Archives for November 15, 2014

Salad Spinner by Key Largo Traders

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I love how easy this is to use! It really does keep salad fresher! I thought that this may be a complicated thing to use but it is so simple! It’s also a larger size than other salad spinners I have seen. But, my favorite thing is how easy it is to use! You simply push down the handle and it also locks. My other favorite thing is that it is super easy to clean. It just works so well and has quickly become one of my kitchen items that I use every week! It’s a Must-Have in the kitchen and perfect for those who love salads (like I do!)

This can  be purchased on Amazon.com.

 
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Thanksgiving Cocktails

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The below recipes feature popular Thanksgiving flavors including spiced apple, tart cranberry, and rich red wine. Thanks to our friends at  Sparkling ICE and VOGA Italia Wines

SPICED APPLE HONEY CIDER

Ingredients:

  • 3 oz. Sparkling ICE Crisp Apple
  • 1 ½ oz. Whiskey or Brandy
  • 1 teaspoon honey
  • Cinnamon stick and allspice cloves for garnish

 

Directions:

  1. Coat the bottom of a glass coffee cup with honey. Add whiskey or brandy
  2. Heat Sparkling ICE Crisp Apple in a small sauce pot
  3. Pour hot Sparkling ICE Crisp Apple into glass and stir to combine ingredients
  4. Garnish with cinnamon stick and allspice clove

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ORANGE SPICED PUMPKIN MARTINI

Ingredients:

  • 2 oz. VOGA Prosecco
  • 2 oz. Pumpkin flavored vodka
  • 1/2 oz. triple sec
  • 1 dash orange zest
  • 1 dash of cinnamon

 

Directions:

  1. Pour vodka, triple sec and orange zest into a cocktail shaker half-filled with cracked ice
  2. Shake well, and strain into a chilled cocktail glass
  3. Top with VOGA Prosecco
  4. Garnish with an orange twist, a dash of cinnamon and serve

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POM-BLUEBERRY FROSTED SANGRIA

Ingredients (makes 10 servings):

  • 1 cup Sparkling ICE Pomegranate Blueberry
  • ½ cup orange juice
  • 1 cup lime juice
  • 1 bottle of dry red wine
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1 cup frozen apples
  • 1 cup frozen oranges

 

Directions:

  1. In a large glass pitcher stir together the Sparkling ICE Pomegranate Blueberry, orange juice and lime juice
  2. Add wine and sugar, stirring until sugar dissolves
  3. Add frozen apples and oranges
  4. Cover and chill for 3 to 24 hours before serving
  5. Garnish with orange peel

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CRANBERRY WINE DELIGHT

Ingredients:

  • Frozen Cranberries
  • 1½ oz. VOGA Dolce Rosso
  • 1 oz. Cranberry Juice
  • 1 oz. Vodka

 

Directions:

  1. Crush cranberries into bottom of a glass
  2. Shake VOGA Dolce Rosso, Cranberry Juice and Vodka with ice
  3. Pour over crushed cranberries and add more cranberries for garnish

 

About Sparkling ICE® Beverages

    

Sparkling ICE has made a great tasting, refreshing, zero-calorie beverage Perfectly Possible™. Combining naturally flavored mountain spring water, fruit juice, vitamins and antioxidants, Sparkling ICE offers a bold, flavored, lightly-carbonated beverage that appeals to all age groups. Available in eleven refreshing flavors: Black Raspberry, Orange Mango, Pink Grapefruit, Kiwi Strawberry, Coconut Pineapple, Pomegranate Blueberry, Peach Nectarine, Lemon Lime, Crisp Apple and new in 2014 Cherry Limeade and Strawberry Watermelon. Sparkling ICE Lemonades®, launched in 2013, are available in six refreshing flavors: Classic Lemonade, Strawberry Lemonade, Raspberry Lemonade, Lemonade with Tea and new in 2014, Peach Lemonade and Mango Lemonade. Sparkling ICE can be found in retailers nationwide. Sparkling ICE is part of the Talking Rain family of beverages, and retails for $1.19-$1.29. To locate Sparkling ICE visit www.sparklingice.com.

 

 

VOGA Italia hails from Italy, the country best known for producing some of the world’s best wine as well as its’ keen sense of style. VOGA Italia encompasses all aspects offering a collection of crisp delicious wine thoughtfully packaged in a revolutionary re-designed bottle featuring a unique resealable cap. Since the company’s inception, VOGA has earned numerous awards and accolades for their sleek and sexy glass cylindrical bottle, presentation and most importantly taste.  The collection retails from $10.99 to $15.99 and includes Pinot Grigio, Moscato, Dolce Rosso, Prosecco, Premium Sparkling and Baby Sparkling. VOGA is available in over 62 countries, hundreds of major cities, and can be found in thousands of the world’s trendiest bars, restaurants and shops. Wherever, whenever, if you are drinking VOGA you are drinking IN Style. For more information on VOGA Italia wine www.vogaitalia.com

Self Disclosure: No compensation or products were received to post: Credit: Sparkling Ice and VOGA Italia Wine.

 

Books Make Great Holiday Gifts!

Looking for children’s books this holiday season? They make great gifts for young readers! Here are a few of our favorites!

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From Sea to Shining Sea

by Callista Gingrich
Regnery Kids

 

This is a delightful book with amazing illustrations and a great way for young children to learn about history! Children will love this adorable Elephant! 

A patriotic American history introduction for young children, From Sea to Shining Sea follows an adorable elephant named Ellis in exploring the early years of the United States and the epic journey west into uncharted territory with Lewis and Clark. Charming rhymes and beautiful illustrations make the 50th reading as fun as the first, for children as well as adults!

In earlier books, Sweet Land of Liberty, Land of the Pilgrims’ Pride, and Yankee Doodle Dandy, Ellis, the time-traveling pachyderm, learns about pivotal moments that shaped America. Authored by Callista Gingrich and illustrated by Susan Arciero, From Sea to Shining Sea will delight those who want to know how brave Americans forged a growing nation and spread freedom from coast to coast.

Callista Gingrich is the president of Gingrich Productions. She and her husband, Newt─ a former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives─host and produce historical and public policy documentaries. Recent films include A City Upon A Hill, America at Risk, and Nine Days that Changed the World.

Mrs. Gingrich is also the co-author of Ronald Reagan: Rendezvous with Destiny.  Her photography is featured in the New York Times bestseller Rediscovering God in America. An avid musician, she sings in the Choir of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. and plays French horn with the City of Fairfax Band in Fairfax, Virginia. She resides in McLean, Virginia with her husband, Newt Gingrich.

Available at independent and major book stores across the country including Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million and Amazon.com
$14.99. To find out more visit http://www.ellistheelephnat.com/

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Our next suggestion is such a fun Christmas story!! Santa’s (Zany, Wacky, Just Not Right!) Night Before Christmas by DK Simoneau and David Radman.

This is a fun book! I actually couldn’t stop laughing! I imagine that many young children wonder what is going on in Santa’s head the night before Christmas! 

Here is a rock and rolling story about the unique and remarkable challenges Santa faces on the night before Christmas.  This exquisitely illustrated book will have you and your kids totally enthralled and when you get to the last page, you will explode with laughter and delight.  Santa’s (Zany, Wacky, Just Not Right!) Night Before Christmas is a whimsical tale of Santa’s journey through a Christmas Eve that doesn’t go as he expects.  One small event leads to a series of surprises that change Santa and Christmas as we know it. It’s a story to spark the imagination, make kids giggle, and bring a smile even to a grownup’s face!  Here is a story that even grownup will relate to and enjoy.

Available wherever books are sold. For more information visit www.santasnightbeforechristmas.com

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For children with a passion for drawing, or dreams of creating buildings, this book explores how architects really work, taking the young reader through the entire process for planning and designing a house. Learn about an architect’s four main drawings: the Site Plan, Floor Plan, Section, and Elevation—including the concept of drawing each plan to scale. Aspiring architects discover design techniques, along with different, exciting architectural styles used today. All of this is brought to life in freehand, pen-and-ink architectural drawings that will inspire children to apply these lessons to their own designs. This book is the perfect introduction to architecture, revealing why buildings look and function as they do. While this creative book is ideal for the middle grades, ages 9-12, even adults will find it inspiring.

I actually am quite impressed with this book and can not wait to give it to my son for Christmas! He has wanted to  be an Architect for years now and I think that he will find this book very interesting!

Visit www.schifferbooks.com to find out more!

Stay tuned! We will be having more Book Suggestions soon this Holiday season!

Self Disclosure: I received free samples of books mentioned in this feature to facilitate this Holiday feature.