I couple of days ago I went outside for my morning coffee wearing shorts and sandals but I had to immediately run back inside my apartment to put on warmer clothes and grab an umbrella. The weather has been pretty warm in NYC lately (the first day of summer is one week away!) but I took the opportunity of the rare chilly weather to cook one of my favorite soups for dinner: Barley Beer Beef Soup. It’s the perfect soup to eat on a drizzly day.

Here's our recipe for Chinese Chicken Lettuce wraps. They're healthy and easy to make and are super tasty. If you've been to the restaurant PF Chang's you've probably eaten them before and love them as much a we do. In China people eat lettuce wraps during the New Year holiday because the word for "lettuce" in chinese sounds like the word for "rising wealth". So if you eat these you're supposed to have a profitable year. After my dissapointing trip to the ATM this morning I doubt the effectiveness of these lettuce wraps at getting you rich but they sure were a huge hit at the picnic I brought them to last weekend. I like to roughly chop all the ingredients by hand so that everything is not the same size but if you don't have the patience you can throw everything (except the lettuce!) in a food processor to speed things up.

The Year of the Dragon is upon us! Coinciding with the lunar calendar, Chinese New Year starts today and celebrations will go on for the next 15 days all over the world. Mary Kate and I were really excited when our friend Jaden Hair asked us to write a guest post over at TLC's website for Chinese New Year. If you're not familiar with Jaden and you like eating, you should be. She's the behind the deliciously steamy Steamy Kitchen website and one of the hottest women in the food industry. We've been fortunate enough to meet her in New York where she hosts the NY Dumpling Festival every year and to cook a meal with her and her family at her beautiful home in Florida.

Lamb used to not be a meat I thought about cooking with. It can be on the expensive side and I thought I’d just rather eat beef or order rack of lamb at a restaurant rather than cook it. Then I traveled to Xinjiang Province in the northwest corner of China—a land populated by the Uighur people (pronounced wee-gur). They are of Turkic descent and carry with them culinary traditions rooted in ancient Middle Eastern techniques. Man, do they now how to serve up lamb!

Who doesn't love mashed potatoes? Imagine biting into a deliciously smooth and savory bite of mashed potatoes. Now imagine that wonderfully creamy bite with a slight crunch! In China's southern Yunnan province, Nate and I encountered these tasty tater tot-like fried mashed potato balls (傣味香辣土豆球, dai wei xiang la tu dou qiu). The insides are mashed potato-soft and the outside is just the right amount of crunch. It's a dish made by the Dai minority who largely populate the picturesque Xishuangbanna territory of Yunnan that borders Myanmar (Burma) in the South of China. The Dai peoples have a lot of similarities to the Thai and their fantastic Southeast Asian cuisine is largely unknown and under-appreciated in the world. Some of their other fantastic dishes can be found in our book, including Dai Pineapple Rice, and Grilled Banana Leaf Fish. These are dishes that are really rewarding to make because they are ones you can't find elsewhere and leave your guests asking for the recipe every time.

Fried Sichuan Green Beans (干煸四季豆, gan bian si ji dou) is one of those amazing dishes that you find in China and wonder why the heck Chinese food restaurants in the states don't catch on and make them! I've found it served in some restaurants in Chinatown New York, but never the Sichuan-style green beans that are so mouth-numbingly spicy and addicting you wonder if there's crack in them. It's always a crowd favorite (seriously, when Nate and I make them for people, we never have leftovers) and way better than a traditional green bean casserole.

The outsides of the beans fry crinkly and crispy and the combination of chiles and Sichuan (or Szechuan) peppercorns burst with Sichuan's signature ma la (mouth-numbingly spicy) flavor. 

Garnishing the glass with a red chili looks really cool. Just make sure to warn your guests to not eat the chile (unless you don't like them)!

Spicy, spicy, spicy! These Strawberry-Chile Cocktails are hands-down my favorite drink to fix for people during the winter when it's FREEZING outside. I love the way they look with the fresh red chile perched on the rim and they taste so delicous. Sweet fresh strawberries are pureed with a spicy red chile and mixed with vodka to create a cocktail with a serious kick. Their spiciness is sure to kick off any party. For a more summery flavor, try rum!

Nate and I have experimented with adding different amounts of red chile to the mix. When we tried blending one whole red chile in the cocktail, our faces were on fire. We couldn't even finish our drinks . . . and that's saying something because we're no softies when it comes to hot stuff. I like using a half of a red chile but only because I don't mind feeling like my mouth is engulfed in flames. A safe bet is using a fourth of a red chile (that's all Nate can handle). Don't worry, it's still hot! Whenever we make these for guests, we tell them NOT to eat the chile on the rim. Still, someone always does try to eat one!

At certain times of the year when they are out of season, small fresh red chilies can be hard to find at grocery stores in the states but don't be tempted to substitue a large pepper--it won't have the same kick.  Most specialty grocery stores will have them year-round. Look for "thai chilies" or "birds eye chilies".

1. Rest the upper third of one chopstick in the space between your thumb and index finger. Use the side of your thumb to apply pressure and smash the chopstick against the end of your ring finger.