For St. Paddy's Day: Shepherd's Pie and a Little Irish History

St. Patrick's Day is fast approaching and I've got a great recipe for shepherd's pie to line your stomach with before hours of heavy drinking.  All you've got to do is stay quasi sober for about an hour on the big day and you will be rewarded with a flavorful and satisfying meal.  In fact, I guarantee you'll be making this for years to come-- assuming you're able to remember what you ate for dinner the morning after.

Healthier Patatas Bravas

The popularity of patatas bravas has been both a blessing and a curse.

Blessing: As Spain's most iconic tapa, you find versions of this dish in practically every establishment that serves food throughout the country.

Curse:  A lot of places do not do them well.  Most bars don't cook the potatoes twice, or use frozen pre-cut pieces.  However, more often than not, the real culprit behind an abhorrent experience with this famous little plate is bravas sauce from a jar.

Solution:  Make this cheap, simple, and easy dish at home.

Mayo from Scratch - Oh, the Possibilities

Let me start this post by saying I hate mayonnaise-- or at least I thought I did.  Then I tried the real homemade stuff and my life was changed... because I gained 50 pounds.  Of course that was a joke, but while I previously never had the desire to take a spoon of the plain stuff straight to the dome, I reconsider when I mix my homemade mayo with some garlic and chipotle, or better yet: with homemade Sriracha.  When you make mayonnaise at home, the possibilities are practically infinite and endlessly delicious.

Cock Sauce (AKA Homemade Sriracha)

You might have heard of the Sriracha shortage--heck, you might have even been affected by it-- but that's no reason for you to miss out on what very well may be America's favorite hot sauce.