December 17, 2015

MARSHMALLOW CANDY CANE POPCORN

December 17, 2015/ Alexandra Evjen

This post is sponsored by Coca-Cola.

Marshmallows, white chocolate and candy canes smothered all over your popcorn. Christmas Elves eat this for dinner, and I make this recipe as part of my perfect Christmas movie night (see my last post for my top FREE holiday movies).

It's a festive recipe that your kids will always talk about, and it's also a great treat to make for gifts. Bundle it up in a Coca-Cola tin, add a movie gift card and a bottle of Coca-Cola and you have yourself the perfect gift basket.

MARSHMALLOW CANDY CANE POPCORN
by Nicky Vender

3/4 cup butter
8 oz mini marshmallows
1 cup white chocolate chips
4 candy canes, crushed
Red and green sprinkles
2 bags plain popcorn, popped (about 26 cups

In a large dutch oven or pot, melt butter over medium low heat. Then add marshmallows and stir until melted. Add white chocolate chips and stir until melted. Remove from heat. Pour popcorn into pan and stir gently until pieces are evenly coated. Then add the crushed candy canes and the red and green sprinkles before stirring a final time. (If you desire a stronger candy cane flavor, add a few drops of peppermint extract to the marshmallows while melting). Enjoy warm or spread out on parchment paper to cool and then place in a tin for later.

Photos by Melissa Jill Photography

September 30, 2015

Styling Food for Pinterest - Do's and Don'ts

September 30, 2015/ Alexandra Evjen

Just because a picture is super successful on Instagram doesn't mean it will be engaging on Pinterest, and just because a picture is really pretty doesn't mean that it will be clicked on. When creating content for the web you always have to keep in mind a couple of things: 1) Where is this content going to live? 2) Will people click on the image? We ultimately want to capture viewers so that our voices can be heard above the noise, but too often I see people creating pretty things thinking that's enough to engage views. The reality is there's a lot of pretty out there to compete with, and not all of it gets the views it may deserve.

I think many people have the taste level and eye to style a pretty photo, but knowing what's pretty and what drives traffic are two different things. I see many photos on Pinterest that are drop dead gorgeous, but will I repin all of them? No. And will I click to view the photo on a blog? An even slimmer chance, unfortunately. So, what makes an image on Pinterest engaging and/or clickable? That's the big question! In order to answer this big question we need to break things down by subject. Let's start with food. (I'll tackle fashion next!)

I did a little experiment for you guys and styled the same latte recipe three different ways. I kept certain elements the same, however.

Controls: Latte recipe Light Location Pinned to the same board

Variables: Cups Placement Text placement Font Pin description

Can you guess which photo performed the best? The answer surprised me at first, but it makes sense as to why. Latte A received the least amount of traffic with only 39,000+ impressions and only 127 clicks. Latte B received 58,000+ impressions with 197 clicks, and lastly, Latte C (the winner) received 63,000+ impressions with 213 clicks.

Why is this the case? When styling food people want to be up close and personal with the subject. Being able to see the drink through the glass matters. Photo C also has the best view of the donut even though that is not the star of the show. The donut adds an additional enticing factor for sure, so think about what complementary foods or ingredients can be added to your shots. Also, the text on this pin is the most readable, and I have the color black to thank for that.

Are all of these photos pretty? Yes, you an even view more photos from this post here to see what I mean. Readable text and being SUPER close to the subject your shooting so you can almost taste the latte matters as much as good light and photography.

For more Pinterest advice, check out these posts:

Under the Radar Pinners

How to Use Group Boards Effectively

How to Brand Your Business on Pinterest

September 26, 2015

Spooky Witches' Fingers Halloween Recipe

September 26, 2015/ Leah Tsonsis

With the first day of fall already behind us, Halloween is quickly approaching. Instead of bombarding you with another sweet, pumpkin-flavored recipe of some sort, I wanted to share with you a healthier fall recipe that's just as fun. My friends over at Spork Foods have crafted these spooky pistachio witches' fingers which would make a perfect healthy Halloween party snack for everyone to enjoy! Pistachio Chewy Bite Witches’ Fingers

Yields 6

Ingredients:

6 Setton Farms Pistachio Chewy Bites

1/4 cup almond milk

1/2 cup non-dairy dark chocolate chips

Dash sea salt

12 dried cranberries

1/2 cup Setton Farms Roasted Pistachio Kernels, finely ground

Directions:

Unwrap all chewy bites and cut each chewy bite in half lengthwise. Gently press the two halves together, with the stickiest sides facing each other, creating one long strip. If desired, to create thumb and pinky finger, leave two halves short. Set aside.

Place chocolate chips in a heat-proof bowl.

In a small pan, bring almond milk to a boil. Pour over chocolate chips and let sit for about 20 seconds to melt chocolate. Add sea salt. Whisk until smooth.

Dip long Pistachio Chewy Bite strips into chocolate mixture and then sprinkle or roll in pistachios immediately. Place on wax paper lined plate and top each strip with 2 overlapping dried cranberries at the tip.

Set aside for about 20 minutes to firm up.

Recipe created by Spork Foods.

September 02, 2015

Pumpkin Tea Latte

September 02, 2015/ Alexandra Evjen

Raise your hand if you wait every year for "pumpkin spice latte" season...(BOTH HANDS RAISED HIGH). I love the flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon and nutmeg together. What if I told you that you could make that yummy-goodness in the comfort of your home and save a ton of money this fall? What if I told you I know how to make it taste even better without a ton of caffeine? Well, thanks to Allison DeVane, creator of Teaspressa, I can! Allison is a genius and a passionate tea lover that started her revolutionary business, Teaspressa, only about six months ago. Before then she would only make tea lattes for her family. Now, she has her own loose leaf tea blends, a tea shop in downtown Phoenix at DeSoto Central Market and will be launching a line of scented candles. Man, I have been in business for five years, and I'm blown away at how motivated and talented Allison is.

Well, without further delay, here is a yummy recipe for you to try at home.

PUMPKIN PEARL TEA LATTE 3 Servings

Ingredients:

- 1.5 cup of

Cape Town Teaspressa shots

- .5 TSP Pumpkin Pie Spice

- 2 TSP Pumpkin Puree

- 1.5 TBS White Chocolate Chips

- 1.5 cup of milk

Optional Ingredients:

- Whipped Cream

- Cinnamon for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Make Cape Town Teaspressa shot using a

moka pot

. You can easily find one at

Target for only $16

. (You're basically going to make a concentrated shot of tea verses brewing tea like normal. If using a 6 cup pot you'll want to load your pot with 2 TBSP of Capetown Signature Blend Tea. For first time users of the moka pots,

here are more detailed instructions to help)

. Fill the bottom portion of your moka pot with water, assemble the moka pot, heat on the stove over high heat until liquids are boiling and steam is piping. Remove the moka pot from the stove and evenly pour shots over 3 coffee cups.

2. In a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, heat pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice to a low simmer. Slowly whisk in milk.

3. While the mixture is heating up, microwave the white chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl for 20 second at medium microwave power (a.k.a. 50 percent power) to avoid overheating and stir.

4. Slowly whisk white chocolate into milk mixture and bring to a low simmer. Then remove from heat.

5. Transfer milk mixture to a blender or food processor and pulse several times until mixture is foamy and frothy.

6. Pour hot milk mixture over tea in each cup. Garnish with whipped cream and/or cinnamon!

7. Enjoy with a scrumptious cardamon and sugar donut from

Welcome Chicken and Donuts.

Photos by

Gina Meola

and Styled by Alex Evjen,

AVE Styles

August 28, 2015

The Most Stylish Yogurt

August 28, 2015/ Alexandra Evjen

Breakfast, lunch and dinner - I have eaten yogurt for every meal, especially since I have been pregnant. It's almost as if I can't get enough dairy and calcium. Lately, I have been eating yogurt even for dessert thanks to Stonyfield Farm's latest creation Oh My Yog triple layer organic yogurt with cream and fruit at the bottom. MMMM! It's the prettiest yogurt I've ever eaten.

We all know that stripes are in style, and the color blocked, striped packaging drew me to this tasty treat. Yes, I'm known to buy just because of packaging. I'm a stylist. What can I say? haha. Then you take a bite and you realize this is the most on trend yogurt around with it's ombre color effect. To celebrate this stylish cup of heaven, I've partnered with Stonyfield Farm to share beautiful ombre and stripe inspiration on Pinterest. You can follow along with us here https://www.pinterest.com/alexandraevjen/stripes-ombre-oh-my-yog/.

My favorite flavors are Wild Quebec Blueberry, Pacific Coast Strawberry, Gingered Pear. I love adding granola to them or even crumbling up ginger cookies and putting them on top of my pear yogurt for dessert. You can find your next stylish dessert or breakfast at your local Whole Foods or Sprouts. Tell me which flavor is your favorite!