The school I went to in Italy was attached to a hotel. That may sound strange, but with professors coming to teach from all over the world, perhaps they thought it simply made good business sense. Of course, it was the students who took most advantage of the lobby bar. We’d pop in for a quick espresso before class or convene for a spritz post-exam.

While it was far from the most luxe hotel bar on the planet — a bit dusty and outdated — it makes me happy just thinking about it. Then again, pretty much any hotel bar makes me swoon.

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I had long considered a fried egg the kind of breakfast (or lunch or dinner, to be honest) a delicacy that could dress up anything from a plate of hash to a simple salad and not the sort of thing you throw together for a crowd. But last year, one of our editors taught me a trick for cooking a big batch of fried eggs at once, turning this once solo dining luxury into a crowd-pleasing performance that does not even require a frying pan.

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Are you feeling stumped about what to get for your S.O. this Valentine’s Day? Chocolate and flowers feels so predictable, but you’re still suffering from a serious gift-giving holiday hangover. So while you really want to think of something totally original that’s going to make your loved one feel all the feels, what you really want is for someone else to think of that something for you. Allow us to help.

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From Apartment Therapy → How to Grow 100 Pounds of Potatoes in 4 Square Feet

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If you sometimes feel like you’re talking to a wall and no one is listening to you, you might need this new, voice-activated trash can from Simple Human.

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Inspired by one of our favorite soups, we’re breaking out the slow cooker for a warm, creamy, veggie-flecked cheese dip that will get your crowd cheering.

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Red velvet cake isn’t always distinguished as a chocolate cake, but cocoa powder is reportedly the cause of its namesake hue. Food historians suggest that the natural cocoa of the Victorian era, partnered with buttermilk, resulted in the cake’s burnished red hue and led to it being dubbed “red velvet cake.”

For us modern home cooks, who have many options when it comes to creating a red hue with anything from beets to red food coloring, it’s actually the cocoa that causes some confusion. How do you get the most chocolatey flavor? What’s the best option to create that desired color? What’s the most classic option? We’ve got the answer.

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The Greyhound is a simple drink — just grapefruit juice and vodka or gin. You can salt the rim and call it a Salty Dog, but for some that’s getting a little too fussy. The Greyhound wasn’t invented in Oakland, but some would argue it was perfected here at a funky little art gallery/cafe-turned-bar called Cafe Van Cleef.

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February is Black History Month, and this year something delicious is brewing to celebrate. Aaron Hutcherson, an editor at Tasting Table and blogger behind The Hungry Hutch, and Meiko, blogger behind Meiko and the Dish, have put together a virtual potluck that will feature new recipes from 28 black food bloggers from around the country (that means a recipe every day).

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The refs at the big game might end up throwing flag after flag, but we’ve got an idea that’ll keep your football-watching visitors happy well past the final play: penalty flag favors.

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