The Sidecar

The first time I tried cognac the bottom of my mouth went completely numb.

It was late in the evening. I was working [drinking] with a batch of nearly newly minted consultants from around the world at our company's training camp. One of these people was from France. He loved cognac and wanted me to love it too.

I did not.

Until that point I had been cognac free and after that point, I decided, I would remain cognac free.

But then a few years passed.

And the other, more terrible tasting spirits I'd experimented with [grappa] burned off enough taste buds that by the time I accidentally tried cognac again I liked it. A lot.

Not as much as a spring-breaker loves tequila and "gettin' lit" [is that what the young kids call it?], but it was far better than I remembered.

Imagine bourbon didn't taste like licking a charred oak barrel [a fantasy of mine], add the subtlety of good wine, and you'll have cognac.

Add Cointreau and fresh lemon juice, and you’ll have a Sidecar.

Ingredients

• 2 oz good cognac. Don't waste XO in a cocktail, but use decent cognac. If you see the letters VSOP you’re on the right track. Anything mentioned in a rap song is fine.
  

• 1/2 oz Cointreau. Some people prefer Grand Marnier. I do not.
  

• 1/2 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice. Do NOT buy the pre squeezed stuff. This is a real cocktail so use real juice.
  

• 1/4 oz simple syrup

Recipe

1. Extra Credit: Fill your cocktail glass with ice and then fill with water. Alternatively, chill the cocktail glass in the freezer for at least 10 minutes.

2. More Extra Credit: Your cocktail glassware should hold 4-6oz and no more. Any bigger and you look like you're serving drinks at Applebee's [not a dig; I love me some Applebee’s]. Your drinks should also be 3-4oz including dilution. Any bigger and they'll get too warm before you finish.

3. Add all ingredients to a mixing tin or pintglass full of ice. Any container will do. Get something clean that'll hold liquid and put all the ingredients in there. This isn't rocket science.
   

4. Stir for at least 30-60 seconds. Use this time to chat up your dinner guest(s).
   

5. Yes, you can shake the drink, and some idiots will tell you that you HAVE to because it has citrus [you don't, that's why they're idiots], but shaking drinks can make them cloudy, and cloudy drinks are unsexy.
   

6. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass [remember the extra credit from above?].

The Mint Julep

I don't know what a julep is. A flower? A horse? It doesn't matter. You could call this a Mint Cummerbund and I'd have 12, all while hollering "I do declare" in a seersucker suit. It's the official drink of the Kentucky Derby [I think?] and of Kentucky itself [don't fact check that]. Kentuckians [Kentuckites? Kentuckers?!?], by law, are required to learn this recipe on their 4th birthday so they can entertain guests like proper southern belles and beaus. Two ingredients, crushed ice, a sprig of mint, all served in a Glory cup. Try it. Y'all.

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INGREDIENTS

Makes 1 Mint Julep

• 2 oz good bourbon

• 1/2 oz simple syrup [extra credit: mint simple syrup]

• Crushed Ice

• 1 good looking mint sprig, for garnish

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RECIPE

1. Add crushed ice to a fancy cup.

2. Mix bourbon and simple syrup in a separate cup. Then add to the fancy cup.

3. Garnish with mint.

4. Optional: I recommend using a straw as trying to suck this cocktail down through all the ice can get dicey.

The Lombardi: An Italian Mocktail

Last updated: February 18, 2026

There are days when you want a cocktail [they end in y], and other days when you need a break from The Sauce [the day after my birthday]. But what if you still want the ritual of making and sipping a refreshing beverage? Enter the Mocktail, which autocorrect always wants to correct to cocktail.

It knows me better than I think.

Ingredients

1/2 oz toasted fennel syrup (recipe follows)
1/2 oz orgeat (recipe follows)
1/2 fresh lemon juice (ALWAYS fresh squeezed; we're not cro-mags!)
6 oz club sode
fennel front for garnish

Directions

Build in a Collins glass (the tall ones) with ice and mix gently. Gently is the key word here. Don’t scare the bubbles away! I find that pushing the ice down over and over is better at mixing everything than stirring.

Toasted Fennel Simple Syrup

150 g granulated sugar
150 g water
15 g fennel seeds

Add the fennel seeds to a pan and set over medium-low heat. The pan should be large enough that the fennel seeds are in one layer. Toast the fennel seeds until they turn a medium brown. Gently stir or toss the seeds to prevent them from burning. This should take about 5 minutes, but use your nose. Do they smell toasted?

Orgeat

(based on The Aviary’s orgeat recipe*)

100 g blanched sliced almonds
250 g water
250 g sugar
1.5 g kosher salt
10 g orange peel, pith removed

Toast Almonds

Toast almonds in a 350˚F oven until toasted, stirring once or twice to prevent burning. It should take about 15 minutes, but use your nose. Do they smell toasted?

Make Simple Syrup

Add water, sugar, almonds, and salt to a small pan set over medium heat. Remove from heat once it boils. Blend with an immersion blender.

Reserve

Add orange peels, let cool to room temperature, then steep in fridge for 24 hours.

*The Aviary Cocktail Book is one of the most beautiful cookbooks I’ve ever seen. The photography is more art than filler photos. This would make a PERFECT gift for anyone in your life who likes cocktails.

Mint Simple Syrup

I love mint almost as much as I love adding mint to cocktails.

Ingredients

50 g mint leaves (JUST THE LEAVES)
200 g water
200 g sugar

Recipe

Add water and sugar to a saucepan and heat over medium. Or high. It doesn't matter. Once it starts boiling, remove from the heat.

OR

Add water and sugar to a pyrex measuring glass and microwave on high until it starts boiling.

Stir until all the sugar dissolves.

Add mint leaves and let cool.

Strain.

The Daiquiri

“More daiquiris!” sounds like the last thing a bachelorette party screams before they blackout. The daiquiri is a classic cocktail but, just like its cousin the Margarita, it’s been perverted into a frozen concoction very unlike its former self.

2 oz Rum (I LOVE El Dorado 3 year.)
3/4 oz Freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 oz simple syrup*

*I infused my simple syrup with mint this last go around and it was FANTASTIC in this daiquiri.

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass, jar, cup, or tin filled with ice. Stir for at least 30 seconds. Cold = good in cocktail land. Strain into a cocktail glass and enjoy.

The Martini

Calling cocktails “martinis” is like calling all comedians Lenny Bruce. Sure, we’d all like to be him, but there can be only one.

A Martini contains only gin and dry vermouth (orange bitters is optional) and is garnished with olives or a lemon twist. Never vodka (that’s called a Kangaroo). Never onions (Gibson). And if you like it “bone dry, like Winston Churchill liked it,” you’re really just drinking chilled gin (and I judge you).

That said, if you’re looking for a dirty martini recipe, I’ve got you covered.

Making a Martini can be intimidating. A drink with so few ingredients leaves no room for error. Over-pour, under dilute, stare too long at your guests with your mouth gaping and you’re asking for trouble (and a lot of uncomfortable guests).

Some people will (ridiculously) claim that shaking bruises the gin. They are wrong. Shaking accelerates dilution. Shaking drinks that contain sugary ingredients can lead to cloudy cocktails. They’ll look disgusting, but they won’t taste any different.

Makes 1 martini

Ingredients

2 ounces (70 mL) good gin, such as The Walter Collective (my personal favorite)
3⁄4 ounce (20 mL) dry vermouth, such as Noilly Prat
1 dash of orange bitters (optional), such as Angostura

Directions

Put all ingredients in a glass with ice. Any glass will do. Stir for 60 seconds. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. I use a julep strainer and think you should too. You could use two forks, as I’ve suggested before. The goal, once again, is to separate ice from the liquid. Garnish with an olive or two. Your other alternative is a lemon twist. Not a slice, a wheel, or wedge. A twist. (See page 10 if you want to know more about why I’m adamant this should be a twist and nothing else.)

Lemon Basil Daiquiri

Ingredients

• 2oz [60ml] Lemon Basil Rum

• 3/4oz Freshly squeezed lime juice [ALWAYS freshly squeezed]

• 1/2oz [15ml] 1:1 Simple Syrup

Recipe

1. Add everything to a mixing tin/glass/jar/container full of ice.

2. Stir. Stir. Stir.

3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

My New Favorite Way To Egg

This past weekend I made dinner for a bunch of friends. The menu was pretty straight forward, whipped & herbed ricotta [which is my favorite kinky Italian dungeon], 24-month aged San Daniele prosciutto, grilled and marinated artichoke hearts, olives, grilled asparagus, and pesto and brie canapés. And then a big salad, modeled after this one.

Like I said, pretty straight forward.

All of this is just one, self-aggrandizing wind up to tell you that I discovered my new favorite way to egg. And it couldn’t be easier.

Here’s the recipe:

1. Heat a water bath to 90˚C (194˚F). I use this immersion circulator and this pan. You can use anything that’ll hold hot water, but I live in a tiny Manhattan apartment, so everything’s gotta pull double duty.

2. Cook the whole eggs in the bath for 8 minutes.

3. If you like a runnier yolk, remove to an ice bath. If you like a more gelatinous yolk, let it sit for 30 minutes.

4. Peel

5. Eat.

That’s it.

Seriously.

If I’m using this on top of breakfast pasta [it’s a thing], I’ll drop those puppies in an ice bath to preserve the runny yolk. If I’m having them alone, in place of hard-boiled eggs, I’ll let ‘em sit. Either way, it’s the perfect combination of textures. Not nearly as mouth-drying as hard boiled eggs. But not as delicate as a poached egg.

Give it a bash and let me know what you think in the comments below!

Oh, and hat tip to the team at ChefSteps.com for the recipe. I can’t find a link on their website for it, but you can find it in their Joule app if you search for “Ultimate Ramen Eggs.”

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The Seelbach Cocktail

I featured this drink in a recent episode of Quarantine Cooking. 

Some days were made for cocktailing [they end in 'y'].

There's a cocktail for every occasion. But what about the "I'm in a mimosa mood but have no oranges" occasion?

Easy, the Seelbach.

It's perfect for that cheap bottle of sparkling wine you've got in your fridge from that time you had the [insert cheap friends' last name] over and they brought Andre. Why are you still friends?

Which is exactly what happened to me. [That's a lie; I have no friends.]

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Ingredients

Makes 1 Cocktail

• 1 oz bourbon
• 1/2 oz Cointreau or triple sec
• 7 dashes Angostura bitters [I used Bob's Abbott bitters.]
• 7 dashes Peychaud's bitters [it's the red one...]
• 4-5oz sparkling wine

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Recipe

Add bourbon, Cointreau, and both bitters to a mixing glass filled with ice. Stir to chill. Strain into a Champagne flute and top with sparkling wine. Feel real fancy.

The Frozen Margarita

I'm not normally a frozen margarita guy [because I still have some self-respect].

But that all changed for me when my mother-in-law suggested we have some out by the pool. When she says "Frozen margaritas?", I digo "¿cuántos?"

Ingredients

Makes 2 Margs

• 2 oz Cointreau

• 3 oz Tequila

• 4 oz Minute Maid Premium Limeade. I don't know if they make a non premium, but if they do, still get the premium.

• Ice

Notes

I recommend Cointreau over triple sec here because it has far less sugar, and you're already getting plenty from the Limeade. You can substitute regular triple sec or curaçao, but lower the amount just a bit.

For the tequila, I used Jose Cuervo Silver. It's not 100% Agave, but the flavor works really well in this drink.

Recipe

1. Add first three ingredients to a blender. Blend to mix.

2. Add enough ice to double the volume in the blender. So if the boozy mix comes up to the 9 ounce line on your blender, add enough ice so that the liquid level comes up to the 18 ounce line [#displacement]. Make sense? It might be easier to look at the milliliter side since those are smaller increments.

3. Blend on high speed. [If you have a Vita-Mix put on a seatbelt first.]

4. Add ice and blend again if it's too slushy. Use your judgement as to what "too slushy" means.

Notes

1. I'll make a large batch of frozen margaritas, without ice, so that I only have to measure the ingredients once [the more frozen margs I have the sloppier my measurements get]. Then, when I need to make a drink, I'll pour in roughly 4 oz of mix per person, add ice, and blend. If you make a batch ahead of time and store it in the freezer, you'll need less ice to achieve the desired consistency. Be aware that this will make the drink more potent.

2. I can't remember what the second note was. [too many frozen margs...]

You know what else from the list of authentically Mexican treats goes well with a frozen margarita? Nachos.

The Margarita

Ahh, the Margarita. Brings out the Mexican in each of us. I'm wearing my sombrero and burro blanket as I type this. [That's what everyone in Mexico wears all the time, right? RIGHT?!?]

A distant relative of the Daiquiri and the Cosmopolitan which both spawned from the Sidecar (trust me), the Margarita is a quintessential warm weather cocktail.

It's also the cocktail that most underage drinkers order when they're smart enough to NOT order a long-island iced tea, but also don't know what to order to not sound 19 (hint to my underage fans, go for a Pinot Grigio or a Manhattan).

Notes:

The tequila doesn't need to be fancy. We're mixing a drink, not taking shots shots shots shots shots with Lil' Jon.

The triple sec doesn't have to be fancy either. Cointreau or Marie Brizzard are fantastic here, but they're more expensive than Hiram Walker or Dekuyper, which are fine too.

Recipe

2 oz Espolón tequila
3/4 oz freshly-squeezed lime juice
1/2 oz triple sec.
Kosher salt. Cumin and/or Ancho Chili Powder if you want to be muy fancy.

Remember that lime you JUST squeezed for this? Save the pressed lime half and rub its still-slightly-juicy wetness on the lip of your glass. [That was a little explicit; must have been reading one of my wife's romance novels today...] Dip the moistened lip [there I go again] of the glass into the salt.

Add the rest of the ingredients and ice to the glass and stir.

Drink.

It's easy, right? Try making these for a group of people after you've had a few yourself. If you do find yourself mixing for several people (or just yourself) make a batch. Just double/triple/x15 the recipe and you'll have a pitcher of margs for everyone/yourself!

Update! 

If you'd like a slightly smokier twist, add the ingredients to a shaker with a coffee bean or two. Shake vigorously, then strain into a double old fashioned glass filled with ice.

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Chocolate Almond Cake-Brownie [it's a thing]

NOTE: If you’re coming here from the Epicurious “4 Levels Of Brownies” YouTube video, the picture above will look different.

Yield: 4-8 servings

Ingredients

• 7 ounces (200 g) Almond Paste

• ¼ cup (60 g) sugar

• 4 ounces (113 g) butter, plus extra to grease the pan

• 2 tablespoon (40 g) honey

• 3 eggs

• 2 tablespoons (30 g) amaretto liqueur, such as Luxardo

• 1/3 cup (50 g) flour

• ¼ cup (30 g) cocoa powder

• Kosher salt, to taste

• 1 handful chocolate chips

• ½ cup sliced almonds

• Confectioners’ sugar

Recipe

Mix together the almond paste and the sugar in a large bowl. Add the butter and use a hand mixer to cream the mixture. This is an important step! Creaming things results in lighter, less dense texture!

Add the honey to the batter and mix to incorporate.

Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing fully to incorporate before adding the next egg.

Add the amaretto, the flour, the cocoa powder, and the salt to the batter and mix.

Grease the inside of two 4-inch by 1¾-inch springform molds with butter. You can peel back the butter wrapper and use it like a giant crayon if that’s easiest. Sprinkle the flour into one of the molds. Tip the mold and rotate it to coat the interior with flour. Pour the remaining flour into the other mold and repeat. Discard any remaining flour.

Place the molds on a parchment paper–lined baking sheet and divide the batter evenly between the molds, tossing in a small handful of chocolate chips after filling each mold halfway.

Preheat an oven to 350˚F. Bake for 20 minutes. Test it after 18 minutes. You should see a little wobble in the center of the cake when you jiggle the baking sheet.

To finish, sprinkle the sliced almonds on top of the chocolate brownie. Then put the confectioners’ sugar in a small fine-mesh sieve and gently tap it over the cake to give it the pretty white snowy topping. Or not. Your call.

The Donna Rosa

This is a riff on the Jasmine cocktail, and by "riff" I mean "I added an egg white and called it something completely different." I named it after the Pink Lady cocktail [just to be confusing, I guess?]. Except in Italian, because...Campari. Does Donna Rosa translate to Pink Lady? Google says "yes", but Google's shifty, so who knows. Whatever you call it, it's wonderful. Give it a try and let me know how it turned out in the comments below!

Ingredients

1 oz gin
3/4 oz Campari
3/4 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 oz Cointreau or triple sec
1 egg white

Recipe

Add all ingredients to a shaker filled with ice. Shake for at least 30 seconds. 60 seconds is better. You want that egg white completely emulsified and frothy. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Enjoy!

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Almond Paste

Yield: 7oz (200g)

Use this in Chocolate-Almond Brownies

Ingredients

• 1½ cup (225 g) almonds

• 1½ cup (150 g) confectioners’ sugar

• 1 egg white

• 1 tsp (4 g) kosher salt

Recipe

Add the almonds and sugar to a food processor fitted with the blade attachment and process until smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. It should be the consistency of sand.

Add the egg white and kosher salt to the food processor and process to incorporate, about 30 seconds.

Scoop into an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month.

Note

This is part of a cookbook proposal that’s out on submission right now. If you’d like to see what a book proposal looks like, click here.

The Wenatchee

Photo cred: Lauren Layne

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Ingredients

• 2oz Lairds Applejack
• 3/4oz Sweet Vermouth (I use Noilly Prat)
• 1 dash bitters (I use Bob's Abbotts Bitters)

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Recipe

1. Add all ingredients to a mixing tin/glass/whatever with ice.
2. Stir for 60 seconds.
3. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
4. Drink.

Mac & Cheese

Panko is a Japanese breadcrumb alternative. It’s much lighter and crunchier than regular breadcrumbs. I use it exclusively instead of breadcrumbs.

If you can’t find campanelle, try to pick something with curves and ridges. Curves provide more nooks and crannies for the sauce to hide in and the increased surface area of the ridges gives the sauce more to hang on to. As I mentioned in Epicurious’ Mac & Cheese video, the pasta is really just a cheese delivery device.

You can substitute other cheeses for the ones provided below. To preserve the sauce texture, use the same category of cheese. If you don’t have Parm-Reg, use another aged hard cheese, such as Grana Padano. Instead of mascapone, use another cream cheese, like…cream cheese [who would have thought?!] or crème fraîche. Instead of Havarti or white Cheddar, try Taleggio or Emmental.

While we’re on the topic of cheese, try to find real Parmigiano-Reggiano. Anything labeled “Parmesan” or that doesn’t say “D.O.P.” is not real Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. DO NOT BUY KRAFT. I have strong opinions here because real Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese is so good and so flavorful you’ll wonder how any of the knock offs ever made it to market [hint: legal loophole]. Here’s an entire book (👈 affiliate link) on the subject that I found fascinating.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 1 cup [I can’t remember the weight] panko

• 1/2 pound (250 g) dried campanelle pasta

• 1 quart (900 g) heavy cream

• 4 ounces (125 g) Havarti, grated

• 4 ounces (125 g) Parmigiano-Reggiano, grated [I LOVED using Gruyère in place of parm though...]

• 4 ounces (125 g) mascarpone

• 4 ounces (125 g) white Cheddar, grated

Recipe

Heat the oven to 350 ̊F.

Toast the panko in a medium skillet over medium heat. Once it’s good and toasted, transfer to a small bowl. Set aside.

Cook the pasta in well salted water per package directions for a few minutes less than al dente. If the package doesn’t have directions for al dente, subtract 2-3 minutes from the full cook time. Drain, and reserve.

Bring the cream to a gentle simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the cheeses to the saucepan and stir until completely incorporated. You shouldn’t see huge chunks of cheese floating around.

Add the pasta to a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Pour the cheese sauce on top. Top with panko.

Bake for 15 minutes to finish cooking the pasta. The sauce will firm up as the pasta absorbs some the sauce. If the panko is getting too brown, or the pasta looks like it’s drying out, cover the casserole dish with a piece of foil.

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Lemon Basil Rum

Ingredients

[makes 4oz infused spirit, enough for 2 cocktails]:

• 10g Lemon peel [the peel from one small lemon]

• 10g Basil leaves [a packed handful]

• 4oz (120ml) white rum

Equipment:

• iSi whipper

• 1 N2O charger [do not use soda chargers here]

Use in:

• Lemon Basil Rum Daiquiri

Recipe

1. Put all ingredients into the whipper. Close the whipper and charge with the N2O charger and shake for a second or two.

2. Gently swirl or vigorously shake the container for 1 minute.

3. Slowly depressurize then open the whipper.

4. Strain the now-flavored rum into a small carafe and use in a drink.

4 Reasons Why You Need Maldon Sea Salt Flakes

1. Saltiness

First, this is salt. Food needs salt to taste good. So if you’re the type of person who eats food, you should be putting salt in and on it.

2. Saltiness

Second, this is sea salt, which is a more flavorful version of regular old table salt. [It has more bits of the sea in it.]

3. Texture

Third, these are flakes. Flakes won’t immediately dissolve upon meeting your soon-to-be-tastier dish. People will get a little “crunch” [technical term] from these flakes when they take a bite. Why is crunch in quotes? Because I didn’t know how else to convey a profound sense of onomatopoeia-ness.

4. Visual Appeal

As mentioned [you read #3, right?], these won’t immediately dissolve, so you’ll be able to see them. I don’t know about you, but I get giddy when I see sea salt flakes on a plate of food, because it signals to me that a) the chef knows what she’s doing and, b) I get giddy anytime food comes my way.

The Jasmine

The Jasmine holds a special place in my (and Wiff's) heart. We were introduced to the Jasmine by Craig DeBolt, one of our favorite bartenders at one of our favorite bars in Seattle, Oliver's. I've since tweaked the recipe to suit Wiff's palate. It is wonderfully bitter and refreshingly zesty thanks to a generous pour of lemon juice.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz London Dry Gin (I typically use Bombay Sapphire. Use whatever gin you like, as long as it's not TOO fancy.)

• 1 oz Campari

• 1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice

• 1/2 oz Cointreau (You can substitute regular triple sec here, though it will be slightly sweeter.)

Recipe

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass, jar, cup, or tin filled with ice. Stir or shake for at least 30 seconds. Cold = good in cocktail land. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and enjoy.

How To: Make Simple Syrup in the Microwave

Updated: February 18, 2026

I use this in lots of cocktails. Yes, I know sugar is the devil. But adding 1/2 oz to a cocktail isn't going to kill you. Unless you have 30 of those cocktails in one night. But even then it's not really the sugar's fault, is it? Also, why are you drinking 30 of the same cocktail? Branch out, man!

INGREDIENTS

250 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
250 g (1 cup) water

DIRECTIONS

Put sugar and water into a heatproof glass container.

Microwave on high until it starts to boil, usually around 3 minutes in my microwave. If it boils for a few moments, that’s fine.

Stir to dissolve the sugar.

Cool to room temperature then transfer to a squeeze bottle and refrigerate.

BONUS

Try my new Apple Cider Simple for an autumnal twist. Or my Spruce Tip Simple Syrup for a hit of winter any time of year. Or how about Ginger Simple Syrup? Or Mint! The possibilities are endless!

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