SousChef Community

Have you ever been tempted by the thought of making homemade Easter candy? I'm certainly not disparaging storebought—we have a great guide here on Epi to the best chocolate bunnies, and I personally wouldn't dream of celebrating Easter without Cadbury Mini Eggs. But, as someone who loves to tackle a big baking project, I've often thought how much ...

That disturbing sound you heard two nights ago was my Belfast-born mom whirling in her grave at the thought of me not just buying Irish soda bread but shelling out a ridiculous $5.99 for it. Something comes over me this time of year and I'm a sucker for the things she used to bake religiously every Lent/Easter. Of course the store-bought stuff ...

I have plans to meet a friend for drinks after work today. The problem is that it's St. Patrick's Day. I don't mean to say that St. Patrick's Day itself is a problem. St. Patrick's Day is great fun; it's just that a rowdy bar filled with green-wearing revelers isn't really what I feel like doing tonight. St. Patrick's Day in New York can get a bit ...

If you celebrate Passover, have you started planning your menu yet? I know I have. Amazingly, the holiday is less than two weeks away, so my mother and I sat down recently to brainstorm. This year, we're going to start with homemade gefilte fish, the Israeli grapefruit-avocado salad that I blogged about a few weeks ago, and matzoh ball soup. The ...

As the saying goes, ''Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick's Day.'' So, even if your family doesn't hail from the Emerald Isle, there's no reason why you can't enjoy the fun and feasting that takes place every March 17. Hungry for some authentic Irish cuisine? We asked a couple of Irish cooking authorities for their recipes and tips. In The Ultimate ...

Last year we did a taste test on milk chocolate Easter bunnies. So it only made sense that this year we taste jellybeans, the candy that seems to overpopulate the pharmacy and supermarket shelves come late February, yes, February. We split our taste test into two categories, classic (whatever the brand defines as their no-frills flavor) and sour. ...

The Jewish holiday of Purim begins this Saturday night. I'll confess that, as a not-very-observant half-Jew (my mother's family is Christian) I've never celebrated this holiday. But, along with other less well-known Jewish festivals like Sukkot and Shavuot, I find Purim intriguing. My husband's cousins Miryam and Rachel, who live in Israel, have ...

Today is Mardi Gras, which to many people means beads, king cakes, and parties. But it also means that tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. At midnight tonight the parties on Bourbon Street will shut down and the season of austerity will begin. I'm not Catholic, but I actually like the idea of choosing to give something up for a ...

The Year of the Tiger begins Sunday, February 14, and here in New York City, there will be activities for residents and visitors alike, including a fireworks show and a dumpling-making workshop. But for me, a walk through the packed streets of Chinatown loses its luster and makes me crave the intimate setting of a homemade dinner with family and ...

Though most of us are probably looking forward to the coming long weekend as a time to relax, perhaps dig out from the big snowstorm, and enjoy not having to go to work, it's good to remember that we're supposed to be celebrating the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln on Monday. If you have kids, or even if you don't, this can be a ...