…from the Perspectives’ Holiday KitchenHow you doin’? This easy Santa’s Helper’s Reindeer Food snack mix recipe is fun to make. Really, it couldn't be simpler: just pour melted white chocolate over the other ingredients and toss to coat! My Reindeer Food" recipe is sweet, salty, and impossible to resist. You can choose a holiday mix of M&M's so the colors shine through to make it extra festive! I even add in mini salted corn nuts for an extra loud crunch. Play your cards right and you might even get an extra treat in your stocking by making this snack for Santa and his reindeer. Santa’s Helper’s Reindeer Food is great for gift-giving not only for feeding Dancer, Prancer and the rest of the herd—including Rudolph—but for friends and family, too. For a simple and festive presentation, throw it into mason jars and decorate with patterned fabric and a festive ribbon. You can also use cookie tins, gift bags, or basic storage containers. Prep time: 15 minutes Cook time: 5 minutes Cool Time: 30 minutes Yield: 24 servings Ingredients 1 (20 ounce) package miniature pretzels 1 (17.5 ounce) package crispy corn cereal squares (I prefer any of the Chex cereals) 1 (16 ounce) jar salted dry-roasted peanuts (I also like to use crispy honey coated peanut, almonds, or cashews) 1 (14 ounce) package candy-coated milk chocolate pieces (I prefer M&M's) 24 ounces chopped white chocolate (I prefer Guittard chocolate), 6-ounces mini salted corn nuts (optional) Directions
ChefSecret: Store Reindeer Food in an airtight container at room temperature for up to four days or in the fridge for up to one week. Here is my elfin Quip of the Day: If athletes get athlete’s foot, what do Santa’s elves get? Mistle-toe, silly! ------------------------------------------- Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. We have added a new search feature to make it easier to navigate through our blogs. ------------------------------------------- To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross. #Snacks #ReindeerFood #SantasReindeer #Pretzels #Nuts #WhiteChocolate #CornNuts #M&Ms #Guittard #Christmas #Holidays2022 #HolidayRecipes #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022
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…from the Perspectives’ Holiday Happy Hour BarHow you doin’? I’m a sucker for red cocktails around Christmastime. You can save this recipe for one of the last 12 Days of Christmas… of course, you can mix one up now just to test it out 😉. A Berry Merry Christmas Martini is one of those cocktails, that you can serve either martini style or on the rocks like a fizz, cooler or spritzer. I served as a Martini which is obviously a little stronger since there’s less club soda in it. If you want to put it in a tall glass with ice you can do that as well. Just add everything except club soda to a shaker, shake and pour into a tall glass with ice, then top it off with as much club soda as you want. The Berry Merry Christmas Martini gets its berry flavor from Chambord, a raspberry liqueur. I also add a bit of grenadine to really make it red. I love a berry/lemonade combo so consider adding a little Limoncello to the mix. It’s a really great combination! If you don’t have Limoncello you can squeeze some lemon juice in the cocktail. It will be a bit less sweet but you can sweeten it up by adding a little more grenadine. You can dress up the presentation by rimming the glass with some of those pretty silver, gold and multi-colored sugar sprinkles. If you can’t find them, regular sugar will do. And since it’s Christmastime, add a sprig of mint (mistletoe doesn’t work) to garnish the cocktail to add some green. This cocktail will merry-up your holiday table with the red and green colors… and bright rosy cheeks. We hope everyone gets to enjoy some quality family time and that Santa brings you lots of goodies this year. We wish you all a post-pandemic Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays with my Berry Merry Christmas Martini. Prep time: 5 minutes Yield: 1 cocktail Ingredients 1 ounce shot vodka (I prefer Absolute) 1 ounce shot Chambord 1/2 ounce shot Limoncello 1/4 ounce shot Grenadine Club soda Garnish with a mint sprig, whole raspberries or even a candy cane Directions
ChefSecret: If you’d like to have this drink in a tall glass on the rocks, just shake the liquors together in a shaker, pour over a glass filled with ice and top off with club soda. Quip of the Day: “Did you know an unspoken superstition deems that an even number of olives in a martini is bad luck? Like avoiding a black cat in an alleyway, most seasoned bartenders will only serve Martinis with one or three olives (never two or four).” ------------------------------------------- Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. ------------------------------------------- To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross. #Martini #BerryMerryMartini #Vodka #Chambord #Limoncello #Grenadine #Cheers #HolidayRecipes #Holidays2022 #BeThankful #QuarantineKitchen #RedCross #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022 …from the Perspectives’ Holiday KitchenHow you doin’? Who doesn’t love smoothies?… fruity, healthy and delicious… right? But I’ve seen nutritional facts on smoothies from some of the juice stores that will blow your mind! My Holiday Breakfast Smoothie recipe has a scaled down calorie count but is not scaled down in flavor. Where did Smoothies originate? It appears that health food stores on the West Coast of the United States began selling smoothies in the 1930s associated with invention of the electric blender. The actual term "smoothie" was being used in recipes and trademarks by the mid-1980s. The earliest fruit smoothies were thick, frozen drinks made from orange juice, strawberries, and ice, and although they shared the electric blender in common with the long-standing milkshake, smoothies were a completely different drink aimed at cooling and refreshing beach-goers. Different flavored smoothies are part of Indian, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines. Fruit Sharbat (a popular Persian and South Asian drink) sometimes include yogurt and honey, too. In India, the Lassi is a smoothie or milkshake comprising crushed ice, yogurt, sugar, and mango; in the south, pineapple smoothies made with crushed ice, sugar and no yogurt are common. Prep time: 10 minutes Yield: 4 servings Ingredients 2 cups low-fat eggnog 2 large, sliced bananas 1 cup nonfat vanilla yogurt 1 cup fat-free milk 2 cups crushed or chipped ice 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg Optional fruit or vegetable of your choice (see ChefSecret) Directions
Nutrition Facts Serving Size 1/4 of recipe Calories 240 Cal from Fat 25 Total Fat 3 g Saturated Fat 0 g Cholesterol 0 mg Sodium 150 mg Total Carb 47 g Dietary Fiber 2 g Sugars 40 g Proteins 9 g Vitamin A 4% DV Vitamin C 15% DV Calcium 20% DV Iron 6% DV Percent Daily Values (DV) are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. ChefSecret: While this is a great basic smoothie and really watches the calories, you may choose to add some fresh berries for a sweeter, fruity flavor. Any additional ingredients you add will increase the calories—yes, even fresh berries will add a few calories to the basic smoothie. Quip of the Day: “I think I should work at a smoothie shop. I feel like I would blend in.” ------------------------------------------- Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. ------------------------------------------- To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. #Beverage #Smoothie #HolidaySmoothie #BreakfastSmoothie #EggNog #Nutmeg #Christmas #Holidays2022 #HolidayRecipes #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022 …from the Perspectives’ Holiday Kitchen ow you doin’? The cinnamony aroma of fresh-baked Sticky Buns… there’s nothing quite like it. It’s the perfect mood-setter for Holiday mornings or evenings. Ooey, gooey, buttery and sweet these Sticky Buns are best eaten fresh from the oven. Sticky buns consist of rolled pieces of yeast leavened dough, filled with sugars, nuts and cinnamon. They can be served as a dessert or breakfast sweet roll (or for any reason whatsoever). They are set on a bed of what will become the “sticky” stuff—you can use ingredients, such as brown sugar, honey (or both), as well as nuts and raisins and perhaps more sugar and lot of butter. After the Sticky Buns are baked, they are inverted so that the pan lining becomes the sticky topping. The way the buns are cut and baked allows them to be pulled apart as individual servings, although it is often a futile effort—so you might have to just eat 1-1/2 buns (oh darn!). But where did they originally come from? Sticky Buns were originally seen during the Middle Ages—the dawn of oceanic travel—at which time cinnamon became most prominent. Sticky Buns have a Germanic origin and were originally known as "Schnecken." The Pennsylvania Dutch introduced Schnecken to the United States in the 18th-century where they settled. Sticky Buns have endured long after many other national, religious and cultural traits have disappeared. Long live Sticky Buns! Prep time: 30 minutes Proof time: 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 hours (includes first and second proof) Bake time: 20 to 25 minutes Yield: 12 Sticky Buns Ingredients for the dough 1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup unsalted butter 1/8 cup warm water (110 degrees F) 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar 1 (.25 ounce) envelope active dry yeast 1 large egg 2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour, or more as required 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon for the caramel topping 2 tablespoons light corn syrup 1-1/2 tablespoons water 3 tablespoons unsalted butter 3/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup pecan halves Directions
ChefSecret: If your yeast doesn’t start to foam and activate within 5 to 10 minutes—start over with fresh yeast. Quip of the Day: A husband read an article to his wife about how many words women use a day—30,000 to a man's 15,000. The wife replied, "The reason must be because we must repeat everything to men." The husband then turned to his wife and asked, "What?" ------------------------------------------- Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. ------------------------------------------- To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross. #Baking #PecanStickyBuns #Pecans #Yeast #Schnecken #Christmas #Holidays2022 #HolidayRecipes #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #RedCross #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022 Formerly Known As A White Russian…from the Perspectives’ Holiday Happy Hour BarHow you doin’? Over the years, Perspectives has had a large array of wonderful clients and a few less than wonderful. A few years ago before the invasion of Ukraine, Perspectives was contacted via our website inviting us to respond to an RFP (request for proposal) for developing a restaurant concept in Kyiv. We would later come to learn that our client, who was actually in Azerbaijan, and had been a prominent member of Putin’s inner circle before the fall of the Soviet Union. We were to meet our new client in London to see some of the foods they wanted us to become familiar with, meet with potential chefs and generally get to know more about Middle-Eastern cuisine—especially foods from Beirut. To our surprise, after landing in London our client didn’t show up—there was some problem (he said) with his visa and entry into the UK. We were a little concerned, but we had a return ticket back home they had paid for. We were at leisure to discover the style of foods they wanted and visit with my sister-in-law’s family for 10 days. Next, we heard that we were being flown to Baku, Azerbaijan to meet with the man who was going to retain us. As we found out Baku is a very mysterious and wonderful place. As with most Eastern Bloc countries at the time, the people were warm and hospitable even though their governments weren’t. Making a long and somewhat humorous story short, two weeks later we found ourselves in Kyiv presenting the menu and looking for real estate as part of our client’s capital city strategy. It was an exciting time to be in Ukraine as it was the first time the people had a chance to elect their own government in open elections. As we walked through the downtown plaza, two competing groups were loudly presenting their campaigns at the top of their lungs. When we checked into the local hotel there were two beautiful Ukrainian ladies who couldn’t have cared less with all the hoopla going on outside. Joan asked them if they were excited about all the changes going on in their country? They said, “NEYT… somethings and places never change.” And now the Russians are back to their old imperial ways trying to subvert the people of Ukraine one again. It breaks our hearts to see the suffering across the country. We wish the people of Ukraine well and hope they will be at peace once again soon. As we are just 24 days from Christmas let’s say a prayer for the people of Ukraine for peace and good will for all. Tip a glass and celebrate with a grown-up Frappuccino (formerly known as a White Russian)… this coffee-flavored (but almost completely caffeine-free) cocktail is decadence to the extreme. Ingredients 1-1/2 ounces vodka 3/4 ounce Kahlua (coffee liqueur) 3/4 ounce heavy cream 1/8 teaspoon pure vanilla extract Directions
ChefSecret: Add ice to that glass beforehand if you'd like to temper the strength of the cocktail. Kahlua does, in fact, contain a small amount of caffeine… about 5mg per 1.5-oz. of Kahlua. Quip of the Day: “Do you have a hobby?" Putin was asked. "Of course! I collect jokes about myself." "Have you got many?" "Two and a half labor camps full already!" ------------------------------------------- Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide. ------------------------------------------- To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America and/or American Red Cross. #WhiteUkrainianCocktail #Kahlua #Vodka #Vanilla #WhiteRussian #Cheers #HolidayRecipes #Holidays2022 #BeThankful #QuarantineKitchen #RedCross #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022 |
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