THE NIBBLE BLOG: Products, Recipes & Trends In Specialty Foods


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RECIPE: The Official Cocktail Of The U.S. Open

The U.S. Open runs through September 13. It has an official cocktail, the Honey Deuce, created by sponsor Grey Goose Vodka. If you’re watching the Open today, mix up a Honey Deuce and toast along with the crowds at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center at Flushing Meadows. You’ll save the $12 it costs at the Open, although you won’t get the souvenir cup.

Here’s the Honey Deuce recipe; it makes one drink:

Ingredients

  • 1-1/4 ounces Grey Goose Vodka
  • 1/2 ounce Chambord or another premium raspberry liqueur
  • Lemonade (homemade is best)
  • 3-4 honeydew melon balls, frozen
  • Ice (crushed ice recommended)

 

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Honey Deuce: the official cocktail of the 2009 U.S. Open Tennis Championships.

Preparation

1. Freeze melon balls: Place them in a the freezer in a single layer in a sealed plastic bag, for an hour or overnight.
2. Fill a chilled Collins glass with ice. Add vodka, then pour in lemonade to half an inch below the rim.
3. Sprinkle raspberry liqueur over the top of the ice, so it slowly trickles down.
3. Garnish with melon balls, speared on a long cocktail pick if you wish.

 

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TIP OF THE DAY: Watermelon Martinis

Celebrate the end of summer with this delightful cocktail. Combine one part vodka (or citrus vodka) to 1-1/2 parts puréed watermelon. Shake the ingredients with ice and strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a sprig of mint. You also can keep watermelon cubes in the freezer to purée or mix in a blender for a frozen-style drink. If you don’t have fresh watermelon, try a variation with 1 part vodka and 1/2 part DeKuyper Pucker Watermelon Schnapps—handy during the months when there’s no fresh watermelon to be had. When there is, you can use this recipe and add some crushed fresh watermelon.

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PRODUCT: Agave-Sweetened Ice Cream

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Cherry Chocolate Chunk gelato from Organic
Nectars, a sugar-free trifeca for healthy
eating. It’s organic, kosher and raw! Photo by
Corey Lugg | THE NIBBLE.

Previously, people on sugar-restricted diets were limited in their choice of ice cream. But there are two premium products on the market that provide premium alternatives to artificially-flavored supermarket ice cream. Both are sweetened with agave.

Agave Dream is a premium ice cream developed by two moms who wanted a better choice for their children. Organic Nectars is a vegan product made from cashew “milk”; it’s also raw, kosher and, as the name implies, organic. Both companies make sorbet or granita as well as ice cream. They’re a real find for people who are steering clear of sugar.

  • Start with an overview of agave: what it is and why it’s good for you. (For starters, it has about half the glycemic index of sugar and honey.)
  • Have a taste of Agave Dream ice cream and sorbet.
  • Dig into Organic Nectars vegan, raw gelato and granita, plus agave-sweetened dessert toppings.
  • Feel like full-sugar frozen treats? Check out our Ice Cream & Sorbet Section for more of our favorites.
 

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TIP OF THE DAY: Grilling Tips

Here’s a quick checklist: (1) Clean the grill properly. Always scrape the grill and rub it with oil to ensure that food won’t stick. (2) Pat the food dry before placing it on the grill, and don’t use a lot of oil. Food with excess moisture can cause the flames to smoke, and result in a burned taste. Smoke may look picturesque when food is cooking, but it’s not a good thing. (3) Similarly, rid meats of as much marinade as possible before placing them on the grill. (4) Don’t sprinkle fresh herbs on the cooking food—the fire will burn them. Instead, add them as an attractive garnish before serving. You can place herbs inside the cavity of a whole fish, or mix them into ground meat.

  • Want to make great barbecue? See tips from a barbecue expert.
  • Check out our roundup of the best barbecue sauces.

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    PRODUCT: Cucina Fresca Pasta Sauces & Pasta

    Along with Sauces ‘n Love, this is our favorite brand of fresh pasta and pasta sauces—refrigeration required. We like the sauces better than the sauces at our local restaurants. Retailers and restaurateurs should hasten to taste them and consider if they’re offering the best they can to their customers. We like nothing better than making a great pasta sauce…but we can’t make any this good!

    With most marinaras, alas, the main characteristic is “red”—and worse, red with sugar thrown in to provide flavor that the other ingredients aren’t good enough to generate. With Cucina Fresca, lush tomatoes are joined by flavorful onions, fresh basil, garlic and oregano. It is a much-appreciated marinara. But there’s even more excitement with our favorites, the Basil Cream Sauce and the Tomato Vodka Sauce. The Basil Cream Sauce upon the Caramelized Pear And Gorgonzola Ravioli was simply heaven.

    If your retailer isn’t carrying this line, ask!

     

    basil-cream-230
    Make restaurant-quality (or better) pasta dishes. Photo courtesy of Cucina Fresca.

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