THE NIBBLE BLOG: Products, Recipes & Trends In Specialty Foods
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December 17, 2008 at 9:00 am
· Filed under Books, Chocolate, Cocktails & Spirits, Cookies-Cake-Pastry, Giftable, Holidays & Occasions, Kitchenware-Tabletop, Kosher Nibbles, NutriNibbles-Organic-Health, Sugar-Free, Wine
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December 16, 2008 at 9:30 am
· Filed under Cocktails & Spirits, Holidays & Occasions, Recipes
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| Whether you’re preparing for the Kwaanza “Karamu” feast, setting up the menorah for eight fun-filled nights, trimming the tree to Nat King Cole Christmas songs or just basking in the holiday buzz that’s synonymous with the first months of winter, infuse your holidays with a whole new kind of “spirit.”
Toast your holiday with holiday-themed fruit-flavored vodka cocktails certain to leave a lasting impression. The recipes were developed by SKYY Infusions, which use all-natural fruit flavors (and this year won awards for best fruit-flavored vodka at the Beverage Testing Institute in Chicago). Impress guests by adding your very own twist, with creative garnishes or customized glassware tied with holiday ornaments, ribbons or other themed accents.
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Garnish your Berry Sparkle cocktail with holly
berries, shown here, for a more festive look. |
| Holiday Cocktail Garnishes
Fresh sprigs of rosemary look like Christmas tree branches. Holly berries should not be ingested—eating more than three holly berries can cause illness* in adults, and have a worse effect on children. Don’t use it as a drink garnish just in case happy guests decide to nibble away. Instead, look for red currants (they look like the epitome of Christmas), white currants, lingonberries, Champagne grapes (Zante grapes), sweet gooseberries (which are red, not orange) or dried red mulberries (the fresh ones are out in the summer).
*According to the Wisconsin Poison Control Center, holly berries are “seriously poisonous;” ingestion of 20 or more berries can be fatal to children. The berries, leaves and stem of mistletoe are all considered toxic.
–Berry Sparkle With Raspberry Vodka
–Merry Cherry With Cherry Vodka
–Holly Day Cocktail With Grape Vodka
–Midnight Kiss With Passion Fruit Vodka
–Winter Chill With Citrus Vodka |
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December 16, 2008 at 9:00 am
· Filed under Cocktails & Spirits, Food Holidays & More
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In winter, you can go with mulled wine, shown
here surrounded by its spices. Click here for the
recipe. |
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White wine drinkers may want to switch to red. While red wine has been touted for its health benefits for some time (the grapes have high levels of antioxidants), a new study from UCLA and Mount Sinai School of Medicine suggests that the polyphenols in red wine may hinder the formation of protein plaques linked to Alzheimer’s disease. In an article in the November 21 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the researchers report that in lab tests, the polyphenols in red wine blocked the formation of toxic protein clumps thought to destroy brain cells and induce dementia. David Teplow, a UCLA professor of neurology and senior author of the study, says that “the compounds were shown to block the earliest stages of clumping, suggesting that polyphenols might prevent or reduce disease in humans.” Certainly, a glass of red wine can reduce stress! The study continues at Mount Sinai, testing the effects of grape seed extracts in clinical trials in humans. |
| Polyphenols are potent antioxidant compounds that have demonstrated greater antioxidant protection than vitamins C and E. The most “famous” polyphenols are the flavonoids in green tea, which may inhibit cancer by blocking the formation of cancer-causing compounds and suppressing the activation of carcinogens. These are the flavonoids catechin, epicatechin, epicatechin gallate, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG) and proanthocyanidins. Other sources of polyphenols are found in peanuts, white tea, olive oil, pomegranates, certain other fruits and vegetables, and cocoa/dark chocolate. Chocolate or cocoa that has been processed with alkali (“dutched” cocoa) will not contain any polyphenols or antioxidants.
Read more about antioxidants in our Guide To High-Antioxidant Food. |
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