Madécasse chocolate bars can be gifted individually or in boxed sets. Photo by Elvira Kalviste | THE NIBBLE.
If you’re looking for something special for a chocolate lover, check the chocolate section of Whole Foods Markets. In addition to other fine brands, they carry Madécasse chocolate bars, made in Madagascar from locally-grown cacao and vanilla beans.
The fairly traded chocolate is made with a rare native heirloom cacao, so people who really like to taste the differences in cacao by terroir will have a field day.
You’ll find flavors such as:
Espresso Bean Chocolate Bar, made with 44% dark milk chocolate that has caramel notes, and blended with a coffee crunch.
Salted Almond Chocolate Bar, 63% semisweet chocolate, sprinkled with roasted almond nibs and sea salt for.
Sea Salt & Nibs Chocolate Bar, 63% semisweet chocolate with added crushed cocoa bean nibs and a light dusting of sea salt. It was the winner of “Best In Show” at a recent Paris Salon du Chocolat.
Toasted Coconut Chocolate Bar, made with a 70% bittersweet chocolate with fruity notes, topped with crunchy flakes of toasted coconut.
Special Holiday Bars, Orange Cranberry and Hazelnut, both 63% semisweet chocolate.
Other options include plain 70% and 80% cacao bars, Cinnamon & Chile Pepper, Citrus & Pink Pepper. There are gift sets at Madecasse.com. Each bar retails for $4.99.
For holiday gift giving, you can replace the straw tie in the hole punched in the top of the package with a festive ribbon, tie a bar onto a larger gift box, or even hang it from the tree!
ABOUT MADÉCASSE
Madécasse Chocolate is a Brooklyn-based chocolate manufacturer established in 2006 by two Peace Corps volunteers who served in Madagascar. Their mission was to improve economic opportunities for farmers and villagers in the region. The name Madécasse refers to an inhabitant of Madegascar.
Madécasse is the only company producing bean-to-bar chocolate and vanilla products that are grown, harvested and hand-wrapped entirely in Madagascar. The chocolate is made from the world’s last remaining genetically pure cacao beans.
All Madécasse products are Fair for Life certified, a certification similar to Fair trade, but which offers four times the economic impact.
A few decades back when napkin folds were a staple of fancy entertaining, we bought a book on the topic and created everything from fans to fleurs-de-lis.
If you’re not familiar with the art of napkin folding, here are 27 basic napkin folds and many more types of napkin folding on Pinterest.
Napkin folding may seem old fashioned, but every formal dinner table still features crisp napkins. And there’s no better time than Christmas dinner to show off.
Napery is another term for linens used for household purposes, including napkins and tablecloths.
In wealthy medieval households, there was an “office” responsible for the washing and storage of these items, headed by a naperer who worked closely with other offices.
Fold green, red or white napkins into Christmas trees. Photo courtesy Handimania.com.
These included the office of the laundry, charged with the washing and storage of clothing; and the office of the ewery, which managed the water and the vessels for drinking and washing. In smaller affluent households that couldn’t keep up with the Joneses (or the Lord Joneses), these three functions were managed by the same staff. [Source]
Crisp napkins were folded in style at the tables of the 19th-century elite and through the early 20th century. The art has been kept alive at certain fine restaurants and catering establishments.
These days, things are more casual at our home—except for very special holiday dinners. We’ll be folding Christmas tree napkins on the 25th!
Frosty the Snowman in his latte debut. Photo courtesy Caffebene USA.
Turn your latte into a Snowman Latte with the instructions below from Caffebene, the world’s second largest coffeehouse franchise.
Laila Ghambari, Director of Coffee at Cherry Street Coffee House in Seattle—the home of American latte art. Here are her tips:
The micro-foam is a crucial element in creating the perfect latte art. Use a milk foaming machine that is able to produce rich, thick, long-lasting foam.
Use whole or 2% milk. More milk fat equals more creaminess.
Add air to the milk by bringing the steam wand tip to the surface of the milk (not beneath). Remember that NO air will just create hot milk and TOO MUCH air will make your milk bubbly.
Make sure that when you are steaming your milk that the milk is spinning. You can achieve this by tilting the pitcher, which allows for the air and milk to blend together.
You need to steam the milk to a smooth, creamy texture. It should look cold cream or wet paint.
Once the milk is steamed, swirl it around to make sure the milk and foam are incorporated, not separated.
THE HISTORY OF LATTE ART
Latte art was developed in Italy, enabled by the development of microfoam, created by the steam wand of a cappuccino machine, used to foam a pitcher of milk. The combination of the crema atop the cup of espresso and velvety microfoam allows patterns to be made. (Note that other types of milk steamers/foamers do not create microfoam.)
Latte art in the United States developed in the Seattle coffee culture of the 1980s and 1990s. By 1989 the heart pattern was a signature at David Schomer’s Espresso Vivace and the rosette pattern followed, based on a photograph Schomer saw of latte art in an Italian café.
Here’s a cheesecake recipe developed for Christmas and New Year’s Eve: Eggnog Cheesecake! These mini cheesecakes with a gingersnap crust are from Driscolls.com.
Prep time is 30 minutes, cook time is 15 to 18 minutes.
RECIPE: MINI EGGNOG GINGERBREAD CHEESECAKES
Ingredients For 12 Servings
Crust
3/4 cup ground gingersnap cookies (about 14 cookies)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
Filling
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
36 fresh raspberries (about 1 cup)
Ho ho ho: mini eggnog gingerbread cheesecakes! Photo courtesy Driscoll’s Berries.
1-1/2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
1/3 cup eggnog
Equipment
1 mini-cheesecake pan with removable bottoms ((12-cups, 1-1/2-inches by 2-inches) or a 12-cup muffin tin
Preparation
1. PREHEAT the oven to 325°F. Lightly spray the wells of the mini-cheesecake pan with non-stick spray. If using a muffin pan, line the cups with the paper liners.
2. PROCESS the cookies into fine crumbs using a food processor. Combine the crumbs and butter in a small bowl. Press 1 tablespoon of the cookie mixture into each cup in the pan and pat down firmly (for the muffin tin, press the cookie mixture into the paper liners).
3. MIX the cream cheese, sugar and flour in an electric mixer on low speed until blended, scraping down the sides of bowl. Add the eggnog, vanilla extract, nutmeg and salt and mix until blended. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, on low speed until blended.
4. DIVIDE the batter among the cups in pan. Bake 15 to 18 minutes or 18 to 20 minutes for the muffin pan and paper liners. The edges should be set and center slightly jiggly. The cheesecakes will puff slightly above pan.
5. COOL completely on a baking rack. Then refrigerate at least 4 hours or until chilled throughout. To serve, carefully remove cheesecakes from pan and top each with 3 raspberries.
Deck something with candy cane garlands. Photo courtesy Kencraft.
Linky Doodles Candy Chains calls itself “The world’s only linkable candy.”
They’re specially shaped, open link shapes made from a hard candy recipe. You simply hook the pieces together, and they make an edible Christmas garland.
At $21.99 + $9.99 shipping for 28 pieces that make a garland of 5.5 feet, you need to make a financial commitment to create too much of a garland, but you may have a space for a small one.
You can also use Linky Doodles for napkin rings, or adorn yourself with an edible necklace.
Made by Kencraft, a quality candy maker, Linky Doodles are also available in Rainbow, Pink, and Blue, for year-round celebrating. All of these colors are cherry flavored.
WHERE TO BUY LINKY DOODLES
Buy online: red, white and green peppermint Linky Doodles
Buy online: red and white cherry flavor Linky Doodles
