Our little Hello Kitty has grown up. Hello Kitty wine, produced by a major Italian vineyard, is hitting North American shelves as we purr with pleasure. And apparently, according to Larry Windsor, general manager of Hello Kitty Wines LLC in Newport Beach, CA., it’s flying off distributors’ showcases as fast as a cat chasing a bird up a tree.

The family-run Tenimenti Castelrotto or “Torti” vineyards, founded in 1910, produces the wine in the Lombardy region, which is known for the cultivation of the Pinot Noir grape.

They are producing four wines for Hello Kitty, including the Hello Kitty Sweet Pink, which is a sparkling demi-sec and not nearly as sweet as Hello Kitty herself. The Connoisseurs found it on the dry side, said it poured well and had a nice rose coloring. The 375 ml bottle has a heart-shaped neck and a gold heart label embedded within the glass. Most uncharitably, the Connoisseurs wrote: “Something about Hello Kitty just makes me think of the dump truck load of saccharine that it takes to give a lab rat cancer. The wine is actually quite pleasant, with hints of red fruits and a nice floral bouquet. It is not cloying at all, as some sweet sparklers can be.” I think The Connoisseurs need to use their indoor voices when it comes to Hello Kitty. Her fans have some mighty sharp claws.

All four wines, which include two stills and two spumantes, are made from 100% Pinot Noir grapes. The Brut Rose comes with a special Hello Kitty pendant sporting a ribbon in the colors of the Italian flag. Rounding out the collection — and what is Hello Kitty if not a collection? — also offers Angel White and Devil Red. The wines retail for about $30 a bottle; $20 for the sweet pink.

Windsor said the wine has been well-received by knowledegable wine drinkers and reviewers and he believes it will appeal to wine enthusiasts beyond the Hello Kitty brand’s fan base. In other words, it’s one cup of sweet milk regardless of the feline on the label.

I {heart} you Mac n’ Cheese. Thank you for making my life complete.

***The Ingredients***

Mac n’ Cheese

4 cups Dried Macaroni
¼ cups (1/2 Stick Or 4 Tablespoons) Butter
¼ cups All-purpose Flour
2-½ cups Whole Milk
2 teaspoons (heaping) Dry Mustard, More If Desired
1 whole Egg Beaten
1 pound Cheese, Grated
½ teaspoons Salt, More To Taste
½ teaspoons Seasoned Salt, More To Taste
½ teaspoons Ground Black Pepper
Optional Spices: Cayenne Pepper, Paprika, Thyme

Directions

Cook macaroni until very firm. Macaroni should be too firm to eat right out of the pot. Drain.

In a small bowl, beat egg.

In a large pot, melt butter and sprinkle in flour. Whisk together over medium-low heat. Cook mixture for five minutes, whisking constantly. Don’t let it burn.

Pour in milk, add mustard, and whisk until smooth. Cook for five minutes until very thick. Reduce heat to low.

Take 1/4 cup of the sauce and slowly pour it into beaten egg, whisking constantly to avoid cooking eggs. Whisk together till smooth.

Pour egg mixture into sauce, whisking constantly. Stir until smooth.

Add in cheese and stir to melt. Add salt and pepper.

Pour in drained, cooked macaroni and stir to combine.

Serve immediately (very creamy) or pour into a buttered baking dish, top with extra cheese, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly and golden on top.

Wikipedia: mi·mo·sa - noun
A Mimosa is a cocktail-like drink composed of three parts champagne or other sparkling wine and two parts thoroughly chilled orange juice. It is traditionally served in a tall champagne flute with a morning brunch or to guests at weddings.

Just Eat Smart: mi·mo·sa - noun
A bubbly, refreshing beverage to be had when one is hung over and cannot bare the stench of tequila.

Simple and delightful.

***The Ingredients***

Mimosa

1/2 oz triple sec
1 1/2 oz fresh orange juice
3 1/2 oz chilled Champagne
Orange slice for garnish

Let’s get right to it: Do not eat the Baconator.

Now, I know that you’re probably thinking exactly what I did: what could be so wrong with two fatty hamburger patties, two cheese slices, cheese sauce, mayonnaise, and 6 (count ‘em 6) slices of bacon?

The answer is nothing, nothing at all, providing you spread that out over 4 meals and 3 days, but I don’t think that’s what Wendy’s had in mind. Oooh, why just stop there when you can have the combo meal? Even if you skip the biggie fries and get a diet coke and this is the stats on your lunch:

1250 calories
71g total fat
175mg cholesterol
88g carbs

It’s making me feel fat just to sit and write about this, on the upside I have plenty of motivation to go workout tonight.

The bottom line is that it actually looks tempting, but until you are prepared to run about 20 miles to break even from the caloric intake, just get the junior cheeseburger and get on your way.

You might be wondering why I am working on this long weekend. Let me tell you, bloggers work all the time, weekends and holidays.

What you didn’t stop to think about is that bloggers can work from anywhere: a cafe, the beach, from home in their dirty, three day old PJ’s.

You never know.

***The Ingredients***

Oreo Pie

1 Oreo pie crust
Oreo cookies
80z Fat-free cream cheese, softened
6 packets Splenda.
1 tsp Vanilla
2 cups whipped cream

Directions

In a small bowl, smash up 12 of the Oreo cookies… Set aside.

In a medium bowl using a hand mixer, combine the cream cheese and splenda
Beat until light and fluffy. (Do not overbeat, it will get too watery)

Add in the whipped cream and the smashed up Oreo cookies. Use a rubber spatula and combine gently until well blended and the cookies are distributed throughout.

Spoon into the Oreo pie crust and refrigerate about 2 hours or until firm.

Optional garnish…Cut 4 Oreo cookies in half and place the halves, cut side down, around a dollop of whipped cream placed in the center and dusted with Oreo cookie crumbs

Note: the 2 cups of whipped cream is not the same as whipping cream. For this recipe the cream should be whipped. Use either freshly whipped cream or Reddi-Whip or Cool Whip or similar… But the cream is to be whipped, not liquid.

“The balance of sweet, sour, salty and hot is what is often praised about
Thai cooking, which focuses on bold flavors in blissful harmony.”
— Frank Bruni, New York Times

a lot of goodness in one small box | photography by just eat smart

couscous looks a lot more bland that it taste:

seems bland, until you add the shrimp | photography by just eat smart

the result: mouth watering curry shrimp

***The Ingredients***

Curry Coconut Shrimp Ingredients:

1 teaspoon canola oil
1/2 cup minced onion
1/2 cup minced red bell pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 cup light coconut milk
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 pound jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon water
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Heat oil in large, nonstick saucepan over medium heat. Saute onion, red pepper,
and garlic until vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes.

Season with cumin, coriander, and curry powder. Cook for 1 more minute. Stir in
coconut milk, sugar, and crushed red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat,
and simmer, uncovered for 2 minutes.

Stir in shrimp, and increase heat to medium-high. Cook and stir until shrimp is
cooked through, about 4 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with 1 tablespoon water. Stir into shrimp
mixture, and cook until sauce has thickened, about 1 minute. Stir in cilantro, and
remove from heat.

*couscous comes from the box, directions on the side*

Fattening? Yes, absolutely. But I prefer to use the word “hearty”.

These authentic old-fashioned Highlanders, popular since the days of Queen Victoria, come packed two to a pack. Handrolled in demerara sugar, Shortbread Highlanders give you a crunchy, full butter treat.

You can eat a couple without opening a whole box, and that is simply Just Eating Smart.

What have the cupcake makers done to the little and cute, adorable versions of a big cake?

Remember cupcakes? Those pretty little mini cakes wrapped in ruffled covering, looking so cute and tasting just so good that you couldn’t resist having another?

Crumbs Bake Shop has made it easy to resist the second serving, since 1 cupcake is now actually made up of what  3 normal cupcakes used to be.

If one recalls cupcake or cookie decorating parties as a child, the process was always the same: load on as much frosting and candy as possible on the normal sized cupcake. The appeal of that heaping mess has diminished, but Crumbs manages to capture that same over-the-top presentation that was once so exhilarating, piling on butter-cream frosting, sprinkles, cookies onto a large, obese, unnatural proportioned cupcake.

At 780 calories, 36 grams of fat and 48 grams of carbs, expect to jog six miles to break even.

I’m not Fat, it’s just water weight.

Think beyond delicate tea sandwiches and throw some peppery watercress into your next salad. It keeps free radicals away from your cells, helps energize cleansing enzymes in the liver, and is a natural diuretic.

Description: Ingenious…and delicious! Swirl these cubes of the finest Belgian chocolate into a cup of hot milk, or heavy cream “la Belge!” for the ultimate cup of cocoa.

Get them here.

Featured on Oprah.com as one of Oprah’s Top Gifts of 2009!

Contents: Each box includes 6 cubes – 1.3 oz. each
Conservation: We recommend eating Petrossian chocolates within 2-4 weeks of receiving your package.
Shipping: Semi-Perishable – ships either FedEx Second Air or Third Day delivery