AA Gifts & Baskets Idea Blog

Archive for November, 2011

Got a little train lover in your life? If so, a train birthday party can be really special for him or her. You can really play up the theme to make it unforgettable.

Do you have a working train near where you live? See if they offer rides for kids. Most times, any working trains do offer rides at special times. You may have to work your party around those times, but imagine the guests’ faces when they see that they are about to embark on a real train. If your train line allows you to bring a party on board, you’re all set. In some areas, Thomas the Train comes to town at different times of the year. See if you can book your party during those times.

If you don’t have a working train in your area, do you have a train museum? That’s the next best thing. If they have a party room, you can bring your whole group, cake and birthday gifts there and also get a tour of the museum. Short of that, you can have your party at home and still make it exciting and interesting.

Trains are your main theme, so you have to have a train cake. Ask your bakery to build one for you. Nowadays, bakeries do all sorts of 3D cakes, so see if you can get them to do at least the first car on a track.

Another cute idea is to make train cupcakes decorated like cars and then line them up on real toy train tracks across a table or in a circular track. Kids will love it.

If you have toy trains all over your house, make a working toy train track setup as your centerpiece. You can run the trains around the track while the party is going. Have trains as your party favors. Get little trains at a dollar store. As an activity, you can purchase pine wood trains and have the guests paint them and let them take them home as favors.

There’s so much more you can do to carry out the train theme. Have everyone come dressed in overalls and give out engineer hats, which you can find online by the dozen cheaply. Play Thomas the Train videos in a continuous loop in the background.

When it’s time to eat, have train shaped sandwiches. These are easy to do with a big train cookie cutter. Just make peanut butter and jelly or cheese sandwiches and then cut them with the cutter. You can, of course, do any kind of sandwich you like, but stick to ones that kids will be most likely to eat without complaint.

The more you put into your train party theme, the better it will all come off. Sing train songs and pretend you’re a big train by having everyone join together in a long line and jog around the room. Make train noises, see who can imitate a train whistle, and just generally make the train theme come alive by moving the party along in interesting ways.

A child who loves trains will go crazy for a train theme. And chances are, he or she will get many train related gifts, so be prepared for lots of oohing and ahhing as presents are opened.

Related Articles:

Thomas The Train Birthday Party Theme

Train Themed Shower Favors

If you’ve ever bitten into a decadent, molten, sweet and gooey truffle, you know how rich this favorite gourmet chocolate treat is. You may have thought you could only get them in specialty shops or at a fancy restaurant. But the truth is that you can make truffles at home very easily. In fact, it’s even simpler than some cookie recipes. You’ll start making them all the time and experimenting with flavors. You’ll give them as gifts and start dreaming about different toppings and versions.

Consider packing your truffles into Chinese takeout-type boxes that you can get in a craft store. They stand up straight and the sides will be stiff enough to ensure that they don’t get smashed on the way to the recipient. Anyone would love to receive these delicious dessert gifts!

Here are some recipes to try. You will laugh at how easy it is to make a treat that looks and tastes over-the-top gourmet.

Ghirardelli® Dark Chocolate Truffles (from allrecipes.com)

Prep Time: 5 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Ready In: 2 Hours 45 Minutes

Servings: 30

"These impressive candies are so easy to make, and are a stunning addition to a dessert tray."

INGREDIENTS:

1/3 cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

2 cups Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Bittersweet Chocolate Chips

1/3 cup Ghirardelli Unsweetened Cocoa

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer. Add the butter and stir until melted. Add the chocolate chips. Stir until completely melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and pour into a shallow bowl.

2. Cool, cover, and refrigerate the mixture until firm, at least 2 hours.

3. Using a melon baller or small spoon, roll the mixture into 1-inch balls. Roll each ball in the cocoa or nuts. Enjoy immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Chocolate Truffle Recipe (from famousfrenchdesserts.com)

Truffes au Chocolat… Divine Pleasure Source!!! This is the basic recipe; you will find all variations at the end of the recipe.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients (for about 1.5 pounds):

1 cup Crème Fraîche (or heavy cream)

14 oz. Dark Chocolate (use very high quality, 70% cocoa, chocolate - or very high quality unsweetened baking chocolate)

8 oz. Additional Dark Chocolate

1 1/2 cups Cocoa Powder (the highest quality you can find)

3 tbsp. Butter (optional)

How to Make It:

Batter (Ganache):

1. Break chocolate into small pieces and put in a large bowl.

2. Bring cream slowly to a light boil.

3. Pour boiling cream over chocolate and keep stirring until all the chocolate has melted and the batter is homogenous.

4. If you want to add butter, do so now, before the batter cools, and thickens.

This batter is called ganache and is the base for all French truffle recipes!

When the ganache is warm, it is very creamy. You can thicken it

1. by whisking it (the oxygen causes it to thicken) or

2. by putting it in the refrigerator.

You want the ganache to be just thick enough to easily form the truffle balls…

Forming Truffles:

1. Using two spoons (or a baking sac) form even and round balls. Place them on parchment or wax paper.

2. Melt the rest of the chocolate in a bain-marie (double-boiler).

3. Dip each ball in the melted chocolate and then roll it in the cocoa powder.

Voilà!

Do you know the difference between spaghetti and vermicelli? How about ziti and penne? Fettuccini and fettucelli? They do have one thing in common; they are simply delicious. But often, the type of pasta you choose has a big impact on the quality of the dish you serve. It is important to complement the shape of the pasta and the texture and taste of the sauce. This can be hard because there are hundreds of different choices! You don’t have to stick to the old favorites – macaroni and cheese or spaghetti and marinara sauce. Try something new! Here are some of the most popular pasta shapes defined.

There are more than five hundred different pasta shapes. Some, like spaghetti, are much more common than others, but if you have wanted to try something different, do it. There are no strict rules regarding pasta, and experimentation can do wonders for your palette. One of the things to consider, though, is the size and shape of your pasta compared to the type of sauce you will be using.

For instance, if you have a very thick, hearty meat sauce, you want a noodle that can hold its own! Thicker pastas like fettuccine (which is broad and flat) and tagliatelle (which is a bit thinner than fettuccine) will hold up nicely. If you are making a sauce with meat or chunky vegetables, also consider:

• Fusilli. This is “corkscrew” pasta. All those twists and turns are perfect for catching chunky sauces.

• Farfalle. This bowtie pasta is perfect for thick sauces. It is a small but sturdy noodle.

• Penne. These are cylindrical and hollow in the center.

• Rigatoni. This is like penne’s big brother. This tubular pasta is too small to be stuffed, but it makes a hearty addition to meals, especially baked dishes.

• Rotini. The spiral shapes make these perfect for holding bits of sauce, veggies, meats, and cheeses.

• Pipe rigate. This is hollow and curved, resembling a snail shell. A smaller version, pipette rigate, is also good for chunky sauces.

• Stuffed shells, like manicotti. These make a terrific complement to any thick sauce.

Look for a noodle that is thick enough to be used with your chunky sauce without being overwhelmed. Textures and shapes, like twists and spirals, are great for scooping up the delicious sauce. Take a look through the pasta aisle at the grocery store and see what fits the bill, or the sauce.

Some pastas are better suited to oil-based sauces, rather than tomato-based sauces. Linguine, spaghetti, and tagliatelle work very well with olive-oil sauces that coat the pasta without drowning and creating a greasy mess. These types of pastas – especially when fresh – are wonderful served with a simple olive oil and herb sauce or pesto. Stuffed pastas, like ravioli or tortellini, are also delicious with an oil or butter based sauce.

Finer, more delicate pastas call for an equally delicate sauce. Angel hair, for instance, which is much thinner than spaghetti, is perfectly paired with simple sauce made with diced tomatoes, olive oil, and basil. This type of pasta also works well with seafood. For instance, use sea scallops, lemon juice, butter, parsley, and fresh basil for a terrific and very easy to prepare meal.

In general, use a thicker pasta when you have a thicker sauce, and a thinner pasta when you have a lighter sauce. When you are making things like soups or salads, find the shape and size that appeals to you and will help you capture the perfect flavor with each bite. There is no possible way to do pasta wrong; experiment with different shapes. You’ll be glad you did, and you will undoubtedly come upon a fabulous combination that becomes your new favorite.

When you put together an italian gift basket, be sure to put in different types of pasta and sauces. You could even put in a recipe or two with suggestions for the types of pastas and sauces you chose.