360 Vodka is an environmentally friendly vodka that is four times distilled and five times filtered. The environmentally friendly aspect comes with its manufacturing. The bottle is made of 85 percent recycled glass, 70 percent of which was post-consumer waste glass. It has a 100 percent post-consumer waste paper label and comes in a 100 percent recycled cardboard shipping box. It also comes with a label that details its environmental impact.

How do I know all that? The company also sent along a comprehensive press kit. I have to say that it’s among the best press kits I have ever received. It is chock full of facts, quotes and came with a nifty little card that can be planted to grow flowers. Better yet, it’s all printed on 100% Post-Consumer Waste Paper too, keeping with the mission of 360 Vodka.

I tasted the 360 Vodka and found it to be smooth and clean. I’d almost call it a pleasurable experience. However, I am not in the business of sipping vodka so I figured I would test it in something more natural to me. The real test: mixing it with a mixer (chocolate peppermint). How was it? Really good . . . The vodka complimented the flavor nicely, which is always a good thing.

For the balance of the bottle, I set about making some vanilla extract. In a few weeks, it will be ready. Some of my long time readers might remember this post from last October. I had seen a pictorial of making vanilla extract at home and was inspired to do it myself. I ordered the beans and was all set . . . except I was very pregnant and didn’t get to that before the baby came. So the project waited, and waited, and waited . . . until now. But don’t worry, more on that later. This is about the 360 Vodka.

What I love: 360 Vodka is environmentally-conscious. It blends well into drinks.

What I didn’t love: I wish 360 Vodka would have sent the press kit and the vodka together so that there would only need to be one Fed-Ex run to my house instead of two (they arrived a day apart).

Would I buy it? Yes. It’s smooth. It’s a good mixer. And it’s environmentally friendly, What more could you ask for?

*Note* 360 Vodka is not organic, but the company has a good reason for that.

According to a spokeswoman:

McCormick Distilling went through a lengthy process to decide the organic grain issue after coming up with the idea for an eco-friendly vodka.

What they discovered is that organic grains are not available near the McCormick facility, so the truck’s emissions and costs involved in transportation would have been considerable. Instead, they decide to use locally grown grains (from farms in northeastern Kansas and southwestern Missouri). As a result, McCormick is able to support local farmers and minimize fossil fuel emissions.

Another reason they chose to go with locally grown grains is that organic grain farming yields smaller crops, so with the volume of supply needed to make distilled spirits, the costs would have been prohibitive (both in the production process and, ultimately, for the consumer).

The latest issue of Bon Appetit came in the mail on the same day that I happened to buy a bottle of POM (you know, that pomegranate juice that everyone seemed to be talking about and using, um, yesterday — yes, I am a little behind on that trend). So anyway, it just seemed like fate when I flipped open the magazine and the first thing I saw was a recipe for Pom-Ade, or Pomegranate Lemonade. Totally freaky.

Both of those things happened a few weeks ago. But I didn’t end up cracking open the POM or trying the lemonade until my old partner in crime, Sonja, came to visit recently for lunch. (You’ve already read about several other things on the lunch menu – the delicious sandwich with sun-dried tomato pesto and the yummy baby spinach salad with candied almonds.) This seemed like it would be a tasty mocktail for our lunch . . . and it was.

So, we sipped at this delicious, slightly bubbly and antioxidant rich drink (perfect for Sweetnicks‘ ARF/5-A-Day Tuesdays) while we caught up on life and career (did I mention that we met while working together at a newspaper and bonded over a horse assignment? It’s quite the story – but I’ll leave you guessing).

I will however share the drink recipe. Enjoy!

Pomegranate Lemonade
serves 4
recipe from Bon Appetit – February 2008

2 cups lemonade (I prefer Stew Leonard’s brand here in Connecticut, or Simply Lemonade)
1 cup club soda
1/2 cup pomegranate juice (I used POM brand)
ice

Pour lemonade, club soda and pomegranate juice into a nice pitcher. Stir lightly. Add ice. Pour into nice, clear glasses.

NOTE: Bon Appetite suggests adding a tablespoon of vodka per glass for an adult version of this tasty drink. Wehad it virgin though . . .

Let me harp on Harry Potter for a moment though . . . I love, love, love the book. In fact, I think Deathly Hallows is the best of them all. And in a few months, I will begin reading the series one more time – from start to finish. At least it won’t keep me up until all hours this time . . .

Anyway, back to the hot cocoa. My favorite method of making hot chocolate is to melt chocolate into milk. I love the richness that it creates . . . far superior to powdered mixes (though those have their place too). And I like using good chocolate – dark preferably. Sometimes a dash of peppermint extract is a nice touch too. This particular version is organic because by coincidence, I had a bar of Green & Black Organic 70% Dark Chocolate and a quart of organic skim milk on hand. (The whipped cream wasn’t organic though, I must confess.)

I definitely recommend making this whenever you want to curl up with a good book (or warm up on a cold day).

To make:

Combine 8 oz of organic skim milk with 1/2 bar organic chocolate and heat over medium until fully combined. Pour into a mug and let cool before serving. (You may want to add a little touch of sugar to sweeten it up, though I chose not to.)

Yesterday I gave you a primer on types of proteins. Today, I am following up with a little more info so you can decipher how much protein you need.

According to the Harvard School of Public Health, millions of people around the world don’t get enough protein each day. Protein deficiency leads to a condition called kwashiorkor, which is characterized by tissue breakdown, failure to grow, immune deficiency, and respiratory and heart problems. If that’s not enough reason to get your daily intake of protein, I don’t know what is!

How much protein should you eat?
This does depend somewhat on how you eat. There are a lot of great resources about protein consumption for both men and women on the internet to help you learn what is right for your eating habits. For instance, this is a good read if you are on a low carb diet. The gist? The more protein you eat, the more calcium you need to counteract calcium loss. To figure out generally what is right for you, based on height, body frame and age, try this calculator.

Virgin Pina Colada Protein Shake
serves 1

1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup light coconut milk
1 cup ice
1 serving protein powder mix (1 scoop for mine)

Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Drink immediately.

Sometimes we all need a moment of relaxation. (How coincidental that one of those moments is RIGHT NOW for me, thanks to Blogger.) In times like that, we might turn to cookies or some other comfort food. Or maybe it’s a hot bubble bath and a glass of wine that relaxes you.

Well here’s something new. Now, I will preface this by saying that this drink has 230 calories and 9 grams of fat in a small (not to mention the 37 grams of carbs). Click here for more nutritional info.

Let me also say that, generally, I am unimpressed with Dunkin’ Donuts. On average, I find their coffee mediocre and their donuts not fresh enough.

But this Dunkin’ Donuts White Hot Chocolate drink defies all odds. As my husband said when describing it to me, it’s like “a white chocolate bar melted in a cup.” He’s totally right and it’s totally delish. Hey, it’s good enough for me to rave about it on here.

After a long, stressful, hard day a White Hot Chocolate is a great way to unwind (while sitting in maddening bumper to bumper traffic).

But then again, there are other great ways to unwind. Like this:

And that doesn’t pack 230 calories.

There is nothing like a good cup of tea. Not too sweet, flavored just right, just smooth and warm sip after sip. It’s a calming moment in a hard day, or a warming interlude on a chilly morning.

I like my tea brewed from loose leaves with a little honey, no milk or cream. After letting the tea seep for at least 10 minutes, I let it sit and cool to a lukewarm temperature. Just the scent is relaxing for me.

How do you take your tea?

Sometimes we all need a morning up. Today, I did for sure. I traded in my usual coffee or smoothie for an iced blueberry latte.

1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup skim milk
1 cup ice
2 tsp sugar
1 cup brewed coffee (I used a delicious, smooth French Vanilla blend)
additional ice

Combine blueberries and milk in a blend and mix until well blended. Add in ice and sugar and again, mix until well combined. Pour in coffee and blend again.

Serve over ice in a cute glass.

Sometimes we all need a morning up. Today, I did for sure. I traded in my usual coffee or smoothie for an iced blueberry latte.

1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup skim milk
1 cup ice
2 tsp sugar
1 cup brewed coffee (I used a delicious, smooth French Vanilla blend)
additional ice

Combine blueberries and milk in a blend and mix until well blended. Add in ice and sugar and again, mix until well combined. Pour in coffee and blend again.

Serve over ice in a cute glass.

In any case, I woke up this morning pretty hungry and wanting to blog about what I ate. The problem? I didn’t feel like cooking anything. At all. I considered making crepes for a few fleeting moments but ultimately decided that it would indeed be a no-cooking morning.

Taking survey of my fridge, I realized the perfect answer to a cooking-free day: a smoothie.

The best thing about a smoothie is you get a lot of nutrients and don’t have to do a lot – just blend and sip. Of course, since this is early spring produce, that means that the fruit isn’t so sweet (okay, the blueberries are downright sour!) so I added a little sugar to make up for it. So sue me. I needed it to be sweet.

Nonetheless, this morning I was sitting here lamenting my late discovery of Sugar High Friday when I started cooking up ideas. Since this month’s theme was aphrodisiacs, I researched a bit on the subject and found out that there are many foods that fall into that category. I romanced the idea of a late submission of my own special Aphrodite’s Ultimate Brownie (look on Tuesday for that recipe), but ultimately decided to hold off and surprise my husband with those on Valentine’s Day.

Still, I was intrigued about what could be created using these mythical ingredients. Then it came to me: what about liquid desire, or rather a concoction of ingredients with aphrodisiac properties. So here it is, and it’s yummy.

1 cup brewed green tea
1 tbsp honey
1/2 tbsp cocoa powder (unsweetened)
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 cup ice

- Combine all ingredients in a blender
- Blend on high for 45 seconds
- Drink

Now why is this so special? Well it combines the antioxidant properties of green tea, which are thought to be helpful in preventing diseases like cancer and heart disease, with the aphrodisiacs honey, cocoa (also has antioxidants) and ginger (a stimulant).

Just consider it liquid lovin’.