Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

In this episode of Chow-to, Guillermo visits a Greenwich Village institution for all things English, Tea and Sympathy. He meets with Nicky Perry (owner and founder) to learn her family’s easy recipe for beef shepherd’s pie (which technically in modern British English is a cottage pie). No matter what you call it, this quarantine-friendly comfort dish uses some ingredients you probably already have in your pantry, and will make you feel cozy all year round. This is an excellent way to make something delicious and inexpensive (you only need ground meat, potatoes, carrots and frozen peas!) that will last for a couple of days, making it perfect for cooking during lockdown.

We kick off our new mini-season of CHOW-TO with an episode about the Instagram-famous pancakes you've definitely seen in your feed. Back before the coronavirus pandemic shuttered restaurants in New York, senior video producer Guillermo Riveros visited Tom Yang, co-founder of Japanese ice cream shop Taiyaki, to learn how to make their ridiculously fluffy Japanese souffle pancakes. Since you're not able to stand in line to get these dreamy breakfast treats, you may as well make your own copycat creation at home! These are definitely the cure for all the brunch dates you've been missing during quarantine.

Superfood fads come and go, but the moringa plant (often referred to as the "miracle tree") has been used for centuries in countries like India for its alleged health benefits, including healing and cleaning wounds, preventing cancer, and potentially treating depression. For this episode, Guillermo visits Pondicheri in NYC, one of the first restaurants in the city to include moringa on their menu, to learn more about the green powder, and use it to prepare ice cream!

In the Armenian neighborhood of Glendale, Los Angeles, Armen and his family have been serving up mini kabobs to hungry to loyal customers for more than thirty years! Every morning they start whipping together fresh ingredients - fresh potatoes, red ripe tomatoes, and grandma’s special hummus recipe. We took a trip to this local attraction to witness their juicy skewers on the flaming grill and hear more about their generational story.

We visited Eggloo in Chinatown (NYC) to learn about their blue Earl Grey ice cream - watch what happens when you add some lemon juice to this dessert.