This Mama Cooks! On a Diet™ » Boozing It Up!

Last minute holiday gifts: a California Wine Club Premier Club membership {10% off code!}

Anne-Marie Nichols — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:58:02 +0000

If you’re looking for last minute gift ideas, how about a Premier Club membership from The California Wine Club?

You can pick a one to 12 month membership, what type of wines (one red and one white, two reds, or two whites) you’d want, and how often you want the wine shipped (every month, every other month, or quarterly.) Besides two bottles of award-winning wine from California's best “mom and pop” wineries, your gift recipient will receive The California Wine Club’s 12-page, full-color newsletter, Uncorked®.

Premier Club gifts start at just $49.45, plus shipping and handling, applicable sales tax, and applicable import fees. (Holiday gifts will ship starting in January 2012.)

To learn more about the California Wine Club, visit CAWineClub.com. You can also connect with them on Twitter and on The California Wine Club’s Facebook page or at The Boring Wine Guy’s Facebook page.

Special deal for This Mama Cooks! On a Diet Readers

Use code mamacooks to get 10% off any gift orders you place with The California Wine Club.

Also, if you want to try a Premier Membership for yourself, use code mamacooks to get 10% off your first month as well as an extra bottle of wine in your first shipment. (Three bottles in all!) There’s no obligation to continue past the first month.

Gift giving ideas

A couple of weeks ago during my last giveaway for The California Wine Club, I suggested that you package a little note about the Premier Club membership gift with some wine accessories like a Vinturi Essential Wine Aerator, Vacu Vin Wine Saver Vacuum Wine Pump with 2 Stoppers, a Screwpull 4-Wheel Foil Cutter, Wine charms or a corkscrew.

Since we’re getting pretty close to the big day, you may want to run out to get some wine accessories, a decanter or cute wine glasses instead of ordering something online. I was just at CostPlus World Market and they had adorable holiday wine charms and a good selection of wine accessories. You could try Target, Pier One or Crate and Barrel, too.

Happy holidays!

_________________
Disclosure: I received a three-month Premier Club membership to The California Wine Club and additional wine. All opinions are my own.

Last minute holiday gifts: a California Wine Club Premier Club membership {10% off code!} is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Holiday gift ideas: California Wine Club membership giveaway

Anne-Marie Nichols — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:30:24 +0000

It’s been a blast having a Premier Club membership from The California Wine Club. Every time FedEx drops off a package of wine, it’s like Santa coming to the house!

This month I was sent two estate wines from the Tulip Hill winery. The 2009 Mount Oso Vineyard Cabepulciano, a hardy red, is a blend of 45% Montepulciano and 55% Cabernet Sauvignon. This would be wonderful with roast beef, barbecue, burgers or a holiday turkey. The white wine was a Mount Oso Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay. I’m not a big white wine drinker, but I loved this. I drank it with Sriracha Chicken Skewers and rice, but it would also go well with less spicy dishes like grilled fish or pasta topped with a pesto sauce.

The California Wine Club’s Premier Club membership (and discount code!)

The Premier Club is The California Wine Club’s most popular wine gift. You can pick a one to 12 month membership, what type of wines (one red and one white, two reds, or two whites) you’d want, and how often you want the wine shipped (every month, every other month, or quarterly.) Premier Club gifts start at just $49.45, plus shipping and handling, applicable sales tax, and applicable import fees.

Use code mamacooks to get 10% off any gifts you place with The California Wine Club.

Wine lover gift ideas

The California Wine Club holiday gifts won’t ship starting in January 2012. In order to have something under the tree, you may want to give the wine lover on your holiday list a wine accessory along with a little note about their Premier Club gift. Here are a few suggestions:

Vinturi Essential Wine Aerator – Aerating your wine makes such a difference. In fact, it makes wine a little too drinkable, if you know what I mean!
Vacu Vin Wine Saver Vacuum Wine Pump with 2 Stoppers – I received one of these as a wedding gift nearly 18 years ago, and it still works great.
Screwpull 4-Wheel Foil Cutter – This was another wedding gift. Much easier to use than a paring knife, believe me.
Wine charms – Jewelry for your wine glasses!
A corkscrew – I prefer the winged type, but the hinged “waiter’s style” corkscrew is great for taking camping or packing in your checked-in luggage.

Win one month’s Premier Club membership

This is your last chance to win a month’s membership to The California Wine Club’s Premier Club! (Please note: you MUST be over 21 years of age, a legal resident of the US, and not live in Utah in order to participate in the giveaway.)

Giveaway closed. Congrats to Elizabeth G.!

Share what type (or types) of wine you enjoy in the comments below for ONE entry.
Sign up for This Mama Cooks! Review’s RSS feed for ONE additional entry.
Sign up for my enewsletter for ONE additional entry.
Spread the word about this giveaway by submitting a link to this post on Twitter for ONE additional entry. You must leave a link to your tweet in your comment so I can check.
Follow @amnichols on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @cawineclub on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @boringwineguy on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
If you have done any of these additional activities you MUST come back here and leave a comment telling me what you did. I will be checking!
Maximum amount of entries at This Mama Cooks! On a Diet is SEVEN.
You have until midnight MST on Tuesday, December 13, 2011 to enter.

ONE winner will be chosen at random. You must be willing to send me your full name, mailing address and phone number so I pass your info on to The California Wine Club so they can mail you your wine. I’ll announce the winner on this blog. I won't share your mailing info with the public, just your name. If you have a blog, I’ll link back to it when I announce the winner.

The giveaway is valued at approximately $49.45 and is only open to legal residents of the United States, 21 years of age and older. No purchase required. Odds of winning based on number of entries. Up to SEVEN entries per person. ONE one-month Premier Club membership will be given away. Void where prohibited by law.

By submitting your name and email address, you agree to receive relevant promotional emails and contest follow up communications from This Mama Cooks! On a Diet in compliance with my privacy policy and giveaway rules.

_________________
Disclosure: I received a three-month Premier Club membership to The California Wine Club. All opinions are my own.

Holiday gift ideas: California Wine Club membership giveaway is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Thanksgiving leftovers: Turkey Panini Sandwiches with Cranberry Relish

Anne-Marie Nichols — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 13:56:35 +0000

You can only heat up slices of Thanksgiving turkey so many times before you’re tired of it. Instead, how about making a panini sandwich with your leftover turkey and cranberry sauce instead?

My version is based on Mirassou Winery’s recipe for Mini Maple Turkey Panini with Riesling Cranberry Relish. I’ve healthed up the recipe by substituting organic or gluten free bread, buttery spread, and a low fat Jarlsberg cheese instead of Gruyere. You can also use your leftover cranberry sauce or relish instead of making a new batch. (If you’re out, try Mirassou’s recipe. It looks amazing!)

If you’re not watching your calories, feel free to spread on a nice thick layer of cranberry sauce. If you need to cut back, you can dip corners of your panini into a small dab of cranberry sauce on your plate, so you get a taste but not all the calories.

Mirassou's paring suggestion is a glass of Mirassou® Monterey County California Riesling.

Turkey Panini Sandwiches with Cranberry Relish

Based on Mirassou Winery’s Mini Maple Turkey Panini with Riesling Cranberry Relish

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: about 15 minutes

Makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons light agave nectar
8 slices sourdough bread (gluten free or organic)
12 slices leftover turkey
1 cup shredded low fat Jarlsberg cheese
2 tablespoons buttery spread

Directions:

To prepare sandwiches, brush a little agave syrup onto one side of one of the bread slices (per sandwich).
Place 3 slices turkey, a little relish and 1/4 cup cheese on each slice then top with another slice of bread.
Spray sandwiches with a little buttery spread and place in a preheated Panini grill . Cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until cheese is melted and bread is grill marked. (Or cook in a skillet for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, pressing down to compress sandwich.)
Cut into 4 triangles and place on a serving tray.
Serve immediately with cranberry sauce – you can dip your sandwiches in the sauce or spread a layer on top.

Thanksgiving leftovers: Turkey Panini Sandwiches with Cranberry Relish is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Countdown to Thanksgiving: Healthier Cherry Cornbread Stuffing #glutenfree

Anne-Marie Nichols — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 14:14:58 +0000

I was introduced to Mirassou Winery at Bloggy Bootcamp Denver in September. Not only was it a treat to sample their wonderful wines at the closing cocktail party, it was a neat opportunity to meet a member of the Mirassou family, and learn about the history of the winery.

Wine for the holidays

The Mirassou Facebook page is a terrific resource to find out the best wine pairings for the food you’ll be serving during the holidays. It also features a “where to buy” tab so you can find Mirassou wines near you.

You may want to check out their website for holiday (and everyday) recipes, like this one that I’ll be making for Thanksgiving. You can make this recipe gluten free by using Bob’s Red Mill GF Cornbread Mix. I’ve also made this cornbread stuffing healthier by using a low fat turkey sausage, low sodium chicken broth, and a buttery spread instead of butter. If you have access to organic ingredients, even better!

Cornbread stuffing and turkey both pair well with Mirassou® California Pinot Noir, which is what I’ll be serving next week.

Healthier Cherry Cornbread Stuffing

Recipe based on Mirassou Winery's Cherry Cornbread Stuffing

Print
Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds frozen sweet cherries, thawed
1 pound sweet or hot Italian turkey sausage
1/4 cup buttery spread
1 large onion, peeled and diced
4 stalks stalks celery, diced
6 cups crumbled day old cornbread
1 (14.5 ounce.) can low sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

Drain cherries in a sieve and press between several layers of paper towels to remove excess moisture and coarsely chop; set aside.
Remove the sausage from the casings and crumble into a medium skillet. Cook for 10 minutes or until no longer pink. Drain excess fat and blot with paper towels to remove extra fat.
Melt the buttery spread in a large skillet. Add the onion and celery; cook for 10 minutes or until vegetables are soft.
Mix together the sausage, vegetables and cornbread in a large bowl with the broth and rosemary.
Season to taste with pepper and fold in the cherries.
Transfer to a buttered 13 x 9-inch baking dish and bake at 375 degrees for 45 to 60 minutes or until heated through and lightly browned on top.

Prep Time: 20 Minutes

Total Time: 1:05 - 1 Hour 20 Minutes

Nutrition Grade B- from CalorieCount

Weight Watchers POINTS = 12

Servings: 12 servings

Calories: 521
Calories from Fat: 186
Total Fat: 20.6g
Saturated fat: 5.8g
Unsaturated fat: 14.8g
Sodium: 1085mg
Total Carbohydrates: 67.2g
Sugar: .6g
Fiber: 1g
Protein: 15.6g
Cholesterol: 77mg

Picture courtesy of Mirassou Winery.

Countdown to Thanksgiving: Healthier Cherry Cornbread Stuffing #glutenfree is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Win a California Wine Club membership!

Anne-Marie Nichols — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:10:38 +0000

One of the pleasures of having a Premier Club membership to The California Wine Club for three months is enjoying their holiday wine recommendations. This month I was sent two wines from Castoro Cellars at Paso Robles, the 2010 “Blind Faith” Paso Robles Pinot Noir and the 2010 Pas Robles Gewürztraminer.

The “Blind Faith” Paso Robles Pinot Noir is a wonderful wine to serve with your Thanksgiving meal as it works well with lighter meats like turkey as well as pork or salmon. I really enjoyed this wine as I’m a big Pinot Noir fan. It’s definitely a wine I’d reorder from The California Wine Club as members can order it for $13.99 a bottle. (If you were to buy this in their tasting room, it would be $26 per bottle!)

The 2010 Pas Robles Gewürztraminer was interesting as I’ve never had a Gewürztraminer wine before. Typical of many German style wines, it’s rather sweet, which I’m not used to in a white wine. I found it a little weird, frankly. The California Wine Club recommends serving it chilled as an aperitif or with salads, or Japanese and Thai cuisine.

Give the gift of wine with The California Wine Club’s Premier Club membership

The Premier Club is The California Wine Club’s most popular wine gift. You can pick a one to 12 month membership, what type of wines (one red and one white, two reds, or two whites) you’d want, and how often you want the wine shipped (every month, every other month, or quarterly.) Besides two bottles of award-winning wine from California's best “mom and pop” wineries, your gift recipient will receive The California Wine Club’s 12-page, full-color newsletter, Uncorked®.

Premier Club gifts start at just $49.45, plus shipping and handling, applicable sales tax, and applicable import fees. (Holiday gifts will ship starting in January 2012.)

Special deal for This Mama Cooks! On a Diet Readers

Use code mamacooks to get 10% off any gifts you place with The California Wine Club. Also, if you want to try a Premier Membership for yourself, use code mamacooks to get 10% off your first month as well as an extra bottle of wine in your first shipment. (Three bottles in all!) Also, there’s no obligation to continue past the first month.

Win one month’s Premier Club membership

The California Wine Club has asked me to give away a month’s membership to their Premier Club to one lucky reader. (Please note: you MUST be over 21 years of age, a legal resident of the US, and not live in Utah in order to participate in the giveaway.)

Here’s how to enter:

Giveaway closed. Congrats to Karianna of The Karianna Spectrum!

Share what type (or types) of wine you enjoy in the comments below for ONE entry.
Sign up for This Mama Cooks! Review’s RSS feed for ONE additional entry.
Sign up for my enewsletter for ONE additional entry.
Spread the word about this giveaway by submitting a link to this post on Twitter for ONE additional entry. You must leave a link to your tweet in your comment so I can check.
Follow @amnichols on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @cawineclub on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @boringwineguy on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
If you have done any of these additional activities you MUST come back here and leave a comment telling me what you did. I will be checking!
Maximum amount of entries at This Mama Cooks! On a Diet is SEVEN.
You have until midnight MST on Friday, November 18, 2011 to enter.

_________________
Disclosure: I received a three-month Premier Club membership to The California Wine Club. All opinions are my own.

Win a California Wine Club membership! is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Win a membership to The California Wine Club {review and discount code}

Anne-Marie Nichols — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 13:39:03 +0000

Ever tried to shop for that person who has everything? If they’re a wine lover, one gift giving idea that’s affordable and easy to do is the gift of wine from The California Wine Club. I’m partnering with them to try out their Premier Club for three-months, so I can tell you about my experience with them – and maybe you can win a one month membership as well!

The California Wine Club’s Premier Club

The Premier Club is their most popular wine gift. You can pick one to 12 months, what type of wines (one red and one white, two reds, or two whites) and how often you want the wine shipped (every month, every other month, or quarterly.) Besides two bottles of award-winning wine from California's best “mom & pop” wineries, your gift recipient will receive The California Wine Club’s 12-page, full-color newsletter, Uncorked®.

Premier Club gifts start at just $49.45, plus shipping and handling, applicable sales tax, and applicable import fees. (Holiday gifts will ship starting in January 2012.)

Experiencing the Premier Club

I love having wine with dinner, so I was eager to get my first The California Wine Club shipment to share with my husband, Paul. Of course, I was out of town (in California, ironically) when the package arrived. Luckily, Paul was home to sign for it. You see, there must be an adult over 21 years of age to sign for the wine. So you may want to ask your gift recipient if you should have their Premier Club shipment sent to their home or their workplace instead.

I received two bottles of wine – one red, one white:

Perry Creek Zinman – a 2008 Zinfandel El Dorado – This was a “knock your socks off” Zin as it was too strong, in my opinion, to sip by itself. You must drink it with a meal. Then it’s extremely enjoyable. Perry Creek Zinman is rated among the top 15 best-value Zinfandels by Wine Spectator in 2010.
Perry Creek Chardonnay California 2009 – I’m not a big white wine drinker, but I loved this. Smooth, refreshing and perfect with the spicy Mongolian Beef and Tofu dishes I made that night. My husband must have agreed since we finished off the bottle in one evening.

It was fun to try some new wines and get introduced the Perry Creek Winery in the process. Overall, The California Wine Club is a great gift idea for anyone who loves wine, including yourself. (Time to drop Santa a few hints, if you know what I mean.)

Special deal for This Mama Cooks! On a Diet Readers

Use code mamacooks to get 10% off any gifts you place with The California Wine Club.

Also, if you want to try a Premier Membership for yourself, use code mamacooks to get 10% off your first month as well as an extra bottle of wine in your first shipment. (Three bottles in all!) Also, there’s no obligation to continue past the first month.

Win one month’s Premier Club membership

The California Wine Club has asked me to give away a month’s membership to their Premier Club to one lucky reader. (Please note: you MUST be over 21 years of age and a legal resident of the US to participate in the giveaway.)

Here’s how to enter:

Giveaway closed. Congrats to Donna K.!

Share what type (or types) of wine you enjoy in the comments below for ONE entry.
Sign up for This Mama Cooks! Review’s RSS feed for ONE additional entry.
Sign up for my enewsletter for ONE additional entry.
Spread the word about this giveaway by submitting a link to this post on Twitter for ONE additional entry. You must leave a link to your tweet in your comment so I can check.
Follow @amnichols on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @cawineclub on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
Follow @boringwineguy on Twitter for ONE additional entry.
If you have done any of these additional activities you MUST come back here and leave a comment telling me what you did. I will be checking!
Maximum amount of entries at This Mama Cooks! On a Diet is SEVEN.
You have until midnight MST on Thursday, October 20, 2011 to enter.

_________________

Disclosure: I received a three-month Premier Club membership to The California Wine Club. All opinions are my own.

Win a membership to The California Wine Club {review and discount code} is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

A healthy New Year’s Eve with Sam’s Club’s New Year’s Eve Resolutions Twitter contest

Anne-Marie Nichols — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 15:03:29 +0000

Traditionally, New Year’s Eve is the last time to indulge before you get back to eating right, exercising and losing those extra holiday pounds. So why not make the last party of 2010 a little healthier by adding some fresh, frozen and dried fruit from Sam’s Club?

I’ll explain my ideas for healthing up some traditional New Year's Even party fare like champagne cocktails and stuffed dates below. But first I want to share with you Sam’s Club’s Twitter contest that will get you cooking more healthfully in 2011.

Get a #jumpstart with Sam’s Club “New Year’s Eve Resolutions” Twitter contest

What resolutions are you making this New Year’s Eve? Share your New Year’s resolution on Twitter with Sam’s Club from December 27, 2010 to January 1, 2011 for a chance to win a 14-piece Cuisinart Cookware Set (valued at $149.98) from Sam’s Club. It’s a gorgeous cookware set that should inspire you to cook more healthfully in 2011!

Here are the details on how to enter the contest:

To enter, you must become a follower of Sam’s Club Twitter page.
Then tweet your response to the contest question: “What New Year’s Resolution Have You Achieved?” use the hashtag #jumpstart. You MUST mention @SamsClub in your tweet to be counted as an Official Contest Entry.
One entry per person.
Each contest entry will be judged based on the clear relationship between the tweet and the following criteria: Originality (40%); Pertinence to Theme (40%); Difficulty (20%).
The Sam’s Club “New Year’s Eve Resolutions” Twitter contest starts at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Standard Time (“EST”) on December 27, 2010 and ends at 11:59 p.m. EST on January 1, 2011 (“Contest Period”).
There will be ONE winner selected from readers of the four participating blogs:
Read the official rules here. (PDF document)

Health up your New Year’s Eve with fruit!

As a Sam’s Club food ambassador, I was asked to highlight their Cook’s Brut champagne. After all what isn't more traditional for New Year's Eve but champagne?

Depending on the liquor laws in your state, you can probably buy Cook’s at your local Sam’s Club. At my Sam’s it was $5.99 per bottle – very affordable if you’re expecting lots of people at your party! Since it’s not an expensive champagne, have fun by adding some healthy goodies to your glass.

(Note: you can also do this with Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider, which is sold in four-packs at Sam’s Club. This is a perfect way to make “mock-tails” for the kids and designated drivers attending your New Year’s Eve party, too.)

I used a Shannon® Crystal Four-in-One Cake Dome, which is available at Sam’s Club for $19.91, to serve the champagne and fruit. You can turn it upside down, fill the dome with ice, and use it as a champagne bucket. Then place the sliced fruit, pomegranate arils, berries, mint and sugar cubes in the upside down pedestal. Purchase a second Shannon Crystal and use it for traditional New Year's Eve party fare like chips and salsa, popcorn, or sliced veggies and dip.

Some champagne cocktail bar tips:

I “sugared” the mint with some stevia. Rinse the mint leaves and shake off the excess water. Sprinkle the mint with the stevia (keep piling it on!) and let dry. Add a sugared mint sprig to your glass and pour in the champagne. Let sit for a few minutes before taking a sip. Not only is it pretty, but it’s pretty delicious, too.
I used frozen berries and Dole’s frozen sliced strawberries and mixed fruit since it was cheaper than the fresh fruit Sam's had on sale. (Fresh fruit is fine, too, especially since Sam’s has gorgeous strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries available at many of the Clubs.) You can also use the frozen fruit to make smoothies (with or without alcohol) for your New Year’s Eve party. Or make a smoothie the day after your party for a healthy drink with some yogurt or protein powder. Note: frozen fruit gets a little “juicy” so you may want to defrost it at room temperature, pour off the juices, and then put it out for champagne cocktails.
My Sam’s Club was selling pomegranate arils (the little seeds inside the pomegranates). These are so pretty in a cocktail glass with champagne, sparkling cider or seltzer water.
Sugar cubes – I know, I know, not healthy. (Wish I could find stevia in cube form!) However, sugar cubes soaked in bitters is how you make a traditional champagne cocktail. I served the sugar cubes plain, but you can include a bottle of bitters on the side so guests can “bitter” their own sugar cubes. Using vanilla or almond extracts to add to the cubes could be fun, too!

Stuffed Medjool Dates

One way to health up your New Year’s Eve is serve small bites and portions at your party. Sam's Club has a lot of traditional dips like guacamole and hummus to serve up with crackers, chips or sliced vegetables. You can also do "small bites" with the gorgeous Medjool dates that are sold at Sam’s Club this time of year.

Make the stuffed Medjool dates a day or two ahead of time – just store in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before the party. They’re so easy to put together that you can get your kids to help make them, too.

Take a pairing knife and gently slice the side of the date to remove the pit. Then open up the date and gently stuff with cheese or something savory like prosciutto. I used Athenos Feta, slices of Via Del Gusto Parmesan from Wisconsin, Salemville Amish Blue Cheese Crumbles, and a small knot of Fiorucci Riserva Prosciutto – all of which I purchased at Sam’s Club. (Your club may have different brands of similar styles of cheeses and meats.) I also used Haystack Mountain Applewood Smoked Chèvre, which isn’t sold at Sam’s. (It's one of my favorite local Colorado cheeses.) Sam's does sell other types of chevre, however. You could also use cream cheese and add a walnut, almond, pecan or cashew for a little crunch.

Each date is so large it’s actually two bites. And while these aren’t low fat with the cheese and meat, the pairing of sweet and savory is worth every calorie - and they really fill you up!

A take on the traditional - healthy party appetizers

Here are some more ideas for traditional party appetizers - all with a healthy twist!

Connect with me and Sam’s Club this week on Facebook!

On December 28th, I’ll be on Sam’s Club Facebook page answering your questions about healthy New Year’s Eve party ideas. Hope you’ll drop by and ask some questions!

For more information and club locations visit samsclub.com. For recipes, instructional videos, daily tips and deals, visit the Holidays Made Simple site or download the Sam’s Club mobile application to your iPhone, Android or BlackBerry. You can also find Sam’s Club on Facebook or on Twitter @samsclub and @samsclubdeals.

___________

Disclosure: as a Sam’s Club Food Ambassador I receive compensation for my time and efforts. Please note that prices and product availability will vary per store.

A healthy New Year’s Eve with Sam’s Club’s New Year’s Eve Resolutions Twitter contest is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

How do you like your eggs? Skinny Eggnog cocktail

Anne-Marie Nichols — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 09:01:00 +0000

It’s the time of year to where eggnog tempts us. Even the low fat version is full of fat, sugar and fillers. Is there a way to make a healthier version of eggnog? Possibly with this recipe from Bethenny Frankel.

You probably know her from The Real Housewives of New York City. She’s also a natural-foods chef, the owner of the baked-goods company bethennybakes and author of Naturally Thin: Unleash Your SkinnyGirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting. Bethenny also contributes to Health.com, which is where I found this intriguing holiday cocktail recipe.

Skinny Eggnog
By Bethenny Frankel
From Health magazine

Makes 6 servings

Ingredients:

2 egg yolks
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon of sugar
2 cups 1% low fat milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 dash cinnamon
1 dash nutmeg
1/4 cup white rum
4 pasteurized egg whites

Directions:

Beat egg yolks until lightened in color.
Add cup 1/3 cup of sugar, beating until dissolved; set aside.
Combine milk, vanilla, and 1 dash each cinnamon and nutmeg in a saucepan over high heat; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.
Remove from heat, and gradually whisk into egg mixture.
Return to pot, and cook to 160° F.
Remove from heat, stir in 1/4 cup white rum, and pour into a bowl; set in the refrigerator.
Beat 4 pasteurized egg whites in a separate bowl until soft peaks form; with mixer running, gradually add 1 tablespoon sugar, and beat until stiff peaks form.
Whisk egg whites into chilled mixture; sprinkle with cinnamon.

Nutritional information:

148 calories
Calories from fat 21
Total Fat 2.4g
Saturated Fat 1.1g
Sodium 75mg
Total Carbohydrates 17.8g
Sugars 17.7g
Protein 6.0g

Weight Watchers POINTS = 3

To make it even skinnier:

Remove the rum (you can use rum extract for the taste) – now each drink is 123 calories.
Remove the sugar and substitute with stevia – now 87 calories
Remove the sugar, add a substitute and forego the rum – 65 calories

______________________

All links to Amazon.com are affiliate links. A commission may be earned from a referred sale to their website.

How do you like your eggs? Skinny Eggnog cocktail is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Pomegranate juice for the holidays: drinks and desserts

Anne-Marie Nichols — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 08:38:00 +0000

Have you seen the gigantic bottles of POM Pomegranate juice at Costco? It’s sold at a great price and worth buying to make your Pomegranate Cranberry Sauce with or brine your turkey in. (Believe me, I’m sooo tempted to try yet another brining method after seeing this recipe for POM-Brined Turkey.)

So what else can you make with pomegranate juice?

Desserts

Green Tea Poached Pears with Pomegranate Glaze and Pistachios

This recipe comes from Terry Walters' cookbook, Clean Food: A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source with More Than 200 Recipes for a Healthy and Sustainable You.

Ingredients:

6 pears, peeled, halved and cored
3 green tea bags
6 cups water
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup roasted pistachios, finely chopped
Mint for garnish

Glaze:

1 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
1 cup water
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 tablespoons arrowroot dissolved in 3 tablespoons water

Directions:

In a large pot, bring the water to a boil. Add tea bags and maple syrup, turn off heat, cover, and steep for 5 minutes. (Longer steeping will make the tea bitter.)
Remove teabags from the pot, add pears, and bring to a simmer. Poach pears until tender but still held together (6 to 10 minutes, depending on ripeness).
Make glaze in a medium pot by stirring juice, water and syrup together over medium-high heat until liquid is reduced by half.
Remove from heat and immediately stir in dissolved arrowroot. Refrigerate until ready to use.
To serve, place pear halves decoratively on each plate, drizzle with pomegranate glaze and top with chopped pistachios. Garnish with mint leaves and serve.

Here’s a variation on the same recipe: Green Tea Poached Pears with Fruit Juice Glaze & Pine Nuts. She uses toasted pine nuts (good idea if you have a nut allergy) and light agave nectar. Dark agave nectar would be even better in my opinion.

Other ideas:

Cocktails

Pomegranate and Soda (non-alcoholic)

Serves 1

This one comes from Jaden Hair of Steamy Kitchen’s new book, The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook: 101 Asian Recipes Simple Enough for Tonight's Dinner.

Ingredients:

Spoonful of pomegranate seeds
Ice
2 oz pomegranate juice
4 oz club soda
1 sprig of fresh mint for garnish

Directions:

Spoon the pomegranate seeds in a tall glass and fill with ice.
Pour in the pomegranate juice and club soda and stir briefly.
Garnish with the mint sprig.

If you want to serve this by the bottleful, you may be interested in reading my review of R.W. Knudsen’s Sparkling Pomegranate Juice and buying it that way instead.

Variation:

Try using ginger ale instead of club soda. The ginger in Natural Brew Outrageous Ginger Ale combined with pomegranate juice would be fantastic.
Instead of plain pomegranate juice, try one of POM’s juice combinations. I recently tried their POM Kiwi and POM Nectarine varieties, both of which were delicious.

Other drinks:

Basil Pomegranate Lemonade

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Disclosure: POM occasionally sends me their pomegranate juices to try out. I was not required to blog about or review it. I received a copy of Jaden’s book as an attendee of a party she hosted after the BlogHer Food conference. I received a copy of Terry Walters’ book from her publicist to review.

Pomegranate juice for the holidays: drinks and desserts is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!

Healthy cocktails? Try these Mad Men inspired Bloody Marys

Anne-Marie Nichols — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 09:21:00 +0000

You must have retro cocktails at your Mad Men viewing party. But considering the show is on Sunday night, you probably don’t want to go overboard with the alcohol – though that never seems to deter the folks at Sterling Cooper from boozing it up.

The healthiest of the retro cocktails – hey, it has tomato juice – is probably a Bloody Mary. You can forgo the vodka and make a Virgin Mary, if you wish. Or use V8 juice instead of plain tomato juice. Some people like lots of spice and load up their drinks with horseradish or Tabasco, too, so have fun experimenting.

I’ve included recipes for the traditional Bloody Mary as well as several variations.

When figuring out Weight Watchers POINTS, keep in mind that:

1 cup of tomato juice or V8 = 1 POINT
1 cup of Clamato juice = 2 POINTS
1 can of Campbell's Beef consommé = 1 POINT
1.5 ounces of vodka or tequila = 2 POINTS
1 celery stalk = 0 POINTS

Bloody Mary

Ingredients:

3 oz tomato juice
1 1/2 oz vodka
1/2 oz lemon juice
1 dash of Worcestershire sauce
celery salt
ground pepper
hot pepper sauce to taste
celery stalk and/or pickle spear for garnish
lemon and/or lime wedge for garnish

Preparation:

Build the liquid ingredients in a highball glass over ice cubes.
Mix well.
Add the seasonings to taste.
Garnish with the lemon and/or lime wedge and celery stalk.

Bloody Caesar

Ingredients:

1 1/2 oz vodka
4 oz clamato juice
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
dash of Tabasco sauce
celery salt
lime wedge
pepper to taste
celery salt
celery stalk for garnish

Preparation:

Rim a highball glass with the juice from the lime wedge and a combination of celery salt and salt.
Add the vodka and clamato juice.
Season with pepper, Worcestershire and Tabasco sauces to taste.
Stir well.
Garnish with a celery stick.

Bloody Maria

Ingredients:

2 oz tequila
1 tsp horseradish
3 dashes Tabasco sauce
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
dash of lime juice
3 dashes celery salt
3 dashes pepper
tomato juice
1 oz clam juice (optional)
dash of sherry (optional)
1 tsp Dijon mustard (optional)
celery stalk for garnish
lemon and/or lime wedge for garnish
cucumber and/or cocktail shrimp for garnish (optional)

Preparation:

Build the ingredients in a highball glass over ice cubes.
Top with tomato juice.
Mix well by pouring from one glass to another.
Garnish with the lemon and/or lime wedge and celery stalk

If you like beef consommé you may want to try a Bloody Bull. A version of this is featured at Retro-Food.com – Tomato Bouillon on the Rocks.

Healthy cocktails? Try these Mad Men inspired Bloody Marys is a post from: This Mama Cooks! Stop by for more healthy recipes!