(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)A trimmed-down cocktail ingredient list will still yield some of the most classic and enjoyable drinks. I asked some food writer friends, all well-versed in cooking and the ways of the bar, about their simplest go-to cocktails… • 3-Ingredient Cocktails The Kitchn

(Image credit: Emma Christensen)With these cheddar olives, my favorite straight-from-freezer-to-oven recipe, there are never any leftovers. Ever. No matter how many I make. • Cheddar Olives The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)What’s a party without a cocktail? But shaking them to order just isn’t practical when there are guests to enjoy and dinner to finish. Two words for you: pitcher drinks. • 15 Fabulous Pitcher Drinks The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) • Coffee Concentrate The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)Here’s a look at the full party and the recipes I used, beginning with fresh strawberry-basil cocktails and ending with a buttery lemon cake with elderflower whipped cream.Can you think of a better way to spend a sunny weekend morning? • A Book Club Brunch Party The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Rubén’s rented kitchen in Somerville, MA doesn’t scream his ancestry when you first enter, but once you start walking around, Spain resonates everywhere — from the wineskin to his collection of paella pans… • Kitchen Tour The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)I just love a good egg salad sandwich: the creaminess of the eggs and mayo, the crunch of celery, the faint but not overwhelming tang of raw onion. So perfect! So let’s nail the classic, uncomplicated egg salad recipe. • Make Classic Egg Salad The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)For the last several months we’ve been hard at work on the biggest book yet. This 150-recipe cookbook will feature new recipes we developed in the spirit of everything our readers love about The Kitchn: ease, accessibility, flavor, and fun. • The Kitchn Cookbook! The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) • What Does 2,000 Calories Look Like? The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)For me, kitchen renovation meant finally having countertops that were beautiful, bright white, and easy to clean.Marble was the natural choice. Right? Right! Here’s the story of how we overcame our fears, and found our honed marble countertops. • Carrara Marble Countertops The Kitchn

(Image credit: Leela Cyd)We don’t know why, but there is something universally appealing about customizing your own meal — which makes a build-your-own bar an easy dinner or dessert option for youanda fun party experience for your guests. • 9 Build-Your-Own Party Meals The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)Last we checked in with my kitchen renovation, we werewrestling IKEA cabinets… Now I’d like to take a step back and talk about a process thatshouldbe sexy but is actually fraught with confusion, uncertainty, and a lack of resources: buying kitchen appliances. • Buying Appliances The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)Panna cotta can always be the right dessert — whether you’re throwing a fancy party or a small one, have lots of time or no time, are gluten-free, dairy-free, allergy-prone, vegan, or simply craving a delicious and creamy sweet. • Panna Cotta The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)Architect Arjenlives with his family in a little corner of Amsterdam. Their kitchen is typical Dutch style, with two walls of parallel kitchen units, divided by a narrow passage, which opens into a wider dining and social area… • Arjen’s Dutch Kitchen The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)What’s the incentive to undergo a kitchen renovation? For Kitchn reader Leigh, it was a desire to make the most of the view outside. “Our goal from the beginning was to open up the views by having as many windows as possible and no upper cabinets…” • Leigh’s Kitchen Renovation The

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)I have a little ritual when I bring fresh ginger home from the market:peel, grate, freeze. Not only is this a great way to keep ginger fresh longer, but it becomes incredibly easy topunch up a sauce, stir fry, or smoothie any time you want some gingery spice. • Grated Ginger in

(Image credit: Dana Velden)I actually don’t care for shiny copper, but occasionally the few pieces I have need a little cleaning up, so I was fascinated to read an article on the Kaufmann Mercantile website that recommends two very unexpected ingredients to clean copper… • Clean Your Copper The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)It was ‘polenta party‘ time at Faith’s house last week, and she served it with a delicious dish of beef braised in red wine. So, the big question we pondered was, what wine or rather what wines to serve alongside this robust, meaty, yet creamy dish? • 10 Budget Wine Picks

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)This week I’ve beensharing one of the most fun dinner partiesI’ve ever hosted — we invited six friends over and threw an Italian polenta party anchored by a four-foot-long board in the middle of the table! Here’s how it all came together: • Polenta Supper Party The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)When it comes to cooking dinner every night, one tool I can’t live without is my kitchen tongs. But I had no idea there were four more surprising uses for this everyday tool — including one that is especially helpful for short cooks like me. • Uses for Kitchen Tongs The

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)No matter how thoroughly you scrub plastic containers, there comes a point where they start to smell a little…stale. Here are six ideas to freshen them up — without resorting to harsh chemicals. • Clean Plastic Containers The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Have you ever tried making your own crispy, crunchy, seed-topped crackers? My recommendation: try it. Definitely. Crackers are surprisingly easy to make at home with just five basic ingredients, a rolling pin, and a baking sheet. • How To Make Crackers The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Julie Morelli and Andy Schwegler are the witty and creative minds behind Chicago based print shop Nourishing Notes and boutique design firm Letterform. Their mission is simple: “We believe there’s nothing better than food, family, friends, and laughter.” • A Bright, Happy Kitchen The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Canning jars make great containers for lunches prepared in bulk, individually portioned, and stored in the refrigerator or freezer, so it’s easy to grab a wholesome, homemade meal on even the busiest afternoon. • Make-Ahead Jar Lunches The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Do you get stumped for good lunch ideas, falling back on the same unsatisfying sandwiches and cans of rewarmed soup? We have a whole month’s worth of work-week lunches up for grabs today! • 20 Satisfying Lunches The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) While it can seem like a messy endeavor, cooking bacon on the stovetop is the classic way to crisp up those delicious strips of smokey goodness, and it’s dead simple to boot. Read on for our step by step guide: • Stovetop Bacon The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Avocado. Fried eggs. Pizza dough. I probably don’t have to tell you that combining three of the world’s greatest foods gives you one fine breakfast: a warm round of chewy crust topped with a bright, cilantro-speckled avocado mash and the perfect oozy egg. • Avocado, Egg Breakfast Pizza The Kitchn

(Image credit: Sara Kate Gillingham) Where do you shop for food gifts online, particularly when you’re looking for something special and indulgent? What is your recommendation for the best, most unusual, or inspired food gifts on the web? • Food Gifts Online The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) If you own a soda maker, then you know the manufacturer rules: you must only use water! But a few adventurous drinkers are flouting those instructions and using home carbonators to concoct everything from sparkling wines to non-alcoholic fruit sodas. • Hacking a SodaStream The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Ready for the next step in my kitchen renovation? Here’s where things get a little wild and fast, and where my photo library gets a little, um, thinner than I would like… • Faith’s Kitchen Renovation The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Joshua Weissman isn’t your typical 17-year-old boy. A few years ago, overweight and bullied in school, he finally decided to take his health seriously, but packaged diet meals and quick fixes didn’t help. Instead, he started cooking — and in the process changed his life. • Meet Joshua Weissman of Slim

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) At cheese shops, cheesemongers will use cheese wires or fancy cheese harps to cut soft and crumbly cheeses neatly. But when at home, use dental floss on delicate cheeses! • My Uncool Kitchen Tool The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) We rarely use milk at our house, and whenever we do buy it for a recipe, half the bottle inevitably goes to waste. That is, until we realized we could freeze it for later! Here are some tips for freezing it. • Freeze Milk for Later The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Think cooking with less salt has to be bland? Think again! Yesterday we took a peek at Sodium Girl’s Limitless Low-Sodium Cookbook, and today we are sharing her most tried-and-true tips for taking low-sodium meals to the next level. • Low-Sodium Cooking The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Lemon curd is one of those things that I always like to have in my refrigerator. It has saved me more than once when I’ve had to rustle up a last minute dessert or had an unexpected guest stop by at tea time. • How To Make Lemon Curd The

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Last week we asked you, our readers, to share the one kitchen item you’d recommend splurging on. If you’ve ever wondered what’s worth the money in the kitchen, read on… • The One Kitchen Item Worth Splurging On The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Being a good cook is also about the small habits you practice daily, the ones that transform cooking into a more effortless and joyful part of your day. These 8 simple habits are easy to pick up, yet make a major difference in your cooking. • Small Cooking Habits The

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) The bones of a kitchen are the cabinets and their layout, and we knew from the get-go that we wanted to use IKEA’s cabinet system. Here are some things we learned along the way. • On Buying an IKEA Kitchen The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) While there is really no “One Right Way” to season or spice your favorite foods, here’s a quick guide to some of the most common — and dependably tasty! — ways to do it. • Common Spices for Common Dishes The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Lola Milholland is an avid home cook with an amazing range of culinary abilities. She cooks with tenacity and confidence! Join us for a tour of this giant, personality-filled kitchen. • Lola’s Homemade Orange Kitchen The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) There’s no denying the convenience of an already-ground spice, but I’m here to make a case for why you should consider adding a few whole spices to your seasoning line-up. Four words: better flavor, fresher longer. Convinced?! • On Using Whole Spices The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) Cooks can be very territorial creatures. This may make for a terrific meal at the end of the night, but it’s not so great for fostering a romantic, let’s-make-and-share-this-food-together vibe. So here are a few simple tips… • 5 Tips For a Date Night in the Kitchen The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) In short, my feelings about Valentine’s Day are a lot like this popcorn: salty and a little bitter, but impossible to ignore. • Salted Dark Chocolate Popcorn The Kitchn

How in the world does one go about planning a kitchen renovation? How do you actually make decisions? Well, I don’t know how other people make these sorts of rather scary decisions — I can only tell you how we did. • Planning Out the Kitchen The Kitchn

Last week I explained the big renovation and kitchen project we took on last year, and I showed you lots of pretty pictures of kitchens that inspired me. But in renovation, before a kitchen gets better, it usually gets worse. Much, much worse. • Faith’s Kitchen Renovation The Kitchn

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) In the process of dragging an old, problematic house into the 21st century, we lived through the very real clichés of remodeling. Over the next week or two I will show you how it all went and what it looks like now. Want to come along? • Faith’s Kitchen Renovation

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy) The Kitchn is looking to hire a few bloggers to seek out, photograph, and write up a monthly Kitchen Tour for us. Think you’re the perfect person for the job? Get all the details here. Deadline to apply is Monday, February 18th! • The Kitchn Is Hiring The Kitchn