Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Nielsen-Massey Vanillas ~2 oz Pure Peppermint Extract, 2 oz Pure Chocolate Extract, 2 oz Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract, Review and Giveaway


Neilsen-Massey is a company that specializes on all things vanilla however they also have a line of other items including several extracts. I was delighted when Neilsen-Massey asked me to review three of them: Pure Peppermint Extract, Pure Chocolate Extract and Tahitian Pure Vanilla Extract. They suggested I try their recipe for a Peppermint Pattitini.


Nielsen-Massey Peppermint Pattitini
Recipe created by Beth Nielsen, Chief Culinary Officer, for Nielsen-Massey Vanillas
2 oz. Vodka
2 oz. Half & half or cream
1 heaping Tablespoon hot cocoa mix (i.e. Ghiradelli Premium Hot Cocoa)
¼ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract
½ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract
½ teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Tahitian Extract (Madagascar or Mexican if preferred)
Ice
Chocolate syrup
Mini candy cane


Add all ingredients except the syrup in a shaker and shake vigorously. Pour into chilled martini glasses. Garnish with a swirl of chocolate syrup and candy cane.


* for a fun twist, swirl chocolate syrup in martini glasses, then place in freezer for 5-10 minutes
** garnish with a sprig of fresh peppermint for more holiday cheer


Serves 2


I have to say I am not a big drinker but this looked really interesting, festive and refreshing. So I made them, I don't know if I did it wrong, or this just wasn't our kind of drink but this one fell flat for us. It may be because I doubled the recipe and I could have used less Vodka and Peppermint in the mix. I also did not do the chocolate swirls very pretty and well... you can see the results:


I ended up adding more coco and milk to it and it was much better, yet it wasn't what we usually drink. But just because this one did not work for me did not mean I was ready to give up on this idea I decided to try my own idea's and this is what I came up with:


I decided to try the extracts in a different way.
I used them in an extra strong cup of coffee, I usually brew it but because I wanted it a little stronger and I did not want to brew a whole pot of really strong coffee I made a cup of instant. Then I took my coco blender ( you can use a blender, food processor or even a whisk if you want).



Ingredients:
1 c half & half 
1 c. extra strong coffee (3 tsp instant coffee to 1 c boiling water)
3 packs sugar substitute
not more then 1/16 tsp Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract (adjust to your tastes)
1 tsp Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract
1 tspNielsen-Massey Pure Tahitian Vanilla Extract (Madagascar or Mexican if preferred)
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
sprinkle of nutmeg.
I dumped all the ingredients in my coco blender (it whips it and heats it at the same time!) and turned it on. The coffee was nice and frothy, it tasted wonderful! Such a treat and if I wanted to make it an after dinner drink or have it as a party drink all I would need to do is add a tad bit of Kahlua. The peppermint makes this different and refreshing and the cinnamon and nutmeg keeps the peppermint from overpowering the drink.To me it was comforting.
My husband wasn't as fond of the coffee as I was, and even though I thought it was fantastic I decided to try another mix for him this time I made hot coco.
Ingredients:
a few drops no more then 1/16 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Tahitian Vanilla Extract (Madagascar or Mexican if preferred)
2 packs hot coco mix
2 candy canes
1 cup half & half
1 cup boiling water


Again I dumped all the ingredients into my hot coco mixer and turned it on. Because I toned down the peppermint this one was not so over powering as the coffee had been and my husband liked this one a lot more, The candy cane in the drink melted and added a tiny bit more peppermint to the drink. Because I used the  half & half  both drinks were nice and frothy like a coffee shop latte would be! These drinks are prefect for the holidays but for me with the harshest months of our winter coming, this will be a welcome morning treat on those frosty snowy February mornings for sure. Often my candy canes get tossed out and I know this year that won't happen.


If  I  was going to do a after dinner desert coffee, I would take a cup and put a dip or two of chocolate chip ice cream in it . In a small pitcher I would pour in coffee, and add a tiny bit of Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract , about 1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract and 1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Pure Tahitian Vanilla Extract. I would blend it well and pour it over the ice cream, there would be no need for additional sweeteners. Then I would top it with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. YUM! You could do this with or without the peppermint and it would be wonderful either way.


I usually restock my extracts at William Sinoma and they do carry some of Nielsen-Massey's Vanilla's.  I found a whole line of Neilsen-Massey products on Amazon. Or you can look here to find the distributor of your choice.


If you are feeling lucky enter to win some because Neilsen Massey has generously offered one of my readers the chance to win a bottle each of the three extracts:
2 oz Nielsen-Massey Pure Peppermint Extract (Pure Peppermint Extract made from the finest mint oils)
2 oz Nielsen-Massey Pure Chocolate Extract
2 oz Nielsen-Massey Pure Tahitian Vanilla Extract(Tahitian vanilla beans are known for their aromatic, fruity, cherry, anisic-like flavor. Tahitian Vanilla is hard to find) (This gift is about a $25.00 value!)
To enter all you need to do is give me your name and email address, the rest are optional so you don't have to do them if you don't want to. The more you do the better your chances of winning.


Warning! I do check and verify each and every entry. If you say you did something and you did not your entry will be void. It would be a shame for you to win and not be able to claim such a lovely gift.Also, please check the junk box in the email that you use to enter my giveaways it is easy to miss a notification when it accidentally is sent to the junk file.You can also add bloggityblog@hotmail.com to your safe list to ensure notification delivery.


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Disclaimer:Nielsen-Massey Vanillas provided me with free samples of these products to review,  I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose. Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review or sponsor a product giveaway in return for the free product.All opinions are my own.