The BitterSweets Dysfunctional Collection.
Photo courtesy Despair.com.

Despair.com has candy hearts for those who are not in the Valentine spirit.

Choose from three different collections of BitterSweets: Dejected, Dumped and Dysfunctional.

Each box contains 37 brutal kissoffs. The Dumped collection, for example, offers U LEFT SEATUP, BACK 2 KENNEL, I GOT SOBER, CELIB8 THX2U and CALL A 900#.

Six ounces in a heart-shaped tin is $9.95.

Messages included All Mine, Angel, Let’s Kiss, Love, Lover Boy, My Baby and Sweet Talk, among others. Beginning in the early 1990s, the sayings were updated annually. “Call Me” became “Fax Me.” (Hey, what about Text Me?)

The line now includes chocolate, Spanish and sugar-free versions.

Start with a plain iced cake from your favorite bakery, and add your own touches.

First, remove any plastic rose or other mundane decoration that may come with the cake. Then, depending on what treats your sweetie or family prefer, consider:

• Crushed red and white peppermints
• Red, pink and white Jelly Belly jelly beans mix, M&Ms mix, gum drops
• Small chocolate hearts or white chocolate hearts
• Fresh raspberries or whole or sliced strawberries
• Small strawberries half-dipped in melted chocolate
• Rose petals (wash to remove pesticides or buy organic flowers)
• Anything that appeals to you in the candy store

Buy an iced chocolate cake—a round
cake is just fine—and top with chocolate
truffles and/or malted milk balls. Photo
courtesy Wilton.com, which has lots of cake ideas.

[1] Rio Red, Ruby Red and other red grapefruit varieties are all from the same seed mutation, but have differences based on where they are grown (photo © TexaSweet).

Red grapefruit is a mutation of a pink grapefruit discovered in the 1920s. (Pink grapefruit itself is a mutation that appeared at the beginning of the 20th century.)

As pink grapefruit is typically sweeter than white grapefruit, red grapefruit is even sweeter. Red grapefruit can be found under the brand names Rio Red, Rio Star, Ruby Red and Ruby Sweet.

The rich red color of red grapefruit is due to lycopene, a powerful carotenoid phytonutrient (antioxidant) that appears to fight tumor growth. Lycopene exists to a lesser extent in pink grapefruit.

Take a look at two entire dinner’s worth of red grapefruit recipes.

 
Here’s one more easy recipe:

Ingredients For 4 Servings

 
Preparation

1. BRUSH 2 teaspoons of lemon juice over flesh of avocados; set aside.

2. ADD The remaining lemon juice, salt and tarragon to the reserved grapefruit juice; season with pepper.

3. WHISK in the olive oil in a slow, steady stream. Add the grapefruit sections and toss gently.

4. ASSEMBLE: Place each avocado half on a plate. Top with grapefruit mixture, dividing evenly. Serve immediately.
 
 
>>>THE HISTORY OF GRAPEFRUIT<<<

Yesterday, February 10th, was National Cream Cheese Brownie Day, but you never need an excuse to bake up a batch.

Drops of cheesecake batter are layered with chocolate brownie batter, then swirled together with a knife. Instead of making the brownie even richer, the cream cheese swirl lightens it, with a smoother texture and a counterpoint to the heaviness of the chocolate.

Zebras are a variation in which a full cheesecake layer rests atop a brownie layer—no swirl.

As a family treat or a Valentine gift, cream cheese brownies will make fans of everyone who likes both brownies and cheesecake.

Brownies with a cream cheese swirl. Photo by S.F. Photo | IST.

The flavor of roses creates a special
lemonade. Photo courtesy Fentiman’s.

Not your conventional soft drinks, the products are infused with botanicals and go through a slow, natural fermentation and blending.

For a special soft drink for Valentine’s Day—for everyone from foodies to kids—we like Fentiman’s Rose Lemonade. It’s made with rose oil from the world-famous Rose Valley in Kazanlak, Bulgaria.

If you can’t find it, make your own rose lemonade by adding a bit of rose oil or rose water to a conventional fresh-squeezed lemonade recipe. (You can turn it into a cocktail with gin, tequila or vodka.)

Like Middle Eastern cuisine? Rose is a popular flavor in the Middle East, in beverages, desserts and confections. Make rose lemonade or rose-flavored club soda to serve with the cuisine.

If you purchase a bottle of rose oil (rose extract), a little goes a long way. The beautiful floral bouquet and flavor can also be used in cakes and icing. Artisan chocolatiers have been adding it to ganache; mixologists use it in cocktails. If you enjoy playing with ingredients, get a bottle.