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


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TIP OF THE DAY: Thanksgiving Fruit Plate

Who would have thought that fresh fruit could have such a Thanksgiving theme! We found this idea in in the Dole Pinterest stream and couldn’t resist making one ourselves. In fact, it’s a great project to keep the kids busy on Thanksgiving.

Ingredients Per Fruit Turkey:

  • 6-8 apple slices
  • 9-10 orange segments
  • Pear half
  • For the feet: 6 orange peel strips (or yellow bell pepper)
  • For the face: 2 mini chocolate morsels, peanut half
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    You can make and enjoy this fruit gobbler for breakfast, lunch, dinner or snacking throughout Thanksgiving weekend. Consider adding a side of yogurt or cottage cheese.

     


    Photo courtesy Michelle Furlotte | Dole | Pinterest.

     

    THANKSGIVING FRUIT & VEGETABLE GIFTS

    Looking for something very nice and also very good-for-you? Turkey-decorated cookies may be cute, but premium produce is more considerate, not to mention more welcome during this calorie-packed season.

    Melissa’s, America’s premier purveyor of fine fruits and vegetables, has an e-store that makes sending healthful gifts a snap.

    You’ll find everything from traditional and organic deluxe fruit baskets to organic vegetables, including several varieties of Organic Purification Boxes and options that include specialty foods and wines.

     


    Refill the Christmas sleigh with goodies all season long. Photo courtesy Melissas.
     

    Gifts We’d Like To Receive

  • Chestnut Roasting Kit, $54.99
  • Exotic & Tropical Fruit Basket, a delightful way to introduce people to items such as Asian pears, cherimoyas, feijoas, kumquats, pepino melons, persimmons, sapotes, tamarillos, and fresh lychees, $67.95
  • Baby Veggie Basket, $71.99; also available without the gift basket, in a nice carton, $51.99
  • Organic Fruit Sleigh, which can be refilled with whatever you like for a season-long holiday centerpiece, $59.99
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    Cooking Kits For Kids

  • Banana Crepes Kit, $25.99
  • Ambrosia Applesauce Cooking Kit, $54.99
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    For Kids & Adults

  • Melissas Great Book Of Produce, a beautiful volume for junior or senior cooks, $29.99
  • Fresh Strawberry Basket With Chocolate Dip, $52.99
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    These are only the tip of the iceberg. For your perusing pleasure, check out:

  • Gifts Under $100: http://giftbaskets.melissas.com/Gifts-Under-100-s/1840.htm
  • Gifts $100-$200: http://giftbaskets.melissas.com/Gifts-Under-200-s/1841.htm
  • Gifts Above $200: http://giftbaskets.melissas.com/Gifts-Under-500-s/1842.htm
     
    You can also shop by occasion (Birthday, Christmas, Hanukkah, Thanksgiving, Corporate, etc).

    If you prefer to talk to a live representative, call 1.800.588.0151, Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm Pacific Time.

    Most gifts are vegan (some with packaged foods may not be) and gifts that comprise only fresh fruits and/or vegetables are de facto kosher.

      

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    GIFT: Chocolate Peanut Butter Bar

    Caviar chocolate isn’t for anyone. But here’s a bar with more universal appeal:

    The PMS Bar from Lucas Candies. P is for peanut butter, M is for milk chocolate and S is for salted potato chips.

    It’s so creamy, with a light potato chip crunch, and nifty looking with a semi-sweet chocolate drizzle. At $4.00, it’s a great stocking stuffer.

    We were also fond of the newest Lucas candy bar creation, the Haverstraw Bar, made with milk chocolate, toasted coconut and toffee chips. The confections are made fresh by hand daily.
    The Lucas family has been making chocolates since 1896, when five Lucas brothers emigrated to the U.S. from Greece and settled on the Hudson River in Haverstraw, New York.

     
    At the top of the plate: the PMS Bar. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.
     
    Historical note: Between 1771 and 1941, Haverstraw was “The Brick Capital Of The World,” thanks to immense clay beds formed by the Hudson River’s water and rich soil that lined the waterfront. By 1883, there were 42 brickyards in the area that manufactured 148 brands of brick—more than 300 million bricks in one year for the New York City area alone. At one time, more than two-thirds of the buildings in New York City were constructed of Haverstraw brick.

    Back to the chocolate: Today the store, in its original location, is operated by the fourth generation of the Lucas family. The same recipes that came with the family from Greece in 1896 are still made, along with some new ones like the PMS Bar and Haverstraw bar.

    Historical note #2: Peanut butter was introduced to the masses in 1904 at the Universal Exposition in St. Louis, but it was a while before it was commercially produced and became a staple in American households. Krema Products Company of Columbus, Ohio began selling peanut butter in 1908 and remains the oldest peanut butter company still in operation today.

    The first shelf-stable peanut butter was invented in 1922. Here’s the history of peanut butter.
      

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    GIFT: Caviar White Chocolate

    Good things come in small packages. In the case of Petrossian’s new Caviar Chocolate, the package is small but the flavor is huge, and the memory will last a lifetime.

    Petrossian has partnered with the great French chocolatier Pralus to create (to our knowledge) the world’s first caviar-studded chocolate.

    For that select group of people who love both chocolate and caviar, you couldn’t find a better gift. “Even we were amazed with the result!” says Petrossian, describing their reaction to what Pralus had created.

    The silken white chocolate and slightly salty, crunchy beads of sturgeon caviar are a marriage made in heaven: the highest form of salted chocolate. The cost of four small pieces: $29. The experience: priceless.

     
    One singular sensation: caviar chocolate. Photo courtesy Petrossian.
     
    An origami-folded, ribbon-wrapped gift box holds four 1.5″ x 1 1/8″ tablets, .79 ounce total weight. Purchase it at Petrossian.com or at Petrossian’s New York City restaurant and boutique.

    Petrossian doesn’t rest on its laurels as the world’s most prominent purveyor of fine caviar. The creative minds there are always trying to do more.

    Recent innovations include caviar cream, caviar powder, Papierusse (“Russian paper”)—sheets of pressed caviar that look like Japanese nori—and caviar cubes for garnish.

    Just imagine a gift basket with all of these wonderful products—and some fresh Petrossian caviar! Can we send you our address?

      

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