Tundra from First Alert: your first defense
against kitchen fires.

Cooking for Thanksgiving? Stove fires are the number one cause of home fires in the U.S. We’ve had one in THE NIBBLE kitchen.

Here’s an important tip from The National Consumers League: Keep an oven mitt and a large pot lid next to the stove. If a small fire starts in a pan, turn off the burner. Wear the oven mitt while carefully sliding the lid over the pan to smother the flame.

Never pour water on a grease fire and never use a fire extinguisher on a pan fire—it can spray or shoot burning grease around the kitchen and end up spreading the fire.

Also make sure you have a kitchen fire extinguisher nearby. When our fire started, we lost valuable minutes trying to figure out how to work the fire extinguisher. That’s why we were thrilled to discover the Tundra—a push-button aerosol can that anyone, from children to the elderly, can handle. We’ll never be without it again.

According to a 2009 Vegetarian Resource Group/Harris Interactive survey, about 3% of the U.S. adult population is vegetarian. If you’ve invited a vegetarian to enjoy your turkey dinner, plan ahead with these tips from nutrition expert Gary Null.

A vegetarian does not eat any type of animal flesh, whether from fish, fowl or other animals, although some individuals choose to eat dairy and/or egg products. This includes lard, chicken and beef stock and some prepared salad dressings.

With the vegan Celebration Roast, you still
get leftovers for sandwiches the next day. Photo by Hannah Kaminsky | THE NIBBLE.

A vegan (pronounced VEE-gun) eats no animal-derived products, including honey, gelatin (used in desserts and marshmallows) and red food dyes derived from cochineal. If there is an animal-derived ingredient in a dish, no matter how small the amount, be certain to let your guest know.

Most importantly, the Thanksgiving dinner table is not the time to discuss why someone is a vegetarian. Some choose this diet for ethical or animal rights reasons. Others may be motivated by religious, environmental and/or health considerations. Some simply don’t like meat. If you really want to know why your guest has made this choice, ask another day—and if anyone else brings up the topic, steer the conversation to reasons everyone should be thankful!

Posters given to retailers and restaurants celebrate the arrival of the new Beaujolais vintage.

As of today, the global phenomenon that is Beaujolais Nouveau will once again be in full swing. Perhaps the greatest marketing concept in the history of wine, Beaujolais Nouveau is a category promoted to international fanfare by George DuBoeuf, one of the largest wine merchants in France. The fanfare surrounding the release of Beaujolais Nouveau, a young, simple wine, was invented by DuBoeuf as a marketing gimmick to get cash flow in while the “real Beaujolais” aged for months in casks. It is marked by festive parties and celebrations all around the world, public relations efforts and marketing materials at retailers and restaurants, including colorful window posters like the one shown here.

Beaujolais, which is made from Gamay grapes, had always made a vin de l’année to celebrate the end of the grape harvest. But the wine was only for local consumption and, after the wine was declared an AOC, it could only be officially sold after December 15th of the harvest year. These rules were changed in 1951, and November 15th was set as the release date for what would henceforth be known as Beaujolais Nouveau (the new vintage is now released on the third Thursday of every November).

While it is a November release, Beaujolais Nouveau is the essence of a great summer sipper, made by a method called carbonic maceration, which produces a wine of moderate acidity; low tannin; and simple, overt fruitiness, even with a bit of spritz. Sadly, since Nouveau is meant to be consumed by the end of December, one would be hard pressed to find a bottle in late spring, and if one did, it would likely be over the hill.

The aromatic, unpretentious and fruit-forward wines are light on tannin and complement many different foods and cuisines, making it the ideal choice for pairing with a wide spectrum of dishes and flavors. Although it boasts a two thousand year-old history, the popularity of Beaujolais Nouveau continues. This is a testament to the unpretentious, fun and easy-drinking wine that has inspired annual celebrations in many different countries and cultures for generations.

Beaujolais Nouveau is made by winemakers in the appellations of Beaujolais and Beaujolais Villages. To get to know fine Beaujolais, skip the Nouveau and try the ten Crus: Brouilly, Chiroubles, Chénas, Côte-de-Brouilly, Fleurie, Juliénas, Morgon, Moulin à Vent, Régnié and Saint-Amour. These are far more complex wines that make excellent food partners. So, when the Beaujolais Nouveau celebrations of 2009 have passed, you can look forward to aged bottles to hit the shores; however, you’ll have to create your own fanfare.

Sherry is a fortified wine from the Jerez region of Spain. It is produced almost exclusively from the Palomino Fino grape.

There are two basic types of Sherry—Fino and Oloroso. All other styles—Amontillado, Cream, Manzanilla, Moscatel, Palo Cortado, Pedro Ximenez—are variations of these types.

From the Jerez-Xérès-Sherry region of Spain, a sweet Oloroso sherry can be the perfect dinner apéritif and multitask as the dessert wine afterwards. Oloroso is Spanish for “fragrant”; a good Oloroso will be intensely aromatic. The typical sweet, rich fig and nut flavors can complement a dessert or be savored on their own. Pair it with pecan pie; with honey, toffee or buttercrunch ice-cream; or for the cheese course, serve the sherry with blue cheese and figs. It’s a treat for the holidays or any time of year. Sherry should be served at room temperature.

Enjoy your sherry! Photo courtesy Ritzenhoff.

Last chance to enjoy these wonderful juices!
Photo by Hannah Kaminsky | THE NIBBLE.

It is with a heavy heart that we join Gregg Quinn, founder and president of Currant C black currant beverages, to inform you that the wonderful line of Currant C has ceased production. We reviewed it last year and adored it. The company subsequently expanded the varieties and Currant C would have been a Top Pick Of The Week in January (which is “healthy food month” at THE NIBBLE).

The unfavorable economic environment has put the kibosh on this small company and others. Retailers are forced to pay more slowly while warehouses and trucking companies demand payment upfront. Banks aren’t lending to small companies. Combine the variables and it’s impossible for some companies to keep their doors open.

As long as supplies last, Currant C is selling its delicious juices through its website. Six-packs are $11.94 instead of $23.94—a 50% reduction.

For Thanksgiving weekend, how about some apricot pumpkin bread, delicious for breakfast, brunch, snacks and tea sandwiches. This recipe is courtesy of B & R Farms, apricot growers who sell their delicious products at California farmers markets and to wholesalers. For more recipes, visit brfarms.com.

APRICOT PUMPKIN BREAD
Ingredients

- 1 large egg
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 1/2 cup salad oil (we like olive oil)
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoons each: baking powder, ground cinnamon, ground cloves, ground nutmeg, ground ginger
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 cup chopped dried apricots

B & R Farms apricots drying in the California
sun. Photo by Shannon Grissom, courtesy
B & R Farms.

Coffee: neat, pressed and hungry for a shot
(of Java & Co. syrup, that is). Photo ©
Elina Manninen | Fotolia.com.

Millions of people in America walk into their favorite coffee emporium and order their java with a shot of syrup. Amaretto, caramel, hazelnut and vanilla are very popular, and it’s high season for egg nog, gingerbread and pumpkin (how did you think those pumpkin lattes are made)? Most coffee houses use Monin (which makes 113 flavors, not all meant for coffee) or Torani (78 flavors, ditto), and you can purchase bottles for home use. But if you’d like to give a gift of something special—small-batch, artisan-made syrups made from roasted coffee beans, including a “decaf”—Java & Co. has a good thing going.

The infused syrups that have so captivated coffee-drinkers are essentially flavored simple syrup (sugar syrup). They have gained visibility with the renaissance of coffee houses, but have been used for many years to make Italian sodas, as breakfast syrups and dessert syrups, and in recipes from glazes to baking. They can make almost any food taste better—but sugar has a way of doing that.

Java & Co.’s handmade and hand-bottled syrups—they’re made and shipped to order for maximum freshness—taste that much better than the mass-manufactured products from Monin and Torani. They begin with actual coffee beans, and are a delightful personal gift, corporate gift and sweet syrup for your own pantry.

Add truffle flavor to a dish with some of this brilliant juice, available at specialty food shops. Created by soaking Italian and French truffles in a brine, it’s an easy way to introduce the heady flavor of truffles to a dish.

We use it in sauces, soups and stocks where we don’t want the added fat from our other favorite truffle-enhancement, truffle butter, another delicious and affordable solution. Truffle oil is yet another option (and great to spray on popcorn).

Truffles, glorious truffles. Photo by Kelly
Cline | IST.

If you’re passionate about animal care, ask
your grocer to stock these products.

Ten billion farm animals are raised for food each year in the United States. You know that USDA-certified organic meat sets certain standards for animal welfare: The animals have daily access to pasture or other free-range grazing and eat organic-certified feed. If family-farm raised, they also tend to be farmed by people who care about their animals.

But for those who are very concerned with animal welfare, there’s an even stronger certification from organizations that only focus on the topic. The certifications include American Humane Certified, Certified Humane and Animal Welfare Approved. (Whole Foods has its own “Animal Compassionate” program.)

Their mission is to protect livestock—cattle, hogs, sheep and poultry—from inhumane treatment, both on the farm and in transit.

These programs are voluntary and are open to livestock producers who meet the rigorous standards of raising and handling their animals. Those who are certified are permitted to use the program’s certification label on their products. The programs provide third-party, independent verification that certified producers’ care and handling of farm animals meet the science-based animal welfare standards of the certifying organization.

The concept of certifying animal foods as being humanely raised is relatively new, and not all animal welfare scientists agree on what standards are appropriate. Thus, differences exist among the programs, most significantly, whether factory-farming systems should be approved in addition to family farms. Some programs admit family farms only.

When tomatoes are out of season—or you just don’t have any at hand—simply substitute roasted red peppers (pimientos) or marinated sundried tomatoes. Both are available in jars, and can be kept on your shelf ready for sandwiches, salads, plate garnishes, hors d’oeuvres, pastas and any need you have for flavor and color.

Try peppadews too, a cherry pepper-sized African fruit that looks like a small, round red bell pepper and is available in mild and hot styles. They can be stuffed for hors d’oeuvres and even used as cocktail garnishes. But warning to carb counters: Their sweetness comes from added sugar.

Use sundried tomatoes, roasted red peppers
and peppadews to add flavor and color to
sandwiches and dishes when tomato season is over. Photo courtesy Peppadew.com.