What’s the most fab day of Feb? Valentine’s Day, of course! It’s a double holiday for me because my adorable daughter turns 7 on the 14th. I’ve been on the hunt for the perfect sweet to celebrate my little sweetie and here’s what I’ve learned by making a few phone calls and scouring the Internet (FYI, not all Valentine’s Day menus are posted online so be sure to check out Facebook or Instagram for some mouth-watering photos):
Andy’s Candy Apothecary
1012 9th St.
MON-SAT: 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
SUN: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
When the SacFoodies made a stop at Andy’s in December during our holiday outing, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. Hands down the best caramel ever!!!! I spoke to Andy himself this week and he says the store pretty much looks like a Valentine’s Day shrine. From traditional conversation hearts and heart-shaped boxes to sour or sweet gummies to foil-wrapped chocolates, there is a candy for every taste bud. Andy says to come early because they often sell out!
Ettore’s
2376 Fair Oaks Blvd.
MON-THURS: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.
FRI-SAT: 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
SUN: 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Boxes of 4 or 6 chocolate-dipped strawberries are available and adorably packaged as well as Valentine’s Day-themed cookies (sugar sprinkle, tuxedo and conversation heart butter cookies!), cake pops, petit fours and individual Chocolate Cherry Cake Cups, a rich truffle sponge cake cup with chocolate and cherry mousse. For the record, the Princess Torte is one of my favorite cakes ever and would be a perfect Valentine’s Day treat (order the pink) but, lucky for us, it’s available year-round.
Freeport Bakery
2966 Freeport Blvd.
MON-FRI: 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
SAT: 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
SUN: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
No surprise here, Freeport has a lot to offer with a Valentine’s Day theme. Strawberry Heart Tart (made with fresh strawberries), Two of Hearts (think strawberry mousse filling and chocolate ganache poured on top), Jewel Box (like you see during the holidays), Valentine’s Day Log (also like you see during the holidays) are all available, plus an assortment of cookies, cupcakes and more. If you know Freeport, you know there’s no shortage of amazing sweets!
Ginger Elizabeth
1801 L Street, Suite 60
TUES-THURS: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
FRI-SAT: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
SUN: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
MON: Closed
If it were my Valentine birthday, I’d be asking for the Chocolate Heart Box, which is filled with ten chocolate caramel hearts (have you figured out yet I have a thing for caramel?!). Also available is the Valentine’s Entremet, a Dark rum custard soaked banana cake with banana pudding and 64% Dominican Republic bittersweet chocolate mousse. Holy, wow! Adorable heart-shaped chocolates and milk chocolate discs sprinkled with Vahlrona cocoa nibs, sour cherries and candied rose petals also fill Ginger’s darling shop on L Street.
And don’t dismiss your local grocery store for great Valentine’s Day treats. Stores like Safeway, Nugget, Trader Joe’s and Raley’s all have a delicious display of sweets.
Happy heart day to all! I hope it’s the sweetest ever!!
These are a few of my favorite (food) things
‘Tis the season for flipping through catalogs and dreaming of some new kitchen gadgets. No one asked for my wish list this year (hint: someone forward this to my husband!) but these are a few things I wouldn’t mind under the tree come Christmas morning.
- Vinturi Champagne Opener. Take the work and fear out of opening a champagne bottle? Yes please! Love this new gadget available at Williams-Sonoma for $34.95.
- Spiralizer. I give in. This has got to be THE gadget of the year and I must.have.one. I’ve heard you don’t have to buy the most expensive one to get good results but curious if anyone has any recommendations? If you’ve got Amazon Prime (if you don’t you should be asking for that for Christmas) this looks like a good option for $18.99.
- Inspiralized Cookbook. If I’m going to get a Spiralizer then I’m going to need inspiration for using it! Just add it to the Amazon basket for $11.99.
- Chef’s Planet Clip & Drain. Why didn’t I think of this? Visit Sur La Table to snatch this perfect stocking stuffer for $13.
- Immersion Blender. I’ve wrote about my love for my favorite kitchen gadget of all time on SacFoodies before and mine is broken. So, please Santa, can you replace it?? Creamy soups without all the mess are missing in my life this season. I’ll make it easy: pick this one up at Target for $59.99.
- Illustrated 2016 Calendar. I’m obsessed with this cute calendar from Food52 for just $24. That’s right, that’s just $2 a month for some fantastic food art.
- Pizza Platter and Plates. One of my favorite all-time gifts I received was a set of pizza plates. We use them ALL THE TIME. Someone on my list this year is getting the cute platter ($24.95) and matching plates ($7.95 each) from Crate & Barrel.
- Poco Dolce Tiles. You guys, these are seriously the best chocolates ever. We received them once as a gift in the office and I about died. My favorite is the Burnt Caramel Toffee but this trio for $60 lets you try more than one flavor. Bucket list: must visit shop in SF soon.
- FoodSaver® Vacuum Sealing System. I made two quiche a couple weeks ago and one went completely to waste. If only I had a FoodSaver®! Plus, the cinnamon red version is just too cute to pass up and on sale now for $149.99.
Just Add Blue (Cheese!)
Need some inspiration for the holiday weekend?! We just completed a photo shoot for a client (Pacific Cheese) and came up with nine ways to “Just add blue!” to your next recipe. Check out our list below and tell us your favorite ways to add blue cheese. And look for cave-aged Pacific Blue Crumbles available at a Costco near you soon!
Just add blue to…
- Sweet potato fries
- Burger toppings
- Crudite
- Figs and honey
- Wedge salad
- BBQ potato chips
- Charcuterie
- Pears and walnuts
- Crostini
RIVER CITY BREWING COMPANY CELEBRATES 20 YEARS OF BUSINESS IN SACRAMENTO
A SacFoodies’ neighbor, River City Brewing Company (RCBC), will be hosting a “mini-brewfest” to celebrate 20 years in business this Saturday, October 12th. The mini-brewfest scheduled from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. will be taking over the Downtown Plaza’s piazza outside the RCBC patio. It will include commemorative tasting mugs, beer stations, appetizers, live music, and raffle prizes, including tickets to an NBA Sacramento Kings game. Three beer stations will be set up for tastings; two will feature RCBC beers, one will feature beers from participating local breweries New Helvetia, Rubicon, Hoppy, and Two Rivers. The event is $25 per person. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Sacramento Kings Foundation for Education. Only 150 tickets are available and can be purchased at the restaurant in advance. Reservations are being taken at [email protected], or by calling 916-447-2739. Cheers!
Wordless Wednesday: SacFoodies 6th Annual Anniversary Potluck!
Highlights from the 6th Annual SacFoodies potluck! Check back for recipes and more celebrating Sacramento’s status as “Farm to Fork Capital of America.
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