Tag: random appetites
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Random Appetites: Pick-Me-Ups
Had a bad day? A rough year? Or maybe you don’t have a Valentine of your own. There’s nothing that says you can’t be your own cheerleader, champion or sweetheart. After all–who knows you better than you do? Whatever the reason, pick-me-ups are one of those staples of life that we all need from time…
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Random Appetites: the Food of Love
Aphrodisiacs are one of those things you either believe in or you don’t because there’s no real scientific evidence that any of them work. Superstitious in origin, they build on various forms of sympathetic magic (the idea that if an animal, for instance, possesses a lot of one quality, then the ingesting of the animal…
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Random Appetites: Boat Drinks
And by boat I mean ship. And by ship I mean cruise-ship. That’s right, folks, in case you missed the earlier note I’m on vacation this week, bobbing around the Gulf of Mexico on the Carnival Mircale. Today we were in Belize where I picked up both Ginger and Cashew wines which I’ll have to…
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Random Appetites: Have a Cuppa!
Let us depart the ethanol-tinged waters I usually tread for a more sedate beverage today: tea. It’s chilly this week in Florida and that has me reaching for the kettle and my stash of various teas and tisanes. What’s a tisane? Well, only beverages brewed from tea leaves are tea, the herbal beverages that are…
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Random Appetites: Leftovers
And not just any leftovers, but Champagne leftovers! (or, more often than not, sparkling wine leftovers) I realize some may never have this “problem,” but often a bit of the bubbly goes a long way for me and, in striving for moderation in all things, I’m usually left with at least half the bottle once…
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Random Appetites: New Year’s Food Traditions
Along with watching the Rose Parade (and, I suppose, the football game afterwards), I grew up knowing that New Year’s Day meant 2 things: cabbage and black-eyed peas. Supposedly, the cabbage (or any greens for that matter) symbolizes wealth (get it: green–>money) and the peas were for health (some say luck, I prefer to go…
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Random Appetites: DeFuniak Adventures
Last week I extolled the virtues of Chautauqua Winery, now you get the rest of the story. Since Chautauqua doesn’t sell through retail outlets and it was only a couple of hours away, a there-and-back trip certainly wasn’t out of the question to restock. But, if it’s only a couple hours away, why not make…
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Random Appetites: Chautauqua Vineyards
One of those places you find just off the highway, Chautauqua Vineyards is something you don’t expect to find along I-10 in the Florida Panhandle. I first noticed the sign several years ago on my way back home for a visit. The next trip I took was, unfortunately, for my grandfather’s funeral, but on the…
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Random Appetites: the Hostess Gift
What’s the first thing most of us do when we receive an invitation–even a casual one–to a friend or colleague’s home for dinner or a party? “Can I bring anything?” Don’t worry, there’s nothing wrong in asking; I do it, too. The important thing is to listen to (not just hear) the answer. If a…