But this Penguin by Soda Stream USA is not being posted for my obsession, but for that of a friend.  My friend Warren loves sparkling water.  And this little guy turns regular water into sparkling water pronto!  He can also make sodas.

The great thing is he does all this without batteries or electricity.  So my friend Warren could even take it on his sailboat.  You can add flavors or juices and you can control the level of fizz.  So on a hot day you could add a twist of lemon or lime without any cutting.

And the reusable glass bottles save you from buying plastic bottle after plastic bottle.  I tend to drink more water if there is a splash of flavor or some fizz, don’t you?

Available at many places like William Sonoma, Amazon.com and etc.  And no, Warren, this isn’t your wedding gift from me, but you should register for it.

Related posts:

1. Snack Set for the Cabinet Challenged
2. Loose Leaf

Ham and Brie on Pretzel Roll- to be fair this sandwich is totally stolen from Draper’s Cafe at the Greenbrier, although they do it better than me, although I try.

Buy some fresh pretzel rolls from Heidelberg Bakery, Whole Foods or Wegmans.  Note they don’t last very long so don’t get too many extra.

Slice roll in half.   Spread a nice spicy brown or stout mustard on the bottom roll.  Add a generous amount of ham- the stack should be at least 1 3/4″ thick, add a couple slices of plain brie.  Put in a grill pan or under the broiler for about 3-5 minutes until bread is just a little crispy and the cheese melts.

Apple Cheddar Ham Panini

Use a nice grainy bread.  I like a sliced loaf of multigrain myself.  On one slice of bread put a little mayo, on the other side (I opt for mayo on the bottom slice) put a generous amount of apple butter.  Slice some ham, I like mine as thin as I can cut it.  Put in on the bottom.  Top with some white cheddar (I like a medium sharpness).  And then slice some apples thinly and straight and top.

Put a little olive oil on the bottom of a grill pan or griddle once the pan is about medium heat, place the sandwich baste a little oil on the top side of the bread.  I like to use a meat press for my panini’s and grill them for about 3 minutes on each side.

I should have taken pictures they were pretty.  Unfortunately they were so tasty the thought didn’t cross my mind.

Griddle idea- here.  The Le Crueset Griddle is a little pricier than the Crate and Barrel one I featured in registry ideas on a previous Wedding Wednesday earlier, but it also heats very evenly and cleans easy.  I like mine, but I think over time this one would wear and cook better. $165.  I like the large surface of these griddles and that they can easily slide in with your baking sheets and don’t take up much room.  Grill grooves on one side, smooth on the other for a griddle.

Meat Press- here.  I know this says it is for bacon, and it is, but it can be used for so much more.  I like it because the size makes it easy to fit in most pans and it is only $12!

Related posts:

1. How to Use a Whole Ham With Two People
2. Just trifling

Williams Sonoma can still guarantee standard shipping in time for Christmas if you order by 9am on Tuesday.

They even have some good deals still like this:

I know so many people who could use a decent knife in their kitchen.  So many people have knives that just don’t cut it, literally.  Wusthof knives are classics that stand the test of time.  And a sanotoku knife is really a handy knife.  I prefer chopping a lot of my veggies with a sanatoku over a chef’s knife.

Or EVEN better: Cutlery and More has FREE delivery until midnight on many wonderful items, like these:

I love Chef’s Choice, it is the knife sharpener that I have and use for everything, but my Shun and Global knives.  It keeps your knives nice and sharp.  This one not only comes FREE, but it comes with a free 7″ sanaktoku knife, as well.  That is 2 gifts with free delivery for $150, not bad.

Or not one, but two Calaphalon skillets for $50.  I have this skillet in a smaller size and can attest that it works very well.

Last, but not least the mini-keg dispenser.  My husband would have really liked this, and at $100 it is a real steal, since it originally listed for $400, but alas Honey, sorry I already ordered your gifts.  I don’t know many men that would be disappointed to open this gift.  Again with FREE shipping guaranteed by Christmas from Cutlery and More.  They have lots of other great gifts like an electric water kettle, or stove top smoker, so if you are still looking for that great gift and like me hate paying for shipping, give this place a browse.  I have always found their prices to be the most competitive for really great products.

Related posts:

1. Don’t Bother Me I’m In My Tent
2. Bringing Gold Back

Thibaut-Janisson, Cuvee SparklingChardonnay

Claude Thibaut and Manuel Janisson have had years of noteworthy experience with Champagne, Thibaut comes from a family of champagne makers.  You can find their history and where to purchase their wine here on their website, but it can be found locally quite easily, including Best Cellers, Daily Planet Wine, Rick’s Wine and Gourmet and the Georgetown Dean & Deluca.   The Cuvee, is made of 100% Chardonnay from the Monticello Appellation, the grapes are grown in Ivy, right by where we dined for Thanksgiving- isn’t growing local great.  Then they are fermented right down the road at Veritas Vineyards.  It was a very crisp and refreshing sparkling wine that was balanced nicely between being fruity and dry with definite notes of pear.

As an interesting note, I learned from the below article  Thibaut is also an instructor at Piedmont Virginia Community College.  I just adore people that are not only passionate about what they do, but imparting that knowledge to others. Thibaut says the grapes in the Charlottesville area yield sparkling wines that give Thibaut’s hometown of Champagne, France a run for its money.

An article with more information can be found here.

We really enjoyed this wine and I hope you do too.  I am a really big fan of sparkling wine, champagne, cava and etc, I think it pairs nicely with so many types of food.  Plus, I think serving sparkling wine really shows dinner guests you are celebrating their company.

Related posts:

1. Virginia is for lovers- of wine.
2. Another fabulous weekend in Virginia Wine Country.

I once again missed what may be the best celebration of Fall, culture and community support: The Pleasant Valley Harvest Sale in Garrett County, Maryland.  An auction is held in a beautiful little Amish community each Fall to support the school in their district the Swan Meadow Elementary School.  The auction has gargantuan mushrooms and produce, breads and baked goods and other auction items, the big ticket item being the Black Forest Cake.

During the sale you can wander over to the counter to buy homemade caramels, no bake cookies, fresh yeast glazed doughnuts and coffee and cider to satiate you during the sale.  Also for sale is a collection of recipes from the community made into a cookbook.  This cookbook is a big deal, as it normally has the heavy hitting favorites from each family.

But I will make up for it by attending what MSN rates as one of the top Fall Festivals: The Autumn Glory festival.  Also located in Garrett County, Maryland (an area that happens to be where I am from).  This festival begins this week and events continue until Sunday.  A sampling of the events:

Fireman’s Parade- Thursday night a parade of mostly fire trucks and engines, with the occasional truck of football players and cheerleaders rolls down Second Street and up Route 219 to the firehouse.

Oktoberfest- Thursday night after the Fireman’s parade at the fire hall an Oktoberfest dinner complete with Polca music, dancing and lots of beer takes place, an event that is mainly attended by locals, but any person who attends will be feeling the love.

Grand Feature Parade- Saturday is the main parade a video of a past parade I found on YouTube! (Not the most professional screening, but you get the picture)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Also during this weekend there is an Amish breakfast at the Pleasant Valley Community Center, a 5k run/walk, craft shows, antique shows, classic car shows, the Maryland State Fiddle and Banjo contest, The Liars Festival, No-hands ice cream eating contest at Lakeside Creamery and so much more!  You can see a few of my photos here, I will post more after next weekend.

[View with PicLens]

And while I have family that lives in the area, we tend to overload our capacity so we normally rent a house from Railey Mountain Vacations, who right now has a buy two get a third night for free special (very handy since Monday is Columbus Day).

Now if you are lucky enough to be invited to a Fall celebration, or just need a taste of Germany,  look no further than Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe in Arlington, Virginia (Their site seems to be temporarily down).  A big box of soft pretzels, a Black Forest Cake or wursts would get you an invite back to any party.

No invites?  Well check out the Washingtonian’s list of Oktoberfests. You could also join Rustico on October 10 from noon to six for Oktoberfest where they will have nearly 25 different beers on tap, with live musicand dishes prepared by Rustico, Buzz The Evening Star Cafe, Vermilion, Tallula, EatBar, Columbia Firehouse & Star Catering.Admission is free and tickets will be sold for beer, food, activities and a mighty raffle featuring a beautiful 1997 Harley Davidson Softail – along with three other fantastic prizes. The proceeds from this year’s raffle will be given to DC Central Kitchen to help combat hunger and create opportunity right here in our own backyard.  If this doesn’t get you there,

then this might:

Although please note- kids are absolutely welcome. In fact, there will be many activities just for the kids throughout the day – including a moon bounce, face painting, pumpkin tossing and more.  So choose your reason to go.

Or hop on over to Heidelberg for a delicious grilled wurst prepared on their outside grill.  They have brautwurst, knauckwurst, weisswurst and others for you to try before ordering.  If you need some carb loading before all those tasty German brews order the ultimate combo which comes with a soft pretzel, warm German potato salad, drink and apple strudel.

You can also get your Fall on at Buzz Bakery in Alexandria, VA.  They are selling  Steamed Cider and Pumpkin Lattes. The cider is local and they use a homemade spiced pumpkin puree for the pumpkin goodies. Tempting me most has to be the Candy Apple Martini, made with housemade caramel sauce, apple schnapps and Stoli. They are also stocking seasonal beers, including Dogfish Head Punkin’ and Epheremere.

Order a batch of cupcakes, including out classic Guinness Cupcake, the Caramel Apple Cupcake and the Pumpkin Cupcake with Candied Pepitas and you will surely be a hit.

Fall is glorious, isn’t it?

Related posts:

1. Another fabulous weekend in Virginia Wine Country.
2. Australia Report- Melbourne

So I have spent the past few years exploring the wineries in Charlottesville and other parts of Virginia. So here is my advice of what is worth a stop and sip.

Flying Fox-

A quaint little country store front located in Afton, Virginia.  With Veritas and Pollack wineries nearby you might pass right by this little shop and think it isn’t worth a stop, but you would be wrong.  The red and whites presented here offer a good variety of tastes and very well blended wines.  The Petit Verdot is the perfect porch sipping red, while the 2006 Cab Franc presents an excellent crisp red, that will only get better with a little age.  The chardonnay wasn’t too oaky or fruity, but a nice balance.  The staff are also personable and knowledgable about their wines.  I went here with a group of ladies and we all expressed the opinion that Flying Fox was much better than Pollack and Veritas, which are pretty wineries, but not the best in terms of taste.

White Hall Vineyards and the Greenwood Gourmet Grocery

I was at White Hall quite recently and was really impressed.  The location is really beautiful.  Located on the slopes of Break Heart Mountain it is nestled into its location, not overbearing the landscape.  It is nicely landscaped with grassy areas and picnic tables, a beautiful arbor in front and nicely manicured gardens.

It would be a lovely place to pack a picnic for, they don’t sell any food on sight, but you could certainly pick up something in Crozet, in fact if you take the Crozet exit off 64 there is a little grocery called the Greenwood Gourmet and Grocery, pictured above, that stocks local products and produce including fresh bread.  They also have sandwiches and prepared items.

White Hall had whites and reds that were really good.  The highlights were the 2006 Chardonnay Reserve which was crisp, refreshing and fruity with a nice rounded flavor of oak, the Break Heart Red is a steal at $10, it can be sipped like a white, but has the rounded flavor of a red we bought extra bottles to take as presents to people, the Touriga is also very good another lighter red wine, but if you like a full bodied rich red wine the Cuvee de Champs is your wine.  This is the answer from White Hall to Barboursville’s Octagon, but at $10-15 dollars less without the discount.  Even the 2006 Soliterre a sweet dessert wine shows refinement, it is not overly sweet and sappy, but has a crispness that makes it lovely and delicate.  It would be great drizzled over some peaches and fresh ice cream.  All in all this is perhaps one of the best wineries to visit as they really have a nice varied selection.

Barboursville Vineyards-

I haven’t gotten to go to this winery yet, but it is high on my list after having a few bottles of their lovely Octagon and their chardonnay.  Octagon is very full bodied, yet it has a crispness to it that makes it refreshing, as well.  This wine was served at a Inaguration Conservation Gala.  They have Palladio restaurant, which I am eager to check out, as well.

The last winery I am going to feature in this post is the King Family Vineyards-

This winery is in a lovely location overlooking their vines and fields.  They have polo matches and outdoor seating.  Inside not only do they have wine they also offer a variety of meats, cheeses, crackers and other accompaniments so you could have a nice meal outside.  Their wines are not as good as Barboursville or White Hall, but they are still much better than Veritas and Pollack and some other wineries in the area.  And they really are nice wonderful people.  My favorites were the Meritage 2006 a nice blend to make this a full bodied red with a smooth finish it can also be aged until 2012 to let the flavors age.  The Pedit Verdot was another nice sipping red, but it is a little spicier than your typical Petit Verdot.  They also have a nice Chardonney and Brut sparkling wine.  They have sold out of the Cab Franc so I won’t tell you about it as they should have a new vintage out this fall.

So go explore!  And after all that wine go to Three Notch’d Grill in Crozet.  It has a nice variety of entrees and each come with a salad.  After our last visit I highly recommend the shrimp penne with cream sauce, sundried tomato, pancetta and spinach.  Both the shrimp and spinach were very fresh and had great flavor.  The dish was so rich you won’t want dessert, but the entree is good enough to not care.  The lasagna was also particularly good made with fresh pasta.

Related posts:

1. Another fabulous weekend in Virginia Wine Country.
2. Sparkling Chardonnay from Virginia

Trust me I may not seem like I understand this, what with my love of anything for entertaining, but until mid-June when I have my counter-top extended slightly so new cabinets can be installed in the unused space where they put an area for a bar (we don’t use a bar we eat at a table like civilized people), I do have only moderate cabinet space.

I don’t want to give up chic for function, it really isn’t my thing but a girl can only have so much china that will fit in her small apartment.  So I have brought you a compromise.  I found this when I was strolling through a wonderful little kitchen shop in Sonoma called Sign of the Bear.  It is a lot like a William Sonoma or Sur La Table, but in cute country general store format.  Anyway if you are in Sonoma it is a must stop little place.  Conveniently enough they ship too, so I have a nice little box of goodies that they shipped home to me being held hostage in the package room downstairs.  Anyway without further ado:

The Wine Glass Plate Clip.

So these really aren’t as cute, but with my China pattern that is white and silver they wouldn’t look THAT bad, nor would they on plain white plates or black plates.  They are small enough to throw in a drawer with your wine tags, bottle stopper and cork screw (which I know you have a drawer for).  And really their functionality is so great, I think the fact that they aren’t as cute as the snack set may be able to be overlooked until you get more cabinets.  See girls, there are always solutions.  Always.

Now they can’t be used with flimsy plastic plates, which in all honesty you shouldn’t use unless you have a very large group size and in that case you shouldn’t have enough of these to go around so it should all work out.  You can get these in multiple places, The Container Store has a pack of six stainless steel ones for $14.99 which seems to be a pretty good deal.

These from WineOpeners.com are a bit cheaper, but are not as nice in quality.  I mention them because you can buy in bulk and get them printed with a logo or picture.  I know many of you in the DC/Arlington area throw big corporate functions so I thought I would mention them as a reference.  How nice would it be to receive this at a big function?  I promise I would take mine and hubbies home to use.  You could also get them printed with a cool picture to make them a nice present.  Even better might be a wedding favor if you are having a reception that doesn’t have a sit down dinner.  (Sorry I love weddings, I could spend my whole life planning weddings if only it paid as well as my current profession)

Related posts:

1. The Snack Set
2. Wedding Wednesday: Honey, can we paint the house to match my plates?

For the record my office assistants often come into my office and say. “O.M.G.” not “Oh my gosh” but the letters O-M-G.  And other such non-sense so I blame them for my corruption.

All this, plus you know a wedding in 16 days makes for a lot of stress, and stress means eating things I shouldn’t.  But those things are often tasty.

For example after a bad bad day where I was perusing www.scanwich.com, I made myself a steak, goat cheese and sun dried tomato sandwich with a little hot sauce and red pepper flakes and lettuce all on sourdough bread from Boudin Bakery that Fiance brought me from San Fransisco.  Soo good.

BTW do not look at their online catalog of seasonal breads that I linked to above, unless you want to buy sourdough online and ship it across the country to serve at your next dinner party.  Seriously if you open it up your chances of not buying bread is slim.  I mean look at them:

So adorable… MIL gave me the big turkey gobbler to take to Thanksgiving with my little cousins, oh they loved that Turkey, we all liked how good it tasted too.  Two yummy turkeys that day.

After my sandwich though then I needed something sweet.  You know how it goes.  Now I might have already partially blown a good bit of calories on the sandwich, but when you need chocolate you need chocolate.

So I reached into my not so secret “secret” stash for a small piece of Chocolove with carmelized ginger.

I love this chocolate.  I am not a huge milk chocolate person, but I also don’t love really dark chocolate, I put my chocolate number in the 60% dark range.

Add in the crystalized  ginger for texture and a little spice, and this chocolate bar really does it for me.  It keeps my awful snacking cravings at bay.

They make other flavors I am going to try next like these:

I will let you know how it goes.  The cherry and almonds sound really promising.

So thank you Chocolove.  I love you.  If you ever want to advertise your Crystalized Ginger chocolate bars here, you can pay me with a big box of them.  But really I have pretty much completely set you up right here, so now I won’t get my big box of crystalized ginger chocolate bars, NOOOOOOOoooooooooooo.

Anyway you can buy them in many place including Wegman’s, Whole Foods, World Market and Target  just in case a big box doesn’t arrive on your door care of Chocolove.  And if they don’t carry it, here is a handy link on their website where you can tell them what store near you that you wish to carry it, and they will work on that.

Love is a cruel thing…

Related posts:

1. Countdown to Turkey Day
2. Wedding Wednesday: Cake

We have an older version of this Teavana tea-maker.  Quite frankly, I don’t know if this one looks better or not, it only makes 4 cups.  Ours says it makes 8, but really in a mug makes 4, but a tea-maker is nice and handy.  You can add sugar or honey to the carafe and then put over ice to make iced tea.

I think a tea-maker of some type that you can put loose leaf into is essential for good tea, even if it isn’t this super duper fancy expensive one, that has a timer like a coffee pot.

I think one of the reasons I am minimally tea obsessed is that tea is a gesture of love:  iced tea in a nice pitcher for family, hot tea when you aren’t feeling well, and if you are English the tradition of tea in the afternoon with friends.

So if you don’t have the moola for that one think about this one, the bonus is it is beautiful and much cheaper so this is my pick, if I broke my tea-maker tomorrow.  You don’t even have to have a pretty teapot or carafe, because it is pretty.  Imagine it with the flowering bloom teas (the ones that when put in steeping water unfold into a pretty flower).

Next up is the tea itself.  I like the looseleaf variety Wegman’s has, I think it gets good turnover, Teavana of course is really good and then there is also Teaism, as well as, a host of small places and online stores.  I highly recommend the Peach White Tea at Wegmans for the best iced tea when added with a little honey when it’s warm to dissolve the honey . Jasmine pearls are also another favorite for hot tea.

So remember coffee is coffee, but tea is versatile, flavorful and something all enjoy, or even pretend to enjoy with stuffed friends at a table,  from the time we are little girls till now when we are still little girls at heart.  Enjoy.

P.S. If you want to really give a special little someone in your life a good experience the high tea at the Four Season’s in Georgetown or the Mayflower is really nice, a truly Madeline-esqe experience.  I want to take my two little cousins when they come and visit over the summer.

Related posts:

1. Eastern Market Gifts
2. Snack Set for the Cabinet Challenged