Do the shammy shammy!

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

St. Patrick’s Day is less than a month away! Get into the festive spirit — wear lots of green (Kelly, that is), make everything chocolately and minty (Bailey’s, anyone?) and eat lots of Lucky Charms (just kidding .. but they are delicious). Here are a few recipes to help boost the St. Patrick’s Day spirit in preparation for March 17th!

SHAMROCK SHAKE (COPYCAT RECIPE) from The Family Kitchen
Okay, we get it if you don’t want to have to drive to McD’s each time you want a Shamrock shake (or as we like to call them, “Shammy” shakes) — now you can make them at home!

SHAMROCK MILKSHAKE CUPCAKES by Better Homes and Gardens
What’s better than a shammy shake? A shammy shake CUPCAKE.

SHAMROCK SHAPED RICE KRISPIES by Pirates and Princesses
All you need is some food dye and a cookie cutter to seriously add some pizzazz to your Rice Krispie treats.

ICED SHAMROCK COOKIES from just*iced
Looking for some Irish inspiration? These cookies are so adorable!

SWEET SHAMROCK PRETZELS from Family Fun
Super easy! A can of Pillsbury bread stick dough, cinnamon and some green colored sugar are all you need.

SHAMROCK PIZZA from Cute Food for Kids
What a cute idea for english muffin / hamburger bun pizza. The shamrock is a green pepper!

SHAMROCK “SNUGGLE UP” from ShopIrish.com
And of course, you should be enjoying all of these treats while wrapped up in your shamrock-adorned blanket with sleeves. (Did you really think this didn’t exist?)

Do you get into the spirit on St. Patrick’s Day?
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Maple meats all around!

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

Here in New England, we love our (PURE) maple syrup. And any Vermonter can tell you that maple inspired foods are a-plenty here. But even when we’re not pouring maple syrup on our entire breakfast (not just the pancakes!), enjoying a maple creemee (that’s soft serve ice cream, if you’re not familiar) from the local creemee stand or buying maple cotton candy at the fair, there’s other ways to enjoy that fantastic maple flavor. And you can, too! Here are SIX different maple-inspired meat recipes you should try:

ROSEMARY CHICKEN WITH ORANGE-MAPLE GLAZE from allrecipes

MAPLE & BLUE CHEESE STEAK from Taste of Home

MUSTARD-MAPLE PORK TENDERLOIN from Eating Well

MAPLE SALMON from allrecipes

MAPLE-ROASTED TURKEY WITH SAGE from Food Network

PAN-SEARED MAPLE VENISON from Cooking Club of America

And if that doesn’t get your maple fix, you can always just chug some syrup instead.

What is your favorite way to eat maple syrup?
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Valentine’s Noms & Flicks: Foodie Style

Posted on February 14, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

Oh, today is the day. Valentine’s Day is one of those days where you can either acknowledge it’s existence (with embrace or hatred) or just completely ignore it altogether. Personally, I only enjoy it for the food, as a day devoted to candy and baked goods is completely fine in my book. And whether or not you have a special someone to share it with, who’s to say you can’t enjoy a little R&R? So tonight, my fellow foodies, kick back with one of the following films. If we can’t be endlessly romantic on this greeting card holiday, at least we can be in love with food:

My Big Fat Greek Wedding + Greek Style Braised Lamb Shanks

Chocolat + Homemade Chocolate Truffles

Julie & Julia + Julia Child’s Beef Bourguignon

No Reservations + Spaghetti Oreganata with Tomato Sauce

Ratatouille + … Ratatouille (duh)

What will you be watching this Valentine’s eve .. or better yet, eating?
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Valentine’s Day = An excuse for food.

Posted on February 8, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

Really, though. Valentine’s Day is just another day to self-indulge in the things you love most — sweets, treats, fattening foods and cocktails. And what could be better, really? Nothing I can think of.

If you don’t believe me, I’ve laid out what I think is a successful Valentines Day “menu.” Really. I wish I had all of these things:

BREAKFAST:

Chocolate Crepes with Raspberry Sauce

LUNCH:

Be-My-Valentine Pizza

MID-AFTERNOON SNACK:

Heartfelt Cookies

APPETIZER:

Blue Cheese Heart Tarts

DINNER:

Apple-Stuffed Pork Roast

COCKTAIL:

Pomegranate-Champagne Punch

DESSERT:

Be-My-Valentine Strawberry Tart

NIGHT CAP:

Raspberry Chocolate Kiss Cocktail

See what I mean? Perfect day for eats! For more Valentine’s Day food ideas, take a peek at our Be Mine, Valentine? Pinterest board.

What will you be eating this Valentine’s Day? (Other than copious amounts of chocolate.)
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Float-a-licious!

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

Ice cream soda floats! Can you say delicious .. or FLOAT-a-licious?

These are such a perfect treat — they’re refreshing and satisfy your sweet tooth.

And the best part about ice cream floats is that you can create your own! There is no limit to the soda-ice cream combos. Go crazy!

Here are some combinations to noodle:

… and so many more!

What are your favorite combinations?
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* Sources: How Does She? //
Divine Caroline //
Personal experimentation

Put on your game face! It’s Super Bowl XLVI time.

Posted on January 31, 2012 by Kelly Diamond

It’s Super Bowl time!

As many of you already know, our Social Grocery office is located in beautiful Vermont. HOWEVER, due to our geographical location, we are a battle zone when it comes to football team loyalties. While Vermont is technically part of New England (Patriots Nation), we also share a long border with New York (Giants turf). Because of this, Vermonters are a mixed breed when it comes to the pigskin. And when our two teams go head-to-head, Super Bowl parties are taken a bit more seriously than most!

Because the air around here is so thick with competition, we thought the least we can do is create a great list of Super Bowl party ideas for everyone to enjoy — Patriots fans, Giants fans and others alike! We give you our “TOUCHDOWN!” list (on Pinterest):

We’ve been searching the Internet far and wide to find the best Super Bowl recipes, decorating tips and entertaining ideas for you to noodle. We’ll be updating this list all week, so make sure you stop by again! You can also follow our Twitter feed for some helpful links.

Who will you be rooting for this Sunday?
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Sweet as pie, cute (& small) as a button.

Posted on November 8, 2011 by Kelly Diamond

Well, alright. A little bigger than a button.

I am a huge freak for all things miniature. Those mini ice cream cups at the store, mini candy, mini bags, mini cupcakes, mini jars, Polly Pocket (when she was actually the size of a fingernail, you know .. back in the day) — if it”s mini, I”m pretty much obsessed. So you can only imagine my reaction when I stumbled upon mini PIE. I basically died with joy and cuteness overload taking control of my brain. It was magical. I”m hoping you feel the same and spread the magic to your friend and family this holiday season! Oh and don”t worry — to top it off, these mini pies are in MINI JARS. That my friends, is what I call perfection (not to mention an amazing gift-giving idea).

CRANBERRY COBBLERS (IN A JAR)

To kick off my mini-pie-in-a-jar-magical-idea-since-when?! obsession, we have Cranberry Cobblers from Tablespoon.com. They really know how to get me over there — passion for food meets creativity. ALWAYS. And these cobblers are no exception! Perfect for Turkey day, wouldn”t you agree?

SPICED PUMPKIN PIE (IN A JAR)

ADORABLE! These mini spiced pumpkin pies are so cute. I love the jars that The Scootabaker used for this particular post — and the heart cutouts add the perfect loving touch, don”t you think? Wish I had one right now! Not to mention I love anything pumpkin.

LATTICE-TOP BLUEBERRY PIE (IN A JAR)

You had me at lattice-top, Family Kitchen. I”ve always loved lattice-top pies — not only does it take some serious skill to come out with a great looking pie, but they”re just so pretty! Shrink it down to mini and in a jar? I”m awestruck. LOVE these blueberry pies! It”s almost unfair that I don”t have one in front of me at this very moment.

FRUIT CRISP (IN A JAR)

I love fruit crisp — so clearly, I would love this particular post from Wendolonia. I think the best part about these fruit crisps is that you can literally use any type of fruit you wish and still come out with a delicious treat! Also you can put these babies in the freezer for whenever you feel a need for some freshly baked mini crisp. Love it!

GRASSHOPPER PIES (IN A JAR)

Okay, so we all love a good pie with a traditional crust. But then what about those other pies we love with non-traditional crusts? These grasshopper pies have a crumbled Oreo crust and look DELICIOUS. Not to mention, this post from A Southern Fairytale inspires me to get creative with this mini pie idea — crumbled graham cracker crust is another option I haven”t seen (yet) in mini pies. Time to get the foodie juices flowing!

What type of pie would you love to see served in a mini jar?

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