Vintage, Old Farm

La Vieille Ferme, literally translates 'old farm'. The vines of a Vieille Ferme are growing on the southern side of the slopes of Mont Ventoux; the location which you immediately think, ahh the Tour de France. Both the vines and tour bikers require strength to contend with the heat and the fierce winds of that region which creates winning wines and champions.

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This is a good pouring red wine, very drinkable medium weight for lunch or dinner, and for any occasion. There is also a great story here, twenty-five years in the making. 

Pair with my Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Honey Pork Sauce Recipe

Grilled Pork Tenderloin as seen on George Hirsch Lifestyle

Authentically Greek

Opa! Great way to start your morning. Great quality ingredient. Chobani Greek Yogurt, it's the real deal. And the list of benefits are as long as the ingredients not added. 

All natural. No preservatives. No artificial flavors, synthetic growth hormones: No rBST-treated milk, includes 5 live & active cultures, including 3 probiotics. Made with real fruit. Twice the protein of regular yogurts. A good source of bone-building calcium. Gluten-Free and Kosher-Certified. Safe for people with corn, nut and soy allergies.

Chobani's story begins with its owner, Hamdi, who was born and raised in Turkey; and is a third-generation maker of Mediterranean foods. He started AgroFarma with the vision of bringing high quality, all-natural products to the U.S.. After reaching quick success with Euphrates; authentic feta cheese, Hamdi launched Chobani and formed an expert team. Chobani's Master Yogurt Maker, Mustafa Dogan, custom blends special yogurt cultures just for Chobani.

"Mustafa's custom blends special yogurt cultures; we add these to the milk that we receive daily from local farms to make yogurt. We then strain this yogurt to make it outrageously creamy and ridiculously high in protein.

Did you know it takes three pounds of milk to make one pound of Chobani?"

Next the yogurt is strained to remove excess liquid. This magical step is what puts the ”Greek” in Chobani Greek Yogurt and makes the yogurt so outrageously creamy and rich.

It's made in the authentic Greek tradition, in New York State and available throughout the U.S.



Available at Whole Foods.

New Year, Classic Mac-n-Cheese

Let’s get this decade started with one of America’s classic and favorite dishes for people of all ages. My spin on this one-pot-dish is so popular- when I prepared it on Live with Regis and Kelly as a side dish, the viewer response was terrific. I was deluged with email recipe requests, even from our neighbors way north in Canada! It's also easy-n-quick to make. BTW, mac-n-cheese is one of my Top 10 Lifestyle Food Trends for 2010

Use the recipe as a guide and feel free to add smoked ham, cooked bacon, grilled chicken or grilled shrimp to make your own home-spin.  

Tip: If your are starting a new diet resolution, feel free to cut down on the fat of this recipe. Replace all of or part of the half and half with chicken broth, and use olive oil in place of butter. Or, just make up for it by exercising a little extra this weekend.

For George's Cheddar & Jack Mac Recipe

© GingerBlossom | istock

pine nuts

It's not the time of year to harvest pine nuts, that would be in the late fall, but there is no time like the present to bake with these tasty and nutritious seeds, aka pinoli or pignoli nuts. Pignoli Cookie Recipe Here.The pignoli cookie, an Italian specialty confection, is made of almond flour formed into a dough similar to that of a macaroon and then topped with pine nuts. Also, here's a nice bit of history on pine nuts and The People of The Great Basin.


sugar coneraw pine nuts, in shell
pine nuts

 

Holiday Snack

Roasting in New York City since 1886, A. L. Bazzini has been supplying Yankee Stadium with peanuts since its inaugural game against the Red Sox in 1923, and it is the nutroaster of choice for the finest restaurants and hotels, including the Waldorf Astoria, and Four Seasons. As far back as 1945, generous Bazzini 4-pound Elephant Tins have supplied the best kitchens.

Need a great snack in under 1 hour? And- with no concerns about added holiday fat intake, like the usual snack mix with butter. Make another viewer favorite and most requested party snack is my seasoned spiced nuts recipe. My recipe, roasted in the oven with egg whites, that's sans the butter!

I’ve listed options to mix-in with the nuts if you want to put your own spin on my holiday snack. Oh, and BTW- it makes a great hostess/ host gift when wrapped up in clear cello bags with a festive ribbon.  

Spiced Nuts Recipe

Add any of the following to above make your own spin on Holiday Snack

1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup white raisins
1 cup Indian nuts, aka pinion, or pine nuts
2 cups mini pretzel sticks
1 cup wasabi nuts

(Not for me, but if you like a more sweet version, add)

1 cup chocolate or white chocolate chunks