[2] Tip #7: Keep one of these aerosol sprays next to your stove at all times (photo courtesy First Alert).

[3] Tip #8: Be sure you have a kitchen fire alarm…and that its batteries are fresh (photo courtesy Thrifty Fun).

Fire Prevention Week begins October 7th and, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), cooking is the leading cause of home fires.

In 40% of the cases, believe it or not, people have forgotten to turn off a stove or oven (source: 2017 American Red Cross survey last).

We can believe it. We’ve caused two microwave fires and one stove top fires for stupid behavior: leaving the kitchen while food is cooking.

That’s tip #1, below. The American Red Cross shared more tips to stay safe from cooking-related fires.
 
COOKING SAFETY TIPS

1. Don’t leave the kitchen when frying, grilling or broiling food. (Or microwaving, per our experience, since we burned out the microwaves by accidentally punching in 40 minutes instead of 4 minutes. Then we left the room, planning to come back when it was done. We got waylaid; the food combusted long before it got to 40 minutes. The smoke alarm tipped us off.)

2. Don’t leave the house when simmering, baking, roasting or boiling food.

3. Keep the stove area clean and clear of things that can catch fire, such as pot holders, towels, curtains, bags, and other appliances.

4. Keep pets away from cooking surfaces and countertops.

5. Be sure your home smoke alarm is working.

5. If a fire starts in a pan, slide a lid over the burning pan and turn off the burner. Leave the lid in place until the pan is completely cool. Moving the pan can cause serious injury or spread the fire.

6. Never pour water on grease fires.

Two tips from THE NIBBLE:

7. Keep an easy-to-use aerosol fire extinguisher next to the stove. THE NIBBLE uses The First Alert Tundra Fire Extinguisher

8. Test your smoke alarm to be sure it’s working. Don’t have a smoke alarm in or just outside of the kitchen? Get one ASAP!
 
 
WHAT TO DO IF YOU CAN’T EXTINGUISH THE FIRE

If your fire is out of control, exit the residence immediately and call 911 from outside the house.

Experts say that today’s home fires burn faster than ever, leaving people with as little as two minutes to escape a burning residence. But many mistakenly believe they have more time.

Share these tips with everyone in your household.
 
 
INSTRUCTIVE VIDEOS FROM THE RED CROSS

Cooking Fires Fact Sheet

How to Test and Install a Smoke Alarm (video)
How To Prepare For Home Fire Emergencies

Who says fun snack mixes are only for kids? You’re never too old to enjoy candy eyes staring up at you from popcorn.

This mix, created by the Popcorn Board for National Popcorn Poppin’ Month, October, is fun for harvest and Halloween snacking. Make a double batch and bring some to work or to a friend.

Starting now, leave out the candy eyes and it’s Harvest Munch. Closer to Halloween, add the eyes for Monster Munch

Sweet and salty, this Fall- and Halloween-inspired snack mix is ready in just 20 minutes: 15 minutes of prep time and 5 minutes of cook time.

 
RECIPE: HARVEST PUNCH POPCORN / HALLOWEEN MONSTER MUNCH

Ingredients For 12 Servings

 
Preparation

1. TOSS the popcorn with the pretzel sticks and spread out on large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Set aside.

2. COMBINE the butter, brown sugar and corn syrup in saucepan over medium heat. Cook, swirling the pan, for 3 to 5 minutes or until the brown sugar dissolves and the mixture is bubbling.

3. STIR in the marshmallows and salt; cook for 30 to 60 seconds or until the marshmallows are melted. Pour evenly over the popcorn mixture. Sprinkle with the mini peanut butter cups and candy corn. Let cool completely and break into clusters.
 

Harvest popcorn: Add candy eyes for Halloween (photos courtesy Popcorn Board).

 
POPCORN TRIVIA

we consume 13 billion quarts each year of this wholesome, whole grain.

Flavored Popcorn: According to The Popcorn Factory, caramel corn is favored 2:1 over the second most popular flavor, cheese. If you add in the Butter Almond Toffee flavor (caramel and almonds), its 3:1. Here are the stats: Caramel 19.82%, Cheese 9.91%, White Cheddar 9.91%, Butter Toffee Almond 8.27% and Butter 8.17%.

Read more at: https://blog.thenibble.com/2015/10/11/trivia-for-national-popcorn-month/

For more than 30 years, National Popcorn Poppin’ Month has been celebrated in October; it became official in 1999, when then Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman proclaimed October as National Popcorn Poppin’ Month.

More popcorn trivia.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF POPCORN

How long have humans been popping? Check it out.

[2] Harissa, one of five of the new Global Spices from McCormick.

[3] Add a lemon lift to all of your baked goods with this new flavor from Nielsen-Massey.

[4] One of the four flavors of flavored breadcrumbs from Pereg.

[5] Pereg’s Mexican-spiced breadcrumbs.

From McCormick, Nielsen Massey and Pereg, our products of the week are flavorings: spices and seasonings that add finesse to your recipes.

Also check out our Top Pick Of The Week, St Pierre Brioche and Belgian Waffles.
 
 
1. McCORMICK GOURMET: GLOBAL SEASONINGS

Bring home a world of flavor, invites spice leader McCormick. The organic Global Seasonings series is an affordable way to to add the latest global flavors to your everyday cooking.

The newest releases are inspired by the cuisines of South America, the Middle East and Africa. Made from the highest quality herbs and spices, they’re USDA Organic certified and Non-GMO Project verified.

You can mix the spice blends into eggs, grains, ground meats, salads, soups and sauces. You can easily make dishes like:

 
Meet The Spice Blends

 
For more information visit McCormickGourmet.com.
 
 
2. NIELSEN-MASSEY LEMON & VANILLA PASTES

Cooks and bakers who demand the best use Nielsen-Massey products. Known for decades for their fine vanilla extracts and beans, the line has expanded over recent years to include pastes and powders for fine baking.

We’re fans of their Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Paste, and have just tried a sample of the new Pure Lemon Paste (photo #3).

One of the reasons to use pastes instead of other types of flavor is that they don’t add unwanted liquid to the recipe. The thick pastes won’t thin out batters and sauces.

N-M’s Pure Lemon Paste adds a sweet, bright citrus flavor without the need to juice or zest. Use it as:

 
Try the vanilla in baking, of course; but also in:

 
For more information visit NielsenMassey.com.
 
 
3. PEREG NATURAL FOODS: FLAVORED PANKO BREAD CRUMBS

Pereg Natural Foods is a specialist in spices and grains, offering more than 60 varieties of spices, spice blends and herbs, along with flavored ancient grain mixes, gluten-free quinoa pastas, couscous, basmati rice, spreads, and breakfast cereals.

Most interesting to us right now is their line of flavored bread crumbs, traditional and panko.

 
All Nielsen-Massey products are all-natural, allergen-free, gluten-free, GMO-free and certified kosher by CRC.

All products are dairy- and lactose-free. The line is certified kosher by both OU and CRC. Many items are Non-GMO Project verified, gluten-free certified, Whole Grain Council approved, and vegan.

See more at Pereg-Gourmet.com.
________________
*Warm spices include cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, ginger, nutmeg, pepper and star anise.

Viennese crumbs are made for coating and frying chicken, schnitzel, fish & vegetables.

October 3rd is National Caramel Custard Day.

Caramel custard is one of the numerous different types of custard. Crème caramel, also called flan, is another.

Because there is no official National Flan Day (Walmart declared one in 2012 as a product promotion), and because it’s pumpkin season, we’re sharing a Pumpkin Flan recipe from Seviche restaurant in Kentucky.

But first, let’s end the confusion between caramel custard and crème caramel/flan.

It’s easy to confuse the two by name (but not by sight—details follow). In fact, when we looked at caramel custard recipes and images online, almost all of them were crème caramel/flan.

Both use caramelized sugar (white sugar heated until it becomes a light brown liquid), but in different ways. Here’s how to distinguish them:

 
> With a sweet flan, the tart is filled with pastry cream (crème pâtissière, a type of custard) and topped with fruit.

> Quiche is the best known of the savory tarts. Another term for spinach quiche is spinach flan; leek and bacon quiche is leek and bacon flan, etc.
 
 
RECIPE: PUMPKIN FLAN

This recipe uses a particular brand of pumpkin-infused syrup. If you can’t find it locally and don’t want to order it online, you should be able to find others, such as Monin and Torani. It’s the same syrup used to make pumpkin spice lattes.

If you don’t know the details, here’s the difference between evaporated milk and condensed milk.

Ingredients For 10 Four-Once Servings

 
Preparation

1. MIX the sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil for a few minutes until the sugar caramelizes.

2. POUR the caramelized sugar into aluminum molds; you can use any shape: oval, round or square. Spread the caramel on the bottom of the molds. Set aside at room temperature until hardened.

3. PREHEAT the oven to 350°F. Mix well the evaporated milk, condensed milk, egg yolks, pumpkin and vanilla by hand or blender. Pour through a fine mesh sieve. Gently pour the mixture on top of the caramel in the aluminum molds.

[2] Classic flan at Fogo de Chão.

[3] Caramel custard has a smooth, dry top: no runny caramelized sugar. That sugar is in the mix—it’s what gives the custard its brown color, instead of conventional, pale yellow, baked custard. Here’s the recipe from Bon Appetit.

[4] A multiportion caramel custard made in a removable-bottom pan. Here’s the recipe from Hummingbird High.

5. TO SERVE: Run a thin knife around the edges of the mold to loosen the flan. Place a plate on top of the mold and quickly turn upside down to position the golden brown caramel on top.
 
 
DON’T GO AWAY WITHOUT CHECKING OUT

THE HISTORY OF CUSTARD

[2] If you want the smaller size for gifts or party favors, visit your retailer sooner rather than later. They may have to be ordered from the distributor.

[3] Toast to Halloween (photo courtesy BLT Prime | NYC).

Are you planning a Halloween party?

Will you be a guest at one?

Are you staying home to greet the trick-or-treaters (or hide from them)?

In any case, you deserve your own treat: Mionetto prosecco.

Its black-and-orange colors are holiday-themed, and the sparkling wine inside is delicious for drinking straight or turning into cocktails:

 
Here are 20 champagne cocktail recipes, including a Caramel Apple Mimosa.

How about some Prosecco Ice Pops?
 
 
WHAT IS PROSECCO?

Prosecco is a very affordable bubbly that often takes the place of Champagne at the table—or the party.

Prosecco (pro-SEK-o) is the name of a village in northeast Italy’s Veneto region. It is located in the hills of the province of Treviso, between the towns of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene.

It’s the of home Prosecco sparkling wines. In Europe, wines are named after the place where the grapes are grown and the wine is made. The wine is often labeled Prosecco di Conegliano Valdobbiadene, after its appellation*.

The Prosecco grape—now known as the Glera grape—originated there. While most of the wines are largely Glera, by law other local white grape varieties, such as Bianchetta Trevigiana, can be included in the blend.

 
Prosecco is made by the Tank Method, also known as the Charmat process (named for its inventor), the bulk method, cuve close (French for sealed tank), granvas (Spanish) or autoclave (Italian).

The second fermentation† takes place in a stainless steel tank and the resulting wine is bottled under pressure. This is a much less expensive way to do the job, and wines made by this method are less expensive than traditional method bubblies that follow the Champagne style.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF PROSECCO

The history of Prosecco is not well documented. Until recently, there were different theories about its origin.

Now, it is believed that the first Prosecco was created in 1868 by Antonio Carpene, who subjected still white wine of the area to a second fermentation, which produced the bubbles.

In general, the wine of Prosecco has been linked to a wine made at the time of Roman Empire, in a town called Pucino.

It, like Prosecco, was located in the hills that surround the Gulf of Trieste [source]. (The town no longer exists, but the surname Pucino, indicating a person from Pucino, is still going strong.)

Using grape DNA and archaeological evidence, it was more recently established that the grape called Prosecco was very similar to the older grape from the Pucino area, Glera. The grape called Prosecco is now called Glera.

*An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication, used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, such as what grapes may be grown, maximum grape yields, alcohol level, and other quality factors, may also apply before an appellation name may legally appear on a wine bottle label.

The rules that govern appellations are dependent on the country in which the wine was produced, and a legal designation appears on the label. A.O.C., Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée (the appellation of origin is controlled by law) is one of these.

The tradition of wine appellation is ancient: References are found in the Bible, where the wines of Carmel, Samaria, Helbon and Jezreel are mentioned. The tradition of appellation continued throughout antiquity and the Middle Ages, though without any of the legally sanctioned rules as exist in modern times (see paragraph above).

Historically, the world’s first exclusive (protected) vineyard zone was introduced in Chianti, Italy in 1716; and the first wine classification system in Tokaj-Hegyalja, Hungary, in 1730 [source].

Other types of food often have appellations as well. Products from certain highly-regarded apples to cheeses to figs to walnuts are A.O.C. designations (here’s more). A.O.C. guarantees quality and authenticity to the consumer.

†Sparkling wines undergo two fermentations. The second fermentation creates the bubbles.