Holiday Gift Guide: Gifts-to-Go & Stocking Stuffers

{Easy "Gift-to-Go" Ideas}

{Books are always great gifts & easy to pick up & give too! 
This book by legendary pastry chef, Sarabeth Levine, will inspire any home chef}

{Also a great gift to-go for a home cook - a lovely linen apron packaged
in an over-size mason jar that also includes recipe cards & a
"heritage" tag to add the initials of family cooks that inspire}

{This beautifully packaged 9.5oz Roland Pine scented Soy Candle
needs no gift wrap & is the perfect fragrance for the season!}

{These Boxed Shea Butter Hand Creme's are beautifully
packaged too & ready for instant gift giving!}

{Last Minute Stocking Stuffer Ideas}

{Travel Tin Holiday Soy Candles; Mini Shea Butter Lotions in a variety of fragrances; Single Hot Cocoa Mixes; Hand-painted large Peppermint Patties from Moonstruck Chocolate}

Welcome to the 2011 Holiday Season at Bella Vita!

This year we wanted to help make the holiday season a little easier and full of inspiration so we decided to introduce our Holiday Gift Guide to give you easy gift giving ideas for all of those special people in your life.  Each Friday through the 23rd of December, we will post a sampling of gift giving ideas to inspire you and hopefully help you accomplish your gift list with ease.  We are always happy to help you find that right gift for that right person, so come by and let us help you make this Holiday Season easy, bright, & joyful! 

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Foodies

{Barefoot Contessa's "How Easy is That?' Cookbook; A Trio of Extracts - Almond,

Pure Vanilla, & Lemon; McEvoy Ranch's Tuscan Table Olives with an Olive Strainer;

Pasolivo's Lime Olive Oil}

Welcome to the 2011 Holiday Season at Bella Vita!

This year we wanted to help make the holiday season a little easier and full of inspiration so we decided to introduce our Holiday Gift Guide to give you easy gift giving ideas for all of those special people in your life.  Each Friday through the 23rd of December, we will post a sampling of gift giving ideas to inspire you and hopefully help you accomplish your gift list with ease.  We are always happy to help you find that right gift for that right person, so come by and let us help you make this Holiday Season easy, bright, & joyful! 

Holiday Gift Guide: For Teachers

{Frankincense & Myrrh Soy Candle in a beautifully decorative tin; Tub Teas for

a relaxing & soothing bath; Washed Cotton Hand & Body Cream; Linen & Room

Spray available in Lavender, Lemon Verbena, & Fresh Lilac}

Welcome to the 2011 Holiday Season at Bella Vita!

This year we wanted to help make the holiday season a little easier and full of inspiration so we decided to introduce our Holiday Gift Guide to give you easy gift giving ideas for all of those special people in your life.  Each Friday through the 23rd of December, we will post a sampling of gift giving ideas to inspire you and hopefully help you accomplish your gift list with ease.  We are always happy to help you find that right gift for that right person, so come by and let us help you make this Holiday Season easy, bright, & joyful! 

Holiday Gift Guide: For the Hostess

{A Set of 6 festive Cocktail Napkins; "The Cheese Plate" Book for everything you could ever want to know about cheese; Helliemae's Salted Caramel Sauce + 1/2 lb. box of Salt Caramels; Simpatico's No. 29 Holiday Scented Diffuser}

  

Welcome to the 2011 Holiday Season at Bella Vita!
This year we wanted to help make the holiday season a little easier and full of inspiration so we decided to introduce our Holiday Gift Guide to give you easy gift giving ideas for all of those special people in your life.  Each Friday through the 23rd of December, we will post a sampling of gift giving ideas to inspire you and hopefully help you accomplish your gift list with ease.  We are always happy to help you find that right gift for that right person, so come by and let us help you make this Holiday Season easy, bright, & joyful! 

My Favorite Pumpkin Recipes

Tis the season for pumpkins!  And, with Thanksgiving coming up this week, the pumpkin-eating season really comes on full force. So I thought I would share 2 of my favorite pumpkin recipes that are great for nibbling on at home, sharing with guests, or taking to a fall gathering.  Enjoy!


Pumpkin Nut Bread
makes 1 loaf

2 cups sifted flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup solid pack pumpkin (pumpkin puree not pie filling)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1/4 cup softened butter
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup milk chocolate chips

Sift together the first 6 ingredients.  Combine the pumpkin, sugar, milk, & eggs in a mixing bowl.  Add the dry ingredients & softened butter; mix until well blended.  Stir in nuts & milk chocolate chips.  Spread in a well greased 9x5x3" loaf pan (or use 3 mini loaf pans for easy gifting!).  Bake in a 350-degree oven for 45-55 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Makes 1 loaf or 3 mini loafs.  Bread may be frozen.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies
makes about 3 dozen cookies

1/2 cup butter
1-1/2 cups sugar
1 egg
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk chocolate chips

Mix butter, sugar, egg, pumpkin, & vanilla with a mixer until fluffy.  In a separate bowl combine well flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon, & salt.  Combine flour mixture with pumpkin mixture.  Mix well.  Add milk chocolate chips.  Drop by tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake in a 350-degree oven for about 15 minutes.

Holiday Open House

Join us for our

Annual Holiday Open House

Friday, Nov. 4 from 10am-6pm

Saturday, Nov. 5 from 10am-5pm

We will be featuring all the BEST of the Holiday Season with lots of ornaments, decor, gifts, and stocking stuffers.  We will also be sampling our chocolate, salted caramels, and jams too!  And, on Saturday from 10-12, we are honored to have Helliemae's Salt Caramels here sampling her delicious Salted Caramel Sauce and her famous Salt Caramels as well.  Plan to join us for a festive weekend of holiday cheer & inspiration!

No Trick, Just a Treat

The best part of Halloween to me is all of the candy that is left over after all the little trick-or-treaters have finished their gig for the night.  I always like to buy the Halloween candy that I know I will enjoy afterwards because it is inevitable that you will get way too much and have far more than you would like to have left over after it is all said and done.  Living in our little mountain community over the years, I've learned pretty quickly that the trick-or-treaters spend most of their Halloween evening on Main Street in a much safer and funner environment so our home chocolate supply for Halloween ends up being pretty much zilch!  And, I don't know why but I always find myself desperately wanting some chocolate throughout the Halloween weekend.  Fortunately for me, I get to run this little shop of mine where I am surrounded by chocolate on a daily basis.  And, not just any chocolate, but yummy, hand-made artisan chocolates.  We are a proud retailer of Moonstruck Chocolate - an artisan Chocolatier based in Portland, Oregon, where they handcraft each piece using only the finest ingredients. They pair their own decadent chocolate with fresh flavors found in the Pacific Northwest and beyond, and then hand-decorate each piece with intricate care.  My favorite right now is their new Sea Salt Pecan Clusters that are available in both Milk Chocolate & Dark Chocolate.  The balance of salt, sweet, and just a slight richness is just magical! 

My other favorite this time of year is their absolutely delicious hot cocoas.  The cocoas come in a decadent rich Dark Chocolate, Mayan Chocolate (think almond & cinnamon flavors), and of course their fabulous Classic Cocoa.  The cocoas are available in a 9.5oz tin or in individual single packets.  And, the absolute best way to enjoy the cocoas is to mix them with at least 2% milk, or if you have whole milk lounging in your fridge, use that.  It is a wonderful treat on a chilly fall or winter afternoon. 

So, our little "treat" this Halloween weekend is for you to indulge in some fabulously delicious, super-special chocolate.  Come visit us on Saturday, October 29 or Monday, October 31 (or you can come on both days) and we will take 20% off any chocolate you purchase (includes cocoas, chocolate bars, and specialty chocolates).  

Happy Halloween from us to you - have fun, eat good chocolate, & be safe!