Here’s a delicious bite with a Valentine’s Day accent—although it’s a yummy bite any day of the year (photos #1 and #2).

Whether for your own home or as a homemade gift, a cheese lover may be more appreciative of this gift than with empty-carb chocolate or homemade cupcakes.

The recipe takes immerses cheese balls in honey, olive oil and pink peppercorns. There’s more about them below.

It’s the pink peppercorns (photo #5) and the honey sweetness that add the Valentine touch.
 
 
> Check out all the different types of pepper.

> The different types of cheese: a photo glossary.

> The history of goats and goat cheese.
 
 
WAYS TO SERVE THE GOAT CHEESE BITES

The honeyed goat cheese balls are perfect on:

 
If you aren’t a goat cheese fan, you can substitute bocconcini (bite-size mozzarella balls). They aren’t be spreadable, but you can use them for all the other uses above.

By the way, fried goat cheese balls are a popular appetizer and party snack. You can find quite a few recipes online.
 
 
RECIPE: MARINATED HONEYED GOAT CHEESE BALLS

You’ll need a nice jar or other refrigerator container for gifting.

Prep time is 10 minutes; marinating time is 1 hour or longer.

The goat cheese balls can be stored up to 7 days in the fridge. Remove 1 hour prior to serving.
 
Ingredients

[1] Honey goat cheese balls for you or for gifting (photos #1 and #3 © Vermont Creamery).

[2] If you’re making them for yourself, you don’t need a pretty container (photo © Sweet Paul Magazine).

[3] You can serve the goat cheese balls as they are, or spread them on crostini, toast, etc.

[4] A radicchio salad with goat cheese. Here’s the recipe (photo © Eat Smarter).

[5] Pink peppercorns are not actually pepper. They’re called peppercorns because they look like them. Here’s more about them (photo © Silk Road Spices).

[6] A peppercorn flavors combines the differing hot flavors of the black, green and white peppercorns with the sweet fruitiness of the pink peppercorns (photo © Silk Road Spices).

*Piper nigrum is the botanical genus and species of the common black peppercorn, from the family Piperaceae. Black, green, red and white peppercorns are the fruit of the same Piper nigrum vine. Green peppercorns are not yet ripe; white peppercorns are the ripe black peppercorns with the black skin removed.

†A mastic tree is a particular genus of evergreen shrub or small tree.
 
 

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[1] H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer comes in 4-packs and 12-packs. Above, the Rosé variety (all photos © H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer).

[2] Sparkling water with the essence of Pinot Noir.

[3] Sparkling water with the essence of Sauvignon Blanc.

[4] Sparkling water with the essence of Sauvignon Blanc.

[5] Pinot Noir grapes used to make the de-alcoholized wine for H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer.

[6] Sauvignon Blanc grapes used to make the de-alcoholized wine for H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer.

This week’s Top Pick hails from Sonoma County, using the County’s famous wines.

But it’s not a bottle of wine, and it has 0% alcohol.

H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer is the world’s first wine-infused, non-alcoholic sparkling water.

It’s called “soft” seltzer to differentiate it from hard seltzer, which contains alcohol.

It’s an all natural, great-tasting, premium beverage that may just launch a new category of 0% alcohol drinks that still provide the flavor of alcohol.

H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer combines the refreshment of sparkling water with flavor of fine California wines.

The company calls it “what to drink when you’re not drinking,” and it’s perfect for:

 
H20 Sonoma Soft Seltzer is also a great chaser, that helps to re-hydrate you after alcohol consumption*.
 
 
WHAT’S IN H2O SONOMA SOFT SELTZER

It’s pure water infused with the juice of 100% California varietal wine grapes, premium de-alcoholized† wine and natural flavor extracts.

And the varieties?

Delicious! They’re as wine-like as a glass of sparkling water can be!

There will be eight varietals. Three are in the market now (photos #1, #2, #3, #4), and five will join them later this year.

Available now:

 
Available soon:

 
We couldn’t be more pleased with this thirst-quenching, hydrating line.

It’s the best of both beverages—sparkling water and wine—with just only 30-60 calories per 16-ounce can (depending on the varietal).

(The cans are recyclable, of course.)

A bonus: H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer was created with holistic health, well-being and conscious consumption in mind.

 
 
THE SHORT HISTORY OF H2O SONOMA SOFT SELTZER

The line was created by award-winning Sonoma County winemaker Robert Rex of Deerfield Ranch Winery.

As he poured thousands of samples of his wines at Whole Foods Market over the years, he heard many customers express their desire for a wine-related, non-alcohol refreshment that they could drink anytime, anywhere.

After much study, Rex was able to port the subtle flavor essences from his favorite wine grape varietals into a refreshing, non-alcoholic drink.

The result has been enthusiastically received by wine lovers and non-drinkers nationwide.

The first bottling of H2O Sonoma Soft Seltzer immediately sold out!
 
 
>TO PURCHASE H2O SONOMA SOFT SELTZER, VISIT AMAZON.COM.
 
 
> FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT H2OSELTZER.COM
 
 
________________
 
 
*Alcohol is a diuretic. It causes your body to remove fluids from your blood through your renal system (the kidneys, ureters and bladder) at a much quicker rate than other liquids. If you don’t drink enough water with alcohol, you can become dehydrated quickly [source].

“De-alcoholized wine” refers to wine that has had the alcohol removed. By comparison, “non-alcoholic wine” can sometimes just be grape juice dressed up as wine.

Updated June 2026

February 9th is National Pizza Day, but Detroit Pizza has its own holiday: June 23rd. Living far from Detroit, we never came across the style, so we found a recipe to make our own.

Detroit-style pizza is known for its square shape and thick, crispy-edge crust. It’s very different from the pie-like style of deep-dish Chicago pizza.

Below:

> The history of Detroit pizza.

> Detroit pizza recipe.

Elsewhere on The Nibble:

> The 40+ different types of pizza.

> The history of pizza.

> The year’s 16 pizza holidays.
 
 
THE HISTORY OF DETROIT PIZZA

Detroit-style pizza is a descendant of Sicilian-style pizza. It emerged in 1946 when Gus Guerra wanted something new for his neighborhood bar, Buddy’s Rendezvous.

He began with a Sicilian pizza dough recipe from his mother-in-law, topped with cheese and tomato sauce.

He chose to use brick cheese*, popular in the Midwest, instead of mozzarella.

However, rather than using the conventional round pizza pan, he baked his pizza in a square, blue, steel automotive parts pans—plentiful in Detroit (Motor City) at the time.

The thick pan with sides allowed the cheese at the perimeter of the pan to caramelize.

This formed a golden brown, crisp, cheesy crust around the pie: crunchy goodness that made Detroit-style pizza different. It’s known as a frico (FREE-co) edge.

This crunchy, cheesy edge is made by pressing shredded cheese around the edge of the dough and up the sides of the pan. It creates a well-browned, crispy, savory ring of cheese called frico.

Since then, many other toppings have made their way onto the pie.

> Here’s more about Detroit-style pizza.
 
 
RECIPE: DETROIT-STYLE PIZZA

Thanks to DeLallo for this recipe.

To get the right perimeter, you’ll need a heavy-duty rectangular pan (we used a medium-size roasting pan).

You can tailor the recipe to add any topping you like, from arugula (photo #2—add it after removing the pizza from the oven) to pepperoni.

Ingredients

 
[5] Brick cheese, a mild, all-purpose cheese created by Wisconsin cheese makers, is the original cheese used in Detroit-style pizza, replacing mozzarella. It’s similar in profile to Havarti and Tilsit (photo: The Nibble).

[1] Detroit-style pizza topped with cherry tomatoes and fresh basil. The recipe is below (photo © DeLallo).

[2] A garnish of fresh arugula. You can add it to this recipe, or instead of the cherry tomatoes (photo © Detroit Style Pizza Co.)

[3] It’s the heavy-duty metal pan that makes the difference (photo © Chef Pomodoro | Amazon).

[4] A Detroit-style pizza is ready for any pizza topping you choose (photo © Jisculo | Amazon).

If you’ve purchased ready-to-use pizza dough, or have made your own, skip Step 1. You can make the dough up to 3 days in advance and refrigerate it.

1. MAKE the crust. Combine flour mix and yeast packet in a large mixing bowl with 1-1/4 cups of lukewarm water. Stir with a fork until the dough begins to form. Knead by hand for 3 minutes, or until the dough is soft and smooth. Transfer to a clean, lightly oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 minutes.

2. PREHEAT the oven to 500°F. Grease the bottom and sides of a 13” x 9” high-sided cake pan. Be sure to use a pan that has sides 2 ½” to 3” tall.

3. PRESS out the dough in the pan, being careful to reach the sides and corners. Cover and let rise in a warm area for 10 minutes.

4. ASSEMBLE the pizza: Start by layering the dough evenly with the shredded cheeses, all the way to the corners. Drizzle the sauce over the cheese in 3 to 4 rows, making sure you don’t fully cover the entire pizza and cheese. Arrange the tomatoes on top of the pizza.

5. BAKE for 20 minutes, or until the dough has puffed up, the cheese has melted and the sides and edges are lightly blackened and crispy.

6. REMOVE the pizza from the oven, using a spatula to loosen the pizza from the pan. Sprinkle with Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Allow the pizza to cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Transfer the pizza from the pan onto a cutting board and cut it into squares to serve.
 

[5] A cast-iron pan will last a lifetime (photo © Lvmol | Amazon).
 

________________

*Brick cheese, from Wisconsin, is a medium-soft, cheddar-like cheese made in a brick-shaped form. The color ranges from pale yellow to white. The cheese has a sweet, mild flavor when young, and matures into stronger, ripe flavors.

†Frico is a traditional dish of Friuli, a region in north-east Italy. Cheese is heated in a round pan. Other ingredients, such as potatoes, can be added, along with bacon or speck, chiles, herbs, and onions. Originally frico was prepared as a way of recycling cheese rinds among impoverished people of the Carnia Mountains, who served it as a main dish. The result is a crunchy crust and a soft center, ideal as a main course or even a single dish. Written records of frico date to the mid-15th century. Here’s a recipe.
 

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