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Valentine's Day

Gifts from the Kitchen

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When it comes to cookbooks, I’m on a roll I can’t even believe. I’ve been sent some of the most amazing cookbooks and cooking magazines to review lately.  As a cookbook collector, I’m in hog Heaven. Chefs, publishers, authors, and food lovers are turning out some of the most amazing cookbooks I’ve ever seen lately.  The competition is fierce in this hugely popular subject, and believe me, everyone’s stepping up their game.

The most recent beauty I was sent to review is no exception. Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion is filled with stunningly beautiful photos and highly unique, absolutely amazing recipes. There’s a recipe for Fortune Cookies (page 126), for example, and you can even add your own message inside. They’re gorgeous.

If, for some reason, you aren’t sure you want to buy a book just for baked Christmas gift ideas, let me assure you that this is a book you’ll use year round. Check out some of the great recipes, and you’ll see what I mean:

  • Granola (make a batch for yourself to use on yogurt or cereal or make for a gift – fills about 4 jam jars)
  • Chocolate Valentine’s Cakes
  • Baby Shower Cakes (they’d be gorgeous for wedding showers too)
  • Easter Nest Cupcakes (adorable!)
  • Doughnuts
  • Stained Glass Snowflake Cookies
  • Stollen
  • Wedding Cake
  • Pickled Cucumbers
  • Pink and White Vanilla Marshmallows (perfect for Mother’s Day or birthdays)
  • Lollipops
  • Raspberry and Rose Chocolate Wafers (too beautiful to even talk about)
  • Greek Honey Cookies
  • Candied Citrus Peel
  • Apple Jelly
  • Mint Jelly
  • Hot Chili Pepper Jelly
  • Strawberry and Vanilla Preserves
  • Cherry Jam
  • Raspberry and Passion Fruit Pastilles
  • Love Heart Sugar Cubes (PERFECT for Valentine’s Day – they look like candied sugar hearts – the kind with words printed on them)
  • Pesto
  • Chocolate and Hazlenut Spread (Homemade Nutella? I’m all int!)
  • English Muffins
  • Sea-Salted Caramels
  • Peanut or Macadamia Brittle
  • Tortellini with Roasted Butternut Squash, Spinach, and Ricotta
  • Pickled Beets
  • Chocolate Truffles
  • Spiced Cranberry Jelly
  • Biscotti
  • Spiced Nuts
  • Herbal Teas
  • Pecan Snowball Cookies
  • Shortbreads
  • And even more!

In the back of the book, the author has listed different occasions – along with the recipes that would be ideal for each. The occasions include:

  • Mother’s Day
  • Father’s Day
  • Valentine’s Day
  • Easter
  • Housewarming
  • Baby Shower
  • Birthday
  • Bachelorette Party
  • New Year’s Day
  • House Guest
  • Christmas

You could easily add:

  • Grandparent’s Day
  • Secretary’s Day
  • Boss’s Day
  • Game day
  • Tailgating
  • Anniversary
  • Graduation

Then again, since when do we even need an occasion to bake beautiful treats for our loved ones? I baked two beautiful pies last night and the occasion was “On Account” – On account of wanting to see everyone’s faces light up when they came through the door and smelled (and saw) Apple and Cherry Pies greeting them.  This gorgeous cookbook and gift guide is FILLED with “On Account” recipes!

See Gifts from the Kitchen: 100 Irresistible Homemade Presents for Every Occasion for more information. Fellow foodies, this is one you’ll want to order today.  It’s beautiful.

Divine Chocolates: Heavenly Chocolate with a Heart

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Divine White Chocolate with Strawberries

Let it be written, let it be posted, let it be tweeted:  Divine Chocolates are extraordinary!

A few weeks back, I was sent some Divine chocolate candy to review on my food blog. When it comes to something like chocolate, I always pinch myself… “Is this person really asking me if they can send me chocolate?” L-U-C-K-Y! The best I can figure, fate must smile upon those who live right. Fortunately, sometimes it hands you chocolate as its smiling.

LOVE when it does that.

Divine Chocolate mailed me a Dark Chocolate with Raspberries bar, some adorable little heart-shaped candies (dark and milk chocolate), and what will forever go down as one of the most sensational candy bars I’ve ever eaten – their White Chocolate with Strawberries. Not surprisingly, I thought we’d start the review with this one!

The Divine White Chocolate with Strawberries bar (shown in all its glory at the top of the post) is smooth, creamy white chocolate with crunchy pieces of real strawberry crisp. The explosion of wonderful, full strawberry flavor works like a dream with the creamy, delicious white chocolate. It’s a combination that I can’t get out of my mind. It’s just sensational.

Divine Dark Chocolate with Raspberries

Another dream combination is Raspberries and chocolate – in fact, it’s one of the most magical combinations I can think of. Divine’s Dark Chocolate with Raspberries is out of this world, as well. Even people who aren’t wild about dark chocolate (seriously, people?) will love this bar. The raspberry flavor works like a charm.

The adorable and delicious heart candies were also a huge hit in our house. Perfect for throwing in your mouth any time you feel the need for chocolate. You don’t even want to know how often I get in touch with that need.

Each of these remarkable candy bars (including the hearts) are suitable for vegetarians. What’s more, they are free from artificial flavorings, colorings and preservatives. And did I mention they were remarkably delicious?

About Divine Chocolates or What Makes them Truly Divine

Choosing Divine as your chocolate treat is a delicious way of playing your part in a more equitable trading partnership. Divine is the only Fairtrade chocolate company which is 45% owned by the farmers. While Fairtrade ensures farmers receive a better deal for their cocoa and additional income to invest in their community, company ownership gives farmers a share of Divine’s profits and a stronger voice in the cocoa industry. That’s good business! – From Divine Chocolates

You can order Divine Chocolates online, or use their Store Finder to find the store closest to you. If you want to give your Valentine candy they’ll never forget, here’s your chance.  A word of caution, though: You’ll want to buy yourself a few bars as well, they may love you but they aren’t going to want to share!

Divine Dark and Milk Chocolate Hearts

Recipe for Carrot Cake Muffins

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The recipe below is from recipe from New York Times Bestselling novelist and avid baker Mary Burton.

Just over a year ago, author Mary Burton was quoted in the Richmond Times-Dispatch talking about how her passions—writing and baking—both contribute to her creativity. The article shared a recipe along with Mary’s view that, for her, they are intertwined, most probably because she experiences each as requiring creativity as well as expertise.

So, when the going gets tough, Mary heads to the kitchen where the stress level immediately ratchets down a few notches and she finds herself busy working out dialogue and untangling plot lines before the oven has even preheated. As she told the Times-Dispatch, “…you can tell how the writing’s going by the number of cupcakes on the counter.”

I love that! I find a similar solace in my kitchen as well. In fact, I’m pretty sure there’d be a lot more empty therapist couches is more people took up cooking. What a stress reliever!

For the recently published novel DYING SCREAM, Mary Burton shared her gift with protagonist Adrianna Barrington. Figuring that when Adrianna wasn’t helping track down a serial killer she would welcome a chance to chill, Mary gave her a great kitchen along with a penchant for pastry and other baked delicacies. 

And, as long as it’s coming up on St. Valentine’s Day and Adrianna is carrying a torch for Homicide Detective Gage Hudson, Mary also decided it was time for her have her own recipe for readers to bake and enjoy ― Adrianna’s Carrot Cake Love Muffins.

The rest of us get to benefit from her creativity, how cool is that? What’s say, as a thank you (we cooks are nothing if not gracious) to Mary Burton, we all buy her newest novel, Dying Scream? After all, we bakers have to stick together!

For more about Mary Burton and her novels visit www.maryburton.com.

To see last year’s Valentine’s Day recipe for Mary Burton’s Buns— CLICK HERE.

Finally, to see the Richmond Times-Dispatch article— CLICK HERE.

Adrianna’s Carrot Cake Love Muffins Recipe

3 cups of shredded carrots
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups of flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda

To the shredded carrots add eggs, sugar, brown sugar, vegetable oil and vanilla. Mix well. Shift flour, salt, cinnamon, baking power and baking soda into carrot mixture. Gently mix and scoop into muffin cups. Makes about 12. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes.

(If possible, hand shred the carrots. It takes a bit longer to shred by hand but the carrots hold more moisture and this really enhances the texture of the muffins.)

Muffins can be dusted with powdered sugar or topped with a cream cheese icing. Both are delicious.

Cream Cheese Icing

1/2 cup cream cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups of powdered sugar
1-2 tablespoons of milk

Cream all together until fluffy. When the muffins have cooled ice with frosting.