No, this is not a recipe for eating insects (I’m not that adventurous!).
Instead, it’s how to make a frothy, mint chocolate (and alcoholic!) delight that’s tasty and easy. My family and I enjoyed these as an apéritif on Thanksgiving, but they make for a refreshing dessert as well.
They not only taste great, but they have a wonderful color.
Ingredients
Ice
1 shot of Crème de Menthe
1 shot of White Crème de Cacao (I recommend adding a splash more than a shot to give it a chocolate after taste)
1 shot of half and half
Directions
Fill your blender half full of ice. Add the remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Pour and enjoy! Makes approximately 6 servings.
What are some of your favorite liqueur recipes?
Jonesin’ for Chicken Cacciatore
On a recent trip for a client, I met with food blogger and all-things-Italian aficionado, Paula Jones of Bell’Alimento. Since Paula knows her way around the kitchen, I asked her for some easy dinner ideas because cooking is not my strong suit (but give me a baking recipe, and I can whip up a batch of cookies like nobody’s business).
Paula recommended this incredible—and incredibly easy—Chicken Cacciatore recipe from her blog. Not only was it done within an hour, but it was super tasty! Bonus: dishes were a cinch since this recipe only requires one pan (or Dutch oven, as Paula uses).
Buon Appetito!
Chicken Cacciatore
Ingredients
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces (I used raw chicken breasts in a package from the store)
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 14.5-oz. cans of whole tomatoes
2 carrots, chopped
2 ribs of celery, chopped
1 6-oz. small package of mushrooms, sliced (I didn’t include, as I’m not a mushroom fan!)
2/3 cup white wine
Italian flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
Salt
Pepper
Directions
Pat your chicken pieces dry with a paper towel, season with salt and pepper, and set aside. Heat the oil and butter in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. When melted, add the chicken pieces and cook for approximately 15 minutes or until browned, turning often.
Add onions and cook for a few minutes, lower heat to lowest setting and add carrots, celery and tomatoes. Stir together.
Add in the wine, cover the dish and simmer for approximately 45 minutes. Add in the mushrooms 15 minutes before the dish is finished; stir to combine.
When finished, add additional seasoning if needed, to taste. Garnish with parsley.
This can be served as is or over polenta, pasta or rice. I served mine over pasta – delish!
Cheers to One Year: Celebrating Ruhstaller Beer in Sacramento
Last month was Ruhstaller’s first anniversary of brewing beer in Sacramento.
Coincidentally, it was also the brand’s 131st anniversary.
More than a century ago, Captain Frank Ruhstaller opened the Ruhstaller Brewery in Sacramento. Now, Sacramento resident J-E Paino has re-launched the beer to carry on the legacy of California’s first premium craft brewery.
The difference? Captain Frank’s products featured hops from the Pacific Northwest, while this revamped brew is made from all California-sourced ingredients.
To celebrate the milestone of the re-introduction of Ruhstaller, the brand held a hops party on a private ranch last week, where the styles of Ruhstaller brews flowed from custom taps, authentic Italian pizza sizzled fresh off the grill and attendees toured the ranch’s hop vines on the back of a tractor.
We sipped the two lagers on tap (served in oh-so-adorable mason jars), as well as tried their 1881 California Red Ale and Captain California Black IPA, all of which were crisp, refreshing and perfect for enjoying on a hot August evening. On display were numerous photos chronicling the history of Ruhstaller, which began producing beer “from farm to pint” in 1881.
It was a memorable evening, and I look forward to enjoying many more sips of Ruhstaller – here’s to 131 more years!
A SacFoodie in Portland
A couple weeks ago, I found myself strolling the streets of Portland’s Pearl District with friends and admiring the range of food options, spanning from fancy fare to quirky holes in the wall.
Oregon is definitely known for its beer, so I wasn’t surprised to discover that the brewery that makes my favorite beer also has a restaurant (several, actually). Rogue Distillery & Public House is located in the heart of Portland’s Historic Brewing District. Besides a menu full of pub classics, they’ve got 38 beers on tap, including my favorite – Hazelnut Brown Nectar.
As luck would have it, the Portland area was experiencing a bit of a water safety issue at the time, so we weren’t able to order any water with our food. This allowed me to feel far less guilty when I ordered a few rounds of this not-on-the-menu gem – the Rogue Snickers (hey, I needed to wash down my dinner somehow, right?).
The Snickers was a mixture of my aforementioned favorite, Hazelnut Brown Nectar, and their Chocolate Stout. Wow. Simply wow! It really hit the spot with its rich, velvety flavor.
After dinner, we walked the beers off and headed to the popular Northwest staple – Voodoo Doughnut. As another SacFoodie mentioned on her trip to Voodoo, this must-see shop also serves as a wedding chapel. Yes, it’s one of those eccentric joints that make Portland so idiosyncratically wonderful. The doughnuts on display made us (and the estimated 50 people in line ahead of us) drool. Our wait was about 25 minutes, but it was so worth it.
I opted for the Old Dirty Bastard, which featured chocolate, Oreos and peanut butter. Apparently, the Bacon Maple Bar is one of their most popular, so I’m definitely going to try it the next time I visit.
If you’re ever in Portland, I seriously recommend stopping by Rogue Distillery (even if the city’s water is safe to drink) and Voodoo Doughnut. This SacFoodie was sad to leave!
Rogue Distillery and Public House
1339 NW Flanders Street
Portland, OR
Voodoo Doughnut Original Location
22 SW 3rd Street
Portland, OR
Cap City Sips: Downtown Happy Hour
Cap City Sips: Downtown Happy Hour
Say “cheers” to some very happy hours!
If you’re in the downtown Sacramento area on Wednesday evenings this summer, you’ll have your pick of more than a dozen locations to take advantage of Downtown Happy Hour, thanks to the Downtown Sacramento Partnership.
From 3-7 p.m. every Wednesday from June through August, you can enjoy $2 beers, $3 wines and $4 cocktails.
Participating locations include:
• 4th Street Grill, 400 L Street, 448.2847
• Blue Prynt, 815 11th Street, 492.2969
• Capitol Garage, 1500 K Street, 444.3633
• Dive Bar, 1016 K Street, 737.5999
• Fat City, 1001 Front Street, 446.6768
• Frank Fats, 806 L Street, 442.7092
• House Kitchen & Bar, 555 Capitol Mall, 498.9924
• Kupros Bistro, 1217 21st Street, 440.0401
• Melting Pot, 814 15th Street, 443.2347
• Michelangelo’s, 1725 I Street, 446.5012
• Monsoon’s, 1020 16th Street, 469.9999
• O’Mally’s Irish Pub, 1109 2nd Street, 492.1230
• Pizza Rock, 1020 K Street, 737.5777
• Public Market Bar at the Sheraton Grand, 1230 J Street, 447.1700
• Pyramid Alehouse, 1029 K Street, 498.9800
• River City Brewing Company, 545 Downtown Plaza Level 1, 447.2739
• River City Saloon, 916 2nd Street, 443.6852
• Ten 22, 1022 2nd Street, 441.2211
• Tequila Museo Mayahuel, 1200 K Street, 441.7200
• The Firehouse Restaurant, 1112 2nd Street, 442.4772
You can find more info here.
Which place are you most excited to check out for Downtown Happy Hour?