[1] Sweeten cream cheese and top with strawberries for a strawberry cheesecake English muffin (photo © California Strawberry Commission).

[2] Avocado cheeseburger (photo © Thomas Breads).

[3] Peanut butter and banana for breakfast, lunch or snack (photo © Wolferman’s).

[4] English muffin mini-pizzas (photo © The Wholesome Junk Food Cookbook).

What other ways to use English muffins have you tried—beyond a breakfast bread, mini pizzas (photo #4), the base for Eggs Benedict and your version of the Egg McMuffin?

April 23rd is National English Muffins Day, so here are a few more ideas.

If you have too many English muffins on hand, instead of tucking them into the freezer, try:

 
 
ENGLISH MUFFIN HISTORY

The English muffin, first called a “toaster crumpet,” was invented in New York City in 1894 by Samuel Bath Thomas, a British immigrant.

The English muffin is not a muffin per se, but a variation of the crumpet—a raised muffin cooked on a griddle in a ring mold until is brown on the bottom and riddled with small holes on the top.

That description is not too dissimilar from the “nooks and crannies” that Thomas’s, the original English muffin, has been proclaiming for some 30 years.

Immediately embraced as a more elegant alternative to toast, it was served at fine hotels and ultimately became a mainstay of American breakfast cuisine.

You may see crumpets at specialty food stores or at fancy brunches and teas and think that they’re English muffins, but the giveaway is that they’re unsplit.

Then, what’s the difference between an English muffin and a crumpet?

They are cousins, maybe even half brothers, depending on how you like your culinary analogies.

 
While Thomas named his new style of bread the English muffin, the Brits not only did not invent the English muffin.

In fact, they had never heard of an “English muffin” until the 1990s, when Best Foods, a unit of international conglomerate Unilever, bought the S.B. Thomas brand*.

They began exporting English muffins to the U.K. in early 2009. (We could not find any information om how the British felt about Americans selling “English muffins” to them.

Here’s more about Samuel Bath Thomas and the invention of the English Muffin.

 
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*The brand has been sold numerous times. In 1922, after the death of Samuel Bath Thomas, the family incorporated S.B. Thomas, Inc. On August 3, 1926, they registered the “Thomas” trademark. In 1970, the business was acquired by the CPC food conglomerate; in January 1, 1998 the conglomerate was renamed Bestfoods. The brand was more recently owned by George Weston Bakeries, an operating unit of George Weston Ltd., which sold it to the U.S. subsidiary of a Mexican baking company, Bimbo Bakeries USA, which also owns Entenmann’s, Sara Lee and other brands.

With so many people going hungry in the U.S. (much less, worldwide), it’s shocking how much food we waste.

It’s not just us, the consumers. It’s the whole food chain, from “ugly” produce left to rot in the field, to problems with transportation and storage, to foods thrown out by grocers, foodservice, etc.

In fact, mre than a third of all food grown for human consumption in the U.S. is wasted, according to ReFED, a nonprofit that focuses on food waste.

That’s about $408 billion worth of food, grown on 18% of U.S. farmland, with 4 trillion tons of water.

The carbon footprint of U.S. food waste is greater than that of the airline industry!

Globally, wasted food accounts for about 8% of all greenhouse gas emissions [source].

Take a moment to think of the environmental consequences of producing food that no one eats.

April 22nd is Earth Day. We can each play a small part in saving our planet, starting with our kitchens.
 
 
CONSUMERS & FOOD WASTE

Some 37% of food waste happens in the home.

Why do we waste so much food? We are personally guilty of all of the following.

 
Each Earth Day, we vow to do better.

It’s like New Year’s resolutions. The intention is good, but the execution is not.
 
 
8 SMALL STEPS TO STOP FOOD WASTE

You not only stop food waste; you stop wasting money on the food you’d throw away.

1. PLAN your purchases. In the old days, our Mom had a kitchen calendar/meal planner, with the dinners noted for each day of the week (roast chicken, salmon croquettes, spaghetti, whatever). She did her weekly shopping with a written list that matched the meals.

Even if you don’t cook for a family like Mom did, you can plan your meals.
 
 
2. RESIST over-buying. Train yourself to buy too little rather than too much. You’ll likely find that you can “make do” with what you’ve bought.

One way we’ve been working on this is to shop twice a week instead of once a week, so we don’t feel pressure to buy everything at once.

And when we look at that better-priced bag of 10 avocados or tangerines, we pause to think if we can commit to using them all before they go bad.
 
 
3. DON’T toss wilted food. Fruits and vegetables that are softened or wrinkled can still be tossed into soups, smoothies, or baked dishes. We love making baked apples when they go soft. Stale bread becomes French toast, croutons or breadcrumbs.

If you don’t know what to do with a soft eggplant, for example, just search online.
 
 
4. DON’T rely on the “best before” dates. Produce, eggs, dairy and other foods can remain good well beyond those dates.

A simple test: The sniff test. Then, the taste test: Dip a finger in and taste a tiny amount. You’re likely to find a perfectly edible food.
 
 
5. STORE your products like the grocery stores do. The newest food is at the back of the refrigerator case or the shelf. The older products, that need to be used first, are at the front.

This is a really easy way to store perishables, canned goods and other foods, including those you might not think of. For example, olive oil spoils, and even vinegar will go bad over time.
 
 
6. KEEP a list of spoiled foods you’ve thrown out. We keep ours on the fridge. This can help identify certain foods that you should cut back on.
 
 
7. FREEZE foods before they spoil. We toss a lot of fresh herbs, and leftovers, into the freezer. Bread, seafood, meats and poultry, even cooked pasta can go into the fridge.
 
 
8. STORE food correctly. Here are great pointers on the best way to store fruits and vegetables. Always transfer leftovers from open cans into suitable containers. Do not store them in the open cans.

Also note that some fruits give off ethylene, which makes adjacent foods spoil more quickly. Storing apples, bananas and tomatoes apart from other perishables will help keep all perishables fresher.
 
 
MORE FOOD STORAGE TIPS

[1] Don’t buy them unless you’ll eat them that week (photos #1 and #2 © Good Eggs).

[2] Remember that ground meat spoils more quickly than whole cuts.

[3] Artisan breads often are stale by the next morning. Stick what you won’t be using in the freezer, the day you buy it (photo © Hewn Bread | Chicago).

[4] Don’t push leftover pasta to the back of the fridge. Keep it in sight and plan when to use it. Maybe fry it! (photo © DeLallo).

[5] Even olive oil goes bad. Store it properly (away from light and heat), and only open two bottles at a time: one for cooking, one for dressing or garnish (photo © Flavor Your Life).

[1] Tea drinkers should enjoy the flavor of fine tea, even if they typically drink supermarket brands (photo © Canstock Photo).

[2] The subscription contains two black teas, one oolong, one green and one herbal tea (photo © Kanaya Tea).

[3] The tea bag subscription (photo © In Pursuit Of Tea).

Celebrate National Tea Day, April 21st, with a tea subscription for yourself, or as a gift subscription, from In Pursuit Of Tea.

This purveyor of fine teas now offers tea bags, in addition to the loose teas that are preferred by tea connoisseurs.

While there have long been subscriptions of premium loose teas, here’s the first subscription for tea bags.

Each month for five months, the recipient will receive a 12-count box of the finest teabags—a different variety each month.

Each selection highlights the flavors and fragrances that make that type of tea unique.

The teas include:

 
Order your tea subscription here.

It’s a great gift for Mother’s Day.
 
 
ABOUT IN PURSUIT OF TEA

Sebastian Beckwith and friends started In Pursuit of Tea in 1999, to explore small farms in Asia and source the finest teas available.

The loose leaf teas they continue to source are mostly still picked and processed by hand, drawing on centuries of tradition, and crafted with great care.

By sourcing directly, rather than using middlemen, In Pursuit Of Teas is able to share exquisite teas to appreciative tea drinkers, with only a minimal markup.
 
 
MORE ABOUT TEA

 
 
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*While many people think of oolong as a black tea, it is produced through a special process that includes withering the plant under strong sun and oxidation before curling and twisting the leaves. Most oolong teas, especially those of fine quality, are made from unique tea plant cultivars that are exclusively used for oolong.

Mid-Day Squares are functional chocolate bars, and they’re part of a growing movement towards functional foods.

Functional foods and beverages are everyday foods enhanced (fortified) with supplemental nutrition. The goal is to provide a health benefit beyond normal satiation and nutrition.

Here’s more about functional foods.

The Mid-Day Squares line was conceived by Lezlie Karls, a chocolate lover who also loved living a clean lifestyle.

She searched for “a little something something to get me through the day,” and couldn’t find it in the chocolate category.

Along with her husband and brother, she set to work creating it herself. The goal:

 
“It’s everything a chocolate bar isn’t, and everything a protein bar wishes it were,” says Lezlie.
 
 
SO: WHAT EXACTLY ARE MID-DAY SQUARES?

Mid-Day Squares are squares of real chocolate, and are nutritionally enhanced to add superfood nutrition while taking care of your sweet tooth.

The ingredients provide sustained energy to get you beyond the afternoon slump; to stop mid-day hunger and cravings.

Each square is vegan and packed with clean plant protein, real chocolate and superfoods.

A lot of research went in to sourcing cutting edge sweeteners and proteins, to deliver every promise.

Antioxidant flavanols in the ingredients help the body release endorphins—they are the compounds that make you feel so good after a long run.

The squares are delicious, naturally sweetened with coconut sugar, maple syrup and yacon syrup. And there is no sugar crash!

The added nutrition in these functional foods includes:

 
While this sounds like “health food”—and it is—the squares are so much more satisfying than a chocolate bar.

Each bite tastes “good for you!” in the best of ways. A chocolate lover with a demanding palate will appreciate them.

And if you haven’t heard of some of the ingredients, check them out to see what they deliver.
 
 
3 FLAVORS OF MID-DAY SQUARES

 
 
GET YOUR MID-DAY SQUARES?

Head to the company website, MidDaySquares.com.

[1] Open a packet and remove a square (all photos © Mid-Day Squares).

[2] A tray of Busta Peanut, coming off the line.

[3] Fudge Yah delivers intense chocolate flavor, with 90% cacao content.

[4] Buy them in single- or mixed-flavor boxes at MidDaySquares.com.

[1] How to make a Mimosa: one part orange juice, one part sparkling wine (photo © Good Eggs).

[2] Or buy it ready-to-drink from Ohza (this and all subsequent photos © Ohza).

[3] There’s real orange juice in every can.

[4] In addition to the Classic Mimosa, there’s Cranberry Mimosa and…

[5] …Mango Mimosa!

[6] Don’t forget the Classic Bellini: peach nectar and sparkling white wine.

[7] At last, a great drink to bring to the lake, shore, anywhere.

Ah, for a Mimosa cocktail. Today, there’s a great one…in a can!

When we were in college and smuggling drinks into the dorm, the way to do it was canned cocktails.

The problem was, they were dreadful. Who would willingly drink them?

People with no sense of taste, and dorm residents who couldn’t sneak in other booze and sneak out the empty bottles.

Flash forward: Today, with consumer demand for “portable” cocktails, the category has exploded with good things to drink.

One brand that impressed us is Ohza.

Ohza wad born when four friends lugged ingredients and cups to a boat off Cape Cod, and attempted to mix up some Mimosas on board.

The result? A mess, because the waves wouldn’t cooperate.

One of the quartet knew there had to be an easier way to enjoy a good cocktail at a tailgate, camping, boating, anywhere outdoors (as long as it’s legal), on the road (but not if you’re the driver!), and other “portable” occasions.

And of course, you don’t have to be on the move. We’ve enjoyed them on the sofa after work, on weekends, reading in bed, and (gasp!) as we write this on the computer.
 
 
A BIT OF HISTORY

The Bellini and Mimosa cocktails were preceded by the Buck’s Fizz, created in 1921 at London’s Buck’s Club as an excuse to begin drinking early.

A cocktail with no hard spirits, it has two parts sparkling wine, typically champagne, to one part orange juice.

The Mimosa followed in 1925 at the Hotel Ritz in Paris. Less strong than a Buck’s Fizz, it has equal parts of sparkling white wine and orange juice.

The Bellini arrived some time later, created in 1948 by Giuseppe Cipriani, head bartender at Harry’s Bar in Venice.

It combined peach purée (peach nectar is now used) and the local sparkling wine, Prosecco.

While the Buck’s Fizz didn’t make it big in the U.S., thanks to their juice content, the Mimosa and Bellina became a classic breakfast, brunch and lunch drink.

Pair the sparkling wine in your choice of ways: orange juice for a Mimosa, peach purée or nectar for a Bellini.
 
 
OHZA MIMOSA COCKRAILS & BELLINIS

Ohza takes the two most popular brunch drinks—the Mimosa and the Bellini—and turns them into a treat-in-a-can.

The current line includes:

 
The Mimosas and Bellinis are so good that bars and restaurants asked the company to sell them in kegs. There is now Ohza on draft!

By the way, the name Ohza evolved from drawing out the word mimosa, to mimoooohza. The last two syllables became the name of the brand.

The line is all natural, gluten free and vegan.

The company also uses a specially formulated brut sparkling wine, made in the Finger Lakes wine region of New York State, that has zero sugar.

Most sparkling wines actually sugar in them, so Ohza reduces the sugar content tremendously.

For more about the sugar, check out the seven levels of sweetness in Champagne.

Each 12-ounce can is 140 calories and 5% A.B.V.*, with 11 grams of sugar and zero added sugar.

All of the sugar comes from the juice, which accounts for 28% of the liquid volume inside the can.

It has the calorie count of a hard seltzer, but the flavor of a classic cocktail. A really good classic cocktail!
 
 
GET YOUR MIMOSA COCKTAIL & BELLINIS

Head to the Ohza website, OhzaMimosas.com, for a store locator.

You can also order online.

And, you can sign up for a subscription to have the cocktails delivered on your schedule. It’s a great gift idea, too.
 
 
MORE MIMOSA & BELLINI RECIPES