[1] It tastes like mango juice mixed with vodka (photo by Katharine Pollak | THE NIBBLE).

[2] Fresh mangoes (photo © National Mango Board).

We recently sat down with a bottle of Three Olives Mango Flavored Vodka, made with natural mango flavor. Drinking it in shots was pure pleasure, like a mango cocktail in a bottle—but far more enjoyable for us than any sweet, gussied-up cocktail.

For those who do enjoy sweet cocktails, there is a vast selection of mango cocktail recipes—mixed with mango nectar or other fruit juice such as apple, orange and pineapple; with coconut milk; with other spirits including curaçao, rum, tequila, apple and watermelon schnapps; and laden with fresh fruit—bananas, mango and strawberries, for starters.

While some cocktail recipes are simpler—mango vodka and Sprite, garnished with mango cubes, for example—who needs the Sprite when the vodka tastes this good?

For our second shot, we floated a piece of sweet-and-hot Cowboy Candy—a circle of candied jalapeño—atop the vodka. Next time, we’ll have fresh jalapeños on hand.
 
We must set forth: We don’t drink to get a buzz. When we want a fruit drink, we’ll have a smoothie, a glass of juice or a Diet Snapple (when we’re counting calories). When we want alcohol, we want to experience the taste of the alcohol.

And who needs the sugar calories of juice, mixers and sweeteners, be they sugar or agave? At 69 calories per fluid ounce, two shots of Three Olives Mango Vodka fit into any calorie plan.

Flavored vodkas are a very individual experience. As much as we didn’t care for the Three Olives Grape Vodka we tried last week (again, neat; it would be better in a recipe), the Mango Vodka was a home run.

> The history of mango.

> The history of vodka.
 

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Updated August 2026

August 9th is National Rice Pudding Day. Cold and creamy, rice pudding is fine hot-weather fare and great year-round comfort food.

It can also be glamorous! Here are six ways to raise your rice pudding recipe to fine-restaurant status.

Try all of them to decide what you think makes the best rice pudding recipe. (Can we see a rice pudding party on the horizon?)

TIP: You can find great rice pudding in 15 flavors at from Rice To Riches. See photo #6 below.

Below:

> Turn Plain Jane rice pudding to Glamour Girl.

> 17 rice pudding recipes.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The history of rice pudding.

> The history of pudding.

> The different types of rice.

> The history of rice.

> The year’s 17 pudding and custard holidays.
 
 
HOW TO MAKE RICE PUDDING AN ELEGANT DESSERT

It’s easy to turn a plate dish or rice pudding into an elegant dessert.

1. Spirits: Soak the raisins in Armagnac, Grand Marnier, or other favorite liqueur.

2. Other Dried Fruits: Think beyond raisins: Create a medley of small dried fruits that includes raisins as well as dried blueberries, cherries, cranberries, currants and sultanas (golden raisins). Coconut, plain or toasted, is another favorite but it works better as a garnish than mixed into the pudding.

3. Specialty Rice: Try a different rice such as elegant, long-grained basmati and jasmine or short, oval, arborio (used for risotto).

4. Coconut Milk: Use coconut milk with black rice or red rice for a Thai rice pudding.

5. Chocolate: Stir chocolate chips into chilled rice pudding, or garnish with chocolate shavings or a shard of chocolate bark.

6.Nut Garnishes: From pistachios to spiced nuts to a sweet-and-salty mix, consider nuts the “protein” element..

7.Other Garnishes: See the wealth of ideas in the footnote* below.

8. Serveware: Serve the pudding in a Martini glass or other glam dessert dish.
 
 
MORE RICE PUDDING RECIPES

 

[5] Rice Pudding Brûlée: Add a crackly crème brûlée topping to rice pudding. Here’s the recipe (photo © Taste Of Home).

[2] A sophisticated addition: Soak the raisins in orange liqueur, spiced rum, or other favorite spirit (photo © South Beach Liquor Store).

[3] Thai rice pudding made with black sticky rice and coconut milk. Here’s the recipe (photo © Briana’s Kitchen Creations).

[4] Serve in a wine or cocktail glass. This recipe, Cinnamon Rice Pudding, is vegan. Here’s the recipe (photo © Recipes Worth Repeating).

________________
 
*There are numerous interesting garnishes for rice pudding. The key is balancing the creamy, mild rice pudding with something that adds either crunch, brightness, or complementary flavors. Some ideas:

>Fruits Beyond Fresh Berries: caramelized banana slices with a touch of rum, fresh fig slices with a honey drizzle, diced dried fruit mix marinated in liqueur or rum, toasted coconut flakes.

> International Flair: chopped or whole pistachios with candied rose petals or a dab of rose syrup (Persian), dulce de leche with toasted almonds (Latin American), matcha powder with black sesame seeds (Japanese), toasted sesame seeds with a drizzle of tahini (Middle Eastern).

> Nuts & Seeds: candied pecans or walnuts with maple syrup (recipe), mixed salted nuts, spiced pumpkin seeds (check out Superseedz), and for the holidays, chopped plain or candied chestnuts with dried cranberries (you can also substitute dried cranberries for the raisins in the rice pudding recipe).

> Sweet & Spicy: apple chips with cinnamon sugar, shards of chocolate bark with sea salt or chile flakes, chopped dates with a sprinkle of cardamom, poached figs or plums with star anise, shortbread cookie with lavender honey, whipped cream with chai spice or five spices (recipes).

> Textural Contrasts: crushed amaretti, gingersnap, or meringue cookies; candied orange peel (recipe); crushed honeycomb or sesame candy pieces; toasted brioche crumbs.
 
 

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In the days before air conditioning, it wasn’t easy to sell fine chocolates in the summer. Cocoa butter, one of the major components of chocolate (the one that provides the creamy, luscious mouthfeel), melts at 93.4°F to 98°F.

Hot weather can make a mess of a chocolatier’s hard work.

To beat the heat, many chocolatiers made special “summer chocolates” out of what consumers called “white chocolate,” but was actually a product called confectionery coating, a product that substitutes vegetable oil for the cocoa butter.

Confectionery coating is melt-resistant, but without the cocoa butter it doesn’t taste like chocolate—in fact, if you have a good palate, it may not taste good to you at all. Some chocolatiers still use it. It’s easier to work with and it’s much less expensive than real chocolate.

If you like milk chocolate but don’t like white chocolate, chances are you may have been eating confectionery coating instead of the real deal.

A beguiling summer bonbon, the Blood Orange Creamsicle (photo © Bespoke Chocolates [now closed]).

One of our favorite pieces is this Blood Orange “Creamsicle” Bonbon from Bespoke Chocolates: a creamy, top-quality white chocolate shell with a tart-sweet blood orange ganache.

It’s available for a limited time only, so don’t dawdle. But the company’s spectacular Pretzel-Covered Sea-Salted Caramel, which gets our vote for one of the top 10 bonbons in America, is available year-round. Order as many as you can afford.