One of our team makes two runs a day for a caramel macchiato at the corner Starbucks. This one’s for you, Christina.

There are numerous types of espresso drinks, from affogato (espresso served over ice cream) to Vanilla Latte (3:1 steamed milk and espresso with vanilla-flavored syrup).

“Macchiato” means marked or stained in Italian (in France, it’s called cafe noisette).

In Italy, caffè macchiato is made in an espresso cup, from steamed milk which is “marked” by the addition of espresso. The espresso poured into the center of the foam, sinks down, and leaves a brown spot on top (photos #4 and #5). In Italy, it’s a mid-morning drink’ many Italians add a bit of sugar.

The chief difference between a macchiato and a latte is that the macchiato has aesthetically pleasing layers of color. With a Latte, the espresso and milk are completely integrated (see photos at right).

As adapted to American tastes, the macchiato became a larger drink—and a sweeter one, of course, with the addition of caramel syrup.

A caramel macchiato starts with steamed milk and vanilla syrup, adds the espresso, and tops the drink with a drizzle of caramel syrup. (Starbucks says that its 16-ounce size is 250 calories.)

The recipe and history of the caramel macchiato follow, along with:

> A recipe to make your own vanilla syrup.

> A recipe to make your own caramel syrup.
 
 
But first, for your consideration:

> The different types of espresso drinks.

> The history of espresso.

> The different types of coffee.

> The history of coffee

> The history of caramel.

> National Macchiato Day is November 19th.

> The year’s 25 coffee holidays
 
 
THE HISTORY OF THE CARAMEL MACCHIATO

Starbucks introduced the caramel macchiato in the fall of 1996. Hannah Su, a Starbucks employee, developed the iconic drink. She said she wanted to create something special to mark Starbucks’ 25th anniversary.

The challenge was coming up with a silky, velvety caramel sauce that stayed on top of the foam.

She and a few colleagues spent some 10 months working on the recipe, creating more than 30 different iterations.

The initial plan was to offer the Caramel Macchiato for just a few weeks. But it proved to be far more popular than anyone could have imagined and has become a menu staple [source].
 
 
RECIPE #1: HOMEMADE CARAMEL MACCHIATO

You can make your own at home in five minutes and double the recipe if you like. But try a single size first in case you want to adjust the proportions.

You can buy the syrups or make your own (recipes below).

Ingredients Per Drink

 
Preparation

1. WARM an empty cup (we microwave it for 10 seconds) and add 1 tablespoon of vanilla syrup. Froth the milk and add it, along with the foam, to the cup.

2. Pour in the espresso. Drizzle the caramel sauce to garnish, and serve.
 
 
RECIPE #2: MAKE YOUR OWN VANILLA SYRUP

Ingredients For 1-1/3 Cups

 
Preparation

1. COMBINE the two sugars and the pinch of salt with the cup of water in a saucepan. Place the saucepan over medium-high heat.

2. STIR slowly and continuously at a gentle simmer until all of the sugars and salt are completely dissolved and the mixture is clear (it should not look gritty anymore). Note: Do not bring the mixture to a rapid boil; the goal is just to dissolve the sugar. This should take about 3-5 minutes. One the sugar is dissolved…

3. REMOVE the saucepan from the heat. Allow the syrup to cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Then stir in the 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. When completely cooled to room temperature…

4. STORE in an airtight container (like a glass jar or bottle) and refrigerate. The syrup should last for 2–3 weeks when refrigerated.
 
 
RECIPE #3: MAKE YOUR OWN CARAMEL SYRUP

Ingredients For 1-1/3 Cups

[1] A regular macchiato—hold the caramel, save the calories (photo © Ruandom Zhong | Pexels).

[2] A caramel macchiato from Starbucks (photo © Starbucks).

[3] Get ready to pour (photo © Eugenie Kitchen).

[4] Pouring espresso into the foamed milk (photo © Masud Allahverdizad | Pexels).

[5] A plain macchiato with the “brown spot” (photo © Kenny Kenneth | Unsplash).

[6] An iced macchiato (photo © Najla Cam | Unsplash).

1. ADD the sugar to a heavy saucepan and cook over medium-high heat. The sugar will liquefy; watch it closely because it burns easily. When the liquid starts to turn amber, remove the pan from the heat and immediately…

2. WHISK in the butter and fully incorporate it into the sugar. Quickly whisk in the cream (bubbles and foam are natural).

3. STIR in the vanilla and salt. Let cool and transfer to a squeeze bottle (or other container).
 
 

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Top: Deluxe grill from Landmann. Bottom: Weber’s Q series fits almost anywhere.

Did you fire up the grill for Mother’s Day? It’s one of the biggest barbecue days of the year, with 34% 0f grill owners cooking celebrate Mom. It following the Fourth of July (76%), Labor Day (62%), Memorial Day (62%) and Father’s Day (49%) in popularity.

More than 75% of Americans own a grill or smoker. May is National Barbecue Month: A survey from the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (HPBA) names grilling as America’s favorite patio pastime.

Our Tip Of The Day: Have a BYO Favorite Dish barbecue party. Whether it’s a venerable family recipe or something more recent like grilled poppers, everyone should bring a favorite food: sides, punch, desserts, etc. (In our family, it’s homemade baked beans with molasses and a topping of crisp bacon.)

It can be quite a feast: Beyond proteins and veggies, people grill everything from bread, pizza and quesadillas to fruit and other desserts.
 
2016 BBQ TRENDS

Whether for easy weeknight dinners, weekend feasts or even breakfast, here’s the scoop from HPBA’s most recent State of the Barbecue Industry Report, from a survey conducted in July and August, 2015.

 
WHAT’S A BARBEQUE?

Barbecue is a noun and a verb. It’s a meal cooked outdoors—for millennia over an open fire until the development of modern gas and electric grills. “Barbecue” also refers to:

 
BARBECUE, BARBEQUE OR BBQ?

Barbecue and barbeque are alternative spellings, along with the short form BBQ.

To quote chef Anthony Bourdain, “Barbecue may not be the road to world peace, but it’s a start.”

Some people like to serve pancakes with a garnish of berries. But at The Mission restaurant in San Diego, a creative cook embedded the fruit in the pancake itself.

You can do it easily:

 
No berries? Use dried fruit (dried cherries, cranberries, raisins, etc) or dice any other fruit you have on hand (apples, bananas, pears, etc.).

While the The Mission serves the pancakes with conventional maple syrup, consider these…
 
ALTERNATIVES TO MAPLE SYRUP

 
 
For plain pancakes consider:

 
You can also mix up a creative syrup; for example, honey with raisins, diced apples and/or chopped nuts.
 
 
RECIPE: CINNAMON SYRUP

This is delicious on French toast, pancakes and waffles; along with fruit salad, ice cream, un-iced cakes, etc.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

Fun with fruit, in and on your pancakes. Top: Embedded berries (photo courtesy The Mission restaurant | San Diego). Center: “Apple Pie Pancakes,” topped with sautéed apples (photo courtesy PotsAndPans.com). Bottom: Topped with peanut butter and jelly or preserves (photo courtesy Krusteaz).

2. ADD the cinnamon and lemon juice, stir thoroughly, and let cool or serve warm.

> Below is a delicious recipe for Green Salad With Roasted Rhubarb.

> Also below are links to savory recipes from sides to soups.
 
 
RHUBARB HISTORY

According to FoodTimeline.org, rhubarb is an ancient plant with different species originating in China, Siberia, and southwestern Russia. The name comes from the Latin Rhabarbarum, meaning “Rha of the barbarians.”

Rha is the Scythian name for the Volga River in Russia, the longest river in Europe. Rhubarb was cultivated by the Tatars there (“Tartars” is a misspelling), called barbarians—which referred to foreign people who were neither Christian, Greek nor Roman.

Rhubarb has been grown for millennia. Chinese rhubarb (Rheum officinale) was grown for its roots, which were ground up and used medicinally as far back as 206 B.C.E. Garden rhubarb (Rheum rhabarbarum) was grown for its edible stalks (the leaves are toxic).

It was cultivated in Britain in the 17th century and added to stews; with the advent of affordable* sugar in the 18th century, it became a sweetened filling for tarts. (Sugar, originally from India and Southeast Asia, was cultivated in the Middle East in the 12th century, then in other areas of the Mediterranean. European Crusaders brought sugar home with them. It created a stir but was a pricey import, analogous to other Eastern spices. The first printed record of sugar in English is in the late 13th century.)

Rhubarb seeds were imported to America shortly after the American Revolution. The term “pie plant” originated in the U.S. sometime during the 19th century. Rhubarb was a popular pie filling and early American cookbooks show rhubarb recipes for cobblers, conserves, sweet pies, and tarts.
 
 
RECIPE: GREEN SALAD WITH ROASTED RHUBARB

We adapted this recipe from CilantroCooks.com and added a number of optional ingredients, so you can customize it to your ideal.

Ingredients

[2] Chicken with rhubarb salsa.

[3] Rhubarb soup (photo © La Cucina Italiana).

 
For A Dinner Salad

[4] Slicing fresh rhubarb (photo © Cilantro Cooks).

[5] A recipe variation from Sumptuous Spoonfuls. Their recipe roasts the rhubarb with honey and dresses the salad with a Honey Lemon Ginger Vinaigrette.

For The Roasted Rhubarb Vinaigrette

 
Preparation

1. TRIM the tips (including all the leaves) and root ends from the rhubarb. Cut the stalks into 1-inch slices. Place in a greased (spray is fine) baking or roasting pan and roast in the oven at 375°F for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and cool (in the fridge, if necessary); half will be used for the salad, and half for the dressing.

2. PREPARE the dressing: Place half the rhubarb and all other dressing ingredients in a blender or food processor; blend until completely smooth. Adjust the honey if you need more sweetness.

3. TOAST the walnuts: Spray a small baking sheet with cooking spray. Set the nuts on the tray in a single layer and toast on the bottom rack of the oven at 400°F for about 5 minutes, or until they are fragrant and slightly browned. Watch them carefully so they don’t burn.

4. PLACE the vegetables in a large bowl; then add the completely cooled rhubarb and the cheese and toss with the dressing. Garnish with the toasted nuts and serve.

 
_____________

*Sugar originated in Southeast Asia. The people of New Guinea were probably the first to domesticate sugarcane, possibly as early as 8,000 B.C.E. The cane juice from the stalks was used as a sweetener. However, the extraction and purifying technology techniques were developed by people living in India, around 350 C.E.
 
 

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At every party and dinner, we have a basket of crudités as a better-for- you option and for those with dietary constraints. For Mother’s Day, we’re adding some flower power with this Bouquet Of Crudités from Hidden Valley,

Hidden Valley serves them with their Original Ranch Dressing; we’re making a nonfat yogurt dip.

RECIPE #1: BOUQUET OF CRUDITÉS

Prep time is 15 minutes.

Ingredients For 6 Servings

1. MAKE the dip (recipe below) and chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

2. WASH and seed the peppers. Cut jagged edges into the tops.

3. STICK the snap peas on the skewers to create the leaves. Insert the skewers through the bottoms of each pepper and put the tomato in the center as shown. Arrange in a flower pot, vase or on a plate.

 
RECIPE #2: GARLIC-LIME-HERB YOGURT DIP & SAUCE

This recipe can be served as a dip with crudités, pretzels and other snacks, or as a topping/sauce for grilled fish, meat, poultry, even burgers. You can also mix it with boiled potatoes, macaroni or shredded cabbage for a fat-free potato salad, macaroni salad or cole slaw.

Or sweeten it and use it as a fruit dip.

The recipe makes a small bowl of dip, or 4 sauce servings for a main course. You can use your creativity to mix and match the seasonings to your main.

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. BLEND the yogurt, garlic, lime juice and ginger in small bowl. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to 2 days.

 
VARIATION: YOGURT DIP FOR FRUIT

1. REPLACE the garlic with one teaspoon agave, honey or sweetener of choice. (Only lightly sweeten the dip: You want to appreciate the sweetness of the fruit, not overwhelm it.)

2. REPLACE the herb with grated lime zest or other citrus zest (lemon, grapefruit).
 
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*The Hidden Valley recipe combines 1/2 cup Original Ranch Light Dressing and 8 ounces softened fat-free cream cheese, chilled until ready to serve.