PopSugar

Come Party With Me: Almost Meatless Thanksgiving - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 15:00:06 -0800

Kick-start your Thanksgiving meal with a refreshing sangria-style glass of white wine. Made a day in advance, this wine is infused with oranges, Grand Marnier, and Pernod. Bay leaves and whole cloves give it an herbaceous, aromatic appeal that's sure to pair perfectly with baked brie and walnuts.

For the main course, select a versatile wine varietal that can support a lot of flavors. An affordable Chardonnay or light red are great options. Chat with your local wine shop owner for more suggestions. Tell him what you plan on serving and your budget, and he's sure to provide you with lots of ideas. For the orange wine recipe - this would also make a great Thanksgiving hostess gift! - read more.

Spiced Orange Wine
From Gourmet

Ingredients

2 (750-ml) bottles dry white wine
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup orange liqueur such as Grand Marnier
1/4 cup Pernod
2 whole cloves
4 Turkish or 2 California bay leaves
2 navel oranges

Directions

Bring all ingredients except oranges to a boil (reserve wine bottles and corks), stirring until sugar has dissolved.
Remove zest from oranges in a continuous spiral using a vegetable peeler and cut off any white pith with a paring knife. Reserve oranges for another use and divide zest between empty wine bottles.
Fill bottles with orange wine and cool, uncorked, 1 hour.
Cork bottles, then chill at least 4 hours.

Makes 2 (750-ml) bottles.

Print recipe with images | without images

Happy Hour: Basil Sangria

partysugar — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 16:00:50 -0700

From wine spritzers to cabernet caipirinhas, this Summer, I've been all about sipping wine-based cocktails. The one I'm most infatuated with is sangria. I've experimented with tropical fruit sangria and floral liquor sangria. However, before I made this version, I had never enjoyed a sangria with fresh herbs. The star of this sangria is basil. It infuses the wine with an aromatic earthiness. Fresh-squeezed orange juice further flavors the sangria and club soda provides a subtle effervescence. To enjoy this refreshing drink, that's perfect for sipping on the deck, get the recipe and read more.

Basil Sangria
From Food & Wine

I was unable to find Thai-basil at my grocery store, so I simply used regular basil.

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
8 Thai basil sprigs
Zest of 1 lemon, peeled in 3-inch strips
Zest of 1 orange, peeled in 3-inch strips
2 bottles chilled Pinot Grigio
3/4 cup brandy
1/2 cup fresh orange juice, strained
Ice
Chilled club soda
12 thin orange slices, for garnish

Directions

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar.
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add the basil sprigs and lemon and orange zests. Let the syrup stand, stirring often, until cooled to room temperature, about 20 minutes. Discard the basil sprigs and zest strips.
In a large pitcher, combine the basil syrup with the wine, brandy and orange juice.
Pour the sangria into ice-filled glasses, top with club soda and garnish each drink with an orange slice.

Serves 12.

Print recipe with images | without images

Holiday Healthy Punch: Mulled Wine

FitSugar — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:30:54 -0800

I hosted a jack-o'-lantern carving party at my house this weekend and needed to come up with a nice cocktail for my guests. During the holiday season I love warm and spicy drinks like eggnog and hot buttered rum but they're filled with tons of sugar or fat. A nice alternative is making a big batch of mulled wine. It's served warm and uses all the spices associated with the holidays, but has zero fat and contains the heart healthy benefits of red wine. It's a great cocktail for parties because it's really easy to make ahead of time.

Keep coming back to Fit throughout the holiday season because we'll be giving you all sorts of healthy recipes to enjoy this year.

To check out the recipe, read more.

Mulled Wine
original recipe

To make this recipe you will need an empty tea satchel for the spices. As an alternative, whole spices can be substituted for the ground spices. If using whole spices, tie them together in a cheesecloth or use a stainless steel tea infuser.

Ingredients

1.5 liter bottle of dry red wine
Zest from 1 lemon
Zest from 1 orange
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon cloves
1/2 tablespoon ginger
1/2 tablespoon nutmeg
Honey, agave nectar, or apple juice to taste
Orange slices or cinnamon sticks for garnish

Directions

Pour wine into large saucepan and cook over low heat.
Add lemon and orange zest to the wine.
Place the spices into an empty tea satchel. Put the satchel into the saucepan and brew the mixture for 30 minutes.
Add sweetener of your choice to taste.
Pour the wine through a strainer and serve in heatproof glasses. Garnish each glass with a sliced orange or cinnamon stick.

Serves 10-12.

Print recipe with images | without images

View 6 Photos ›

Please share your trimmed down, revamped, and low cal recipes in the Healthy Recipe group. I am always looking for new eats to try.

Come Party With Me: Outdoor Concert - Drinks

partysugar — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:45:09 -0700

Why do I love sangria so much? Let me count the ways. It's wildly delicious and refreshing. It can easily satisfy a crowd and tastes best when made in advance. Essentially, sangria recipes takes inexpensive wine and turns it into something extraordinary. Oh, and it's perfect for sipping in the Summer at an outdoor concert!

Simply make in a pitcher with a lid and pack in a cooler. This recipe uses no hard alcohol, but instead combines wine with fresh fruit. The ingredient list calls for strawberries, peaches, and bananas, but any combination of fruit works well. To take a look at it, read more.

Sangria
From Gourmet

Ingredients

1/ 2 pound strawberries, washed and halved
2 ripe peaches, peeled and cut into small pieces
2 bananas, peeled and sliced
juice and rind of 1 lemon
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 bottles ordinary red wine
ice

Directions
In a large pitcher put strawberries, peaches, bananas, the lemon juice and rind, sugar, and cinnamon. Add red wine and stir the mixture thoroughly, mashing the fruit slightly. Let the sangria stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour. Just before serving, add about 20 ice cubes and stir the mixture briskly until it is ice cold.

Serves 8-10.

Print recipe with images | without images

Sole Inspired by Julia

partysugar — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:30:30 -0700

Whenever I chat with someone about the film Julie & Julia, it seems the famous recipe for beef Borgignonne enters the conversation. However, when I watched the movie it wasn't this dish that stood out in my mind. It was the sole meuniere - the life-changing fish that Julia enjoyed upon her arrival in France - that I long to taste. Since I have a copy of my grandmother's Mastering the Art of French Cooking, I went home and looked for Julia's recipe.Unfortunately it's not in the book, so I hit the Internet in search of a buttery white-fish recipe. Although it's not necessarily a classic sole meuniere, I experimented with this sole and herbed white wine lemon sauce. The final result wasn't a culinary revelation, but it was decidedly delicious. If you're looking for a light, filling meal with fresh flavors, why not channel Child? For the recipe, keep reading.

Good Things Come in Small Chocolate Packages

YumSugar — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 16:15:15 -0700

I love to follow up a nice meal with a little something sweet. It doesn't have to be much, just a little morsel at the end. Keeping this in mind, I went out to find a simple, sweet bite and stumbled across this recipe for Ice Wine Truffles. It looks ridiculously easy and wonderfully tasty so I'm going to give it a try. If you want to join me, get the recipe when you read more.

Ice Wine Truffles
From Christine Cushing via Food Network Canada

Note: If you don't have ice wine on hand, substitute with your favorite dessert wine or flavored liqueur.

Ingredients

6 oz good quality bitter sweet chocolate (180 gm)
1/2 cup whipping (35%) cream (125 ml)
2 tbsp ice wine (30 ml)
Finely chopped whole almonds (skin on), to taste
Good-quality cocoa powder, for rolling

Directions

Chop the chocolate very finely and transfer to a medium bowl.
Boil cream and immediately pour over chopped chocolate.
Stir until all chocolate has melted.
Stir in ice wine until blended.
Cover surface with plastic wrap and freeze until firm, about 2 hours.
Scoop into small balls with melon baller and transfer to a baking sheet.
Freeze for 10 minutes.
Roll truffles in almonds, then dust with cocoa powder.

Makes 20 truffles.

Print recipe with images | without images

Mother's Day Gift Guide: Personalized Recipe Box, French Wine & Rose Cupcakes

YumSugar — Wed, 09 May 2007 15:45:32 -0700

Yesterday I brought you the first part of our Mother's Day gift guide and today I'm finishing it off with a few more great ideas. This first one is for the mom with all the recipes in her head. Don't you think it would be a nice gift for her (and you) if you helped her get them put on paper? The personalized recipe gift set from William-Sonoma will help you do that in a classy and personal way. The set comes with a personalized wood box and embosser ("Kitchen of Mom's Name") as well as 100 cards (the box holds 500). It'll be lovely now, but can you imagine it getting passed down through the generations? Available for $69.

Two more gift ideas (including a great wine set and a cute cupcake idea), so read more

If your mom dreams of visiting the French countryside, but you can't yet afford to fly her out there, why don't you bring the countryside to her? The Tour of Provence Wine Set contains three must-have selections from the South of France, as well as Patricia Wells' At Home in Provence Cookbook. Available for $49.99.

If mom is a baker (or if you are) surprise her with a dozen cupcake roses. This Rose Bundt Cupcake pan from Nordic Ware allows you to create a dozen roses. I'm imagining strawberry cupcakes with lemon icing, talk about a cute gift! Available for $31.95.

Cranberries Move From Sauce to Sorbet

YumSugar — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:28:15 -0800

Although Thanksgiving is all about tradition, I love to take a quintessential holiday ingredient and add a new twist to it. Cranberry sauce is essential to turkey day, but it's time to move this berry over to dessert - with a white wine and ginger infused cranberry sorbet. Normally sorbet is served between courses to cleanse the palate. However, I like to offer it after the feast for guests who prefer something lighter and more refreshing than pumpkin pie. If you're interested in moving your cranberries from the dinner table to the dessert table, keep reading.

Come Party With Me: Harvest Party - Menu

partysugar — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 07:50:24 -0700

In wine making, the harvest is one of the most crucial times of year. It's when the vintners pick the grapes and usually occurs between August and October. Since the harvest is such an important season, many wineries celebrate with a lunch or dinner.

I think the tradition is the perfect excuse to plan a party! Just because you don't live in wine country doesn't mean you can't commemorate the harvest. Invite friends over for a meal that honors the wonderful world of wine. Every dish on the menu has wine on the ingredient list.

Start by displaying an assortment of charcuterie, olives, crackers, and goat cheese mousse with red-wine caramel. For the main course, offer chicken braised in white wine with shallots, pancetta, and fennel. Plate the chicken with a simple risotto alla Milanese - made with white wine and Parmesan cheese. These recipes are welcome at any dinner party, be it harvest-themed or a special birthday. To check them out, keep reading.

Happy Hour: Sage Sangria

partysugar — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 16:00:50 -0700

Just because Summer is long gone but that doesn't mean you have to stop enjoying sangria. Depending on the ingredients you employ, the wine-based punch can be sipped all year round. Instead of using a warm-weather fruit like peaches, this sangria is infused with Fall's most woody herb, sage. The recipe is simple, but the resulting drink is complex and earthy, perfect for sipping in front of a roaring fire. Honey adds a subtle sweetness and the sage makes this concoction an ideal pairing for any Autumnal dinner. Want the easy recipe? Keep reading.