WHAT’S AN ADVENT CALENDAR? Advent, from the Latin word adventus, means “coming.” It’s a time of waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus, on Christmas Day. A tradition begun by Lutherans in Germany, the first known Advent calendar dates to 1851. Its purpose: to count down the 24 days of December […]
[1] This spicy cranberry mocktail, with muddled jalapeño, easily converts to cocktail. [2] Ocean Spray Cran-Cherry is also available in a diet version (both photos courtesy Ocean Spray). For non-alcoholic drinking during the holiday season, offer something more exciting than club soda or cider. Cranberry mocktails are especially popular during the holiday season, their […]
[1] A gift box of Tayst coffee has 20 to 60 biodegradable K-cups (photo by Mary Ann S. | Yelp). [2] Finally, the greenest person can use K-cups (photo courtesy Tayst Coffee). Committed environmentalists and those who try to live green are in a quandary: They may want the ease of single-serving K-cups, but […]
Growing up, we had pork chops for dinner once a week. Mom pan-fried them with a Dijon glaze, and served them with sides of caramelized onions and her skin-on, chunky mashed potatoes. Caramelized onions mixed into the mashed potatoes, by the way, generates an even better flavor experience greater than eating them separately. Some caramelized […]
Tribali foods was launched by a holistic nutritionist and vegetarian who sought to add meat back into her diet. But she wanted “clean” meats. That meant sourcing top organic cuts: grass-fed and grass-finished pastured beef, free-range chicken and humanely raised pork. She then created versatile, minimally-processed patties and sliders, and seasoned them global flavor combinations: […]
November 6th is National Nachos Day, In fact, the dish was invented by accent, when customers arrived at a restaurant after the kitchen had closed. The manager, named Nacho (the diminutive of Ignacio), threw together some ingredients in the fridge to feed the folks. The rest is history (here’s a bit more on history of […]
[1] Xocoveza, a coffee stout from Stone Brewing, has been described as “a liquid Christmas cookie” (photo courtesy Gear Patrol). [2] Amaro Obsidian Coffee Stout from Deschutes Brewery. [3] Breakfast Stout from Founders Brewing is a milk stout with coffee, although adding it to a bowl of cereal is a personal choice. [4] The simplest […]
[1] Miso snapper with steamed Asian vegetable mix. The recipe is below (photo courtesy IMUSA). [2] The original inspiration, Nobu’s black cod with miso (photo courtesy Nobu Restaurants). [3] Miso paste can be used in many dishes (photo courtesy Good Eggs). [4] Steamed Asian vegetables. This recipe from Julia’s Album serves them with peanut dressing. […]
November 3rd is National Sandwich Day, and we’re taking on a different type of sandwich: sandwich crackers. From our perspective, sandwich crackers (photo #1) get pushed into the kids’ snacks category, even though they’re tasty fun for everyone. We rarely come across them at our local news stands or supermarkets. In fact, the penultimate time […]
[1] Serve membrillo (top left) with a charcuterie and/or cheese board. You can serve it whole or pre-slice it (photo courtesy Volpi Foods). [2] Homemade membrillo from food photographer and stylist Melina Hammer. [3] Membrillo and the quince it is made from (photo courtesy Directo al Paladar). Membrillo (mem-BREE-yo) is a semisoft cheese condiment […]