[1] A Martini flavored with vanilla bean (photo © Beyond Good).

[2] Beyond Good vanilla beans from Madagascar (photo © Zulilly).

[3] You can make vanilla vodka by adding two vanilla beans to a bottle of vodka. Let it infuse for a month or more in a cool, dark place (photo © Vermont Creamery).

[3] Or, you can buy vanilla-infused vodka. The vanilla beans in the bottle turn the vodka a tan color (photo © Triple Eight Distillery).

[4] Straining a Martini (photo © Cottonbro | Pexels).

[4] An espresso Martini. Here’s the recipe (photo © Ekrulila | Pexels).

[5] A chocolate Martini made with chocolate vodka (photo © 5). Versions made with chocolate syrup or cocoa have the color of chocolate milk (photo © Hershey’s).

For National Martini Day, June 19th, this recipe comes to us from Beyond Good, which supports the labors of small cacao and vanilla farmers in Madagascar and Uganda.

Take a look at their product line and see what you’d like for yourself or for gifting.

You may look at the suggested vanilla bean garnish and say: Wow, those beans are expensive. I can’t use them for garnish.

Yes. Because a vanilla bean has a great deal of flavor, it can usually be reused several times before its aroma and taste are depleted. Just rinse the bean and let it dry thoroughly before returning it to the jar.

If you have a bean that has dried out, revive it in hot water. And don’t throw the hot water away: Use it to make a cup of tea, or to make coffee in a coffee press.

And before you start mixing: Consider a trio of mini-Martinis: vanilla (photo #1), coffee (photo #4) and chocolate (photo #5).
 
 
RECIPE: VANILLA MARTINI

This cocktail used a Beyond Good Madagascar vanilla bean; but of course, use up what you have on hand.
 
Ingredients Per Cocktail

 
Preparation

1. SPLIT the vanilla bean in half, lengthwise. Scrape out the vanilla bean seeds into a mixing glass.

2. ADD the gin and dry vermouth plus 4 ice cubes. Stir 20 times, until cold. Or, shake for 15-30 seconds.

3. STRAIN into a Martini glass and garnish with Beyond Good Madagascar Vanilla Bean.
 
 
HOW TO STORE VANILLA BEANS

Vanilla beans are expensive. If you buy them in a jar, store them away from light and heat.

If you buy them loose, first wrap the beans in wax paper or plastic wrap, and store them in an airtight glass container (or a plastic storage container).

Squeeze out as much air as possible from the container to prevent the vanilla beans from drying out.

Never refrigerate or freeze the beans.
 
 
> MARTINI HISTORY
 
 
50+ MORE MARTINI RECIPES

 
And for fun, but not a drink:

What’s for lunch? Why ask, when it’s International Sushi Day (June 18th).

Statistics from Bold Data show that the number of sushi restaurants in the U.S. has nearly doubled in the last 10 years—prior to the pandemic.

During the pandemic to date, in 2021, along with the country’s mass closing of restaurants, there’s been a decrease of 311 sushi establishments.

Hopefully, 311 new ones—and more—will replace them as life heads back to pre-pandemic activity.

There are currently 18,944 sushi restaurants in the U.S. We’ve probably been to 100 of them!
 
 
THE FIRST SUSHI SHOP IN THE U.S.

In 1966, the Kawafuku Restaurant opened in the Little Tokyo neighborhood of Los Angeles (it closed in 2006).

Started by an importer named Noritoshi Kanai, chef Shigeo Saito made the sushi and his wife served it.

Although sushi had been available in Los Anteles long before then, Kawafuku was the first restaurant in the U.S. dedicated to sushi.

According to the Kinja restaurant and sushi bar in Spokane, sushi was being served in the U.S. by the early 1900s, following an influx of Japanese.

The first sushi shop in the U.S. reportedly opened in Los Angeles in 1906, in the Little Tokyo neighborhood.

A wave of Japanophilia in American high society resulted in the serving of sushi at social functions, even reaching midwestern cities such as Minneapolis, Minnesota, St. Louis, Missouri and Bismarck, North Dakota.

The earliest published mention of sushi eaten by an American, in America, is in an August 18, 1904 article in the Los Angeles Herald, noting a luncheon served in Santa Monica by the socialite Fern Dell Higgins.

Alas, a wave of anti-Japanese sentiments and restrictions on Japanese immigration began with the Gentlemen’s Agreement of 1907, which restricted Japanese immigration. It put an end to Japanophilia.

Alas again, the bombing of Pearl Harbor engendered powerful anti-Japanese sentiment and the closing of Japanese businesses (and much worse: see this article on Japanese internment camps).

After World War II, Japanese businesses would not re-emerge until the late 1940s.

But back to Kawafuku: It started a movement, with L.A. as the genesis of America’s love of sushi.

By the late 1960s, new sushi restaurants were opening up all across L.A.: 50 sushi shops by 1970 and today, 833 of them.

By contrast, according to Bold Data, New York has 467 sushi restaurants.
 
 
THE WORLD’S SUSHI CAPITAL

It’s not a surprise that Japan is home to the largest number of sushi restaurants: 42,897.

The U.S. comes in second with 18,944 sushi shops. And Canada completes the top 3 with 2,529 sushi restaurants.

Wherever you hang your hat, find the nearest sushi spot and have a good lunch!
 
 
> THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SUSHI
 
> THE HISTORY OF SUSHI: A TIMELINE

[1] A reverse roll (inside-out roll) is called uramaki in Japanese. Rice is on the inside and here, salmon and cucumber are on the outside (photo © Derek Duran | Unsplash).

[2] Fancy schmancy: a new approach to hand rolls has been spotted. This one isn’t even at a sushi bar, but at LT Bar & Grill in Hackensack, New Jersey, owned by the great French chef Laurent Tourondel (photo © LT Bar & Grill).

[3] Who needs fish? Sushi means “vinegared rice.” Here, a gunkan maki (i.e., boat-shaped roll) with wagyu beef tartare and black truffle in a daikon wrap and some crispy fingerling potato chips, at Zuma in New York City (photo © Zuma Restaurant).

[1] What a treat: artisan doughnuts from The Doughnut Project, with two fillings inspired by HI-CHEW flavors (photos #1, #2, #3 and #4 © Morinaga America).

[2] A side view of the glazed doughnuts.

[3] Enjoy the fruit chew, which dissolves in your mouth.

[4] Who knew: You can make cocktails with HI-CHEW candy. Check out these recipes.

[5] This creative cook added HI-CHEW candies to her smoothie bowl. Here’s the recipe (photo © Lindsey Eats LA).

June is National Candy Month, and there’s more than one way to enjoy your favorite candy.

Make s’mores with your favorite chocolate bar.

Top an ice cream sundae with M&Ms.

Chop peppermint patties and mix them into yogurt or ice cream.

And now: turn them into filling for doughnuts. That’s what HI-CHEW did.
 
 
THE DOUGHNUT PROJECT X HI-CHEW

The immensely fruity, intensely chewy candy brand teamed up with New York City’s The Doughnut Project to celebrate their pouch of Fruit Combos (photo #3).

The result: Strawberry Squeeze, a one-of-a-kind doughnut that highlights the latest HI-CHEW flavor, Strawberry Lemonade (photos #1 and #2).

The doughnut creation is available for a limited time:

Thursday, June 17th through Saturday, June 19th at The Doughnut Project’s West Village location (10 Morton Street, New York City).

The first 10 customers to purchase a Strawberry Squeeze doughnut each day will receive a free HI-CHEW Fruit Combos Standup Pouch.

Pouch notwithstanding, these doughnuts are a real treat, filled with two different pockets of creamy fruit flavors that comprise Strawberry Lemonade:

 
There’s a sweet lemon curl on top.

If you love a doughnut with one filling, imagine the thrill of two!

Covered with a red glaze, they are works of art!

And may we say…DEE-licious!

Where there is candy, there is happiness. Where there are doughnuts, there are equal happiness, too.

So even if you can’t get to The Doughnut Project to buy some, and don’t have the chops to make your own filled doughnuts (join the club!), think of ways to include HI-CHEW in your other foods.
 
 
MORE WAYS TO ENJOY HI-CHEW

 
 
> THE HISTORY OF DOUGHNUTS & THE DOUGHNUT-DONUT DIFFERENCE
 
 
ABOUT HI-CHEW

Earlier this year, HI-CHEW launched a new Fruit Combos Standup Pouch, featuring individually wrapped Tropical Smoothie, Piña Colada and new Strawberry Lemonade. As the winner of the 2020 HI-CHEW Fantasy Flavor Games, Strawberry Lemonade continues to grow in fanfare and excitement.

The history of Morinaga, the manufacturer of HI-CHEW, stretches back more than a century when company founder Taichiro Morinaga brought his candy making skills to Japan from Americas. HI-CHEW has long been the best-selling soft candy in Japan.

And then, the chewy candy came to the U.S. It’s currently offered in Açaí, Apple, Banana, Grape, Green Mango, Kiwi, Sweet & Sour Watermelon and Strawberry.

Other flavors are available in combo bags:

 
HI-CHEW is made with concentrated fruit juices and is 100% free of gluten, cholesterol and synthetic colors. The brand continues to expand, offering new fruity, chewy flavor annually.

Discover more at HI-CHEW.com.
 
 
ABOUT THE DOUGHNUT PROJECT

The Doughnut Project is a small-batch, handcrafted doughnut shop located in the West Village of Manhattan. The shop creates unique flavors inspired by the amazing foods and creative cocktails of New York City.

The doughnuts have glazes, fillings, and toppings that include out-of-the-box ingredients such as bacon, beets, olive oil, ricotta cheese, sesame seeds, black pepper and sea salt. The shop creates new intriguing flavor profiles on a regular basis and sells out daily.

Check out The Doughnut Project.

You don’t have to twist our arm to celebrate National Fudge Day, June 16th. We love the stuff—particularly if it’s an elegant recipe (photo #1) that isn’t so cloyingly sweet that we can’t taste the chocolate for the sugar. Or the peanut butter, the vanilla, nuts, etc., etc.

Fudge is a drier version of fondant*, an icing made of sugar, water, and cream of tartar. It’s cooked to the soft-ball stage and then kneaded to a smooth, soft paste.

The history of fudge is disputed, but an acknowledged American invention. Some food historians peg the date to February 14, 1886, but the exact origin and inventor are disputed.

Most stories claim that the first batch of fudge resulted from an accident with a bungled (“fudged”) batch of caramels, when the sugar was allowed to recrystallize; hence the name derived from the interjection, “Oh fudge!”

Here’s more of the history of fudge.

Now, you can head to the best candy emporium in town and buy yourself some fudge. Or you can take a gander at these recipes.

> The History Of Fudge

> The History Of Chocolate
 
 
RECIPE: THREE CHOCOLATE FUDGE

Why use only one type of chocolate when you can use three? Thanks to Taste Of Home for the recipe.

If you don’t like nuts, how about thin pretzel sticks, broken into pieces?
 
Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. LINE a 15x10x1-inch pan with foil. Leave enough foil overlap on the sides so you can lift the finished fudge out of the pain. Grease the foil with 1 tablespoon butter.

2. COMBINE the sugars, milk and cubed butter in a large, heavy saucepan. Bring to a rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Cook and stir for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the marshmallows and vanilla until blended.

3. GRADUALLY STIR in the chocolate chips and chopped chocolate until melted. Fold in the pecans. Immediately spread into prepared pan.

4. REFRIGERATE for 1 hour or until firm. Using the foil edges, lift the fudge out of the pan. Remove the foil and cut the fudge into 1-inch squares. Store between layers of waxed paper in an airtight container.
 

MORE YUMMY FUDGE RECIPES

[1] Yes, thank you, we want every flavor (photo © Nathana Reboucas | Unsplash).

[2] How can you make fudge richer? Cut it into “sandwich” slices with a caramel filling (photo © The Mill Fudge Factory).

[3] Make chocolate fudge with walnuts or pecans—or whatever nuts you prefer. The recipe is at left.(photo © Eagle Brand).

[4] The better the chocolate, the better the flavor in the fudge. We chop up our favorite chocolate bars (photo © Juliette G | Unsplash).

*Fondant can be colored or flavored and used as a center for chocolates, or as an icing for cakes. You may have run into it at a wedding: It’s especially popular as a covering for wedding cakes.

[1] The Vesper Martini, created by the novelist Ian Fleming in his first James Bond novel (photo © LT Bar & Grill | Hackensack, New Jersey).

[2] Chill the cocktail shaker and the spirits in the freezer to get the coldest Martini (photo © Williams Sonoma).

[3] Gordon’s London Dry Gin was James Bond’s choice of gin. Although the proof was cut in the U.K., there is a 94.6 proof* export version (photo © Gordon’s Gin | Diageo).

[4] Bond specified Polish or Russian vodka, but no brand (photo © Ibrahim Unal | Pexels).

[5] A classic Dry Martini. Here’s the recipe (photo © Dante NYC).

[8] This Caviartini is garnished with a cucumber slice and a Petrossian Caviarcube® (photo © Petrossian).

[9] Not just any olives: These are stuffed with premium blue cheese (photo © Ruth’s Chris).

How about a special Martini for Father’s Day? This Martini has a legacy: It’s James Bond’s Vesper Martini recipe.

The drink was invented and named by Ian Fleming in his first James Bond novel, Casino Royale (1953).

Thanks to Fleming, the Vodka Martini entered the cocktail culture. By the second Bond novel, Live and Let Die, Bond is drinking vodka Martinis, starting the trend that pretty much replaced the classic gin Martini recipe for many fans.

In Casino Royale, Bond orders a Martini with vodka in addition to the classic gin; then replaces the vermouth with Kina Lillet, a different fortified white wine.

“A dry martini,” [Bond] said. “One. In a deep champagne goblet.”

“Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?”

Later in the book, he names the drink Vesper, after his love interest, Vesper Lynd. It more properly is called simply a Vesper, since the ingredients have strayed from those of the Martini.

The catchphrase “shaken, not stirred,” entered our jargon in “Diamonds Are Forever” (1956).
 
 
RECIPE: THE VESPER MARTINI

The cocktail first appeared in Ian Fleming’s Casino Royale, which was published in 1953. It was named for the fictional double agent—and Bond love-interest—Vesper Lynd.

Called a Vesper for short, the formulation of the drink has changed slightly.

 
But it’s easy enough to substitute and recapture the original flavor of the drink [source].
 
Ingredients For One Drink

 
Preparation

Our tip: To get Bond’s “extra-cold” temperature, chill the glass and the ingredients—gin, vodka, Lillet, and shaker—in the freezer in advance.

1. ADD the ingredients to a shaker and shake until the contents are ice-cold. Here’s how to shake a cocktail (video).

2. STRAIN into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish and twist a large, thin-cut lemon peel over the top.
 
 
> MARTINI HISTORY
 
 
50+ MORE MARTINI RECIPES

 
And for fun, but not a drink:

*Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire, American Beefeater, and Broker’s gina provide the traditional flavor of the original Gordon’s 94 proof gin. In the U.K., Gordon’s has been cut to 75 proof; a 94.6 proof version is exported.