Welcome to 2010!  Even though we’ve all said goodbye to 2009 and the great things the year brought, Rodelle Vanilla is not letting nostalgia get in the way of ringing in this new decade!  Not even giving the New Year’s champagne a chance to go flat, Rodelle Vanilla has made sure they are moving forward by getting ready for this year’s Fancy Food Show.

The Fancy Food Show is an annual event that showcases specialty foods and beverages and has over 250,000 different products in attendance. The Fancy Food Show gives it’s attendees a chance to visit various booths and learn about new or rare products and companies.  This is the 35^th Winter Fancy Food Show to date and some of these shows have had upwards of 24,000 people in attendance!  This year it is going to be at the Moscone Center in San Francisco from January 17-19.

Although people enrolled have the option of running free through the show and exploring on their own, I know that I would be completely overwhelmed and wouldn’t know where to turn first.  A budding foodist like me would need guidance through the amazing array of specialty foods being publicized.  That’s why the Fancy Food Show has educational programs available!   I, for example, would love to learn the language of specialty foods, or sample some miso and natto (two great new food products coming over from Japan).  The Specialty Food Retailers of San Francisco Tour sounds like it would not only be informative, but super interesting.  And, of course, the Chocoholic’s Tour of San Francisco sounds as though it was planned just for me!  What could be better than getting the chance to visit several different chocolateers, go backstage at a confectioner’s and sample some amazing chocolate?  I imagine that going on this tour would leave me feeling as amazed and awestruck as Charlie Bucket.

Despite my dreams, the Fancy Food Show is only for people who are in the specialty food industry.  Think of it as a big food related conference where participants get to see the latest trends, check out the newest products and keep up to date on all of the specialty food gossip.  There’s no telling what new creations could take place when two experts with great products cross paths.

I admit, I’m a little sad I won’t get to go on the Chocoholic’s Tour of San Fransisco, so maybe I’ll just have to settle for indulging in Rodelle’s new origin specific dutch processed Ivory Coast Gourmet Baking Cocoa (although it’s not much of a sacrifice….to be honest, it’s just plain pampering myself!).  I am glad, though, that there are programs like the Fancy Food Show that help keep Rodelle and other specialty sellers at the top of their game.  After all, even if we don’t get to go, we’re still the ones who are ultimately reaping the benefits from this type of (yummy) collaboration!

Thanks to Optical Illusion, h-bomb and Rodelle Vanilla for the great pictures!

Laura

What are some of your family traditions around this Fall season?

It is such a fun time of the year for families, with lots of activities and the anticipation of the coming holidays! Halloween is only a week and a half away.  Costumes and candy are a necessity, of course; but what would Halloween be without a Jack-O-Lantern?

We went to a pumpkin patch last weekend.  It was crowded with people all searching for that perfect gourd while children, looking on the verge of tipping over, ran around carrying bowling ball sized pumpkins.  Even with all the competition, we managed to find (several) ideal pumpkins that would soon become victims of a carving massacre.  Sitting on the floor with my husband, surrounded by the gutted pumpkins, knives and pattern traces, I could feel a tradition in the making.  Although he is much more artistic than I am (all the interesting Jack-O-Lanterns are his), it was fun to work on this together and mutilate/enjoy the iconic image of Halloween.

With all these beautiful pumpkins around me, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try out some new dishes either. This was the first time I’d ever tried baking with fresh pumpkin (although, I did keep a can or two on the side just in case) and it was definitely an experience.  Although not all pumpkins are meant to be baked, I did scrape enough away to whip up some loaves of pumpkin bread and muffins (I used this recipe, although I added Rodelle vanilla extract and omitted the walnuts and frosting), attempted a pumpkin based soup (epic failure on my part, although the recipe looks delicious) and even made treats for the dogs!  After the soup fiasco, I felt the need to redeem myself and tried out a few of Rodelle’s Halloween recipes.  The Candy Corn Rice Crispy treats were so easy that my kitchen confidence was boosted immediately! And Rodelle’s rolled sugar cookies turned out amazingly for such a simple recipe.

Of course, Americans are not the only ones who have a supernatural day approaching.  Falling immediately after America’s Halloween, Dia de los Muertos spans the first two days of November, coinciding with the Catholic celebrations of All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  Dia de los Muertos, celebrated mostly in Mexico, also includes family, friends and paranormal experiences.  People gather together to celebrate and remember loved ones who have passed away, bringing gifts and their favorite foods to grave sites, hoping for a ghostly visit from long gone relatives.  There are several customary foods, like Pan de Muerto, that are made leading up to Dia de los Muertos.

Someday, I hope to get the chance to celebrate Dia de los Muertos.  For now, it’s time to display the Jack-O-Lanterns, hope that they don’t cave in and get ready for Halloween!   Do you create costumes together, carve pumpkins, hang up decorations?  We’d love to hear your stories!

Always,

Laura