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Dress Your Table With Cinnamon and Roses

partysugar — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:15:33 -0700

Walking around the tasting tent at the Food Network NYC Food and Wine Festival, I came across a fabulous decorating idea - it's perfect for Fall or the holidays - that I plan to re-create in a tablescape. You can to, here's how to:

Start by covering the table with a simple cloth. Arrange a thin layer of gauzy fabric over the tablecloth.
Sprinkle the table with rose petals in a color that matches the party's theme. Place the cinnamon sticks around the rose petals.

This is an inspiring idea that can translate into many different table decorations. You could wrap twine around cloth napkins and place a cinnamon stick inside each one. Or make placecard holders by cutting a slit into the side of the cinnamon and sliding a piece of labeled cardstock inside. What do you think? Have you ever used cinnamon sticks as party decor?

Must-Read: Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey

YumSugar — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 03:30:04 -0800

Party recently polled you about dessert preferences, and it came as no surprise that most of you love dessert in any form. Many of you, however, singled out gooey, sticky sweets as your preference. Naturally, I had this in mind when I came across Sticky, Chewy, Messy, Gooey: Desserts for the Serious Sweet Tooth ($15.61) by pastry chef Jill O'Connor. To find out what I thought of this collection of puddings, cookies, cakes, and sweet pies, read more.

Pros:

Helpful primer explains everything from the differences between types of cocoa powder to the best bristles for a pastry brush.
Desserts strive to be complex, with innovative, sophisticated flavor pairings.
Whimsical, vintage-inspired graphic design makes for an aesthetically pleasing book.
O'Connell adds plenty of personal flourish, telling amusing anecdotes, explaining the story behind every recipe, and sprinkling poignant quips about desserts along the way.

Cons:

Some recipes, like Cap-n Crunch Crispy Treats, are basic, but others - such as a three-page recipe for Coconut Cream Puffs - are tricky and complex.
Unless you're cooking for a party of eight, you may need to cut the recipes in half.
As pretty as the typography is, the ingredient list is written in such small font that it can be difficult to read quickly.
Rather than being easily numbered, the steps are written in paragraph form.

Recipes: The recipes cover just about everything. A few that left my mouth watering:

Chocolate Mascarpone Cheesecake Pots With Shortbread Spoons
Coconut Milk-Cream Cheese Flan
Milky Way Tempura-on-a-Stick
White Trash Panini
Gingersnap Dulce de Leche Ice Cream Sandwiches
Dark Chocolate Soup With Cinnamon-Toasted Pound Cake Croutons
Double-Crumble Hot Apple Pies
Sweet Pink Grapefruit-Tangerine Mousse With Phyllo Ruffles

Imagery: Although only a third of the recipes have pictures, the photographs are vivid, lush, and beautifully arranged.

Overall Rating: If you're a dessert fanatic looking to experiment with creative recipes, this would be the perfect cookbook to turn to. It would also make a gracious hostess gift.

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Reader's Recipe: Sesame-seared Tuna with Coconut Rice

YumSugar — Tue, 27 Feb 2007 14:57:09 -0800

There are a few dishes out there that, no matter how full I am, I can always seem to find room for more. One of these dishes is tuna, just about any kind of tuna. Be it raw, seared, baked, or grilled, as long as it's tuna I love it. So when I saw that reader WhiplashGirlchild posted a recipe for Sesame-seared tuna with coconut rice I knew it was going to be a winner. To check out the recipe for this and a snow pea salad too, read more

Recipe submitted by reader WhiplashGirlchild

Last night, the boyfriend and I met friends at Jones, my favorite restaurant in Philly.

I ordered one of my favorite dishes there last night, the sesame-seared tuna with coconut rice, snow pea salad and wasabi-sweet soy sauce. They won't share the recipe with me, but I went online and found some very similar recipes. It sounds pretty easy, and I assure you, it's delicious!

TUNA

1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin (Japanese sweet wine)
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons sesame oil
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
4 (6 ounce) tuna steaks
1/2 cup sesame seeds
wasabi paste
1 tablespoon olive oil

In a small bowl, stir together the soy sauce, mirin, honey and sesame oil. Divide into two equal parts. Stir the rice vinegar into one part and set aside as a dipping sauce.

Spread the sesame seeds out on a plate. Coat the tuna steaks with the remaining soy sauce mixture, then press into the sesame seeds to coat.

Heat olive oil in a cast iron skillet over high heat until very hot. Place steaks in the pan, and sear for about 30 seconds on each side. Serve with the dipping sauce and wasabi paste.

Source

RICE

Home-style Caribbean fare is often accompanied by coconut rice, a wonderful side dish to temper the heat of spicy food. Pair it with the spicy okra for a simple and satisfying vegetarian meal.

2 cups long-grain rice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 (13- to 14-oz) can unsweetened coconut milk
1 cup water
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick
1/4 teaspoon salt

Rinse rice in a sieve under cold running water 2 to 3 minutes, then drain well.

Melt butter in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan over moderately high heat. Add rice and cook, stirring constantly, until it becomes opaque, about 3 minutes.

Stir in coconut milk, water, cinnamon, and salt and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, 20 minutes, then remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick and fluff rice with a fork.

Makes 8 side-dish servings.

Source

SNOW PEA SALAD

1 pound snow peas, trimmed
1/4 cup sesame seeds, toasted
1 teaspoon sesame oil
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon mirin or dry sherry
2 teaspoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
a few gratings of fresh ginger

Steam the snow peas for NO MORE than 1 minute; then rinse them quickly under cold water and drain them well. Your goal here is to have them seem raw without being obnoxiously so. T

oss the drained snow peas with the toasted sesame seeds.

In a medium bowl, combine the other ingredients and toss the snow peas with them. Let the salad sit for at least 30 minutes before serving at room temperature.

Can also chill for a few hours and serve it cold.

Serves 4-6

Source

Come Party With Me: Classic Thanksgiving - Menu (Other Sides)

partysugar — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 06:18:33 -0800

Besides mashed and sweet potato sides, no Thanksgiving meal is complete without the quintessential cranberry sauce. My fragrant recipe is flavored with fresh squeezed orange juice, brown sugar, and cinnamon sticks. The whole house will smell warm and delicious while this sauce bubbles away on the stove.

You could serve a crisp salad or creamed spinach, but sautéed green beans are the definitive Thanksgiving vegetable. Tossed with garlic, onion, and bread crumbs, these green beans are a crisp, melt in your mouth side dish. Get the recipes to both when you, read more

Cranberry Sauce
From Elena Osterreicher

2 12 ounce packages fresh cranberries
1 orange, zested
2 cups fresh squeezed orange juice
2 cups packed brown sugar
3 cinnamon sticks

In a medium saucepan, add all of the ingredients and stir to combine.
Add enough water to cover the mixture and bring to a boil over high heat.
Reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about an hour.
Taste the sauce for sweetness and adjust if necessary. If too tart, add a bit more sugar; if too sweet, add a bit more juice.
Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is nice and thick in consistency, another 30 minutes to an hour*.
Let mixture cool and serve with turkey, mashed potatoes, etc.

Serves 20-24.

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Sauteed Green Beans
From Gay Lea

1/3 cup butter
1 cup coarse fresh breadcrumbs
1 small onion finely chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 lb fresh green beans, trimmed
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock

For breadcrumbs: melt 2 tbsp of the butter in skillet over medium heat; add breadcrumbs.
Cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes or until breadcrumbs are toasted and golden. Remove from skillet; set aside.
Melt 3 tbsp of butter in skillet. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, for 3 minutes.
Add green beans; cook, stirring, for 3 minutes.
Pour in stock. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered for about 8 minutes or until beans are almost tender.
Uncover and cook, stirring, for 3 to 5 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and beans are tender. Stir in remaining butter until well glazed.
Transfer beans to serving platter. Sprinkle with toasted breadcrumbs.

Serves 4-6.

Print recipe with images | without images

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Do You Use Recipes Written In Paragraph Format?

partysugar — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 10:01:38 -0700

I hate it when a recipe is written as a story with the ingredients in the paragraphs. Example: Combine 3 cups of flour with 1 stick of butter, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. It drives me insane that I have to search for the ingredients and I absolutely refuse to make anything from one of these recipes. Am I the only one who is bothered by it? Do you use recipes written in paragraph format?

Image Source

The Next Food Network Star - 3.3 Recap

YumSugar — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 11:03:18 -0700

Last night's episode of The Next Food Network Star saw the Food Network hopefuls prepping signature chocolate dishes for NBA royalty, as well as serving up courtside food for the fans. It also took us from eight chefs down to six. That's right, in one fell swoop we lost two contestants. So who went home and who got to stick around in hopes of becoming a star? To get my full recap, read more

Everything kicks off with the chefs being greeted by last year's FNS winner, and current Food Network darling, Guy Fieri, who is quickly joined by NBA star Darryl "Chocolate Thunder" Dawkins. They immediately inform the chefs that they have 45 minutes to create a chocolate dish that reflects their point of view. Once the dishes are finished, they then have 30 seconds to present it, along with a tip on chocolate, to the camera. Some of the contestants nail it, while others completely miss the mark (Michael didn't even look at the camera). Once everyone is done, it's JAG - who even snuck in an "It'll be a knock out baby!" catch phrase - who wins with his Mexican styled tempura with chocolate mole sauce.

After the chocolate challenge, they are given $300 to create a dish to serve, in hot-dog vendor style carts, at the next New Jersey Nets basketball game.

Once the food is prepped, they go about "selling" it to the customers. I'm not sure how Tommy thought anyone could eat a sandwich with a softball-sized meatball in it, but he did. Amy also thought Nets fans would be into quesadillas made with goat cheese. Paul almost poisons everyone with undercooked burgers, and I just loved how Rory specifically wore a low-cut shirt to help her sell!

In the end Adrien is declared victor with bacon wrapped mushrooms (see?! everything tastes better with bacon!) and the sadly lackluster Tommy and the spacey Colombe (who actually said, "Where might I find cinnamon? They're all alphabetized.") are asked to leave.

Right now nothing's certain, but I think I'm rooting for Adrien - he seems pretty likable and the camera loves him. Also, I feel pretty confident in saying that even if JAG turns out to be the most talented of the bunch, he's too much like Guy Fieri to win and unless Paul tones it down soon, he'll be "spinning out" sooner rather than later. What do you guys think? Who's your favorite?

Oh and my favorite part of the episode? When Colombe tells Guy the chips and sauce are store-bought and Guy asks her what she's actually cooking. Hrmmm... I'm guessing Guy and Food Network's Sandra Lee don't see eye to eye?

More Free Ice Cream!

YumSugar — Thu, 10 May 2007 15:58:39 -0700

If you missed out on any of the other free ice cream days, now's your chance! Mark your calendars because next Tuesday (May 15), between 4-8pm, Häagen-Dazs will be giving away free scoops of their new flavors. The two flavors are Cinnamon Dulce de Leche and Sticky Toffee Pudding - both sound great, but there are morsels of brown sugar cake in the Sticky Toffee Pudding! Locate a Häagen-Dazs near you.

So why are they doing this? Well according to Josh Gellert, BranD Manager for Häagen-Dazs,

"When people treat themselves to an ice cream, many stick to old favorites, like chocolate and vanilla, while we admire the 'flavor loyalists' who clearly know what they like, Haagen-Dazs New Flavor Day gives customers an opportunity to venture beyond their usual choices and try one of our newest flavors -- maybe they'll find they have a new favorite!"

Sounds like a good enough reason to me!

Source: PR Newswire - Thanks to Joery for the tip!

Spring Cleaning - Clean Out the Kitchen and Spice Rack!

YumSugar — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 00:08:37 -0700

Boing!!!
In case you were wondering, that's the sound of a spring. Today, March 21, is the first day of spring and although I love spring, one of the things I don't enjoy 100% is spring cleaning. But the joy of opening up the windows and letting the light in is accompanied by the observation of all those grimy spots that you just never noticed when it was dark and dim during winter. So, do yourself a favor and wipe down the walls, dust off the shelves, wipe down the blinds, clean the oven and the fridge and all those other big-time chores that you've been putting off. Although I dislike spring cleaning (oh who am I kidding, I pretty much hate cleaning whether its spring, summer, or fall), one of the things that I always do (always=once before, but I'm hoping it becomes a tradition) is clean out my spice rack.

To check out my tips for clearing out your spice rack, and yes, old spices need to be cleared on out, read more

Okay, so you've got a bunch of spices that you've had in your cupboard forever and ever. How do you know when it's time to toss them? Well, believe it or not, ground spices/herbs are best the first 3-4 months after they've been opened and will really only retain their flavor for about a year (maybe a little longer for spices). They won't hurt you in any way (unless they've been infested with bugs, which means just toss and replace), but their potency will have weakened. Whole spices (nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, etc.) should last about three years. Seeds (such as sesame and poppy) can go rancid; so if you're unsure about them, don't risk it. Baking powder lasts 6 months and baking soda 18 months. Oh and salt? That guy can stay; his pal seasoned salt only gets to hang out for a year.

Since you're spring cleaning, toss out anything that has been in your cupboard for a long time and start over. When you buy replacement spices, be sure to label the purchase date on the bottle, this way you won't have to do the sniff/taste test to see if they're still good.

Have a question about a specific spice? Drop us a line, or leave a comment below!

Wrigleys "5" Gum Will Make You All Tingly

YumSugar — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 03:31:18 -0700

This summer we'll all be able to say "ooh that makes my mouth tingle." At least we will if we have a piece of Wrigleys new gum "5" (yep, that's the name, no letters, just the number 5). The gum claims to have longer-lasting flavor and "sensations you can feel as you chew." It will be available in three flavors Rain (tingly spearmint), Cobalt (cooling peppermint) and Flare (warming cinnamon) and come in a 15 stick envelope pack (which is apparently the first for the gum industry).

According to the press release:

In our testing, teens and young adults have told us they love everything about 5 - from the unique tingling, cooling or warming sensations that accompany its delicious and especially long-lasting flavors to its bold graphics to its sleek, revolutionary packaging.

To be honest I go through pretty big gum chewing phases and I know that I'm going to have to check this out.

Source: Trendhunter

Say Farewell to Old Spices

YumSugar — Wed, 17 Jan 2007 12:32:09 -0800

The other day reader Marni dropped a line asking whether or not her mostly unopened spice rack she received four years ago was still good. I started to respond to her, when I realized that she's probably not the only one wondering how long spices last.

First of all, spices don't necessarily "go bad." Those spices you've got stored in the back of the cabinet won't harm you, however, they do lose their potency and flavor. As a general rule, most ground herbs and spices will retain their flavor for about a year and three years for whole spices (whole nutmeg, cinnamon sticks, etc). However you'll find the best potency in the first three to four months. If sealed and unopened, ground spices may last two years. A good trick is to write the date of your purchase on the spices and toss them out a year after opening and two if unopened.

Another important factor in a spice's life is storage. Spices need to be stored in a cool, dark place away from heat and moisture. The spices you've got in the fancy glass jars on the kitchen counter (you know, the ones that get all that sunlight) are going to have an even shorter lifespan. The heat and light will suck the flavor out faster than you realize. The refrigerator is also not a great place for storage as the humidity can harm the spices as well.

And although most spices won't hurt you when they're old, seeds such as sesame and poppy can go rancid, so if you're unsure of them, toss them out!