Relationships are difficult. And they get only more complicated around the month of February, mais oui?

My February holds two trips: a week in New York City and the start of a three-week trip to Paris. I also have a big birthday that, due to travel plans, will be spent away from my husband. Yes… I never get any sympathy for anything said after the word “Paris.”

While I don’t blame you, I can offer that this Paris trip will be different: I’ll be returning with souvenirs and I’ll tell you more about them soon… but let’s enjoy a Paris interlude, courtesy of choice photos from a Paris-New York friend?

So as if my schedule can take yet another blow, there’s the sometimes adored, sometimes depressing, always feared Valentine’s Day. After years working at a dating website and then in the floral design world, I would expect the magic of February 14th to be lost on me. But as long as I approach the “holiday” as a non-holiday, just another day of the year to say “I love you,” it’s all good. It’s even better when there’s food. And when the food is handmade by small business, well, then maybe we can really think of it as magical.

Be My (Big) Valentine Gift Box

Be My (Sweet) Valentine Gift Box

Be My (Hip) Valentine Gift Box

Last year, we sold out of our Valentine’s Day gift boxes of handmade food. A little publication announced them to the world and they were snatched up in what felt like seconds. This year, I wanted to launch them a few weeks early, to give you time to pre-order a gift box (or ten) for all your lovers or loved ones.

We tried to thoughtfully craft two different boxes full of flavors I know I want to enjoy right now: warm caramels, all sorts of bright citrus flavors, a bit of nuttiness and a touch of spice. There’s a little chocolate too – because just a little is perfect – especially in the form of chocolate pate de fruit. And when you put the items from both gift boxes together into a crafty larger one, well, that’s a big box of love that a couple can enjoy for days and weeks.

These three boxes are packed with love, with a hand-written card, and available until they sell out. All orders will be shipped in time to arrive to their destination by Valentine’s Day. Essentially, you place your order and then leave the rest to us!

Thank you, in advance, for your order. I promise we’ll take good care of it! I also promise to share more about those Paris souvenirs soon… until then, a couple more pretty Paris shots…

All gift box photos taken by Heidi Murphy/White Loft Style and the Paris photos were taken by karigee.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local and comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

We’re in the midst of one of my favorite weeks of the year! The anxiety of Christmas has passed and the peaceful days leading up to the new year are just plain lovely and party-filled. Everyone seems to be in a good mood, perhaps because we’ve bid adieu to family, and my afternoons are filled with long spells in the kitchen and brief naps that rev me up for late nights.

Waiting for the new year to kick in, I’m also just hanging out in the in-between time, not quite ready to start that annual ‘lifestyle change’ but also still in a bit of a food and booze coma. It’s precisely at this time that I skip the heavy liquors in favor of light sparkling cocktails, bubbly and celebratory and touched by some of my favorite flavors.

This first cocktail of my favorite week got its name at the very moment I set it up for my dear friend, Heidi. After fiddling with the pine around the glass, a sprig of pine that’s held in place with a simple double knot of twine, I poured the Cava on top of the Creme de Violette and the ombre hue set in. Fashion and booze collided perfectly.

Made from violet flowers in the Alps, Creme de Violette was introduced to me a few years back by a French friend. It’s a fairly strong cordial that looks like it may be cough syrup revisited but is, in fact, crafted to taste floral and sweet. My French friend likes to sip it on its own. I prefer to place just a bit in the bottom of a flute and pour on the bubbles.

Over the course of the week, we’ll share a bunch of sparkling cocktails. This one is the easiest, just two ingredients poured into the same glass. A bottle of Creme de Violette retails for around $20, the Cava was less than that, and the pine, well, that was foraged from my back yard. Cheers!

Violet Ombre

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon Creme de Violette
• 4 ounces chilled sparkling wine like a Cava or Prosecco

Directions:

1. Pour the Creme de Violette into a tall flute.
2. Slowly and gently, pour in the sparkling wine and serve.

All photos styled by Maggie Battista and Heidi Murphy and photographed by Heidi Murphy/White Loft Style.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

Wow, it’s been the busiest December of my life. In the last three weeks, we’ve packed and shipped more batches of gift boxes than we’ve sent during the entire existence of Eat Boutique. That’s a lot of craft paper and a lot of hand-written cards. My right hand has a sort of happy heaviness about it, totally wiped out and yet ready for more.

Well, I have plenty in store for you for 2012 but before that, I just wanted to say, “Merry Christmas!” I couldn’t do this fun and wonderful project without all of you who read this site, who attend our local markets for handmade food (almost 1,000 of you this year), who may not leave a lot of comments (you’re a shy bunch) but you’re there… I know it because you email me, you stop me at events to say “keep it up” and you send our gift boxes of handmade food from our favorite small batch producers. I hope we’ve done you proud by sending beautifully designed, carefully crafted, delicious food items from small, often “hidden gem” purveyors.

Before I sign off for the weekend, I wanted to ask you to find some time to read Eat Boutique next week. As the photo below hints, we’ll be sharing some of our favorite new sparkling cocktail recipes all next week, just in time for New Year’s. We shot these recipes early in the month, when we could take a break from packing gift boxes, and the photos, well, they make me incredibly happy, they inspire me to want to craft more cocktail recipes and they’re freaking delicious. They’re also very easy, often just 2-3 ingredients of boozed up goodness.

I hope you’ll check in next week. Until then, Merry Christmas from me, all of our Eat Boutique contributors, and that lovely lady, my partner in craft paper, who helps me pack all those gift boxes. We hope you have a very special holiday!

All photos styled by Maggie Battista and Heidi Murphy and photographed by Heidi Murphy/White Loft Style.

Eat Boutique is a blog + market that celebrates the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

It is early Christmas morning…… The snow is softly falling and covering the last remains of the reindeer’s paw prints, as I walk up the pathway to your home.  I can smell fresh roasted coffee brewing, as I reach for the front door.  I give a gentle tap-tap-tap, and you greet me with a warm smile and a Merry Christmas.

In my hands, gently wrapped, and still slightly warm, are fresh baked scones and a jar of tangy bergamot vanilla bean marmalade. The warm, sweet aroma is enticing, and I can tell by the smile that is beginning to take over, that you are excited to see what is in the package. Eager with anticipation, you unwrap the package to find fresh baked Christmas Scones.

Ah, the scone.  Buttery, warm, and flaky. Perfect with a cup of coffee, tea or on their own. Cranberry scones are one of my favorite breakfast treats to make. I take advantage of cranberry season by using fresh cranberries in this recipe. I love how they burst when baked, creating little puddles of warm fruit. I did change my traditional cranberry scone recipe a bit for this special Christmas morning treat. Instead of citrus zest, I used lots of candied ginger. I love the combination of tart cranberries with spicy ginger;  it is so warm and inviting.

If you do not have access to fresh cranberries, please use frozen. Be sure to thaw the fruit, as well as drain it very well. And you will want to cut the amount of cream by a couple tablespoons; otherwise, the dough will be too moist.

If I was on the receiving end, I would be more than thrilled to receive a bundle such as this, and am sure you will put a smile on someone’s face by presenting them with this lovely hostess package!  Happy Holidays!

Cranberry Ginger Scones

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 oz Irish butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 cup fresh cranberries
• 1/4 cup candied ginger, minced
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1 egg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425.  Line a baking sheet with a silpat or parchment paper.

1. In a food processor combine all of the dry ingredients, give a whirl to mix.  With the food processor running, add pieces of butter, a couple at a time, and pulse until pea sized.  Continue adding the butter until you use all of it.  Add the heavy cream.  Pulse until the dough comes together.   Add the ginger and cranberries, and give a quick pulse.
2. Remove the dough from the food processor, and knead on a lightly floured counter top.   Pat into a circle, about 3/4 inch thick.  Cut into triangles, I made 8 but you can make them a bit smaller or larger.  Place onto a baking sheet, with space between each one.
3. Make an egg wash with the egg and a tablespoon of water.  Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the tops of the scones with the egg wash, and sprinkle a little sugar on each top.
4. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, until the scones are golden brown on the tops.  Remove from the oven.  Let cool for 5 minutes.
5. Serve.  Eat.

All photos styled and photographed by Denise Woodward.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

I delight in AJ’s lovely blog Handjobs for the Home, and we’ve been chit-chatting about working together for a while. Lucky for us, AJ has a family toffee recipe that should be on your cookie swap rotation. Please give a warm welcome to AJ! -Maggie

The cold weather is rushing into New York like a big ol’ tornado. One day it’s 60 degrees and the next it barely reaches 40. I pulled my pea coat out of the closet yesterday and welcomed the cold weather with warm scarves and mittens. Yup, it’s true. It’s officially winter.

I always hear my fellow North Easterners complaining about how much they loath the cold weather, but I cherish it. That is when there isn’t feet upon feet of snow on the ground–though that can be charming in its own way too.  As long as you’re snowed in with someone you like, and have a bounty of treats for noshing.

The winter is great for many reasons. For me it means enjoying all the hard sweaty work I put into preserves over the summer, drinking illegal amounts of hot chocolate, and eating bowl after bowl of warm soups and stews. I like to think of it as human hibernation. But the part I like most is that laid back, cozy feeling that’s always floating around the house. The weekends move slower, and some days I never managed to get out of my hooded sweatshirt and slippers. It’s weekends like these that I find myself craving a good foodie project.

I’ve never been a huge fan of gummy chewy candies. I’m more of a savory person in general. However chocolate is a totally other beast. If you don’t like chocolate, I really don’t think we can be friends. Yup, I said it. Now that that’s cleared up, we’re going to talk toffee. It’s one of those comforting sweet treats that I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of. My aunt makes it every year and gives it as gifts, so this year I decided it was my turn to give it a try.

The biggest piece of advice I will give to you novice candy makers out there is that weather is everything. For some strange reason you absolutely, positively, cannot make any kind of candy when it’s raining, snowing, or humid outside. It just doesn’t turn out right. Don’t ask me why, because I’ll respond, “just ‘cause.” So if you’re planning on making candy this year for gifts, check the weather station before you start boiling sugar. Another important part of candy making is temperature. You’re going to need one of those pesky candy thermometers for sure. Without the right temperature your candy will turn into a hot mess, literally. For toffee, it’s 290 degrees F. It allows the candy to make a clean crack-snap as opposed to chewy and stringy.

So now that cliff notes on candy making go check the weather channel and let’s get to work.

Homemade English Toffee

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. butter
• 2 ½ cups granular sugar
• 1 cup water
• 4 Tbs. Karo syrup
• 2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts
• 2, 16 oz bags of dark chocolate chips (1 bag melted)
• ½ cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. Spread 1 lb. melted chocolate in the bottom of a cookie sheet with sides.
2. In stainless steel pot mix butter, sugar, water, syrup, and nuts over medium high heat stirring constantly (I’m serious, do not step away from this pot for even a minute).
3. Boil until it reaches 290 degrees F on a candy thermometer. This will take about 45 minutes.
4. When the toffee is cooked, pour on top of the chocolate and spread evenly. Sprinkle the second bag of chocolate chips over top the hot toffee mixture. Allow the chips to sit for a minute or two until they are glossy and spread evenly with a spatula.
5. Sprinkle additional ½ cup of walnuts on top of the chocolate.
6. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours.
7. Break apart and enjoy!

Note: Toffee freezes incredibly well. If you want, you can make a batch, break it up and then store it in an airtight container in the freezer for some winter munching, or give it away as a perfect gift for the holidays!

All photos styled and taken by AJ Simone.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

The holidays are a time for caring as well as sharing.  At Eat Boutique, I feel that each of us takes that extra step when sharing.  This holiday season we are sharing a virtual “sweet” exchange with all of you.  I tossed around the idea of cookies, but, then decided to make something I really enjoy surprising loved ones with.  Homemade marshmallows.

Marshmallows are one of my favorite sweets to make.  I remember the first time I decided to make them.  Lenny thought I had lost my mind.  He waited in the kitchen to “observe” the entire process.  Little did he know, he would be become so intrigued with the process, that we would end up making three different flavors that night.  He couldn’t stop with the idea, and soon homemade marshmallows were tagging along on every camping trip.

This recipe is so ridiculously easy, that you are going to question why you never started making them sooner.  What I love about making my own marshmallows is the control that I have over the quality of the ingredients.  After all, they are basically made with sugar.  I have changed my recipe over the past couple years, and now I use agave nectar instead of corn syrup.  It just makes me feel a little better about eating not one but two, or three.  As well I use unrefined sugar, and cage-free eggs.  The fun part about making your own marshmallows is how creative you can be with the flavorings.

For our holiday exchange I decided to make Hot Chocolate Dippers out of my marshmallows.  I wanted something a little more special, so I made a batch of salted caramel marshmallows which I dipped  into deep, dark chocolate.  Yes, they are as sinful as they sound.

I cannot think of a better way to warm up after a cold day then to wrap my hands around a mug of Ancho Chili Hot Chocolate, with salted caramel marshmallow dippers.  To make your marshmallows dippers into a special gift, wrap small bundles of marshmallows in cello-wrap, tie with a ribbon, and nestle into a mug;  makes a very special gift for someone you love.

Salted Caramel Marshmallow Dippers

Ingredients:

• 4 egg whites, at room temperature
• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 tablespoons agave nectar
• 2 packets of gelatin
• 1/4 cup cold water
• 1/2 teaspoon grey salt
• 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
• large box of cornstarch
• lollypop sticks
• parchment paper
• candy thermometer

Directions:

1. Line a square 8” x 8” baking pan with parchment paper, and then heavily coat with cornstarch, all over the bottom, and the sides.
2. In a saucepan, over medium heat, add the all of the sugar less 2 tablespoons, 1/2 cup of water, and the agave nectar;  let cook until it reaches a temperature of 265 on a candy thermometer.  As well it should be golden brown.  Try not to stir the mixture until it turns golden, otherwise when the splatters from stirring touch the sides of the hot pan, they tend to smoke.  Be sure the mixture does not burn or smoke.
3. In a small bowl add the gelatin and the 1/4 cup of water;  set aside.
4. While your sugar mixture is cooking, beat the egg whites, and cream of tarter in a very clean mixing bowl, until medium peaks form.  Add the 2 tablespoons of sugar, and continue to whip until stiff peaks form.  With the mixer running on the lowest speed, slowly drizzle in the hot sugar mixture;  continue to beat at a medium high speed, about a 6 on my mixer.
5. Heat the gelatin mixture, over medium heat, in the same saucepan that the sugar just came out of, until it melts.  It will only take a couple seconds.  Remove from the heat, and drizzle into the egg white mixture. Add in the grey salt.  Continue beating at a medium speed for 7 minutes.
6. Pour the mixture into the baking pan, and smooth.  Gently tap the pan on your counter, to release any air bubbles.  Using a sieve, sprinkle the top of the mixture, heavily with more corn starch.  Do not be afraid to use a lot;  this will help set your marshmallows.  Let set at room temperature for 48 hours.
7. Before serving, remove the marshmallows from the baking pan, and set on a cutting board.  Cut into squares.  I put a few marshmallows at a time in a sieve, and shake gently over the sink, to remove all of the corn starch.  Repeat in batches.
8. Melt the chocolate.  Stick a lollypop stick or straw into one side of the marshmallow.
9. Dip one side of a marshmallow into the chocolate, and set on wax paper to dry.  Once the chocolate is dry, wrap the dippers, to give as gifts, or make a cup of hot chocolate, and enjoy.

All photos styled and taken by Denise Woodward.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

Holiday baking season has officially begun and we’re excited to share so many handmade food gifts over the next several weeks. The Eat Boutique team has put together a lovely line up of blog posts, including several great cocktails we’ll share later in the month. First up, these ginger bars are a delicious and different additional to your upcoming cookie swap. Jill even shared packaging ideas below. -Maggie

It was at a cookie exchange years ago that I was a lucky recipient of a box of these ginger bars. It was love at first bite, and I have been making them ever since. It isn’t fancied up with chocolate dip or sparkles of sugar or sprinkles. It’s just plain and simple but the wonderful combination of molasses and honey is what makes this a stand out in both taste and texture. The moment you take a bite, you will want more. Even my kids prefer this over a chocolate-dipped cookie any day.

Though it’s a very easy recipe, I still managed to do a few things out of order, like not cream my sugar with the butter or add the eggs at the wrong time. After all, it’s been a year since I made these.

But no matter, the machine kept mixing and it still turned out brilliantly.

This batter is the most delicious thing. The texture is dry but sticky, almost like taffy.

Scrape the batter into a buttered baking pan and spread to the edges.

Bake until the edges start to pull away from the sides of the pan, and a toothpick inserted comes out almost clean. Let it cool, then cut into squares. I did 3 rows by 4 rows, then cut diagonal triangles from that. This combination yields 24 pieces. You could cut it smaller if you wish.

Dust with powdered sugar, and enjoy. Or package in tins or cello bags to give away as gifts or cookie swap.

Paper doilies were added between bars to keep from sticking.

Ginger Bars
Adapted from Cookies, Brownies, Bars & More, from Fine Cooking

Ingredients:

I am deep in holiday planning mode at Eat Boutique and we’ve got boxes stacked everywhere. (That’s our new Holiday Breakfast Gift Box pictured above.) At the end of today though, I’ll start baking, prepping, decorating and, let’s not kid each other, drinking for Thanksgiving. My menu is highly collaborative this year, just the way I like it.

First, I’m preparing a smoked turkey. We prefer smoking it in a smoker; the technique makes the bird flavorful and moist enough, and leaves my oven free for all the sides and desserts. I’m making a pretty simple stuffing because sometimes all the extras take away from the purity that is childhood stuffing or so I have been reminded. (Know your audience, people, and my audience doesn’t need all the fancy stuff in their stuffing.) Still, my audience will have to deal with this lovely nut tart that I plan to make because I like fancy stuff sometimes. (I may even put a little jam on top, that’s Our Favorite Jams Gift Box below.)

The best part of the rest of the meal is I’m not cooking much of it. My aunt brings corn pudding. My cousin brings a sweet potato dish. My sister is making a Brussels sprouts recipe. The entire table is just magically dotted with platters and casserole dishes that didn’t come from my oven. I sort of love it.

For dessert, I’m making my now legendary molasses cookies. And I thank everyone for their contributions with a sparkling Fall cocktail and a big antipasti spread the moment they walk in the door. This year, I’m lining the table with brown butcher paper and just piling on my rosemary cayenne nuts, fresh mozzarella with my tomato basil jam, this Fig and Blue Cheese Tart, and heaps of sliced cured meats from my local Italian butcher. It’s my way of incorporating a little Italian into an otherwise very New England feast.

Thoughts of the real holidays hit us all as soon as the turkey hits our plates, and definitely resonate when we devour the pecan clusters pictured above at the end of our meal. (That’s our Homemade for the Holidays Gift Box above.) Christmas, Hanukkah and New Years are right around the corner. While my family enjoys the long weekend at my house, I’ll have to sneak into the Eat Boutique office now and again to check on your holiday orders and get the next batch of boxes out the door.

As I write, I realize that I haven’t shared photos of our new gift boxes of handmade food and I’m just so pleased to have spent an entire day with Heidi shooting them a couple weeks back. Instead of craft paper, we’re using red paper and we’re pleased to sprinkle a little red crinkle cut paper on top, like fairy dust, just before we pack and ship each gift.

For those of you who continue to love to send just treats from New England, we decided to keep that box around. (Our New England Holiday Gift Box is pictured below.) As soon as Thanksgiving is over, we’ll get back into the office to ship off your orders. We’d appreciate if you ordered early as we’ve done limited runs on all of these boxes; we’ll be happy to take your order now and ship later in December, just email us to let us know that.

After Thanksgiving, we’ll launch a few more gift boxes, including one filled with marshmallows, another filled with just our favorite granola and a cocktails box, because life isn’t complete without cocktails. You can see a preview at the end of this post. Until then, we wish you a wonderful turkey day!

All photos styled by Maggie Battista + Heidi Murphy, and shot by Heidi Murphy/White Loft Studio.

Eat Boutique is an online magazine + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Send a gift box of handmade food today.

This past weekend, New England was blanketed with a layer of wet, heavy snow. Despite it being just plain wrong for the snow to make such an early appearance, the chilly air and light coat of white made me so excited for the holidays. Why?

Well, I’ve got a couple pieces of good news…

First, during the madness of the snow storm, we secured our date and location for our next Local Market. Our “Holiday Local Market” will be on Saturday, December 10 at Made in Fort Point, a huge gallery space at 12 Farnsworth Street (next to Flour Bakery) in Boston’s Fort Point neighborhood. We’re so excited to be hosted by the Fort Point Arts Community – they’re very sweet to us!

Second, the official photos of our Fall Local Market, taken by Heidi Murphy of White Loft Style, have arrived! Heidi uses real film – no digital cameras here – so her photos have an amazing depth. We are so happy to be working with Heidi on a number of projects, including her beautiful Concord Grape Jelly and Juice blog post (among others to come, like a champagne cocktail roundup!) and our holiday gift box photographs (forthcoming).

Many of you signed up for our Local Market mailing list, but if you haven’t, let’s get you on the list now so you’re privy to all the details as they emerge. If you know a food maker who should attend, we’d be delighted to hear about it! (Oh, and if you’d like to volunteer your help at the event, we are looking for volunteers who want to work at our gift wrapping station, shuffle guests between tables and help at the main Eat Boutique table – thanks!)

Without further adieu, I now share photos from our last market. I know our next market, which will also host a gift wrapping station, will be filled with just as much fun and tons of holiday spirit!

All photos taken by Heidi Murphy, White Loft Style.

Eat Boutique is a site + market for food enthusiasts to celebrate the best pure, local + comforting handmade foods. We call it: food that hugs you back. Looking for the perfect gift? Eat Boutique sells gift boxes filled with handmade sweet and savory treats. Order a gift box of food today.