Another Freezer Organizing Tip from my Mom

My mom, Evely Laser Shlensky, is the original Scrambler--she taught me almost everything I know about organizing meals. Today she sent me this suggestion in response to this week's column about freezing and defrosting meals:

In reading your very helpful column about freezing prepared meals, I suggest, for those who do this with any regularity (that definitely includes me, as you know), making a "Cooked Foods in Freezer" list and hanging it on the frig. I list the item, the day it was frozen, and the number of servings it contains. When I want a homecooked meal without cooking, I refer to my list. Once I remove that meal, I cross it off the list. This also enables me to use foods before their freezer time "expires," which is usually 4-6 months. Sometimes I've also listed uncooked foods (e.g., 1/2 pound extra lean ground beef) that I've placed in the freezer so I don't forget to use them.

Now you know everything I know.

Love, Mom

Crunchy Caramel Corn

I had nothing to do with creating this recipe, but Celia and I sure had fun making it with her friends (we liked it so much we made it 2 days in a row!) over the holiday break. It's not exactly light but not terrible either if you just eat a few handfuls, and we can assuage our guilt by knowing we're eating healthy whole grain popcorn. The original recipe calls for 1 cup coarsely chopped cashews to be mixed in with the popcorn, which I think sounds delicious, but none of the kids wanted their caramel corn to have nuts.

Crunchy Caramel Corn (adapted from Every Day Food magazine)
Prep (10 minutes) + Cook (40 minutes)

4 Tbsp. butter
10 cups plain unsalted popcorn (from 1/2 cup kernels)
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/8 tsp. kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray or brush it with butter. Cook the popcorn according to the package directions and place the cooked popcorn in a large bow.

In a small saucepan, bring the butter, sugar, salt and 2 Tbsp. water to a boil, stirring frequently. Working quickly, drizzle the popcorn with the mixture and toss it thoroughly.

Spread the popcorn on the baking sheet. Bake it until it is golden and shiny, about 40 minutes--it will get a little crisper after it cools. Let it cool and store it in an airtight container for up to 1 week (yeah, right!).

Two of my new favorite nibblys for the new year

Yesterday Celia and I pulled together a last minute new year's day party with 5 of her friends and 6 of their parents (plus one grandmother). While the girls danced downstairs to the music of Mamma Mia, we adults gathered in front of the toasty fireplace for coffee, wine and a few munchies. I wanted to thank all of these moms who have been helping my family so much lately while Andrew has been out of town much more often, so I tried to make the little gathering extra-special. However, our nearest supermarket was closed to I had to get creative with what I had in the house after nearly a week without shopping! In addition to coffee, tea and red wine, I served a hot appetizer (recipe to follow), a bowl of dried cherries and almonds, pistachios, some Almond Roca, and Celia's and my new favorite treat, John WM Macy's Melting Parmesan Cheese Sticks--they are so crunchy, light and delicious! Downstairs, the girls enjoyed popcorn, Teddy Grahams and ice water. Here's the hot appetizer that everyone seemed to enjoy:

Mushroom or Artichoke Parmesan Toasts

1/2 package of mini sourdough cocktail toasts (which I had in the freezer), 1 cup or so of roasted mushroom or artichoke tapenade (which I had leftover from another party), shredded parmesan cheese. Spread about a tsp. of the tapenade on each toast, sprinkle them each with the parmesan, and put them under a preheated broiler for about 3 minutes until the cheese melts and the edges of the toasts are brown. Serve warm. (These can be prepared up to an hour in advance and broiled when company comes.)

Happy Holidays, Scramblers!

Hey you Scramblers, happy holidays and thanks for all your suggestions and support in '08. We're working on some terrific new updates to the site that we hope to launch in January, and I've got some great new recipes coming up soon (baked coconut ginger chicken, all American stir-fry, ravioli with sundried tomatoes and spinach...yum). Let me know if you have any ideas to share or any great appetizer recipes that aren't too rich.

Thank you for helping us make this the most successful year yet for The Scramble!

Warmly, Aviva

P.S. Last December, I'm not sure I would have thought that this year I'd be twittering (@thescramble), blogging, and facebooking, all in one day! I feel young again!

Fun Mango Geography Game for Kids

This is totally adorable and your kids may even learn a thing or two about Central and South America and delicious and healthy mangoes: http://www.mango.org/en/mango-kids/jangogeography.aspx.aspx

Beyond Wine: Host and Hostess Gifts that Make you a Welcome Guest

Now is a time of year where parties seem to be a dime-a-dozen, whether it’s a holiday party, a family gathering or a social get together with friends. As we’ve ventured our way into adulthood, we’ve realized that it’s nice to bring a small gift for the host/hostess of the party. While there’s always the old stand-by of a bottle of wine (which is always appreciated), I like to branch out sometimes with more interesting or memorable gifts (in hopes I'll be invited back!). Maybe the suggestions below can give you a little inspiration:

Cocktail Tags: For those of you who may not know what these are, they are little “hooks” that you can attach to the bottom of your wine/cocktail glass to differentiate yours from everyone else’s. What I love about these is that there are so many different kinds out there and you can buy a pack that reflects an interest of the host. An example is, if they love the beach, you could get cocktail tags that have a beach- related theme. Pier One always has some great affordable options at holiday time.

Beautiful Candles: Fortunately there are so many choices, that you can find something as simple or as ornate as you want.

Gourmet Olive Oil or Vinegar: If you’re attending a party at someone’s home, chances are, they cook at least a little bit! Someone who enjoys cooking probably always appreciates having a special bottle of oil and vinegar for dressing salads, dipping breads, or making almost any dish taste a little better.

Tapenade or other Gourmet Spread: If you’re lucky, maybe they host will put it out that night with the other appetizers and you’ll get to sample your purchase!

Do you have other ideas for host/hostess gifts? If so, please share your idea by leaving a comment here. (Thanks to Scramble Customer Advocate and consummate guest, Betsy Goldstein, for her contributions to this column!)

Barney Butter--Great Stuff!

One of the neat perks of having my own food website is I occasionally get to try new products for free, as companies hope that if I like their product I'll tell you about it. Once in a while this clever marketing tactic even works, as in the case of Barney Butter, the peanut free, all natural almond butter created by Calfornia mom, Jennifer Barney.

First, let me assure you that I am open-minded, but choosy. I recently tried Better'n Peanut Butter and almost gagged on that fakey sweetey tasting stuff. I also have no problem with regular peanut butter, love it in fact. But for those of you who can't eat peanuts, or who love almonds and their health benefits, or who just want to try something different, I wholeheartedly recommend Barney Butter. I've tried it on a spoon, on a cracker, and most recently, on a chocolate rice cake for an afternoon snack--delightful! B.B. is available on the website or in many stores in the Western U.S.