The Kitchen

Food for thought.

loganshark — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 03:24:46 +0000

The Holidays have come and gone and here at International Organics we couldn’t be more grateful for your continued support! If, for any reason, we did not fully meet your expectations in 2009, our sincerest apologies! We will continue to work hard to improve our service and products. As the new year brings a time to reflect, it also brings a time to move forward and we welcome this new year with great anticipation for the road ahead! We will soon be “trimming down” our website and product line to focus and centralize on our Conuco Reserve cocoa, as well as adding some other great cocoa products! We will be focusing our attention on the staple of our business and continue to bring you the superior cocoa you have come to expect. International Organics remains firm on our Fair Trade policies, and we will only deliver you products from Farmers who treat their workers and the environment with respect - It is our promise to you. Thank you again and don’t forget if you like the social networking scene please follow us on Twitter and Facebook!

We hope this new year bring you peace and happiness in everything you do! We look forward to serving you in 2010!

Peace and love,

Annemarie & the team at International Organics.

Sweet Fall Is Here…

loganshark — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:24:00 +0000

It’s official… fall is upon us. For me, living in the mountains of Colorado, that means watching a valley of aspens surrender the green of summer to gorgeous shades of gold. This year brought September snow. It is the time of year leaves fall to lay seed for the spring. The Earth drops into a quieter cycle. The days and nights share equal hours. Animals finish gathering in preparation for the winter.

We, too, naturally find ourselves preparing for the change of seasons. We dig out comfy sweaters, cherish those first days of socks and boots, wonder where the heck we hid our beanies. Our bodies begin to crave the foods of the season, warm soups and stews, root vegetables that thrive in these conditions, sweet potatoes, hearty greens and heirloom squash.

We instinctively want to slow down, close in a bit. Start the day with a steaming bowl of oatmeal, drink tea wrapped in blankets, bake cookies. To some it may seem decadent, or even lazy, but I say it is delicious nourishment! Bake those cookies! Snuggle on the couch under a blanket and read the book you’ve been meaning to. Gather and store your energy for the winter ahead, no matter what climate you find yourself in.

International Organics would like to help with your journey to cozy comfort with any of our Sonoma Syrups and Agave Nectars. Our quest for pure, organic nourishment can still be sweet. Try these hand crafted, family owned products to sweeten your oatmeals, teas, coffees and your baking adventure!

RISE UP!

loganshark — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 22:02:09 +0000

Happy Friday!

Global Mala Peace Project is this weekend! In conjunction with UN World Peace Day and the upcoming Fall Equinox, yogis, artists, humans everywhere are participating in a collective, global practice. This could be 108 minutes of asana, kirtan, meditation.

Why 108? The number plays a significant role in the Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism, yoga and dharma practices. For more information, visit: http://www.hknet.org.nz/108meaning.html

To find where in your community to find a Global Mala gathering, visit: globalmala.org

Join in this experiment of raising global awareness. Raise the vibration!

Peace

Last Week of Summer

admin — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 19:06:33 +0000

The autumnal equinox is almost here! September 22 at 5:19 pm EDT, to be exact (US Naval Observatory).

Grab your friends and toast to these last few days of summer with margaritas… clean, refreshing agave margaritas! Beautiful, pure, 100% agave tequila is something to be sipped and savored, much like a fine scotch.

The secret to concocting the perfect margarita is: keep it simple! Use the juices of fresh fruits and pure, organic agave nectar. Not is only agave nectar that ethereal match to tequila that nature intended, it is a sweet that dissolves in cold water and is vegan friendly.

1 1/2 oz 100% Agave tequila
1/2 oz Pure Organic Light Agave
juice of one small lime
fresh squeeze of orange
splash of spring water

Shake well and serve over ice.

To salt a rim, pour sea or kosher salt on a small plate. Moisten the rim of your glass with a fresh lime wedge. Roll the rim (or half) in the salt. To add some flare, add a little black pepper, cumin or cayenne to your salt.

Raise your glass and say “adios” to summer!

SPECIAL OFFER!!!!!! Buy 1 Raw, Organic Agave Nectar

from International Organics, get one FREE!

That’s a lot of margaritas!

But if you can hang on to some… delicious, raw, organic agave nectar sweetens hot teas and yummy oatmeals on brisk fall mornings.

For details on the health benefits of agave nectar and pricing, visit:

http://international-organics.com/category/agave.html

Seasonal Ingredients

loganshark — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 22:46:01 +0000

Happy Monday!

Here is something cool I found while poking around the world wide web. It is a seasonal ingredient map from epicurious.com. Choose a month and where you live and you will find a list of foods that are grown in your area in that season. There are also links to recipes.

www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/seasonalcooking/farmtotable/seasonalingredientmap

Eating seasonally allows for our bodies to receive the nutrients it is craving as the earth cycles through warm, wet, cold and dry. An excellent book on the subject is John Douillard’s 3-Season Diet. Dr. Douillard is a leading authority on Ayurvedic medicine based in Boulder, CO.

www.lifespa.com/product.aspx?prod_id=134

The Cocoa Bean Process

loganshark — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 16:53:14 +0000

Here is a video that explains in the most simplistic way, (the way only a kids show can do it) about the process of making chocolate and the fermented cacao bean. Remember our cacao beans after drying in the warm sunny Caribbean sun are then packaged and shipped to you guys, keeping it a raw food.

Nothing Boring About Vanilla

loganshark — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:33:29 +0000

Did you know that the actual vanilla pod has more flavor than the seeds? When using the pod as flavor in liquids, it’s best to slice the pod lengthwise to expose more surface area… more flavor.
Try adding a pod of our Tahitian or Madagascar Bourbon vanilla to your next batch of lemonade for a sweet dimension.

But don’t toss it when the pitcher’s empty. The beans can be rinsed, dried and used again. You can add it to a sugar jar, another beverage or try grinding the beans and using them in ice cream and cookies.

My New Favorite

loganshark — Sat, 11 Jul 2009 18:39:01 +0000

It’s summer! Time for juicy cocktails, sunny barbecues and tons of fresh fruit. Looking for something that screamed summer in the inventory, I grabbed a bottle of our Sonoma Pomegranate Syrup and went to town. You can do breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert and drinks! Yes, all in one day may be pomegranate overload, but you catch my drift. Besides a full day with a super fruit loaded with antioxidants, niacin, folic acid and vitamins C, B3, B6 and B12 can’t be all that bad…

Breakfast: Stir a teaspoon or two into yogurt and serve with fresh fruit; can also be used as a syrup on pancakes and waffles.

Lunch: Substitute Sonoma Pomegranate Syrup for honey in your favorite vinaigrette recipe. Grab some greens, chopped vegetables and enjoy a cool summer salad. Sprinkle with fresh pomegranate seeds for an extra burst of juice and crunch.

Dinner: Brush on pork chops, beef, or tofu and fire up the grill. Is an excellent marinade for shrimp and fish as well when mixed with lemon juice and olive oil. As a side, soften Swiss Chard with a tablespoon of Sonoma Pomegranate Syrup, a small onion and 1-2 cloves of garlic in olive oil over medium heat. As it softens add a 1/4 cup of dry white wine.

Dessert: Sonoma Pomegranate Syrup is a great topping for sorbets and french vanilla ice cream.

Cocktails: Add a few drops to the bottom of a flute and top with Prosecco or your favorite sparkling wine. Use fresh pomegranate seeds or strawberry as a garnish. Or shake up about a 1/2 ounce syrup and 1 1/2 ounces of vodka with ice and you have a smashing summer sipper. Add a sprig of fresh mint or a few basil leaves to garnish.

Have fun!

Yet Another Reason to Go Organic

Mike — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 06:24:01 +0000

Here’s another really cool blog for you all on the health and well-being of a lifestyle centered around organic products: Blorganics.

Does Fair Trade Mean Environmentally Sustainable?

Mike — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 14:28:36 +0000

Almost every morning my wake-up ritual is the same. I reluctantly rise out of bed, make the concious decision to bypass the snooze option on my alarm, fumble for my glasses and make a bee-line to the percolator to brew up a life-saving dose of our Cafe Ribera organic coffee (which still amazes me by it’s subtle cocoa flavor, how does that squeeze in there?). Then, I check my email and browse my favorite websites for news and events.

A staple of my morning peruse is Slate.com. Slate is an internet news hybrid of my two favorite traditional news sources National Public Radio, and the Washington Post. Today, the weekly environmental column “The Green Lantern” examined the environmental sustainability claim of the Fair Trade Certification program in it’s article Is Fair Trade Green?

The article thoroughly examined the actual requirements for fair trade certification, compared to what most consumers see as the implications of such a certification. It also does a good job of showing which types of products should be bought locally here in the U.S. instead of having them air freighted in from far off places, increasing their carbon footprint. If you’re shopping for “fair trade” products, kudos to you! You are a socially responsible consumer and should be applauded. You should also know what to look out for in your quest to become a truly sustainable consumer.

Fair trade certification really focuses on fair labor practices, not necessarily environmentally sustainable practices. Our Cafe Ribera and Conuco Reserve Fair Trade cocoa and cacao beans are not only fair trade certified, but also USDA certified organic. Fair Trade certification does not require products to be organic, though it endorses the practice. Make sure that your products are also certified organic; only USDA organic certification ensures that the farms practice environmentally sustainable farming techniques in addition to whatever fair labor certification they might have.