Of course, I'm not talking about the ways you try to keep cool in general, such as cranking the AC, jumping into a pool, or going to the beach. I'm talking about liquid refreshment.

There are many schools of thought on this. My mom used to drink hot coffee in June, July, and August, going by the old theory that drinking hot liquids in hot months actually cools you down. I myself like iced tea and ice cold water during the summer, with some diet soda and icy Ocean Spray Light Ruby Red here and there too. Others seem to like beer and cocktails, though I really doubt their effectiveness (beyond the initial hit of cold liquid going down).

After the jump, give us your liquid solutions for the summer. Besides the drinks above, I'm thinking about asking the owner of the liquor store down the street if I can live in his giant walk in fridge for the summer..

Yes, I hate bbq, summer, and Memorial Day. I'm a terrible person.

Of course, I don't hate Memorial Day itself, what it represents, I hate that it signals the start of summer, my least favorite season. I hate summer the way Lost fans hated Nikki and Paolo (yes, everything I do comes back to television). Maybe even more.

Here are the 8 reasons I hate about Memorial Day and summer in general.

Sheer wanton excess is the name of the game for some restaurants, as New York Times food critic Frank Bruni found upon his visit to Le Cirque.

In the article, Bruni outlines some of the decadent, near-sinful entrees that lined the table, including fois gras-stuffed ravioli, white truffles, and immense cuts of beef and lamb. Bruni expertly sums up the scene, noting that while the food is enjoyable and the staff, inviting, "[they are] probably...contributing to what is a yeti-sized carbon footprint."

Excessive eating and drinking at restaurants is nothing new. In most cases, it's encouraged. In fact, some might say, what's the point of going out to eat if you don't self-indulge?

We saw this lifestyle secondhand in Bill Buford's "Heat," which depicted the author's experience as a chef alongside chef and Food Network star Mario Batali. Buford unabashedly detailed Batali's oft-hedonistic outings, nights filled with lavish food and drink, and plenty of it.

But then, who are we to judge? If we were privy to such a lifestyle, would we not imbibe in what is probably considered more than our fair share? Perhaps. But Bruni makes a good point in that these lifestyles are being - (and should be) - looked at under an increasingly sharp microscope. In a world that has, in the past few years, become less self-absorbed and more self-aware, is it possible that excessive eating and imbibing will become not only passé, but looked down upon?

Summer doesn't officially begin for another month, but we all know it's here already. The days are getting warmer (if not hotter, like today in the Boston area) and it's Memorial Day weekend, which is the real start of summer for most people.

So how about some lemonade? Like Kat Kinsman, most of the people I knew growing up used packaged mixes when making lemonade, but she gives a good recipe for real lemonade over at AOL Food. The full recipe after the jump.

Seafood is usually a fairly photogenic genre of meat as far as food porn goes. Sushi can be absolutely beautiful and cooked fish, with the possible exception of the bland-looking poached fish, can look tempting, as well. Shrimp, on the other hand, are not usually the most appetizing of sea creatures, which is what makes this photo of Ginger Chili Shrimp from Hooked on Heat all the more amazing. These tasty fried shrimp are first marinated in a mixture of turmeric, chili powder and lime juice before hitting the oil for a quick fry. The remaining oil is then used as a base for a spicy sauce made with ginger, onions, chili flakes, tomato paste and soy sauce, which is tossed with the shrimps to give them the nicely browned look that you see above. This dish could easily be served as an appetizer with margaritas at a cocktail party or enjoyed as part of a light dinner when you're in the mood for some spice and seafood.

The heat resistant nature of silicone kitchen and bakeware is usually much-touted to home cooks by the manufacturers. This property is very useful for kitchen tools and, for example, pot holders, but the manufacturers often fail to mention the fact that silicone is so good at keeping the heat down that it can prevent your baked foods from browning in the same way that they ordinarily would if baked in or on a regular metal pan or some kind.

There is not much that can be done about an under-browned cookie without baking up a new batch, but with some foods (roasted vegetables or oven-fried chicken, for example), the reaction of many cooks is to slide the under-browned food under the broiler to finish it off. Do not do this if you are using any kind of silicone cook/bakeware, including a nonstick silpat. As some have found out, the heat from the broiler is so great that a kitchen fire can result very, very quickly. Stick to a tried-and-true metal baking sheet.

As entertaining as Alton Brown is, I can't help but think of him as more of a cook than a baker. The reason for this is that he likes to play with science and although baking is certainly scientific, the methodology is not what is going to take your baking to the next level. Technique is important, but flavor may be more so.

That said, there is plenty of flavor to be found in AB's baking book, I'm Just Here for More Food: Food x Mixing + Heat = Baking, just not the extensive range of old and new combinations that you might find in a book from a professional pastry chef - and if you're not looking to emulate cutting-edge, five-star at home, you shouldn't have any problems here. Alton is precise, thorough and very accessible, due to a generous use of entertaining illustrations sprinkled throughout the text. His recipes and methodology are well explained and will provide the reader with a solid base of knowledge of the hows and whys of baking. On top of that, they always turn out good results (barring technical difficulties, of course), so you have a built-in way to reward yourself after learning a new lesson. Recipes include topics from scones and cakes to custards and candies.

Garlic used to be the go-to ingredient of both pros and of home cooks. If you ask chefs like Nigella Lawson and Jamie Oliver what their favorite ingredient of the moment is, they might just say chilis, instead. Chilis, as Nigella puts it "are quite exciting... [and] quite apart from the fact that chillies are so red and shiny, I feel they've been fashioned by Santa's elves." It seems unlikely that the first thought that pops into other people's minds when looking at chilis is that they are produced by elves, but their versatile and spicy flavor is just as likely to excite the imagination of a cook as a new toy is to excite a child.

In addition to being tasty, chilis have proven health benefits, which makes them fit neatly into the trend for foods that have to do with wellness and overall good health. Capsaicin, a chemical in chilis that gives them their heat, has been shown to slow the growth of and even kill cancer cells, alleviate inflammation, relieve chronic pain and even help to reduce cholesterol and the risk of heart attacks.

When I want to keep my coffee or tea warm, I do one of three things: I drink it quickly, keep it in an insulated mug or stay reasonably close to the microwave so I can reheat it if necessary. I don't think that I would ever get to the point where I needed a drink warmer like the one pictured here. This set has two main components: a frosted glass mug and a zinc cup holder/warmer, which has a space for a tea light. It also includes the stainless steel stirring spoon/drinking straw pictured with it.

It looks a bit like a fondue set, doesn't it? Clearly, you would have to regularly stir your drink to prevent the bottom from scalding, particularly if you're drinking a dairy-based beverage.

I would rather just drink my hot cocoa quickly if the only reheating option seemed like a fire hazard.

Of all the households in the US, 99.5% have refrigerators. About the same percentage have some way of heating food. We've seen some great gadgets for keeping things hot and cold here on Slashfood, but I want to show you an ancient technique for keeping food cool. It's called a zeer pot. The vessel itself may be third world, but it's playing a timely role in the continuing recovery of northern Darfur and other African nations. Science in Africa magazine states that a zeer can keep tomatoes edible for 20 days, as opposed to two, and meat two weeks, as opposed to a few hours.

A zeer pot is quite simple. It's basically two large earthen pots, one nested in the other. The space is filled with sand and water is added. A damp cloth covers the top. As the water evaporates, the inner pot containing the perishables is kept cool in the same manner that a mechanical refrigerator operates -- water evaporation draws heat from the inner vessel. Water is added twice a day.

Muhammed Bah Abba is credited with reviving (some say inventing) use of the zeer and has his own instructions on theory, application and making one. I am going to make one of these myself and see how long basic vegetables will keep at room temp. You can see from the picture how easy it would be to improvise a zeer with regular flower pots. I will then give it a taste test after one week.

A poached prawn is not exactly a traditional component of vichyssoise. The thick and creamy chilled leek and potato soup is almost always simply garnished with a sprinkle of chives, but Jocelyn at Kuidaore, wanted to accent her version of vichyssoise with the prawn and a few drops of prawn oil. The fishy flavor stands out beautifully against the mild soup, just as the contrasting color of the prawn does, and transforms a good dish to a great one for seafood fans. The soup is velvety and smooth thanks to a large amount of butter and cream, but there are lighter versions available that preserve the flavors of the dish while saving a few calories. No matter which version you choose to make, the soup is a wonderful addition to your recipe file and a nice change of pace from gazpacho when you want a cold soup in summer.

Most grapes are dried on paper trays in the field to make raisins, but researchers at UC Davis have found that there are distinct differences between raisins dried in the traditional way and those dried directly on the vine. Their testing looked at factors that included "fruitiness, chewiness and color" and the tasters were split on which raisins they liked more, though it was clear that there was a big difference between the two types. The vine-dried raisins were said to be softer, plumper and more complex, almost like wine, while the tray-dried raisins were stickier and more caramely. The noticeably different flavor profiles may open the door for gourmet raisins if some growers switch over to the vine-dried variety.

Vine-dried raisins are less labor intensive than tray-dried raisins, but they usually need to be harvested with a machine and take much longer to dry, needing as much as a month on the vine, as opposed to a week on the trays. As a result, they are more expensive to produce and not all of California's growers, who produce almost all of the US's raisins and about 40% of the world's supply, would be willing or able to make the switch.

The last month saw a devastating heat wave in California, with sustained temperatures of well over 100F, and up to 120F in the deserts. The heat created lines in front of ice cream shops all over the state, but many other industries were heavily impacted. The dairy industry actually suffered losses of as many as 16,000 cows, just from the heat alone, as even overnight the temperatures did not drop down to give the animals relief. Other cows miscarried or couldn't conceive, and the milk that was gathered during the period had a lower butterfat content, making it unsuitable for some uses, like cheesemaking. The dairy industry alone could take 9 months to recover fully.

Other industries - and by extension, consumers - had losses as well. The California Poultry Federation estimated that 750,000 chickens and 180,000 turkeys also died as a direct result of the heat wave, though it is a very small percentage of the industry, so prices are unlikely to be affected. Strawberries over-ripened or rotted, stone fruits were sunburned and tomatoes "literally cooked in their skins," leading to an estimated loss of 10% of the total crop in some places. The effects on other foods, like nuts, will not be seen until their harvest comes around in fall, but California agriculture will need some time to recover fully.

It's 98 degrees in Brooklyn. The Weather Channel website says it "feels like" 107, but I say it "feels like" hell. If I could, I'd curl around the base of the toilet with my panting dog. But I can't, so I find more conventional, homo sapiens ways to cool off: straddling fans, sticking ice cubes in the waistband of my underwear, and visiting ice cream parlors.

I love ice cream any day of the year, but this August, the creamy delight cools like central air. Never mind that my midsection has noticeably thickened since Sunday; we're having a heat wave, and I don't care if I'm too fat to can-can. I watch the kind scoopers stack sugar cones with tears in my eyes. Even my lactose intolerance can't stop me.

What is it about ice cream anyway? It's cited as a comfort food, right up there with mashed potatoes. Ice cream socials please kids and their parents equally, and a cute date will split a cone with you from the truck outside the restaurant while you ponder how to invite them over. Wherever there is ice cream, life seems happy and positive.

There are some places where you can get bacon ice cream already, but how would you feel about ice cream made of frozen berries, meat and bones? Don't worry - this isn't a new flavor from Haagen Dazs or anything like that. This is a concoction being fed to some of the animals at the Zurich Zoo in Switzerland. Temperatures have been at record highs there this summer, and the zookeepers say that the "alternative ice cream" helps keep the animals comfortable and cool, not to mention that they seem to quite like the taste. The mix is being given to the big cats, apes and wolves. Hopefully they have something equally tasty (relatively speaking) for the zoo's other residents.