FOOD HOLIDAY: Make A Pisco Sour For National Pisco Day

Pisco Portón is an acholado mosto verde pisco. Its sister brand, La Caravedo, is a pisco puro, from estate-grown Quebranta grapes. See the definitions below. Photo courtesy Pisco Portón.   Quinoa isn’t the only hot product from Peru. Pisco, Peru’s national spirit, is another. Peruvians honor their pisco so much there are two annual holidays…
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TIP OF THE DAY: Trim Your Cocktail Calories

Top: Fruit purée and flavored spirits cut the need for sugar in cocktails. Photo courtesy Pom Wonderful. Bottom: Agave nectar is a superior alternative to simple sugar. Photo by Hannah Kaminsky | THE NIBBLE.   Right after the new year, we were listening to the four principals on a top morning news show discuss what…
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FOOD HOLIDAY: Apple Ginger Toddy For National Hot Toddy Day

Enjoy a hot toddy on a chilly day. Photo courtesy Castello USA.   January 11th is National Hot Today Day. Here’s some toddy history. And here’s a riff on the classic rum toddy, made with apple cider, Cognac and fresh ginger slices. It’s topped off with a garnish of delicious crystallized ginger chunks. The recipe…
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TIP OF THE DAY: The New Bloody Mary Garnishes

[1] Aquavit Bloody Mary with beets, a half-sour pickle spear, and fresh dill; photo © Flavor & The Menu. [2] Mary garnished with crab claw and dilly beans from Ramos House. [3] Surf and Turf Bloody Mary with bacon and shrimp, plus an antipasto skewer and, as a nod to the past, a celery stalk.…
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Eggnog History: Know Your Eggnog!

Eggnog or egg nog is a descendant of milk-and-wine punches that had long been part of European celebrations when colonists arrived in the Americas. Rum, a New World distillation, enabled a spirited substitution for the wine. And eggnog history? Eggnog became a popular wintertime drink throughout Colonial America. Then as now, people loved the rich,…
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