• 
• Greek yogurt experiences a revival

• A tour through Oxford's pubs

• A meat eater sings tofu's praises

• What is a mangosteen?
  

• Need some spice? Try piri-piri sauce

• When you get a craving for noodles and cannoli ice cream cones...

• Forget chocotinis, these are the real deal

• Here's an interesting idea: let's get rid of restaurant menus!
• The Best New Wine Lists of 2007.
• A list of products and trends you'll see in the kitchen in the next few years.
• Three interesting burgers to try this July 4th.
• Speaking of the 4th, a French chef shows you how to grill a steak.
• Heading to Richmond, VA? Check out this guide to the city.
• If you're not going to Richmond, how about Paris?
• How to preserve summer flavors.
• This month's recipes: Blueberry-Lemon Parfait, Summer Melon with Crab, Potato Salad with Bacon and BBQ Sauce, Tuna with Provencal Vegetables, Almond Ice Milk, and Cucumber-Basil Martini.

Most of these "what _____ are you?" quizzes you find online are often inaccurate but a fun way to waste a few minutes of your day. And they often reinforce some aspect of yourself that is true, or maybe you wish was true, and you get a little icon to put on your web site to make other people think you're that way too.

This one asks you a bunch of questions (though not enough, I feel) to find out what type of drink you are. Are you a hard drink like whiskey? Are you a drink with a little umbrella in it? Are you a martini person? Or maybe you're not an alcoholic person at all. The questions revolve around what activities you do when you drink (playing quarters? lying down? vomiting?), what snack you like to eat when drinking (peanuts? olives? nachos?), and the type of taste that appeals most to you.

For the record, the quiz said I'm a beer person. Which is odd, since I rarely drink beer.

Fall is my favorite season, for so many reasons (I'm a poet and I didn't even...well, you know the rest), and one of them is the food and drink options available. Fine Living has a list of 10 cocktails you can drink on those chilly fall days and nights. Maybe after a day of Christmas shopping, or when everyone is over your house on Thanksgiving Day and you're trying to figure out some way to have all of your family members get along.

Typically, our Slashfood Happy Hour is on Fridays, but with the extended Fourth of July weekend coming up, we thought we'd get started a day early.

Recently I tried a Blueberry Basil Martini. From the sound of it, I was skeptical since I had certainly heard of strawberries and basil, but never blueberries and basil. From the looks of it, I was skeptical, too. It looked like a berry-flavored smoothie from Jamba Juice served in a martini glass. However, the color is deceptive, and though it did taste a bit thick, it was not too bad.

Unfortunately, I don't know what the recipe is, but I did find a recipe online for a strawberry and basil martini, which could probably be modified. (By the way, the Blueberry Basil Martini I had was made with Bombay Sapphire gin, not vodka.)

My friend Todd is a mixologist. Technically, he is a college molecular biology instructor, but on the side, the guy can mix up some fabulous drinks. His specialty? What he calls "booze candy" - anything that's so super sweet that it's basically, well, candy. These are things that are made with fruit flavored vodkas, juices, cordials and liqueurs, and can be very appropriately served in a sugar-rimmed glass.

Normally, the sticky, almost syrupy drinks are too sweet for my personal taste, but if I drink them after dinner and with the mindset that they are dessert, then watch out. Booze candy is so easy is to drink, I can finish three of them without even realizing it. 

A drink recipe I came across is so perfectly "booze candy, it's ridiculous: Almond Joy Martini. I love the dark chocolate covered coconut and almond bar, so I love the idea. I haven't actually made it yet, as I don't have all the ingredients, but the next time I have a cocktail party, I'm sure Todd and I will have to give this a try.

Almond Joy Martini

Shake 1 oz. each of coconut-flavored rum (Parrot Bay or Malibu), Frangelico, Godiva or other chocolate-flavored liqueur, Hershey's chocolate syrup, and vodka. Add 4 oz. half and half or light cream, shake with ice, then strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with shredded coconut.