Posts by admin:
- RED—true love, passion and respect
- DARK RED—beauty, perfection and adoration
- PINK—romance and admiration
- DEEP PINK—appreciation, gratitude and sincerity
- LIGHT PINK—sweetness and gentleness
- ORANGE—desire, passion and excitement
- WHITE—spiritual love, purity and new beginnings
- YELLOW—warmth, joy and friendship
- LAVENDER—love at first sight
- Experience and tradition since 1706
- Nine master blenders that travel the world to find only the best teas, spices, herbs and fruit infusions available
- Twinings teas are sourced and custom-blended to provide the perfect balance of tea taste, flavor and aroma
- Available in over 50 distinct mouth-watering varieties of Black, Green and Herbal teas; Organic & Fair Trade™
- Certified teas; Cold Brewed Iced Teas; K-Cup® Packs
- 1 cup jasmine rice
- 2 Twinings of London Chai tea bags
- 1 1/2 cups hot water
- 3 cups almond milk, unsweetened
- 1/3 cup honey or agave nectar
- 1/4 cup currants
- 1/2 cup dried cherries
- 1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 2 Tablespoons candied ginger, diced
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamon, ground
- 1/4 teaspoon ginger, ground
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 pound pork shoulder
- 3 rosemary sprigs
- 4 large bay leaves
- 1 large yellow onion
- 2 cups chicken broth
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 Tablespoons kosher salt
- 8 medium russet potatoes
- 5 ounces Cacique Ranchero cheese
- 5 ounces Cacique Queso Blanco
- 1/2 cup Cacique Crema Mexicana
- 1/2 cup favorite BBQ sauce
- salt
- pepper
- olive oil
- 1 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 4 Tablespoons salted butter, melted
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3 Tablespoons Tabasco Chipotle sauce
- 24 stuffed green olives
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 Tablespoon Tabasco Chipotle sauce
Celebrate Valentine’s Day with Whole Foods Market + Giveaway #Sharethelove
January 19th, 2015
Valentine’s Day is around the corner and planning always seems to get away with the two of us. Since neither of us have family around we know we have to plan ahead to celebrate such a special day. This year I asked my husband what he wanted to do and we decided to keep it laid back and stay home. Sound boring? Not at all! We will be cooking for each other and watching something special or even play a game or two, since we do not get to do that often.
Some of the meal planning has already come about and it looks like my husband will be cooking steaks for the two of us this year in a TOTALLY new way. Before I get to that process, I believe we will start with an appetizer. Since it IS Valentine’s we will splurge a little on calories and try something new. Cabot cheese has a delightful recipe for a Warm Cheddar, Ale and Bacon Dip that sounds out of this world. The recipe makes about 3 cups, so I’m planning to halve the recipe. Does it not sound amazing?
I will probably require my steak to be more medium well, since I am pregnant, he is going to be making his steak using the reverse sear method. Anyone heard of this? This method uses a slow cooking of the steak starting in the oven FIRST and then searing quickly on a cast iron creating a perfect crusty sear on the outside and a perfect medium rare steak on the inside. Here is a little demonstration:
What do you think about that? My husband is really excited and I am excited for him as well. To accompany this delicious slab of goodness, I plan to make grilled asparagus with some scalloped potatoes, a delicious dish my mother made while we were growing up. I will make sure to share that recipe with you.
The best part is the dessert! Giada has an amazing dessert we tried 3 years ago that we have now made twice and I can only say that we must have it again and it is SO perfect for Valentine’s. Here is the recipe:
Want to see other ideas and recipes for Valentine’s Day? Here is a board I have on Pinterest:
Follow Opera Singer in the Kitchen’s board Valentine’s Day on Pinterest.
Some other ideas I plan on incorporating I learned at a Whole Foods sneak preview last week. While we sampled some awesome chocolate and snacks, I learned about a local chocolate store in our area called Éclat Chocolate in the West Chester area. We were introduced to three different chocolate offerings and each were paired with a local beer. I took them home to have my hubby taste them together, and boy did he like to pairing.
While I was able to enjoy the chocolate as well, it was nice to know and learn that chocolate and beer can be easily paired together! I also learned a little more about roses and the meaning about the color of each rose and how Whole Foods runs a program called the Whole Trade Program. The roses are grown in the Ecuadorian Andes by a group of Fair Trade certified farms, these “blooms with benefits” help to cultivate better working conditions and equitable wages for the farms’ workers. For each case of Whole Trade roses purchased by Whole Foods Market, an additional percentage is paid directly to worker groups from each farm who collectively decide how to use the money. Whole Foods will be selling 24 dozen roses for $24.99 from now until February 14th. Why not surprise you loved one today? Here is a little info on the meaning of a rose:
While we were able to sample a lot of goodies I was introduced to new products especially to an amazing sparkling Elderflower and Rose Lemonade made by Belvoir Fruit Farms. I plan to use this beverage in place of any alcoholic drink. It is delicate, gourmet, and so tasty. I cannot wait to have some more! There are definitely a lot of options for gifts, treats and foods for all palates and tastes when it comes to shopping at Whole Foods, so make sure to come on over and peruse all the options. Stay tuned for our full meal on Valentine’s Day!
Want to be enter a Valentine’s Day GIVEAWAY??? Enter to win:
A Valentine’s Day gift basket to include a $200 Whole Foods Market gift card, Eclat Chocolate, Cabot Cheese and an assortment of Whole Foods Market Valentine’s Day goodies—perfect for a night in with your sweetie.
CLICK HERE TO ENTER
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Twinings Chai Rice Pudding
December 30th, 2014This is a sponsored post with Twinings and Meredith (Family Fun). All recipes and opinions are my own.
Hopefully everyone had a lovely Christmas! It has been a whirlwind of events with family in town and with all the cooking that has been going on in the kitchen, I am going to need a vacation from my vacation. This is always a special time of year because there is a lot of time with family we have not seen and also a lot of opportunity to enjoy meals and recipes we do not normally eat during the year.
Another opportunity I had was to create some meals and recipes of my own. Even though there are a lot of family recipes I had in mind to introduce to my family and I was excited to try some recipes of my own. Breakfast is always a favorite meal of the day for me. It really determines what kind of day I am going to have, energy wise, so when I plan on meals, I have to make certain that they are protein-packed not only for me but for my family too. One of the dishes I like enjoying for either breakfast or for a snack is rice pudding. My mother would make it often growing up with condensed milk, cinnamon, raisins and rice and it was so delicious. I decided to try my own hand at making my own.
One of the things I decided to do differently was to make mine infused and cooked with tea. My husband is probably the only one who knows that I have an obsession for all kinds of tea. In fact, I am pretty much prohibited to buy any more tea since I have at least 3 storage boxes of tea. Is that sad? I just like tea a lot. One of the teas I decided to work with was Twinings Chai tea. As I am trying to limit my caffeine consumption, I always turn to tea to supplement some of my caffeine but otherwise, I enjoy tea because of its delicate and subtle flavors.
Twinings of London is provides a variety of teas for all tastes and no matter what mood anyone might be in there is definitely one or more options to fit the daily mood. Their teas have unbeatable taste because they are made by the world’s utmost tea expert. It is quite amazing that this company has been around for more than 300 years with 50 plus more varieties of tea. Imagine my excitement when I had a chance to sample my own variety at home. From Earl Grey, Herbal and Green tea to an iced tea variety, I was so impressed by the flavor, body and experience I had with each tea bag.
When I steeped my Twinings Chai tea bags, I poured the tea over one cup of jasmine tea overnight. When I checked it the next day, the rice smelled even more aromatic and I was excited to start my rice pudding process. I added almond milk to keep the recipe vegan or vegetarian and since I usually drink my chai with almond milk, I knew what the flavor was going to be like. I added currants, candied ginger, cherries, sliced almonds, shredded coconut and added a a little more cinnamon, ginger, and cardamon for a even depth of flavor. As I was taste testing my dish I had my girls constantly asking me what I was making because they could smell the aromas. I finally gave each of them a taste and they both exclaimed how they liked it.
It is pretty amazing that tea not only can be enjoyed in a cup but it can also be enjoyed in many types of dishes. I was really pleased by the flavor of the chai tea and even made myself another cup of chai as I enjoyed a dish of my loaded chai rice pudding. This dish definitely would be a crowd favorite as Twinings tea has been for many years.
Want a chance to try Twinings of London? Twinings is offering a “Raid the Pantry” program allows users to opt in for three samples and select any brand they are most interested in trying.
Here are several other reasons to try Twinings:
Hope you try my recipe for my vegan / vegetarian Chai Rice Pudding and may you have a Happy New Year!
Twinings Chai Rice Pudding
by
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Keywords: cook boil breakfast brunch dessert snack vegan vegan recipes on recipage vegetarian vegetarian recipes on recipage almond milk rice rice pudding
Ingredients (6 servings)
Instructions
The night before you make the recipe, brew 2 bags of chai tea in 1 1/2 cups of hot water according to packaged directions. Allow tea to cool and then add 1 cup of jasmine rice and cover and allow to soak overnight in fridge.
Next morning, place tea and rice in a medium pot with 3 cups almond milk and spices and vanilla extract. Start cooking over medium heat until the rice comes to a light boil. Stir the rice often and cook for 15 minutes. Add the dried fruits, nuts and coconut and cook for another 15 minutes, stirring often.
Remove rice from heat and allow to cool. Serve 3/4 cup to 1 cup servings person and sprinkle with almonds and sweetener. A delicious treat also refrigerated.
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“The Boar’s Head” Potato Skins #GoAutentico
December 18th, 2014This is a compensated campaign in collaboration with Cacique and Latina Bloggers Connect.
If it is one thing I am learning quickly but surely is that our family enjoys food. Our oldest frequently asks us to go to a restaurant or both our girls ask to know what I am preparing in the kitchen and are very eager to help. Yes. They are only 2 and 3 and I already have them helping. It is sometimes fun and stressful but I figure they have to learn sometime, right? One of the things we have not delved into yet are movie nights with our girls. While we cherish their bed times, the Christmas season is always an exception. We really have not scouted the late night movies for families but I am sure this weekend and the next week, there will be plenty of opportunities for those evenings.
Several nights ago, I prepared a delicious kid-friendly appetizer that we deemed would be perfect for any movie night. The inspiration came when I talked to my husband about creating a certain recipe for pulled pork. Since we love Christmas carols and singing them quite often, my husband starts singing an old English traditional carol called The Boar’s Head Carol. It goes as such:
1. The boar’s head in hand bring I,
Bedeck’d with bays and rosemary.
I pray you, my masters, be merry
2. The boar’s head, as I understand,
Is the rarest dish in all this land,
Which thus bedeck’d with a gay garland
3. Our steward hath provided this
In honor of the King of Bliss;
Which, on this day to be served is
Have you ever been inspired by a carol when you prepared something in your kitchen? I can’t say it has happened often but this was fun to do especially when it was an idea sparked by my hubby. Everyone knows that potato skins are great snacks and great finger foods. I actually have never made them for our family until now and I was not quite sure our girls would go for them but as I prepared them and assembled them, our girls kept asking what I was making.
While my potato skins are not typical recipe, they are still tasty. I cooked a 4 pound pork shoulder with bay leaves, rosemary, salt and pepper and it came out so savory and tender. I cooked potatoes in the oven, cut them in half and continued cooking them until crispy. I left a little more potato in them and added some kosher salt and Mexican cheeses to broil in the oven. While this recipe is simple it is delicious and savory and great for snacking while watching a movie. My oldest toddler asked to taste one and grabbed one with her hand and chomped away. I was proud of my foodie kid. She was officially a pro at eating.
The finishing touches on this appetizer was the crema and BBQ sauce. I love the fact that I was full after 2 halves of potatoes. These are filling and satisfy the craving for any snack food. Enjoy with your next movie night!
Enter Cacique’s “Dinner and a Movie Sweepstakes” for a chance to win a VIP movie experience in LA featuring a behind-the-scenes studio tour and private screening!
“The Boar’s Head” Potato Skins
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 75 minutes
Keywords: bake slow-cooker appetizer lunch entree Parties
Ingredients (16 potato halves (8 servings))
Herbed Pulled Pork
Potato Skins
Instructions
Herbed Pulled Pork
Make a paste with garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper. Remove fresh rosemary from one large stem. Add 4 cloves and make a paste with mortar and pestle. Add salt and 1/2 Tablespoon black pepper.
Pat pork shoulder dry. Rub herb paste all over the roast. Slice 1 onion and place in a large crock pot. Add the chicken broth and the bay leaves. Add 2 more rosemary sprigs on top of the broth. Place pork roast on top of the broth and cook on HIGH for 6-8 hours or LOW 8-10 hours.
When finished cooking, remove the rosemary sprigs and bay leaves and shred meat with two forks. Remove 2-3 cups of meat and freeze the rest.
Potato Skins
Turn oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Clean 8 potatoes and gently pierce each potato with a sharp knife multiple times. Place on a large baking sheet. Cook for 50 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 10-15 minutes. Afterwards, slice each potato lengthwise. Gently scoop more than half the potato from each half and reserve for another use. Spray potato skin and potato inside with olive oil and shake kosher salt over both sides. Turn heat up to 425 degrees. Cook potato skins for 5 minutes. Remove from oven.
Crumble Mexican cheeses and mix together. Add 1 Tablespoon to each potato inside. Place in oven and cook for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and add 2-3 Tablespoons heaps into each potato. Sprinkle with another 1-2 Tablespoons Mexican cheeses. Broil potatoes for 3-5 minutes until cheeses are melted. Remove from oven.
Drizzle with Mexican crema and BBQ sauce. Devour.
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Holiday Party Recipes: Baked Chipotle Cheese Olive Bites #SeasonedGreetings
December 15th, 2014This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #CollectiveBias
This weekend I spent all my time baking and cooking and my family is not even here yet! This is the first time we are hosting Christmas at our place and perhaps I am already feeling a little excited and nervous. I always want the best and try to plan for the best for my guests, even though they are family. While I somewhat know what I want to prepare for Christmas eve, I am not sure I know what to make for Christmas day. I am always thinking it would be great fun to prepare delicious party food instead of a sit down dinner.
Since both our families have different traditions during the Christmas holidays I decided we would all get a taste of our different traditions under our roof. Usually a nice dinner is prepared for Christmas Day with my in-laws but then we also like attending early Christmas Eve service with my mother so we could then enjoy Christmas dinner. That’s a lot of nice dinners is it not?
Sometimes, making a bunch of appetizers with drinks is just as lovely and I thought I would make that for Christmas Day this year. My mother is coming in late on Christmas day, so any food preparations should be minimal. I am all about party food truth be told. There is enough variety that I usually get full on so little. Plus, if you add a nice cocktail in the mix, it is a complete meal!
One of the appetizers I thought would be great to include in my menu plan are my Baked Chipotle Cheese Olive Bites. Growing up my mother taught us how to make these bites over the holidays but they were usually made very simply and quickly. I decided to perk up the flavor by adding some Tabasco Chipotle sauce, garlic powder and included an optional dipping sauce to include with my party platter.
Spicy sauces don’t just give spice and heat but also a depth of flavor and color to foods. This is what I enjoyed from the addition of the Tabasco Chipotle sauce which gave each cheese olive bite a smoky flavor with just the perfect amount of heat. It is nice to be able to buy a variety of hot sauces that can give any dish a unique flavor especially when I am shopping at Walmart.
The beauty of this appetizer is that it takes 10 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook. I start by grating extra sharp cheddar cheese, adding about 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, garlic powder, salt and pouring melted butter into the flour mixture. Then 3 Tablespoons of Tabasco Chiptole sauce is added with an additional 2-3 Tablespoons of flour.
After all the ingredients are mixed, it will appear to be a cheese dough.
Pinch about 1 Tablespoon of dough and place a drained stuffed green olive in the middle of the flattened dough.
Roll the dough over the olive until it evenly coats the olive.
The whole recipe makes 2 dozen and are placed on a cookie sheet and baked at 400 degrees F for 10 minutes. These bites will puff up slightly and will be lightly golden on the bottom of each bite. An optional spicy or non-spicy dip can accompany the bites.
Make sure to keep you eyes open for all the variety of Tabasco sauces available. There is the Original Red version, Green Jalapeño and even a brand new sauce Sriracha Thai Chili sauce. I can’t wait to try them in the future. When you get to making your party food, think about adding these Chipotle Baked Cheese Olive Bites for your next party or dinner.
Baked Chipotle Cheese Olive Bites
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
Keywords: bake appetizer vegetarian vegetarian recipes on recipage cheese green olive Christmas
Ingredients (2 dozen)
Dipping sauce
Instructions
In a medium bowl, grate cheddar cheese. Toss in flour, baking powder, garlic powder and mix well. Add the Chipotle sauce to the mix and then add the melted butter. Hand mix until well combine and appear to be a cheese dough.
Pinch 1 Tablespoon of cheese down and lightly flatten. Add one stuffed green olive in the center of the flattened dough and roll dough around olive until completely covered. Repeat process until there are 2 dozen.
Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 10-12 minutes. They should look golden brown.
Dipping sauce
Mix 1 cup sour cream, 1 garlic clove, and 1 Tablespoon Tabasco Chipotle sauce and mix well.
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Hispanic Scholarship Fund: Resources for Parents
December 15th, 2014Disclaimer: This is part of a sponsored collaboration with Latina Mom Bloggers. All opinions are 100% mine.
There is a lot to be thankful this season and one of the things I thank my parents and grandparents for encouraging the desire to have an education. Despite having two parents who did not finish college it is amazing and a blessing that they both supported and helped my sister and I to receive the best education possible. one of the things we grew up learning was to do research and investigate the best ways to attend to college. We always knew we would not be leaving far from home so we looked at the area universities and researched which campus would be best.
One of the the things I am thankful for is my Hispanic heritage. When I found out there were so many resources for Hispanic students I was overwhelmed and excited at the same time. When I think of the scholarships available through different corporations, companies and more, I was amazed to see the amount to available money for education. There was no excuse to NOT try and it was something my mother encouraged for me to pursue. I am thankful for her because I was able to receive several scholarships to support me through a 4-year education at a local private university. I never once thought it was my parents responsibility to do all the work but they helped me and gave me the best advice they could for me to find the money I needed to make school a priority in life. I think it is important for parents to be involved in their kids life but to encourage them to research in order to help them be responsible adults.
Did you know that Hispanics account for 19% of all college students, ages 18-24? That’s a major increase, up from 12% in 2008. What’s more, 69% of Hispanic graduates are now going directly to college after graduating high school, a rate that is higher than that of the general population. But the surge in Hispanic college-bound students presents a greater need for more information about college and financial support. As all parents that have college bound students can attest, navigating the application process can be daunting.
This is why parents play a critical role in helping their children navigate the college application process and access the resources and support needed to excel in college and beyond. Please visit HSF.net to find information needed to guide students through the application and enrollment process—and also to ensure that they have the financial resources needed to graduate.
A great place to find resources for both parents and students is the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Resources Page. Here are a few examples from the site:
Financial Aid
Even if a student receives an HSF scholarship, he/she may be eligible for additional funds in the form of scholarships or other types of financial aid. Please familiarize yourself with all of the information provided so that you will be prepared when your son or daughter is ready to apply for college.
Scholarships
To apply for an HSF General College Scholarship, click here. The application period is open January 1st through March 30th for the following academic year.
Check out what Edward James Olmos has to say:
