Category: Great Gifts !

Nino Franco Rustico: A Wine for Holiday Gifts & Celebrations

Nino Franco Rustico has been one of our favorite sparkling wines since we first sipped a glass in a Boston restaurant many years ago.

Recently, we enjoyed a bottle of Nino Franco in Provincetown and couldn't resist doing a photo shoot with the fantastic light and wonderful backdrops we found at Chandler House.

We bring you these photos today with a message.

Please don't give your clients, business associates, and friends the wines you see in TV ads as holiday gifts. A good wine shop can recommend a good wine value that you can give with pride. And, it will be one that will please both the occasional sipper and wine aficionado.

If you buy a good wine by the case, you can save even more. Stock up on "just-in-case gifts for the season" and be ready for a party at a moments notice.

This classic sparkler bottle and elegant label will show your good taste from the moment you hand it to a host, pop a cork for a pre-dinner toast, or when a client unwraps your gift. A second round of applause will come with the first taste of this prosecco.

"The golden color and peach nectar scent predict this to be rich, but a potent, nutty savor keeps it balanced. It finishes clean, tight and grippy – a mouthwatering aperitif," is how Bauer Wine describes Nino Franco Rustico.

And, should you find that after the holidays you have a bottle or two left, we assure you this wine is the perfect match for a chair-for-one, on a deck by the ocean.

Or, an evening for two by a fireplace in a mountain cabin or a city apartment.

Always give a wine you will be happy to have in your own wine rack for a special moment.

Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite Wine Books.

The Food Lover's Guide to Wine

The New Wine Lover's Companion

The Wine Bible

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2009-2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 7, 2013
Bitters for My Birthday from Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters

One of my favorite birthday gifts this year was a selection of Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters to dose the SodaStream seltzer I drink all day long. Rhubarb has always been a favorite flavor for me and who wouldn't love Black Mission Fig, but the standout is the Sriracha bitters.

My current afternoon pick-me-up mixture is a slice or two of local, young ginger from Old Friends Farm with a few drops of Sriracha bitters – just the thing to keep you going through a long session of photo editing.

I'm also tinkering with bitters as a flavor enhancer in my cooking. When I master a use, I'll tell you about it right here.

My supply came from Formaggio South End. But, if you're one of our readers from elsewhere in the country, the Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters website has a list of places where you can buy their products.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 6, 2013
Bitters for My Birthday from Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters

One of my favorite birthday gifts this year was a selection of Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters to dose the SodaStream seltzer I drink all day long. Rhubarb has always been a favorite flavor for me and who wouldn't love Black Mission Fig, but the standout is the Sriracha bitters.

My current afternoon pick-me-up mixture is a slice or two of local, young ginger from Old Friends Farm with a few drops of Sriracha bitters – just the thing to keep you going through a long session of photo editing.

I'm also tinkering with bitters as a flavor enhancer in my cooking. When I master a use, I'll tell you about it right here.

My supply came from Formaggio South End. But, if you're one of our readers from elsewhere in the country, the Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters website has a list of places where you can buy their products.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 6, 2013
Bitters for My Birthday from Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters

One of my favorite birthday gifts this year was a selection of Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters to dose the SodaStream seltzer I drink all day long. Rhubarb has always been a favorite flavor for me and who wouldn't love Black Mission Fig, but the standout is the Sriracha bitters.

My current afternoon pick-me-up mixture is a slice or two of local, young ginger from Old Friends Farm with a few drops of Sriracha bitters – just the thing to keep you going through a long session of photo editing.

I'm also tinkering with bitters as a flavor enhancer in my cooking. When I master a use, I'll tell you about it right here.

My supply came from Formaggio South End. But, if you're one of our readers from elsewhere in the country, the Brooklyn Hemispherical Bitters website has a list of places where you can buy their products.

Do you have an Amazon Gift Certificate to use? Or do you need to buy one for a Birthday or Holiday Gift? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Photography: © 2013 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

November 6, 2013
The Apple Lover’s CookBook by Amy Traverso
As the displays of apples grow abundant at local farmers' markets and farm stands, I've pulled my copy of The Apple Lover's Cookbook by Amy Traverso from the shelf. In addition to page after page of tempting recipes, this book is just plain good reading. What's more, it's a perfect reference book for apple season.

Food lovers are familiar with Amy Traverso's writing from the Boston Globe, Salon, Travel + Leisure, and Yankee Magazine where she was Lifestyle Editor.

The Apple Lover's Cookbook begins with an in depth reference section including an "Apple Varieties Primer" that has me reaching for apples I've never tried before with a surprising degree of skill.

Next comes a section of "Cooking Tips and Pantry Notes." This will answer many of the questions that will run through your mind as you begin cooking or baking with the recipes.

Here are a few of the recipes that already have Post-it flags permanently in place on my copy:
- Autumn "Coleslaw" with Dates, Apples, and Pecans
- Cider-Glazed Root Vegetables
- Squash and Apple Gratin
- Sausage with Braised Cabbage and Apples
- Baked Apple Oatmeal Pudding
- Apple Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce
- Lowfat Gingerbread Applesauce Cake
Sprinkled throughout is the background information Amy gleaned visiting orchards and meeting the people who grow this splendid fruit. This is a book you will want to add to your collection and that you will pull out and keep at hand each autumn.

If you like this book you might also enjoy Amy's work in Yankee's Lost & Vintage Recipes.

What else is on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Coverart from W.W. Norton & Company, Publishers
September 25, 2013
The Apple Lover’s CookBook by Amy Traverso
As the displays of apples grow abundant at local farmers' markets and farm stands, I've pulled my copy of The Apple Lover's Cookbook by Amy Traverso from the shelf. In addition to page after page of tempting recipes, this book is just plain good reading. What's more, it's a perfect reference book for apple season.

Food lovers are familiar with Amy Traverso's writing from the Boston Globe, Salon, Travel + Leisure, and Yankee Magazine where she was Lifestyle Editor.

The Apple Lover's Cookbook begins with an in depth reference section including an "Apple Varieties Primer" that has me reaching for apples I've never tried before with a surprising degree of skill.

Next comes a section of "Cooking Tips and Pantry Notes." This will answer many of the questions that will run through your mind as you begin cooking or baking with the recipes.

Here are a few of the recipes that already have Post-it flags permanently in place on my copy:
- Autumn "Coleslaw" with Dates, Apples, and Pecans
- Cider-Glazed Root Vegetables
- Squash and Apple Gratin
- Sausage with Braised Cabbage and Apples
- Baked Apple Oatmeal Pudding
- Apple Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce
- Lowfat Gingerbread Applesauce Cake
Sprinkled throughout is the background information Amy gleaned visiting orchards and meeting the people who grow this splendid fruit. This is a book you will want to add to your collection and that you will pull out and keep at hand each autumn.

If you like this book you might also enjoy Amy's work in Yankee's Lost & Vintage Recipes.

What else is on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Coverart from W.W. Norton & Company, Publishers
September 25, 2013
The Apple Lover’s CookBook by Amy Traverso
As the displays of apples grow abundant at local farmers' markets and farm stands, I've pulled my copy of The Apple Lover's Cookbook by Amy Traverso from the shelf. In addition to page after page of tempting recipes, this book is just plain good reading. What's more, it's a perfect reference book for apple season.

Food lovers are familiar with Amy Traverso's writing from the Boston Globe, Salon, Travel + Leisure, and Yankee Magazine where she was Lifestyle Editor.

The Apple Lover's Cookbook begins with an in depth reference section including an "Apple Varieties Primer" that has me reaching for apples I've never tried before with a surprising degree of skill.

Next comes a section of "Cooking Tips and Pantry Notes." This will answer many of the questions that will run through your mind as you begin cooking or baking with the recipes.

Here are a few of the recipes that already have Post-it flags permanently in place on my copy:
- Autumn "Coleslaw" with Dates, Apples, and Pecans
- Cider-Glazed Root Vegetables
- Squash and Apple Gratin
- Sausage with Braised Cabbage and Apples
- Baked Apple Oatmeal Pudding
- Apple Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce
- Lowfat Gingerbread Applesauce Cake
Sprinkled throughout is the background information Amy gleaned visiting orchards and meeting the people who grow this splendid fruit. This is a book you will want to add to your collection and that you will pull out and keep at hand each autumn.

If you like this book you might also enjoy Amy's work in Yankee's Lost & Vintage Recipes.

What else is on your Food Lover's Shopping List? Shop Amazon for all your kitchen & dining needs and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny Cherubino
Coverart from W.W. Norton & Company, Publishers
September 25, 2013