Tag Archives: Recipes

WATERCOLOR SNACKS by Volta Voloshin-Smith

From a syrup-drenched stack of fluffy pancakes and a perfectly golden-brown flaky croissant for breakfast to an overflowing bowl of comforting ramen (complete with egg, meat, mushrooms, and nori sheets!) for dinner and an adorably sweet three-layer frosted strawberry cake for dessert, Watercolor Snacks: Inspiring Lessons for Sketching and Painting Your Favorite Foods [978-1681987156, $24.95, Rocky Nook, July 2021] by Volta Voloshin-Smith details everything needed to create mouthwatering images for every meal of the day.

Perfect for food lovers, beginning artists, and anyone who wants to explore the world of watercolors through easy and accessible prompts and exercises, Watercolor Snacks is a colorful guide that walks you through basic techniques and how to apply them to create beautiful, delicious-looking paintings. Noted artist and instructor Volta Voloshin-Smith shares step-by-step lessons for sketching and painting 35+ foods for breakfast, lunch, snacks, dinner, dessert, and drinks.

Voloshin-Smith, who grew up in Moldova during the dissolution of the Soviet Union before moving to the US in 2002, is the founder of Color Snack, her creative agency where she makes ready-made prints and commissions.

“I love painting foods because it’s a way to celebrate people’s culture and create community,” she said. “My favorite part about food is being able to share a meal with someone else. Food brings people together and I try to celebrate that fact and also the ingredients with watercolor illustrations and animations.”

The first of its kind, this book also includes recommended watercolor supplies, basic watercolor techniques, color theory basics, and common watercolor problems and solutions.

Gather your supplies and your favorite snack, and take a bite out of this tasty guide as you create watercolor paintings of your favorite treats!

For more information click here

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The Hard Seltzer Cocktail Book

An ice-cold, sparkling hard seltzer is a tasty, low-cal, refreshing treat on its own. And now, these canned beverages are getting a mixed-drink makeover, thanks to The Hard Seltzer Cocktail Book: 55 Unofficial Recipes for White Claw® Slushies, Truly® Mixers, and More Spiked-Seltzer Drinks by Casie Vogel. The first of its kind, The Hard Seltzer Cocktail Book is your go-to resource for transforming your favorite alcoholic seltzers into deliciously fun cocktails. Whether you’re a fan of Truly®, White Claw®, Vizzy®, or Bud Light Seltzer®, there’s something for everyone with these easy-to-make recipes, including:
♦ Fizzy Fuzzy Navels
♦ Watermelon Sugar Slushy
♦ Feelin’ Bubbly Aperol Raspberry Float
♦ Millennial Cosmo
♦ Summer in Moscow Mules
♦ Truly LIIT (Long Island Iced Tea)
♦ Fizzier French 75, and much more!

Author Casie Vogel, lover of all things carbonated, shares her expertise to help you live your best seltzer life. “Nothing sounds sweeter than the crack of that slim aluminum can. Spring, summer, whatever time of year, it’s hard seltzer season,” she said. At 4 to 6 percent alcohol content, it’s an easy beverage to imbibe anytime of day. “But sometimes you have to take it up a notch…or several,” she said. “What’s the right ratio? What actually tastes like a cocktail, doesn’t skimp, but also doesn’t immediately send you to blackout town? That’s where my help comes in. The recipes are dangerously delicious and designed to get the party going, whether it’s a Friday night pregame or your next big party—or if it’s just been a tough day (girl, you do you). Pick up this book and let’s get bubbly.” The recipes are organized into four different chapters—Boozy Brunch, Summer Slushies, Classy Classics, and Pregame & Party—based on the potential party or day-drinking situation you’ve found yourself in. With the exception of a few single-serving cocktails and the batch “party” cocktails, most of the recipes call for one 12-ounce can of hard seltzer and serve two. The Hard Seltzer Cocktail Book offers everything you need to add a little snap, sparkle, and pop to your favorite cocktails.

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Virtual Record Broken – True Aussie

What an AUSSOME night! Thank you to everyone who joined us on January 26 for our World’s Largest Dinner Party world record attempt. It was a food-filled night with our mates, Jet Tila, Aaron Brooks, Renee Scharoff, Shereen Pavlides and more.

Now we wait for accreditation.

Meanwhile, it’s almost Valentine’s Day.

A date night in sounds perfect for Cupid’s day, yes? Cook up a delicious grassfed steak or serve the perfect Aussie lamb rack for just the two of you. Pair with a deep red wine and roses and you’re golden.

We can help! Check out our favorite Australian beef and lamb recipes to wow your valentine. Just visit our website to see them.

For more information click here

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Procrastibaking

Our holidays look different this year – and so do our place settings, ingredient quantities, and levels of patience. Enter Erin Gardner, former pastry chef, baking and cake design instructor, and author of Procrastibaking: 100 Recipes for Getting Nothing Done in the Most Delicious Way Possible (March 2020, Atria Books). Erin has created several low-stress and absolutely delicious ways to approach baking in this new holiday landscape:

· If you’re celebrating the holidays alone or in a smaller group than you’re used to, she’s downsized some of her most popular recipes including her Olive Oil Apple Snack Cake, Double Chocolate Mint Cookies, a Giant (Mini) Cinnamon Roll Scone, Gingersnaps, and more.

· If you’re far away from family members and want to send them a sweet treat, she’s compiled recipes that store and travel well. Recipes include Granola Bars, Almond Biscotti, Neapolitan Marshmallows, and Sunflower Toffee.

· For a unique gift idea for local friends and family, she suggests you drop off festive containers with balls of frozen cookie or scone dough. Recipes perfect for freezing include Cinnamon Roll Scones, Roasted Tomato Scones, Soft Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies, Double-Chocolate Mint Cookies, and Ginger Sandies.

And, from now until Christmas, she’s running the Procrastibakers Super Snuggly Socially Isolated Holiday Baking Club, which will be a community gathered around her Instagram account, @erin.bakes. Every Wednesday, she’ll feature reduced-size recipes from Procrastibaking and more pandemic isolation-friendly baking ideas. Users who post pictures of their baked goods with the hashtag #procrastibakersclub are automatically entered to win weekly book giveaways and other prizes.

Erin was named one of the best wedding cake makers by both Martha Stewart Weddings and Brides; she’s competed and won the Food Network show Sweet Genius. Now, she’s here to guide us through the far less glamorous task of enjoying the holidays in the home kitchens we haven’t really left in months: She really does it all. In March, The New York Times called Procrastibaking “The delicious distraction we need these days,” and that still couldn’t be truer.

For more information click here

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Snowy River Cocktails Releases Fall/Winter 2020 Cocktail Recipes

Snowy River Cocktails, an award-winning line of all-natural cocktail decorating products including glitters, colorful salt and sugar rimmers and beverage colors as well as cocktail flavors and syrups, has released new cocktail recipes for Fall/Winter 2020. Recipes for coffee-rum Pirates Bounty, an Italian-inspired Chocolate Orange Martini, and rye-based local favorite, TheUnity, are now available at https://snowyrivercocktails.com/cocktail-ideas/.

Professional and amateur mixologists and bartenders use Snowy River Cocktails’ large range of products to create eye-catching cocktails and mocktails. The products are ideal for adding an extra element of color, sparkle and style in commercial and home bars as well as at special events, weddings, holiday dinners, gender reveals and more.

“These days, chefs and bartenders know that their food and beverage creations need to be as beautiful as they are tasty. It’s a great organic marketing tool for bars, restaurants and caterers to serve Instagram-ready food and drinks. Unique, beautifully colored cocktails are conversation-starters and they draw in crowds and new business,” said Stuart Cutler, founder of Washington-based Snowy River Cocktails. “The cocktails created with our products make any dinner or event really stand-out. The creative event host can find endless uses for them. From creating shimmering cocktails to match bridesmaid dresses at a wedding to dying beer in football team colors for a Super Bowl party to using one of our customizable edible cocktail topper designs to produce a spooky Halloween drink. The possibilities are endless.”

Snowy River Cocktails won six double gold medals at the 2019 PR%F Awards in Las Vegas. All of the family-owned business’ products are made in the USA, naturally colored using real fruit and vegetable-based colorants, gluten-free and certified Kosher by Va’ad Harabanim of Greater Seattle. Snowy River Cocktail Co currently retails and serves its signature cocktails at its two SRCC Craft Cocktail Bars in Washington: a Seattle flagship (2137 2nd Avenue) and a location in its hometown of Bellingham (100 N Commercial Street).

For more information click here

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411 on Mezcal – Izo Agave Spirits

Enjoyed for centuries throughout Mexico, it wasn’t until 1994 that the Mexican government officially applied the name “Mezcal” to the agave spirits made in nine specific Mexican states, including Martinez’s home city of Durango. Today, any agave spirit originating outside of these designated states cannot be called Mezcal. IZO Agave Spirits brings a distinctive approach to producing a pure, all-natural Mezcal Joven perfect for all occasions!

“Mezcal stands out as a distinctly versatile spirit,” explains Martinez. “IZO’s clean, smooth agave flavor blends seamlessly into mixed cocktails and goes does smooth in a shot glass, but its complex flavor is best savored by the sip. This is not true of all Mezcal, because the taste, texture, and profile of each are very different depending on the agave used and the exact process by which it is made.”

Try IZO Mezcal Joven in a delightfully tart Margarizo using:

2 oz IZO Mezcal Joven
1 lime
½ oz Triple Sec

Simply cut the lime in half, reserving a slice for garnish. Salt the rim of a small glass filled with ice. Place additional ice into a shaker, then fill it with the fresh-squeezed lime juice, Mezcal, and Triple Sec. Shake and strain the liquid into the glass. Add the lime slice garnish and enjoy!

For more information click here

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3 TOTALLY OFF-THE-WALL COCKTAILS YOU NEED TO TRY

The secret behind these delicious adult beverages? Surprising mixers that are surprisingly good for you

They’re cozy, they’re delightfully tasty, and they’re definitely the most unique cocktails you’ll mix this season. Say “cheers!” to the brilliant folks at KAYCO (www.kayco.com), who came up with a trio of toast-worthy mixed drinks starring today’s trendiest beverages – watermelon juice and beet juice.

Wait – did we just say watermelon juice and beet juice? Well, consider today’s unquenchable consumer demand for clean, healthy, and flavorful new refreshment options. Wonder Melon and Beetology have become the “it” drinks when it comes to 100% all-natural superfoods. And they’re flying off the shelves.

Available in a selection of tantalizing varieties, these juice-powered beverages tickle everyone’s taste buds while delivering a powerhouse of nutrients. They’re sensational “straight up” or with ice. So why not push the envelope into cocktail territory?

This holiday season, go ahead and punch up your craft cocktail menu with the Spiced Wonder Melon Vodka Punch, raise a glass (and eyebrows) with the Whiskey Beet Cocktail, or warm up a nippy night with the Beetology Berry Sangria. See recipes below.

All Beetology and Wonder Melon products are cold-pressed, 100% non-GMO, U.S.D.A. Certified Organic, and Certified Fair Trade. They are non-soy, non-dairy, and certified kosher, and contain no preservatives, additives, sweeteners, artificial colors, or flavors.

Check out WonderMelonjuice.com and Beetology.com for store locators and additional product information.

Cheers – To your health!

Beetology Berry Sangria

Ingredients:

2 cups fresh blackberries
1 orange, sliced
1 cup pomegranate arils (seeds)
½ cup brandy, rum, vodka (optional)
1 (8.75 oz.) bottle Beetology (Beet + Berry, Beet + Cherry, or Beet + Tropical Fruit recommended)
1 bottle red wine
Unflavored club soda or seltzer
Fresh thyme to garnish (optional)

Instructions:

Add the blackberries, orange slices, and pomegranate arils to a large pitcher. Add the brandy/rum/or vodka (optional) and Beetology juice and gently muddle to extract the flavors of the fruit into the juice and alcohol.
Pour the red wine into the pitcher and stir to combine. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
When ready to serve, fill a glass ¾-way full with sangria. Top off each glass with bubbly water, if desired. Garnish with fresh thyme, if desired.
Whiskey Beet Cocktail

Ingredients:

¼ cup pomegranate arils (seeds)
¼ cup fresh cranberries
2 Tbsp. simple syrup (or honey)
4 oz. Beetology Beet+Ginger+Honey Juice
4 oz. Whiskey
Ice
Tonic water
Instructions:

Muddle the pomegranate arils, cranberries, simple syrup (or honey), and beet juice in a cocktail shaker.
Add whiskey to the shaker and fill with ice. Shake well.
Fill two Old Fashioned glasses with ice and strain the chilled cocktail into each glass, dividing equally between the two.
Top each drink with tonic water. Serve garnished with sliced lemon and additional fresh cranberries and pomegranate arils, if desired.
Spiced Wonder Melon Vodka Punch

Ingredients:

½ cup vodka
1 lime, juiced
2 cups Wonder Melon, Lemon-Cayenne flavor
1 cup lemon sparkling water
4 cinnamon sticks
Lime and lemon slices
Instructions:

Combine the vodka, lime juice, and Wonder Melon in a pitcher.
Divide between 4 glasses and top each glass with 2 ounces of sparkling water.
Garnish with a cinnamon stick, lemon, and lime slices.

For more information click here

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Imbibe with your tribe

Kafina Organic Elixir has modified several popular holiday drinks with a plant-based “vegan” and well being twist to create a healthy alternative for you to have and serve. We have included an egg-less Eggnog to sip while trimming the tree, a delicious Espresso Martini for a festive before the dinner drink and a twist to a White Russian for sipping by the fire. Available: www.kafinaenergy.com Price: 8-Pack $25; 32-Pack $92

Kafina Vegan Eggnog or the Egg(less)nog (Makes 4-6 Drinks)

Ingredients:

  • 2 Cans of 15 ounces of Coconut Milk
  • 1 Bottle of Kafina Energy Elixir
  • 2 Ounces of Rum
  • 1/2 Cup of water
  • 6 Tablespoons of Maple Syrup
  • 1/2 Teaspoon of Nutmeg
  • 1/2 Teaspoon of Cinnamon

Directions:

  • Blend ingredients and chill for an hour.
  • Pour into your favorite holiday glasses.
  • Finish off with a sprinkle of nutmeg and a sprig of rosemary or other garnish.

Kafina Expresso Martini Topped

Ingredients

  • 2 Ounces of Vodka
  • 1/2 Ounce of Kafina Energy Elixir
  • 1/2 Ounce of Simple Syrup
  • 1/2 Ounce of Coffee
  • 1 Ounce of Espresso

Topper:

  • 3 Coffee Beans

Directions:

  • Add ingredients in a martini shaker with ice and shake.
  • Use the shaker strainer and pout into a martini glass.
  • Take the three beans and place them in the middle of the drink!
  • Voila!

The Kafina Vegan White Russian

Ingredients

  • 1/2 Ounce of Vodka
  • 1/2 Ounce of Kafina Energy Elixir
  • 1/2 Ounce of Kahlua Liquor or other Vegan Coffee Liquor
  • 1/2 Cup of Coconut Milk

Topper:

  • 1 Teaspoon of Pumpkin Spice for Topping

Directions:

  • Shake Coconut Milk in a separate glass or jar. Set aside.
  • Shake the Vodka, Kafina, Kahlua in a martini glass and pour over ice.
  • Pour the Coconut Milk into the glass and let it meld into the liquor and elixir.
  • Top with Pumpkin Spice.

NOTE: Kahlua is vegan friendly except for the following products: Kahlua Drinks to Go and Ready-to-Drink, which contain milk proteins ok for vegetarians not vegans. Kahlúa Drinks-to-Go (DTGs) and the Kahlúa Ready-to-Drink (RTDs) contain milk proteins. Kahlua Especial and Mocha ARE vegan.

For more information click here

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Mighty Sesame Squeezable Tahini

Recently, a food journalist/influencer wrote about Mighty Sesame Tahini Dressings in squeezable bottles. The verdict: “I was ecstatic,” said the hummus lover enthusiastically. “Tahini you don’t have to mix is a game-changer.”

That got the people at The Mighty Sesame Company thinking. With the Super Bowl right around the corner, squeezable tahini is an MVP when it comes to making any party easier, tastier, and healthier. After all, unlike other brands, Mighty Sesame doesn’t separate, so it’s always perfectly blended and ready to use. No mixing, no stirring, no problem!

American foodies know there’s a tahini revolution afoot. The creamy, decadent condiment usually takes center stage in Middle Eastern dishes like hummus and falafel. But in fact, it’s perfectly at home in a variety of sweet and savory dishes.

We recently spoke to Vicky Cohen and Ruth Fox, authors of the popular cookbook Tahini and Turmeric, and asked why tahini is such a great ingredient to work with? They told us, “One of the things we love the most about tahini, besides its incredibly addicting nutty flavor, is its versatility. It can be used in sweet and savory applications. Besides using it to make hummus, tahini is great in salad dressings, as a sauce for sandwiches or tacos, or simply spread over toast with your favorite jam or date syrup!

Tahini also adds fabulous flavor to cookies, cakes, shakes, bars, mousses, and even granola. The possibilities are endless!” (Cohen and Fox are the authors of Tahini & Turmeric, 101Middle Eastern Classics Made Irresistibly Vegan and Founders of the Blog Mayihavethatrecipe.com).

And that’s where Mighty Sesame comes into play at your Super Bowl party. This year, kick off the fun with tahini dips like Sweet ‘n Sour Tahini sauce served with crunchy cauliflower , then score with halftime soups and salads such as Cucumber salad with Miso-Tahini dressing, Marinated entrees like Fish Tacos with Tahini and Siracha, or Chicken Breast Baguette Hero sandwich drizzled with Tahini are sure to be tahini touchdowns. Extra points, of course, for tahini-based desserts like Tahini-walnut brownies or Tahini cookies.

Best of all, tahini is a superfood. Made from one ingredient, 100% roasted sesame seeds, Mighty Sesame Tahini is loaded with plant-based protein, calcium and other vitamins and minerals. All varieties (Original fine and Whole seed) are, vegan, gluten- and dairy-free, kosher, and halal.

Find squeezable tahini and other Mighty Sesame products at Walmart, Whole Foods, Wegmans, and other retail outlets. They are distributed by Kayco, the top purveyor of kosher foods in America.

For more information click here

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