Italian Desert Roses Cookies Recipe

 

If you’re looking for a special occasion dessert, try this recipe by author and expert Paola Lovisetti Scamihorn for Rose Del Deserto (Desert Roses) cookies. It includes healthy options based on Paola’s improved version of the classic Mediterranean diet in her cookbook, which she calls The Mamma Mia! Diet.

ROSE DEL DESERTO (DESERT ROSES)

Preparation time: 20 minutes
Baking time: 10 minutes
Yield: about 35-40 cookies

INGREDIENTS

  • 130 g (⅔ cup) granulated sugar
  • 120 g (4.3 oz ) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 240 g (1 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour
  • 5 g (1 teaspoon) baking powder
  • Pinch of salt
  • 180 g (1 cup) chocolate chips
  • 200 g (7 oz) approx., cornflakes (like Special K) or similar
    Powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350 °F). Cream the butter and sugar in a medium-sized bowl with an electric mixer. Add the eggs and the vanilla extract. Then mix the flour and the baking powder together in a small bowl. Add the flour mixture to the creamed butter and stir in the chocolate chips. Roll teaspoon-sized balls of dough in a bowl of cornflakes. Place the cookies, well-spaced (about 3-4 cm), on a greased cookie sheet and bake for about 10-12 minutes. Remove from pan and cool on a rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar on top, just before serving.

Note: This recipe makes about 35-40 cookies. If the dough is too sticky, add one or two spoons of flour. You can substitute chocolate chips with other ingredients such as raisins, for an even healthier snack. Store in a airtight container. You can also store the baked cookies in the freezer; before serving, let them thaw at room temperature and then sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

ABOUT THE COOKBOOK AUTHORS

Paola Lovisetti Scamihorn is an Italian pharmacist, researcher and food writer. Cooking, eating healthy food and staying active have always been her life-long passions. She has a cooking blog Passion and Cooking, and contributes to several international magazines. She has previously published in Italy Love is Eating, focusing on Italian culinary culture.

Paola Palestini is a biochemistry professor at the Medical School of the University Milano-Bicocca, Italy. Recently, Paola has been actively involved in the promotion of the principles of a healthy diet through conferences and in collaboration with several magazines. She is the author of seventy-six scientific articles published in international journals.

THE MAMMA MIA! DIET
Written by Paola Lovisetti Scamihorn and Paola Palestini

Published by Hatherleigh Press.

VC-based fashion startup The Lobby launches

The Lobby, a personalized shopping concierge service that brings the store to the customer at the office, recently launched.

Backed by top investors including SV Angel and Third Kind Venture Capital, The Lobby was inspired by Google veteran Abigail Holtz‘s own workplace experiences where coworkers regularly tried on clothing purchases at the office, using the bathroom as a makeshift dressing room. Noting how both the workplace and consumer shopping habits have changed over the past decade, Holtz and team set off to re-imagine shopping for millennial consumers, focusing on the thing’s millennials value most: hyper convenience, personal experiences, and innovative products that align with their values.

The Lobby curates emerging brands – such as Greats, Cuyana, Margaux, and Michi – and lets customers request products to try on before they buy. The Lobby’s courier team then delivers items and picks up returns directly from the workplace, allowing shoppers to discover, try and buy without the hassle of return forms, trips to the post office or waiting for refunds on their credit card.

With a focus on direct-to-consumer brands that have a limited brick-and-mortar presence, The Lobby gives members the opportunity to try out brands they’ve only seen in their Instagram feed – without any risk. And for brands, the Lobby offers a new distribution channel that gets their products in the hands of stylish early-adopters.

The Lobby currently delivers to over 50 companies, including most of the San Francisco Bay Area’s top tech startups, and plans to expand to additional cities including New York and Los Angeles

https://www.fromthelobby.com

Chicken Sausage, Feta and Kale Frittata Recipe

If you’re looking for a fast and easy meal, you can’t go wrong with a tasty and organic-sourced frittata.

Chicken Sausage, Feta and Kale Frittata

Recipe provided by True Story

Ingredients:

Makes 4 servings

  • 8 eggs
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup crumbled feta
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 3 cups trimmed and thinly sliced kale
  • 1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
  • 2 Sweet Italian Chicken Sausage links, cut in bite-size slices

How to Make Frittatas:

  1. Heat broiler to high.
  2. Combine eggs, salt, and feta, and stir with a whisk. Set aside.
  3. In a 12-inch ovenproof skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add kale and sauté for 4 minutes, or until starting to wilt. Add pepper and sliced chicken sausage and stir 2 minutes, or until heated through.
  4. Add egg mixture. Cook over medium heat until eggs are partially set, 3 to 4 minutes.
  5. Transfer the skillet to the broiler and cook about 3 minutes, or until the top is set.

 

About True Story:

Founded in San Francisco in 2011, True Story Foods believes in a future of food that is a return to what is real and true. True Story believes in a future of food that is a return to what is real and true. A future that is respectful of the source of our food – the soil, the animals, and the farmers. True Story is nurturing a community of family farmers, artisan producers, progressive retailers, and food lovers who are dedicated to this future.

True Story is available nationally in select natural and traditional grocery retailers and Costco. For more information, visit www.truestoryfoods.com.

2 Things You have to Eat in Barcelona

Barcelona is a great place to visit. It is a wonderful city, and most people love it. And even if they don’t love it, they still like it quite a bit more than other places.

Of course there is great food and great drink in this town on the edge of the Mediterranean in northern Spain. The selections range from seafood, cheese, rice, and wine, to beer, cocktails, meats, and breads.

This means that you have a lot of options on the menu to enjoy. But we say that when you are in Barcelona, unless you are a vegetarian or a vegan, you must always have these two dishes at least once.

Patatas Bravas

The first is a delicious serving of patatas bravas, a local potato diced dish in a red sauce. Most people look at it and think it might be quite hot and spicy, but when eaten they realize that it is actually quite flavorful and savory, as the basic ingredients are olive oil, red pepper, paprika, chili, and vinegar.

Patatas bravas are one of the traditional tapas of the Catalan region.

The Cone of Meat (Cono Mixto)

The other item is what we like to call, the Cone of Meat. Often it is composed different of meats, but it can also include a mix of seafood such fried fish or calamari as well. The basic concept is that it is a paper cone filled with slices and dices of a selection of tasty morsels. If it’s made of meat then this could be a combination of sliced sausages, Serrano ham, manchego cheese, or chorizo.

It could be anything really, even just a mix of local artisan cheeses. It’s essentially a cone of mixed delights: “cono mixto” (aka cono de mini fuets, cono de jamon y queso, etc.). In addition, what bumps this particular dish up to a higher level of desire is that it is mobile friendly.  The choice is up to you. You can either stroll the streets or markets while munching on this, or sit at a table and enjoy it with a delicious glass of red vino or a taste of cava.

Ah, Barcelona!

LA Celebrities Bieber, Baldwin, Selena and the Kardashians get their Caffeine Fix

As lifestyle oriented as many of them are, apparently caffeine from their favorite local spots is a mandatory choice for well-known A-List celebrities in Los Angeles. This is illustrated by snapshots provided by Alfred Coffee and Alfred Tea Room, showing celebs strolling the streets with a cup in their hands.

These include Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin making out in line in Studio City, Kourtney Kardashian stopping in for her daily matcha on Melrose Place, Kendall Jenner heading to an appointment, and J.Lo grabbing a coffee for the road when she comes to town.

It also means that if you’re into star-spotting as well as coffee or tea-drinking, you know where to start.


 

LA Women in Chocolate Honored at the Los Angeles Chocolate Salon

 

At the Annual Los Angeles Chocolate Salon this Fall, several Women in Chocolate were honored by the INTERNATIONAL CHOCOLATE SALON for their contributions to the world of chocolate and chocolate culture. The International Chocolate Salon was founded in 2007 by TasteTV and TCB Cafe Publishing and Media, and is one of the premier international bodies celebrating and honoring artisan and premium chocolates and confections.

Pictured here: (front row, left to right) Marti Chocolatt, Food Market Gypsy, The Chocolate Project, (back row, left to right)  Raphio Chocolate, Amella Caramels, Valenza Chocolatier, author Carole Bloom, Hnina Gourmet, Bar Cacao.

THE CHOCOLATIERS AWARD recipients are selected based on either having received numerous chocolate salon awards over the years, or having made a significant impact in the world of taste and chocolate, particularly in the Los Angeles area. It also spotlights the growing number of women entrepreneurs, chocolatiers, confectioners, and pastry chefs that the Los Angeles Area and Southern California has supported.

The following are the announced recipients of the awards.

THE CHOCOLATIERS AWARD

LOS ANGELES Women in Chocolate: CHOCOLATIERS AWARD

  1.  Tonet Tibay, Marti Chocolatt
  2. Amy Jo Pedone, Valenza Chocolatier
  3. Amara Barroeta, Amara Chocolate
  4. Elena Kiamilev, Amella Caramels
  5. Michelle Crochet, Droga Chocolates
  6. Valerie Gordon, Valerie Confections
  7. Susie Norris, Food Market Gypsy
  8. Carol Bloom, Cookbook Author
  9. Ruth Kennison, Bonaparte Chocolate
  10. Vanessa Morgenstern-Kenan, Hnina Gourmet
  11. Danielle Laubach, Zenbunni Chocolatiers
  12. Joana Whittingham, Fera’wyn’s Artisan Chocolates
  13. Samantha McGinnis, Cowboy Toffee
  14. Elisia Otavi-Makmur, Raphio Chocolate
  15. Diane Kron Chocolatier
  16. Patricia Tsai, ChocoVivo
  17. Christine Sarioz, Milla Chocolates

In addition, the following have been named for Honorable Mention

  1. Jessica Ferraro, Bar Cacao
  2. Elyce Zahn, CocoTutti Chocolates
  3. Etty Benhamou, Le Mervetty