Courtesy of Anton.

Update: Looks awesome, but it’s a hoax. When the camera zooms in on the baking soda, the mountain dew bottle is substituted with one likely containing the contents of a glow stick. Cute, but it won’t work as advertised.

Thanks to the fabulous Edward Mao’s recipe for Kung Pao Chicken, I’m sitting here fat, dumb, and happy. It was awesomely delicious!

Thanks, Ed!!!

Here’s the chili recipe I made for our chili cook-off at work. It’s based on a recipe from Texas on the Halfshell.

1 3/4 lb chili grind beef 1 lb ground venison 1 c. chopped onion 5 cloves garlic 1 - 12 oz bottle Corona beer 1 - 8 oz can Hunt’s tomato sauce 1 c. water 3 tbs. dark chili powder 2 tbs. ground cumin 6 cubes beef bouillon 2 tsp. oregano leaves 2 tsp. sugar 2 tsp. hot hungarian paprika 1 tsp. cocoa 1 tsp. ground coriander small hand-full of chili petins (around 15-20 chilis)

Brown the meat in a cast iron skillet - pour off most of the fat. Add the onion & garlic & cook until the onions are translucent. Add everything else and simmer covered or two hours or more.

I’ve seen a couple of recipes for a pineapple margarita, but they either had ingredients that I didn’t like (sour mix) or looked too sweet. Here’s my take on one:

In a blender, add the following:

2 c. chopped fresh pineapple * juice of 2 limes 1 c. white tequila (Sauza Blanco or better) 1/2 c. Tripple Sec Ice

Blend away and enjoy.

• I used pineapple soaked overnight in tequila, drain off the tequila (which tasted great over ice) and use the pineapple you don’t turn into margaritas for a tasty desert with whipped cream.

Anton and I planned on stopping by the Dorkbot tent, but the line and crowd were too intimidating, so we left, checked into our hotel, then came back for later events.

The frog design SXSW Opening Party was pretty cool. Malford Milligan’s band put on a great blues show and the Interactive crowd proved all kinds of stereotypes about computer oriented people true. We stayed for an hour or so, then headed out a few blocks away to the final party of the night.

The BuzzFeed / Ze Frank After Party at the Molotov Lounge was a good time. Open bar - we had a lot of great conversations with people who will never remember having them with us. Also, we ran into Anton’s long, lost brother: this guy

A hilarious run-down of the state of food network by Anthony Bourdain. I love it mostly for agreeing with me on Alton, Flay, Ray, and Giada. The last two of which will probably get me in trouble with my parents and Virginia, but so be it. Enjoy.

In the interests of keeping spirits up during this trying ordeal, I’ve been cooking (and eating) meals fit for a king. Last nights meal:

Baked Salmon with Lemon & Caper Vinaigrette, Fresh Green Beans, and Pan Grilled Red Potatoes with Lemon-Garlic Aïoli.

Was it yummy? Yes it was.

Bobby Flay’s recipes are fantastic - even when modified to suit available ingredients like I did.

On Liquor Snob, I found this: Bacardi Limon Gold Standard Cocktail.

I made a couple of these last night while making dinner (minus the gold leaf) - very yummy cocktail.

Dinner? Mushroom Lasagna with Butter Garlic Zucchini. Was it yummy? Yes it was.

If anyone can brave the ice, I have about 20 lbs of lasagna in the freezer.

When I was a kid, my Dad was in the Air Force and we lived in Panama. My Dad had the chance to visit a lot of countries in South America and one of his favorites was Peru. Peru makes a clear spirit called Pisco (distilled from grapes like a less refined brandy). The Peruvian national drink is the Pisco Sour. There is a little bit of controversy since neighboring Chile also claims to have invented the Pisco Sour, but I’ll stick with Peru for no other reason than that’s the country I first heard associated with the Pisco Sour. This drink was very popular in Panama as well and it seems like my parents enjoyed this more than once at parties with friends.

Today at lunch, I stopped by the best liquor and wine store in San Antonio, Joe Saglimbeni Fine Wines and noticed that they carried six or so different varieties of Pisco. I asked for a recommendation and purchased it to surprise my parents with when I see them tomorrow.

Next I needed a recipe for the Pisco Sour (I think it’s best not to drink Pisco straight). I found this excellent site that links to several good recipes.