If you are serving a chilled wine on a hot day, freeze a bunch of grapes to use as ice cubes. They won’t melt down and dilute the wine or otherwise change the flavor and are a completely edible garnish.

When melting cheese, you should bring the cheese to room temperature before attempting to melt. Also, it should be melted over low heat to prevent toughening and to keep the oils and other liquids from separating.

When grilling meat, use tongs to flip the meat, not a fork. A fork will poke holes in the meat, leaving nice places for the juice to run out. This will in turn make your meat dry and tough.

Well, I am sorry to say that we didn’t have a winner in our contest. Hopefully you’ll have better luck next time! In the mean time, stay tuned for other exciting news from Jimmy Cocktail.

Don’t forget to enter to win your chance at free tickets to see the Fab Faux at Lisner Auditorium this Saturday. You can enter by adding a comment to the thread at this link.

When measuring sticky substances for a recipe such as honey or maple syrup, coat the measuring spoon or cup with oil before measuring the sticky substance. It will pour out easily with nothing left behind.

Hey folks, guess what? I’ve got a pair of tickets to this Saturday’s concert by the Fab Faux and I’m giving them away! See what you get for checking out At Least I’m Enjoying the Ride!

In order for you to get these tickets, all you have to do is to reply to this post with a comment and leave a valid email address. One of the responses will be selected randomly to receive this pair of tickets. Your entry has to be time stamped before 11:59 PM Thursday May 20, 2010 for you to receive these tickets and only one entry per email address will be accepted. The Winner will be notified and their name posted on the site Friday morning.

Remember, the Fab Faux will be performing at 8 PM, Saturday May 22 at the Lisner Auditorium on the George Washington University campus. So unless you live in the Washington, D.C. area or can travel to Washington, D.C. for the show, please don’t enter this contest.  Thanx everybody and good luck!

Employees of At Least I’m Enjoying the Ride and their relatives are not eligible for this contest.

I’m guessing that most  of you are like me in that you were too young to actually see the Beatles in concert. We did however, grow up with them as the soundtrack to our lives. So I was especially pleased to see that the pre-eminent Beatles tribute band, the Fab Faux, will be playing in the DC area once again.

This time, their show “will feature  a ‘Glorious Hodgepodge’ of Beatles music, as The Fab Faux are accompanied by Creme Tangerine Strings and Hogshead Horns.” The event is at 8 PM on May 22 at the Lisner Auditorium on the George Washington University campus. Not only should you consider attending this event, but you should check back here as I may have more info forthcoming.

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A roast with the bone in will cook faster than one with no bone. The bone allows heat to travel to the center of the cut faster.

I’ve mentioned in the past that wood is the best composition for a cutting board. The downside is that wood can harbor bacteria, especially if raw meat was cut upon it. The trick to keeping the cutting board clean is to wipe it down with white vinegar after it has been washed. The acidity of the vinegar will kill off any little nasties hiding on the board and won’t add any off flavors to anything cut on the board once it dries.