The best way to pack wine in luggage.
Photo courtesy JetBag.com.
Are you leaving on a jet plane to celebrate Thanksgiving or Christmas? Post-9/11 security regulations prohibiting liquids have certainly plagued wine lovers.
But some people care about bringing (or taking home) a special bottle of wine so much, they’ll actually check it in luggage.
“Oh, we just roll the bottles up in our clothing,” and place them in the suitcase, we’ve been told by more than a few friends. We shake our head, remembering a bubble-wrapped bottle of Sauternes that leaked through the cork and the foil and soaked everything in our luggage (and scented the inside of the suitcase for a year).
Among all the options we have now to prevent this from happening, the leakproof Jet Bag seems the most convenient.
A bio-degradable carrier with a reusable zip seal closure, the Jet Bag completely secures your liquids. The material pads & protects your bottle and if it cracks, a baby diaper-type absorbent lining wicks up the liquid.
It can also be used to protect olive oil, vinegar, perfume and other liquids.
Purchase online at TheJetBag.com. Three Jet Bags are $15; larger quantities are available if you want to give them as stocking stuffers.
This is not your average popcorn gift. There’s no buttered, cheese-flavored and caramel corn in a gift tin. That’s kid stuff.
Here, the product is strictly for adults; specifically, adults who love truffles.
Truffles are one of the costliest foods in the world. While most truffle fans can’t afford frequent helpings of fresh truffle, they can get a hit of truffle aroma and flavor as often as they like with 479° Popcorn’s Pop It Yourself Truffle Popcorn Kit.
The kit includes a large jar of heirloom popcorn kernels, a can of La Tourangelle black truffle oil, black truffle sea salt, 10 glossy paper popcorn cones and recipe cards, packaged in a silver-colored box.
In addition to truffle, Pop It Yourself Kits are available in sweet/savory and Popcorn That Gives Back without special seasonings, but with a percentage of sales going to an urban student program to plant edible gardens. There’s also ready-to-eat popcorn in eight terrific flavors.
Find more gourmet gifts for the holidays, from bacon-infused caviar to the cutest holiday sugar cubes.
Everyone knows about the Butterball Hotline—the number you call on Thanksgiving when you have a question about—or a problem with—your turkey and stuffing. Many of us have used it—even a fictional president of the United States.
The Butterball Hotline was featured in a memorable episode of “The West Wing,” when president Jed Bartlet called it (1.800.Butterball) on Thanksgiving with a question about stuffing and cooking the turkey. See the video and you’ll pick up a few tips.
Perhaps President Bartlet didn’t know that the USDA has its own Meat & Poultry Hotline. You can phone 1.888.674.6854, weekdays from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (in English or Spanish), and on Thanksgiving Day from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
However, you’ve got a week before a problem or crisis potentially arrives. Do some advance study at Butterball.com and nip it in the drumstick.
Shown: 7-inch cake and individual size.
Photo courtesy Financier Pâtisserie.
Don’t like pumpkin pie? Find pecan pie too cloying?
Financier Pâtisserie will send a beautiful seasonal cake to you, your holiday host, or anyone you’d like to wish a Happy Thanksgiving.
Beautifully crafted in the French tradition, the cakes are available in 7-inch or 9-inch sizes for $22.50 and $32.50, respectively. Choose from:
Pumpkin Cheesecake with a cookie crust
Pecan Caramel Aux Poires, a pecan crust topped with crémeux caramel (similar to crème brûlée), poached pears, chocolate génoise, vanilla bavarian and a caramel glaze (shown in photo)
Chocolate Mousse Cake with Chai Crème Brûlée, a macaron crust topped with chocolate ganache, thin layers of chocolate cake, chai crème brûlée and a light chocolate mousseOrder online at FinancierPastries.com.
If it’s nippy outside over Thanksgiving, greet dinner guests and holiday weekend visitors with a glass of hot spiced cider. Add some rum, and you’ve got an apple rum toddy.
A toddy is a warm cocktail made with spirits or sherry, boiling water, sugar and spices. Warm alcoholic beverages such as glögg, mulled wine and toddies originated in Northern Europe to help with the winter chill. Learn more about them, including recipes.
Head over to the Spiced Cider recipe. There’s also a reduced-calorie version.
For a cocktail cousin, take a look at the Spice Night Cocktail, a chilled cocktail made with rum, apple juice and maple syrup.
