[1] Great flavor with fewer calories: Pineapple
Coconut vodka from Smirnoff Sorbet Light (photos © Smirnoff).

[2] The “Blank Slate”: a low calorie riff on the Piña Colada.

The Smirnoff Sorbet Light vodka line is targeted to women who enjoy a regular cocktail, and would like to shave a few calories from each drink.

The reduced calories are achieved by lowering the proof of the alcohol: The Sorbet Light line is 60 proof/30% ABV* while original Smirnoff (and most vodka) is 80 proof/40% ABV.

We like a good flavored vodka: It’s like a cocktail without the extra calories. When we tasted new Sorbet Light Pineapple Coconut, it reminded us of one of our favorite drinks—the Piña Colada—without the extra calories of pineapple juice and coconut cream.

Through the miracle of noncaloric flavor infusions, a shot of the vodka has all the satisfaction of fresh juicy pineapple combined with the luscious coconut. It’s not creamy, but to us, that doesn’t matter. It’s the pineapple-coconut flavor we crave.
 
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*ABV is Alcohol By Volume. Double the ABV to get the proof of any alcoholic beverage.
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If you want to “stretch out” the calories, add coconut water like Zico—60 calories for 11 ounces, 30 calories for half of that in your cocktail.

You can mix up any number of cocktails. Here are some from Smirnoff. All of the recipes are under 150 calories.
 
 
RECIPES

RECIPE #1: PIÑA COCO SPRITZER

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. FILL a highball glass with ice; add remaining ingredients.

2. STIR and garnish with an orange half wheel.
 
 
RECIPE #2: BLANK SLATE

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE all ingredients in a mixing glass. Add ice, shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.

2. GARNISH with an edible flower or a pineapple chunk.

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE all ingredients in a mixing glass. Add ice, shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.

2. GARNISH with a mango slice.
 
 
RECIPE #4: TROPICAL TREAT

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE all ingredients in a mixing glass. Add ice, shake and strain into a chilled martini glass.

2. GARNISH and serve.

Horseradish, Amoriacia rusticana, is a pungent root vegetable with a long history of culinary and medicinal uses. Popular among ancient Greeks and Romans, this Old World food was favored by early healers for treating sore throats and digestive upsets.

Horseradish is a member of the cruciferous family of vegetables (Brassicaceae) and pairs well with its “cousins”: arugula, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, cress, kale, kohlrabi, mizuna (a variety of mustard green), radish, rapini (broccoli rabe), rutabaga, tatsoi (also called rosette bok choy, spinach mustard or spoon mustard) and turnip.

Where Does Wasabi Fit In?

Wasabi (Wasabia japonica), a type of horseradish served with sushi, is another cousin. Wasabi has more complex flavors, is more difficult to grow and is accordingly far more expensive. SPOILER: Unless you’re in a super-high-end sushi bar, you’re getting conventional horseradish, mixed with mustard and colored green to look like wasabi. Here’s the scoop.

The roots can be found in most produce sections, and prepared horseradish is sold in jars in the refrigerator case. We always have a jar of prepared horseradish at hand (actually two jars—regular and beet flavored). But those who want the sharpest bite will grate it fresh from the root.
 
GRATE YOUR OWN

If you don’t already have a fine grater, take a look at the fine grater from Microplane’s Artisan Series. You can quickly grate horseradish into fine pieces, ready to blend. And of course, it can grate anything else, from cheeses to onions to citrus zest. You can purchase one where fine kitchen gadgets are sold, or online, for an SRP of $9.95.

HOW TO USE HORSERADISH

Most Americans eat the majority of their horseradish in cocktail sauce (make your own by combining prepared horseradish with chili sauce or ketchup).

But here’s what else you can do with it:

Make this delicious, quick and easy condiment and use it with vegetables and cheeses. The tannins in cranberries and beets work well with a complex, aged Cheddar and other semihard cheeses (we also enjoyed it with soft goat cheese), while the spiciness of horseradish cuts the creaminess.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the cranberry sauce and horseradish. Add salt to taste. Chill and serve alongside cheese.

2. OPTIONAL: For a sweeter relish, add the brown sugar.

Cranberry-beet horseradish is a delicious cheese condiment. Photo courtesy Wisconsin Milk Marketing Board.

 
A WHOLE HORSERADISH FESTIVAL

Since 1987, the International Horseradish Festival in Collinsville, Illinois has celebrated the root with food food and fun activities.It’s held the first weekend in June.

Eating sweets symbolizes the beginning of a “sweet year.”

The Year Of The Horse, begins on Friday, January 31st. If you were born in 2002, 1990, 1978, 1966, 1954, 1942, 1930 or 1918, this is your lunar year. If you follow astrology, you can check on what this means for your health, wealth, relationships and career.

But regardless of whether your zodiac animal is a horse or one of the others (dog, dragon, monkey, ox, pig/boar, tiger, rabbit, rat, rooster, sheep, snake), you can treat yourself to a box of Godiva’s truly wonderful lunar year chocolates.

This year’s selection from Godiva Chocolatier includes three spectacular pieces:

 
Each offers a cascade of flavors and textures that are so much more glorious than the words used to describe them. They are exquisite chocolates, and we loved all three equally.

The recipes were developed in Asia for the Asian consumer, and reflect those flavor preferences. The chocolates are less sweet than American-developed flavors—a boon for those domestic palates that have evolved to prefer a more moderate level of sweetness.
 
Where To Purchase

You can purchase the chocolates in Lunar New Year gift boxes, along with other Godiva pieces—20 pieces total for $50.00 and 32 pieces total for $120. They can be purchased in Godiva boutiques and online at Godiva.com.

But our recommendation is to head to a Godiva boutique for a hand-packed box of 100% Year Of The Horse Collection. Seriously, we couldn’t get enough of them. They’ll only be in stores through January 31st.

On days when you’re not eating the chocolate, check out the Lunar New Year specials at your local Asian restaurants.

Available only through Valentine’s Day (while supplies last) is another special treat: marvelous marzipan hearts, covered with your choice of dark or milk chocolate.

Oh, how delicious! As with the Year Of The Horse collection, we couldn’t stop eating them.

They’re available in Godiva boutiques only. Here’s a store locator: If you’re a marzipan lover, you’ll want more than a few.

You may want to call first to make sure they haven’t run out; although there are plenty of other choices. But if your heart is set on marzipan hearts, you can always make your own with this recipe from AnEdibleMosaic.com.

There’s also a pun: avocado is also known as alligator pear.

She also shared that Cornell study found kids to be 30% more likely to try a food if it has a cool name. For example, baked squash casserole can be “Squashy Shazam!”

Kids also like to get creative when it comes to “styling” their food—turning grapes, olives and strips of red pepper into eyes, nose and mouth of their mashed potatoes.

Ingredients Per Serving

 
Preparation

1. REMOVE avocado flesh, carefully preserving the shell. Make guacamole.

2. RETURN guacamole to shell; create crocodile face with carrots (pointy side up), cucumber and olive slices, as shown in photo.

3. SERVE with extra vegetables for dipping.

EASY GUACAMOLE RECIPE

1. MASH avocado. Mix with finely diced onion and chopped tomato to taste.

2. SEASON with garlic, lime juice, salt and cayenne or chili flakes to taste.

Most Americans know turmeric as a deep gold spice that gives its intense color to curry powder. It’s been used for millennia to impart its color to foods. In the last century, it was used to give ballpark mustard its bright yellow color.

Turmeric has a peppery, bitter flavor and a mild aroma with a hint of its cousin, ginger, a note of orange.

More recently, turmeric has been discovered to be a potent anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and anti-cancinogen. It may also protect against Alzheimer’s disease and heart disease. Its active ingredient, curcumin, is extracted and used in clinical studies for arthritis and cancer. (More on turmeric’s health benefits.)

HOWEVER: Turmeric can stain! It is also used as a dye. Don’t get it on your clothes, and scrub pots and pans immediately after cooking with a large does of turmeric.

Turmeric root. Photo courtesy Malaysian Kitchen.

Turmeric Tea

Dr. Weil made a terrific ready-to-drink turmeric tea that unfortunately didn’t catch on. But you can buy turmeric tea bags or make your own tea by simmering a teaspoon of the powder in four cups of boiling water for 10 minutes. Strain through a very fine strainer and drink it hot or iced.

Add some ginger root for even more flavor and health benefits. You can also buy turmeric-ginger tea bags.
 
 
RECIPE: MOROCCAN CHICKEN SALAD

Try this creative roasted chicken salad recipe from Woodhouse Chocolate.

Ingredients

For the Dressing

 
For The Salad

 
Preparation

1. MAKE dressing: Whisk together the ingredients. Heat the oven to 400°F.

2. DRAIN the chickpeas and dry them on a paper towel. Discard any stray skins. In a small mixing bowl, toss the chickpeas with the olive oil until evenly coated. Lay them in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet. Place them in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, or until a nice dark golden brown. While the chickpeas are roasting…

3. COMBINE the salt, cocoa powder and paprika. When the chickpeas are done, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of this mixture evenly over the chickpeas, moving them around to coat evenly. Save the rest of the salt for the next time you roast chickpeas.

4. REMOVE the meat from the chicken. Slice the breasts and shred the leg/thigh meat.

5. TOSS the greens with dressing in a large bowl. Add dressing to taste. On 4 dinner plates, fan out the chicken breast slices. Drizzle a little extra dressing over the chicken. Divide the greens evenly on the plates. Artistically place the dates, bacon, tomatoes and red onion over the salad. (Add some more of the shredded chicken if you like). Sprinkle some roasted chickpeas over and around the salad and top with a few leaves of cilantro.