Summer

Dairy Free, Dinner, Fall, Gluten Free, Spring, Summer, Veggies, Winter, Home & Family

Jerk Sauce

Daniel Kohler ·

I miss many things about NYC, primary among those cravings are my local jerk joint. The well-known neighborhood favorite is The Islands, but for my tastes Fever Grass takes the gold medal (never mind that their storefront was directly across from the crimson entryway to my apartment building). 

Dairy Free, Dessert, Dinner Party Theater, Drink, Gluten Free, Home & Family, Summer, Video

Home & Family: Strawberry Shrub

Daniel Kohler ·

Trust me on this one, drinking vinegar is great for you. A shrub is a vinegary preserved, fruit syrup that will keep you satisfied all Summer long. Stir some into soda water or shake it with a cocktail!

Dairy Free, Dinner, Dinner Party Theater, Drink, Gluten Free, Home & Family, Summer

Summer Crush Cocktail

Daniel Kohler ·

We all have one. Sometimes it's the ringmaster of that traveling circus with ice-blue eyes, sometimes it's the lifeguard sitting perched atop a lookout, clad only in red. Wherever you may be in life, it is never too late for a summer crush. While I'm pining for that man in the top hat I will make do with this blush colored cocktail. A mix of tequila and my strawberry shrub, this couldn't be easier to assemble. Wow your guests with a non-margarita tequila drink and fall in love with this sweet sip.

Drink, Summer

Strawberry Piloncillo Shrub

Daniel Kohler ·

A shrub is nothing more than fruit preserved in both sugar and vinegar. The resulting brew is a bracing syrup, at once sweet and sour. Stir this into sparkling water all summer or shake it up with a cocktail and startle your palate. Vinegar has remarkable health benefits, but let us forget those in favor of its obvious flavor strength. Brew once and let this jar of power support you in the coming months.

Breakfast, Dairy Free, Dessert, Dinner, Dinner Party Theater, Fall, Gluten Free, Home & Family, Snack, Side, Summer, Video

Home & Family: Mealy Fruit

Daniel Kohler ·

The secret to avoiding mealy fruit this summer lies in temperature control. Learn the science behind those unfortunate peaches and get some tips on storing your favorites while the weather is still warm!

Breakfast, Dairy Free, Dessert, Dinner, Dinner Party Theater, Drink, Fall, Gluten Free, Home & Family, Meat, Side, Snack, Spring, Summer, Veggies, Video, Winter

Home & Family: Nomiku Sous Vide

Daniel Kohler ·

What was once a tool fit only for commercial kitchens has been adapted for your home! The Nomiku is an immersion circulator for the modern cook. Control temperature within a fraction of a degree for perfect cooking.

Dairy Free, Dessert, Home & Family, Video, Winter, Summer

Home & Family: Candied Fruit

Daniel Kohler ·

Preserving fruit with sugar is a centuries-old tradition that seems to rear its head every Christmas. As we celebrate Christmas in July with Hallmark, take to heart some candying tips. Get started on this now and you'll have gifts aplenty on your shelf to dole out come December! 

Dinner Party Theater, Home & Family, Meat, Summer, Video

Home & Family: Tandoor Oven

Daniel Kohler ·

Forget the grill, invest in a few clay pots and build a tandoor in your backyard this summer! For about $100 you can build a natural convection oven that will make you the envy of neighborhood bbq's.

Dairy Free, Dessert, Fall, Gluten Free, Home & Family, Side, Snack, Spring, Summer, Winter

Candied Lemon Peel

Daniel Kohler ·

This is not a new trick, it is simply good, old, cooking at its best. When we slowly replace water content in food with sugar we act to reduce the amount of H2O necessary to support the growth of bacteria and microbes. Which is to say, we preserve the food. Sugar is a most excellent prison for your lemons. Keep them alive far past their due date with this solution.

Dinner, Dinner Party Theater, Home & Family, Meat, Summer, Read, Veggies

DIY Tandoor Oven

Daniel Kohler ·

This is how I will become a grillmaster. Neither changing propane tanks, nor praying at the altar of Weber, but rather with a tandoor. The contraption now sits in my backyard, taunting my with its emptiness. It is neither difficult to build nor challenging to maintain and at the risk of sounding alarmist I want to scream through the digitas WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?

Home & Family, Winter, Summer, Spring, Fall, Read

Sweet and Easy

Daniel Kohler ·

Sugar has withstood much slander of late, and I am tempted to defend it in some sense. Yes, sugar is problematic in the human diet, but not solely because of its chemical structure. You see, we are abusing it. We are junkies. We are addicts. And so I present, not a defense, but an exploration of sugar. Knowledge is power, information is delicious. Eat. Think. Be Merry.

 

Breakfast, Dairy Free, Dessert, Dinner, Fall, Gluten Free, Side, Snack, Spring, Summer, Video, Winter

Home & Family: Kitchen Hacks

Daniel Kohler ·

Let me save you from the terrifying moments when you realize, mid-cake, that you're missing an ingredient. A little chemistry goes a long way when it comes to kitchen hacks!

Dessert, Snack, Winter, Summer, Spring, Fall

Mistake Cake

Daniel Kohler ·

This is the cake built on mistakes. When you run out of certain ingredients in the kitchen, it's always helpful to know the chemistry behind what you're missing. Do you need to mimic fat? Acid? Leavening? In this case, I took every major substitution I know and used them to build a cake. 

Breakfast, Dairy Free, Dessert, Dinner, Drink, Fall, Gluten Free, Side, Snack, Spring, Summer, Veggies, Winter, Read

Kitchen Swaps

Daniel Kohler ·

The cold sweat that drips down your neck when you realize you're missing an ingredient, and the cake batter is halfway finished, is real. You have guests scheduled to arrive in mere hours, nay, minutes. Do you rush to the store and grab a bundt cake shelled in plastic? Oh no, not here. NEVER ACCEPT DEFEAT. 

Dairy Free, Dinner, Spring, Summer, Side, Veggies

Preserved Lemon Couscous

Daniel Kohler ·

The pillowy grains of couscous offer ample space for the absorption of preserved lemon in all its salty glory. Ever in search of the intersection of salty/sweet/spicy/sour, I found its address in this couscous. Preserved lemon, currants, fresh chili, (and some pinenuts for texture) all crash together in the final dish, causing a riot of flavor and color. Couscous cooks in mere minutes, and with the lemons you've got on hand this dish is a snap.