She Knows Parties » Valentine’s Day

Happy Valentine’s Day From She Knows Parties

Linette Gerlach — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 22:47:54 +0000

Hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day!

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Two Delightful Fondues

Linette Gerlach — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 16:04:00 +0000

Fondue is wonderful for parties and entertaining. It always gives your party an elegant touch, I think it’s just the word fondue. Here are a couple fondue recipes from the National Honey Board. One is a sweet and spicy chocolate fondue with cayenne peppers, the other is a savory champagne fondue with cheese.

Either recipe would be wonderful for a wedding, or a special dinner.

Hot ‘n’ Honeyed Chocolate Spice Fondue
- Makes 6 to 8 servings –
Ingredients

8 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1-1/4 cups pure honey
1 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup Frangelico liqueur or hazelnut flavored syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper, depending on heat preference
1 large pound cake loaf, cut into 1-inch cubes

Directions
In medium saucepan, combine all ingredients (except cake) on medium-low heat, stirring until melted. Place pound cake cubes on fondue skewers and toast until lightly browned on hot grill, then dip in chocolate mixture. Pound cake cubes can also be toasted ahead of time on a large cookie sheet in the oven.

Honey Champagne Fondue
- Makes 2 servings –
Ingredients

16 oz. Swiss or Gruyère cheese, shredded
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 Tablespoon butter
1/4 cup shallot, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1-1/4 cups brut (dry) champagne, or sparkling wine
1/3 cup pure honey
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
Pinch nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon white pepper

Directions
Toss cheese with cornstarch and dry mustard to coat; reserve. In a heavy pan or fondue pot, over medium heat, melt butter. Sauté shallot and garlic until soft, 2 to 3 minutes. Add champagne and bring to a boil.

Slowly add reserved cheese mixture, a little at a time, stirring constantly, until cheese melts. Stir in honey and lemon juice; stir until smooth and continue to simmer 2 to 3 minutes more. Season with nutmeg and pepper.

Serve immediately; keep warm.

Serving Suggestions
Dipping suggestions: Crusty bread cubes (French, Rye, Pumpernickel), Granny Smith apple slices, carrots, and steamed broccoli.

Enjoy!

Image and recipes via National Honey Board

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A Mega Valentine’s Day Planning Resource

Linette Gerlach — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 19:58:05 +0000

The Lifestyles Channel here at b5media is loaded with great resources to help you put together the best Valentine’s Day celebration ever. So here we go, check out some of these great Valentine’s Day planning resources:

Every great celebration starts with food so here are some great Valentine’s Day recipes, foodie gadgets, and menu ideas:

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Valentine’s Day Cocktail Recipes:

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Valentine’s Day Cards and Gift Ideas:

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Handmade crafty Valentine’s Day decorations, cards, gifts, and more:

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Valentine’s Day Planning, Fun Stuff and Info:

I hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day, happy planning!

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Bittersweet Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cupcakes

Linette Gerlach — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 15:33:28 +0000

I absolutely love to cook with honey, I even have a couple honey cookbooks, so when I saw this recipe from the National Honey Board I had to share. I said in a post the other day that nothing says Valentine’s Day like chocolate and raspberries. Add a little honey and it’s even better.

Bittersweet Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cupcakes
- Makes 18 cupcakes –
Ingredients
*        8 oz. 60% cocoa bittersweet chocolate, divided
*        2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
*        1/2 teaspoon baking soda
*        1/2 teaspoon baking powder
*        1/2 teaspoon salt
*        1/2 cup butter, softened
*        3/4 cup pure honey*
*        2 large eggs
*        1 cup buttermilk
*        1/2 pint raspberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 350°F.
1. Cut 2 ounces of chocolate into 18 pieces; set aside. Place 6 ounces of coarsely chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave 30 seconds on high; stir well. Microwave 30 seconds more on high and stir until all lumps are gone. If more melting is necessary, microwave in 10 second increments and stir until all lumps are gone. Chocolate should not become too warm.

2. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.

3. In a mixing bowl, cream butter until fluffy. Add honey and melted chocolate; mix well. Add eggs, one at a time.

4. Add half of the reserved dry ingredients to the butter mixture; mix on low until just combined. With mixer running on low, slowly add the buttermilk. Add remaining dry ingredients until just combined.

5. Place a Tablespoon of batter in the bottom of each paper-lined muffin tin. Add one piece of chocolate and 2 to 3 raspberries to each cup. Fill muffin tins two-thirds full with remaining batter. Bake 18-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove to wire rack; cool.

Frost with Bittersweet Chocolate Frosting, if desired.

Serving Suggestions
* Any mild-flavored honey such as Clover may be used.

Bittersweet Chocolate Frosting
- Makes 18 servings -

Ingredients
* 1/4 cup pure honey*
* 8 oz. 60% cocoa bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
* 1 cup heavy whipping cream
* 2 Tablespoons seedless raspberry jam, optional
Directions
1. Combine honey and chocolate in a medium bowl, set aside. In small, heavy pan, heat whipping cream over medium heat until bubbles just begin to form. Pour over honey-chocolate mixture and allow to stand for 2 minutes. Stir until smooth; cool. Refrigerate until chilled, 1 to 2 hours.

2. With an electric mixer, beat chocolate mixture until frosting is fluffy.
Serving Suggestions
*Any mild-flavored honey such as Clover may be used.

Enjoy!

Image and recipe via the National Honey Board

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40 Fun And Fabulous Valentine Day Party Treats, Cupcakes, and Cookies

Linette Gerlach — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 05:00:00 +0000

Whether you need to make a last minute snack for your child’s Valentine’s Day party, or you’re looking for that perfect Valentine cupcake or cookie to serve to your book club, a romantic dinner, or a fun gathering of friends.

Here’s a list of 40 fun and fabulous Valentine treats that will make you look like mommy, or wife of the year when you deliver them to the classroom, or serve them to your friends. Or at least they’ll save the day.

Most are simple to make, a few are a bit more complicated (but extra fabulous and worth the time). Some treats are geared toward children’s parties, other recipes would be wonderful for more grown up Valentine festivities.

Make sure you stop back and let everyone know which Valentine’s Day recipes worked out the best for you. If you have a favorite that’s not on the list, please feel free to leave it in the comment section.

Image via istockphoto

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Chocolove Fine Chocolates

Linette Gerlach — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 22:52:20 +0000

I love it when people send me yummy stuff in the mail to taste test, and when that something is really good chocolate, it makes me love my job that much more. I just had the opportunity to taste Chocolove chocolates for the first time. And now I have to say I’m a fan. This is one product I will truly have to look up to purchase again.

Chocolove bars come in two different sizes, the regular bar, which would be great for sharing with friends, and the mini bar. My favorite size was the Mini Bars, I think they would be perfect for hostess gifts, wedding favors, Valentine’s Day gifts, Easter baskets, or if you just need a smaller portion for self control (um, that might be me).

Chocolove bars are made in small batches, in a chocolate factory in Boulder Colorado, to help ensure they maintain the highest possible quality. They’re available in 26 flavors, from creamy milk chocolate, to decadent dark chocolate.

Since nothing says love like great chocolate, Chocolove bars are designed to look like love letters, complete with stamps, and sealed with a kiss. That’s not all they also include a romantic poem on the inside♥

Here are a couple of my favorite flavors:

Raspberries in Dark Chocolate was my absolute favorite. Nothing says I love you on Valentine’s Day like raspberries and chocolate.

This bar is melt in your mouth delicious. You can taste the raspberry infusion and it blends together beautifully with the rich flavor of the dark chocolate.

Another flavor I thought was really unique was the Chilies and Cherries in Dark Chocolate. I was a little hesitant to try this one. I really like everything in it separately, but I wasn’t sure how it would taste all combined together.

I’m not sure it was my favorite, but it was definitely interesting to taste all the flavors in one bite. It was sweet, but there was a little heat left in my mouth after the chocolate melted away. I think it’s a combination that could really grow on you.

I’m a dark chocolate fan, but another flavor that caught my attention was the Toffee and Almonds in Milk Chocolate.

I really like toffee and chocolate together, so this one was hard to resist. It was my son’s favorite, since he’s not a fan of the dark chocolates.

One thing I really liked about Chocolove was their big selection of flavors, and especially their Organic selection.

They have several organic chocolate bars available.

Right now Chocolove wants to know what your fantasy chocolate flavor is. You can fill out the survey at their website, and be registered to win a Chocolador full of your handmade dream bars. Hmmm, what yummy flavors can I dream up?

Let me know if you dream up a flavor and enter their contest.

You can find Chocolove nationally in Whole Foods markets, Target stores and a variety of specialty stores, gourmet grocers, bookstores and coffee shops across the U.S.♥

Images via Chocolove

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Valentine Day Cocktail~ Bailey’s Cool Raspberry

Linette Gerlach — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 05:00:00 +0000

I have another fun Valentine’s Day cocktail to share with you courtesy of Bailey’s. This would be a fun drink to share with a significant other or your best girlfriends.

Bailey’s Cool Raspberry

2 ounces Baileys Original Irish Cream
8-9 raspberries
Crushed ice
Place 4-5 raspberries at the bottom of a rocks glass and lightly muddle them.
Top with crushed ice.
Add Baileys Irish Cream.
Garnish with three speared raspberries.

You can find more yummy recipes at Baileys.com. Always drink responsibly!

Image courtesy of Bailey’s

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A Valentine’s Day Dinner For Two

Linette Gerlach — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 03:15:11 +0000

Here’s a menu for a gourmet Valentine’s dinner for two. From an Escargot appetizer, and Filet Mignon stuffed with Oysters wrapped in bacon, to fresh strawberries topped with some homemade almond whipped cream and raspberry sauce. Sounds wonderful!

Here’s the first video in the series.

To view the rest of the series, and learn how to make all of these wonderful Valentine’s Day Dinner recipes, hop over to Monkey See.

I think I might have to make the strawberry dessert just because. It sounds wonderful, and I’m all about the dessert.

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How to Make Chocolate Fondue

Deborah Ng — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:24:53 +0000

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It may be too late to make chocolate fondue for your Valentine’s Day party, but this recipe works for almost any occasion. Dip strawberries, cheesecake, bananas, pound cake, brownies and more for a decadent treat.

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Heat-Shaped Ice Cubes

Deborah Ng — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 14:18:08 +0000

This’ll go great with your Valentine’s Day punch, heart-shaped ice cubes! This ice cube tray comes from Kitchen Krafts and runs $5.00. Cute, huh?

Both grownups and kids will enjoy heart-shaped ice cubes in their punch. And here’s a tip: So you don’t water down the punch, make “punch cubes”.

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