Recipe: Chocolate-Espresso Snowballs

Chocolate-Espresso Snowballs

[I forgot to take a photo!]

 

I found this recipe I'd flagged in Food & Wine Magazine's December 2011 issue (p. 120).  I had all of the ingredients at home (butter, sugar, vanilla extract, flour, cocoa powder, espresso powder, salt, nuts, confectioners sugar) and thought I'd try it out since I needed to bring a dessert to a little get together this past week.  I substituted hazelnuts for pecans.

 

If you love Mexican Wedding cookies but wish there was a chocolate version, you'll absolutely love this recipe!  These are perfect with a cup of coffee . . .

 

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/chocolate-espresso-snowballs

Are you a super-taster?

Are you a super-taster? 

I'm not based on the first test below : (

Take these two tests to find out.
1. Take one packet of artificial sweetener and combine it with two-thirds of a cup of water. If the water tastes mostly sweet, you’re an under-taster. If bitterness dominates, you’re a super-taster. If you experience both flavors, you’re a normal taste.

2. Using a Q-tip dipped in blue food coloring, swab your tongue’s surface. In general, the bluer it looks, the fewer taste buds you have. The more pink spots (densely clustered), the more sensitive you are.

Source:  http://www.parade.com/health/2012/07/29-are-you-a-super-taster.html

Turning a $43 Box of Wine into a $600 Burgundy

I recently read the article "Trading Up: How I turned a $43 Box of Wine into a $600 Burgundy" in Food & Wine magazine (September 2012, p.74) -- at first, thinking that it was an essay on how to take a box of wine and age it to taste like an expensive Burgundy.  I was mistaken. 

It's a fun article on how the writer (who works at Christie's in their wine department), was given the challenge by Food & Wine to take a $43 box of wine and trade it up for more expensive wines until he reached his goal of obtaining a wine 1) he had never tried before and 2) one costing at least $500.

After 6 smart trades, he ends up with . . .  well, you'll have to read the article to find out!

Check Your Phone at the Door in Exchange for 5% Off Your Bill

Would you check your phone at the door of a restaurant in exchange for 5% off your bill?

Half the restaurant patrons at Eva Restaurant in L.A. do.

Owner and chef Mark Gold says, "For us, it's really not about people disrupting other guests. Eva is home, and we want to create that environment of home, and we want people to connect again.  It's about two people sitting together and just connecting, without the distraction of a phone, and we're trying to create an ambiance where you come in and really enjoy the experience and the food and the company."

I understand his point but still wouldn't check my phone at the door.  I like having it with me; plus, I often take photos of my food (don't worry, I do it discreetly and not at all at fine dining establishments).

L.A. restaurants pay customers to put away their phones

Drink Recipe: Blueberry Ginger Cocktail

This is my new drink of choice -- and I feel "healthy" drinking it because it has blueberries which are full of antioxidants.  Ginger is supposed to be good for you too.

• Take about a 1/4 cup of frozen wild blueberries (or regular blueberries), thaw them and place them in a glass.
• Add 1 1/2 oz of light rum
• Add a teaspoon of light brown sugar (you can omit this if you want to cut down on the sugar)
• Fill the glass with ice
• Top with Ginger Beer -- I recommend the Fever Tree brand
• Squeeze a little lemon on top
• Pour back and forth into a mixing tin or another glass

Enjoy!

I've also tried this with dark rum and dark brown sugar which give the drink a richer and deeper flavor which I like as well.

Food Dichotomy

Dinner tonight = a dichotomy. 

Filet mignon and Kraft Macaroni & Cheese.

Julia Child's New Biography "Dearie"

Julia Child was born August 15, 1912 and would have been 100 years old today.  She was the first "celebrity chef."

A new biography on Julia called Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child was released this month, and while I haven't read it, it's now on my list!

PARADE has published a long excerpt (the prologue) from the book to give us a taste.

Happy Birthday, Julia

Hatch Chile Festival

Dallasites, it is Hatch Chile Festival time at Central Market until August 21st!

Now, I've never cooked hatch chiles before and am not exactly sure how I would cook them; however, Central Market has recipe upon recipe of really interesting dishes.  Check it out here.  I'm going to try Tash's Hatch Chile Chicken Enchiladas recipe this week. . .

I did purchase some Hatch Chile tortillas (delicious) and also a Hatch Chile Chocolate bar just for kicks today.   (I was in the chocolate aisle looking for some interesting dark chocolate since I was reminded recently how chocolate has been linked to lower BMI.  The greatest news ever!)  I had really low expectations of the chocolate bar, thinking I wouldn't be able to taste the chiles, but wow - it was spicy and flavorful.  Really nice, rich chocolate -- and only $2!  Give it a try and let me know if you have any great hatch chile recipes I should try.

Happy National S'mores Day

In honor of National S'mores Day today, try this martini recipe -- one of my favorites!

Ingredients:

• Ice
• 1 1/2 oz Vodka
• 1/2 oz Bailey's Irish Cream
• 3/4 oz Monin Toasted Marshmallow Syrup
• 1/2 oz Hershey's Chocolate Syrup
• Splash of Half & Half
• Crushed Graham Crackers (for the rim)

Recipe:

• Take a martini glass and create swirls in the glass using the chocolate syrup.
• Dip the glass rim into a small plate of chocolate syrup or simple syrup and then into a plate of finely ground graham cracker crumbs (crush the graham crackers yourself or buy pre-crushed ones).
• Fill a cocktail mixing tin 2/3 with ice and pour in the ingredients above and shake.
• Strain into your pre-prepared martini glass.
• Garnish with a marshmallow on top ~ you can skewer it with a toothpick or stick.
• Enjoy!

Recipe: Tomato and Watermelon Salad

If you love watermelon and avocado as much as I do, you will LOVE this easy and refreshing summer salad we made last night.  It basically calls for watermelon, avocado, tomatoes, cucumber, fresh herbs (we used cilantro and basil), a pinch of ground coriander, and olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt & pepper.

Try it before watermelon is goes out of season!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Tomato-and-Watermelon-Salad-352389