauce, adding more or less sauce, per your taste. Season with salt, pepper and a sprinkle of chives, and serve.
________________

*You can purchase shaved steak in the meat department. Look for a good blend of marbling in the shaved meat, as it adds flavor. The meat will be paper-thin, so that fat will cook quickly.

Alternatively, you can select a cut like a boneless ribeye and ask the staff at the meat counter to shave it for you. Usually the market is happy to do this.

[1] Philly Cheesesteak Baked Potato (photos #1 and #2 © Idaho Potato Commission).

[2] Top view. Kita used Litehouse freeze-dried chives, but we prefer the flavor of fresh chives (photo #3).

[3] Keep fresh chives in the produce drawer and snip them as you need them. See how best to store fresh chives in footnote † (photo © Good Eggs).

[4] Cabot Montery Jack cheese, available at iGourmet (photo © iGourmet).

[5] Grassfed shaved steak, from Hearthstone Farm in Maine (photo © Hearthstone Farm).

[1] Spring asparagus with lemon aïoli (photo and recipe © Good Eggs).

[2] Meyer lemons are sweeter (less acidic) than supermarket lemons (photo © Elise Bakketun).

[3] Aioli is also delicious with artichokes and boiled or roasted potatoes (photo © Fine Cooking).

As mentioned a couple of days ago, it’s asparagus season—time to eat all you can of this popular vegetable.

Why? Freshly harvested asparagus in season have so much more flavor than those imported out of season.

We featured 30 ways to prepare asparagus.

But the recipes didn’t include this simple yet elegant recipe for roasted (or steamed, if you prefer) asparagus with aïoli, the French term for garlic mayonnaise.

Aïoli is equally good with raw asparagus crudités.

Americans tend to serve asparagus with melted butter or Hollandaise sauce.

But French recipes also serve aïoli instead of Hollandaise. Try it!

There are many more uses for aïoli as a condiment and dip. You’ll find them here.

Another note: While asparagus have very few calories, you can cut the calories in the aïoli by substituting Greek yogurt.
 
 
RECIPE: ASPARAGUS WITH AÏOLI

Roast the spears or steam them, then drizzle them with tangy lemon aïoli.

The aïoli used here is a quick aïoli, using store-bought mayonnaise.

Simply prepared asparagus are delicious with seafood, steaks or chops; or as part of a vegetable plate.

You can also cook the asparagus in advance and serve them chilled.
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. MAKE the aïoli. Here’s the recipe; you can make it a few days in advance and store it, tightly covered.

2. PREHEAT the oven to 400°F (for roasting). Line a sheet pan with parchment or foil. Trim the asparagus, snapping off any tough ends.

3. ARRANGE the asparagus on the prepared pan. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until tender-crisp, 18 to 20 minutes.

4. DRIZZLE the asparagus with the ½ lemon and toss to coat. Transfer the asparagus to a platter and serve warm, with the lemon aiolï drizzled over the top or on the side for dipping.

You can cut the remaining ½ lemon into wedges for garnish.
 
 
> ASPARAGUS HISTORY

May 24th is National Cocktail Day; May 13th is World Cocktail Day.

Each year, Drinks International, founder of the International Spirits Challenge, polls bartenders worldwide to determine the world’s most popular cocktails.

The 2020 Top 10 follow.

You can see the Top 50 by paging through the results, here.

In a normal (i.e., non-pandemic) year, we’d split these Top 10 into two parts. We’d invite friends to a cocktail party featuring five of them for National Cocktail day, and the next five for World Cocktail Day.

More easily, you can head to your favorite cocktail lounge with a few friends, order five at a time, and pass them around to decide which you like best.

Alas, this year it’s a very small celebration at home.

So we offer these to you to plan ahead for 2022 when hopefully, we’ll have a big reason to celebrate.
 
 
1. OLD FASHIONED COCKTAIL

For the fifth consecutive year, the Old Fashioned has rated the top spot. While this American whiskey classic dates to the 1880s, it proves that something old can still be new. Bourbon-based and served in a rocks glass, it includes sugar, bitters, and an orange slice garnish.

Here’s the history of the Old Fashioned and the recipe.

National Old Fashioned Day is June 14th,
 
 
2. NEGRONI COCKTAIL

When Italian Count Camillio Negroni requested a stronger Americano cocktail*, bartender Fosco Scarselli replaced soda water with gin. The Negroni has held second place for five years running. The name originated with late 19th-century bar patrons, to distinguish cocktails made the “old-fashioned” way from newer, more complex cocktails.

Here’s more history, and the recipe.

National Negroni Week is the second week in September.
 
 
3. WHISKEY SOUR COCKTAIL

This cocktail has taken third place for the second year in a row. The first known publication of the Whiskey Sour recipe was in Jerry Thomas’ book, The Bon Vivant’s Companion, in 1862.

National Whiskey Sour Day is August 25th.
 
 
4. DAIQUIRI COCKTAIL

The Daiquiri was created in Cuba, but by an American mining engineer. It’s the most popular rum cocktail on the list. A favorite of Ernest Hemingway, it moved up one place over the 2019 rankings.

Here’s the history of the Daiquiri, the original recipe, and a popular variation.

National Daiquiri Day is July 19th.
 
 
5. MANHATTAN COCKTAIL

This classic whiskey cocktail, dating to the 1870s, is made with bourbon or rye and sweet vermouth, served in a rocks glass, and garnished with a maraschino cherry. It is said to have been a popular drink after deep-sea fishing trips to Manhattan.

Here’s the history of the Manhattan and the recipe.

There is currently no Manhattan cocktail holiday.
 
 
6. DRY MARTINI COCKTAIL

This combination of gin and dry vermouth is garnished with an olive or lemon twist garnish. The less vermouth, the drier the Martini. People who wanted to drink straight gin could ask for just a splash of it.

It’s the only cocktail in the Top 10 that isn’t sweet (from early times, people used sugar to mitigate the hard edge of the alcohol). With the rise of vodka as a popular beverage in the 1970s, the Vodka Martini was born.

The Martini has a longer history than most cocktails. Check it out, along with the original and subsequent recipes.

National Martini Day is June 19th.
 
 
7. ESPRESSO MARTINI COCKTAIL

Who knew that the Espresso Martini would become a modern classic among consumers? It was originally called the Vodka Espresso, invented by Dick Bradsell in 1983 in London (the history).

This combination of vodka and espresso shows how some people can’t get enough coffee, in any form. Here’s the recipe.

There is currently no Espresso Martini holiday, but join in on National Martini Day, June 19th.

Other opportunities: February 27th is National Kahlúa Day, and November 23rd is National Espresso Day.
 
 
8. MARGARITA COCKTAIL

The Margarita has dropped two places since last year, but it is still the top tequila drink on the list.

It was invented by a Dallas socialite, while at her vacation home in Acapulco, Mexico. Here’s the history of the Margarita, plus recipes.

National Margarita Day is February 22nd.
 
 
9. APEROL SPRITZ COCKTAIL

The Aperol Spritz, popular in the 1950s, is popular again. Up two places since 2019, it made it into the Top 10 for the first time. Created by the Barbieri Brothers (makers of Aperol) in the 1900s, the combination of Aperol, prosecco, and a splash of soda was created as a lighter pre-dinner cocktail.

Here’s the recipe and the history of the Aperol Spritz.

National Aperol Spritz Day is August 13th.
 
 
10. MOSCOW MULE COCKTAIL

Dropping from number 8 to number 10, this vodka and ginger beer classic was developed by Smirnoff executives trying to move more vodka. Traditionally served in a copper-clad mug, has its own food holiday: March 3rd.

Here’s the recipe and more history of the drink.

National Moscow Mule Day is March 3rd.
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF COCKTAILS

[1] The Old Fashioned is the world’s most popular cocktail (photo © Cottonbro | Pexels).

[2] The Negroni is the world’s #2 favorite cocktail (photo © Taralucci e Vino | NYC).

[3] The Whiskey Sour, #3, features that love-it-or-hate-it garnish, the maraschino cherry (photo © Lognetic | Fotolia).

[4] The Daiquiri was created in Cuba by an American engineer who wanted something more (photo © Tempered Spirits).

[5] The Manhattan, the #5 cocktail, shares a maraschino cherry garnish with #3, the Whiskey Sour (photo © Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse).

[6] The Dry Martini, #6, in an elegant presentation at Dante restaurant in New York City (photo © Dante Restaurant).

*The Americano cocktail is made from Campari, sweet vermouth, and for the sparkling version, club soda; and garnished with a slice of lemon. The cocktail was first served in its creator Gaspare Campari’s bar, Caffè Campari, in the 1860s.

[1] This is comfort food at its best (all photos © World Famous House Of Mac).

[2] A double favorite: Pizza Mac & Cheese has turkey pepperoni and chicken sausage.

[3] Your mac and cheese comes in individual pizza-type boxes. Just stick a bow on top to give them as gifts.

[4] Five-cheese truffle is the “basic” mac and cheese and World Famous House of Mac. But there are 11 more varieties!

[5] Got cheese? Heat it in the oven and watch it melt.

[6] Don’t forget to add lemonade to your order. There are 6 flavors; here, mango lemonade.

Recently we were introduced to Derrick “Chef Teach” Turton and his World Famous House of Mac.

Beginning as a food truck and evolving to three free-standing restaurants in Miami, the World-Famous House of Mac is now shipping its mac and cheese nationwide…

much to our delight! This is truly great mac and cheese. We can’t imagine better.

Chef Teach’s restaurant menu offers treats beyond mac and cheese (burgers, pasta, pizza).

But macaroni and cheese is easy to ship frozen—and just as delicious when it’s heated at home.

The only challenge is deciding which of the dozen flavors to order first.
 
 
12 FLAVORS OF MACARONI & CHEESE

Beef & Chicken Mac & Cheese

 
Seafood

 
Vegan & Vegetarian

 
Load up: The mac arrives frozen and we can’t think of a better use of freezer space.

The tins of mac and cheese are about 7 inches in diameter and weigh an average of 1 pound, 13 ounces.

They’re enough for two normal adults, or one of us—we ate the whole thing for dinner.
 
 
LEMONADE

Chef Teach also makes a mean lemonade: just sweet enough without going full-on sugar.

Based on our sampling of World Famous Fresh Squeezed Lemonade, next time we’re ordering more flavors.

In addition to regular Fresh Squeezed Lemonade, there are Fruit Punch Lemonade, Mango Lemonade, Mixed Berry Lemonade, Peach Lemonade and Strawberry Lemonade.
 
 
ABOUT CHEF TEACH

Chef Teach attended culinary school, but began his professional career in the music industry. He managed the rapper Pitbull for more than 15 years.

He often found himself cooking for his industry friends.

Influenced by his roots in Trinidad, Chef Teach created his own brand of Caribbean soul food, with dishes like buffalo chicken mac and cheese made with five different kinds of cheese, fried chicken wings, and chicken and waffles.

His friends—“names” in the music industry—encouraged him to “take the cooking thing more seriously.”

After the death of his father, Chef Teach decided to make the switch to cooking.

His fame was fanned by celebrities, and a high point was catering at the Venus and Serena Williams Invitational.

In just five years, he went from one food truck in Miami to three standing brick and mortar locations.

Chef Teach has his eyes set towards a nationwide expansion.

But for now, we couldn’t be happier having our macaroni and cheese shipped from The Magic City to the Big Apple.
 
 
GET YOUR MAC & CHEESE

Here’s a direct link to ordering.

For the main website, go to HouseOfMac.com.

Need to give a gift? Each dish of mac and cheese comes boxed (photo #6), appropriate for gifting.

When your mac arrives, for best flavor, store it in the fridge for 3 days. Or stash it in the freezer for up to 3 weeks.

You can heat the tin in the oven, thawed or frozen.

We used the microwave, and the results were splendid (although without the crusty top you can get from an oven).
 
 
> THE HISTORY OF MACARONI & CHEESE
 
> THE HISTORY OF PASTA